medal i'm harry smith. welcome to an msnbc special, remembering muhammad ali. he was a boxer who preached peace, a fighter who fought hardest for what he believed in. as he himself told us many times, he was the greatest, a statement few would argue with. muhammad ali died friday at the age of 74. he suffered for decades from parkinson's disease, a disease most likely cause by boxing.

he was surrounded by his family when he died. a family spokesperson talked about those emotional final moments with ali. >> monday night, he was in the hospital, but he was in fair condition. and we expected that to be the case. you know, muhammad has battled back many times. and we expected it to happen this time. the family was called when things became more serious. we still had a lot of hope that it was going to turn around. then it became clear in discussions with lonnie ali and with his doctors that his condition wasn't going to improve. and so, you know, they were able to bring all family members in in the last 24 hours when we knew that things weren't going to improve. they were given time to say good-bye. >> as the world mourns the loss of the legend, so does muhammad

ali's hometown of louisville, kentucky. at a ceremony at the city's metro hall, the african-american flag was lowered to half staff. and the mayor paid tribute to ali. >> muhammad ali belongs to the world, but he only has one hometown. [ applause ] the louisville lip spoke to everyone, but we heard him in a way no one else could, as our brother, our uncle, and our inspiration. >> nbc's craig melvin joins us for more from louisville. craig, what can you tell us more about funeral plans that are coming up later next week? >> coming up later next week? >> reporter: harry, muhammad ali will return to where it all began here in louisville. this, of course, was not just

where he was born. this is where he learned how to box at the age of 12. the story's been told a number of times today, but his bicycle, his $60 schwinn bicycle had been stolen and he said he wanted to whoop whoever took his bike. so he found the guy running the local boxing training center there who also happened to be a police officer. he said, you should probably learn how to fight. that's how it all began. it will be a funeral. president clinton will be there, bryant gumbel and billy crystal. there will also be a private ceremony for his closest family and friends. in addition to that, we're told that he is actually going to make his way one last time through the streets of louisville as well. he will be going down the street that bears his name, just two blocks from where i stand. i'm here at the muhammad ali

center, a center that was opened and dedicated in 2005. the idea here being to encourage a new generation of muhammad alis, if you will. there's a growing memorial behind me as well here, harry. folks have been showing up, hundreds, if not thousands of them, over the past 12 hours, have been showing up to pay their respects, dropping off balloons and flowers. i've had the opportunity to talk to a number of them, including one woman who is originally from peru. and my conversation with her really speaks to how he was in so many ways, so much bigger than boxing. here she was. >> muhammad ali, since he was cassius clay, when i was 4 years old and my dad, back home in peru, he goes, cassius clay is going to fight tonight. so it was just amazing.

so i've been knowing about him since i was pretty much born, through my dad. >> your father was an ali man? >> oh, gosh, he was an ali man. i moved to kentucky about 20 years ago. when he came about ten years ago, the first thing he said, i know ali was born here, i want to know where, i want to go to his museums. it was all about him. if you go to my house in peru, as you walk in, you'll see a huge picture of muhammad ali. so you know how big of a fan he is. >> he belonged to the world, harry smith. >> and i'm just looking at the folks in and out of that square all day, the demographics tell a big story. it's all kinds of people, from all walks of life. all parts of the demographic puzzle. it's really something. >> he was. and i think a lot of young folks probably don't necessarily appreciate this. long before tiger, long before michael jordan, he was a global

star, undeniably, the most famous person walking this earth for the better part of two decades. i've also had some conversations with some folks who -- they didn't share the ring with him, but they were boxers. evander holyfield and i had a conversation a short time ago. here's what he told me. >> this man had lived a great life and at some point in time, it ends for everybody. no more than to be happy for everybody, all the goals, all the memories he has given everybody, to strive to be the very best in their endeavors. >> reporter: take me back to that first time that you met him. i believe it was in the mid '80s. >> it was, you know, after the olympics i met ali and it was such a great thing. i was told when i was 8 years old that i could be like ali. and ali was a gold medal in the

olympics. i was the bronze medal. we both fought light-heavy and i had an aspiration of being heavyweight champion of the world, just like him. i think the oddest thing that someone asked me, did i ever want to break ali record? i told them no. they asked me why. i said that means i have to lose. i did break ali record because i lost more than one time. it was just the fact that i found out that people who take chances of winning, sometimes you can fall short. but you can get back up and that's what ali has proven. >> holyfield, in his prime, versus ali in his prime, who wins? >> well, you know, no one. think about it.

he said himself, i'm the greatest, and everybody before me. he never said i'm the greatest of everybody behind me. so it would be foolish for me to say that when i understood what he said. you should learn from the people before you, you just can't learn from the people behind you. so that tell you how great he was, that he knew that, hey, if i tell everybody i'm the greatest, i'm the greatest there's ever been, but he talking about everybody before him. he not talking about afterwards. so you know what, and i called it. i'm thinking, you know what, you supposed to be better than anybody before you, because it's impossible to be thinking you'll be great as somebody behind you,

because it's up to them to quit. they're behind you. if they'll never quit, they can always beat you. >> evander holyfield, the former five-time heavyweight boxing champion sharing his thoughts on the greatest of all time. evander, i know you were here for the opening of the ali center. that's where i'm standing right now. this of course is going to play a central role in the memorial on friday. are you planning to make it back to louisville for that? >> i wouldn't miss it. >> thank you, sir. thank you for your time. sorry for your loss. >> thank you. >> reporter: and along with evander holyfield, thousands of others expected to line the streets here in louisville, kentucky, to say goodbye to their favorite son here. >> craig melvin in louisville today, thank you so much for your hard work. muhammad ali was that once in a lifetime personality who seemed to change everything he came in contact with.

there was no place in the world that didn't know ali. here's hoda kotb with a look back at the life of a legend. ♪ >> it is one of the enduring images of a man they called the greatest. >> what a moment. >> when muhammad ali struggled to light the olympic torch in atlanta, the whole world cheered him on. but a generation earlier, muhammad ali, the heavyweight champion of the world was reviled for refusing to fight for his country. what an improbable journey from outcast to hero. what an improbable life. he was a beautiful boxing machine, the heavyweight champ a record three times. >> i am the greatest. >> but muhammad ali's records only hint at his greatness.

people saw in ali, a symbol of defiance, of courage, of faith, of racial pride. that's a lot of symbols for a man who once said, if not for boxing, he'd likely be back in his hometown, louisville, kentucky, parking cars. >> i'm hand some, i'm fast, i'm pretty, and can't possibly be beat. >> reporter: he was the outrageous louisville lip. >> if you get too small, i'll knock you out. >> close your mouth and keep it closed for ten seconds. >> that's impossible. >> reporter: ali was the most flamboyant self-promoter the sports world had ever seen. >> you float like a butterfly and sting like a bee. rumble, young man, rumble! >> reporter: but it was outside the ring where he became a truly transcendent figure. muhammad ali became embroiled in the great issues of his day -- race, religion, the war in vietnam.

>> he is the most profound influence on sports in the 20th century. >> the late reporter dick schaap was there for muhammad ali's entire career. >> he really became a cause, a symbol, a sign of something larger than himself. so he became a hero to many people who did not have heroes at the time. >> who's the heavyweight champion of the world! ♪ >> reporter: he was born cassius marcellus clay in 1942, the older of two boys. his mother worked as a domestic, his father painted signs. the clays provided a good home, but there was no protecting cassius from the indignities of segregation and racism. >> louisville was a city where blacks raked manure in the back stretch of churchill downs. they might have served mint juleps. but it was a petty crime when his new bike was stolen that

gave direction to his life. cassius reported the theft to a policeman, who happened to train fighters in his spare time. he told cassius he'd teach him to fight in case he ever caught up with the thief. from then on, every waking moment was dedicated to his training, a passion that did not carry over to his school work. >> muhammad went to an all-black high school in louisville, graded 376 out of a class of 391. and it really was boxing that saved him. without boxing, what would have become of cassius clay? >> reporter: boxing allows cassius clay to realize his dreams. >> he had this dream, he told me, that he was running down broadway, the main street of louisville. a truck was coming at him. he took off and flew over the truck. it summarized everything about him. he wanted to soar and become the center of attention. >> reporter: he soared to become national amateur champion and

then in 1960, won an olympic gold medal in rome. in 1964, he was set for a title fight against the scowling and fearsome champion sonny liston. >> liston was a destroyer of fresh. >> reporter: angelo dundee was muhammad ali's trainer for more than 20 years. >> they gave my guy no chance. they thought i was nuts. >> you look at me, i'm loaded with confidence. they can't beat me and i'm pretty as a girl. >> reporter: before the fight, he was a poet. >> clay comes out to me and starts to repeat. if lifton goes back, he'll end up in a ringside seat. >> reporter: during the fight, he was poetry in motion. >> that might be all, ladies and gentlemen. >> reporter: cassius clay emerged as the most charming, outrageous champion boxing had ever seen. >> i took back the world! >> reporter: after the fight, he told reporters, i don't have to

be what you want me to be. it was the end of cassius clay and the birth of muhammad ali in that dramatic moment, a 22-year-old boxer showed the world the possibilities of what a modern black man could be. >> why do you insist on being called muhammad ali now? >> that's a black man's name. i'm muhammad ali, i'm no longer a slave. >> what does it mean? >> worthy of all praises and most high. >> most of the public couldn't reconcile the name change or the fact that ali had become the most visible member of the nation of islam. >> everything good and of authority was made right. and i'm sure if there's a heaven in the sky and the colored folks die and go to heaven, where are the colored angels? they must be in the kitchen preparing the milk and honey. >> he was reviled and hated. the black muslims were not well understood by white people. >> reporter: then in 1967, he refused to fight in vietnam. and when he wouldn't go,

muhammad ali, holder of the most coveted title in sports, was banned from boxing and vilified by mainstream america. >> muhammad ali might have been the most hated man in america. he was condemned by congress, stripped of his championship, criminally prosecuted. he thought he would never be allowed to fight again. so he paid a heavy price for his beliefs. >> my intention is to box to win a clean fight. but in war, the intention is to kill, kill, kill, kill, and continue killing innocent people. >> it was just the ultimate act of self-assertion. >> reporter: for much of black america says washington university professor gerald early, ali's defiance was nothing less than revolutionary. >> for me as a black kid, it convinced me that it was possible for a black man to be able to stand up for something in society. >> reporter: over time, many

people, reporters included, began to see ali in a different light, a martyr taking a principled stand against an unjust war. >> he became this kind of romanticized dissident. and that raised him a great deal in the estimation of a lot of people. >> muhammad ali! >> reporter: he had become an impossibly complex and compelling figure -- champion, showman, dissident. >> don't get hurt now. >> reporter: the supreme court overturned his conviction after three years, but muhammad ali came back a changed man. he still had the heart of a warrior, but the lightning-fast speed, those feet of clay were gone. in 1971, he lost the decision in a titanic title bout against joe frazier. >> i know people who cried when he lost to joe frazier in their first fight. people were just that upset about it. >> reporter: to his fans and by now, they were legion, his

fights had become more than sporting events. >> his victory meant a validation of who and what they were. and, boy, i can hardly think of an athlete who had that kind of power. >> reporter: never was that power more in evidence than 1974, the rumble in the jungle. ali embraced by the people of zaire, faced a young and heavily favored george foreman. ali regained the title. it was the stuff of legend. >> three, four! >> reporter: muhammad ali was once again the king of the world. >> and i'm still the king of all kings, and he must lose in a round i choose. it's gonna be a thriller and a chiller when i get the gorilla in manila. >> reporter: ali said his next bout against joe frazier was the closest thing you'll ever see to death. >> in a bruising and brutal

fight that ended with joe frazier sitting in his corner the loser and muhammad ali the winner on the floor. ali, still the heavyweight champion of the world. >> reporter: his journey from louisville to manila has made him the most recognized man on earth and a cultural icon. ♪ >> reporter: in the world of comic books, ali could whoop anybody, even superman. >> is that all you got, sucker? >> reporter: in the real world at the end of his career, mere mortals got the better of him. ali simply couldn't step out of the spotlight. he lost three of his last four fights. >> telling him to stop fighting was like telling picasso to stop painting. when you're the greatest in the world it's got to be awfully hard to ever be convinced that you can't do it. >> reporter: he might have been the greatest fighter of all time, but after more than 25

years, the not so sweet signs of boxing had exacted a terrible toll. >> i had my brain checked today. did you find anything? [ laughter ] >> no comment. >> reporter: what doctors found was parkinson's syndrome, the result of too many blows to the head. >> it feels like i'm going to have a big fight. >> reporter: but with his fourth and final wife lonnie at his side, he remained remarkably active, a goodwill ambassador to the whole world. still the showman. ali said he never wanted people to feel sorry for him, but for those who remembered him in his youth, a certain sadness was unavoidable. >> he was so alive, so full of life, so exuberant, so animated. and parkinson's makes you just the opposite. and he's a constant reminder, i think, of our own mortality. they want him to always be the way he was. and that's not life. it's not the way it is.

>> reporter: strangely, those who knew him best said ali never understood just how much he meant to people until the night he was the surprise and secret choice to light the flame at the olympic games. >> oh, my! >> reporter: there he stood before a packed stadium and 3 billion more around the world, very much loved, still and forever the greatest. when we come back, muhammad ali's very public controversies and challenges. my conversation with david remnick, author of "muhammad ali: king of the world." every time i drive. ...want my number? and cash back for driving safe. and the power to automatically find your car... i see you car! and i got the power to know who's coming

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david remnick, author and editor of "the new yorker" wrote the book, "ali: king of the world." it tells the story of how cassius clay transformed himself into muhammad ali. why write a book about ali? >> muhammad ali for me was as important as the beatles or bob dylan. he was a culture hero. he wasn't just boxing or his athletic prowess. he had importance. he meant something to the culture. he had meaning. he changed america. >> how was he that different compared to everyone who came before him? >> ali is a figure of the thick of the television age. he invents a character for himself. 22 professional fights and i'm pretty as a girl! >> he not only was the greatest boxer of all time, because he

married speed and power in a way that no athlete ever did. in his time, to be the heavyweight champion was the most glamourous, the highest athletic office there was. and he gave it all up. >> it's hard for us to understand now the depth of enmity that was aimed at muhammad ali when he said, i am not going to -- i'm not going to join the army. >> i ain't got no quarrel with those vietcong. >> is what he said. >> and why was he saying it? he was seeing at home the situation of black men and women was what it was. and he refused to get on an airplane and go 10,000 miles away to fight in a war that on whatever level, he knew to be wrong. he became a symbol for a lot of people, a lot of young people, and then became an international figure of black pride. >> what did it cost him to say, i'm not gonna fight in the vietnam war?

>> well, for one thing, it cost him an enormous amount of money. it cost him his high office. it cost him the heavyweight championship. he went to stand for the draft, he refused. and it took a decision of the supreme court to allow him to re-enter his profession. it was an enormous story. an enormous story. and very few people stood by him. he was a figure of both admiration, but also friction and hatred. he was enormously brave and he inspired a lot of people, in the anti-war movement, in the civil rights movement. and he redefined the possibility of what it was to be an african american. >> you're a true inspiration to me, sir. >> what did it seem to you that parkinson's took from him? >> had robbed him of movement, it robbed him of speech. and what was muhammad ali about? in the ring, he was about movement. and it robbed him of speech,

that was the other thing that he was all about. his eloquence, the poems that he would recite. >> here's this guy who is heroic to some, vilified and hated by many, many other. and it was like almost we woke up one day and america said, it's all good. >> it's very interesting. in 1965, millions of people found themselves threatened. >> but look who gets it next. >> and then many years later, there he is, vulnerable, lighting the torch -- the olympic torch in atlanta, his hand shaking. everybody worried that he might not survive the moment, and he is universally loved. some of that is his vulnerability at that point, but without being too namby-pamby about it, i think also the country changed and he played a role in that. >> when we come back, muhammad

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for decades, muhammad ali shared his energy and easy humor with the folks on the "today" show, but he really moved us when he did a much more difficult thing, when he shared the story of his battle with parkinson's. here's matt lauer. >> oh, man, i just can't wait to

get this over. oh, i just can't wait. >> well, i've been waiting for this for the last ten minutes. you're starting to get wound up. >> i'm getting so mad i want to walk off the show. >> muhammad ali was more than a friend to us here at "today." >> how are you, champ? [ cheers and applause ] >> he was practically family. >> you always class up the joint. >> reporter: his signature style was something we long admired. >> this is a guy i have idolized since i was a little boy. i named ali my inspiration in our inspired by series in 2013. the fact of the matter is, that when muhammad ali became the most famous man in the world, he didn't just treat it as being a celebrity. he felt a responsibility. a sense of purpose in the ring and outside it. he talked openly with me about his personal struggle with parkinson's.

>> muhammad, every time i see you, i ask you a simple question, but i mean it from the heart and people want to know, how are you feeling? >> well. >> do you feel well? >> no pain. >> but it took time for fans to embrace that the champ was no longer. >> we don't want to see him growing old. >> we do that selfishly, because we want our heroes to remain -- >> forever young. >> that's right. >> ali had a special connection with my friend bryant gumbel, the champ surprising bryant on his goodbye show in 1997. >> who's this? who'd you bring with you? >> somebody you might know. >> what's made their relationship so special? >> i think mutual respect for what they've stood for. muhammad has blazed new territory. bryant has done the same.

>> reporter: in 1991, ali told bryant his parkinson's almost kept him off the show. >> does your present condition upset you? does it bother you? >> you view this as your trial now? >> yes. >> how are you passing? are you matching the trial? are you up to the challenge? >> i'm doing it right now. coming on the show, facing you. >> his bravery and courage unmatched. >> do you think about your own death much? >> five times a day when i'm praying. see, this life is short. this life is a preparation for

the eternal life. and people who are spiritual know what i'm talking about. so i might die tomorrow, i might die next week, i don't know when i'll die. >> reporter: but he lived. boy, did he live with a signature swagger. >> the stage is set for me to just shock the whole planet and be recognized as not the greatest boxer, but the greatest athlete of all time. >> reporter: in 1978, he chatted with jane paulie after his trip to russia. >> what did you miss while you were over there in the soviet union? >> ice. ice and the "today" show. [ laughter ] >> reporter: we miss you too, champ. when we come back, the wit and wisdom of muhammad ali. reduce my risk of progression. and everywhere i look... i'm reminded to stick to my plan. including preservision areds 2. my doctor said preservision areds 2

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for a man who made his living with his fists, muhammad ali may be best remembered for what he said. sure, there was bravado, but there was also plenty of wisdom. here's josh mankiewicz. >> reporter: arrogance. >> i predict he will not stand a chance. >> reporter: pomposity. >> because i'm still the king. >> reporter: controversy. >> there's one hell of a lot of difference in fighting in the ring and going to war in vietnam. >> reporter: eloquence. >> the greatest wonder, the greatest miracle, the greatest surprise is to be found in one's heart.

>> reporter: grace. >> i went on talk for so long, i went on all the time. now me get on that guy and the loser and try to come back. so i don't feel bad. >> reporter: the man born cassius clay became muhammad ali and eventually proclaimed himself -- >> i'm the greatest fighter of all time. >> reporter: he taunted. >> joe frazier will literally do nothing, because he's now too old. >> reporter: ever the pugilist. always the poet. >> he'll fall to prove that i'm great. and if he keeps talking jibe, i'm going to cut it to five. >> reporter: objected. >> we black people in america are fighting the same common enemy. >> reporter: rejoice. >> i'm loaded with confidence. 22 professional fights and i'm pretty as a girl. >> reporter: he floated. and stung. and soared.

>> that's why i'm the greatest of all times! and i'm this pretty, this powerful, this intelligent, this fast, this witty. no. >> reporter: he transcended sport. >> the stage is set for me to just shock the whole planet. >> reporter: inspired. >> and we're born to cultivate the field. >> reporter: in a way, weakened. >> i believe all of you remember muhammad's pre-parkinson's days, when he moved millions with his vibrant voice and his poetic expression. >> reporter: he won. he lost. but was never vanquished. >> i might as well see you in jail. >> reporter: forever the champ. forever ali. sometimes boastful, just as often humble.

>> for what is a man? a man is his heart. >> reporter: service to others, he said, is the rent you pay for your room here on earth. when we come back, the cameras loved him. muhammad ali, through the lens of his one-time personal photographer. thank you for dining with us. hope to see you again soon. whoa, whoa, i got this. just gotta get the check. almost there. i can't reach it. if you have alligator arms, you avoid picking up the check. what? it's what you do. i got this. thanks, dennis! if you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. growwwlph. it's what you do. oh that is good crispy duck.

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and now a truly intimate look at the life of a legend. michael gaffney spent a year as muhammad ali's personal photographer in the 1970s and has a collection of photographs, many of which have never been seen publicly before. now he shares them along with some remarkable memories. >> i felt that i had an obligation to document one of the most extraordinary people of our lifetime. muhammad had this great gift where he would pull spontaneous things. the limo would pull over, he'd tell the driver to pull over. then he'd jump out. and this was in detroit. and he would jump out and he would just interact with people. in this particular shot, he would always do a little boxing and within a couple of minutes, everybody would just gather around.

but you could see the joy that he was bringing to all the people who were there. that's what he did all the time. he was a terrific family person. he loved traveling. that was his rv. whenever he could, he would get his kids together. at that point, he was married to veronica, and she's in the photograph. and in that particular photograph, it was just hanna. that was part of my duty, was to take the personal pictures. that's why he hired me. and that was my privilege. i came back to his apartment with him and i saw laila there with veronica, and i said, hey, champ, can i get a picture of you with laila? and he said sure. so he knelt down on the floor and was just -- just -- just holding her. and to me, it's one of my favorite photographs.

because it totally shows a different side of ali, a father. ali has said a couple of things that i remember most vividly, and he said, a champion has to have the skill and the will. but it's the will that must be stronger than the skill. and that was something that he carried through his whole life. it was just his will. his will to live, you know, carried him through. >> when we come back, the inspirational muhammad ali, how his words touched people's lives. when i was a kid there was a handle. and a face. this is nice. does it come in a california king? getting roid rage. hemorrhoid. these are the worst, right? i'm gonna buy them.

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muhammad ali transcended boxing and sports in general to

become an icon. and for mean, an inspiration, one of those was our own matt lauer. now some reflections matt first shared a few years ago about the childhood moment when a legend in the making changed his young life. >> who's the heavyweight champion of the world! >> i'm the greatest that ever lived. i don't have a mark on my face. i must be the greatest! >> i was 7 years old when muhammad ali won the heavyweight championship of the world. and i was a huge sports fan. even at that young age. he was the biggest thing in the world of sports. >> i'm young, i'm handsome, i'm fast, i'm pretty, and can't possibly be beat. >> he was chiselled out of stone and he had that personality. and that's what got me. it was magnetic, it was mesmerizing. you couldn't turn away from the guy when you watched him.

>> i'm gonna float like a butterfly and sting like a bee. his hands can't hit what his eyes can't see. >> so here i've got this idol and along comes 1967, i'm 10, and muhammad ali refuses to be inducted into the military in this country. i didn't know the religious reasons. i was too young to understand the politics of it. what i understood at 10 years old, was that my idol, the heavyweight champion of the world was doing something that was going to make him no longer the heavyweight champion of the world. so i went to my dad one day, and i said to him, dad, do you agree with what muhammad ali is doing? and my dad was a world war ii veteran, he fought in the philippines in world war ii, and i remember him saying, i don't agree with what he's doing. and it was devastating to me. i mean, my dad was basically telling me he didn't agree with what my idol was doing, but he paused just a second and i'll

never forget it and he looked at me and said, but i will tell you, i admire him for standing up for what he believes in. and it was like double light bulbs went on. i learned a lot about my dad at this moment, that this world war ii veteran could see things in layers, that he could disagree with ali's actions, but admire him as a man. then i really got the bug and started following muhammad ali, because now he had the stamp of approval from the guy that meant the most to me in my life, my dad. the fact of the matter is that when muhammad ali became the most famous man in the world, he didn't just treat it as being a celebrity. he felt a responsibility. >> people look for miracles. people look for surprises of all kinds. yet the greatest wonder, the greatest miracle, the greatest surprise, is to be found in one's heart.

>> he helped people who were hungry and poor and depressed and illiterate and he gave them hope and inspiration. and he stood for something. it leads to that night in atlanta, the opening ceremony of the atlanta olympic games, and i'm sitting in that stadium with bryant gumbel and onto the platform out of the shadows comes muhammad ali, and he's carrying the torch but he's shaking. imagine the message it sent to people all around the world, that the once heavyweight champion of the world, the greatest, was comfortable standing there in that world spotlight, trembling, holding that torch, but sending a message that, i am still powerful. i wept in that stadium. when you're used to being seen in that incredibly physical state, that chiselled body, and next thing you know, you have something like parkinson's disease, it would be very easy to run from the spotlight and

say, i don't want to be seen this way. this is not the way i want to be remembered. it can't be easy for muhammad to travel around these days. >> do you know this man here? >> oh, yes. >> but the fact that he is still willing to go out and finds it still important to go out and inspire other people at his parkinson's center. >> this is also for my mother who's had parkinson's for 22 years. >> you're an inspiration to me, sir, god bless you. ♪ >> how many people do you know in your life who began to inspire people when they were 18, 19 years old, and have continued to inspire millions of people all around the world past their 70th birthday? it may be unequal. i mean, this is perhaps the most famous man in the world and he could easily still make it all about himself, and yet he chooses to live his life in a way that makes it all about others.

>> i still got the world! i still got the world! >> some will remember his fights in and out of the ring. others will remember his words. often as powerful as his punches. we leave you with a last look back at the man we will all remember as the greatest. ♪ >> from louisville, kentucky, weighing 196, cassius clay! ♪ >> i have wrestle with an

alligator, i done tussled with a whale, i handcuffed lightning and throwed thunder in jail. that's bad. >> last night i cut the light off in my bedroom, hit the switch, was in the bed before the room was dark. ♪ >> everybody stop talking now. attention. >> people look for miracles. people look for surprises of all kinds. yet the greatest wonder, the greatest miracle, the greatest surprise is to be found in one's heart. ♪ ♪

>> i'm harry smith, welcome to an msnbc special, "remembering muhammad ali." >> he was a boxer to preached peace, a boxer who fought harder for what he believes in, and as he himself told us many times, he was the greatest. muhammad ali died friday at the age of 74. he suffered for decades from parkinson's disease, a disease most likely caused by boxing. he was surrounded by his family when he died, a family spokesperson talked about those emotional final moments with