Billie Jean King, Elton John bring Smash Hits to BR

• By PAM BORDELON
• Advocate staff writer
• Published: Nov 29, 2009 - Page: 1D

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Local tennis fan Paula Pennington de la Bretonne has some very high-profile friends in the tennis world. For two years, she brought buddy Pete Sampras to Baton Rouge for fundraising exhibition matches. Duel Under the Oaks I raised money to assist LSU Health Sciences students post-Hurricane Katrina, and Duel Under the Oaks II raised funds to assist causes post-hurricanes Gustav and Ike.

This year, de la Bretonne, through the Irene W. & C.B. Pennington Foundation and Baton Rouge Area Foundation, has teamed up with another legend to bring to town what is the most impressive lineup to ever take the courts in the Capital City to raise funds for the Elton John AIDS Foundation and AIDS charities serving the greater Baton Rouge area. Billie Jean King and Sir Elton John are bringing their ADVANTA World TeamTennis Smash Hits tournament to Baton Rouge Dec. 8 at LSU’s Pete Maravich Assembly Center.

De la Bretonne met King at Wimbledon two years ago. They were introduced by Baton Rougean Dane Andreess. “He wanted to put Billie Jean and me together to talk about the work we’re doing through the Pennington Foundation,” de la Bretonne said. “She has a foundation called GoGirlGo! that helps young women with self-esteem.”

GoGirlGo! is the primary programming focus of King’s Women’s Sports Foundation and uses sports and physical activity as an educational intervention that supports girls’ health and wellness in childhood and early womanhood.

“Since I was 12 years old, my goal has been about equal rights and opportunities for boys and girls,” said King in a phone interview.

Never was that goal more in the forefront than when King and Bobby Riggs took to the courts in Philadelphia for 1973’s “Battle of the Sexes.” King’s win over the brash Riggs is remembered to this day for its effect on society and its contribution to the women’s movement.

King, winner of 39 Grand Slam singles,  doubles and mixed doubles tennis titles, including a record 20 titles at Wimbledon, was one of nine players who accepted $1 contracts from tennis promoter Gladys Heldman in Houston. When King and eight other women players broke away from the tennis establishment, the revolt led to the birth of women’s professional tennis and the formation of the Virginia Slims Tour and Women’s Tennis Association, which King founded in 1973. In 1974, she founded the Women’s Sports Foundation and co-founded World TeamTennis, a coed professional tennis league

“Every time a woman does something (noteworthy) she’s congratulated for helping women,” said King, who was named one of the “100 Most Important Americans of the 20th Century” by Life Magazine in 1990. “When are we going to start getting credit for helping everyone?

You never hear a guy being congratulated for helping men’s tennis. I’m thanked for helping women’s tennis; why not just tennis?”

King’s match against Riggs didn’t just capture the nation’s attention. It also caught the attention of tennis aficionado Elton John. As King explained, they met about two weeks before the match when a promoter invited her to a party. “Elton’s a favorite, but we were both too shy to say hello,” recalled King, laughing. 

After tip-toeing around each other all night, someone from John’s “camp” came over and said he’d like to meet her. They chatted and agreed to get together the following year at Wimbledon. “When I got there, there was a message,” King said. “He came over in the Rolls, and we talked and talked, and listened to music. He finally said, ‘I’d like to write you a song.’”

He did and “Philadelphia Freedom” quickly rose to No. 1. It cemented a friendship that has grown in the ensuing 34 years. In 1993, the two teamed up to create WTT Smash Hits, which to date has raised more than $9 million for John’s foundation and various other AIDS charities.

The cause of AIDS and the rise in cases effecting women and children dovetails effortlessly into King’s work to lift up women. “If you help the woman, you usually help end poverty because they care for the children,” King said. “AIDS really belongs to men and women. Women are getting AIDS more and more, which effects the children.”