Fat's One Liners

ironman said:
Danny Medina. I can tell a lot of stories about that guy as we went on many trips together and always did well.
I'll just sum it up like this, in his prime, I have never seen anyone who shot as straight as Danny and he had the most explosive break at that time as well. His break was always out of control, but it sounded like a cannon. I saw him run 10 racks twice in one week.
Davie Black played pretty good on the bar box.
Pete played pretty good everything. Pete had a lot of gamble and another one of the really good guys.
Man, you guys are making me homesick!
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I asked the guy who owned the room I played at how he matched up against Medina. The owner played good. He said he couldn't get the weight he needed from Medina; it was pointless as Medina would just string racks and take away any spot. So I asked about golf. He said yeah he played him some and Medina just played run out golf. So I asked about 3 cushion, which the room owner was pretty good at, particularly on a brutally slow table. He said it had a cueball and you hit it with a cue, so he didn't bother playing Danny any of that either.:rolleyes:
 
I read a story about fats playing Hubert Cotes (sp) and some guys came in to rob the place. Fats was several thousand hooked and the guys told everyone to give up therecash. Fats said hold on and pulled out his cash and said he wanted to settle up with hubert first.
 
Joe Alvarez

BillYards said:
9ballPaul:

Being from Denver, you must have crossed paths with David Gomez... a short latino guy in snakeskin cowboy boots... I saw him play in a bar-box tourney one time and he was completely on fire. He would smash the balls around and seemed like he was shooting at break speed for every shot, but the cueball would run around and around and end up in great position for his next shot. I have never seen anyone brutalize a bar table like that guy.

Please share any stories you have about him or any other players (Medina, Joe, Willie, or John Alvarez) that you remember.
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I remember in 89 up in Ft. Collins watch this guy play Joe on the back bar table, Joe was being staked by Gary Benson (table guy for the BCA event) Joe matched up with this tall player from Colorado Springs, all I remember was about 5 hours later Joe was stuck 29 games at $100 a game and was still convinced he could beat the tall guy. The stake horse pulled up and I heard it took Joe almost 6 months before he could beat anyone that could play at Match Ups. The Macho attitude he had when he was young got pierced pretty good then. He grew up allot after that and became an even better player,I saw him also working in Vegas, I think it was Mary Kenniston's room.
 
Danny Medina came through town about 7-8 years ago, matched up with a local shortstop who had no fear of anyone. Danny breaks, cue ball goes straight up 2 feet, stops dead still in the middle of the table & he runs out. Next break, same thing, only 3 feet in the air. Instant replay, 4 feet this time. The shortstops says "if whitey hits the light fixture do I get to shoot?"; Danny shakes his head no, the guy unscrews and slinks away. About the most intimidating thing I ever saw - when he's on Danny can flat light it up.
 
Island Drive said:
I remember in 89 up in Ft. Collins watch this guy play Joe on the back bar table, Joe was being staked by Gary Benson (table guy for the BCA event) Joe matched up with this tall player from Colorado Springs, all I remember was about 5 hours later Joe was stuck 29 games at $100 a game and was still convinced he could beat the tall guy. The stake horse pulled up and I heard it took Joe almost 6 months before he could beat anyone that could play at Match Ups. The Macho attitude he had when he was young got pierced pretty good then. He grew up allot after that and became an even better player,I saw him also working in Vegas, I think it was Mary Kenniston's room.
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It was Bill Meachem from Colo Spgs
 
ShootingArts said:
One of the Willie Mosconi/Fats shows on TV, Fats had been belly aching nonstop the entire match. Willie was his usual quiet and professional self. Towards the end of the match Willie sunk a ball but missed shape on the next one. Annoyed with himself, he muttered "ball rolled". Fats heard and replied in a loud growl, "Of course it rolled, it's round ain't it?"

I never saw Fats play anything resembling great pool but he was a showman and hustler extraordinaire even in later years.

Hu
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Old Tom Armstrong put those shows together and beamed with pride about them until the day he died, just about one year ago.
 
"And Now The Rest Of The Story" - Paul Harvey.....

will8834 said:
I read a story about fats playing Hubert Cotes (sp) and some guys came in to rob the place. Fats was several thousand hooked and the guys told everyone to give up therecash. Fats said hold on and pulled out his cash and said he wanted to settle up with hubert first.
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Hubert Cotes (Daddy Warbucks) pulls out his silver pistols and shoots the robbers.

True Story!

TY & GL
 
OldHasBeen said:
Hubert Cotes (Daddy Warbucks) pulls out his silver pistols and shoots the robbers.

True Story!

TY & GL
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I guess that htere is no other way to put it, But he was supposed to be just a flat out, bad assed gangster is what I have heard.
 
Hubert Cokes

ironman said:
I guess that htere is no other way to put it, But he was supposed to be just a flat out, bad assed gangster is what I have heard.
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Hubert Daddy Warbucks Cokes was probably the baddest sumb_itch (with fists or guns) of the first 50 yrs of the 20th century. He was not a gangster, he strummed gangsters. Fats used to say Hubert b_itch-slapped Baby-Face Nelson! He was rumored to have removed (assisted by Titanic Thompson) NY gangster Arnold Rothstein from the roles of the living in the 20s. More stories about Hubert in my next book. The real end of the Fats/Hubert robbery story, was that they got robbed! The robbers had the drop on everybody and they were carrying Thompson machine guns.

the Beard
Merry Xmas, Happy Hanukah, and bank on, brother!
 
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freddy the beard said:
Hubert Daddy Warbucks Cokes was probably the baddest sumb_itch (with fists or guns) of the first 50 yrs of the 20th century. He was not a gangster, he strummed gangsters. Fats used to say Hubert b_itch-slapped Baby-Face Nelson! He was rumored to have removed (assisted by Titanic Thompson) NY gangster Arnold Rothstein from the roles of the living in the 20s. More stories about Hubert in my next book. The real end of the Fats/Hubert robbery story, was that they got robbed! The robbers had the drop on everybody and they were carrying Thompson machine guns.

the Beard
Merry Xmas, Happy Hanukah, and bank on, brother!
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Bananas Rodriguez told a few stories he had heard about Cokes. Some were funny and some were not.
When is your bookcoming out?
Also, did you know Bananas or ever play him?
 
will8834 said:
I read a story about fats playing Hubert Cotes (sp) and some guys came in to rob the place. Fats was several thousand hooked and the guys told everyone to give up therecash. Fats said hold on and pulled out his cash and said he wanted to settle up with hubert first.
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What a brilliant scene...fact or fiction. Would be a classic scene if done in a movie. Thanks for sharing.

This thread has brought out some fantastic stories I'd never read here before.:D
 
Colin Colenso said:
What a brilliant scene...fact or fiction. Would be a classic scene if done in a movie. Thanks for sharing.

This thread has brought out some fantastic stories I'd never read here before.:D
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I wish this Cokes was still around. We could send him over to have a talk with the Evolution guy. I bet he would have a change of heart.
 
ironman said:
I wish this Cokes was still around. We could send him over to have a talk with the Evolution guy. I bet he would have a change of heart.
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Hell I would pay him to go find Kevin Carson for me!

Shorty
 
I don't know of this particular instance.

OldHasBeen said:
Hubert Cotes (Daddy Warbucks) pulls out his silver pistols and shoots the robbers.
TY & GL
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I was taking literary license and just referring to the way Hubert was.

I saw him at Johnston City many years but I was just a kid to his group.
I remember that he carried Hugh sums of cash and always had pistols on him. There were always bodyguards nearby. I remember hearing about him driving a Cadillac with bullet holes in it for some time.
As I remember, he was Nick Varner's backer and also taught Nick quite a lot.
I don't think he was "IN" with the boys but he knew them and They Knew Him.
I only had a few conversations with him and he seemed to be really nice.

TY & GL
 
Hubert/Varner

Your right, Hubert did take Nick under his wing during the Johnston City era, I also liked Hubert, big tall man, he did like wearing those visors with the green plastic see through on the Brim, cut out the strong lights. In the Pit/tournament area in the other room from the show bar (where WWorld of Sports did their filming) the Jansco's pitted two 9' tables, they were about 3 steps down from the floor room, they had a black cloth canopy around each table, probably A 5x10 canopy, that went straight up to the ceiling, and with I think Eight flood lights. It was hot when shooting and a hat was a smart move, Hubert was classy with his green visor, that depression era of great pool players were very special, oh yeah, allot of card dealers wore those type of visors. Also, FYI, of ALL the people that Fatty ever played, Evelyn said Hubert was the one most he wanted to beat.
 
I hated being in "THE PIT"

Island Drive said:
the Jansco's pitted two 9' tables, they were about 3 steps down from the floor room, they had a black cloth canopy around each table, probably A 5x10 canopy, that went straight up to the ceiling, and with I think Eight flood lights.
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Two of those 8 lights were actually heating lamps. With the tournament being in Oct. in S. ILL, the humidity was about 90% or more. It was really a good idea and kept the tables dry but made it pretty damn hot.

I'll never forget one on my matches "In The PIT". I was playing Al Coslosky (who had won the tournament the year before) and I was so nervous, I could hardly hold my cue.
Buddy was sitting "In My Corner" and at one time he said to me - "Tom, Do you know you have 9 cigarettes lit"?

TY & GL
 
Al Coslosky

I rememeber Al very well, he won the straight pool division onr year, but definitely was too old to win the all around. He was a great referee ()Cue Ball Kelly was there also helpin' out), as he handled allot of the matches for that three week period.
I also remember watching a 10 ball ring game, it was Mexican Johnnie from Chicago, the Springfield Rifle, Ed Kelly, another player and Boston Shorty, it was in the back room on the very back table, Kelly was complaining when he played 4 or five rail shape on his next ball and was 1/2" off, your usual high end ring game banter, but what was the most funny was here shorty had been sitting waitin his turn and not gettin many shots then finally it looked like he would, after maybe coming to the table three times in 12 games and he was hooked, 'real good' by luck and shorts said, "this is the shits" we all laughed and he uncorked after that game. I think it was $50 a rack. Anyone know about the upstairs card room action in the back room??
 
Rude Dog said:
That's some funny stuff Tom.:D
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Absolutely, I audibly laughed at the 9 lit ciggies gag:D How nervous is that? I've seen guys have 2 or 3 on the go when their nerves are bust.
 
Colin Colenso said:
Absolutely, I audibly laughed at the 9 lit ciggies gag:D How nervous is that? I've seen guys have 2 or 3 on the go when their nerves are bust.
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I once actually so a women working a late night lunch counter (Texas in Pt Chester) have 5 going at once and Im sure if i had stayed she would have had 7. She was even opening new packs when her last full pack was more than 10 feet away. Pretty amazing.
 
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