Status: Tennis Hall of Famer. Won the U.S. Pro Championships in 1950 (d. Kovacs), 1951 & 1952 (d. Gonzalez).

Ht: 5-6 Wt: 160

DOB: June 20, 1921 in Guayaquil, Ecuador

First Tennis Memory: “Somebody gave me his racquet. And I always watched. And I held it with two hands. I was seven-years-old. And I played against the wall. I loved it. I learned to hit the ball on the rise. I never let the ball come to me, I went to the ball. Except when returning first serve. Then you have to let the ball come in if your serve is 120 miles per hour.”

Tennis Heroes: “Well, I admired Jack Kramer because he could serve and volley. And he never lost a set. He always won 64, 75, 86. In my day there was no tiebreak. So if you lost your serve you were dead with Kramer. That’s the way you played the game – aggressively. Aggressive when you’re in front, conservative when you were down.”

Favorite Meal: “I eat everything in sight.”

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “Vanilla.”

Pre-Match Feeling: “Think about how am I gonna hold serve.”

Last Book Read: “Bill Tilden. BT. The great player. He didn’t believe players should play with both hands. He was a controversial writer.”

Greatest Sports Moment: “Beating Pancho Gonzalez 62 62 62 in 1952 in Forest Hills on grass.”

Most Painful Moment: “Losing Santa Barbara to Kramer after having a 5-0 lead in the first set. And I couldn’t sleep. And losing to Kramer in Wimbledon in 1950.”

Favorite Tournaments: “Australia. And all the Grand Slams. Because it’s three out of five. It’s a test of tennis and conditioning. Several tests of the game.”

Which Matches Were You At Your Very Best: “Beating Gonzalez, beating Sedgman and beating Rosewall on grass. Winning always gives you confidence and you have a happy ending. When you lose – I hated myself. I was a tough competitor. I hated to lose.”

Funny Tennis Memory: “Trying to date Shirley Temple in 1947 [laughs]. At Forest Hills. I didn’t have any money, no wheels, nothing. And going around with Ava Gardner, it was fun.”

Embarrassing Tennis Memory: “Nothing, not having a dime, you’re broke. And having to turn pro for $300 a week in 1946, ‘47.”

Favorite Players To Watch: “Unquestionably, Roger Federer. Because he’s a complete player. Nadal – because he gives 100% on every shot. Like my pupil Jimmy Connors, they’re both left-handed. He’s got speed, he’s got everything. He could come in on return of serve. You never see Nadal attack the serve and take the net away. The man who can beat him – Juan Martin Del Potro. He’s got potential. He’s 6-6, he’s got a huge first serve, a huge seccond serve. He’s got everything but physical conditioning. I don’t know if he can go five sets day in, day out. Del Potro is gonna be better than Murray because he has a better serve. He’s bigger. He’s gotta work on his conditioning and serve more first serves. Attack second serves. Every second serve, Del Potro should cream it. What counts in tennis is who makes the first shot tougher. If you can do it when you serve or return, you got it made.”

Funniest Player Encountered: “Carl Earn. He looks like Danny Thomas. Frank Kovacs. Pancho Segura [smiles].”

Closest Tennis Friends: “Gonzalez Pancho, Kenny Rosewall, the Australians – they’re all good people.”

People Qualities Most Admired: “Generous. Respect for another citizen. And help the unfortunate. Don’t just give them money and everything, help them. Help their standard of living. Give opportunity to them, people who deserve it.”

Career Accomplishments: At Miami University won U.S. Intercollegiate singles in 1943, 1944 and 1945; Won U.S. Indoor title in 1946 and U.S. Clay Court title in 1944; Elected to Hall of Fame in 1984.

It’s not blood lust or a taste for all night outings that motivate him, but a trace of Transylvanian tradition that comes to tennis in the form of Nicolas Massu, nicknamed “Vampiro” for his affinity for vampires. The winner of six career ATP singles titles including Buenos Aires, Amersfoort, Palermo, Kitzbuhel, Athens and Costa do Sauipe, Massu reached career high ATP singles ranking of No. 9 in 2004. Massu became a Chilean national hero when he swept Gold Medals in singles and doubles at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. Massu and Gonzalez captured Chile’s first gold medal in the 108-year history of the modern Olympic Games with a 6-2, 4-6, 3-6, 7-6(7), 6-4 triumph over Germany’s Nicolas Kiefer and Rainer Schuettler in a taxing five-set match that ended at 2:30 a.m.. In a memorable climax to that match, the Chileans engaged in an emotional embrace and crashed to the court together. Gonzalez and Massu had cause for celebration. The pair fought off four match points trailing 2-6 in the fourth-set tiebreak then rallied from a 1-3 deficit in the decisive set by winning five of the final six games to seize one of their nation’s greatest sports victories in a three hour, 43-minute that offered tense, tenacious — and at times tremendous — tennis. Massu concluded that match collapsing on the court in Gonzalez’s arms in an emotional embrace and returned the next day to make another five-set stand and beat American Mardy Fish to strike gold in singles. In a stunning span of 24 hours in Athens, Massu captured consecutive gold medals for his country, roaring back to earn a 6-3, 3-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Fish and the respect of all who watched as he completed an astounding sweep of both singles and doubles gold medals. “What he achieved back in Athens winning singles and doubles, it’s never going to happen again, you know,” World No. 1 Roger Federer said. Scoop Malinowski, whose Olympic experience was confined to teenage backyard boxing matches that saw him play the roles of both former U.S. Olympic boxers Michael and Leon Spinks (unlike Leon, Scoop has retained his front teeth despite his affinity for the sweet science), caught up with Massu recently for this Biofile interview.

Height/Weight: 6-feet, 177 pounds.

 Born On: October 10, 1979 in Vina del Mar, Chile.

Childhood Hero: “Rocky the movie [smiles].”

 Tennis Inspirations: “When I start when I was younger — Boris Becker and Muster. Those were my two.”

Hobbies/Leisure Activities: “I like to play soccer. To be with my friends, go out with my friends.”

Nicknames: Nico, Vampiro.

Favorite Movies: “Gladiator.”

Favorite TV Show: “The Simpsons is my favorite.”

Musical Tastes: “Spanish music, Ricky Martin.”

Early Tennis Memory: “The first time that I passed the top 100 in 1999. After winning Challenger in Santiago in November ‘99. Was doing good in Challengers, I won three Challengers. Then when I won my first ATP tournament in Buenos Aires (2002), I saved match points (in final against Calleri).”

Pre-Match Feeling: “All are different. Sometimes you’re nervous, sometimes not. Sometimes you are more confident, sometimes without confidence. Normally, a little bit nervous but not too much. Just depends on when I go out on the court to play.”

 Favorite Meal: “Pizza.”

Favorite Breakfast Cereal: “Everything.”

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “Vanilla.”

First Job: “Tennis.”

First Car: “‘Chevrolet convertible, black. ‘96, I have it in ‘99.”

 Greatest Sports Moment: “Now I think August 2004, champion of Olympics in singles and doubles. And also carried my countries flag at 2000 Olympics (when Marcelo Rios did not show up).”

 Most Painful Moment: “I think when we lost some important Davis Cup — Zimbabwe, India, Slovakia, Russia, Israel, Croatia. (Massu’s overall Davis Cup record is 29-17 including 17-4 on clay.)”

Funny Tennis Memory: “Just not in singles, when I play doubles I have a lot of good memories.”

Closest Tennis Friends: “Marcelo Rios and Fernando Gonzalez, some Argentine and some Spanish players.”

Funniest Players Encountered: “Fernando Vicente. He’s funny and a good person.”

Toughest Competitors: “Federer, Nadal, Hewitt, Agassi, Ferrero.”

Favorite Vacation Spot: “Cancun.”

Favorite Athletes To Watch: “I think Mike Tyson when he was young. Because I think he was a good competitor. And he was the best in the world. He had a lot of confidence.Michael Jordan. I read one time a book of him, I like it. My favorite soccer team is Everton from Vina del Mar. (Tennis?) I don’t have any one now. You don’t have idols when you play because you play against all these guys. I don’t have idols.”

People Qualities Most Admired: “Good, friendly people. Good person. And respect, you know?”

Tennis Week contributing writer Scoop Malinowski’s latest book Heavyweight Armageddon: The Tyson-Lewis Championship Battle was called “A smashing success,” by Hall of Famer Emanuel Steward, who called the book “one of the two best boxing books I’ve ever read.” Author Joyce Carol Oates, whose book “On Boxing” is regarded as a classic calls Scoop, “one of the hottest young journalists in pugilism.” He’s recently done Biofiles with Billie Jean King, Asafa Powell, and Olympic gold medalists Carolina Kluft, Oksana Baiul and Tirunesh Dibaba. Please visit his site www.thebiofile.com. Scoop is also a ham and egger tennis player, currently ranked No. 4 in the USTA Eastern 35s and holder of the Tennis Week singles title.