Native son Jim Thorpe is regarded as the greatest athlete to set foot on Oklahoma soil.

Yes, that's still true even though Michael Jordan played a college game here back in the day. Justification: Thorpe starred in multiple sports. How did the baseball fling turn out for Jordan?

But Thorpe will get a run for his money Thursday because Tulsan and former Olympian Madeline Manning is bringing a herd of Olympic pals to the Mabee Center for "An Evening of Thanksgiving With Madeline and Friends."

Garth Brooks has friends in low places. Manning has friends in gold places. She originally intended to stage a small shindig featuring a few local folks, but word spread "and the next thing I knew, I had a line of Olympic legends coming."

One of them is Carl Lewis, who ranked 12th (five spots behind Thorpe) when an ESPN panel selected the top 100 athletes of the 20th century. If Lewis had accepted invitations from pro sports franchises during his prime, he might — emphasis on might — have built a multi-sport resume to rival Thorpe's.

Thorpe won Olympic gold medals in the pentathlon and decathlon in 1912. He played pro baseball — minor league and major league — for 20 years. He is in the College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Lewis? He is "only" a track icon. He won four gold medals in the 1984 Olympics and collected a total of nine gold medals in four Olympiads.

Can you imagine if Lewis packed his medals for the Tulsa trip? At worst, he might never get through the metal detector at the airport and, at best, his briefcase would glow like the one in "Pulp Fiction."

Lewis ran and jumped like no one else in his species. He set world records in sprint events and was unbeaten in the long jump for a decade. Perhaps the only thing preventing him from becoming the Thorpe of his generation was the road not taken.

Lewis possessed such a spectacular skill set that pro sports executives were intrigued enough to spend late-round draft picks on him.

The Chicago Bulls selected Lewis (who never played high school or college basketball) in the 10th round of the 1984 NBA draft. Lewis didn't try for a roster spot, but the Bulls got a nice consolation prize because they took some guy named Jordan with the third overall pick.

The Dallas Cowboys chose Lewis as a receiver in the 12th round of the 1984 NFL draft. The Cowboys had gambled similarly on 1964 Olympic gold medalist Bob Hayes and got a Pro Football Hall of Famer out of the deal. Hayes, unlike Lewis, played college football.

In hindsight, does Lewis wish he had enlisted for a tour of duty with either team that drafted him? Let's ask someone with insight.

Manning has known Carl and his sister Carol since they were high school students. Manning once shepherded them to Russia for a track competition and realized immediately she was in the presence of greatness.

"All of us looked at Carl changing gears like four or five times and he was still picking up when he went through the finish line," Manning said. "And we said 'this guy, once he learns what he is doing and he gets stronger, he's going to be unbeatable.' And we were right."

By the way, Manning said Lewis calls her "mom." So, mom, does Lewis wish he had tried out for the Bulls or Cowboys?

"No. He doesn't have any regrets," Manning said.

"We have talked about that. His love has been for track and field. That's where his heart is. He considered football only because of the money.

"But, the thing is, when he realized that they could scrunch him up and the money wouldn't mean a thing, he said forget that. He didn't like to be hit and neither did I. I was like 'let's reconsider that one.' "

Though Lewis did not follow Thorpe into pro football, they have Hollywood in common. Thorpe appeared in at least 65 films (including a bit part in "King Kong"). After Lewis retired from competition in 1997, he moved from Houston to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career.

Could Lewis have made an impact in football or basketball? We'll never know, but anything seems possible for someone who is in the top one percent of athletes ever to walk the planet. It's too bad for the other 99 percent of us that we never got to see Lewis go moonlighting.

About the event

Mabee Center, 7777 S. Lewis

Tickets: $10- $75 at the Mabee Center box office, 495-6000 and tulsaworld.com/mabee