Mali started making cues for A. E. Schmidt in 1965. Mali was one of the cues I was looking at when I decided to buy my A. E. Schmidt Titlist.
https://bluebookofpoolcuevalues.com/Pool_Cue_Values/Pool_Cue_Manufacturer.aspx?id=MALI_CUES
http://www.internationalcuemakers.com/?page=halloffame
*INTERNATIONAL CUEMAKERS HALL OF FAME*
For their outstanding contributions to the cuemaking art and industry, the following individuals have been elected into the International Cuemakers Hall of Fame:
Fred Mali Inducted 2014
Rarely does a man of Fred's educational background pursue cuemaking as a career. He was educated at Buckley, Groton, Yale and Harvard. He became the CEO of one of the oldest family run companies in New York, The Henry W.T. Mali & Co., Inc. (Mali Cloth) founded in 1826. Born in 1930 as Fredrick Johnston Mali, he was the fifth generation to be directly involved in the Billiard industry. He engineered many of the automated machines that manufactured the Mali brand of cues. His influence in the Billiard industry was wide spread as his company manufactured one of the most popular brands of table cloth and American made pool cues. He was also involved in the establishing of the Billiard Congress of America.
Fred first started manufacturing a line of cues for AE Schmidt Company in 1965 and named the cue manufacturing plant Cuesport. Shortly after this he started manufacturing his own line of cues under the Mali name. The Mali brand of cues never sought to enter the high end cue market, but always sought to provide quality cues in the player's price range. They continued manufacturing the cues in the United States until 2001 when they closed the factory. The Mali brand name continued on with imported cues. Fred passed away in 2007 and his influence on our industry still continues today.