1920sMISS POKER FACE

[Music] the greatest drama the memorable story of the great among us written by you the people [Music] this chapter miss poker face the story of helen wills [Music] helen wills her racket brought her everlasting fame hailed as a champion she was misunderstood as a person the world thought of her as cold and proud people never knew the feeling she concealed it was always that way from her first national championship match in 1923 her opponent was mala mallory the defending champion helen was 17 years old a kid facing one of the great players of the time nervous of course she was but her fears were repressed [Music] with no sign of emotion she defeated mrs mallory in a tremendous upset then and there helen wills received her nickname miss poker face [Applause] next year helen wills went to england to take part in the british championships at wimbledon this was the mecca of the tennis world the kings of spain and portugal were there to see her play although filled with awe by her surroundings helen played well and reached the finals her opponent was an english girl catherine mccain in a hard-fought match helen was beaten she shed tears of disappointment after that match cried for the first and last time because champions must not show weakness and she was a champion proving it decisively during the next two years helen won the united states singles in 1924 again next year defeating catherine mccain revenge for wimbledon here she teamed up with vinnie richards to beat bill tilden and muller mallory her ambition to become a great tennis player was now achieved america was proud of miss pokerface she demonstrated her tennis strokes for the slow-motion movie camera her perfectly timed forehand smash her smooth footwork that always brought her into position in time to meet the ball her slashing backhand strokes that had beaten every woman player in the world but suzanne langlin the french riviera helen went there in 1926 to play against suzanne linglin the tennis match of the century detracted huge crowds this was helen's great test shaking hand she concealed her nervousness the crowd expected langlin to win and as the match began helen wills quickly learned the reason for their confidence she was driven from side to side across the court suzanne langland hit her shots with almost unbelievable speed and precision [Music] although much older than helen miss linglin covered her side of the court with the speed and grace of a young girl her sharply angled backhand return scored point after point the crowd had been right langlin won the match it established her as the world's first ranking woman tennis player [Applause] england victorious helen wanted the chance to avenge that setback the chance came a few weeks later in paris they were entered in the french national championships but before they could meet helen became ill and was taken to the hospital an appendectomy no more tennis that year after the operation homeward bound with the american white man cup players returning victorious from england a winter of rest then back to the courts to defend her u.s championship helen jacobs was her most threatening challenger now that suzanne langlin had turned professional but mala mallory was still strong and lily de alvarez the spanish star was always dangerous helen beat them all she played exhibition matches against the great men players vinnie richards she met the greatest of the great big bill tilden and the outstanding french player renee lacoste they called her queen helen of the courts but now suddenly her popularity vanished the fans turned against her in 1929 as helen wills defended her united states singles championship she received a new nickname the killer of the courts spectators resented her poker face didn't understand her inability to show emotion they thought she was being contemptuous and arrogant when she won the match and championship there was little applause she wanted people to like her but it just wasn't in her to reveal her feelings so she accepted the trophy and went sadly home to california [Music] 1929 the year tennis fans turned against helen wills in the year of her marriage until now tennis left no room for romance walking down the steps of the church mrs fred moody was completely happy [Applause] a seafaring honeymoon spent on the yacht sailing along the coast of california when it was over the newlyweds settled down in san francisco in her new home helen had a studio where she could devote herself to painting she had studied art in college now she went at it seriously quickly winning a reputation as an artist to helen painting soon became almost as important as tennis at long last a practical use for those [Music] then a period of travel at buckingham palace england helen was presented formally to the british king and queen but that formal gown was soon removed for the kind of clothes helen wills moody loved best tennis clothes in 1930 wimbledon champion in 1931 u.s women's champion 1932 women's champion of england helen repeated that victory in 33 tennis opened many doors during these years helen played with the great and famous with the bishop of london with sweden's tennis playing monarch king gustav with the japanese davis cup star tamiya abe at forest hills long island she met her toughest and most consistent opponent helen jacobs she had beaten miss jacobs often in so-called grudge matches and now in 1933 they met in the finals of the u.s national championship helen moody had injured her back earlier that season now as she played against a bitterest rival the pain was agonizing but somehow in spite of the pain she won the first set [Applause] the second set went to helen jacobs as the third and decisive set began helen will's moody moved over the court in the days of pain but she couldn't quit if she gave up it would be taken as another example of her contempt for the audience jacob stepped up the pressure sensing the victory for which he had waited so many years finally hell and will's moody couldn't go on she surrendered the match and helen jacobs became the united states champion by default back to san francisco and into a hospital went helen will's moody it seemed she would never play tennis again then slowly her spine condition improved it was a long uphill fight to recovery swimming to strengthen the muscles of her back later long walks over the hills of san francisco to harden her leg muscles she wouldn't give up determined to get back into tennis form at last she was permitted to take a racket and hit a few balls against a practice wall slowly she regained some of her old skill one day in 1935 a wild impulse the wimbledon tournament was at hand but could she reach england in time it was a slim chance but that night helen was on the train bound for new york she reached the ship four minutes before it sailed but was she sailing in a fool's errand could she regain her form and make a serious bid for the english championship [Music] wimbledon 6 000 miles from home other players would have loved ones in the stand to cheer them when the matches began helen will's moody was alone even worse helen jacobs was there if helen will's moody reached the finals her opponent most likely would be helen jacobs both did reach the final round the stage was set for a great court battle helen jacobs entered the match still disappointed by her unsatisfactory victory two years before at forest hills she wanted a clean-cut victory this time helen will's moody was still rusty after her long layoff they played evenly for a few games then putting on a burst of power helen moody won the first set [Applause] the second set was a far different story all through her long playing career helen jacobs had been thwarted by the greatness of helen moody this time she would not be denied her strokes quizzed across the net driving helen moody all over the court she set a terrific pace game after game and won the set evening the match time out for a short rest then the third and deciding set [Applause] helen jacobs started that last set as though she would blast her opponent off the court she seemed tireless her shots as powerful as they'd been at the start jacobs was one point from victory helen moody was exhausted but she hung on grimly and even the score [Music] [Applause] then suddenly she got her second wind her strength returned and she swept forward to win the set and match allen wills moody once again champion of wimbledon it was a great moment for miss poker face as she took the cup while the crowd cheered one of the great comebacks of all time it was worth all the pain of her injury and despair of being misunderstood by the public yes there would be other triumphs but from that moment pelham will's moody belonged among the immortals of tennis [Music] forever [Applause] [Music] [Applause] be with us again next week at this time when the greatest drama true film biographies of the great among us again comes your 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