Wills, Helen Newington

Wills, Helen Newington (Helen Wills Moody Roark), 1905–98, American tennis player, b. Centerville, Calif. She studied art at the Univ. of California and later gave exhibitions of her paintings and etchings, but gained international attention through tennis. She won seven U.S. singles crowns (1923–25, 1927–29, 1931), eight Wimbledon singles titles (1927–30, 1932–33, 1935, 1938), and four French singles championships (1928–30, 1932). She was a gold medalist in both singles and doubles at the 1924 Olympics, a member of eight Wightman Cup teams, and the 1935 Associated Press Athlete of the Year. Known for her methodical baseline play and emotional stoicism, she also helped emancipate women's tennis from the era of long skirts, petticoats, and stockings.