Victim Of Fame

Hall of Fame to review Hewitt allegations

NEW YORK - The fine champagne is flowing at $22 a flute. Demand is hot for Grey Goose Honey Deuces ($13.75 per highball). And filet mignons are flying out of the kitchen at $40 a pop.

Life is rich at the US Open, where few in the crowds have noticed a little silver plaque that honors Bob Hewitt on the wall of champions outside Arthur Ashe Stadium at the Billie Jean King Tennis Center. When Ashe and King were tennis giants in the 1970s, Hewitt and his partner, Frew McMillan, ruled the professional doubles game, amassing titles around the globe, including a 1977 Grand Slam championship at the US Open.

Hewitt, as many fans at Flushing Meadows have yet to learn, purportedly was engaged in a secret pursuit in the years before and after his ’77 feat. According to four women who recently detailed their experiences in the Globe, Hewitt, a 1992 inductee in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, allegedly sexually abused or harassed underage girls he was coaching in America and his South African homeland.

To the corporate titans of international tennis, the public’s fascination with the Open - from the cocktails to the art of the competition - rather than the Hewitt scandal has proven a welcome relief. But lurking amid the hurly-burly are signs that the sport may not easily free itself from the fallout of Hewitt’s alleged misconduct.

The Hall of Fame announced yesterday it has formed a committee to review the case, as one of the leading voices of professional tennis said publicly what some others would state only privately because their livelihoods depend on the game.

“If all this is true, I have a very, very difficult time having Bob Hewitt in the International Tennis Hall of Fame,’’ said Mary Carillo, a former professional player who is a member of the Hall’s nominating committee and long has served as a national broadcast tennis analyst. “I would like to think that this gets fully investigated by everybody.’’

Hall of Fame president Tony Trabert said a panel of senior staffers has begun looking into the matter.

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Amy Winehouse's passing was a tragic event. In fact, her life became tragic quickly after fame. Drug addiction/overdose is not uncommon among celebrities, yet many react to Winehouse's death  as though it was a sneak attack. The social, economical and health consequences of drug addiction have been echoed in our society for decades. In addiction, the impact of drug addiction on the family is heartbreaking. Amy Winehouse cried for help, yet refused the help offered. Was her reaction to rehab a consequence of the disease? Perhaps. Farewell Amy!

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