Arthur Ashe

Birth Name:

Arthur Robert Ashe Jr.

Birth Date:

July 10, 1943

Birth Place:

Richmond, Virginia

Death Date:

February 6, 1993

Place of Death:

New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, New York

Age:

Cause of Death:

AIDS-related pneumonia

Cemetery Name:

Woodland Cemetery

Claim to Fame:

Sports

Arthur Ashe was an American professional tennis player. He won three Grand Slam titles in singles and two in doubles and was the first Black player selected to the United States Davis Cup team, and the only Black man ever to win the singles titles at Wimbledon, the US Open, and the Australian Open. At the height of his career Ashe was ranked world No. 1 by Rex Bellamy, Bud Collins, Judith Elian, Lance Tingay, World Tennis and Tennis Magazine (U.S.) in 1975. That year, Ashe was awarded the 'Martini and Rossi' Award, voted for by a panel of journalists, and the ATP Player of the Year award. In the ATP computer rankings, he peaked at No. 2 in May 1976. He retired in 1980. In 1983 Ashe acquired HIV from a blood transfusion he received during heart bypass surgery. In 1993 Ashe died from AIDS-related pneumonia at age 49. His funeral was held at the Arthur Ashe Athletic Center in Richmond, Virginia. Governor Douglas Wilder, who was a friend of Ashe's, allowed his body to lie in state at the Governor's Mansion in Richmond as more than 5,000 people lined up to walk past the casket.

Fun FactS

Arthur Ashe Stadium, the main court for the US Open and the largest tennis arena in the world, is named in his honor.

After he contracted the AIDS virus Arthur Ashe was asked, ‘Is this the hardest thing you’ve ever had to deal with?’ And he said, ‘No, the hardest thing I’ve ever had to deal with is being a black man in this society’.

Cemetery Information:

Final Resting Place:

Woodland Cemetery

2300 Magnolia Road

Richmond, Virginia, 23223

USA

North America

Map:

Map of Woodlawn Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia

Grave Location:

Section M

Grave Location Description

As you enter the modest cemetery gates off Magnolia Road, turn left and stay to the left and drive 200 feet and look to the left for the large black memorial to tennis legend and all-around generally great guy Arthur Ashe.

Grave Location GPS

37.562109, -77.413361

Visiting The Grave:

Photos:

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Videos Featuring Arthur Ashe:

Arthur Ashe becomes the first African-American man to win the US Open! | US Open 1968

Who was Arthur Ashe?

Arthur Ashe interviewed by Lynn Redgrave, July 1992

Arthur Ashe v Jimmy Connors: Wimbledon Final 1975

BBC - Arthur Ashe: More Than a Champion (2015)

Arthur Ashe "Women Don't Deserve The Same Amount Of Prize Money As Men" | The Dick Cavett Show

Arthur Ashe Discusses The Tactics Used to Beat Jimmy Connors At Wimbledon | The Dick Cavett Show

Arthur Ashe's final message - just released to the public

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Al Campanis

popular name: Al Campanis

date_of_death: June 21, 1998

age: 81

cause_of_death: Heart disease and complications from diabetes

claim_to_fame: Sports

best_know_for: Al Campanis was a baseball player, farm team scout and finally an executive in Major League Baseball (MLB). He’d been a Montreal Royal shortstop in 1946 playing alongside Jackie Robinson at second base, barnstormed off-season with a racially integrated squad, a Brooklyn Dodger scout who unearthed Roberto Clemente and Sandy Koufax, and who reached the apex of his profession as General Manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers and took them to four pennants and one World Series title. Campanis baseball career came to a complete stop after an interview with Ted Koppel. Campanis, who had played alongside Robinson and was known for being close to him, was being interviewed about the subject. Nightline anchorman Ted Koppel asked him why, at the time, there had been few black managers and no black general managers or owners in Major League Baseball. Campanis's reply was: "I truly believe that they may not have some of the necessities to be, let's say, a field manager, or, perhaps, a general manager." Later in the interview, to defend his views when pressed by Koppel, Campanis asked: "Why are black men or black people not good swimmers? Because they don't have the buoyancy." Koppel says he gave Campanis several opportunities to clarify ("Do you really believe that?") or back down from his remarks. Instead, Campanis doubled down on his views, suggesting that African Americans "certainly are short" on individuals with strong decision-making capabilities, asking Koppel: "How many quarterbacks do you have? How many pitchers do you have that are black?" Koppel also pointed out that much of what Campanis was saying "sounds a lot like the garbage we heard 40 years ago." Campanis was fired less than 48 hours later.