The Westport Library has served up some big names at Booked For the Evening, its signature fundraising event.
Tom Brokaw, E.L. Doctorow, Calvin Trillin, Wendy Wasserstein, Pete Hamill, Martin Scorsese, Doris Kearns Goodwin, David Halberstam, Patti Smith, Nile Rodgers, Lynsey Addario, Ron Chernow, Alan Alda, Justin Paul, Itzhak Perlman and Shonda Rhimes are just some of the honorees over the past quarter century.
This year’s 25th anniversary event features another true ace: Billie Jean King.
Billie Jean King
The tennis legend and social justice pioneer will be celebrated in the Trefz Forum on Thursday, September 12. She’ll chat with Chris McKendry, a Westport resident and host for ESPN’s tennis coverage. Tickets go on sale next month.
King will be at the Library just days after the US Open. Its grounds were named in her honor in 2006.
Library executive director Bill Harmer calls King’s appearance “especially significant. Her unparalleled achievements and unwavering dedication to equality and justice resonate deeply with the values our library and community.
“This silver anniversary is a time to reflect on our shared commitment to fostering knowledge, inclusivity, and progress, and there is no one more fitting to inspire us than Billie Jean King. Her enduring impact on sports and society makes her a beacon of hope and change. We are thrilled to celebrate her remarkable legacy with our community.”
“Booked for the Evening” annually honors a person whose work reflects the purpose of the Library: :to nurture a love of learning and to enhance our understanding of the world.” King exemplifies that mission.
The International Tennis Hall of Famer won a remarkable 39 Grand Slam titles. She finished Number 1 in the world 5 times.
Yet for her all accomplishments on the court, she is best known today for championing equality and fairness, in sport and society.
Her victory over Bobby Riggs in the 1973 “Battle of the Sexes” was a seminal moment in professional sports. It followed years of her work, championing equality.
In 1970 she launched the Virginia Slims Tour — the first professional tennis tour for women — and in 1971 became the first female athlete to earn more than $100,000.
As founder and first president of the Women’s Tennis Association, she won the fight for equal prize money. The US Open became the first major tournament to offer the same prize money to both men and women.
In 2009, President Obama awarded King the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her advocacy work on behalf of women and the LGBTQ community. She was the first female athlete to receive the award.
In 2014 she founded the Billie Jean King Leadership Initiative, a nonprofit dedicated to addressing the critical issues required to achieve diverse, inclusive leadership in the workforce.
In 2021, she received the Sports Illustrated Muhammad Ali Legacy Award, the magazine’s highest honor.
Fitting for the Booked occasion, King has a library named after her, in her hometown of Long Beach, California.
“I believe in the power of dreaming big and never giving up,” King said, adding separately, “The legacy I would like to leave is that it’s OK to be yourself, and it’s OK to be different.”
(For more information on “Booked for the Evening,” click here.)
Anyone know when/where/how tickets will go on sale?
As it says in the story, tickets go on sale next month. “06880” will provide a link when the announcement is made.
Thank you, Dan.