Everyone followed the fairytale: The handsome kid, a born athlete, rises to stardom, gets the championships, the money, the shoes. It was a superhero story brought to life – and throughout the meteoric rise, Michael Jordan’s dad, James, was always by his side. Their identities are forever linked: even in death James was often described not by name, but as “Michael Jordan’s dad.” But who was James independent of his son and how would their link haunt his death? 

Photo credit: North Carolina Collection, University of North Carolina Library at Chapel Hill