September 13, 2023 • 6 mins
A What's Up with Wendy BEST OF~
Another incredible U.S. Open! I’ve been so fortunate to interview some amazing people in my career. One of my all-time favorites is my sit-down with the legend, Billie Jean King. I was honored to chat with one of my childhood heroes, a trailblazer who accomplished so much on and off the court. Listen in to hear about her incredible journey as a world-class athlete and as a champion for equality and social change. Don’t miss this inspiring conversation!
Another incredible U.S. Open! I’ve been so fortunate to interview some amazing people in my career. One of my all-time favorites is my sit-down with the legend, Billie Jean King. I was honored to chat with one of my childhood heroes, a trailblazer who accomplished so much on and off the court. Listen in to hear about her incredible journey as a world-class athlete and as a champion for equality and social change. Don’t miss this inspiring conversation!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
My Next Guest won thirty nine GrandSlam titles. She dominated professional tennis for
much of the sixties and seventies.She's also dedicated most of her life to
leveraging her status as an elite athleteto advocate for equal rights. She's been
one of my idols since I'm alittle girl. I'm honored to welcome to
my show, and I have chills. Billy Jean King, Hi, Wendy,
(00:21):
thank you so much. Those werereally kind words. I appreciate it.
Oh my goodness, I read thatwhat you said that when you were
seven years old, you knew youwere going to do something great with your
life. I did. I wasdrying the dishes. We didn't have a
dishwasher in those days. Remember itwas probably around nineteen forty nine or nineteen
fifty. And I told my momI wanted to do something great with me.
(00:42):
I'm going to do something great withmy life. And she said,
that's fine, dear, just keepdrying those dishes. That's n I said,
Mom. I mean it, I'mgonna do something great with my life.
I can feel it, Mom,I can feel it. She was
so cute. My mother kept usvery rounded. My brother and me Oh
my god. So tell us aboutyour career and what you learned through sports
and tennis and what was it likethe first time you you won. Wow,
(01:07):
that's a that's a big, that'sa that's a lot, that's a
lot. I think the one thingI have learned about life through tennis is
that you really are as only asgood as your last match. That means
to live each day the best youcan, to live in the now,
will be very present. Embraced thatidea of being present. Also to be
(01:34):
very very happy and know that howblessed we are. If I as a
professional athlete, I was one ofthe lucky ones. I also have a
younger brother, Randy Moffatt, whowas a professional baseball player. Most of
his career was as a relief pitcherwith the San Francisco Giants. He also
(01:55):
played for the Houston Astros and theBlue Jays as well Toronto Blue Jays.
But I think we both learned somuch through our sports and that you learned
commitment, you learned discipline, youlearn focus and concentration. You learn that
it's a pleading moment, that's whyevery day is so important. And then
when I was fifteen, my dadgave me the best, one of the
(02:17):
best lessons ever and that I canever remember. And I've been complaining that
I had made the front page ofthe Independent Press Telegram, which is a
big newspaper on Long Beach, California, where I was born raised, And
finally the first time I made thefront page, I had lost them at
six love, six love. Andif you don't know any about ten of
people listening, that is by farthe worst you can do. You can't
(02:39):
do any worse to lose six love, six love, because love means zero
and ten. So so anyway,I was not I was a little devastated
as a fifteen year old. Mydad took me aside and said, I
don't want you ever to read yourpress clippings again. I don't want you
to ever read anything about yourself again. And he looked at me and he
says, do you know why.I said no, And he looked at
(03:01):
me and he said, because it'sall about They're only talking about yesterday,
Wow, yesterday and yesterday over here. So he's just saying, it's just
about history. It's not about today. It's what you do with your life
today that matters, not what youdid yesterday, and I'll never forget him
telling you that, and that justhe hit a bullseye for me personally,
(03:22):
and that was it. To thisday, people say, oh, here's
an article, runs you read itabout you, or I can't look.
I can't even read it because thisday, because my dad's voice was still
so strong in my head about notreading my prescal things and to stay grounded.
And my brother is very much groundedtoo. I'll remember that you.
I'll remember that Billy Jean King saidthat it's not about yesterday, it's about
(03:45):
today. At a time when womenwomen's right, at a time when women's
tennis was not so prestigious as men. On September twentieth, nineteen seventy three,
you took on Bobby Rigs in theheight of the women's movement. It
drew the largest ever live audience fora tennis match and got fifteen million viewers.
You won six four six three sixtythree. What did that do for
the people? Oh my gosh,Well, that was about social change when
(04:08):
they and I don't know if youremember, but June twenty third, nineteen
seventy two, just a year beforetitle nine was passed. Yeah, so
that that was huge for me tobeat Bobby Ricks because I really wanted to
start changing the hearts and minds ofpeople to match the legislation. And boy
(04:29):
and boy did you ever. Butfor boys and girls, you you did
it for us, and I thankyou every day for that. Your achievement
came with the price that literally broughtyou to your knees, keeping you off
the courts and severely limiting your abilityto get around. Tell us about that
in your double knee replacement surgery.Wow, Well, I'm very fortunate.
Two years ago I finally got kneereplacement. I got double knee replacement.
(04:50):
I hadn't both done at the sametime. And I had my first knee
operation when I was twenty three,number one in the world, And so
I've been in a lot of painoff and on with my knees. In
fact, altogether, I've had eightknee operations. But if people really want
to hear my story, they shouldgo to rediscover your Go dot com and
they could hear my whole story.But it's been a long haul. My
(05:11):
life was closing in on me.And now I can walk, I can
play tennis, I can go tothe gym and get in and out of
a car all right, and goup and downstairs. I can get in
and out of a chair. Allthose things were becoming very very difficult.
So I was lucky. And Iknow that a lot of your listeners out
there know what I mean, Alot of people are in the you know,
in pain, and I wish theywould look into it because what I've
(05:33):
got very last knee technology in myknees and they've been tested for thirty years
in the lab for wear performance.And I think it's important that I thought.
I thought knee replacements only lasted liketen years, maybe fifteen. And
I've talked with many people who thinkthe same thing. So they'll go to
(05:53):
rediscover your goo dot com and theycan hear my story, find a surgeon
near you. I think, justwe'll get into it. And I know
it's a huge commitment because it's along haul, but it's worth it.
And I cannot tell you how Ihave my life back. I absolutely have
my life back, and I'm veryblessed to have it. And I'm very
thankful to Smiths, a nephew,for doing for giving me this this life
(06:15):
back. I mean, I've justchanged my whole life. Well, you've
You've done so much for us.You've been my idol since I'm a little
girl. You will always be thegreatest tennis player of all time to me,
and thank you so much for joiningme today. Billy Jean King,
thanks a lot. When I hopeI get to meet you and talk with
you again, thank you. Ihope so too. Thank you so much.
My Next Guest won thirty nine GrandSlam titles. She dominated professional tennis for
much of the sixties and seventies.She's also dedicated most of her life to
leveraging her status as an elite athleteto advocate for equal rights. She's been
one of my idols since I'm alittle girl. I'm honored to welcome to
my show, and I have chills. Billy Jean King, Hi, Wendy,
(00:21):
thank you so much. Those werereally kind words. I appreciate it.
Oh my goodness, I read thatwhat you said that when you were
seven years old, you knew youwere going to do something great with your
life. I did. I wasdrying the dishes. We didn't have a
dishwasher in those days. Remember itwas probably around nineteen forty nine or nineteen
fifty. And I told my momI wanted to do something great with me.
(00:42):
I'm going to do something great withmy life. And she said,
that's fine, dear, just keepdrying those dishes. That's n I said,
Mom. I mean it, I'mgonna do something great with my life.
I can feel it, Mom,I can feel it. She was
so cute. My mother kept usvery rounded. My brother and me Oh
my god. So tell us aboutyour career and what you learned through sports
and tennis and what was it likethe first time you you won. Wow,
(01:07):
that's a that's a big, that'sa that's a lot, that's a
lot. I think the one thingI have learned about life through tennis is
that you really are as only asgood as your last match. That means
to live each day the best youcan, to live in the now,
will be very present. Embraced thatidea of being present. Also to be
(01:34):
very very happy and know that howblessed we are. If I as a
professional athlete, I was one ofthe lucky ones. I also have a
younger brother, Randy Moffatt, whowas a professional baseball player. Most of
his career was as a relief pitcherwith the San Francisco Giants. He also
(01:55):
played for the Houston Astros and theBlue Jays as well Toronto Blue Jays.
But I think we both learned somuch through our sports and that you learned
commitment, you learned discipline, youlearn focus and concentration. You learn that
it's a pleading moment, that's whyevery day is so important. And then
when I was fifteen, my dadgave me the best, one of the
(02:17):
best lessons ever and that I canever remember. And I've been complaining that
I had made the front page ofthe Independent Press Telegram, which is a
big newspaper on Long Beach, California, where I was born raised, And
finally the first time I made thefront page, I had lost them at
six love, six love. Andif you don't know any about ten of
people listening, that is by farthe worst you can do. You can't
(02:39):
do any worse to lose six love, six love, because love means zero
and ten. So so anyway,I was not I was a little devastated
as a fifteen year old. Mydad took me aside and said, I
don't want you ever to read yourpress clippings again. I don't want you
to ever read anything about yourself again. And he looked at me and he
says, do you know why.I said no, And he looked at
(03:01):
me and he said, because it'sall about They're only talking about yesterday,
Wow, yesterday and yesterday over here. So he's just saying, it's just
about history. It's not about today. It's what you do with your life
today that matters, not what youdid yesterday, and I'll never forget him
telling you that, and that justhe hit a bullseye for me personally,
(03:22):
and that was it. To thisday, people say, oh, here's
an article, runs you read itabout you, or I can't look.
I can't even read it because thisday, because my dad's voice was still
so strong in my head about notreading my prescal things and to stay grounded.
And my brother is very much groundedtoo. I'll remember that you.
I'll remember that Billy Jean King saidthat it's not about yesterday, it's about
(03:45):
today. At a time when womenwomen's right, at a time when women's
tennis was not so prestigious as men. On September twentieth, nineteen seventy three,
you took on Bobby Rigs in theheight of the women's movement. It
drew the largest ever live audience fora tennis match and got fifteen million viewers.
You won six four six three sixtythree. What did that do for
the people? Oh my gosh,Well, that was about social change when
(04:08):
they and I don't know if youremember, but June twenty third, nineteen
seventy two, just a year beforetitle nine was passed. Yeah, so
that that was huge for me tobeat Bobby Ricks because I really wanted to
start changing the hearts and minds ofpeople to match the legislation. And boy
(04:29):
and boy did you ever. Butfor boys and girls, you you did
it for us, and I thankyou every day for that. Your achievement
came with the price that literally broughtyou to your knees, keeping you off
the courts and severely limiting your abilityto get around. Tell us about that
in your double knee replacement surgery.Wow, Well, I'm very fortunate.
Two years ago I finally got kneereplacement. I got double knee replacement.
(04:50):
I hadn't both done at the sametime. And I had my first knee
operation when I was twenty three,number one in the world, And so
I've been in a lot of painoff and on with my knees. In
fact, altogether, I've had eightknee operations. But if people really want
to hear my story, they shouldgo to rediscover your Go dot com and
they could hear my whole story.But it's been a long haul. My
(05:11):
life was closing in on me.And now I can walk, I can
play tennis, I can go tothe gym and get in and out of
a car all right, and goup and downstairs. I can get in
and out of a chair. Allthose things were becoming very very difficult.
So I was lucky. And Iknow that a lot of your listeners out
there know what I mean, Alot of people are in the you know,
in pain, and I wish theywould look into it because what I've
(05:33):
got very last knee technology in myknees and they've been tested for thirty years
in the lab for wear performance.And I think it's important that I thought.
I thought knee replacements only lasted liketen years, maybe fifteen. And
I've talked with many people who thinkthe same thing. So they'll go to
(05:53):
rediscover your goo dot com and theycan hear my story, find a surgeon
near you. I think, justwe'll get into it. And I know
it's a huge commitment because it's along haul, but it's worth it.
And I cannot tell you how Ihave my life back. I absolutely have
my life back, and I'm veryblessed to have it. And I'm very
thankful to Smiths, a nephew,for doing for giving me this this life
(06:15):
back. I mean, I've justchanged my whole life. Well, you've
You've done so much for us.You've been my idol since I'm a little
girl. You will always be thegreatest tennis player of all time to me,
and thank you so much for joiningme today. Billy Jean King,
thanks a lot. When I hopeI get to meet you and talk with
you again, thank you. Ihope so too. Thank you so much.
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