Ever Heard of Magnolia Red? (Old-Time Hustler)

[RabbiHippie]

I'm looking for any information about an old time hustler whose nickname was "Magnolia Red." Real name: J. Frank or J. F. Richardson. Probably a road player based out of Texas around 1939.

He's mentioned in this list of hustler nicknames but I haven't found anything else about him online.



There might be something about him in Freddy the Beard's book about hustlers who weren't so well known. I don't have a copy to check. Maybe someone who owns the book can check and see.

Anybody know anything about him?

 

[bbb]

I'm looking for any information about an old time hustler whose nickname was "Magnolia Red." Real name: J. Frank or J. F. Richardson. Probably a road player based out of Texas around 1939.

He's mentioned in this list of hustler nicknames but I haven't found anything else about him online.



There might be something about him in Freddy the Beard's book about hustlers who weren't so well known. I don't have a copy to check. Maybe someone who owns the book can check and see.

Anybody know anything about him?

what a list of nicknames...
sorry cant help with any info

 

[Nick8400]

I didn’t see him in Freddy’s book.

 

[RabbiHippie]

I didn’t see him in Freddy’s book.

Thanks for checking!

 

[Texdance]

I had the good fortune to watch Magnolia Red, aka J.R. Richardson, play one-pocket at least once a week for about a year. He was either in his retirement years or close to that age, I think between 60 and 66 based on being a contemporary of UJ Puckett who died in 1992 at 81. But he could still play a mean game of one-pocket. He avoided the shoot-for-the-hero-shot game, as played by Ronnie Allen, and played the old style ‘leave-‘em-in-the-stack’ game. He generally played an older gent (but much younger than himself) who owned a used car lot and always had free time and a wad of cash. Red hated to lose - so mostly in his senior years he matched up well, as best I could tell walked away with $100 on a good afternoon, and $200 sometimes. Generally, Red didn't lose. One pocket was his game, and a person could learn a lot, but only by watching, because Red kept his thoughts to himself.

Red had a tiny plastic bottle that originally contained Johnson's Baby Oil. It was pink, and some but not all of the logo had worn off. Somehow he managed to fill it with vodka, and would tilt his head back and squirt a stream of the fiery liquid down his open throat, then make a distinctive sound: "Ack! Ack! Ack" in his loud voice, heard all through the Golden Nugget on Seventh Street in Fort Worth, sometime around 1970-72. He would drink a big swig, then drew his hands up into his armpits and wave his folded arms like they were chicken wings and he was about to take flight.

Red was a fine, happy guy, when he was winning, and he let all and sundry share his enjoyment. Though long-time friends, and both regulars at the Nugget for a year or so, he and my avatar photo Utley J. Puckett kept a bit of distance between them. Later, in a network TV segment, Magnolia Red can be seen in the background, sitting on a bar stool, looking odd, facing the action as Puckett was giving the razz to the famous TV correspondent who was trying to interview him. This was in a newer pool hall that had set up an Utley Puckett Room for those who wanted some quiet while playing. Puckett was his usual self, telling the truth in a way that sounded like lies, and vice versa, keeping the rubes entertained even as he ran a careful plan to pick their pockets dry. He was showing off on the pool table to a guy who obviously hadn’t played twice in his life. Puckett kept up his patter, talking about claiming to be the champion of Arkansas or wherever happened to be nearby, and of his various hustles. At the table the network guy tried but failed to pocket a ball, then Puckett knocked in the nine accidentally, a pure luck shot with balls caroming every which way. Of course, when the nine fell for the win, U.J. claimed that was exactly the way he played it. Why not?

This is my best story about J. R. Richardson, aka Magnolia Red, aka just Red. There was this little seven foot Brunswick table in the Golden Nugget for awhile, and somehow the Hispanic kid's backer set up a game with Red - eight ball, short set, league rules. When I got there guys were saying there was $2500 in the doctor's bag sitting on a table, under guard. That was a huge sum in the early 70s, almost enough to buy a new Ford or Chevy. Red had his ubiquitous pink bottle of vodka, and was guzzling streams of it to no end, whacking his wings and sounding off "Ack! Ack! Ack! " to be heard in the next county. Now, it was obvious that Red had played 8-ball on bar tables all over, but this was different - the balls were all the same size, the felt was fairly new, the 7’ table was level, and had good cushions and fairly wide drop pockets – a regular family room fun table from Brunswick, set up so new and unskilled players could make balls easier, rather than something set up for a tournament, or poorly maintained as long as quarters kept filling a slot. No other hall around town had this particular model of 7’ Brunswick table.

So they matched up. I don’t recall what kind of spot Red got, must have been games on the wire – I feel sure he would not have played this guy even, because the guy was just too good. As the games went on Red was just barely holding his own, but knocking back shots from his little pink bottle time after time, and gradually stumbling around more. I thought something was funny, because Red’s “Ack! Ack!” vodka-swizzling and wing-waving act was a bit different that night. I thought it was just nerves from the big stack of cash involved. But suddenly it’s Red on the hill, not the hotshot young man. During the last game, as Red slowly and carefully ran out for the win, the kid went crazy. He jumped up and demanded that his backer pay him ‘his’ money for playing, right this minute! Losing had set him off on a rampage of anger.

Despite having drunk all that vodka, Red was dead serious and stone cold sober while collecting his winnings. Now, it does not take Sherlock Holmes to know Red set the kid and his backer up, getting them to let their guard down because he was a foolish old drunk. What was in Red’s Johnson’s Baby Oil bottle that particular night? I’d bet $2500 it wasn’t vodka, or anything else more intoxicating than tap water.

I'll see if I can round up a photo of Red, and a link to that TV interview with Puckett.

 

[RabbiHippie]

Wow! I couldn't have hoped for a better answer than the one you gave, @Texdance. Your post is one of the best I've ever seen on this forum. I appreciate the effort you put into it.

What prompted me to ask for info on Magnolia Red is a new article about the origins of One Pocket that I'm writing that will be available soon on OnePocket.org.

Magnolia Red isn't a major part of the story but I did find an old interview with him where he talks about Minnesota Fats and Hayden Lingo. I planned on quoting Magnolia Red in the article but had never heard of him before and felt I should learn more about him.

You've contributed greatly to the memory of an old-time Hustler whom you knew personally. Thanks!

 

[Banger]

I suspect this is the "60 minutes" interview, by Harry Reasoner, with UJ Pucket. Not sure which one is Magnolia Red, though.

And...part 2

 

[RabbiHippie]

So they matched up. I don’t recall what kind of spot Red got, must have been games on the wire – I feel sure he would not have played this guy even, because the guy was just too good. As the games went on Red was just barely holding his own, but knocking back shots from his little pink bottle time after time, and gradually stumbling around more. I thought something was funny, because Red’s “Ack! Ack!” vodka-swizzling and wing-waving act was a bit different that night. I thought it was just nerves from the big stack of cash involved. But suddenly it’s Red on the hill, not the hotshot young man. During the last game, as Red slowly and carefully ran out for the win, the kid went crazy. He jumped up and demanded that his backer pay him ‘his’ money for playing, right this minute! Losing had set him off on a rampage of anger.

Despite having drunk all that vodka, Red was dead serious and stone cold sober while collecting his winnings. Now, it does not take Sherlock Holmes to know Red set the kid and his backer up, getting them to let their guard down because he was a foolish old drunk. What was in Red’s Johnson’s Baby Oil bottle that particular night? I’d bet $2500 it wasn’t vodka, or anything else more intoxicating than tap water.

Wait a minute ... the kid lost to Magnolia Red so the kid threw a tantrum demanding his backer pay him anyway?

If I'm reading that right, I can only imagine the kid was so certain he had a lock that he couldn't conceive of losing--in his mind, the money was already his. Sounds like an epic meltdown.

Reminds me of this story about Clem Metz that cuemaker Sherm Adamson told on OnePocket.org ...

[Clem] also verified the fact that he'd on occasion, taken back money he'd lost. He told me of a time when he played a guy who owned a poolroom that was a well known sucker. He gave him the wild 8 when he could probably have spotted him the 5 6 7 & 8 and the breaks. Clem was on short money and had bet $500 which was all he had on the first set. They played a race to 7 which was his mistake. The guy made the 8 or 9 5 times and rode the money balls a couple of more times and shit them in and actually beat Clem 7-0. Clem told me that he went out to his car and got his pistol and went back in. He told the guy to give him not only his $500 back but also the $500 the sucker had put up. He said he explained to the guy that he may think he's getting robbed but it wasn't really the way it seemed.

He said "You had no chance to beat me at that game, but you just got lucky. I'm only taking what I feel should have been mine!" He actually believed he was in the right in that spot! lol RIP Clem!

 

[thenuke]

TexDance, Do I know you ? I got married in 1972, moved to Ft Worth. Golden Nugget was where I played pool for the next 3 - 4 years.

Knew Magnolia Red personally, along with Theo, Olin Green, Carlos Trujillo and a host of other old timers. Red was a very colorful dresser and

always wore a gold chain around his neck - a long one. Forget what was on the chain. Red when he was hustling was like Foster Brooks.

Was a very good drunk(sic) pool player. Puckett told me of going on the road with Red's brother, who actually was a very good pool

player. Red was a decent bar table hustler. Gary Sicorro owned the Golden Nugget at the time. One bar table up front, walk through

a door beside the bar into the back room and there was about 3 or 4 4x8s, 2 4 1/2x9s and one snooker table. Great memories from

that room. When Jack Weems (Sarge) retired from the Air Force, Puckett told me to leave that man alone on the bar table.

Sarge was originally from Knoxville and was a champion on a bar table. He also has(had) a brother in Knoxville who was supposed

to play pretty good. I learned how to play one pocket from those old gentlemen, WHICH at the time really was considered an old

man's game.

One thing I forgot about Magnolia was his 1965 red Mustang convertible.

 

[jay helfert]

Wait a minute ... the kid lost to Magnolia Red so the kid threw a tantrum demanding his backer pay him anyway?

If I'm reading that right, I can only imagine the kid was so certain he had a lock that he couldn't conceive of losing--in his mind, the money was already his. Sounds like an epic meltdown.

Reminds me of this story about Clem Metz that cuemaker Sherm Adamson told on OnePocket.org ...

And Clem seemed like such a nice guy when I first met him at Mergards in Cincy . Actually when I first ran into Clem he was fresh off a stint in the slammer for taking a girl across state lines for nefarious purposes (prostitution). His reputation had been made, both as a great One Pocket player and a notorious outlaw. I spent a lot of time in Mergards over the next few months and kept a close eye on Clem, but always from a distance. I know he sized me up for a mark too, but saw me betting nickels and dimes and lost interest in hustling me.

 

[RabbiHippie]

And Clem seemed like such a nice guy when I first met him at Mergards in Cincy . Actually when I first ran into Clem he was fresh off a stint in the slammer for taking a girl across state lines for nefarious purposes (prostitution). His reputation had been made, both as a great One Pocket player and a notorious outlaw. I spent a lot of time in Mergards over the next few months and kept a close eye on Clem, but always from a distance. I know he sized me up for a mark too, but saw me betting nickels and dimes and lost interest in hustling me.

I had a wonderful talk with Denny Glenn, the guy with the best cue collection in the world, on the phone recently. He and Clem Metz grew up together in the Cincinnati area and were lifelong friends.

Denny was very generous with his time and the story of how he acquired one of Hayden Lingo's cues is referenced in my series of articles on the history of One Pocket. Denny acquired Lingo's Martin cue through Clem Metz who had gotten it from Lingo himself.

There will be some quotes from Magnolia Red on Lingo in the article as well.

I'm glad that this thread has brought Magnolia Red to people's attention. Sounds like he was a great player from the old days who might otherwise remained obscure.

 

[RabbiHippie]

Here's a question for @Texdance or @thenuke ...

Was Magnolia Red's real name J. R. or J. F. Richardson? My source gives his middle name as "Frank" and also refers to him as J. Frank Richardson. No mention of what his first name might have been.

I just assumed that J. R. was a typo and his initials were really J. F. but then @Texdance who knew him personally also called him J. R. Richardson.

Just looking to clarify that point for the record.

 

[Texdance]

I can't clarify JR vs JF - it was about fifty years ago.
To the young lady who moved to FW and played at the Nugget starting in '82 - I can't believe that I can't recall you. I was skinny, had very thing hair, and was balding. About the 72-75 era there were a couple of seasons when the Nugget had a NCA pool league, and I was on the Nugget team. If I can recall

Wait a minute ... the kid lost to Magnolia Red so the kid threw a tantrum demanding his backer pay him anyway?

If I'm reading that right, I can only imagine the kid was so certain he had a lock that he couldn't conceive of losing--in his mind, the money was already his. Sounds like an epic meltdown.

Reminds me of this story about Clem Metz that cuemaker Sherm Adamson told on OnePocket.org ...

I'm having the darndest time remembering names from that period. The 'kid' was a very large Hispanic man, seemed always angry, and he was just about the best in town - only Frank Thompson could play even with him as best I remember. He won the individual BCA 8-Ball title the year it was held at a hotel in downtown Fort Worth, beating some very good players from all across the country. The record used to be on their website.

Anyway, he had this "outfit" that was crazy. It was tiger stripes in black against a green background, a shirt and pants both in the same fabric. I think he loved that outfit because he wore it a lot. Once in BCA league play I beat him - I broke, made a ball or two, left him snookered, he went for the shot, and when he missed he had left me an easy out. At the time I was a three-and-out player - if I made three in a row I was out of gas already. Ralph was steaming that a player of my lowly ability had beat him at league 8-ball. Fat Ralph, was his street name, maybe Mendoza was his last name, I don't remember. He and his backer came into my "home" bar once trying to hustle. There were some guys there who had enough money to be worth hustling - one was the conductor of the Fort Worth Symphonic Orchestra - but the regulars were friends and acquaintances, guys who played $5 8-ball and thought winning or losing twenty dollars in an evening wasn't gambling, it was just the cost of the night's entertainment. I told one of them that I knew Ralph was a very good pool player. Ralph won five or ten bucks, then got mad at me on his way out because he had been "outed." In fact, his odd stroke and his perfect position play outed him as much as anything I might have said. But anyway I just told him this is my bar, these are my friends, try somewhere else.

So yes, Ralph went into a rage demanding his money for playing even before the payoff to Red was completed. To the backer's credit he wasn't bothered by the outburst, I think he had seen that behavior from Ralph before. In general it was a sure thing to back Ralph, just not this time.

 

[Texdance]

TexDance, Do I know you ? I got married in 1972, moved to Ft Worth. Golden Nugget was where I played pool for the next 3 - 4 years.

Knew Magnolia Red personally, along with Theo, Olin Green, Carlos Trujillo and a host of other old timers. Red was a very colorful dresser and

always wore a gold chain around his neck - a long one. Forget what was on the chain. Red when he was hustling was like Foster Brooks.

Was a very good drunk(sic) pool player. Puckett told me of going on the road with Red's brother, who actually was a very good pool

player. Red was a decent bar table hustler. Gary Sicorro owned the Golden Nugget at the time. One bar table up front, walk through

a door beside the bar into the back room and there was about 3 or 4 4x8s, 2 4 1/2x9s and one snooker table. Great memories from

that room. When Jack Weems (Sarge) retired from the Air Force, Puckett told me to leave that man alone on the bar table.

Sarge was originally from Knoxville and was a champion on a bar table. He also has(had) a brother in Knoxville who was supposed

to play pretty good. I learned how to play one pocket from those old gentlemen, WHICH at the time really was considered an old

man's game.

One thing I forgot about Magnolia was his 1965 red Mustang convertible.

Hello thenuke, you avatar is prettier than mine... hmmm. I should recall you. I was in the Golden Nugget a lot, and I knew Gary Cecora and his beautiful wife Carol well. He was short and fat and talked like a big mover and shaker, but really he sole appliances at a suburban Montgomery wards and ran the pool hall his dad gave him in the evenings. Carol was a greatbeauty, tall, with a figure like Linda from Wondder Woman. Later she divorced Gary and married some soon-to-be-has-been baseball pitcher, of which the local team had plenty. I helped Gary run the place just one night, and that is a story in itself. Theo, Olin Green, Carlos Trujillo - all names I can put a face to. Olin Green was Red's main opponent playing one pocket. I think they had some regular Saturday afternoon game set up. Olin owned either a used car lot or a wrecker/car parts lot, I forget. He always carried a wad of cash in a rubber band, like so many did back in that era. Carlos Trujillo was probably my favorite of all the characters. Carlos worked at the General Motors plant and made very good money there. He had a Balabushka cue, genuine as far as I could tell - and he was the kind of guy who would search out and pay for a genuine Bushka. He had an odd bridge where he let his forefinger hang lazily over the shaft instead of trying to make the tip of his forefinger meet his thumb. It looked so unusual. He was a student of one-pocket, always ready for a $20 game or a $100 set. I can't recall ever seeing him lose to anyone, so I know he was good at matching up. I made him play me one pocket, a single game for five bucks. Carlos was embarrassed to take my money, there being such a difference in our skill levels, but I wanted to play for money with him, if only one game. He was a stand-up guy, for sure.

Theo - didn't he have a brother? I remember a tall guy called The Greek. He helped me win a bar tournament one time by giving me words of encouragement when I was in funk in the finals. I needed one win out of two games in the final, and had lost the first game. The Greek calmly told me he thought I was the better player, that he was sure I could beat the guy, to not worry just play pool. Even after being calmed down I had to pull off a long bank 'hero shot' on the 8 to win, but the 8 fell where I called it, and win I did. The Greek sometimes tried to be creepy in a 'Greek' sort of way, but I always liked him. He could play a mean game of bumper pool - I never saw anyone better at that game.

I wish I could recall the names of a couple of guys on the Nugget's BCA league team. One I went to high school with, the other worked delivering packages for UPS. He had thick glasses, and always was pushing them back up when they slid downward on his nose. Fast forward twenty-something years and I was re-acquainted with him at a Plano pool hall. He kept raising his hand and finger to mimic pushing his glasses back up - but he had that eye surgery some years before, and no longer wore glasses. He had the remnang=ts of a strong habit. He was a great player too, played in the Derby City just before Covid shut it down and won one, lost two matches. He was playing the young Texas who had recently won DCC 1P for $200 or so a game, but he pulled up when he saw which way the game was headed. Youth has its advantages.

Ah, thenuke, you've given me a chance to re-imagine some wonderful memories when I was a railbird around some genuine classic men of a certain era of pool, before cell phones and the internet let everyone know in seconds who you were, how good you played, and where you had just been. Puckett never could get away with his con of wearing old oil field clothes and pretending to be just another roughneck from the oil patch, losing like a chump one night but still cheerful, and inviting everyone back for the next night, because he really was the Champion of Arkansas (or wherever) and he was gonna show them, yes sirree. The second night he would clean out every penny to be had at that bar, and even so the rubes were all sorry to see him leave because he gave them their money's worth of entertainment.

If anyone remembers the good player, really nice guy, who worked for UPS in the 70s, then later had an insurance agency in Weatherford TX, who played good enough to enter the DCC in the years just before it shut down for covid in 2020, and was a genuine regional power player in Texas pool for some years, especially in 1p, please let me know. He would be around 70 today, give or take a few years.

 

[alphadog]

The nuke had a insurance agency in Weatherford Tx.

 

[Texdance]

Hello thenuke, you avatar is prettier than mine... hmmm. I should recall you. I was in the Golden Nugget a lot, and I knew Gary Cecora and his beautiful wife Carol well. He was short and fat and talked like a big mover and shaker, but really he sole appliances at a suburban Montgomery wards and ran the pool hall his dad gave him in the evenings. Carol was a greatbeauty, tall, with a figure like Linda from Wondder Woman. Later she divorced Gary and married some soon-to-be-has-been baseball pitcher, of which the local team had plenty. I helped Gary run the place just one night, and that is a story in itself. Theo, Olin Green, Carlos Trujillo - all names I can put a face to. Olin Green was Red's main opponent playing one pocket. I think they had some regular Saturday afternoon game set up. Olin owned either a used car lot or a wrecker/car parts lot, I forget. He always carried a wad of cash in a rubber band, like so many did back in that era. Carlos Trujillo was probably my favorite of all the characters. Carlos worked at the General Motors plant and made very good money there. He had a Balabushka cue, genuine as far as I could tell - and he was the kind of guy who would search out and pay for a genuine Bushka. He had an odd bridge where he let his forefinger hang lazily over the shaft instead of trying to make the tip of his forefinger meet his thumb. It looked so unusual. He was a student of one-pocket, always ready for a $20 game or a $100 set. I can't recall ever seeing him lose to anyone, so I know he was good at matching up. I made him play me one pocket, a single game for five bucks. Carlos was embarrassed to take my money, there being such a difference in our skill levels, but I wanted to play for money with him, if only one game. He was a stand-up guy, for sure.

Theo - didn't he have a brother? I remember a tall guy called The Greek. He helped me win a bar tournament one time by giving me words of encouragement when I was in funk in the finals. I needed one win out of two games in the final, and had lost the first game. The Greek calmly told me he thought I was the better player, that he was sure I could beat the guy, to not worry just play pool. Even after being calmed down I had to pull off a long bank 'hero shot' on the 8 to win, but the 8 fell where I called it, and win I did. The Greek sometimes tried to be creepy in a 'Greek' sort of way, but I always liked him. He could play a mean game of bumper pool - I never saw anyone better at that game.

I wish I could recall the names of a couple of guys on the Nugget's BCA league team. One I went to high school with, the other worked delivering packages for UPS. He had thick glasses, and always was pushing them back up when they slid downward on his nose. Fast forward twenty-something years and I was re-acquainted with him at a Plano pool hall. He kept raising his hand and finger to mimic pushing his glasses back up - but he had that eye surgery some years before, and no longer wore glasses. He had the remnang=ts of a strong habit. He was a great player too, played in the Derby City just before Covid shut it down and won one, lost two matches. He was playing the young Texas who had recently won DCC 1P for $200 or so a game, but he pulled up when he saw which way the game was headed. Youth has its advantages.

Ah, thenuke, you've given me a chance to re-imagine some wonderful memories when I was a railbird around some genuine classic men of a certain era of pool, before cell phones and the internet let everyone know in seconds who you were, how good you played, and where you had just been. Puckett never could get away with his con of wearing old oil field clothes and pretending to be just another roughneck from the oil patch, losing like a chump one night but still cheerful, and inviting everyone back for the next night, because he really was the Champion of Arkansas (or wherever) and he was gonna show them, yes sirree. The second night he would clean out every penny to be had at that bar, and even so the rubes were all sorry to see him leave because he gave them their money's worth of entertainment.

If anyone remembers the good player, really nice guy, who worked for UPS in the 70s, then later had an insurance agency in Weatherford TX, who played good enough to enter the DCC in the years just before it shut down for covid in 2020, and was a genuine regional power player in Texas pool for some years, especially in 1p, please let me know. He would be around 70 today, give or take a few years.

 

[Texdance]

I can't clarify JR vs JF - it was about fifty years ago.
To the young lady who moved to FW and played at the Nugget starting in '82 - I can't believe that I can't recall you. I was skinny, had very thing hair, and was balding. About the 72-75 era there were a couple of seasons when the Nugget was a stop in a BCA pool league, and I was on the Nugget team. If I can recall more... oops, it's not a lady, its thenuke! We were teammates on the Golden Nugget league team for a couple of seasons. He was the best player on our team, and we also had Sparky Webb for awhile, and two Roberts. Sparky was in Wichita Falls in early 1987-77 IIRC, and UJ Puckett showed up to play a ring game there. Sparky claimed to be better than UJ, and he probably was at the time. There was a tournament at a big combination entertainment center that had like 64? maybe 128? bowling lanes, lots of electronic games - various versions of Pacman were huge then. There were a few pool tables. The house bragged that "There's a millon dollars worth of steel in the roof alone" but the place did not last very long. They held that one 9-ball tournament - I can't even remember if it was played according to the old but good push-out rules. I also can't remember who won, but I think UJ Puckett was in the thick of it near the end. I won twice and lost twice, the second loss to The Greek from the Golden Nugget years of the mid-70s.
One guy I beat was a cheater. There were forms to sign, each player initialing his wins and losses on the same sheet. I should have been playing closer attention, but when I won my fourth and the set, the opponent cried out "That's three", meaning he was claiming I had only won three, not four games, like I really had won already. Well, my bad, the score sheet did not reflect all four of my wins, for some unknown reason, but it was winner break, there weren't enough scorers around, and I was just playing to play in that tourney. So I didn't challenge the guy, I just let him rack 'em, because it was winner break and there was no doubt I had won that last game.

I hate cheaters. The conflict they cause annoys me no end. So, as angry as I was, I just rared back and smacked the rack hard as I could, and wouldn't ya know I made the nine on the break, winning the "fourth" game and the set, and leaving the cheater speechless. I turned and stared him in the eye, and I said "NOW that's four." He was mad as hell - couldn't even win by cheating.

 

[Texdance]

The nuke had a insurance agency in Weatherford Tx.

OK, I get it, I remember "thenuke's" name finally, duh, like I didn't have a clue. But I won't out someone's avatar. That photo of the pretty woman fooled me.

I remember a few weeks around 2012 or so when I had the pleasure of watching "thenuke" and his friend play 1P for reasonably serious stakes (to me) at a large pool hall in Plano. I think it was a Wednesday regular match-up. They both played at or very near pro levels, though I think my old pool league friend should have given up a ball or maybe two. He really did play at pro levels, good enough to go to the Derby City 1P and win a match.

So, thenuke, I welcome your thoughts about those Nugget years. I never would have been around such great characters, and some genuine pool legends, had I not frequented the place.

Anyone remember Jake from Fort Worth? He wandered through various bars and pool halls wearing hokey denim overalls, munching on a bit of hay, carrying a cue in his hand, a standard model Dufferin one-piece cue. He was always pulling his small bit of money from a pocket and counting it, in plain sight of everyone around him. But I never saw him play - it was odd.

 

[RabbiHippie]

@Texdance, you're a wonderful storyteller. As an author working on a book of these old time pool stories, I appreciate the knack you have for telling them.

I'll share a link to the article once it's released on OnePocket.org. You've provided some excellent background on Magnolia Red that's been helpful in writing about the origins of One Pocket.

 

[Texdance]

I suspect this is the "60 minutes" interview, by Harry Reasoner, with UJ Pucket. Not sure which one is Magnolia Red, though.

And...part 2

Magnolia Red outed! Don't be fooled by this cue hustler! (Just kidding - Red has probably gone on to that big pool hall in the sky by now.) Puckett was 73 when this video was made, allegedly, but his birth year is questionable - Puckett claimed to not know his true age.
Part 1:
At 3:14 UJ steps away from Harry Reasoner, and behind them at the bar is none other than Magnolia Red. In the fuzzy video Red looks like he just came from Brooks Brothers, always a natty dresser. He is shown again at 5:47 for a few seconds, still fuzzy – not the bar guy on the right wearing a gray suit, but the guy that Puckett almost always stands in front of and blocks the view of him. Red, wearing glasses, gets a good head shot from about 6:05, turning away and then back toward the camera for a good portrait shot of him, with a quick close-up at 6:23.

At 4:30 UJ is ‘dancing’ to a cute chick, holding both halves of his two-piece cue in one hand, with no case. That’s how I recall seeing him about to play – an older cue, taken apart, no case, no gloves, no chalk, nothing but him ready to screw the shaft and butt together and play. But he would admit that he hardly played much pool by the time he was in his 70s.

Part 2:
At some point UJ actually mentions Magnolia Red and points to him.

At 2:41 UJ says “I’m going to luck the nine in” and proceeds to make a tough half-table bank carom that drives the nine into the corner pocket. Heck, I didn’t even see the shot, and Puckett saw it, called it, then made it!

Another good shot of Magnolia Red at 2:49. The young man who racks for them is Frank ‘Bird” Thompson. Bird Thompson is highlighted at 5:03. He was truly gifted, dedicated, and destined to be a champion player, but sadly he died young of cancer. He was a first-class pool player, and generally a great guy. The event in the video is the River City Open.

We live in a time when we can see videos of great players from all over the world playing eight ball, nine ball, ten ball, one pocket, bank pool, challenge matches, Russian pool – all sorts of pocket billiard games from Dubai to Shanghai to California and the US East Coast, then back across the ocean and and all over Europe. There are videos galore, some for sale, some pay per view, but many free on YouTube or other locations.

Some of the old greats are shown on YT, both in their prime and during their later years. People who might never have seen Wimpy Lassiter play in person can see him on grainy old black and white videos. UJ Puckett himself was never filmed during his prime, but he can be seen in his sixties or later playing the great gambler and tush hog Cowboy Jimmy Moore, plus Minnesota Fats, Luther Lassiter, and others. Boston Shorty made it to one short video. I’ve seen Machine Gun Lou Butera play in person, and he played just like he does in the video of him – bang bang one shot after another with no hesitation. Even the great straight pool champion of many years,

Today with Accustats, CSI International, YouTube and others making and restoring videos, we are in a Golden Age of Pool – for pool fans at least. Too bad it is still so difficult for pro players to make a good living at it, but that is changing, I hope.