Althea
Producer: Nancy Buirski
Say the name "Althea Gibson" to most people and you'll meet a blank stare. However, some 50 years ago, Gibson - up from street games in Harlem - covered a tennis court with the awesome grace and power of a lioness. No player overcame more obstacles to become a champion than Althea Gibson, the first African-American to play at Wimbledon and Forest Hills, a decade before the great Arthur Ashe.
Perfect people do not a great story make. Ask anyone. Ask her mama, her daddy, her teacher or the cop down the street that busted her for petty theft. They'll all tell you the same thing, that the young Althea Gibson was nothing but trouble! More comfortable tearing up the playground in the 1930s than sitting at a desk in school, Althea had a reputation for recklessness. She had a hard time with being polite, following the rules, and not punching out her fellow players' lights. With guidance and help, Althea was given the chance to improve her style. It took time, patience and self-control for her to reach her peak potential, but in 1957 she became the first African-American to win Wimbledon and the US Open, becoming the #1 player in the World, repeating the feat in 1958.
In 1907, tennis was a segregated sport. The American Tennis Association (ATA) became the governing body for black tournaments, and the public face of segregated public parks and backyard courts. It was out of this parallel universe that Althea Gibson emerged, mentored by two black doctors in the South, who saw in her the athlete who could break the barrier of the segregated Tennis world.
She would receive two ticker-tape parades in New York, and later brought her talents to golf, breaking another color barrier: the LPGA, where she competed for over 10 years. She retired from competitive tennis and played exhibitions on tour with the Harlem Globetrotters, became a recorded Jazz singer, performing on the Ed Sullivan Show and "What's My Line", and landing a role in a John Wayne/John Ford film.