Let's discuss Mark Winters' latest article, "The Surprising Beginning of the Pro Tour"
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Interesting read: $10,000 prize and $3 tickets. BNP Indian Wells this March finally broke the $50 for one (1) hot dog barrier.
Worth checking out for the picture of a baby-faced Pancho ( second one of him, not the older Pancho in the group shot).
And wasn't James Franciscus an actor? Did he also play? There were multiple actors that played tennis including one of the Patten family, was it, that much later than the period this article covered, scored McEnroe in Tokyo? -
Butch Buchholz told me that he not only played the tournament, he helped organize the event including selling tickets and arranged an exhibition that took place on a street court set up in front of the old St. Louis Post Office in downtown.
Butch and Rod Laver took part as did Charlton Heston and James Franciscus who were actors. Heston had a court at his home on a hilltop off Coldwater Canyon on the Beverly Hills side that he said “Ben Hur built...” As far as the Van Pattens they lived about two blocks from where I grew up... Had a court in the backyard... And regularly had “open house” for those with a bit of game who wanted to drop by and play.
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