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Yes, Lakers Legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Is Writing For Veronica Mars
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar speaks onstage at the Dolby Theatre on Nov. 15, 2015 in Hollywood. (Photo by Rachel Murray/Getty Images for Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz)
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the 71-year-old basketball legend, is part of the writing team for the Veronica Mars reboot.
People weren't sure what to make of the news when showrunner Rob Thomas tweeted the news earlier this week, but it is completely real. Deborah Morales, Abdul-Jabbar's manager, confirmed to LAist that her client is helping reimagine the detective show for Hulu. Wait... what... how?!
Thomas connected with the basketball star after Abdul-Jabbr wrote a story praising the his young adult novel Slave Day. Thomas asked him to write the foreword for a reprint of the book and offered him a role as a city councilman on the next season of iZombie.
From there, the relationship grew. Thomas worked as the showrunner on an undisclosed program that Abdul-Jabbar was developing. He was so impressed with Abdul-Jabbar that he hired him and his writing partner, Raymond Obstfeld, to write for the new Veronica Mars.
Thomas called Abdul-Jabbar brilliant in a tweet announcing the hire:
The #VeronicaMars writing staff!@DavidWalpert, @RickFoxTheActor, @rugz19, @kaj33 & Raymond Obstfeld.
— Rob Thomas (@RobThomas) September 25, 2018
And yes, if you’re brilliant and give yourself a #PartyDown Twitter handle, I'll hire you. Or, you could be the NBA’s all time leading scorer, but you must still be brilliant. pic.twitter.com/4Qk2uqcKey
.yes
— Rob Thomas (@RobThomas) September 25, 2018
It may seem like an odd choice, but Abdul-Jabbar's got skills that extend far beyond the court.
He has written non-fiction books about World War II and the Harlem Renaissance as well as a novel about Sherlock Holmes' brother, Mycroft. That should prove good background for the mysteries that drive Veronica Mars.
For those who don't know Veronica Mars, fire up your streaming device. This is the show that gave Kristen Bell her first major role so without it, we might not have the Good Place, heaven forbid. Over three seasons, Veronica Mars told the story of a teenage graduated a high school P.I. to college fans.
Fans called themselves "Marshmallows," a reference to Mars's tough exterior and sensitive, gooey center. It was such a hit among its devotees that it spawned one of the highest-profile (and most lucrative) Kickstarter campaigns, helping fund a feature film released almost a decade after the show debuted.
Bell recently announced on Instagram that episodes of both the original and new show will be streaming on Hulu:
Sorry to everyone trying to follow in Kareem's footsteps. Even you're one of the all-time basketball greats who has demonstrated your intellect in a variety of contexts, the Veronica Mars staff is full-up.
I really appreciate all of you who are inquiring about working as a PA or assistant on #VeronicaMars. The writers room has been up for a few weeks. I’m afraid we’re already staffed.
— Rob Thomas (@RobThomas) September 25, 2018
We promise to evaluate Kareem's new efforts completely objectively -- even though part of the Veronica Mars movie was shot at KPCC and Kristen Bell filmed this Veronica Mars parody video with us:
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