king is just overwhelming him. >> reporter: billie jean king now calls the story ridiculous. >>obby never had the discussion. bobby doesn't get involved with mobsters. that's not bobby. >> actually, billie, he did. >> espn sat down with his son. >> did he know mafia guys. absolutely. is it possible they talked to him about doing it -- possible. >> reporter: but we will never be able to ask riggs. >> riggs died in 1995. gio benitez, abc news, new york. >> boy, oh, boy. if this is true. that is quite a story. >> i was 7 years old. saying to my dad, dad who is going to win? my dad was -- this isn't about men and women. about an old guy, playing, a young kid, 20-something years old, billie jean king. he just saw it as an old guy playing an up and coming great tennis player. >> no way. you could see him wiping the sweat. poor old guy, i guess. he was spry. gave her a run for her money. >> a big deal. jumped over the net. guess he had something. >> yeah. >> coming up, the ratings success and big complaints about the "video music award." >> the addiction scandal in the kardashian famil

billie jean king versus bobby riggs.of the sexes may have been rigged and it may have involved the mafia. wait until you hear this bombshell next. over 20 million drivers are insured with geico. so get a free rate quote today. i love it! how much do you love it? animation is hot...and i think it makes geico's 20 million drivers message very compelling, very compelling. this is some really strong stuff! so you turned me into a cartoon...lovely. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. >>> a stunning new claim that the mafia fixed a match that millions of americans watched. maybe you remember this. 1973, all eyes were on the battle of the sexes tennis match between billie jean king and bobby riggs. well, king went on to beat riggs in straight sets but did riggs lose on purpose to settle a gambling debt. one man says the answer is yes. hal shaw says he kept the secret for 40 years until he appeared on espn's "outside the lines." shaw says he heard mob bosses planning to fix the match.

but billie jean king is just overwhelming him. >> reporter: billie jean king calls the story ridiculous>> i would bet my life that he never had that conversation. >> actually, billie, he did. >> reporter: espn sat down with rigs' son, larry. >> is it possible they talked to him about doing it? possible. >> reporter: we'll never be able to ask riggs himself. he died in 1995. gio benitez, abc news, new york. >>> big honor for a british boy visiting orlando. enjoying hero status after saving the life of a little girl that almost drowned. he pulled the girl to the surface where two bystanders performed cpr. >> really amazed that she's still alive. we were just playing. and she was just under water. and it was really weird. >> ethan got another reward. the hotel is sending him and his entire family to disney world. how about that? >>> a 78-year-old man in moscow saved himself from a train in the city subway system. closed circuit video shows him trying to board the train. the doors close on him. and he waits patiently for the doors to reopen. and they don't. the train takes off. it drags him

martha: that was the moment for billie jean king.ets, that september night. this is them riding in. she was 29 years old at the time. number two female player at the time. margaret court was number one. bobby riggs beaten her which prompted billie jean king to step into the ring with him. he was 55 years old at the time. no longer a competitive player. he was quite a player in his day. billie jean king says quote, this story about the rigging she is referring to, is ridiculous. i was on the court with bobby and i know he was not tanking the match. people need to accept he had a bad day at the office. jim gray is a sportscaster of course and a fox news contributor. good morning, good to have you here. >> good morning, martha. martha: before we get to the obvious question here i want you to take us back to that time in tennis and what, what this moment was really like in this, amazing arena in houston. >> well, billie jean king was a pioneer in the women's movement. she of course was called the battle of the sexes and everybody was tal

millions and millions of americans watched tennis champion billie jean king trounce bobby riggs on live tv. now tonight 40 years later an espn report says bobby riggs may have thrown the match to pay off gambling debts. abc's gio benitez on the allegations. >> reporter: it was dubbed the battle of the sexes. september 20, 1973, one of the top tennis players ever, bobby riggs, came out of retirement to challenge one of the world's greatest female players, billie jean king. and lost. now in an espn "outside the lines" exclusive with don van natta, this man is sharing what he says he kept secret for 40 years. hal shawl worked at a florida country club and said that months before the match he over heard two infamous mob bosses in a late night meeting saying riggs owed the mob a gambling debt of more than 100 grand. >> they brought up the name of bobby riggs. he said he will make it look and appear that he is trying his best but billie jean king is overwhelming him. >> reporter: billie jean king calls the story ridiculous. >> i would bet my life that bobby never had that discussion. he didn'

and billie jean has been a trailblazer for years.n i say, we love billie jean. we're making fun of bobby rigs. >> we're in no way diminishing what billie jean king means to women's rights or tennis. i was watching the same thing. he's a wrestling heel. women can't do anything men can do. >> listen to the language employed there. the male is king. >> right. >> the male is king. >> thumping of chests. >> he said that girl, remember. >> it was too -- he was playing a role. he was too chauvinistic. >> obviously, again, it was straight out of, you know, norman lear -- >> can we talk about -- >> family 1973. i thought, though, billie jean showed a great amount of restraint to not haul off and punch him in the face. kind of like you every morning. >> right. >> so let's talk really quickly, we'll talk about syria in a second but chuck todd, first, you talk about jumping the shark, going after jeff flake -- >> oh, my lord. >> this group that jim demint started and saying jeff flake is not a conservative and he's in the tank with barack obama

naturally beautiful results. >>> there were reports that the bobby rigs, billie jean king max was fixedhange in the sporting history if you could. we have some answers. natalie. >> chris says the drive signed all of cleveland. >> that's said, game seven, 200 world series. yankees win and complete the feel-good story. >> post-9/11 would have been nice. the '07 super bowl, the tyree catch keeps a lot of my friends up a the night. perfect season gone. "morning joe" starts right now. ♪ >> good morning. it is tuesday, august 27th. welcome to "morning joe," everybody. with us on set, we have msnbc contributor mike barnicle. hello, mike. former governor of vermont and former chairman of the democratic national committee, howard dean is with us. on the set. and in washington, pulitzer-prize winning columnist and associate editor of "the

billie jean king is here in studio 57. good morning. >> good morning. >> 39 titles.about equality is what i cared about. i got lucky that tennis was the platform. >> you had a great platform. >> very fortunate. >> one thing you want to talk about is you're calling it 40 40 40. >> easy to remember. >> 40 years since your match against bobby riggs. >> correct. >> 40 years since the women's tennis association was formed. >> correct. >> what's the third? >> equal prize money for men and women at the u.s. open. >> first time ever. >> 1973. it took until 2007 to get all four majors in alignment. the u.s. open was the leader in this effort. it's about the message, not the money. >> mm-hmm. >> about empowering both jend ers. >> you are the first athlete to be featured in an upcoming masters documentary. i want to look at a clip and talk about this. [ cheers and applause ] >> when you jumped over the net the first thing you said to me is, i underestimated you. i couldn't wait to tell my dad what he said. he would say, respect your opponent. never, ever underestimate them. >>

that's what billie jean king says.n who at the time didn't like the fact she beat a man on national televisi television, they don't like it now and this is sour grapes you want to believe this. there is compelling evidence in the espn report. they interviewed thoroughly a man who said he was a witness to a meeting of several mobsters setting up this event but also bobby riggs' son who said that some chicago mobsters visited his father in the weeks before the event. bobby riggs is not here with us anymore unfortunately. this is someone who worked at a club nearby and said he mistakenly overheard a shadowy meeting in the darkness. >> why did it not come out after it happened? >> the witness is approaching the age of 80 and said he finally feels can he get this off of his chest. he told a friend last year. that friend told someone else of course and made its way into the media. so he felt as if now he is free to say this. he was scared before to say anything else because of the people he said who were involved. >> for the

the legendary battle of sections match between billy jean king and bobby riggs was.rand the chum. all right, guys what you do i in? what do you think? >> this seemsretty ridiculous. billie jeaning says it ridiculous this 40 years later this is still today the most watched tennis match ever. you think about what happened back then the "battle of the sexes." and you think of the contemporary tennis players. venus williams, maria sharapova, would they be put in the situation and would anyone doubt they won a match like this? melissa: you're doubtful is bottom line. >> a little bit. melissa: what do you think? >> i'm shocked anyone think the mob could rig a 10 "miss match." the mob doesn -- it's a disservice to the mob. come on, it is 40 years later. can i win points with the female audience? melissa: sure. >> what are we celebrating yesterday, august 26th? anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment. that thing. that the ability for everyone to vote. melissa: yeah. >> but the whole thing is just crazy. but you know, to pay off $100,000 debt, i mean, just doesn

a bombshell report alleging that bobby riggs through the match with billie jean king. >>> hello, everyone. welcome to "the legal view." i'm ashleigh banfield. >>> the president appears on the verge of ordering military action against syria for allegedly using chemical weapons. the secretary of defense, chuck hagel said as much this morning in an interview with the bbc. >> if the order comes, you're ready to go like that? >> we are ready to go, like that. is the white house says that president obama has not yet made a final decision, but his national security team will present him with the final options within days. take a look at the map that shows where syria has allegedly used the chemical weapons against civilians there. the latest alleged attack happening last week on the outskirds of a syrian capital of damascus. opposition leaders say -- this just into cnn, we've on tained the cell phone video from one of the areas allegedly hit by chemical weapons. this is distressing the you can see a mass grave. this was filmed several days after the attack. what you are not seeing in this partic

." ♪ billy jean ♪ >> just after thanksgiving of 1982 when billy jean catapulted michael jackson intosuperstar. >> jackson set a fashion trend with that song and sporting a single white glove. the white glove has set of an in the national tug-of-war. a >> reporter: michael jackson was as much the king of pop as a style icon. it is almost impossible to separate the legendary singer's career from that jacket, that hat and of course that crystal glove. a glove that has been in the private collection since the son of the president bought it at auction in 2010. >> there is nothing more iconic than the white rhinestone studded glove. that is michael jackson. >> reporter: according to the u.s. department of justice, the son bought the glove and other michael jackson memorabilia with stolen public fund. in april of 2011, u.s authorities moved to seize assets worth $71 million from the son who owns bentleys, ferraris, lamb bore ago knees, rolls royknees, -- lamborghinis and a private jet. they seized his mansion where they found goods and cars. the original case was thrown out in april of 2012

billie jean king versus bobby riggs. >> reporter: millions watched as 55-year-old retired tennis starby riggs entered the astrodome in september of 1973. >> i'm howard cosell. we're delighted to be able to bring you this very, very quaint, unique event. >> reporter: riggs planned to crush the young female wimbledon champ, billie jean king. >> and it's been a night i think that was not expected by most. >> reporter: but when the dust settled -- >> the game is over. >> reporter: -- king had won proving, yes, a woman could beat a man on the tennis court. but now in an espn "outside the lines" exclusive, this man, hal shaw, says it was all a fix, that riggs owed the more more than 100 grand and worked with them to throw the match. shaw was an assistant golf pro at a florida country club. he says months before the match, he overheard two infamous mobsters. >> they brought up the name of bobby riggs, and riggs had assured him that he would go in the tank, and he'll make it look and appear that he's trying his best, but billie jean king is just overwhelming him. >> reporter: espn's don van n

the former a's and dodgers outfielder will share honors with billy jean king and mart a martinaa navratilova. wads has a seven-shot lead heading into tweaked. i'm dave feldman. back after this. >>> now that the show is wrapping up we can safely tell you to get moving, get in your car or you'll miss out on the chance of a lifetime. >> there are sharks flooding the streets. >> yes, that's right. "sharknado" is storming into theaters for one night only coming up at midnight. >> we have 30 minutes to get there? >> we can make it. >> believe me. we'll get there. about 200 regal theaters including the ones in dublin and santa cruz. "sharknado" debuted to more than a million viewers on the sci-fi channel last month and it spawned a twitter feeding frenzy of 5,000 tweets a minute. you have until midnight when the show starts. >>> kids instruments playing adult lyrics. add jimmy fallon and robin thick and it is funny. ♪ >> fallon and the late night band the rats got together to play his chart topping song. they used spoon, a recorder and a nod to bla oyster cult, a cow belle. you can hear it at want:

finalist and world number two victoria azarenka teamed up with thirty nine time grandson going up billie jean king to light up the empire state building to mark the w.t.f. fortieth anniversary as our guest faces lesser known german dina fizzling my in her open out on the ballot knees up the softer recently overcoming serena williams in the final of the cincinnati open. but it definitely gives a good confidence and i mean to play against syria all the time is it's definitely you know taking you that ourselves to the next level and push your limits so it was important test for me to have tried before they opened you know the whole perforation it was about this tournaments to kind of have. the best you know to kind of have the game develop while on the men's side andy murray says he's wary about defending a grand slam title for the first time in his career the twenty six year old briton i became novak djokovic to lift his maiden major crown last year then also triumphed at wimbledon and faces french veteran michael llodra in the first round at flushing meadows. it's a new experience and you know

he will share honors with billie jean king and martina mart lowva. the glen berg story to help tell his story back in 2010. >>> and giants playing in tampa bay. they lead 4-1 behind bum guaar r gardner. i'm trying to keep my ship afloat. >> next time we'll have a new crew. thanks, jim. >>> coming up at 11:00, we're going to show you how a girl turned a lemonade stand into a big business. >> and that's going to do it for us. we hope to see you at 11:00. >> his mama demands an engagement ring in a reality show? >> new details on her secret crisis meeting with her soon to be ex-husband. >> kim kardashian out of hiding. the first video since she gave birth. how much weight has she lost? lindsay czarniak 2.0. she takes her image rehab tour to late night. >> he was quelled about rumors that he's bisexual with a deejay named nick. i've been there.

and when he first wore a white glove to perform billy jean, well an fashion trend was born. >> now thes stepping in to make sure one of his iconic gloves doesn't stay in the hands of the son of an african kidictator. accused of using dirty money to fund his lavish spending spree. >>. >> reporter: good morning, the u.s. government says the son of the dictator has a collection of extravagant things he got illegally, fancy cars, a private jet, and one iconic item that many of you would recognize immediately. michael jackson was as much the king of pop as a style icon. it is almost impossible to separate the legendary's career from that jacket, that hat, and, of course, that glove. a glove that has been in the private collection of this man since the son of equatorial guinea's president bought it at auction in 2010. >> there's nothing more iconic than the white rhinestone-studded glove. that's michael jackson. >> but he allegedly bought the glove and other michael jackson memorabilia with stolen public funds. in april 2011, u.s. froze funds. he has a private jet and cars. and just last yea

. ♪ >>> so the mob got into the billy jean king/bobby rig thing?> it's inconclusive still, but an amazing report that has never been uncovered. >> we know bobby rigs loved to gamble and he said if you can forgive that dead, i'll throw the match. how would you feel if you're billy jean king, play the match of your life, it's historic and then all of a sudden someone says it's fixed. >> she says it's just a load of you know what. >> she did in the interview. and it was really inconclusieni in the end. >> but if you want to know how persuasive bobby rigs can be, watch him on the odd couple. if you watch that, if you've seen the odd couple episode -- >> there actually is one? >> it is unbelievably funny. >> back in the day. >>> so it's good to be back and we have some news to tell you about today. because students at sandy hook elementary head back to school this morning to a new location, a new building. the school has been closed since the suspected gunman adam lanza killed 26 and himself last guess. there is a plan to demolish the school and build a

but billie jean king was just overwhelming him. >> she got what she wanted. this wasn't a slip.ity and who he is just outweighs his injuries by so much that you just sort of forget about it after a while. >> beautiful pictures. we would like to remind our viewers about our brand new online segment called "in case you missed it!" >> we understand you can't always be with us live on television. we are including best "world news now," and most embarrassing, "world news now" moments just for you. check it out on the facebook page. wnnfans.com. >> you should always try to join us live, right? >> absolutely. >> while you are visiting our page, we'd like to see what you have been up to this summer. >> send us wild, wacky, fun, e-mail at wnnfans.com. first name, city and state. and you may just show up on "world news now" next week. >> you have time. because there is this last -- unofficial end of summer weekend. get out there, have some fun. go to the beach like john. >> might have to bring a picture from the beach. >> we'd like that. share your pictures with us. we might share them on

says the fix may have been in on the classic battle of the sexes tennis match between those greats billie jeanbobby riggs in 1973. the article says riggs threw that match so mobsters would forgive his 100,000 dollars in gambling debts. it remains the most watched television shows of all time with people tuning in to watch. you can read more about that store on my facebook page. it's game time and i'm talking with kastina about the walmart low price guarantee backed by ad match. look at walmart's price. are you kidding me? we're always working to lower costs so you get more savings. that's incredible. you ready? wow! i know, that's the walmart low price guarantee. bring your receipt before game time and see for yourself. (announcer) scottrade knows our and invest their own way. with scottrade's smart text, i can quickly understand my charts, and spend more time trading. their quick trade bar lets my account follow me online so i can react in real-time. plus, my local scottrade office is there to help. because they know i don't trade like everybody. i trade like me. i'm with scottrade. (announce

closed captioning provided by cbs sports division ♪ >> the billy jean king national tennis center inshing meadows, new york. it's arthur ash kids' day. smash hit single "moving on" recording artist fifth harmony ♪ ♪ ♪ i will ever be that girl again ♪ i'll never be that girl again ♪ no, oh oh ♪ wearin' in this ♪ but my heart is growing strong ♪ so call me, call where they arem not sure that we do. what if fsyria then decides they'll just retaliate by lobbing a few artillery shells into israel? i mean, this could set off a conflagration that goes across all of the middle east. >> it could. and that's why this has to be an international operation. it can't be a unilateral american approach. it has to have support internationally, not just politically but militarily. and we have to make it very clear what our objective is-- which is to say we will not tolerate the use of these weapons of mass destruction, not only by the syrians, but by anyone else. and i think if we do that, we have a possibility of avoiding more complicated consequences. but as you point out, this is a regional conflic

-- that's just my philosophy ♪ ♪ and i'm known to kick it like the captain of a soccer team ♪ ♪ billie jean ♪ drop top, head bobbing i'mma be fresh as hell if the feds watching ♪ ♪ i'm be fresh as hell if the feds watching i'm be fresh as hell if the feds watching ♪ ♪ drop top, head bobbing ♪ from grams to grammy's two guns yosemite ♪ ♪ people put their glock on your ass -- that heather b ♪ ♪ pumping that amphetamine all this d i'm peddling ♪ ♪ i be somewhere settling someplace that you have never been ♪ ♪ to the top you never been you might need a respirator ♪ ♪ money on the rise like i'm counting on a elevator ♪ ♪ you might need a respirator swimming with them barracudas ♪ ♪ put the rocket on that -- prosecutor ♪ ♪ this armani this givenchy i parachute you ♪ ♪ i'm so fly i jumped out the air wang gucci ♪ ♪ i'm fly talking california rolls ♪ ♪ smoking california green with california -- ♪ ♪ sending flicks to my partners in the state pen ♪ ♪ i just got some pants made out of snake skin ♪ ♪ see them shades you got on called ray-bans and the shades i got on cost eight bands ♪ ♪ 2 chainz ♪ i'm

the operator fans were awarded with a performance by lenny kravitz, billie jean king presented mayor hollywood stars foxx and that's a shot of singer pharrell. we got a shot when colin powell visited us last year. ♪ hey i just met you this is crazy but here's my number so call me maybe ♪ >> sorry, it was a lock. it was a lock. >> we've known for a long time, colin powell has a great sense of humor. >> i want to hear him come sing again. >> that can be arranged, i think. it's 8:10. >>> >>> so, are you creative right brain type? or a logical left brain person? many people believe that's one way to divide the world. well, we'll see if that's really true coming up next on "cbs this morning." ♪ ♪ saturday i said i'm sorry sunday came and trashed it out again ♪ ♪ victory is a smile that says... "these are exactly what i wanted" find the pink nike flex only at famous footwear. victory is yours. hello! lemonade reminds me of sunny days. so do tire swings! this is our ocean spray cran-lemonade. it's good, old-fashioned lemonade. only better! whoa! [ splash! ] ocean spray cran-lemonade. a bold

a bombshell report alleging that bobby riggs through the match with billie jean king. >>> hello, everyone

billie jean king defeated bobby riggs in front of a crowd.a new report this weekend alleges that riggs actually threw the match to haveambling debt to the mob wiped out. they overheard four mob members talking about the fix in 1972. riggs passed away in '95. billie jean king has not commented. >> is it the same people popping up saying they know the things. >> i believe she won fair and square. >> let's go with that. >> speaking of epic tennis rivalries, well, matt and i went and played tennis with serena williams and andy murray. matt did well of course and there's andy and i discussing strategy. >> okay. >> i was like i can't serve, nor can i hit at the net. >> what about the part where you yelled at the umpire? >> i did. >> at least you had a great outfit on. half the battle is how you look. you look adorable. >> thank you. you don't know fear until you have serena williams serve to you. my heart was in my throat. i'll show you guys that tomorrow. >> okay. also trending on new york times website, a new book on the way from one of history's

the final point is about sports in general, from jesse owens to jackie ron son to billie jean king, wece where we can have deep and honest conversations about who we want to be and being our best selves. hopefully this olympics gives us the opportunity for folks around the world to go there. >> you want the games to continue in sochi, the rest of the world to be there? >> hopefully people will be carrying flags of support and standing up in support of equal rights and human rights. >> we should say -- we asked rush shoo clarifying exactly what is going to happen to any gay athletes or supporters of gay athletes. we've had conflicting reports from the russian sports minister. a week or two ago he said no one is forbidding an athlete with nontraditional sexual orientation from coming to sochi. what exactly does that mean with propaganda? that could mean almost anything. that created a back lash and sports minister this week said russia has a constitution that guarantees to all citizens rights for the private life and privacy. rest assured that all the athletes and sports organizations sh

my personal favorite, 1982's "billie jean." ♪ ♪ do a dance on the floor and around ♪ ♪ so take my strongrs later in 1988 along came my favorite jackson song from his "bad" album. can you guess it? >> "dirty diana." ♪ dirty diana ♪ dirty diana >> i got to confess i didn't actually know that one. i had to look that one up. >> it's an amazing, amazing song. >> kind of dropped out after the "thriller" craze. >> wonderful song. during an interview with our own barbara walters, jackson denied the song was about princess diana, though diana told jackson it was her favorite song of his. kind of like mine. who was dirty diana? jackson says the lyrics were about a particularly aggressive type of groupie. >> interesting. which brings us to our facebook question of the day. what is your favorite michael jackson song? many have weighed in. go to wnnfans.com. >> go to it and weigh in. we want to know. we shared ours with you. we want to hear how many we're going to get in response. dirty diana is -- >> i didn't know that one. >> a lot of great ones. >> so many great ones. my gosh. >> "bad," "thriller.

more on the list -- billie jean king, martin luther king, elaine host: some more names on the list.his is available on nndb, tracking the entire world. this is from media-is closest -- alec baldwin set to host a new msnbc primetime show. host: mick is in indiana on our independent line. mick, good morning. who would you nominate for a presidential medal of freedom? caller: good morning. i would like to nominate jimmy hoffa, the union leader. i believe union people and the people that built this nation are constantly overlooked and given a bad rap. thank you. host: thank you for calling in. from the "washington times" if this article -- home prices rise helping a fan he earned $10.1 billion in the second quarter. fannie earn $10.1 billion in the second quarter. host: as we continue to take your calls on to whom you wouldn' award be presidential medal of freedom, the numbers are on the screen if you would like to dial in. jo is in hammond, louisiana on our republican line. caller: hello, how are you doing ? might be on the list already, his name is john c durand. he was a in immigrant

. >> reporter: vicki said after that exuberance she got a text message from who, tennis legend billie jeanulations, i'm really proud of you." she was really excited getting that text message. she faces daniela hantuchova later today. her coach talked about the importance of the family support, they're all with this. >> you almost feel in that moment when she realizes, you feel her sheer, raw jaw. it's so cool. >> she's a great kid with lots of energy and she really has fun out there. that's the other thing that i noticed. >> it's an important thing for them to have especially early on. there's all the pressure to push them through the brackets. doesn't really matter who she takes on next. she's had her moment and anything else is gravy. >> even her coach said they're concerned about the spotlight and all the pressure at 17, that's a lot to handle but i argued when you have that kind of family support, it does help buffer it a little bit. >> she may have the perspective that it's just a game. >> she told me life is short. she knows that all too well. >> they learned it the hard way. >> good