BERWYN, Ill. – The father of a high school basketball player whose life was chronicled in the acclaimed documentary "Hoop Dreams" (search) has been shot and killed.
Arthur "Bo" Agee Sr. (search), 52, was shot Wednesday in an alley located several garages from his own in the western Chicago suburb of Berwyn, his family said.
Arthur Agee Jr. (search), whose high school basketball exploits and life in public housing were the subject of the 1994 film, said he was on his way home for the holidays when he heard the news.
"I'm flying to Chicago and counting the hours until I come back, and my dad is in the alley getting shot," Agee said Thursday.
Berwyn police didn't respond to requests for comment. Agee said his father typically carried "a couple of hundred dollars" to conduct a clothing business but was found with no money on him.
The elder Agee appeared in the documentary along with his son. Ten years ago he overcame a cocaine habit and later was ordained a minister. Eight years ago, he moved to the Berwyn home his son bought with proceeds from the movie.
"'Hoop Dreams' changed him and had an impact on his life," Agee said, noting that his father stopped using drugs shortly after the movie was released.
The family was recently interviewed for a DVD version of the documentary, expected to be released in April, Agee said.
The younger Agee took Chicago's Marshall High to the state tournament in 1991. He went on to play at Arkansas State, the U.S. Basketball League and the International Basketball Association. He has four children and plans to launch the "Hoop Dreams" sportswear line with a Los Angeles-based partner next year.
On Thanksgiving morning, 1994, Agee's older half brother, DeAntonio, was gunned down at Chicago's Cabrini-Green housing project.
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