Billie Jean King

Billie Jean King

Birth : 1943-11-22, Long Beach, California, USA

History

Billie Jean King is an American former World No. 1 professional tennis player. King won 39 Grand Slam titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles.

Profile

Billie Jean King
Billie Jean King

Movies

McEnroe
Self
Legendary "bad boy of tennis" John McEnroe finally tells his side of his storied career and famously hot-tempered performances on the court in this engrossing documentary revisiting the record-setting career of one of the all-time greats.
On the Line: The Richard Williams Story
Self
Told in his own words using interviews spanning from the 1980s through now, father and tennis coach Richard Williams retraces his family's journey from the courts in Compton to the grass at Wimbledon, defying every custom of the lily-white tennis establishment and fighting back against a system of oppression to raise two of the greatest champions in history - Venus and Serena Williams.
Citizen Ashe
Herself
Follows the life and career of Arthur Ashe.
Who Are You, Charlie Brown?
Self - Tennis Champion / Activist
A documentary about Peanuts and its creator, Charles M. Schulz. Famous fans—including Drew Barrymore, Kevin Smith, and Al Roker—share its influence on them, and a new animated story finds Charlie Brown on a quest.
Unraveling Athena
Exploring the interweaving lives and narrative of female tennis royalty as told through the words of the players themselves, Unraveling Athena provides an extraordinary insight into the mind of the professional athlete and the ultimate exploration of what it takes to make a champion.
Sue Barker: Our Wimbledon
Self
As the BBC celebrates 90 years of covering Wimbledon, Sue Barker travels the globe to meet some of the legends who have graced the famous grass courts. Tennis royalty including Andy Murray, Roger Federer, Rod Laver, Chris Evert, Billie Jean King, Pete Sampras, Bjorn Borg, Virginia Wade, Martina Navratilova, Boris Becker and John McEnroe share memories and reflect on their own experiences at the iconic tennis tournament. These are their stories as never told before, emotional and self-deprecating, revealing how their lives and careers were changed by the Championships. For Sue herself, Wimbledon has been a big part of her life for nearly 50 years as a fan, player and broadcaster. She also meets the Duke of Kent, who is president of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, and the Duchess of Cambridge, who this year takes on a new role as patron.
TOMBOY
Herself
TOMBOY explores the obstacles that young girls encounter on the recreational stage, the stereotypes, language issues and cultural disparities that follow, and ultimately the insufficient media coverage and compensation that afflicts elite professional athletes seeking full recognition for their talents. The journey of the female athlete is often discouraging, and despite progress achieved during the Title IX era, gender equity in athletics has a long way to go.
Elton John: The Nation's Favourite Song
Out to Win
Herself
Out to Win is a documentary film that serves as an overview and examination of lives and careers of aspiring and professional gay and lesbian athletes from all over the world. Chronicling the present, framed within a historical context of those that came before, this film highlights the experiences of athletes who have fought and struggled, both in and out of the closet, to represent the LGBT community and their true selves. This film is told through the voices of pioneers, present day heroes, tomorrow's superstars and the people who've helped them succeed. Featuring interviews with trailblazers including Martina Navratilova, Billie Jean King, Jason Collins, Brittney Griner and more.
Althea
Executive Producer
Althea Gibson’s life and achievements transcend sports. A truant from the rough streets of Harlem, Althea emerged as a most unlikely queen of the highly segregated tennis world in the 1950s. Her roots as a sharecropper’s daughter, her family’s migration north to Harlem in the 1930s, mentoring from Sugar Ray Robinson, David Dinkins and others, and fame that thrust her unwillingly into the glare of the early Civil Rights movement, all bring her story into a much broader realm of the American story.
Venus VS.
Herself
We know about the swing. We know about the swagger. But what most Americans don't know about Venus Williams is how she changed the course of her sport. In a stunning case that captured the European public beginning in 2005, Williams challenged the long-held practice of paying women tennis players less than their male counterparts at Wimbledon. With a deep sense of obligation to the legacy of Billie Jean King, Williams lobbied British Parliament, UNESCO and Fleet Street for financial parity. And it was her poignant op-ed piece in The London Times that convinced many people that the Wimbledon tournament organizers were "on the wrong side of history." Roland Garros and Wimbledon finally relented in 2007. That year at Wimbledon, Venus became the first women's champion to earn as much as the men's singles winner (Roger Federer). VENUS VS. chronicles Williams' fight for pay equality.
The Battle of the Sexes
Executive Producer
Tennis star and women’s rights activist Billie Jean King won a total of 12 Grand Slam titles, but the biggest match of her career took place in 1973 against former men’s champion Bobby Riggs, a self-proclaimed male chauvinist pig who declared that, even at the age of 55, he could beat any woman in the world.
The Battle of the Sexes
Herself
Tennis star and women’s rights activist Billie Jean King won a total of 12 Grand Slam titles, but the biggest match of her career took place in 1973 against former men’s champion Bobby Riggs, a self-proclaimed male chauvinist pig who declared that, even at the age of 55, he could beat any woman in the world.
Billie Jean King: Portrait of a Pioneer
Herself
A profile of the remarkable life and career of tennis legend Billie Jean King, both on and off the court.