Lynn 'Red' Williams

Before Gladiators, life took a terrible turn for Williams. In 1988, he broke a bone in his back when he was blind-sided by a team-mate during a scrimmage with the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League. His career as a pro football player was over. Tragedy struck again in 1991, when his nephew, Darryl, was shot 28 times in the back by a SWAT team in South Central Los Angeles. However, these two unconnected events, changed his life. In January 1992, he was working at his job as a marketing representative for a health maintenance firm in Los Angeles when his wife told him about tryouts for American Gladiators. He went on to beat 600 prospective Gladiators for one position.

Williams was a member of the notorious Bloods gang during high school in Los Angeles, and he feels that his status as a Gladiator has made him a very positive role model for kids in his community. A talented high school running back, he attended Kansas University, where he was selected All Big-Eight. Upon graduation, he was the fifth draft pick by the Los Angeles Rams. He spent a year with the Rams, followed by a year with the Los Angeles Raiders and San Diego Chargers. Born in Nebraska, he is married to Rhonda and has three children: Lynn Eric II, Lavell Duane and Lauren Nicole.

Subject ID: 86848

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Before Gladiators, life took a terrible turn for Williams. In 1988, he broke a bone in his back when he was blind-sided by a team-mate during a scrimmage with the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League. His career as a pro football player was over. Tragedy struck again in 1991, when his nephew, Darryl, was shot 28 times in the back by a SWAT team in South Central Los Angeles. However, these two unconnected events, changed his life. In January 1992, he was working at his job as a marketing representative for a health maintenance firm in Los Angeles when his wife told him about tryouts for American Gladiators. He went on to beat 600 prospective Gladiators for one position.

Williams was a member of the notorious Bloods gang during high school in Los Angeles, and he feels that his status as a Gladiator has made him a very positive role model for kids in his community. A talented high school running back, he attended Kansas University, where he was selected All Big-Eight. Upon graduation, he was the fifth draft pick by the Los Angeles Rams. He spent a year with the Rams, followed by a year with the Los Angeles Raiders and San Diego Chargers. Born in Nebraska, he is married to Rhonda and has three children: Lynn Eric II, Lavell Duane and Lauren Nicole.

He has made several TV appearances including 'Family Matters', 'Renegade' and 'Babylon 5', as well as starring as Jax in the video game movie sequel 'Mortal Kombat: Annihilation' (1997), alongside fellow Gladiator Malibu (Deron McBee). He reprised the role of Jax in a scarcely-publicised video called Mortal Kombat: Federation of Martial Arts (2000). As a member of the Constitutional Rights Foundation and the Cancer II Foundation, he speaks at local schools in his free time.

Subject ID: 86848

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