He was one of my dear friends in the pool world and one of our greatest hustler/players from the late 60's until the 80's, when he opened Hawaiian Brians poolroom in Honolulu.
The first time I ever went to Hawaii, Brian had someone pick me up at the airport and take me to one of the nice Waikiki Beach hotels. I stayed there a few days and when I went to check out I was informed the bill had been taken care of (Brian!).
Brian criss-crossed this country in the 70's taking on anyone and everyone, kicking ass everywhere he went. You would be hard pressed to find anyone who got the best of Brian. I can still see him, sunglasses atop his head, ball cap on backwards, his eyes narrow slits, his face tight with concentration and that effortless little stroke of his. Nothing fancy about his game, just make the ball and move on to the next one. He rarely had to make any spectacular shots, because he stayed in line forever! Pretty soon "Hawaiian Brian" was a well known name in the pool world. And a feared one at that!
Brian was all business on the pool table. No fun and games or trash talking of any kind. When the game was over he would once again be his friendly, jovial self, lamenting with you in your loss and recounting all the bad rolls you got. :wink:
Short in stature, big in heart is how I would describe him.
After he was well set financially, thanks to his smart investments, Brian introduced us to a young Hawaiian kid named Rodney, who he took across the country on a similar journey to the one he had made two decades before. Same trip, same results. All the money went back to Hawaii and the pool world learned a new name to be wary of.
I feel so fortunate to have known men and legendary players like Brian. They broke the mold when they made him.