Billie Jean King honored with star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
Billie Jean King poses during a ceremony honoring her with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Monday, April 7, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
HOLLYWOOD – Tennis legend and feminist pioneer Billie Jean King added another first to her list of accomplishments Monday when she became the first woman to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the sports entertainment category.
Named one of the “100 Most Important Americans of the 20th Century” by Life magazine, the 81-year-old Long Beach native is a trailblazing sports icon and equality advocate, becoming the first female athlete to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the first individual woman athlete honored with the Congressional Gold Medal.
Her 1973 exhibition victory over Bobby Riggs in the televised “Battle of the Sexes” match was a watershed moment for women’s sports and gender equality.
“Sports are entertainment, and as athletes, we love performing in front of an audience. We love it,” King said during Monday’s ceremony.
King said she was honored to receive a star in the new sports entertainment category, but added she hopes she won’t be the last.
“We all need to work together to make sure women in sports are celebrated here in Hollywood,” King said.
The sports entertainment category was announced in 2021 by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, which administers the Walk of Fame. It honors individuals — not teams or sports affiliated groups — who have made significant contributions to the world of entertainment and demonstrated “longevity of excellence” in their sport, according to Ana Martinez, the Hollywood Walk of Fame’s producer.
New York Giants Hall of Fame defensive end turned “Good Morning America” anchor Michael Strahan was the first recipient in the category, in 2023.
The second recipient was the late Carl Weathers, honored for a nearly 50-year acting career best remembered for his portrayal of Sylvester Stallone’s boxing nemesis-turned-friend and mentor Apollo Creed in the first four “Rocky” movies.
Coincidentally, King and Weathers are both graduates of Long Beach Poly High School.
Laker great Magic Johnson, a fellow member of the Dodgers’ ownership group with King, and Oscar-winning actress Jamie Lee Curtis, a longtime friend of King’s, both spoke at the ceremony honoring the tennis legend with the 2,807th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Billie Jean King, left, and Jamie Lee Curtis attend a ceremony honoring King with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Monday, April 7, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
“What a blessing it is to be here today to honor one of the not only greatest tennis players that has ever played, but one of the greatest people,” Johnson said. “What I love about Billie Jean is that she used her platform to bring about change.”
Building on Johnson’s praise, Curtis highlighted King’s far-reaching influence beyond tennis, focusing on her relentless fight for equality and justice.
“Billie Jean’s contribution is power. Billie Jean King is power, is all power. She’s power on the court. She’s power in the courts. She’s power in the press. She’s power in her public advocacy. Power in her fight for freedom.
Power to be who she is now,” Curtis said.
King won 39 Grand Slam titles — 12 in singles competition, 16 in women’s doubles and 11 in mixed doubles.
In 1971, King became the first woman athlete to earn $100,000 in a year. She was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987.
In 1970, King she was part of the “Original Nine” women’s professional tennis players who broke away from the governing bodies of tennis to form their own professional tour, the Virginia Slims Circuit, which later evolved into the modern Women’s Tennis Association Tour.
She was also among the founders of World Team Tennis, the first co-ed professional sports league. She is a member of the Professional Women’s Hockey League Founding Advisory Board. The league’s Most Valuable Player award is named for her.
“This is one of those special moments where people talk about legacy… and I do look at legacy being what others think about you, and I do think the quality of our contributions is really what defines us without any question,” King said during the ceremony.
She was honored for her work as an executive producer of the 2023 Public Broadcasting Service documentary series, “Groundbreakers,” which paired King and other legendary female athletes with four-time tennis singles Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka, two-time Olympic gold medal-winning snowboarder Chloe Kim and two-time Olympic gymnastics gold medalist Sunisa Lee.
King’s other entertainment credits include being an executive producer of “The Battle of the Sexes,” a 2013 documentary about her match against Riggs, portraying a judge on a 2007 episode of the long-running NBC crime and legal drama, “Law & Order,” and portraying herself on episodes of such series as “Fresh Off the Boat,” “Arli$$” and a 1973 episode of “The Odd Couple” that featured Riggs. (CNS)
