Helen Wills (b.1905) dominated women’s tennis in the 1920’s and 1930’s with her unrivaled concentration and driving attack from the baseline, which netted her 31 Grand Slam titles. Wills began her tennis career at age 13, developing her skills playing against men. In 1924, she earned two Olympic gold medals. Several years later, she earned a Phi Beta Kappa key as a student at the University of California at Berkeley.

Wills became an international sensation after her 1926 match against French champion Suzanne Lenglen, with Lenglen barely defeating the younger player. Returning from an illness the next year, Wills won every set she played from 1927 to 1933. With her distinctive eyeshade and inscrutable game face, Wills was often regarded as cold and aloof. Yet as she explained, “I had one thought, and that was to put the ball across the net.”