Gladys Heldman

Gladys Medalie Heldman (1922 to 2003) was an American tennis player, promoter, manager and magazine publisher, born in New York City as the daughter of a New York Court of Appeals judge. She began playing tennis in 1946 after marrying Julius Heldman, rose to the top ranking in Texas, and appeared at Wimbledon in 1954 and at the U.S. Championships at Forest Hills. She is best known for founding World Tennis magazine in 1953 and for promoting the women's game: in 1970 she worked with Billie Jean King, Rosie Casals, her daughter Julie and other players, called the Houston Nine, to launch a separate women's tour that became the Virginia Slims Circuit, the forerunner of today's WTA Tour. She sold the magazine in 1975 and is a member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame and the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.