jay helfert said:
Do you mean that Fats only showed up one year, or was he there at the other ones, but just didn't participate in the other tournaments?
Anyone Remember the Jansco Brothers Johnson City Ill, Post your photo's and stories.
- Thread starter manwon
- Start date
Do you mean that Fats only showed up one year, or was he there at the other ones, but just didn't participate in the other tournaments?
First of all, credit for this photo should go to Frank Brent, who lives in the Louisville area. He will most likely be at the DCC. He is a great source for more pictures like this.
You're right. It's not Gartner, but Don Tozer. His wife is next to him.
At the far end of the bench is Ray Booth.
According to an old buddy of yours, Frank Tullos, the shooter is J. Gordon Guy. Guy (aka Gracie) hung around St. Louis in those days.
Cheers,
Ed
You're right. It's not Gartner, but Don Tozer. His wife is next to him.
At the far end of the bench is Ray Booth.
According to an old buddy of yours, Frank Tullos, the shooter is J. Gordon Guy. Guy (aka Gracie) hung around St. Louis in those days.
Cheers,
Ed
a little story from J C
I believe it was '71 when I was there. I was out back in the action area when a friend came in and said, "Come with me, you gotta see this." When we entered the tournament room he pointed out a kid playing in a striaght pool match on the far table. After watching this slender kid with a Beatle haircut shoot just a few balls in I siad, " Dang , this kid has a better stroke than 90% of the players here. He's going to be a great player when he gets older." My friend replied, "Your wrong...... its not a he, its a she !" Turns out it was Jean Balukus. She was about twelve at the time. (But I was right about the great player part)
I believe it was '71 when I was there. I was out back in the action area when a friend came in and said, "Come with me, you gotta see this." When we entered the tournament room he pointed out a kid playing in a striaght pool match on the far table. After watching this slender kid with a Beatle haircut shoot just a few balls in I siad, " Dang , this kid has a better stroke than 90% of the players here. He's going to be a great player when he gets older." My friend replied, "Your wrong...... its not a he, its a she !" Turns out it was Jean Balukus. She was about twelve at the time. (But I was right about the great player part)
When he started getting fame he didnt go to JC.cuetechasaurus said:
Ed Wiggins said:
You know it's funny. I was thinking Don Tozer but didn't want to put his name because I wasn't certain. And yeah, that could be Ray Booth.
cuetechasaurus said:
He came, he just didn't play the tournament. He hustled a few guys, most notably Richie Florence for over 25K one year.
Aside from who these guys are, what the heck is the guy at the table doing?? Some kind of backscuttle trick shot???hemicudas said:
Must be some distant relative of mine
Steve piping in --->> JoAnne (George Jansco's daughter) plans to be at our Hall of Fame dinner at Derby City in January to accept our HOF induction for George & Pauli. As a matter of fact, I have asked her to bring along some memorabilia. Every year we have a whole table full of interesting historical stuff, and this year sounds like it will be good too.
middleofnowhere
Registered
Can you explain this a little.
The building(s) are still there and is a mattress store now. the Stardust golf course is still open about a 1/2mile south. I doubt the current generation of residents(under 4,000pop) has much if any clue about the old tournament. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Johnston+City,+IL+62951/@37.8176186,-88.9518454,212m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m6!3m5!1s0x88772feb9dc9b545:0xb05dd0dd19e8e87!8m2!3d37.8206052!4d-88.9275695!16zL20vMHNqbHE?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDQwNS4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw== The building in back is the old CueClub tournament room.
The famous Johnston City YouTube video. I wish there were more like this one. It is a real American treasure. The news reel video clip is from Chicago local News 5 with Dick Kay and occurred in 1972, the same year my daughter was born. They called Ronnie Allen "Fast Eddie" a lot, and I loved the broadcaster's deep voice narrating all the the festivities and the brief snippets of the attendees, showing the cash moving back and forth between hands.
I know most veteran AzB-ers and pool peeps have seen this before, but I never tire of seeing it. Transcribed: Johnston City, Illinois, is rural, poor, and old. Some folks will tell you there will never be more than 3,900 people in town, because when the young folks leave school, they leave town. A good many of the stores on Main Street are empty, and the trains don't stop in Johnston City anymore, but the pool hustlers do.
Once a year, all the big-time pool hustlers in the country and those trying to earn a name at the game gather at Jansco's Show Bar at Johnston City for the Hustlers' World Championship Nine-Ball and One-Pocket Pool Tournament. Hustlers like Cicero Murphy, Norman Hitchcock, Boston Shorty Johnson, Omaha Fats, Harpo, Lowdown Dirty Red, and the man in the python shoes, Minnesota Fats. They say Damon Runyon would have moved to Johnston City if he had known about the characters who come to town for the tournament, but only a few care about the tournament itself.
That's just an event to get them all together. The hustlers are interested in the fast action that begins when the official games end. Many come to town broke or traveling light, as they say, and try to hustle the entry fee. Some bring a money man to handle the side bets or stake them in the big action. When fast Eddie Ronnie Allen steps into the red-carpeted pit for a game of nine-ball, the Texas carnival owner will give you a $200 bet. Faster than fast, Eddie can chalk his cue, and the hustler will shoot as long as the action lasts. More money changes hands in the stands in one hour than a cashier at the Bank of Johnston City sees in a week.
Then there's the king of the hustlers, Minnesota Fats, who help put the Johnston City tournament together. Fats lives about 12 miles from the show bar, but he never plays in the tournament. He waits for someone to win the $20,000 prize money, then shoots them for the cash. That's his hustle, but according to Fats, everybody has one. "Ain't Nixon hustling? Ain't he out shaking hands 24 hours a day trying to get to be the president? Ain't everybody hustling? Yeah. Everybody's scuffling. See, there's two different -- there's a scuffler and a hustler. A hustler is one that's always in action and gets it once in a while. See? And a good hustler gets it more often. Then there's a scuffler. He never gets it. You understand? All he ever does is waste his time, gets in everybody's way. You understand? That's all. Goes through life, and he's a failure."
They say a hustler will lie about everything to everybody to get in a game. Once in, if they shoot badly, they'll blame it on the light or dead rails or spectator noise. Losing is never their fault. That's all part of the hustle, and the excuse keeps the money man from getting nervous. But only a smooth stroke of proper english, a dead eye, and lots of luck get a hustler out of the game with the money. But it's no fun to resist the lies, and the hustler who got out with the money soon gets back in.
Most of the time, the local authorities leave them alone. After all, it's a case of a hustler hustling another hustler. The hustlers say if a man knew how to make money playing pool, he'd be a genius. The truth is they all know how to make money. Only a few have learned how to keep it. But wherever the action is beyond Johnston City, heavy with cash or busted, they'll all be there because hustling is more than the name of the game. It's a way of life.
From Johnston City, Illinois, Dick Kay, News 5 Chicago.
I know most veteran AzB-ers and pool peeps have seen this before, but I never tire of seeing it. Transcribed: Johnston City, Illinois, is rural, poor, and old. Some folks will tell you there will never be more than 3,900 people in town, because when the young folks leave school, they leave town. A good many of the stores on Main Street are empty, and the trains don't stop in Johnston City anymore, but the pool hustlers do.
Once a year, all the big-time pool hustlers in the country and those trying to earn a name at the game gather at Jansco's Show Bar at Johnston City for the Hustlers' World Championship Nine-Ball and One-Pocket Pool Tournament. Hustlers like Cicero Murphy, Norman Hitchcock, Boston Shorty Johnson, Omaha Fats, Harpo, Lowdown Dirty Red, and the man in the python shoes, Minnesota Fats. They say Damon Runyon would have moved to Johnston City if he had known about the characters who come to town for the tournament, but only a few care about the tournament itself.
That's just an event to get them all together. The hustlers are interested in the fast action that begins when the official games end. Many come to town broke or traveling light, as they say, and try to hustle the entry fee. Some bring a money man to handle the side bets or stake them in the big action. When fast Eddie Ronnie Allen steps into the red-carpeted pit for a game of nine-ball, the Texas carnival owner will give you a $200 bet. Faster than fast, Eddie can chalk his cue, and the hustler will shoot as long as the action lasts. More money changes hands in the stands in one hour than a cashier at the Bank of Johnston City sees in a week.
Then there's the king of the hustlers, Minnesota Fats, who help put the Johnston City tournament together. Fats lives about 12 miles from the show bar, but he never plays in the tournament. He waits for someone to win the $20,000 prize money, then shoots them for the cash. That's his hustle, but according to Fats, everybody has one. "Ain't Nixon hustling? Ain't he out shaking hands 24 hours a day trying to get to be the president? Ain't everybody hustling? Yeah. Everybody's scuffling. See, there's two different -- there's a scuffler and a hustler. A hustler is one that's always in action and gets it once in a while. See? And a good hustler gets it more often. Then there's a scuffler. He never gets it. You understand? All he ever does is waste his time, gets in everybody's way. You understand? That's all. Goes through life, and he's a failure."
They say a hustler will lie about everything to everybody to get in a game. Once in, if they shoot badly, they'll blame it on the light or dead rails or spectator noise. Losing is never their fault. That's all part of the hustle, and the excuse keeps the money man from getting nervous. But only a smooth stroke of proper english, a dead eye, and lots of luck get a hustler out of the game with the money. But it's no fun to resist the lies, and the hustler who got out with the money soon gets back in.
Most of the time, the local authorities leave them alone. After all, it's a case of a hustler hustling another hustler. The hustlers say if a man knew how to make money playing pool, he'd be a genius. The truth is they all know how to make money. Only a few have learned how to keep it. But wherever the action is beyond Johnston City, heavy with cash or busted, they'll all be there because hustling is more than the name of the game. It's a way of life.
From Johnston City, Illinois, Dick Kay, News 5 Chicago.
Last edited:
Awesome sauce!!!
The 20K on that first flyer was big money back then!!!
Fire away Jay!!
Cat ate the canary smile.
middleofnowhere
Registered
I know you wrote this twenty years ago, but could you tell the story if you still remember. I heard it from I think Weenie Beanie. Didn't it also involve a car or something.
he got richie when he was tired and robbed him. fats was a smart one to be for sure.
richie was a dumb one and all you had to do is get him stuck and what he had was yours.
when i took richie off for a large score he came back the next day for more and never tried to even change the game. which i wouldn't have as i knew he was a through ticket.
richie was a dumb one and all you had to do is get him stuck and what he had was yours.
when i took richie off for a large score he came back the next day for more and never tried to even change the game. which i wouldn't have as i knew he was a through ticket.