UPDATE 1-King profit plunges as generics slam flagship drug

* Q2 EPS ex-items 17 cents vs Street view 16 cents

* Sales hurt by generic Skelaxin, but outpace expectations

* Sales of longtime top drug plunge 95 pct, hit by copycats

* Shares unchanged in premarket trading

NEW YORK, Aug 9 (Reuters) - King Pharmaceuticals Inc's KG.N quarterly profit was cut in half as sales of its muscle-relaxant Skelaxin plunged 95 percent due to generic competition, but overall results slightly topped expectations.

The company reported net income of $18 million, or 7 cents per share. That compared to $37.9 million, or 15 cents per share in the year-earlier period.

Excluding special items, the drugmaker earned 17 cents per share. Analysts on average expected 16 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

King's revenue fell almost 17 percent to $371 million, hurt by recent introduction of two generic versions of Skelaxin, King's longtime biggest product. But company revenue came in about $10 million above Wall Street expectations.

Shares were trading at $8.79 in premarket activity, unchanged from their closing price Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.

The quarterly results graphically illustrated just how devastating generic competitors can be to branded drugs.

Sales of Skelaxin plunged to $5 million in the quarter from $102 million in the year-earlier period. (Reporting by Ransdell Pierson, editing by Dave Zimmerman)