Dennis Rodman is a famous former NBA player, who has been a lightning rod for controversy. Regardless of your opinion on Rodman, you cannot deny that he has led an amazing life. The fabled life of Dennis Rodman has been a Forrest Gump-like series of captivating events. Here are ten things Dennis has done that we could only imagine in our wildest dreams.
He both defeated and helped Michael Jordan
Dennis Rodman is one of the greatest defensive players in NBA history. In the late 80s and early 90s, Rodman was a part of a Detroit Pistons team known as the “Bad Boys”. The team defeated Jordan’s Bulls in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals in 1989 and 1990 on the way to championships. Later in his career, Rodman was traded to Jordan’s Bulls. The Spurs must have been sick of Rodman’s antics because they traded him to the Bulls for the aging center Will Perdue. Rodman went on to help the Bulls win three more NBA titles.
He ran wild in the NBA
Rodman was one of those players that was tough if he played for you and dirty if he played against you. He not only occasionally head-butted opposing players but also an official and a mascot. Rodman famously kicked a cameraman because Rodman felt he was too close to the action. It felt like it wasn’t a matter of if Rodman would foul out, but when. Rodman fouling out became an event because he would give his jersey to a fan on his way out. He also wasn’t one to bite his tongue and often talked trash. My favorite incident is when Rodman publicly said Larry Bird was overrated because he is white.
He dated A-listers
Rodman’s dating history scores a solid 7 on the Jeter scale. Rodman had a two-month fling in 1994 with Madonna. It is said that Rodman was highly influenced by the Queen of Pop because of her enormous star power. Rodman married model Carmen Electra in November of 1998. The two were wed at the Little Chapel of the Flowers in Las Vegas. Electra recalls being awoken in a hotel room by Michael Jordan and naughty escapades in the Bull’s Berto Center. Rodman was also linked to Toni Braxton and Vivica A. Fox. However, both women say that their relationships with Rodman were merely promotional appearances at award shows.
He married himself
This is easily one of the defining moments in the fabled life of Dennis Rodman. As part of a promotional tour for his book, Bad As I Wanna Be, Rodman married himself at a New York Barnes and Noble. He arrived in a horse-drawn carriage, escorted by women dressed in tuxedos and was wearing a custom wedding dress. The publicity stunt must have worked because he made millions and the book hit #1 on the New York Times bestseller list.
He Stopped Chicago Traffic
In 1996 Rodman appeared in a 32-foot mural on the side of a building on the busy Kennedy Expressway. It was awesome because the artist updated the color of Rodman’s hair whenever he changed his hairstyle in real life. The spectacle distracted motorists causing delays and accidents. It also upset Rodman’s teammates who were inconvenienced by the delays. Therefore it was quickly removed.
He starred in an action movie with Jean-Claude Van Damme
Jean-Claude Van Damme was one of the three big action movie stars of the 80s and 90s. The action star partnered with Rodman for the 1997 movie “Double Team”. In the film, Rodman helps Van Damme save his wife from the villainous Mickey Rourke. Rodman’s performance earned him a Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actor. Rodman also joined R&B vocalist Crystal Waters on the song “Just a Freak” for the film’s soundtrack.
He joined the nWo
As part of Rodman’s Double Team publicity tour, he joined pro wrestling’s New World Order. Hulk Hogan recruited Rodman during a video package that ran on the March 10th, 1997 episode of Monday Nitro. Rodman seemed at home in the spectacle of pro wrestling. He famously blew off a mandatory film session during the 1998 NBA Finals in order to attack DDP at the WCW event in Detroit. A month after Rodman’s Bulls defeated Karl Malone’s Jazz, the feud continued in the wrestling ring. Rodman and Hulk Hogan teamed up to defeat Karl Malone and Diamond Dallas Page at the 1998 Bash at the Beach. There are legends about what happened on Rodman’s tour bus after the show.
Became friends with a famous dictator
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is a huge Chicago Bulls fan. Un invited Rodman to North Korea apparently after Michael Jordan declined. Rodman unwittingly went to the country with the Harlem Globetrotters believing it was an autograph session. Rodman ended up singing drunken Karaoke with the dictator. It must have been a surreal scene particularly because the theme from Dallas was the only song the North Koreans played. Since the trip, Rodman only carries flip burner phones because of constant government surveillance.
Became friends with a famous director
Dennis Rodman was a good friend of Penny Marshall of “Laverne & Shirley” fame. The “Big” and “A League of Their Own” director met Rodman courtside while he was playing for the Chicago Bulls. Rodman and Marshall even once spent Thanksgiving together. Penny Marshall had been working on a Dennis Rodman documentary since 2012. She reportedly was working on the project the morning she died.
He was on a game show hosted by a future President
Dennis Rodman appeared on two seasons of television’s The Apprentice with Donald Trump.
The future President of the United States fired Rodman twice on the show. Since the show, their relationship seems turbulent because Trump has both praised and lambasted Rodman on social media.
