Russ Adams Joins the International Tennis Hall of Fame Induction Class of 2007.

By Jane Cerullo

The Friends of Reading Tennis Task Force (FFRTTF) discovered a treasure right here in Reading.  During a house party held to raise funds to re-construct the public tennis facility at the Birch Meadow Athletic Complex, a guest mentioned a Mr. Russ Adams.  Mr. Adams and his wife, Betty, have lived in Reading since 1955.  They raised a son here.  This July, Mr. Adams will be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, RI.  Elected as a contributor, Mr. Adams is considered the “Dean” of tennis photography.  He is tennis’ best-known photographer and his work has documented great moments from the Grand Slam tournaments, the Fed Cup, Davis Cup, and two Olympics.

Lorraine Salter is the President of FRTTF.  She plans to attend the Induction Ceremony as a special event not to be missed.  When she learned that Mr. Adams was a resident of Reading, she lost no time in picking up the phone and congratulating him.  He, in turn, demonstrated his support for the FRTTF cause by loaning a gallery of his tennis photographs to create a special ambiance at their fundraisers.  Those of you who attended the February 9th Texas Hold ‘Em Poker Night at the Reading Masonic Hall were treated to shots of some of the world’s most famous tennis players.  Chris Evert. Martina Navratilova, Jimmy Connors, Bjorn Borg, Arthur Ashe, Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf, Rod Laver, John McEnroe, Billie Jean King.  I could go on and on.  Mr. Adams considers many of these players among his personal friends.

Russ Adams was born in 1930 in Worcester, MA.  He grew up in the nearby town of Spencer.  In 1944 The Worcester Telegram had lost so many photographers to the armed services, a reporter enlisted 14 year old Russ to take pictures for them.  He became the “County Man” for his hometown Spencer, and surrounding communities.  In 1950 he moved to Boston and became the office boy that ran the photography lab at The Boston Herald.  This was short lived as he joined the Air Force, and moved to Texas to serve with the Strategic Air Command.  There he met and married his wife Betty.

After he was discharged in 1953, he came back to Boston and The Boston Herald, where he worked for 21 years.  He was sent out to cover the Junior matches at Longwood Tennis and Cricket Club in Brookline.  He recalls a Mrs.  Hazel Wightman took him out on the court, and taught him about scoring, and the rules of the game while the Juniors were playing.   The Sports Editor for The Herald at that time wasn’t particularly interested in Tennis as a sport, and as long as he got what work he needed from Russ – then Russ could go off on his own time, and sell his photographs to magazines.  Over the years, his work came to be seen on over 250 magazine covers.  In 1955, the same year he and Betty moved to Reading, he was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for photography. 

Mr. Adams has seen the game of tennis and the technology of photography develop.  He credits the Winchester Indoor Lawn and Tennis Club with hosting the first indoor tennis tournament.  He covered it, and was privileged to photograph Billie Jean King there.  He also stated that, “ televised tennis started here, in Boston, with Bud Collins providing commentary”.  With the birth of open tennis new rules were required for on-court photographers.  He is responsible for the system used at the first US Open Championships, and was instrumental in developing the “Code of Conduct” now used by photographers covering professional tennis everywhere. 

Mr. Adams has come to love the game of tennis, and through the art of photography and personal professionalism, he has served it well.  He supports the FRTTF in their goal of working with the town of Reading to re-construct the public tennis facility at the Birch Meadow Athletic Complex.  He said: “If the high school tennis teams have had the will to practice and play on poor courts, and still have the talent to succeed, it’s about time we had a facility that does their talent justice, and that also serves the tennis playing populace of the town.”  “It sure would be nice”, he added, “for people to play here on our courts, in our own town, without having to travel somewhere else to find a decent facility.”

*If you are interested in making an individual, or corporate donation to this cause, please contact Lorrraine Salter at norshore@comcast.net, or Kate Kaminer at kkaminer@comcast.net, or visit our website at www.friendsofreadingtennis.org