I was watching a morning news/entertainment show on FOX the other day. A substitute sports announcer and the show regulars, after a serious discussion of the Australian Open men’s competition, immediately began hooting, laughing and cat calling when the discussion turned to the women’s “competition.” Not a word about talent or skill or to who would win. It was all about who was the hottest, who they most wanted to see running around the court and sweating, and what they might be wearing. The bottom line agreement (granted that this is a “morning zoo” type ensemble) among them all, was that they would be watching the women, as usual, with the sound turned off. The match itself was simply a vehicle for the display of these attractive, young and healthy female images.

That may have been exaggerated for laughs, but, not by much. In my local cigar lounge last year, someone scanned through the channels on the TV. Boom! For the next hour the various conversations stopped. We had discovered the Lingerie Football League. Women, in the smallest possible uniform tops and bottoms, playing tackle football. It’s an actual league, with football “fans”.

The ever bizarre Dennis Rodman, I’m am told, is now trying to start-up a topless women’s basketball league.

Remember Billy Jean King? Rosie Casals established the first women’s tournament, the Virginia Slims, in 1970. Casals and King dominated doubles play for a decade. The two of them put women’s tennis on the map. Virginia Slims cigarettes sponsored the Women’s Tennis Association Tour. “This sponsorship is sometimes credited for the growth and success of women’s tennis during the 1970s and early 1980s.” From Wikipedia:

In the 1960s and 1970s, the themes of feminism and women’s liberation, with the slogan “You’ve Come A Long Way, Baby” were often used in the ads, and often featured anecdotes about women in the early 20th century who were punished for being caught smoking, usually by their husbands or other men, as compared to the time of the ads when more women had equal rights, usually comparing smoking to things like the right to vote.

See this Viginia Slims ad and don’t ignore the Axe Anarchy ad that plays first. For more images of the modern woman, google “You’ve come a long way Baby.”

Buck wrote “. . . they would be watching the women, as usual, with the sound turned off.” Of course the other reason for doing this is the unspeakable habit female tennis pros have of GRUNTING very, very loudly with every stroke. Call me a prude, but I simply have to change the channel.

Moreover, the lanky Russian Sharapova looks like a supermodel, and every time she hits the ball she sounds as she’s having a deeply intimate experience, the sharing of which she has chosen, very kindly, to include in the overall cost of admission.

Buck writes:

This is funny. I had the notorious grunting in mind as I wrote that. Commercials and inane TV chatter aside, the grunting or moaning is incredibly annoying or irritating. Only in the most limited circumstances would men find this kind of uninhibited physical release appealing.

What would be the reaction if the male players repeatedly grunted with their strength? Can you imagine both men loudly grunting 1000s of times over 3 to 5 hours of play?

SHUT UP! …

Well, looks like I’m well out of touch with modern tennis. Here’s the Wiki entry on “Grunting (tennis)”. I had no idea that it was “gender neutral” and such a serious matter of contention. And yet, almost comical.