Happy 67th Birthday to Billie Jean King!

I’m so glad that I’ve been able to interview Billie Jean King several times and that I’ve been able to tell this amazing human being what an immense influence she had on me while I was growing up.

She wasn’t just a great tennis champion who was ranked number one in the world and won six Wimbledon singles titles. And she wasn’t just the lady who beat Bobby Riggs in the famous 1973 Battle of the Sexes match.

Billie Jean Moffit King, who turns 67 today, was and is a visionary who had such focus and drive that she led the way in establishing the women’s tennis tour and in fighting for equal prize money and for equal opportunity for female student athletes through Title IX.

Billie Jean just wanted everyone, girls and boys, to have the opportunity to play any sport they wanted to play.

She remains a force and a champion for gender equality and for LGBT equality. And what has been most wonderful is that in the past decade or so, people have recognized all that Billie Jean has done for our society. The United States Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, NY, was named after her four years ago and in 2009, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama at The White House.

The president said of her: “As Billie Jean once said, we should “never, ever underestimate the human spirit.”  Nor should we underestimate Billie Jean King’s spirit.”

It’s the highest civilian honor that can be bestowed and Billie Jean and the late Harvey Milk were among the 16 people honored.

“Finally, the LGBT community was totally acknowledged with Harvey Milk,” Billie Jean told the press after. “I started to cry there. I thought my makeup was gonna go.”

Happy Birthday to Billie Jean!