Francis Xavier Alexander Shields Sr. (November 18, 1909 – August 19, 1975) was an American amateur tennis player of the 1920s and 1930s, and an actor known for Hoosier Schoolboy (1937). He was ranked world No. 2 in 1931, and U.S. No. 1 in 1933.
Tennis career
He was ranked world No. 2 in 1931 by Noel Dickson in the Melbourne Herald,[2] and world No. 5 in 1930 by A. Wallis Myers of The Daily Telegraph.[3] Between 1928 and 1945 he was ranked eight times in the U.S. Top Ten by the USLTA, reaching No. 1 in 1933, and No. 2 in 1930.
In January 1928, Shields was runner-up to George Lott in the Canadian Covered Courts Championships at the Montreal Indoor Tennis Club, defeating Canadian No. 1 Dr. Jack Wright in a long five set semifinal.
Shields defeated Wilmer Allison and Sidney Wood before losing to John Doeg in the final of the 1930 U.S. Championships.[4] Shields defaulted to Sidney Wood in the singles final of Wimbledon in 1931 due to an ankle injury he had sustained in winning his semi-final match against France's "Musketeer" Jean Borotra, and this was the only time in the history of a Grand Slam event the singles final of that event was won by default.
At the 1933 U.S. Championships, Shields was seeded No. 2 behind Vines. Vines lost to Grant in the fourth round, while Shields reached the semifinal where he lost to Jack Crawford. Shields was ranked U.S. No. 1 for 1933 by the USLTA official ranking,[5] and world No. 5 ahead of Vines by Bernard Brown.[6]
In 1934, Shields defended his Canadian Covered Court Championships title by defeating J. Gilbert Hall in a close four set semifinal and George Lott in the final in three straight sets. He won the United North and South tournament at the prestigious Pinehurst Country Club, North Carolina[7] on clay courts defeating Allison in the final in three long straight sets. Shields defended his Mason & Dixon title at The Greenbrier resort by defeating Grant in the final in a close five set match. Shields reached the final of the Queen's Club Championships where he lost to Sidney Wood. He reached the semifinal at Wimbledon where he lost a very close match to Crawford.
He entered the 1950 US Open. However, he and Ginger Rogers were knocked out of the mixed doubles competition in the first round. He competed at the 1951 U.S. National Championships in New York City, but was defeated in the first round by South African Syd Levy in straight sets.
Davis Cup
He competed for the Davis Cup in 1931, 1932, and 1934, winning 19 of 25 matches. He was left off the team in 1933, supposedly for "erratic" "playing", despite being the No. 1 ranked U.S. player for that year.[9][10] Shields was the non-playing captain in 1951, when the team won four matches.
Personal
Shields had his issues both with interactions with other players, and with alcohol.[11][12][13] In the late 1930s, Shields was known for making fun of the US tennis star Bryan Grant, the smallest American to win an international championship, saying "the little shaver" was hiding behind the net. Once a drunk Shields held Grant upside down, outside a hotel window.[14]
In 1932, Shields married Rebecca Tenney (1910–2005). In 1938 he maintained a home in Palm Springs, California.[15] Shields and Tenney divorced in 1940 on the grounds of his "habitual intemperance and cruelty"[16] and in 1947 she married lawyer Donald Agnew.
Shields and Torlonia divorced and in 1950 she married Edward W. Slater.[18]
In 1949, he married Katharine Mortimer (1923–2003), the daughter of financier Stanley Grafton Mortimer, Sr.[19] and grand-daughter of Richard Mortimer She had previously been married to Oliver Cadwell Biddle, with whom she had a daughter, Christine Mortimer Biddle, who became a stepdaughter to Shields. Shields had three children with Mortimer:
Katharine Shields
William "Willy" Xavier Orin Hunt Shields (1949–2016)[20]
Alston Shields.
Shields and Mortimer divorced and in 1962 she married Richard Gillespie Blaine.[21]
Later life
In his later years he was frequently drunk, at which times he became destructive and bullying with his strength. [citation needed] After two heart attacks and a stroke, he died at 65 of a third heart attack, in a Manhattan taxi.[22] He was the grandfather of Brooke Shields, Morgan Christina Shields, and Holton Joseph Shields.
