APOLOGY TO DENNIS DIECKMAN
Sometime back, there was a discussion on AZ Billiards about which cuemakers were selected to be part of a cue exhibit in The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History . Mr. Dennis Dieckman had said he was one of the original 12. I took exception to this and made a post to AZ Billiards listing the 12 cuemakers who had been invited to participate in the exhibit.
If Dennis had offered to bet me that he was one of the original 12, he could have won my house, my shop, and everything I had.
Last night, I spent a couple of hours digging through my file cabinet, looking for my letter from Mr. David Shayt, curator of the Museum. I wanted to show Dennis that he was wrong. When I finally found it, I was shocked and thoroughly embarrassed. DENNIS WAS RIGHT!!!!!!
I have posted this letter on my website. The address if http://www.jimbuss.com/smithsonianletter.jpg
I wish to make a sincere and serious apology to Mr. Dieckman for any embarrassment he may have incurred from my error.
In the letter, David Shayt called Dennis “the outsider”. I don’t understand what he ment by that. Dennis was not in the ACA at that time, but he certainly couldn’t be considered an outsider. Several other cuemakers selected were not ACA members at the time. Dennis, in fact, is one of the eight cuemakers who attended the initial meeting of the American Cuemaker’s Association in Columbia, South Carolina on Friday, January 24th, 1992. These eight are considered the ”Founding Fathers” of the ACA. They are Leonard Bludworth, Tim Scruggs, James “Whitey” Spach, Dennis Dieckman, Joe Porper, John Guffey, Joseph Jansey, and Thomas Wayne.
This exhibit may never open, however. I was told that the floor space that was supposed to be the billiards exhibit was taken over by a September 11th exhibit. In addition to this, Mr. David Shayt passed away late last year.
If anyone would like more information, I’ll be glad to share what I know. Hopefully, I won’t dog it again. Please email me at jimbuss@jimbuss.com. I don’t get on AZ billiards very often.
NOTE!!!
Originally, I had reported that Rick Chudy (RC3) was one of the original 12. After looking over all my records, I remembered that David Shayt had added him as number 13. David had a one cue display case, which allowed the showing of another cue. These were the only cues that were going to be displayed. David Shayt DID accept a few cues from other cuemakers, but they would go on display only if someone else didn’t come across with a cue.
--JIM BUSS—
http://www.jimbuss.com
jimbuss@jimbuss.com
Sometime back, there was a discussion on AZ Billiards about which cuemakers were selected to be part of a cue exhibit in The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History . Mr. Dennis Dieckman had said he was one of the original 12. I took exception to this and made a post to AZ Billiards listing the 12 cuemakers who had been invited to participate in the exhibit.
If Dennis had offered to bet me that he was one of the original 12, he could have won my house, my shop, and everything I had.
Last night, I spent a couple of hours digging through my file cabinet, looking for my letter from Mr. David Shayt, curator of the Museum. I wanted to show Dennis that he was wrong. When I finally found it, I was shocked and thoroughly embarrassed. DENNIS WAS RIGHT!!!!!!
I have posted this letter on my website. The address if http://www.jimbuss.com/smithsonianletter.jpg
I wish to make a sincere and serious apology to Mr. Dieckman for any embarrassment he may have incurred from my error.
In the letter, David Shayt called Dennis “the outsider”. I don’t understand what he ment by that. Dennis was not in the ACA at that time, but he certainly couldn’t be considered an outsider. Several other cuemakers selected were not ACA members at the time. Dennis, in fact, is one of the eight cuemakers who attended the initial meeting of the American Cuemaker’s Association in Columbia, South Carolina on Friday, January 24th, 1992. These eight are considered the ”Founding Fathers” of the ACA. They are Leonard Bludworth, Tim Scruggs, James “Whitey” Spach, Dennis Dieckman, Joe Porper, John Guffey, Joseph Jansey, and Thomas Wayne.
This exhibit may never open, however. I was told that the floor space that was supposed to be the billiards exhibit was taken over by a September 11th exhibit. In addition to this, Mr. David Shayt passed away late last year.
If anyone would like more information, I’ll be glad to share what I know. Hopefully, I won’t dog it again. Please email me at jimbuss@jimbuss.com. I don’t get on AZ billiards very often.
NOTE!!!
Originally, I had reported that Rick Chudy (RC3) was one of the original 12. After looking over all my records, I remembered that David Shayt had added him as number 13. David had a one cue display case, which allowed the showing of another cue. These were the only cues that were going to be displayed. David Shayt DID accept a few cues from other cuemakers, but they would go on display only if someone else didn’t come across with a cue.
--JIM BUSS—
http://www.jimbuss.com
jimbuss@jimbuss.com
