fats

D

dogassokie

dogassokie
man, i wrote about a tale concerning fats wanderone and wimpy lassiter, and i got some of the craziest retorts that i have ever heard. one guy, jay hefert, even has his own web site. just like rush limbaugh, glenn beck, michelle bachman, and sharon angle. one said that i should be ashamed for disparaging lassiter because i wrote about him swearing.to this person, if you think lassiter didn't swear, you've never seen him anywhere except network tv. another said i didn't know my ass from a hole in the ground because of bentivegna's book about fats. the author rates fats as one of the best. who doesn't know their ass from a hole in the ground? and i hope "island drive" bill meachum reads this again because i think i used to know him pretty good if he's tall, better pool player than i am, had his cue wrapped in electrical tape, played a lot with denny geiske and jon russo at siu, and was generally a nice guy. if you are the bill meachum that i knew in carbondale, ISN'T GETTING OLD NO GOOD?
and i'd like to get it straight that i liked fats just fine. he, rightly or wrongly, was a celebrity that always had time for the kids at the cue carom. fats, it might be mentioned, never went to crazyhorse because that was where gieski and dave malane(sp?) played. and fats did love animals as someone pointed out, so that is good. and i certainly never said he wasn't smart. all i said was his fame was a sham because "the hustler" was not about wanderone. he took advantage of the sham. more power to him. but he claimed on many occasions to be the best player in the world and that was a blatant lie. he wasn't even in the top five in southern ill. i hope you guys get just as up in arms when some batshit crazy right wing nut calls the president a nazi.
 
dogassokie said:
man, i wrote about a tale concerning fats wanderone and wimpy lassiter, and i got some of the craziest retorts that i have ever heard. one guy, jay hefert, even has his own web site. just like rush limbaugh, glenn beck, michelle bachman, and sharon angle. one said that i should be ashamed for disparaging lassiter because i wrote about him swearing.to this person, if you think lassiter didn't swear, you've never seen him anywhere except network tv. another said i didn't know my ass from a hole in the ground because of bentivegna's book about fats. the author rates fats as one of the best. who doesn't know their ass from a hole in the ground? and i hope "island drive" bill meachum reads this again because i think i used to know him pretty good if he's tall, better pool player than i am, had his cue wrapped in electrical tape, played a lot with denny geiske and jon russo at siu, and was generally a nice guy. if you are the bill meachum that i knew in carbondale, ISN'T GETTING OLD NO GOOD?
and i'd like to get it straight that i liked fats just fine. he, rightly or wrongly, was a celebrity that always had time for the kids at the cue carom. fats, it might be mentioned, never went to crazyhorse because that was where gieski and dave malane(sp?) played. and fats did love animals as someone pointed out, so that is good. and i certainly never said he wasn't smart. all i said was his fame was a sham because "the hustler" was not about wanderone. he took advantage of the sham. more power to him. but he claimed on many occasions to be the best player in the world and that was a blatant lie. he wasn't even in the top five in southern ill. i hope you guys get just as up in arms when some batshit crazy right wing nut calls the president a nazi.
Click to expand...

Give it up troll.

Dale
 
dogassokie said:
man, i wrote about a tale concerning fats wanderone and wimpy lassiter, and i got some of the craziest retorts that i have ever heard. one guy, jay hefert, even has his own web site. just like rush limbaugh, glenn beck, michelle bachman, and sharon angle. one said that i should be ashamed for disparaging lassiter because i wrote about him swearing.to this person, if you think lassiter didn't swear, you've never seen him anywhere except network tv. another said i didn't know my ass from a hole in the ground because of bentivegna's book about fats. the author rates fats as one of the best. who doesn't know their ass from a hole in the ground? and i hope "island drive" bill meachum reads this again because i think i used to know him pretty good if he's tall, better pool player than i am, had his cue wrapped in electrical tape, played a lot with denny geiske and jon russo at siu, and was generally a nice guy. if you are the bill meachum that i knew in carbondale, ISN'T GETTING OLD NO GOOD?
and i'd like to get it straight that i liked fats just fine. he, rightly or wrongly, was a celebrity that always had time for the kids at the cue carom. fats, it might be mentioned, never went to crazyhorse because that was where gieski and dave malane(sp?) played. and fats did love animals as someone pointed out, so that is good. and i certainly never said he wasn't smart. all i said was his fame was a sham because "the hustler" was not about wanderone. he took advantage of the sham. more power to him. but he claimed on many occasions to be the best player in the world and that was a blatant lie. he wasn't even in the top five in southern ill. i hope you guys get just as up in arms when some batshit crazy right wing nut calls the president a nazi.
Click to expand...

Fats DID play me at Crazy Horse during the late sixties during my college days. Fatty was a hustler, he threw out bullshit only to then figure out how one responded to his BS then he figured out how to get into your pocket, thats the way his life and the depression made him, he couldn't help it. In my video, I have pics of the animal cage/house/immediate farm area in Dowell where he lived. At the time 1996, you could of purchased his home, nice it was, for $50,000, what a great place to house a museum for our sport.
 
To my knowledge, Freddy has not written a book about Fats. He does mention him in the books he has written.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, including you. Don't make such a big deal about it. Jay and others here knew Fats quite well.
 
You're kind of pushing the envelope a little with that political stuff. It's against the rules, and we're pretty big on rules around these parts.

We are also big on One Pocket, and feel that all the other games are mere contrivances. Right gang? I said, right gang? Damn, you could just about hear a pin drop around here. :)
 
Watched Fatty play many times (for the cash) and to say he wasn't good is just wrong.
He parlayed a 'coincidence' (?) into a profitable career. Kudos to Fats!
 
steveinflorida said:
Watched Fatty play many times (for the cash) and to say he wasn't good is just wrong.
He parlayed a 'coincidence' (?) into a profitable career. Kudos to Fats!
Click to expand...

I have to agree with you. Fatty was a good friend and a powerful player. I watched him play many hours of one pocket and nobody hit 2 rail end rail banks like he did.

If you could just ask Richie Florence how well Fatty played you would get the real answer. Fatty beat him out of 35K when that was real money.

Bill Stroud
 
steveinflorida said:
Watched Fatty play many times (for the cash) and to say he wasn't good is just wrong.
He parlayed a 'coincidence' (?) into a profitable career. Kudos to Fats!
Click to expand...

In my video of fatis' life, Evelyn said....one time, he/Fats was up in Chicago I think/Bensingers at this big tournament, can't remember the yr, its on the video, and he booked the matches for the entire event. Ev said, and I'll have to see the copy to be ''perfectly'' accurate, out of 150-160 matches, he booked 142 or 146 winners, that HARD ON would make wincardona smile 'proudly'.
BiL ;)
 
Island Drive said:
In my video of fatis' life, Evelyn said....one time, he/Fats was up in Chicago I think/Bensingers at this big tournament, can't remember the yr, its on the video, and he booked the matches for the entire event. Ev said, and I'll have to see the copy to be ''perfectly'' accurate, out of 150-160 matches, he booked 142 or 146 winners, that HARD ON would make wincardona smile 'proudly'.
BiL ;)
Click to expand...

Are you going to produce this video for the market?
If so,you got me as a customer

regards
pt..<..who misses the Fatman..never saw him in his prime...
..but I liked what I did see
 
To me, whether it be sport or games, there is that one person who fits the mold as the leader for that particular endeaver.
Babe Ruth in Baseball, Johnny Unitas in Football, MJ in Basketball, Jack Nicklaus in Golf, Don Garlits in Drag Racing, and Fats in Pocket Billiards, hands down. :)
 
Hmmm

QUOTE: dogassokie;
i hope you guys get just as up in arms when some batshit crazy right wing nut calls the president a nazi.
**************
ChicagoRJ: Yes, we do get upset about that. They should just call him what we call him here, the incompetent fool from Chicago. And he got his political drivers license from the likes of the Daley family, and other corrupt democrats in Chicago, it's no wonder he is in way over his head.

Chicago averages one alderman a year to be sentenced to prison time. Not to mention the idiot former governor Blago who tried to sell Obamas senate seat, and soon to be put in jail....yes, Obama supported this idiot for the governors mansion because Blago's father-in-law is part of the "Chicago Machine".

So, after Illinois was literally bankrupted by Obamas friend and cronies, he's off to DC. As the corruption was festering out of control, how many times to Obama stand up and say we need to stop?? Yep, NADA........
They were his buddies...... the guy is the worst president of the 20th Century hands down. And finally the country is seeing what he is made of !! Can anyone say ONE TERM !!!
 
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What was the point?


i think you might not have gotten all the grief you got if you had just told the story, however you went on to insult & call fats a hack that no one respected.

What was your point?

I will say again, i enjoy reading stories from people who were actually around some of the greats of yesterday.
I was in high school back in the '70s, too young to have been there.
I do however collect antique & vintage billiard stuff.
None of the books that i have read reflect the distain that you say the pros had for fatty.
Most said that he was a fair shooter & top negotiator of the money matches.
Guys like jay halfert were around & don’t seem to have the same opinion that you do.

Oh well, but again, what was your point?

Slim
 
Tramp Steamer said:
To me, whether it be sport or games, there is that one person who fits the mold as the leader for that particular endeaver.
Babe Ruth in Baseball, Johnny Unitas in Football, MJ in Basketball, Jack Nicklaus in Golf, Don Garlits in Drag Racing, and Fats in Pocket Billiards, hands down. :)
Click to expand...

You left out John Holmes ;)
 
Tramp Steamer said:
We are also big on One Pocket, and feel that all the other games are mere contrivances. Right gang? I said, right gang? Damn, you could just about hear a pin drop around here. :)
Click to expand...

I'm no more attached to one pocket as I am to any of the other five. ;):thumbup:
 
Entertainment sake...

I am telling this story not as any sort of a reply to the dolt who started this thread, but to entertain and maintain the Fatty legend. I too, knew and played, Bill Meachum and Dennis Gieske. So what? How does that give credibility to your conclusions, or your nasty political agendas?


I, like Jay Helfert, treasure the time I spent around Fats, the most unforgettable character I've ever come across in life. You shoulda been dere.

Roy Acuff, the Hall of Fame, billionaire country music producer from Nashville, would give Fatty anything he needed. He loved Fatty and doted around him like a schoolgirl. This I garnered from Roy's chauffeur, Joey Bowman (also a pool player from Johnson City, Tenn.). Roy probably put Fatty up and paid for his lodging and expenses at the hotel he wound up living in, in Nashville.

Years earlier there was a pool tournament in Nashville. Joey Bowman was there, and so was Fats. Fats told Joey to go to Roy's office and tell him to get his a-ss down to Fat's hotel room -- right now! When Joey went back to Roy's office (it was in a building he owned, which was like a block square) and told him what Fatty had said, Roy's reply was, "Fatty wants to see me?" and giggled like a kid. Roy closed up the whole operation and zipped downtown to see Fats.

When he went into Fat's hotel room, and naturally it was crammed with other people, Fats dragged his butt in and then got Roy to "second" about 20 of Fat's lies.

Fats even told stories about the "old days" when Roy was broke with no place to sleep, and Fats would give him money to eat and get a room. When Fatty asked Roy to confirm that he was telling the truth, Roy Acuff just shook his head up and down and said, "Yes, Fatty, yes Fatty."


Beard
 
Freddy I just got your banking with the beard DVD and I'm loving it. I love how you interject stories on the DVD.

Tell the one about the pool room owner that couldn't afford to pay fats for an exhibition so fats did him a favor.
 
No matter how you slice it Fats is still the most interesting player we have ever had to promote our game.
 
I have to second what my buddy The Beard just said. There was never anyone like Fats and never will be either. He was the original "Pied Piper." People (everyone!) would just follow him around wherever he went, like little kids following the ice cream truck. Like Freddie said, you had to see it to believe it. I had the HONOR of carrying his cue case in and out of the poolroom for his exhibitions. At the time I was a 19-22 year old man, but thrilled to be given this awesome role in his life.

Fatty never once called me Jay. He referred to me as "The Little Man." I had my own position in his entourage! He respected my intelligence and would often have me read documents, including contracts for him. Don't get me wrong, I just read them, he made all the decisions. And yes, he was Triple Smart! No one could get over on Fats! Pity the poor con man who tried. He'd end up the loser. Fats was the most confident man I ever met. Even Muhammed Ali lost out in the war of words with him, raising Fat's hand in victory after a Howard Cosell joint interview. It might have been on the Carson show.

Notice I never said anything about his pool playing. I don't have to.

P.S. When the Feds busted Johnston City in 1972 and hauled all the pool players into court, Fats was the one who took the stand on their behalf. After he talked for about thirty minutes, the judge dropped all charges! True story.
 
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