found: African American National Biography, accessed via The Oxford African American Studies Center online database, July 27, 2014:(Johnson, Rafer; Rafer Lewis Johnson; track and field athlete, olympic medalist, radio / television personality, television actor, civil rights activist; born 18 August 1935 in Hillsboro, Texas, United States; enrolled at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA); Pan American record in the decathlon (1955); joined Pi Lambda Phi; represented the United States at the Melbourne Olympics (1956) and Little Olympics; at the 1960 Rome Olympics, he was named captain of the U.S. Olympic team, marking the first time that a person of color carried the American flag during the opening ceremonies, won a gold medal in the decathlon's final event, the 1,500-meter run and set a new Olympic record; signed a movie contract with Twentieth Century Fox and had several television appearances; worked as a broadcaster at Tokyo Olympics(1964); sports reporter at KNBC in Los Angeles, California; involved with the Peace Corps and the Special Olympics; actively involved with the NAACP, the Fair Housing Congress, and the Urban League, especially following the 1965 Watts riot)
