Helen Hull Jacobs Biography
Helen Hull Jacobs
Age: 88
winner of nine major tennis championships, including the U.S. national title four straight times from 1932–35; Wimbledon singles champ in 1936; was a regular on the U.S. Wightman Cup team from 1932–39; number one player in 1936 and ranked in the world top ten 12 straight times; her brilliant career was somewhat overshadowed by her one-sided rivalry with Helen Wills Moody; because she only beat Moody once in 11 matches Jacobs was often called “Helen the Second;” even her sole victory over Moody was not without controversy, it came when Moody decided to retire in the 1933 U.S. national final; also served as a commander in the U.S. Navy intelligence during World War II, one of only five women to achieve that rank in the Navy; of heart failure
Died: Easthampton, N.Y., June 2, 1997
Bernard Jackson | 1997 Deaths | Richard Jaeckel |