Billie Jean King: June 2008 Archives

Tennis legend Billie Jean King watched the matches at Wimbledon on Saturday. At 64, the equal right activist is at the site of her greatest triumphs as a player. She was just a teenager back in 1961 and playing in her first Wimbledon when she and Karen Hantz giggled their way to the title. She went on to win six singles titles there and shares the record with Martina Navratilova for the most overall titles won at Wimbledon - 20 - which includes singles, double and mixed doubles.

Billie Jean King is my hero so any time I see an interesting interview with her, I gotta share it with ya. The legend chatted with AP and here are some highlights:

On Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's run in the presidential primary: "If you go by history, it took women 70 more years to vote. If (Sen. Barack) Obama's smart and wants to win, he'll have Hillary as his running mate. To me that would be the right thing to do because they both had so many votes. I know if I were in his position, it's a no-brainer. Or if I were in her position and she became the nominee, he's the right one. They both were so neck and neck, they both bring a different demographic, so I think that's important. But, hey, whatever happens, happens."

Her five-year plan: I thought about a TV show--why not--for the boomers. Get the grandkids on. I know I want to do more books. I like self-improvement, but I want to do THE book (autobiography). I've done a couple in the past, but a lot of years have gone by. It's the first time in my life I'm not clear on my focus. It's been good because it's a challenge. I have a huge sense of urgency, I've always had since I've been a young girl. I love tennis ... with diabetes and obesity on the rise, you can't beat it as a lifetime sport.

If you were the head of a sports network: "I'd start having more and more women's sports on. I love sports because of the human element. I think most people can relate to that, whether they like a sport or not. It's about the people. The reason people think they know all these male athletes is because they see them all the time. If they see us enough, they will definitely like us. And make sure you take boys and girls to women's sports. The girls are taken to men's sports. Don't separate."

On she likes at Wimbledon which beigns next week: (Rafael) Nadal and (Novak) Djokovic are playing better than a year ago. Djokovic won the Australian, he loves to perform, loves being out there just like Nadal. (Roger) Federer is still the one to beat. He's a genius, probably the greatest player that's ever lived. He's such a great person, he's got a good soul, he's very aware of the world around him. On the women's side? I'm going to miss (Justine) Henin. I just loved watching her backhand and her all-court play. She was so tiny and had to be such a great athlete to be No. 1 in the world. But the Williams sisters, Lindsay Davenport ... Jelena Jankovic and Ana Ivanovic, those two are great. And Maria Sharapova, if she can get that serve going and have more self-confidence.

I sometimes question why certain "stars" are honored on The Hollywood Walk of Fame. The Olsen twins? Britney Spears? Kinda robs the whole thing of credibility. But then it gets restored somewhat when a great actress like Holly Hunter is given a star to call her own. The Oscar winner ("The Piano) is the star of such films as "Broadcast News," "Raising Arizona," "Living Out Loud" and "Thirteen." She currently stars in the TNT series "Saving Grace" and won two Emmy awards for "Roe V. Wade" and "The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader Murdering Mom."

Helping Holly celebrate her star on Friday were tennis legend Billie Jean King and director Steven Spielberg (with wife Kate Capsaw). Holly was Emmy-nominated for her performance as BJK in the television film "When Billie Beat Bobby" and Spielberg directed her in the terrific 1989 flick "Always."