Author: Helen Wills
Other Contributors: Illustrations by the Author
Published: 1928 Charles Scribner's Sons, New York
—————————————————————
Format: book
No. Pages: 214 pgs
Size: 8-1/4 x 5-1/2 inches
Edition: first edition
Cover: hardcover
Illustrations/Photos: illustrated
—————————————————————
About this book:
A good reader copy of this scarce book.
Helen Newington Wills (October 6, 1905 – January 1, 1998), also known by her married names Helen Wills Moody and Helen Wills Roark, was an American tennis player. She won 31 Grand Slam tournament titles (singles, doubles, and mixed doubles) during her career, including 19 singles titles.Wills was the first American woman athlete to become a global celebrity, making friends with royalty and film stars despite her preference for staying out of the limelight. She was admired for her graceful physique and for her fluid motion. She was part of a new tennis fashion, playing in knee-length pleated skirts rather than the longer ones of her predecessors, and was known for wearing her hallmark white visor. Unusually, she practiced against men to hone her craft, and she played a relentless predominantly baseline game, wearing down her female opponents with power and accuracy. In February 1926 she played a high-profile and widely publicised match against Suzanne Lenglen which was called the Match of the Century.
Wills had a 180 match win streak from 1927 until 1933. In 1933, she beat the eighth-ranked US male player in an exhibition match. Her record of eight wins at Wimbledon was not surpassed until 1990 when Martina Navratilova won her ninth. She was said to be "arguably the most dominant tennis player of the 20th century", and has been called by some (including Jack Kramer, Harry Hopman, Mercer Beasley, Don Budge, and AP News) the greatest female player in history.
Wills painted all her life, giving exhibitions of her paintings and etchings in New York galleries. She personally drew all of the illustrations in her book Tennis. Her work was also part of the painting event in the art competition at the 1932 Summer Olympics. On June 17, 1929 the first exhibition of her drawings was opened at the Cooling Gallery in London.
—————————————————————
Condition:
Good (G): Describes the average used worn book that has all pages or leaves present. Any defects noted by the seller: — Covers soiled and lightly worn — original owner's name penned on ffep — a few of the b&w plate pages have some foxing (see photos).
THE PHOTOS SEEN IN OUR LISTINGS ARE ALWAYS OF THE ACTUAL BOOKS BEING OFFERED - WE DO NOT USE STOCK PHOTOS.
—————————————————————
Additional purchases may be combined if bought same day, for one low shipping rate, if possible. Add to your cart and request total from seller for combined shipping. Sales Tax may apply, that's between you and ebay now. Please read and accept my terms of sale below before you bid.
You will find that the originals of the photos below are often larger than what ebay provides above.
1) COMBINED SHIPPING/POSTAGE:
a. I happily combine shipping (where possible, sometimes it isn't), but orders over $10 total will likely require tracking now because of unacceptable Postal Service delays resulting in INR claims. Tracking/delivery confirmation seems to speed up shipments. So there might not be a discount on several inexpensive items combined.
b. If you haven't paid yet for multiple purchases, please wait for a combined invoice, which may take up to 24 hours to send you. Don't worry, it's not a race to see how fast you can pay.
c. If you must pay immediately, make sure all the items are on the same payment transaction. I will then be able to combine shipping (if possible) and send you a partial refund for overpayment of postage. Some people make numerous multiple purchases with separate payments and look for a shipping discount. That will not happen, so please add your items to your cart, and when you are done looking at my stuff, buy it all at once. Thanks!
2) POSTAGE: All USPS postage rates are calculated using the most affordable (not the quickest) shipping class, based on a pre-sale estimated weight and size of the package. If you want to upgrade to a quicker, more expensive postal class, you must let me know BEFORE you pay.
3) INSURANCE: In the event of loss or damage on insured packages, buyer agrees to fulfill all requirements of the insurer in the processing of a claim, or forfeits their right to request a refund.
4) SALES TAX: Ebay has taken over all duties for sales tax collection for all states that require it. I have no control whatsoever over who pays sales tax, it is out of my hands. Please direct all questions/complaints to the good folks at Ebay.
5) INTERNATIONAL BUYERS: Please Note: Import duties, taxes, and charges are not handled by the seller, but may be charged by eBay if required by your country. Please check with your country's customs office to determine what these additional costs will be prior to bidding or buying. We won't under-value merchandise or mark the item as a gift on customs forms. Doing that is against U.S. and international laws.
6) REPRODUCTION OF IMAGES: Seller is not selling the exclusive rights to reproduce images of the item offered. Buyer is of course free to reproduce as they wish, but seller retains and may exercise the right to reproduce any images of the item for any purpose before or after the sale, without permission from or compensation to the buyer.
7) LISTING DISCREPANCIES: If the Title, Description, and/or Photo on a listing do not match, for gosh sakes don't buy it. Mistakes happen. Let me know instead so I can fix the listing. If you do buy, the item described in the Title of the listing takes precedence over anything else. If you don't agree with that, I will cancel the purchase at your request.