Rare Photos of Wilt Chamberlain

Born 80 years ago on Aug. 21, 1936, four-time MVP and 13-time All-Star Wilt Chamberlain dominates the NBA record book, in which "The Big Dipper" is the all-time leader in rebounds (23,924) and games with 50 or more points (118) — including his single-game record 100 points on March 2, 1962. Here are some rarely seen photos of "Wilt the Stilt" — who died from a heart attack at the age of 63 in October 1999 — from adolescence to the pros and beyond.

Rare Photos of Wilt Chamberlain

Wilt Chamberlain

SI Picture Collection

1945

Wilt Chamberlain

AP

1955

Wilt Chamberlain

Grey Villet/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

1955

Wilt Chamberlain

Michael Rougier/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

1955

Wilt Chamberlain

William C. Greene/Sporting News via Getty Images

1955

Wilt Chamberlain

AP

1956

Wilt Chamberlain

AP

1956

Wilt Chamberlain

Richard Meek

1957

Wilt Chamberlain

George Silk/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

1957

Wilt Chamberlain

George Silk/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

1957

Wilt Chamberlain

George Silk/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

1957

Wilt Chamberlain

AP

1957

Wilt Chamberlain

Stan Wayman/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

1958

Wilt Chamberlain

AP

1958

Wilt Chamberlain

Hulton Archive/Getty Images

1958

Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell

Herb Scharfman/Sports Imagery/Getty Images

1959

Wilt Chamberlain

Neil Leifer

1960

Wilt Chamberlain

Hulton Archive/Getty Images

1960

Wilt Chamberlain

Walter Kelleher/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images

1961

Wilt Chamberlain

Focus on Sport/Getty Images

1963

Wilt Chamberlain and Gina Lollobrigida

AP

1964

Wilt Chamberlain

Neil Leifer

1965

Wilt Chamberlain

Ken Regan/NBAE/Getty Images

1966

Muhammad Ali and Wilt Chamberlain

AP

1967

Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell

Neil Leifer

1967

Wilt Chamberlain

Neil Leifer

1967

Wilt Chamberlain

Art Rickerby/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

1970s

Wilt Chamberlain

AP

1972

Wilt Chamberlain and Jerry West

Walter Iooss Jr

1972

Wilt Chamberlain

Ralph Crane/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

1972

Wilt Chamberlain

Ralph Crane/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

1972

Wilt Chamberlain

Focus on Sport/Getty Images

1970s

Wilt Chamberlain

Ralph Crane/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

1972

Wilt Chamberlain

Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

circa 1972

Buddy Hackett and Wilt Chamberlain

Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

circa 1972

Wilt Chamberlain

Richard Drew/AP

1973

Wilt Chamberlain

Art Rickerby/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

circa 1973

Wilt Chamberlain and Wilt's Wonder Women Track Club

Tony Triolo

1974

Wilt Chamberlain

Tony Triolo

1974

Wilt Chamberlain

Art Rickerby/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

circa 1975

Wilt Chamberlain

SI Picture Collection

circa 1975

Ann Meyers and Wilt Chamberlain

Walter Iooss Jr

1976

Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Shoemaker

Wally Fong/AP

1977

Wilt Chamberlain

James McGrath/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images

1977

Wilt Chamberlain and Bjorn Borg

Jeff Goode/Toronto Star via Getty Images

1979

Arnold Schwarzenegger and Wilt Chamberlain

Dirck Halstead/Liaison/Getty Images

1984

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain

John McDonough/Icon Sportswire

1985

Wilt Chamberlain

Doug Griffin/Toronto Star via Getty Images

1986

Wilt Chamberlain

Long Photography, Inc./The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images

1986

Clyde Drexler, Isiah Thomas, Wilt Chamberlain and Charles Barkley

Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images

1997

Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain

Glenn James/NBAE via Getty Images

1997

Wilt Chamberlain

Robert Beck

1999