Karl Malone is still working harder than you, and is called ‘Disneyland Dad’ now
Karl Malone is known for many things. Acting as perhaps the greatest power forward of all time. Archery. Indirectly helping to introduce the phrase "chicken baby" into my vocabulary. Failing to win an NBA championship. Achieving in winning in just about every other aspect in life. Siring and eventually coming to become a good father to a WNBA champion. And, most of all, working. Apparently, the man's still working. So much harder than you.
He's probably in better shape than you, a good eight years after retiring from the NBA after scoring 36,928 points, second-most in NBA history. Dude works out for two hours every morning lifting weights and running cardio, and is only 10 pounds heavier than his NBA playing weight of 250 pounds. On top of that, according to a sound feature from Doug Robinson of the Deseret News, Karl Malone is also working for free on a radio show on ESPN's affiliate in Salt Lake City; broadcasting out of his home in Louisiana. For free!
That's just about the only thing Malone is doing for free these days. Considering this staggering list, as documented by Robinson:
*Full or part ownership in four restaurants, in Louisiana, Idaho and Utah.
*A new-car dealership in Draper.
*A used-car dealership in Sandy.
*A car accessories business in Sandy.
*A body shop and collision center, now under construction in Draper.
*Three oil change-service stores.
*A cattle ranch in Louisiana.
*Two condos at Green Valley Resort in St. George.
*A "few thousand acres" of Louisiana property, which he uses for a tree-harvesting business as well as mineral rights.
*A commercial development business, currently focused primarily on developing a large mall in Ruston, La.
*A 12,000-square foot building in the aforementioned mall, which Malone is trying to fill with retail stores
*A deer-raising venture.
*A hunting guide business.
Don't let us boil this piece down to this, because it's an interesting read that also references how the late Utah Jazz owner Larry Miller influenced Malone into letting his money work for him at the same rate that he was working for his money with a surprise for Karl in the, uh, shower. Read the piece for more.
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The feature also details the fact that Malone actually hauls the timber he harvests from his ranch in Louisiana (one in which he "owns the oil, gas and mineral rights" to), sometimes taking on the role of driving long hours behind the wheel of the timber truck because … well … a man's gotta have time to think.
Karl is not without his faults, and we didn't dive into this post in attempts to create a puff piece, but he appears to be quite a gem in terms of his boss-dom; upgrading the interiors of his car dealerships significantly (one even stands as an unofficial hall of fame for the 1992 Dream Team that Malone took part in) in the years since he focused on his businesses following his 2004 retirement, and reaching out to lower-floor employees as well as the administrators.
And, if we're honest, the real reason we're making you aware of this post is so that we can now all agree to call Karl Malone "Disneyland Dad" every time he appears in print or on TV.
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Why? Dig:
"Our guys enjoy it when Karl comes to town," says Madsen. "We call him Disneyland Dad. He's out there having fun and doing nice things for our employees. He talks to them about their families and their lives and helps them with things. One Christmas Eve he showed up and gave $500 to everyone in our group. He goes in the back and visits with the techs. He goes out and closes deals with customers. He has fun."
Let's have fun, too, with "Disneyland Dad."
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