The Fat Man/by Evelyn...Couple pages.

Evelyn/Fats Interview 2-28-96
Thought you all would enjoy my interview with Ev on her life with this man. These are her exact words about her life with him. I do have video/audio of this and I'm considering duplicating them if there's enough interest.

Here's the start of the interview....



Evelyn and I chatting during setup....

Fats always looked young ev said
Jeannie was janscos wife
ev said she had good looking legs

Beginning of dialogue of her first encounter with Rudolph.

We were married for 44 years, met March 7, 1941 and married May 7, 1941
We first met in Duquoin IL
Fats had a pool room in DC during Ted Roosevelts presidency, he drove around in an open limousine to wave to his public, and never failed to drive past Fats' pool room. Everyone would go outside to see the president pass by, fats said Roosevelt had the Biggest head he had ever seen on a human. BIG Big head, fats made comments about everything, some you could repeat others you couldn't.

Where and how they first met

Fats attended a pool tournament in Chicago at Bensingers that lasted about six weeks in duration, it supposedly had two or three floors.

Now all five below are heading south from Bensingers, in separate cars.

One car had a friend of fats from DC, Earl Schreiver and his wife Ada and a little boy Phil.
Then there was Jimmy the Greek from NY not Vegas who came with Fats in his car.
150 + tournament games booked at Bensingers event and Fats won 146-148.

Fats had a NEW Buick Lasalle, last built, beautiful dark in color, black or dark blue and other couple had a Buick. They were all on their way to Hot Springs AK to go down for some R&R @ Oaklawn Race Track, pool hustlers gathering every spring for many years. timeline 1941

Hwy 51 south from Chicago, fats skidded on pavement just before arriving in Duquoin and fats banged/scratched his new car on a mail box and drove into Duquoin to see about repairs.

While in town asked he asked if there was a pool room, there was.
Went to Lloyd Reeds poolroom, half of em in there fats already knew from Bensingers
and there were big gamblers here in town.
Next it took hours to match the game before play even started. Might be odds on the money or odds on the game itself.

First game for $900 I was not there till a week later, we had not met yet, fats won that game.

They then played for days and nights so to speak.
Fats Ck'd into a hotel just around the corner from the pool room.
The money and game got bigger and bigger, and he played a local Rounder like fats all this time.
The rounder who had been in town a long time, married a Duquoin girl and raised a family, his name was Don something, not Willis. There were a few restaurants close to the poolroom so fats would go there to eat, they were not large restaurants, and Fats didn't want to miss a minute away from the pool room action.
I worked as a waitress 2-3 miles down the road from the pool room at the Evening Star.
Fats was hungry and this was Monday night and they came to the Star. We had two waitresses, myself and Irene, Mondays I had the night off and that's when they first came in. The Star had liquor and a small dance floor along with the food. Served fried chicken and barbecue every night, open during the weekend. Unless it was going to be unusually busy myself and Ruthie were the only ones who worked there. So I had a night off and they came to eat the first time. Next night I came to work and heard the staff talk etc about the big gamblers in town and tipping BIG $5 plus etc. Just to see and hear about it was BIG for the times, money was huge $2,500 a game and it makes for 'smart conversation'. So I missed seeing them. So I went back to work the next night Tue., and they had talked, Joe Skofie and Mugs owners of the Star, boy Evelyn they said about the big gamblers in town. All week long. Boy Ev you missed it.
.

Tue pm Fats and real young gal about 17 etc came in with fats, I was there, I was 22.
The 17 yr olds name/Ruthie who worked in town at a restaurant by the pool room, a local and had dinner in the star the night before with Fats. And during the time fats was in action, if Ruthie wanted too, fats let her drive his car around, she was a blind 17 yr old. Ev's description of youth.''''
I was the waitress and I want to tell ya something about the chicken. Ed King the chef, he made very good fried chicken. Fats Loved it, never eaten chicken in his life so good, and he told Ed King and everyone about his chicken. Fats always wanted me to cook fried chicken after that, his favorite.

Raised in NY fried chicken before refrigeration fats always thought it was supposed to taste half rotten, here in IL at the star it was perfect Fats LOVED it. Back then then kept chicken till sold.

Fats ''he liked me on sight'', his first spoken words to me were, other than the ordering of food, and he didn't make it obvious to Ruthie something was going on....''he asked me if I would go out with him that night"?, and I guess he thought he'd drop Ruthie off and double back. I had to work till 11.

I said oh ''I couldn't tonight''. I'm not dressed. There was no place to go....there didn't have to be. But I told em I could tomorrow night, and he said ok and he'd see me when I got off of work.

The next night comes, he didn't come to pick me up, the Greek his friend came to pick me up. So as we drove back to town where fats was, the Greek had his eyes on me too so he parked in front of the theatre a couple blocks from where fats was and said, what could he and I do, would I go out with him? I said well I'm dated up with Fats tonight, so I refused. So he took me on then to where fats was. Fats was in front of the pool room standing outside on the sidewalk waiting. Next, the Greek and I both got out of the car. Next fats said honey would you like to go get something to eat? I said yeah, and went to one of the restaurants that was real close. So they said would ya like to have a steak? I said yes. The way it turned out they didn't order any food either of em. We were sitting in a Big booth, me on one side all by myself, the Greek and Fats directly across on the other side of the booth....oh they fired the questions at me just as fast as I could answer.
They ordered me a steak musta been 1/4'' thick and it covered a Big dinner platter, it covered it all over, like a sheet. So
Fats asked ''honey can I cut the steak for ya'', I said ok, and he did, into small pieces. These two sat and watched me take each bite from plate to mouth up and down, like dogs at a dinner table waiting for scraps to fall....I thought ''I'm into something BIG.'' So finally we got rid of the Greek
Now its midnight, no place to go, we went straight to a hotel in Carbondale and Old hotel ck'd in as man/wife, and you know the rest of that story''. So I had a date with him the next night, then the next and the next etc. So I saw him every night for two weeks.
Two weeks into their relationship, Fats made me quit my job, he wanted me to be wherever he was.

Fats got a phone call 11 pm @ Evening Star asking for Rudolph Wanderone, it was his family in NY city, they had sent a western union wire to this area, kinda a death message his sister was a sickly person, Rosalie stepsister a little older than fats was, had respiratory problems and surgery that was a must that could of cured or helped allot. It was a kill or cure type of surgery. They told fats she survived the surgery but not much more time to live. Rosie was his pride and joy.
Fats cried like a baby, out loud, just as loud as he could, like a kid, a two yr old at the movies, he also was weepy at movies....Julie another stepsister both last names were Graf.
Fats mom was married to a man named Graf, and My name before I was married to Pat was Graff.

Fats turned from the phone crying so hard he couldn't talk. He finally said my sister is dying in NY city. He said, Evelyn would you go to NY city with me? I said, oh well I'll have to go get permission from my mother since I'm only 22 yrs old.©
__________________
Bill Meacham
WBT
www.worldbilliardtour.com
no link...

Second part

Headin' to NY city/Rosalie

I threw some things in a bag and we drove as far as Indianapolis, which is about 300 miles. Stopped to sleep a little while. Got up next morning after just sleeping for a very short time, he called NY and his sister had sure enough passed away. We drove on into NY that day. We spent about two weeks there and of course we spent a couple days at his mothers home. Fats family didn't think anything about Evelyn sleeping at their home with fats even tho they were not married. Fats didn't invite me to go to the funeral, he was so broken up by everything. But I became acquainted with all his family, and then after a couple days drove about 90 miles to Philly. We never failed to stop in Philly whenever we went to NY. We had allot of friends in Philly, and philly is in NY city so....this trip took two weeks all together.

So we came back to DuQuoin and seeing each other day and night. By this time fats and the Greek, Greek didn't go to NY and he could play some pool himself, he played good by never enough to let it be known. Now they decided (fats/Greek) to not go to the Hot Springs and bath and relax and be on a health kick, instead they went to Chicago. So fats asked me ''would I go with them"? And by this time the Greek had started an affair with Irene, the girl I worked, and he asked her and she said sure I'll go. But I said Fats I couldn't go till I asked my mother. So it's eleven pm and I went to ask my mother (she was always asleep at that time if I could go to Chicago. She said NO, when you went to NY with Fats you had a good excuse, but I don't see you having any excuse and I don't want you to go ''quote'' mom. She walked outta the room and went back to bed I guess. Well fats said, you wanna get married? That was the way he proposed to me. I said, well if I go with you I'll have too. So this is Fri night 11 pm and fats stayed overnight and slept on the couch.
I sneaked outta bed real early to get a hairdo and got back before fats woke up. He got up. This was back in the years in IL, when you needed a blood test and a doctors signature of clean health before you could get and ok from to get married. But I knew everyone was going to Missouri, because there was no waiting time.
So I told fats and we went to Missouri. When we met, Rudolphs first nickname was Fats, then double smart fats ''when he pulled a good one'', and then he became triple smart, and on a bad day they would just call him fats .
So I'm driving to MO, about 60 some miles away, just across the river to Cape Girardeau. We passed a horse brook, and Fats could hear pool balls clicking. Up to ten miles it seemed. In NY city he'd just stop and listen for pool balls clicking and go there. So he said Evelyn, it's Sat afternoon now.
Its very crowded its a country town, and he says, I want to go in this pool room so drive around the block and pick me up. This was before we got married. And on the second floor of this bldg. was a justice of the peace. Fats said, I'll go up there and see what I can do about us getting married. So I drove around the block and when I got back to the meeting place fats said, ''evelyn park the car and come on up. I drove and drove and drove, it felt like I would never find a parking place. We went up and this mans office was JP's office, his name was Gus Schultz. That's a name you would never forget ya know . It was in an office, like a landing where the stairs met. We filled out a form, and told us to come back in twenty minutes and he'd marry us.©
III Priceless
So we went downstairs and I had and ice cream soda and fats had lunch at the time and we went back upstairs. And the justice of the peace didn't ask for a witness or anything. He just said a few words and a prayer, which was phony if ya ever heard one . And all the time he's saying this prayer, he's looking at fat's seam in his pocket to get the money ready. Justice of the peace didn't know who Fats was at this time. And Fats knew he was watchin' his pocket, ''as burglars lift from burglars'' ya know .
Anyway, the ceremony was over, and Fats ran down the stairs, about 1/2 way down, and I said something about, ''I always thought the bride got a kiss'' when they were first married. He said, I'm sorry honey. So I caught up with him and he gave me a kiss, so were almost downstairs, and he ran downstairs, and that was the beginning of our marriage. ''And I was ALWAYS just about that far behind'' Interviewer, me, Bill M. asked, where did he get all his energy from....

Evelyn said he got his energy from his father. His father/both parents came from Switzerland. And his father was a would be gambler. He gambled at cards, not horses, he liked wrestling, he was a strong man, and they bet on Sundays. In NYC all the farmer that came from that part of Switzerland and all the countries that were together there, they showed their strength, big muscular and would hold their breath, and let some strong big fool hit em with all their might, in the chest/stomach. Fats would say, ''they'd take a Sunday on someone''. Take your best shot, was the meaning. And they bet on this activity. And another thing he/dad liked....dads name was Rudolph Wanderone.
And dad always spelled the name without the E on the end Wanderon.
Rosalie, his sister added the E on the end, she was legally still Roaslie Graf.
Fats was with his father when doing this type of activity. Fats dad thought there was No body like fats, fats was a little bittie kid. Evelyn had a pic of em at 2-3 yrs old, she said he looked like a little urchin. Fats said during those days, there were always groups gathering on the streets, whether political or otherwise in NYC. So his dad didn't care about the gatherings or the speakings, but dad would hold fat's hand and get in just the right position in the crowd, and fats dad would get up right next to a woman he didn't like the looks of and ''dad liked women''....and he would tell fats, ''piss on her''.

LOL myself and Ev....back to story....

Fats was just a little bittie kid and he would piss on her leg, fats told me this....LOL. His dad, in those foreign countries, every young man had to do for a certain period of time, Military service to be half trained in case of war springing up. His dad liked military life. He was a mercenary/soldier of fortune, part of the time, before he even came to our country, and he liked that. He had experience of going to sea, as a sailor, a would be. Not sure if he hired on as help of some kind or what. Anywho he liked being a sailor, and fats liked the water too. Dad would take fats on these trips, on a freighter to Germany/Switzerland etc, France, two or three times. Lots of gambling on the boats and Feeding of Fats. and fats knew when it was time to eat, and they fed em often each day. When that time came to eat, fats always Ran to the deck chair to be fed quickly. Fats had a passion for food and he was as big as he could get as his mother always stuffed em, so did his dad. He was a pampered kid, but didn't get by with any foolishness. His dad was strict in a way, and I don't know what he had fats do as chores, but whatever it was it Had to be the way the old man said it would be.
So dad would hire on to these boats and would be gone two or three months.
Fats mom and dad had a divorce early on in life. Dad did not remarry and had an Italian girlfriend, and he lived on the other side of the Hudson thru the Holland tunnel, I think Hoboken, and lived with her always till the time of his death. Evelyn wanted to take a break here....will talk about dads passing later on.

So Evelyn wanted to show fat's mother our marriage license. It was a simple document from MO. She looked at it real good, turned it over, there was nothing on the other side, handed it back like this and waved it and said it was a phony, ''I as interviewer asked was it phony'', evelyn said No it wasn't. But there is a reason according to fats that she said that. Fats lived with a girl named Lucy for six years before he met me, from Bowling Green KY. Fats was about five years older than I.
He and lucy went somewhere in NYC, some arcade where they would make up phony headlines in newspapers, and they had one made up with Rudolph and Lucy so and so did something big. They took the article home to Fats mother and she was foreign and believed Anything fats told her. I asked Evelyn if they had ever any children, she said ''we never even had a pregnancy''. We did not have children and were not upset about it. Question' (Kids)....did you or fats love kids ....''fats and I liked somebody else's kids pretty much the same way. We never were around children, we didn't know what being around babies was like.

Pool room in DC, lived with Lucy. So when did you move to Dowell, I lived there all my life, that's where my parents were, and they were from this area.
First years of marriage, I went with him every time the car backed out of the driveway.
We went to NY, to FL to California, TX, every place, criss cross criss cross.
Dowell, house that we called home, was redone and they started on it in April and added a pool room. Fats at the time worked for a Equipment company out of Chicago, was not brunswick at home. Was a 9 footer. Cue stick, he had all kinds of cues they were made in Carmine IL. Fats had a cue for years and had three or four of em made during his lifetime Rambow was the maker.
Fats would NOT shoot a big game without his personal cue. Fats did his own tips, he was a perfectionist. He would find cue tips and players would trade em, it was a big deal back then.
He'd find two or three he liked, no telling where, and carried those in his pocket, and every once in awhile he'd spit on em. Put it too his tongue and just barely moisten it, and that just handling it with perspiration before he'd put it on a cue. Had one butt two shafts. He had many different cases. ©
Part IV
I had a great time with her. Ev broke her hip on the way to the hairdresser in 89, that and meds slowed her up, but not her wit. She invited me to stay overnight before I headed back to CO....She also had the frig stocked and had me cook for her, I cleaned up after and we called it a night. I do have pic of her from that time, tho don't know where but somewhere.

2-28-96 Evelyn Wanderone….Dowell IL Tape #4

Fats and Eve 1st time watched Jerry Lewis telethon, in Dowell on TV, fats cried like a child watching

Fats had no checking acct then, Evelyn did, she wrote a check, any amount, or fats might write the amt

$500 to send to Jerry Lewis and Fats carried the cancelled check with him for a long time

Fats Fathers death....dad was a drinker, eve liked to drink, fats didn’t, when we visited Ev and fats dad Drank together.

Dad worked in Garment district NYC, building engineer for two or three bldgs....dad and wife didn’t live together lunchtime to visit, good food Only lunch time at 5pm shut down

Fats didn’t like Ev to drink with dad cause dad drank the strongest stuff there was, brandy beer chaser

Scotch/water Ev….ten drinks in ten minutes and they had FUN so much

Fats had lunch with Ev/dad and would pay and leave them together, and Fats would leave and go about

His business and return 2-3 hours, Dad/Ev got bombed/loaded

Dad sent Ev to a hotel in a cab cause she was so loaded

Dad went to Jersey then, public transportation, dad had no car. Next day hotel in Philly, fats was good to me and made sure I got home to visit my family at least every month or two on the train

Before the days of flying, while on train 36 hr trip to Ev’s parent home. Ev traveled with a dog often on train, and private compartment. No dog this trip.

When Ev just arrived in S. IL at mom’s Fats called to tell his father was in Hospital very ill, and call immediately, died bowell obstruction, Ev thought their heavy drinking was the cause, and fats said to stay there as the train was a long ride, and Ev always kept those thoughts about the drinking to herself

Fats never drank smoke, then Ev sent me to get her mail etc.

Split up in 1985, was easy on her, ran its course. It ended he was just like me Ev said, she had fill of him and he became nasty mouthed, nothing pleased him, he was overworked, always tired, on the go and never had any rest. Only cranky at home, never in public, foul language in front of Ev’s mother etc

Loud mouthed, mean, and Ev was the same way if he started in etc, Ev tried to be equal to his match/tried to be. She said.

Fats was always crazy about women. Remarried a gal ½ his age, Ev said he wasn’t crazy about marrying Anyone.

S Security, Ev thinks he wasn’t legally married, because after his death her income from that went way up. Etc.


__________________

Ending

TN Fats died Ev sent flowers, Fats fluzzie called and fats musta died at 9 somethin’ in the morning, and then Ev wanted later to visit his grave and Ev asked the Fluzzie whats on his tombstone….long pause from the fluzzie, and Evelyn sarcastically said ‘’Pepperoni and Cheese’’ J. (this was during the time Tombstone Pizza was doing its firing squad national pizza commercials).

End of tape ©



It was difficult at the end of the interview when her meds kicked in, he was a special human being, especially away from the table. Would of loved to of been his neighbor during those years.

Enjoy...........BM

rhinobywilhite said:

Thanks. Bill, for this post.

We would very much like to hear more of the story or interview if you care to share it.

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That's the entire video, word for word.

jay helfert said:

Some really great stuff there Bill! Thanks so much for sharing that. You know that I was close with Fats for over 20 years. He always called me "The Little Man." If someone wanted him to sign a contract he might bring it to me to read it to him. That way he understood exactly what he was signing. If there was something it he didn't like he would make them change it too.

I will share some of my personal recollections of this amazing man later on here. He is the single most interesting person I've ever known and he could barely read or write! :thumbup2:

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Thx Jay....and guys. I did this interview with the intent of a movie.

From their beginning/first meeting to the end, and it has a good flow, especially...the END when Ev said her drinking/pounding em down with Fattys dad, probably caused his blockage/death. Having all the names of where she worked, etc had a nice flow to the interview. She even let me stay/rest in her other bedroom before I drove 1,000 back to CO. She put me together, we became friends, as many rounders do, once trust is in place.

jay helfert said:

I visited Fats there twice. The first time was a beauty. He told me to drive to Dowell and stop at the stop light (the only one in the whole town). There was a general store there with a pay phone outside. He told me to call him from there and he would give me directions how to get to his house. I did as he told me and he proceeded to give me the following directions, "Turn right there and go down that road, all the way until you get out of town. Just keep driving until you see the driveway with three Cadillac's; a green one, a white one and a gold one. That's my house!" he proudly exclaimed. And sure enough a mile or so from town I found his house. His directions were perfect!

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Yep, with a dog pound in the back, house on a corner next to a corn field. At the time the home was $50K.

I always thought it would of been a great place to have all the BCA memorabilia installed. Having the home as a Museum of all the BCA objects collected over the past century. Allot happened at the turn of the last century with pool.

JAM said:

Best read I have enjoyed in a long time! Great stuff here! :lovies::lovies:

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Thx, did Kieth read it? If so, I bet you two had a few good laughs. She was a hoot, and a great smile when she spoke.