www.wildingfoundation.com
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I just got asked a good question by Alan at the www .tennisbookshop.com

Did any pundit ever estimate how many Wimbledons Wilding might have won had the Great War not intervened? It is an interesting matter.

In other news..I have,in amongst my film work set up a charity. Check www.wildingfoundation.com in a day or two

The Women's Final of US Open...it was rained out.  I did receive an email though from an estatic London friend, who was miserable - "it was raining in London and now that it was raining in NY  as well and they couldnt even finish watching Andy Murray on his way to beating Nadal."  Ah you see, when the game is hot- tennis unites the world,like music. Sports are good.

I admit I did not see the match..but it sounded incredible.I am sure the Brits are estatic that Murray made it to the

final.The first time in 72 years for a Brit. It was a stunning day in New York, a warm sun and gentle breeze, the day play continued ,but sadly I didn't make it to the womens final.It was scheduled after the Nadal,Murray match. The womens final started late, 9pm on that Sunday and I was just to tired(another run in with a new york atypical male the day or so before) to get all the way out to Flushing Meadow. I found myself tucked in the outdoor patio of an elegant local sushi bar with a friend enjoyng the soft evening. I did of course see Serena play a few days before as per a prior post...and I have seen her at Wimbledon aginst Sharapova. Writing this it seems that every time I go to see a major tournament...there Serena is..on the same day and same court I have tickets for! I met her Dad at Wimbledon,last time I saw her play.
I was going to do a story in honor of women tennis players and mention the new tennis center Chris Evert is setting up in Florida. Instead of   a full story I shall enclose excerpts from the opening press release below. The branding that goes on behind stadiums and tennis centers is always intersting.Wilding Park ,named after Anthony Wilding,four times consecutive Wimbledon single winner,my direct relative, is owned by the council.People always think we, the family, get a share of the profits from the Tennis Park.But we don't.In New Zealand most major tournaments are played there or in Auckland.I am sure Chris Evert and other in USA and elsewhere get royalties.( i am sure we may possibly should be getting them too) Though invited, I didn't attend the opening in Florida but here is some news on it below,issued by the event.

Tennis Legend Chris Evert Hosts VIP Reception in Miami

(September 4, 2008-Miami, FL) Chris Evert, the world-renowned tennis icon and new wife of golf legend, Greg Norman, recently headed to Miami’s sandy shores for a private reception at the Mandarin Oriental on Brickell Key. The highly-anticipated event played host to Miami’s elite and top media figures. The couple, who recently made a media splash with their whirlwind romance, became an item when Chris Evert began working with The Great White forming Tennis Villages in his resort residential developments throughout the world. Chris Evert chose Miami as the city in which formally announce her new Tennis Center, which will be alongside her husband’s first PGA course in the Dominican Republic.

The stunning blonde walked in on the arm of her new husband and greeted the press by stating, “I had to tear myself away from Federer’s first set. I am very honored to have the first Chris Evert Tennis Center in the Caribbean.” She then proceeded to laughingly point out that “there are over 35,000 active tennis players in the Dominican Republic and only 10,000 golfers.” Chris explained that the Tennis Center will hold ten clay courts including one housed in a professional stadium, top amenities, a pro shop, and she will be very involved in the selection of its tennis pros. She explained her excitement for the project, “This is the only project in the Dominican Republic where the tennis center has an actual brand. This makes it very unique and with Greg on the golf course design and me on the tennis center, it’s definitely a family affair.”  

Costa Blanca, the highly anticipated oceanfront development by Group Metro, also includes a world class marina, a marina village, oceanfront condominiums, villas, a private beach and the exclusive founders club. Group Metro has already achieved tremendous success with the launching of its founders club, which produced almost US$100 million in sales on the first day of ground breaking. CEO of Group Metro, Dr. Asilis, explained his excitement for the boom that his country is seeing, “We’re so excited about the future of the DR. The area is drawing baby-boomers, Europeans, and is seeing tremendous growth.” 

Evert explains why she chose Costa Blanca and Group Metro, “Costa Blanca is going to be a wonderful destination in the Dominican Republic.  I look forward to working with the Development team of Group Metro to help facilitate not only a world class golfing facility, but my first Tennis Center in the Caribbean that will feature superior facilities but also unparalleled service for our members and guests.” 

A brief question and answer session followed, with the most surprising question coming from Greg Norman in the audience. The golf great raised his hand for the microphone and asked, “So how is your marriage working out?” Evert laughed and said, “It’s gonna be great forever.” 

copyright anna wilding 2008

Anna Wilding is a director, producer ,actress and public speaker. She has been published as freelance writer in print press and recently directed and presented the critically acclaimed feature “Buddha Wild Monk a in a Hut” (http://www.buddhawild.com).Anna Wilding is the great  niece of tennis champ Tony Wilding http://www.Anthonywilding.com/

The US Open is upon us once again. I am excited. It is the first time I have been to the US Open in New York. I have seen major tennis tournaments in Melbourne and at Wimbledon, but this year will be my first US Open.

Why am I excited? Aside from having been a player myself, and had considered entering some USTA national tournaments this year, until an injury forced me not too and, distressingly, possibly off the court for good - my great uncle, Captain Tony Wilding won the Wimbledon men’s singles title for four straight years from 1910 to 1913. So beat that all you Borgs and Samparases, and Fedrerer’s! Oh yeah right, three of you did in fact beat his record. HA! Wilding also won the doubles and mixed doubles.

In the days of boat and steamer travel, Anthony Wilding, even played at the hallowed grounds of Forest Hills. He was beaten in a showdown by the California “Comet” Maurice McLoughlin. My “Uncle Tony” actually played his last match in America at Forest Hills, before being killed in the war in 1915 at the tender age of 32. In that time, he also won bronze at the Olympics. He died with no children. He was about to marry American actor, silent screen star, Maxine Elliot.

Wilding was inducted into the International Hall of Tennis Fame at Newport, Rhode Island in 1978. Sadly, we, the closest surviving relatives, never got word of this great honor. I found out about it only in the last decade through my own inquiries. I have yet to visit.

In the New York Times in 1915, W. De B. Whyte wrote under the headline:- “Anthony Wilding: A Gallant and Generous Sportsman and A Brave Gentleman” - the following; “The war has exacted an appallingly heavy toll among the best and bravest athletes of the British Empire, but I believe none who will be more sincerely regretted in this country can be found in that ever-increasing roll of honor than the late Tony Wilding. In tennis he was always the soul of honor; as courteous and gallant a player as ever set foot in an American court. He was the last man ever to excuse himself for poor form or indifferent play. He took his defeat of McLoughlin last summer with the best of good grace, without stopping to explain, as well he might have the heavy handicap and severe strain under which he was playing…..to do his best under these circumstances must have been impossible; yet no word or explanation came from him and if Norman Brooks has not told me I should never have known of them……American players….they will never meet a more worthy opponent, a finer sportsman or a braver gentleman. “

I had occasion to visit Forest Hills, the old courts in Queens where he played, for the first time last year. I was hoping to find remanents of his life. It’s a long way from New Zealand , my birthplace, and his.

In 2005, I went overland to Flanders from Dover, through Calais to find Tony’s grave from World War I. I spent several days there and was followed by an Italian journalist.
We stayed in small bed and breakfasts. I didn’t have much information to go on - it was literally the slender details of the burial site in A. Wallis Myers biography on Tony that was published decades ago - (and yes, we are republishing it in time, so check this site for details)

It was literally a matter of trying to find old French villages that weren’t on any map that I could find. I did find his grave, and it had been moved. I was thankful he was one of several hundred thousand soldiers in the region, who had a name on his gravestone. Many did not. It was tragic to read on a gravestone “An Unknown Soldier “of World War I. Gives one pause, as every soldier has a family and or friends.

Stefano Semarro, the Italian sports writer and I came up with, wrote an entertaining feature article that was published in Europe and England about my journey.

When I visited Forest Hills, it was on a summer day last year. I had just moved to New York. Tony didn’t play the US Championships there. He did, however, play the Davis Cup there.

I couldn’t find a photograph of Tony in the Forest Hills clubhouse so I went on a journey to the depths of the old stadium. I wanted to buy the stadium on the spot. This place of former victory now lies in ruins and is disused in a pretty tree lined part of Queens. My mind pinged with ideas. The empty wallet of reality soon quelled those thoughts and so I continued on. I went around, and up and down, all through the stadium focusing on finding history of Tony.

I was told that most of the old “stuff, plaques, pictures” had been taken over to the new stadium at Flushing Meadows or else had just “disappeared”. There were vague recollections amongst people of there having been a plaque for Tony but no one would know where it was now. I was determined. Nothing like looking for needles in a haystack, or in this case, piles and piles, meters deep of old tennis nets stashed under the stadium. As I stood there with a flashlight and perched precariously on top of the mountain of nets, I realized it would take a bulldozer to move the tonnes of netting, on the off chance a plaque may still be there.

I enjoyed visiting Forest Hills, the lawn courts are still in good form and I guess the old stadium there serves as a reminder of what it was all about for this neck of the woods in Queens. I love grass tennis courts, was an avid grass player myself, and the smell just sets me off to futures I have not yet seen, games I really should be playing, and to the days gone by. The latter a time I could well imagine Tony playing in. A time when men looked stylish and resplendent in long trousers and thousands of women, in Tony’s case, “would swoon” upon seeing him take the court. How times have changed. In fact, do we women, still even swoon in this jaded age? For anyone? Swooning or not, what we do see now on the court is a myriad of colors, clothing lengths, and an athleticism by both men and women that would have been rare in Tony’s day.

We are looking at bringing in an Tony Wilding clothing line in to see if, like Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, there may be a way to make an energy efficient, streamline pair of long white trousers for tennis players. Anyone game to try?

anna wilding copyright 2008

!

By Julien Pretot

MONTE CARLO, April 27 (Reuters) - Rafael Nadal became the first man in more than 90 years to win four consecutive Monte Carlo titles when he beat world number one Roger Federer in Sunday's final.

His 7-5 7-5 victory marked the third year in a row Nadal had beaten Federer in the climax of the Masters claycourt event and underlined his status as hot favourite to win next month's French Open for the fourth year in succession.

Before Nadal, only New Zealand's Anthony Wilding had won four consecutive titles in Monte Carlo, back in 1914.

Nadal became the first player since American Jim Courier in 1991 in Indian Wells to win the singles and doubles titles at a Masters Series event when, with compatriot Tommy Robredo, he beat Mark Knowles and Mahesh Bhupathi 6-3 6-3 in the doubles final.

The 21-year-old Nadal improved his personal record against Federer to 9-6 (7-1 on clay) and is undefeated on the Monte Carlo clay since a third-round loss to Argentine Guillermo Coria in 2003.

The Sport of Kings.

WOW WOW WOW- what a final- I only got to see the last tie break set - Federer and Nadal...it went on for over four hours-the longest match in Wimbledon history.Nadal beat Federer.

This brings to close Federer's longest running Wimbledon  winning streak equal to Sampras. Behind those two -only two others with the most Wimbledon consecutive  wins -  Bjorn Borg and  my relative Anthony Wilding(www.anthonywilding.com). Behind them,as the papers and historians say, Doherty, Tilden and the rest.

There is nothing like watching two athletes at their best.This was unbelievable.

Due to injury/reinjury -I had to turn down (and rather miserably as one does when one is injured) over five invites for the weekend to the Hamptons,Upstate New York and then today the Polo in Greenwich. And of course the opening to my film "Buddha Wild Monk in Hut in Santa Fe today.(www.buddhawild.com)Thank goodness the universe delivered 

something- the most unbelievable supercharged tennis match in a long time,possibly in history.

Two classic tennis players..each who fought for every single point ,with every inch they had,right until the evening closed in.A match that was over four and a half hours long.And you know what is equally wonderful- both Great sportsman. For what is tennis,if its not about sportsmanship.

All I know is I am not healed from my injuries until I am back on that court.

I missed the womens final- the two Willams sisters- I had been fortunate to see Serena play at Wimbledon in 2005-I had  been presented with front row seats thanks to Wimbledon itself, and was honored to see the two Wimbledon female semi finals- including Sharapova and Serena. Women or mens tennis its all great.

Roger Federeer was wearing long pants-just like in Anthony Wildings day (www.anthonywilding.com)- " as they quoted of Anthony -"an era of decorum long gone". It was great to see two great sportsmen today -one without the other would not have been the same. It was historic tennis. I was honoured to watch it.

Anna Wilding 

ANTHONY WILDING.; A Gallant and Generous Sportsman and a Brave Gentleman.

W. de B. WHYTE

New York Times May 16, 1915, Sunday

Section: Editorial Section  Page C2, 357 words

The war has exacted an appallingly heavy toll among the best and bravest athletes of the British Empire, but I believe none who will be more sincerely regretted in this country can be found in that ever-increasing roll of honor than the late Anthony Wilding. [ END OF FIRST PARAGRAPH ]

I'm a party addict. It's not my profession.My profession is Actress,Director,Writer,Producer,Spokesperson and,now additionally, Editor of this column(blog).

Some people are alcoholics,drug addicts, gambling addicts,internet dating addicts(yes they are now putting that in the same catagory as gambling ) but I am  party addict. I like parties, I  like events. Sure I would give most of it up for love and staying in at times and - of course - work deadlines  when they come in take precedence, as do friends...but how else,when I am feeling particularly under the weather and brow beaten do I  manage to crawl myself out to a party and have  a smashing good time.Yes  I went to  party tonight. Quelle Surpise! Sometimes, though they are both in the same category, classic"parties" are a bit better and more relaxed than Events.Tonight was a party.The music was great tonight and the  warm soulful venue suited my style after the austerity of last night. I munched on a fresh succulent dripping white chocolate dipped strawberry while sitting silent on an armchair. I  thought of a French male friend of mine who has literally just opened the most charming chocalatery online.

          For CHOCOLATE See                http://www.chocata.com/friends/anna/

Chocata offers one stop shopping for gourmet and artisan chocolates.We chocolate addicts can rejoice.
Chocata carries only the best in chocolates, with a focus on the finest craftsmanship and excellence in ingredients.The site offers product ratings and reviews, and includes special features such as sugar-free, organic, and kosher versions of the sweet treat.There's a library of articles, recipes, and books on all things chocolate.  It’s the perfect research module to gain insights into traditional chocolate-making methods and learn all about organic ingredients and fair-trade sources.Oh did I happen to mention I may be a chocolate addict as well?

I left the party to a whisper of rain that hugged me closely, as I went, on my way home, to have  a quick late night snack with former New York Post Broadway columnist,author and playwright Ward Morehouse III. Ward has written several books on Broadway theater and some very grand old Hotels including the Waldorf Astoria.He is lining up to do his next book on London hotels.

Ward's book 'Discovering the Hudson" was published in paperback by Bear Manor Media this year. It traces the legendary history of the famed Hudson Theater, a New York City landmark.

The book is chocablock full of the history of New York, of its buildings, of the Hudson theater, and many an anecdote on those  artists lucky enough to tread the Hudson boards. It's easy to read and a must for all interested in a detailed and at times personal  history of New York and Broadway. One of the first names to leap out amongst the legion of Broadway Stars dotted through the book was Maxine Elliot.Maxine Elliot was engaged to my forebear- the legendary tennis champ- Anthony Wilding- who sadly died,at the age of 32, in World War 1, killed by German fire.He was compared to, and called, the first matinee idol of tennis and apparently women swooned.To find and visit his grave, I retraced his steps in 2005 through Calais,Ypres, and the war villages.This journey was written of a feature in  major sports magazines in Italy and London - Italain Tennis and Ace Tennis Magazine and newspapers.Prior to that I had only been to Paris, or to Cannes for the Film Festival on numerous occasions. It was an  important  and personal trip and I think we all should go to these regions to actually feel the impact and weight of tragedy of World War 1 and 2 in real terms -and the result of the actions we take as humans when we war.
After the dinner snack it was back to the warm rain and then the rattling of subway trains.I swear I am supposed to have  a driver.

www.buddhawild.com
copyright carpe diem films anna wilding 2007

I haven't seen anything like this since my celebrity photographer friend from Globe Photos in LA called me  and said 

"Anna Wilding do you mind coming out to Palm Springs as a favor- I  have to shoot Englebert Humperdinck  for the magazines and I would like you in some of the photos with him as well" 

I did go out to Palm Springs.There were over 500 swooning females fans lined up,around the block, from all over the country and all crowded into a tiny Palm Springs book Store-all waiting to meet and  be shot with Englebert.One woman even fainted and an ambulance had to be called.I am not kidding.I was there! Not bad for a guy in his seventies.Imagine being that kind of draw in your seventies or so! Imagine it?

The fans may not have been lining around the block or  have been swooning and female but I can tell you - the ground floor of Bergdorf Goodman was packed  with 500 influential and very rich Upper East Siders, credit cards at the ready - all for the chance of a meet and greet with legendary designer Ralph Lauren and an autographed copy of his elegant new book- a retrospective.

There is no question that Ralph Lauren has that kind of air that is untouchable and rare in this day and age...a refined understated elegance,grace, the aura of a gentleman, confidence that exudes authority and wisdom without demanding it - and in the most gentle,intercontinental ,mannered and manly of ways..My father has that same thing in a completely different way(my father being British,Lauren leaning American)... but either way its untouchable, undefinable and I have not seen it at all in men of my generation/s,though it is often written of in days gone by.Is it natural decorum? Is it debonair without being so at all ?Whatever label it is - Ralph Lauren chose to and managed to capture it and sell it.

www.anthonywilding.com- multi Wimbledon winner had it..and I hope to meet with Lauren's management about possible branding.

It is time to cherish all this.

New York may not have a film scene or much of  a literary scene these days but its fashion and beauty scene is hopping.And its seems the rest is just run of the mill, dime a dozen real estate and banking throngs.

2007 copyright carpe diem films  llc anna wilding