Re The Nagy story

alphadog

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
How many of you read the article and wondered if the reporter ever met Gene? Couple of things in there just seemed somewhat "urban myth" like. One example , lowering the head and running into the wall. How many others have been credited with this antic? Maybe I am too sceptical?
 

sonny_burnett

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Jay can back this up. Mountain's Pool Room, Lincolnton, NC. Oddly enough the owner went by the name of Mountain. He was a target, on every road book way back then. Possible score. His fame was his head. He would head butt anyone or anything for the cheese. He would run head first into the wall. It was a concrete block building with no windows right beside the court house. I'm talking a full run from the far wall. He would dog a shot and grab a ball in each hand and smash himself in the head. I doubt this is related but it was true. I'm 25 minutes from there. My guess is the buliding is gone.

Edit: It's now Mullinax Billiards. The link shows the original room.

https://g.co/kgs/8dX3Bz
 
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dearnold

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
How many of you read the article and wondered if the reporter ever met Gene? Couple of things in there just seemed somewhat "urban myth" like. One example , lowering the head and running into the wall. How many others have been credited with this antic? Maybe I am too sceptical?

The author writes the story with direct quotes from Gene like they are talking to each other. I'm not familiar with this news paper, but it would either be gross negligence or more like fraud if the reporter had never met or talked with Gene
 

Black-Balled

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The author writes the story with direct quotes from Gene like they are talking to each other. I'm not familiar with this news paper, but it would either be gross negligence or more like fraud if the reporter had never met or talked with Gene

Fake news: writing whatever the fukkell we want since 2400 B.C.
 

lfigueroa

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
How many of you read the article and wondered if the reporter ever met Gene? Couple of things in there just seemed somewhat "urban myth" like. One example , lowering the head and running into the wall. How many others have been credited with this antic? Maybe I am too sceptical?


I would not go there, if I were you.

Mike Geffner is a longtime journalist who's published thousands of stories in USA Today, Details Magazine, The Sporting News, Cigar Aficionado, Texas Monthly, The Village Voice, and way more. He’s interviewed people from former President Nixon to Kareem Abdul Jabbar to Forest Whitaker to Derek Jeter. His writing has been acknowledged several times by the annual anthology, The Best American Sports Writing and he was named Best Sportswriter in NYC by New York Press in 1990 and awarded 1st Place for Profile Writing by The Society of Professional Journalists (NJ) in 2000.

Lou Figueroa
 

Dan White

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I would not go there, if I were you.

Mike Geffner is a longtime journalist who's published thousands of stories in USA Today, Details Magazine, The Sporting News, Cigar Aficionado, Texas Monthly, The Village Voice, and way more. He’s interviewed people from former President Nixon to Kareem Abdul Jabbar to Forest Whitaker to Derek Jeter. His writing has been acknowledged several times by the annual anthology, The Best American Sports Writing and he was named Best Sportswriter in NYC by New York Press in 1990 and awarded 1st Place for Profile Writing by The Society of Professional Journalists (NJ) in 2000.

Lou Figueroa

Seems like there's a Chuck Norris joke in there somewhere. Where's that "Chuck Norris" guy from the forum when you need him? :smile:
 

dearnold

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I would not go there, if I were you.

Mike Geffner is a longtime journalist who's published thousands of stories in USA Today, Details Magazine, The Sporting News, Cigar Aficionado, Texas Monthly, The Village Voice, and way more. He’s interviewed people from former President Nixon to Kareem Abdul Jabbar to Forest Whitaker to Derek Jeter. His writing has been acknowledged several times by the annual anthology, The Best American Sports Writing and he was named Best Sportswriter in NYC by New York Press in 1990 and awarded 1st Place for Profile Writing by The Society of Professional Journalists (NJ) in 2000.

Lou Figueroa

Damn, now I AM worried I'll get sued for posting that thing!!
 

alphadog

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I would not go there, if I were you.

Mike Geffner is a longtime journalist who's published thousands of stories in USA Today, Details Magazine, The Sporting News, Cigar Aficionado, Texas Monthly, The Village Voice, and way more. He’s interviewed people from former President Nixon to Kareem Abdul Jabbar to Forest Whitaker to Derek Jeter. His writing has been acknowledged several times by the annual anthology, The Best American Sports Writing and he was named Best Sportswriter in NYC by New York Press in 1990 and awarded 1st Place for Profile Writing by The Society of Professional Journalists (NJ) in 2000.

Lou Figueroa

Where did I go ?
 

marek

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
whats your point

I think Lou's point is that you were clearly implying that the reporter made the whole story up by which you basically said the reporter was likely a liar. Nothing more, nothing less :rolleyes: But feel free to ask forum members again about your own statements, I am sure people will help you with the lack of your text comprehending skills :thumbup:
 
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PhilosopherKing

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Integrity aside, journalism is competitive. Someone with those credentials would have been torn to pieces by now if he was fudging stuff.
 

lfigueroa

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
whats your point


libel |ˈlībəl|
noun
1 Law a published false statement that is damaging to a person's reputation; a written defamation.
• the action or crime of publishing a false statement about a person.
• a false and malicious statement about a person.
• a thing or circumstance that brings undeserved discredit on a person by misrepresentation.

You clearly suggested a well-respected journalist lied about interviewing Nagy, or at a minimum that he has fabricated events purportedly told to him by Nagy. Journalists tend to take these kinds of accusations... personally. My point was to suggest you might not want to do that.

Lou Figueroa
 
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FranCrimi

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Mike Geffner and Gene Nagy knew each other pretty well, and indeed the interview was done face-to-face. Mike was a regular in NYC pool rooms for decades and played shortstop to semi pro level pool. Mike's writing is well known in the sports world and his body of work is well respected. You can take what he writes about Gene to be the truth.

Mike also organized the documentation and led the way for Cisero Murphy's induction into the BCA Hall of Fame.
 

alphadog

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Mike Geffner and Gene Nagy knew each other pretty well, and indeed the interview was done face-to-face. Mike was a regular in NYC pool rooms for decades and played shortstop to semi pro level pool. Mike's writing is well known in the sports world and his body of work is well respected. You can take what he writes about Gene to be the truth.

Mike also organized the documentation and led the way for Cisero Murphy's induction into the BCA Hall of Fame.

Fran thanks for responding. I know you knew or you wouldnt respond. I know neither individual and am only aware of Nagy from the az. I had never heard ref to pill popping in the past.
I appoligise to any who were offended,my intent was only bringing up similarities between this story and others.
 
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easy-e

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
libel |ˈlībəl|
noun
1 Law a published false statement that is damaging to a person's reputation; a written defamation.
• the action or crime of publishing a false statement about a person.
• a false and malicious statement about a person.
• a thing or circumstance that brings undeserved discredit on a person by misrepresentation.

You clearly suggested a well-respected journalist lied about interviewing Nagy, or at a minimum that he has fabricated events purportedly told to him by Nagy. Journalists tend to take these kinds of accusations... personally. My point was to suggest you might not want to do that.

Lou Figueroa

I think you’re over reacting. He asked if anyone got the same impression as he did. Never accused anyone of anything. But you’re smarter than I am, so I’ll just shut up now.
 

jimmyg

Mook! What's a Mook?
Silver Member
Originally Posted by alphadog View Post
How many of you read the article and wondered if the reporter ever met Gene?

I think you’re over reacting. He asked if anyone got the same impression as he did. Never accused anyone of anything. But you’re smarter than I am, so I’ll just shut up now.

Exactly. Questioning the authenticity, validity, or accuracy of an item and/or another's statements or body of written work is not malicious nor defamation, it is conversation and debate, perhaps in very poor taste, especially without doing his own research into the author's history and credibility, but certainly not libel. Accusing the original poster of libel is still an absurd remark, likely made in personal defense of the author.

One can even make defamatory and malicious statement against another simply by using the term "allegedly". The media uses this tactic all too often.
 
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lfigueroa

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Exactly. Questioning the authenticity, validity, or accuracy of an item and/or another's statements or body of written work is not malicious nor defamation, it is conversation and debate, perhaps in very poor taste, especially without doing his own research into the author, but certainly not libel. Accusing the original poster of libel is still an absurd remark, likely made in personal defense of the author.

One can even make defamatory and malicious statement against another simply by using the term "allegedly". The media uses this tactic all too often.


How many of you read the article and wondered if the reporter ever met Gene? Couple of things in there just seemed somewhat "urban myth" like.


The way the article is written, Greffen is clearly saying he met with Nagy and relating what he was told. There is no basis, other than to be malicious and defame, to suggest the author conjured up what he represents as fact. Given that Greffen is a well-respected sports journalist makes the OP’s question ludicrous and potentially libelous, IMO. And that’s why I suggested “not going there” in the first place. If it were me I’d post a full throated apology to anything anyone could ever assume or infer from what you’re portraying as innocent conjecture. But that’s just me :)

Lou Figueroa
 

Paul Schofield

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I met him once. He came to Erie, traveling with Gary Pinkowski (Binghamton NY) sometime in the early 70s. He missed a ball in a game of straight-pool. He went berserk. He broke down his 56" Balabushka and threw it onto his road partner's lap. He asked for directions to the bus station. It was 6 blocks away. He walked to it, climbed onto a bus, and went straight back to NY.

The best part of this story was Gary Pinkowski. He and Gene checked into a Holiday Inn 8 blocks away. they paid for one night. Gary stuck around for a few days working the local poolroom and trying to talk me into going to the mid-west with him. I was sitting in his room with him and the phone rings. It was the front desk and they wanted paid for the last few nights. Gary keeps puting them off and tells me he is going to slip out of there and handle this the way he handles other bills he does not care to pay. When the bill shows up in the mail, he has a big red ink stamp. It says "DECEASED Return To Sender".
 
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