fullscreen

eFinder

eFinder

Home › Article

Larry W. King, ex-husband of tennis icon Billie Jean King, dead at 81

Nypost · · 300 words · By Associated Press
headphones Listen to the eFinder podcast briefing
Ready to play
Daily briefing

What to know about Larry W. King, ex-husband of tennis icon Billie Jean King, dead at 81

King, the former husband of Billie Jean King who partnered with her on the creation of the WTA Tour and the “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match, died Friday.

Claims checked 15
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center50%
Right50%

2 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

King, the former husband of Billie Jean King who partnered with her on the creation of the WTA Tour and the “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match, died Friday.

Why it matters

King died at his home of prostate cancer, said his wife, Nancy Bolger King.

Common ground

Larry King and Billie Jean King met at Cal State-Los Angeles and married in 1965.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/05/29/sports/larry-w-king-ex-husband-of-tennis-icon-bill…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 15 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6
schedule Pending 5
info Single Source 2
help Insufficient Evidence 2
info
Claim 1: “We were married for 22 years”
SINGLE SOURCE
While the marriage is confirmed, the specific duration of '22 years' is not explicitly corroborated across multiple independent sources in the provided evidence, though it is implied in the context of the narrative.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 Grand Slam titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles. Sh…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billie_Jean_King
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Larry King (1933–2021) was an American broadcaster. Larry or Laurence or Lawrence King may also refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_King_(disambiguation)
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Lawrence William King (January 30, 1945 – May 29, 2026) was an American sports promoter.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_King_(tennis)
+ 3 more evidence sources
schedule
Claim 2: “They moved a few years later to Grass Valley, where he co-founded Roller Hockey International, a professional roller hockey league played on inline skates; and Bridge Pro Tour, a professional bridge tour.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
info
Claim 3: “Together, Larry and Billie Jean King founded World TeamTennis”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided evidence for this specific claim is sparse; while his general involvement in tennis is noted, the specific co-founding of World TeamTennis is not corroborated by multiple independent sources in the provided text.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — ^ "Larry Page – Tech Philanthropists – Donors – Foundations – Inside Philanthropy". squarespace.com. Archived from the original on April 13, 2015. ^ "Google CEO Larry Page Gave $177-Million to Charity…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Page
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 3 days ago · Larry Page net worth reached $296.5 billion on June 12, 2026. The Google cofounder is now the world's second-richest person.
https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/us-news/who-is-the…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Sep 2, 2025 · How many celebrities named Larry can you think of? The famous Larrys below have many different professions, including notable actors named Larry, famous athletes named Larry, and even mu…
https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-people-named-larry/celebr…
check_circle
Claim 4: “King died at his home of prostate cancer, said his wife, Nancy Bolger King.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results confirm he died at home of prostate cancer, citing his wife Nancy Bolger King.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Lawrence William King (January 30, 1945 – May 29, 2026) was an American sports promoter. Larry King. Born. Lawrence William King. (1945-01-30)January 30, ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_King_(tennis)
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 29, 2026 ... Larry W. King, whom former wife Billie Jean King hailed as ... King died at his home of prostate cancer, said his wife, Nancy Bolger King.
https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/48914738/larry-king-s…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 29, 2026 ... King died at his home of prostate cancer, said his wife, Nancy Bolger King. Larry King and Billie Jean King met at Cal State Los Angeles and ...
https://www.latimes.com/sports/story/2026-05-29/larry-w-king…
help
Claim 5: “Larry King designed the colorful courts and revamped scoring system that helped popularize the sport.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding the design of colorful courts or the revamped scoring system.
check_circle
Claim 6: “Larry W. King, the former husband of Billie Jean King who partnered with her on the creation of the WTA Tour and the “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match, died Friday.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web sources (ESPN, Google News) report that Larry W. King, former husband of Billie Jean King, died on a Friday.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 Grand Slam titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles. Sh…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billie_Jean_King
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Julieta Pareja (born February 18, 2009) is an American tennis player. She has a career-high ITF junior combined ranking of No. 7, achieved on June 9, 2025. She also has career-high WTA rankings of No.…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julieta_Pareja
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Women's Sports Foundation (WSF) is a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit charity focused on female involvement in sports. Founded in 1974 by tennis player Billie Jean King and initially supported by O…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women's_Sports_Foundation
+ 3 more evidence sources
schedule
Claim 7: “Larry and Billie Jean King divorced in 1987.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
check_circle
Claim 8: “he and I co-owned several tournaments on the Virginia Slims Tour.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm that Larry and Billie Jean King co-owned several tournaments on the Virginia Slims Tour.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — King was also the founder of the Women's Tennis Association and the Women's Sports Foundation. She was instrumental in persuading cigarette brand Virginia Slims ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billie_Jean_King
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 29, 2026 ... ... co-owned several tournaments on the Virginia Slims Tour. He was integral and did much of the important legal work to establish the Women's ...
https://www.facebook.com/BillieJeanKing/photos/larry-w-king-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — May 29, 2026 ... Larry W. King, whom former wife Billie Jean King hailed as " ... co-owned several tournaments on the Virginia Slims Tour." Together ...
https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/48914738/larry-king-s…
check_circle
Claim 9: “Larry King and Billie Jean King met at Cal State-Los Angeles and married in 1965.”
CORROBORATED
ESPN and other web results confirm that Larry and Billie Jean King met at Cal State Los Angeles and married in 1965.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Battle of the Sexes is a 2017 sports comedy-drama film directed by Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton and written by Simon Beaufoy. The plot is loosely based on the 1973 tennis match between Billie Jea…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Sexes_(2017_film…
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 Grand Slam titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles. Sh…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billie_Jean_King
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Lawrence William King (January 30, 1945 – May 29, 2026) was an American sports promoter.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_King_(tennis)
+ 3 more evidence sources
help
Claim 10: “The WTA Tour was formed that year [1973]”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided in the search results to confirm the specific formation date of the WTA Tour as 1973.
schedule
Claim 11: “Besides his wife, King is survived by son Sky King and daughter Katie King, and their families.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 12: “He later married Nancy Bolger King, whom he met on the women’s tour in the late 1980s.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 13: “King went on to beat Bobby Riggs in the “Battle of the Sexes,” which remains the most-watched tennis match in history.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
check_circle
Claim 14: “He was 81.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources, including ESPN and Google News, explicitly state he was 81 years old at the time of his death.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Larry Martin Hagman (September 21, 1931 – November 23, 2012) was an American actor, best known for playing ruthless oil baron J. R. Ewing in the 1978–1991 primetime television soap opera Dallas, and t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Hagman
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — In Major League Baseball, the winning pitcher is defined as the pitcher who last pitched prior to the half-inning when the winning team took the lead for the last time. There are two exceptions to thi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Major_League_Baseball_…
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — William Lyon Mackenzie King (December 17, 1874 – July 22, 1950) was the tenth prime minister of Canada for three non-consecutive terms from 1921 to 1926, 1926 to 1930, and 1935 to 1948. A Liberal, he …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Lyon_Mackenzie_King
+ 3 more evidence sources
check_circle
Claim 15: “He was involved behind the scenes when the Original 9 signed our $1 contracts”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web results, including a Facebook post and a news summary, confirm his behind-the-scenes involvement with the Original 9's $1 contracts.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Larry King (born Lawrence Harvey Zeiger; November 19, 1933 – January 23, 2021) was an American TV and radio host, author, and spokesman. He was a WMBM radio interviewer in the Miami area in the 1950s …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_King
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Larry King Live is an American television talk show that aired on CNN from June 3, 1985, to December 16, 2010. Hosted by Larry King, it was the network's most watched and longest-running program, with…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_King_Live
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Larry King Now is an American television talk show hosted by Larry King, available on Ora TV, Hulu, and RT America. Launched on July 17, 2012, the series featured interviews with newsmakers, world lea…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_King_Now
+ 3 more evidence sources
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.