Strong Acting and Deft Script Underscore ‘Billie’s’ Points

“When Billie Beat Bobby,” tonight’s stylish ABC account of the most ballyhooed tennis match in history, serves up smart social observations and two first-class performances.

Holly Hunter and Ron Silver ace their respective roles as the feisty, formidable tennis great Billie Jean King and overweight, over-the-hill chauvinist Bobby Riggs, a pair of highly quotable media favorites whose 1973 meeting at the Houston Astrodome proved to be pivotal in the fight for women’s equality, a point nicely underscored with sly humor by the skilled writer-director Jane Anderson (“The Baby Dance,” “If These Walls Could Talk 2”).

While sustaining a light, almost mirthful tone, Anderson leaves no doubt that the contest was of soaring significance to women, whether they were young athletes, unappreciated housewives or singles struggling to make ends meet. Billed as the “Battle of the Sexes,” the event sparked immense curiosity, evolving into one of the must-see TV events of the day.

Anderson, who wrote the script for Hunter’s HBO movie “The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom,” is adroit at handling both comedy and drama and any crossover between the two, and she clearly likes her adversaries.

King, then 29, was a respected winner at Wimbledon. At 55, the exuberant Riggs salivated under the media spotlight. “I haven’t had this much attention for 20 years,” he proclaims, always up for a hustle and “a bigger ham than Ali,” in the words of dapper producer Jerry Perenchio (Bob Gunton).

Hunter is gritty and grounded as the competitive King, who pushed for a hike in women’s prize money and demanded a level playing field at all times. Add the excellent work on Showtime’s recent “Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her,” and Hunter can be credited with two of the season’s best TV-movie portrayals.

Looking every bit like his character, Silver has the pushy, occasionally obnoxious role pegged perfectly, thanks in part to a marvelous makeup job resulting in bushy, unkempt hair (which seems to change shades from one scene to another) and a set of yellowed teeth that would frighten a dentist.

Game. Set. Match.