♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> HELLO AND WELCOME TO "INSIDE LOUISVILLE" WHERE WE INTRODUCE YOU TO THE PEOPLE, PLACES AND THINGS THAT MAKE UP KENTUCKY'S LARGEST CITY.

THIS WEEK WE TALK ABOUT THE GREATEST.

MUHAMMAD ALI NOT ONLY THE GREATEST HEAVYWEIGHT BOXER OF ALL TIME, AN INTERNATIONAL FORCE OF NATURE AND LOUISVILLE'S MOST FAMOUS SON.

BORN CASSIUS CLAY IN 1941 RAISED IN LOUISVILLE'S WEST END NEIGHBORHOOD IN THIS HOME ON GRAND AVENUE THAT STANDS AS AN HISTORIC LANDMARK.

AND WHO CAN FORGET THE OUTPOURING OF LOVE AND GRATITUDE THAT BLANKETED THIS CITY UPON HIS DEATH IN 2016.

WHEN PEOPLE FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE, FROM EVERY CORNER OF THE GLOBE CAME TO LOUISVILLE TO MOURN THE ORIGINAL GOAT, THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME.

BUT, IT WAS THE YEARS IN BETWEEN, THE LIFE HE LIVED THAT REMAINS THE FABRIC OF OUR CITY TODAY.

HIS NAME ON STREET SIGNS AND AIRPORTS, HIS LIKENESS IN MURALS AND ARTWORK IN ALL PARTS OF TOWN.

AND, OF COURSE, AT THE MUHAMMAD ALI CENTER, A PLACE HE CREATED TO ENSURE HIS LIFE AND HIS VALUES WERE REMEMBERED FOR GENERATIONS TO COME.

THAT'S WHERE WE SAT DOWN WITH HIS WIFE, LONNIE ALI, THE PERSON WHO KNEW HIM BEST.

WE ARE THRILLED TO HAS BEEN HERE WITH LONNIE ALI, THE WIFE OF MUHAMMAD ALI HERE AT THE ALI CENTER.

WHAT A FANTASTIC PLACE THAT ENCOMPASSES HIS LEGACY HERE IN LOUISVILLE.

A LOT OF PEOPLE TALK ABOUT MUHAMMAD ALI'S LEGACY IN SO MANY DIFFERENT WAYS.

I'M CURIOUS WHAT IS HIS LEGACY TO YOU?

>> YOU KNOW, MUHAMMAD'S LEGACY IS SO VAST AND EXPANSIVE, IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT PEOPLE, LIKE YOU SAID, IT MEANS A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS TO A LOT OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE.

BUT IF YOU WANTED TO DISTILL IT DOWN, IT IS SIMPLY TO LOVE PEOPLE THE WAY YOU WANT THEM TO LOVE YOU.

HE REALLY BELIEVED THAT.

AND TO HAVE A COMPASSIONATE HEART.

THAT IS REALLY HIS LEGACY.

THE REST, I THINK, SORT OF BUILDS ON THAT, BUT IF YOU DISTILL IT DOWN, THAT'S WHAT IT IS, TO LOVE OTHER PEOPLE THE WAY YOU WOULD WANT THEM TO LOVE YOU.

AND HUMID DID THAT WITHOUT EXPECTING ANYTHING IN RETURN.

HE SIMPLY JUST LOVED PEOPLE.

>> THAT KINDNESS AND COMPASSION THAT PEOPLE TALK ABOUT WHEN THEY TALK ABOUT HIM, YOU KNEW IN A VERY PERSONAL WAY.

>> I DID.

>> TELL US HOW SOME OF THOSE STORIES, HOW YOU SAW THAT PLAY OUT IN HIS EVERYDAY LIFE?

>> YOU KNOW, MUHAMMAD WAS ONE OF THESE RESPONSIBLE SPONTANEOUS PEOPLE.

WHATEVER MOOD STRUCK HIM, THAT'S WHERE HE WENT AND WHAT HE DID.

BUT HE ALWAYS GOT UP EVERY MORNING WITH THE INTENTION OF DOING GOOD.

SOMEHOW, SOME WAY, AND THAT COULD CARRY HIM IN MANY DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS AND IN MANY PLACES AND OFTEN HE WOULD, YOU KNOW, END UP AT A CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL.

YOU KNOW, HE WOULD GO INTO THE BURN UNITS.

I'VE BEEN THERE WITH HIM.

MUHAMMAD ALWAYS HAD THE ABILITY TO CONNECT WITH PEOPLE.

AND HE WOULD GO IN TO THESE ROOMS WITH CHILDREN WHO HAD HORRIBLE BURNS AND WHO WERE BANDAGED.

AND IT WAS SO BAD I COULDN'T BE IN THERE BECAUSE I COULD NOT LIFT THEIR SPIRITS.

I WOULD BE IN TEARS.

SO I WOULD WAIT IN THE HALL.

BUT HE WOULD BE IN THERE WITH HIS POCKET MAGIC TRICKS THAT HE LIKED TO CARRY AROUND THAT HE COULD PULL OUT AND ENTERTAIN THEM AND MAKE THEM LAUGH AND PUT A SMILE ON THEIR FACE AND LIFT THEIR SPIRITS.

YOU KNOW, HE DID THAT QUITE OFTEN.

HE WOULD GO TO RETIREMENT HOMES.

I MEAN JUST OFF THE CUFF, JUST WALK IN, YOU KNOW, NOBODY IS EXPECTING HIM.

AND PEOPLE ARE ALL EXCITED.

HE LOVED THAT PART.

AND IT WOULD DEPEND ON THE CITY HE WAS IN.

HE WOULD DO IT EVERYWHERE AND ANYBODY.

JUVENILE DETENTION CENTERS.

HE LOVED TO GO INTO THOSE AND LIFT THE SPIRITS OF KIDS WHO, YOU KNOW, LANDED IN THERE FOR ONE REASON OR THE OTHER, BUT TO LET THEM KNOW THAT THERE WAS HOPE.

THERE IS ANOTHER ALTERNATIVE, ANOTHER PATH THEY CAN TAKE AND TO LET THEM KNOW THAT HE SUPPORTED THEM.

HE WAS THERE FOR THEM AND GIVE THEM THAT KIND OF INSPIRATION.

BUT HE DID THAT EVERY DAY.

OR, BELIEVE IT OR NOT, HE WOULD TAKE PEOPLE IN WHO WOULD COME TO HIS DOOR, BECAUSE PEOPLE KNEW WHERE HE LIVED IN L.A. AND IN MICHIGAN.

AND THEY WOULD COME TO THE DOOR, OR TO THE GATE, AND WOULDN'T HAVE ANY PLACE TO STAY.

AND MUHAMMAD WOULD TAKE IN PEOPLE IN THE HOUSE AND FAMILIES AND TRY TO HELP THEM GET ON THEIR FEET, GIVE THEM BUS TICKETS TO WHERE THEY NEEDED TO GO, FEED THEM.

THAT WAS ALWAYS-- PEOPLE ON THE STREET, YOU KNOW, WHO ARE SITTING, YOU KNOW, NO PLACE TO GO, SITTING AGAINST A WALL OF A BUILDING.

HE WOULD TAKE MONEY OUT OF HIS POCKET AND GIVE IT TO THEM.

I REMEMBER ONE TIME HE DID THAT.

AND TO ME, OBVIOUSLY THE GENTLEMAN HAD FALLEN ON HARD TIMES BUT I WASN'T SURE HOW HE WAS GOING TO USE THE MONEY MUHAMMAD GAVE HIM.

I THOUGHT PROBABLY HE WOULD BUY LIQUOR.

>> AS MOST OF US WOULD THINK.

>> AND I REMEMBER IT WAS IN LOS ANGELES AND I SAID TO MUHAMMAD, MUHAMMAD, WHY ARE YOU GIVING HIM MONEY.

MOST LIKELY HE WILL GO BUY DRUGS OR LIQUOR AND MUHAMMAD SAID THAT'S ON HIM.

IT WAS MY DUTY TO HELP HIM.

WHAT HE DOES WITH THE MONEY IS, YOU KNOW, IS HIS BUSINESS AND IT'S ON HIM.

BUT I HAVE DONE WHAT I'M SUPPOSED TO DO.

>> WOW.

>> THAT'S THE WAY HE APPROACHED THINGS.

>> WHERE DO YOU THINK THAT CAME FROM?

WAS THAT HOW HE WAS RAISED?

IS THAT SOMETHING WITHIN HIS COMMUNITY?

OR IS THAT JUST SOMETHING YOU THIS I HE WAS BORN WITH?

>> FRANKLY I THINK IT IS SOMETHING HE WAS BORN WITH.

JUST THE HEART GOD GAVE HIM.

BECAUSE I HAD NEVER SEEN AND EXPERIENCED ANYONE IN MY LIFETIME LIKE MUHAMMAD WHO JUST WOULD LITERALLY, LITERALLY GIVE YOU THE LAST DIME IN HIS POCKET AND THE SHIRT OFF HIS BACK.

BECAUSE HE ALWAYS FELT HE COULD GET MORE.

AND THAT PERSON COULDN'T.

THAT HE WAS GIVING IT TO.

THAT IS JUST WHO HE WAS.

AND FROM THE TIME I HAVE KNOWN HIM-- I MEAN HE HAD A VERY SWEET MOM, YOU KNOW, VERY SOUTHERN WOMAN WHO WAS ALWAYS, YOU KNOW, COOKING AND CLEANING IN THE HOUSE AND MAKING PEOPLE WELCOME.

BUT I REALLY BELIEVE HIS HEART, HE WAS BORN WITH IT.

>> YOU MENTIONED SINCE YOU HAVE MET HIM, WHICH YOU WERE SIX YEARS OLD WHEN YOU FIRST MET HIM.

TELL ME ABOUT THAT AND HOW THAT STORY PROGRESSED.

>> I WAS SIX MUCH AND HAD COME HOME-- WE HAD MOVED INTO THE NEIGHBORHOOD AFTER HE HAD PURCHASED THIS HOME FOR HIS PARENTS.

I THINK ONCE HE BECAME PROFESSIONAL, ENTERED THE PROFESSIONAL BOXING ARENA.

HE HAD GONE TO MIAMI TO START TRAINING FOR HIS FIGHT WITH SONNY LISTON AND PURCHASED A HOME FOR HIS PARENTS, MOVE THEM FROM THE EAST END TO THE WEST END AND WE PURCHASED A HOME SHORTLY THEREAFTER, MAYBE A YEAR OR TWO LATER; ALMOST DIRECTLY ACROSS THE STREET FROM ONE ANOTHER.

I CAME HOME FROM SCHOOL ONE DAY AND WALKED IN AND IT WAS IN THE SPRING OF THE YEAR AND MUHAMMAD WAS-- WELL, HE WAS CASHES CASSIUS CLAY THEN, SITTING ON HIS MOTHER'S PORCH WITH EVERY LITTLE BOY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD SURROUNDING HIM AND HE WAS SITTING ON THE TOP STEP WITH A SHORT SLEEVE WHITE SHIRT, BLACK BOW TIE, BLACK DRESS PANTS, BLACK SHOES.

I REMEMBER IT LIKE IT WAS YESTERDAY.

NEAT HAIR CUT.

HE WAS HOLDING COURT.

EVERY LITTLE BOY FROM MY LITTLE BROTHER WHO WAS PROBABLY THREE OR FOUR, TO THE OLDEST TEENAGER WAS AROUND HIM AND BICYCLES ALL OVER HIS MOM'S YARD, ALL OVER HER DRIVEWAY.

SHE COULDN'T HAVE GOTTEN OUT IF SHE WANTED TO.

I WALKED INTO THE LIVING ROOM AND I SAW MY MOTHER LOOKING OUT THE FRONT DOOR AT ALL OF THIS AND I SAID MOM, WHO IS THAT?

AND SHE SAID THAT'S CASSIUS CLAY.

SHE COULD HAVE SAID THAT'S ANYBODY.

I HAD NO IDEA WHO-- BUT SHE SAID IT, I COULD TELL HE MUST BE SOMEBODY OF IMPORTANCE.

AND ABOUT THAT TIME HE SAW ME IN THE DOOR; YOU KNOW, WATCHING AND LOOKING OUT.

SO HE ASKED WHO KNEW ME.

MY BROTHER, YOU KNOW, HE SENT MY BROTHER WHO WAS THERE OVER TO GET ME.

AND I VERY RELUCTANTLY WENT BECAUSE I WAS REALLY A VERY SHY YOUNG KID.

I REALLY WAS.

VERY SHY.

THAT'S WHEN I FIRST MET HIM.

I WAS SO FORTUNATE THERE WAS A GENTLEMAN THERE WHO WAS TAKING PICTURES FOR LOOK MAGAZINE WHO CAUGHT THE MOMENT THAT I FIRST MET HIM.

TOOK LOADS OF PICTURES OF US.

AND I STILL HAVE THOSE TODAY.

>> I'VE SEEN THAT PHOTO.

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU LOOK BACK AT THOSE PHOTOS.

HERE I WAS A CATHOLIC SCHOOL GIRL, SO FRIGHTENED AND HE WAS SO GENTLE AND SO SWEET, BUT LOVED KIDS HE HAS ALWAYS LOVED CHILDREN.

IT'S ALMOST LIKE FATE, REALLY, WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT.

I MAY NOT HAVE EVER MET HIM BUT I THINK IT WAS FATE THAT I MET HIM AT THAT AGE AND MY MOTHER AND HIS MOTHER BECAME VERY GOOD FRIENDS.

IN FACT MY MOTHER WOULD TRAVEL WITH HIS MOM TO SOME OF THE FIGHTS.

BUT OUR FAMILIES REMAINED CLOSE.

>> AND THEN HOW DID THAT LOVE STORY DEVELOP?

>> WELL MUHAMMAD DIDN'T HAVE ANY LITTLE SISTERS.

SO MUHAMMAD CONSIDERED ME SORT OF HIS MENTEE BECAUSE HE ALWAYS THOUGHT I WAS-- HE WOULD COME HOME AND HE WOULD ALWAYS GO, YOU ARE SO...

WHICH WAS FUNNY, YOU KNOW.

AND I DIDN'T REALLY TAKE IT AS AN INSULT, BUT, YOU KNOW, HE WAS RIGHT.

I WAS.

BUT HE ALWAYS THOUGHT HE COULD GIVE ME INFORMATION, LIKE WHAT SCHOOLS TO GO TO.

>> ADVICE.

>> ALL THE TIME ON LIFE.

HE WOULD COME HOME AND GIVE ME LECTURES BECAUSE WHEN HE WAS IN EXILE, HE WAS GOING AROUND THE COUNTRY GIVING LECTURES AND HE HAD FIVE OR SIX OF THEM AND HE KNEW THEM ALL BY HEART.

AND I REMEMBER EVEN ONE TIME HE CAME HOME AFTER-- THIS WAS ONCE HE STARTED BOXING AGAIN, AFTER A NORTON FIGHT.

AND KENNY NORTON HAD BROKE HIS JAW.

SO HIS JAW WAS WIRED SHUT.

BUT MUHAMMAD WAS STILL ABLE TO GIVE ME A LECTURE.

AND MOSTLY THESE WERE LIKE THINGS LIKE THE PURPOSE OF THE HEART, YOU KNOW, THOSE KINDS OF LECTURES, PHILOSOPHICAL SPIRITUAL KIND OF LECTURES HE WOULD GIVE ME.

BUT-- AND THEN AT 17, I JUST KNEW I WAS GOING TO MARRY HIM.

IT WAS JUST-- I'VE SAID THIS BEFORE.

AN EPIPHANY WENT THROUGH MY HEAD.

I KNEW ALL OF HIS WIVES, KNEW HIS CHILDREN WHEN THEY WERE BORN.

HIS FIRST WIFE SONJEE WAS WONDERFUL.

HE BROUGHT HER HOME.

SHE WOULD COME OUT AND PLAY WITH US IN THE STREET.

SHE TAUGHT US DOUBLE DUTCH JUMP ROPE.

I ADORED HER.

HE CAME BACK WITH HIS SECOND WIFE, AND SHE WAS VERY REGAL.

AND SHE HAD THESE LONG FLOWING DRESSES ON AND, WHICH WAS THE ISLAMIC DRESS, BUT SHE LOOKED LIKE A QUEEN.

AND I DIDN'T KNOW-- I SAID WHERE IS SONJEE BECAUSE I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND DIVORCE.

HE HAD EXPLAINED THAT TO ME AND IT WAS STILL, WHERE IS SON JE JE, WHERE IS MY FRIEND BUT IT WENT ON FROM THERE.

AT 17, LIKE I SAID, I KNEW I WAS GOING TO MARRY HIM SOME DAY, BUT I HAD THINGS TO DO.

I HAD TO FINISH SCHOOL.

I HAD MY OWN ASPIRATIONS.

BUT THAT'S THE WAY IT ENDED UP.

I MARRIED MUHAMMAD WHEN I WAS 29 SHORTLY BEFORE I TURNED 30.

AND I THINK I UNDERSTOOD THE MAN , THE YOUNG BOY WHO GREW UP HERE IN LOUISVILLE, SAME KIND OF BACKGROUND, SAME FOUNDATIONS SO, YOU KNOW, WE WERE VERY COMPATIBLE.

PLUS I KNEW HE NEEDED TO BE OUT IN THE WORLD TO DO THE KINDS OF THINGS HE NEEDED TO DO, HE NEEDED THAT FOUNDATION.

HE NEEDED SOMEBODY TO BE THERE FOR HIM TO SERVE IN THAT CAPACITY.

>> AND YOU ALL BOTH BEING FROM LOUISVILLE, GROWING UP IN LOUISVILLE, THAT IS THAT FOUNDATION.

AND YOU SAID, AS MANY PLACES AS HE HAS BEEN AND LIVED AND ALL THE THINGS THAT HE HAS DONE, HE ALWAYS CONSIDERED LOUISVILLE HOME.

>> ABSOLUTELY.

YOU KNOW, HE HAD THE SAME HOMEGROWN VALUES THAT I HAVE, YOU KNOW, WE GREW UP AT A CERTAIN WAY, HIS MOM WAS, YOU KNOW, A BAPTIST, GREW UP IN THE CHURCH.

I GREW UP IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH BUT IT WAS EVEN CULTURALLY, WE WERE VERY SIMILAR.

SO LIKE I SAID, I THINK IT WAS FATE.

I THINK IT WAS DIVINE INTERVENTION.

I WAS TO MEET HIM AT THAT AGE AND HE WAS TO HAVE THAT INFLUENCE IN MY LIFE AND WE HAD 30 HAPPY YEARS TOGETHER.

>> DURING THAT TIME, YOU KNOW, AS SOMEBODY WHO IS SHY OR MAY HAVE BEEN DESCRIBED AS SHY, WHAT WAS IT LIKE FOR YOU BEING KIND OF THRUST INTO HIS WORLD?

HIS SPOTLIGHT LIKE THAT?

>> WELL, I SORT OF CAME OUT OF THAT, I HAVE TO ADMIT.

I HAD SOME WONDERFUL TEACHERS AT MERCY ACADEMY.

I WENT TO MERCY ACADEMY HERE IN LOUISVILLE-- WHO WERE VERY INSPIRATIONAL AND VERY MUCH BELIEVED THAT AS WOMEN WE NEEDED TO STAND ON OUR OWN TWO FEET AND BE ASSERTIVE AND STATE OUR CASE AND, YOU KNOW, STAND UP FOR OUR CONVICTIONS AND ALL THOSE THINGS.

AND THEN GOING TO COLLEGE, OF COURSE, THAT JUST GOT MORE, YOU KNOW, EMPHASIZED.

SO I SORT OF HAD COME OUT OF THAT BY THE TIME I MARRIED HIM.

BUT THE ONE THING I UNDERSTOOD BECAUSE WHEN I MARRIED MUHAMMAD, HE HAD STOPPED BOXING.

HE REALLY WASN'T IN THE LIME LIGHT LIKE HE WAS DURING HIS HEYDAY.

SO I DON'T HAVE TO DEAL WITH ALL OF THAT.

BUT HE STILL WAS DOING A LOT OF THINGS.

BUT WHAT I UNDERSTOOD WAS FOR ME, BECAUSE I'M SORT OF THE KIND WHO FLIES BELOW THE RADAR.

I DON'T NEED TO BE OUT FRONT.

DIDN'T LIKE BEING OUT FRONT.

SO, YOU KNOW, THAT ACTUALLY WORKED VERY WELL FOR US.

I WAS THERE AS THE SUPPORTIVE WIFE END OF IT.

AND MUHAMMAD ALLOWED HIM TO GO OUT AND DO HIS THINGS.

>> I DON'T KNOW THAT EVERYBODY UNDERSTANDS THOUGH HOW BIG OF A FORCE YOU WERE IN HIS LIFE, WORKING BEHIND THE SEABS SCENES, AS-- AS AN INFLUENCE, A MANAGER AT SOME TIMES, BUSINESS MANAGER.

>> I DID.

I MANAGED ALL OF MUHAMMAD'S BUSINESS AFFAIRS, YOU KNOW, COORDINATED... >> THAT'S NOT A SMALL UNDERTAKING.

>> THE THING THAT HAPPENED, I THINK, IS BECAUSE MUHAMMAD KNEW ME.

FIRST HE HAD TO TRANSITION INTO HIS HEAD THAT I WAS NO LONGER A CHILD, RIGHT?

ONCE HE GREW TO ACCEPT THAT, AND LIKE I SAID, HE HAD INPUT WHERE I WENT TO SCHOOL.

THINGS I STUDIED.

SO HE HAD HIS HAND IN ALL OF THAT.

SO HE TRUSTED ME.

AND I THINK THAT WAS IMPORTANT BECAUSE HE KNEW THAT I WAS GOING TO BE THERE AND HE TRUSTED THAT I WAS EDUCATED TO BE ABLE TO DO THE THINGS THAT I WAS TRYING TO DO FOR HIM.

AND HE RELINQUISHED.

HE LET ME HANDLE IT, YOU KNOW.

I DID WHAT I DO BEST AND HE DID WHAT HE DID BEST BECAUSE HE DID NOT LIKE BUSINESS AT ALL.

HE WAS NOT, YOU KNOW, THAT KIND OF PERSON.

HE LIKED PRESSING THE FLESH.

HE LIKED BEING OUT IN PUBLIC AND MAKING PEOPLE SMILE AND LAUGH AND HAVING AUDIENCES AND THAT'S ONE THING YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND WHEN YOU WERE WITH SOMEBODY LIKE MUHAMMAD WHO REALLY LOVED BEING A CELEBRITY.

MUHAMMAD LOVED IT.

IF THERE WAS ANYBODY BORN TO BE A CELEBRITY, IT WAS HIM, IN ALL THAT IT ENTAILS.

YOU HAD TO LET HIM BE WHO HE WAS , YOU KNOW, HE BELONGED TO THE WORLD AND YOU HAD TO UNDERSTAND THAT.

EXCEPT FOR WHEN WE WERE AT HOME.

EVEN THAT TIME GOT INFRINGED UPON BUT IT MADE HIM HAPPY.

IT WAS PART OF HIS PERSONALITY.

AND YOU JUST HAD TO LET THEM BE HIM.

>> ONE OF HIS BIGGEST LEGACIES, OF COURSE HERE IN LOUISVILLE IS THE MUHAMMAD ALI CENTER AND I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT AND YOUR INVOLVEMENT IN THAT.

BUT FIRST LET'S TAKE A LOOK INSIDE THE MUHAMMAD ALI CENTER HERE IN LOUISVILLE.

WHEN THE MUHAMMAD ALI CENTER OPENED IN THE HEART OF DOWNTOWN IN 2005, IT WAS CREATED TO SHARE THE LEGACY OF THE GREATEST.

TODAY IT STANDS AS MORE THAN A MUSEUM MORE THAN A TRIBUTE.

IS AN EXPERIENCE.

>> PART OF WHAT I WANT THIS NEW GENERATION TO UNDERSTAND IS THAT MUHAMMAD ALI IS THEIR HERO'S FAVORITE HERO.

AND SO THERE IS A LINEAGE THAT WE ARE MAKING AND A CONNECTION THAT WE ARE BUILDING BETWEEN THE YOUNGER GENERATION AND THE HEROES THAT THEY CELEBRATE TO HELP THEM RECOGNIZE THAT THOSE HEROES THEY CELEBRATE ARE OFTEN WHAT I WOULD RECOGNIZE AS THE BRANCHES BUT MUHAMMAD ALI IN MANY CASES IS THE TREE.

>> DEVONE HOLT IS THE NEWLY NAMED C.E.O.

AND PRESIDENT OF THE MUHAMMAD ALI CENTER.

HE KNEW THE CHAMP AND IS ALSO THE FIRST LOUISVILLIAN AND KENTUCKIAN TO HOLD THE TITLE.

>> THE LOCATIONS IN ALL OF LOUISVILLE AND I SAY THAT BECAUSE IT IS AN ATTRACTION THAT DOES JUST THAT, IT IS A MAGNET THAT BRINGS PEOPLE TOGETHER.

IF YOU THINK ABOUT WHERE PEOPLE COME FROM TO ARRIVE HERE AT THE CENTER, IT'S FROM EVERY CORNER OF THE UNIVERSE.

>> IN FACT, HE SAYS 90% OF ALL INTERNATIONAL TRAVELERS WHO VISIT LOUISVILLE ARE COMING TO EXPERIENCE THE MUHAMMAD ALI CENTER.

>> YOU KNOW, WE START WITH THE VERY SIMPLE PREMISE TO CARRY ON THE LEGACY OF MUHAMMAD ALI AND WE USE THIS SPACE NOT JUST TO SHOWCASE THE GREATNESS THAT WAS MUHAMMAD ALI BUT TO HELP OTHER PEOPLE FIND AND PURSUE GREATNESS FOR THEMSELVES.

>> IN THE MUSEUM, YOU CAN RELIVE MUHAMMAD ALI'S GREATEST FIGHTS; LEARN ABOUT HIS ACTIVISM AND HUMANITARIAN WORK OUTSIDE OF THE RING AND EVEN GET UP CLOSE WITH THE OLYMPIC TORCH HE FAMOUSLY CARRIED IN THE 1996 GAMES.

BUT WHAT ISN'T ON DISPLAY HERE MIGHT BE THE CENTER'S GREATEST WORK OF ALL.

>> WE ARE SO MUCH MORE THAN A MUSEUM.

WE ARE PRETTY AWESOME MUSEUM.

I WANT TO SAY THAT, THAT ATTRACTS TOURISTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD LITERALLY TO COME SEE AND EXPERIENCE WHAT WE HAVE HERE.

BUT IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE MANAGE PROGRAMMING THAT IS DESIGNED TO HELP OUR YOUNG PEOPLE PURSUE GREATNESS FOR THEMSELVES, TO BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND THIS WORLD AND HOW THEY CAN HAVE AN IMPACT ON THIS WORLD.

WE SPEND TIME HONORING PEOPLE WHO HAVE LIVED A LIFE OF GREATNESS.

FOR INSTANCE, OUR DAUGHTERS OF GREATNESS PROGRAM HONORS WOMEN WHO HAVE DONE EXTRAORDINARY THINGS IN THEIR CAREERS AND IN THEIR LIVES AND WE CELEBRATE THAT BECAUSE THIS IS A PLACE WHERE GREATNESS LIVES.

>> FROM YOUTH PROGRAMMING TO UNIVERSITY LEVEL WORKSHOPS AND PROFESSIONAL AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, THE MUHAMMAD ALI CENTER IS, OVERALL, DEDICATED TO FINDING YOUR OWN GREATNESS.

>> THIS CENTER IS DESIGNED TO PRODUCE GAME CHANGERS JUST LIKE MUHAMMAD ALI AND WE ARE GIVING THEM THE TOOLS AND THE EXPERIENCES THAT THEY NEED TO BE ABLE TO PURSUE THOSE PATHWAYS.

>> THE LEGACY OF THE MUHAMMAD ALI CENTER NOT ONLY IN LOUISVILLE, IN KENTUCKY, IN AMERICA, IN THE WORLD, IT IS AN INCREDIBLE THING.

AND I KNOW YOU ALL WERE BOTH HEAVILY INVOLVED IN THE CREATION OF IT.

TELL US THAT PROCESS.

WHY YOU ALL WANTED TO CREATE A CENTER LIKE THIS AND WHY HERE?

>> ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE KEPT COMING TO US FROM DIFFERENT PLACES, WANTING MUHAMMAD TO DO A MUSEUM.

MUHAMMAD, YOU NEED TO DO A MUSEUM.

YOU KNOW, PUT ALL YOUR STUFF IN IT, WHICH WAS INTERESTING BECAUSE MOST OF MUHAMMAD'S THINGS WERE TAKEN.

SO HE DIDN'T HAVE A WHOLE LOT WHEN WE WERE MARRIED, WHEN WE GOT MARRIED.

BUT, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING THAT HE HAD FROM THE TIME HE MARRIED ME HE HAD.

THE AWARDS, THE MEDALS, WHATEVER THAT WAS.

A LITTLE MEMORABILIA BUT NOT MUCH FROM HIS FIGHT YEARS.

BUT PEOPLE KEPT WANTING US TO DO THIS MUSEUM.

SO WE THOUGHT ABOUT IT AND I SAID, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THAT, FOR PEOPLE TO COME LOOK AT A BUNCH OF STUFF AND THEN LEAVE, YOU KNOW?

THAT SAYS NOTHING ABOUT REALLY WHO YOU ARE AND IT ONLY SHOWS ONE FACET OF YOUR-- HIVE BOXING.

AND SO WE THOUGHT BIGGER.

WE HAD TO THINK BIGGER.

I CONSULTED WITH MY OLD FRIEND AND MUHAMMAD'S VERY GOOD FRIEND, GOVERNOR JOHN BROWN AND HO TOLD ME, LONNIE, IF YOU WANT TO DO THIS, YOU GOT TO MAKE IT BIG.

SO I'M GOING TO SEND YOU TO LARRY TOWNSEND.

SO THAT'S WHEN I MET LARRY TOWNSEND, WHO I JUST ADORED.

AND LARRY BASICALLY TOOK ME BY THE HAND AND HELPED ME PUT ALL OF THIS TOGETHER.

MUHAMMAD WANTED SOMETHING THAT WOULD LEND TO HIS LEGACY BECAUSE I REALIZED HIS FOOTPRINT WAS TOO LARGE TO LEAVE AND NOT TO BE SHARED WITH GENERATIONS GOING FORWARD.

AND HE REALIZED, TOO, BECAUSE THE THINGS THAT WE STRUGGLE WITH AS HUMAN BEINGS, TO TRY TO BE BETTER, TO BE GOOD, TO DO THE RIGHT THING, HE JUST DID IT NATURALLY.

IT WAS JUST LIKE BREATHING TO HIM.

AND EVEN JUST COMING FROM WHERE HE CAME FROM IN THE WEST END OF LOUISVILLE, VERY MEAGER BEGINNINGS, HUMBLE BEGINNINGS AND ACHIEVING THE GREATNESS THAT HE DID-- HOW HE DID THAT, WITHOUT COMPLAINT, WITH YOU THE REGRET FOR HIS ACTIONS, YOU KNOW, SAYING THAT, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE KEPT ME FROM TRYING TO DO THIS OR DO THAT.

HE NEVER WADDLED IN THAT KIND OF THING.

HE ALWAYS LOOKED AT THE BRIGHT SIDE OF EVERYTHING.

HE MADE EVERYTHING WORK FOR HIM.

BUT WHEN DOING THE CENTER, WE WANTED TO MAKE CHILDREN UNDERSTAND THAT YOU JUST DON'T, YOU KNOW, MUHAMMAD DIDN'T JUST GR FROM GRADUATING FROM CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL TO THE HOISMS AND WINNING THE FIRST HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP HE WON AGAINST SON SONNY LISTON AND THREE TIMES.

THERE WAS SOMETHING BETWEEN THAT.

LIKE PEOPLE SAW MICHAEL JORDAN, THIS KID WHO GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL AND WENT AND IS ON THE COURT.

WHAT DID HE DO?

WE DON'T TELL THAT STORY.

TO BECOME A GREAT ATHLETE.

THAT IS ONE OF THE THINGS WE WANTED THE CENTER TO DO.

SOCIAL JUSTICE, ALL OF THAT NEEDED TO BE CARRIED FORWARD.

WITHOUT THIS COMMUNITY, IT WOULDN'T BE HERE SO IT BELONGS TO THEM.

MUHAMMAD ALI BELONGS TO LOUISVILLE AND THE WORLD.

YOU CAN WATCH, STREAM AND SHARE THIS ESPECIALLY EPISODE ANY TIME AT KET.ORG/INSIDE LOUISVILLE.

PLUS DON'T MISS PART TWO OF OUR INTERVIEW WITH LONNIE.

WE HEAR THE PERSPECTIVE WHEN LOUISVILLE STOOD STILL TO HONOR HIS DEATH IN 2016 AND WHAT IS STILL AHEAD.

INCLUDING A TELEVISION SPECIAL AND A BROADWAY MUSICAL ABOUT MUHAMMAD ALI.

>> MUHAMMAD ON BROADWAY.

COULD YOU KEEP HIM AWAY?

EVERY NIGHT?

HIS NAME IN LIGHTS?

IT'S STRAIGHT UP MUHAMMAD.

HE WOULD LOVE IT.

>> THAT'S RIGHT HERE NEXT TIME ON "INSIDE LOUISVILLE."

UNTIL THEN, MAKE IT A GREAT WEEK.

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