Coach John Wooden’s den has been replicated as an exhibit in UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame
From top: John Wooden’s favorite recliner, covered by a blanket comprised of UCLA colors; The media got a chance to see “John Wooden ““ The Den” Tuesday, before it was unveiled to the general public in the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame; Abraham Lincoln was one of Wooden’s idols and he kept several items of Lincoln memorabilia in his Encino condominium.
By Daily Bruin Staff
Oct. 27, 2010 1:13 a.m.
John Wooden coached 767 games over 27 seasons in front of more than two million fans during his tenure as the head coach of UCLA’s basketball team.
Each time he left the arena, he didn’t go home to a lavish mansion like many college and professional coaches do today. Wooden went home to a condo in Encino, just 11 miles north of campus. The 9 1/2 by 14 1/2 foot room ““ adjacent to the living room ““ in which Wooden spent most of his retired life, quickly became known as his “den.”
“Coach died the richest man I’ve ever known, in a tiny little condo,” said former UCLA guard Andy Hill, who played for Wooden from 1969 to 1972.
Less than five months after his death, Wooden’s den has been replicated in the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame located in the J.D. Morgan Center. The exhibit is called “John Wooden ““ The Den” and opens to the public today.
Senior Associate Athletic Director Ken Weiner and Associate Athletic Director Bobby Field engineered the project and received multiple donations for the actual room from Wooden’s family.
Weiner, Field and Emily Greer, the senior graphic artist and curator of the Athletic Hall of Fame, spent about six weeks together planning the layout of the room, as well as labeling and transporting 80 boxes of items from Encino to UCLA. Help also came in the form of Kevin Borg, the director of facilities and project management for UCLA.
“Every book was exactly the same as we found it,” Greer said of Wooden’s massive
bookshelf. “It was basically like a puzzle to put it all back together.”
Former Bruin guard Jamaal Wilkes, who played for Wooden from 1971 to 1974, said a lot of the memorabilia featured Wooden’s accomplishments from the basketball realm. But other items, such as the Presidential Medal of Freedom he received from President George W. Bush and books on Abraham Lincoln and Mother Teresa, were equally important to the legendary coach.
“You felt like he was all yours and yet, when you went to the den and saw all of the memorabilia in his home, you realized just how much he belonged to the world,” Wilkes said.
The family had countless requests for artifacts from the room, including one from the Smithsonian Institution. The lion’s share of the room’s contents came to UCLA, complete with specific items like an iPod that Wooden’s grandchildren programmed for him. Some pieces, however, were also sent to Purdue, where he played, Indiana State, where he coached before coming to Westwood, and his hometown of Martinsville, Ind.
The room was cluttered, according to Hill and Wilkes. The mess was partly because Wooden wanted it left the way his late wife Nell had left it when she passed in 1985.
Wilkes knew Wooden didn’t mind that the room and the condo were small, and the den had a very intimate feel to it.
“He was very comfortable being there,” Wilkes said. “He didn’t need any thrills to heighten his life. … There are very few people like him today.”
The clutter could also be attributed to the countless number of things people sent Wooden over the years, without him throwing anything away.
Hill looked back on the memory of a flood that required many of Wooden’s belongings to be disposed of.
“They had to throw a lot out, which was a real life saver because there was just too much stuff in there,” Hill said.
Wilkes’ conversations with Wooden evolved over the years and touched on a smattering of different topics. When Wilkes was playing professionally with the Warriors, Lakers and Clippers, the conversation centered mainly on basketball. But as Wilkes watched his kids grow up, the discussions changed. Wooden was more than capable of giving advice on basketball and parenting.
“It was a very unique relationship,” Wilkes said. “It transcended player-coach.”
Hill considered Wooden to be “somewhere between a granddad and a dad,” and he’s someone who never took his time in the den for granted.
“Every time I went, I considered myself unbelievably lucky to get to be there,” Hill said.
Now, visitors to The Den get to be there, too.
