American Colossus by Allen M. Hornblum

Author:Allen M. Hornblum [Hornblum, Allen M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: BIO016000 Biography & Autobiography / Sports, BIO031000 Biography & Autobiography / Lgbt, SPO045000 Sports & Recreation / Tennis
ISBN: 978-1-4962-0431-8
Publisher: UNP - Nebraska
Published: 2018-01-09T05:00:00+00:00

After dominating the summer tennis circuit as well as being a key member of America’s victorious Davis Cup team, Bill was once again the favorite at the National Championships at Forest Hills. The usual complement of perennial challengers such as Bill Johnston, Vinnie Richards, Dick Williams; foreign powers like James O. Anderson, Jean Borotra, Manuel Alonso, Babe Norton, and Takeichi Harada; and young wannabes like George Lott, Wray Brown, and Arnold Jones planned their annual, but always unsuccessful, assent up Mount Tilden.

Interestingly, whether it was designed to stimulate debate, to spur newspaper sales, or for some other reason, the New York Times printed several prominent articles on the eve of the national tournament suggesting the Tilden era may be coming to an end. One article was entitled “Tilden Confronts Crisis This Week” and provided a laundry list of first-class challengers with the ability to dethrone Tilden. The other, a New York Times sports editorial—probably also written by Allison Danzig—made note of the “tremendous struggles that were waged in Philadelphia” and some less than complimentary comments about Bill’s quality of play against the French. “Tilden, the world’s recognized greatest player, the mainstay of America for these six years, no longer can be said to stand in a class by himself,” the opinion piece argued. “The gulf that has existed between him and the rest of the players of the world has narrowed.”38

Both articles contained much favorable information about the French stars. In addition to their sterling play, mention was also made of Borotra’s athleticism and captivating “personality” and Lacoste’s machinelike strokes and steely “temperament.” The pieces were so one-sided, a fair-minded person might have wondered, had Danzig and the Times grown tired of Big Bill’s dominance? Had his tempestuous act finally grown stale? Were they in search of a new lawn tennis hero?

Whatever their motivation, they were left with egg on their faces as the “Bounding Basque” was handed a “crushing defeat” in just the third round by Richard Norris Williams. The score was an embarrassing 6–2, 6–2, 6–2. Playing as aggressively as he had at the Pennsylvania Championship earlier in the summer when he blitzed Tilden 6–0 in the first set, Williams played inside the baseline, took every ball on the rise, and made sure the Frenchman—unlike Big Bill—never got into the match.39

In fact, the foreign stars were having a hard time of it. By the end of the third round only two foreigners—Lacoste and Manuel Alonso—were still in the competition. And after the quarterfinals were contested, only American players were left standing, thereby providing further proof that the best tennis was played in the United States. In a battle of talented youngsters, Vinnie Richards put the wood to Lacoste, beating him handily in straight sets, 6–4, 6–3, 6–3. Alonso, despite his “tigerish efforts” and some of the “greatest tennis” he had played since moving to America, was taken out by Johnston and his “murderous forehanders,” the four-set battle ending 6–3, 6–8, 6–1, 6–2. Big Bill had relatively little trouble with Wallace Johnson, winning in straight sets, and R.

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