Gladys Heldman

Gladys Medalie Heldman was an American tennis player, promoter, manager and magazine publisher. She was the founder of World Tennis magazine. As a manager, she supported and represented Billie Jean King and eight other female tennis players: Rosie Casals, Judy Dalton, Julie Heldman, Kerry Melville, Peaches Bartkowicz, Kristy Pigeon, Nancy Richey, and Valerie Ziegenfuss. They were called the Houston Nine. She helped form the Virginia Slims Circuit in the early 1970s. She is a member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame and the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.