Broadway-Love! LGBT Pioneer Billie Jean King Visits The Normal Heart

It was a moving evening on Broadway on April 23, when tennis legend and gay rights trailblazer Billie Jean King stopped by The Normal Heart, Larry Kramer’s raging and heart-wrenching drama about the early days of the AIDS epidemic in New York City. King became a household name after the famous 1973 “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match in which she defeated former champ Bobby Riggs, and in 1981 she became the first openly gay female professional athlete. King has always used her celebrity in vocal support of the LGBT community, and currently serves on the boards of the Women’s Sports Foundation and the Elton John AIDS Foundation. She and her longtime partner, Ilana Kloss, took in the landmark play and then went backstage for photos with members of the starry cast, including Ellen Barkin, Joe Mantello, Jim Parsons and Lee Pace. Click through to see our exclusive photos of this momentous meeting.