One year ago on August 26th, the world lost a a wonderful person, and the billiards world lost an icon. A true Hall OF Famer in my honest opinion.
I don't need to tell any one about Bob Hempel's claim to fame in the pool community, his cases have been to every corner of mother earth. Some may also know that Bob was quite the player, and an instructor as well many other things. Aside from that, Bob was considered an all around swell guy, and someone who's work I would end up admiring for the rest of my life. What follows is my story, I'll try to keep it brief as it spans over two decades…
It was in the late 80's that I began playing pool. High school was done, and I had 'a little free time' if you know what I mean. That's when I fell in love with pool. It was in Columbus Ohio, watching guys like Dee Adkins, Howard Vickery, and Kenny McCoy among others (and that's not counting the droves of hustlers of all calibers). And for those of you that don't know, Ohio is the home of quite a few dangerous fellows on the bar boxes. Many of those guys I noticed, carried the same case under their arms. Since then, cases have evolved in many ways, but to me the Fellini will always be king.
The first cue I ever purchased was a McDermott D-9, and it came with a beat to hell Fellini. At the time, I had no idea who or what Fellini was, I just knew this case needed help. That case was to become the first case I would ever repair. During the repair, I also bought my first It's George case (still have it). It should be obvious to anyone why I bought the George, the look and design of the case were perfect to me since they were almost just like the Fellini. From there, my obsession with cue and case collecting began. I would be remiss if I didn't mention being lucky enough to be sitting next to Scott Dunning whenever he would show up with some new multi-thousand dollar cue (and that was 20+ years ago). Moving to Chicago in the late 90's only made the obsession worse!
During my time in Chicago I came across enough Fellini's to secure the position of Bob's biggest fan. I had owned a couple dozen of Bob's cases throughout the years, and repaired a dozen or so Fellini's up to that time as well (of course that wasn't the largest collection out there, but I was hooked!). Even so, it wasn't enough. I found myself wanting to make cases, and some time later I decided to reach out to Bob for advise. This was about the time Bob went off radar (for the second time if I recall). Back then it was a little harder finding someone while the internet was still growing for us pool players. I was lucky enough to get in touch with Travis Nicklich (of Blackcreek Cues), who helped get me on Bob's trail. Bob had worked out of Travis' shop for a bit, but then left while owing Travis a couple bucks in rent, as well as having left all of his stuff in Travis' keeping. After tracking Bob down I was told for all intents and purposes, he was done with case making. Damn my timing!
Years later, in 2011, the infamous storage locker auction went down. I won the auction, as one or two may know, and a few more suspected. I had no plans, but something deep inside of me needed to win that auction. My hope thereafter, was to hone my craft, and partner up with Bob to resurrect the Fellini name. I registered the websites, had my atty draw up the paperwork, etc. etc.. I spoke with some folks already in the business, I began to study leatherworking, I researched all I could so that I could actually start making cases for real. My personal little dream was coming true. Amongst the vast collection of Fellini items were Bob's notes. He was meticulous with notes, as he seemed to be with other things as well. I studied the hell out of his notes, the detail was absurd but valuable. Also among the items were many cases in different states of construction. I studied the hell out of those too. Anyone know the story about Burton Spain and his pencil cue? Bob had a case that could be considered the same kind of build dummy, with notes written all over it.
And so I began. In my free time, I made a dozen or so cases to present to Bob for his approval. It took a while before I was confident enough in my work to be sure Bob would give it the thumbs up (everything had to be as good or better than what I had seen from Bob). I do not mean by that I am in any way better than Bob, I just wanted him to see that I had studied and followed his notes. By this time, Bob had known about the auction and didn't care one bit as he was done with case making and had other issues in his life (his health as I would later find out). That's when I reached out to him again (damn my timing…again). Once again, Travis, and the auctioners helped me track him down. I sent him an email with just about everything I stated above, as well my pictures, and my hope to bring Fellini back to life. I offered to partner up with him while doing most of the work myself, Bob doing the finishing touches, and kinda being the face of Fellini. Sort of a Dave Thomas to Wendy's. My email garnered no response.
It was time for a phone call. Bob said he had gotten my email, was flattered, and liked my work. Regarding the business and the inventory, he simply said 'it's yours'. He was also receptive to the idea of a partnership with little hands-on work from him as he was 'tired'. His last words to me were 'I've got some issues to deal with first, let's talk after that'. My plan was to surprise everyone with a Fellini booth at the ICCS last year with Bob in the flesh. Sadly, that was the last I would ever hear from Bob. Robert Hempel had passed. I miss him and regret not having been able to sit at the same bench with him while making cases and shootin the shit. At that point, I decided to close the door and turn off the lights in my workshop. Even though Bob had given me his blessing, I would stop all Fellini business for one year out of respect for Bob. Today, in celebration of Bob and his legacy, I have decided to bring them back out. I feel it important to state right up front, I will only be completing what Bob had started. I have no plans to continue making cases once Bob's stock is gone, and yes, this final batch will be indicated as such (I am a collector as well, so that was an important consideration). I will also offer repair work for any Fellini case. This is not a job to me, it is a passion. Please keep an eye out for things to come. Website will be up shortly, but it will essentially just be a tribute to Bob's legacy.
Best regards,
I don't need to tell any one about Bob Hempel's claim to fame in the pool community, his cases have been to every corner of mother earth. Some may also know that Bob was quite the player, and an instructor as well many other things. Aside from that, Bob was considered an all around swell guy, and someone who's work I would end up admiring for the rest of my life. What follows is my story, I'll try to keep it brief as it spans over two decades…
It was in the late 80's that I began playing pool. High school was done, and I had 'a little free time' if you know what I mean. That's when I fell in love with pool. It was in Columbus Ohio, watching guys like Dee Adkins, Howard Vickery, and Kenny McCoy among others (and that's not counting the droves of hustlers of all calibers). And for those of you that don't know, Ohio is the home of quite a few dangerous fellows on the bar boxes. Many of those guys I noticed, carried the same case under their arms. Since then, cases have evolved in many ways, but to me the Fellini will always be king.
The first cue I ever purchased was a McDermott D-9, and it came with a beat to hell Fellini. At the time, I had no idea who or what Fellini was, I just knew this case needed help. That case was to become the first case I would ever repair. During the repair, I also bought my first It's George case (still have it). It should be obvious to anyone why I bought the George, the look and design of the case were perfect to me since they were almost just like the Fellini. From there, my obsession with cue and case collecting began. I would be remiss if I didn't mention being lucky enough to be sitting next to Scott Dunning whenever he would show up with some new multi-thousand dollar cue (and that was 20+ years ago). Moving to Chicago in the late 90's only made the obsession worse!
During my time in Chicago I came across enough Fellini's to secure the position of Bob's biggest fan. I had owned a couple dozen of Bob's cases throughout the years, and repaired a dozen or so Fellini's up to that time as well (of course that wasn't the largest collection out there, but I was hooked!). Even so, it wasn't enough. I found myself wanting to make cases, and some time later I decided to reach out to Bob for advise. This was about the time Bob went off radar (for the second time if I recall). Back then it was a little harder finding someone while the internet was still growing for us pool players. I was lucky enough to get in touch with Travis Nicklich (of Blackcreek Cues), who helped get me on Bob's trail. Bob had worked out of Travis' shop for a bit, but then left while owing Travis a couple bucks in rent, as well as having left all of his stuff in Travis' keeping. After tracking Bob down I was told for all intents and purposes, he was done with case making. Damn my timing!
Years later, in 2011, the infamous storage locker auction went down. I won the auction, as one or two may know, and a few more suspected. I had no plans, but something deep inside of me needed to win that auction. My hope thereafter, was to hone my craft, and partner up with Bob to resurrect the Fellini name. I registered the websites, had my atty draw up the paperwork, etc. etc.. I spoke with some folks already in the business, I began to study leatherworking, I researched all I could so that I could actually start making cases for real. My personal little dream was coming true. Amongst the vast collection of Fellini items were Bob's notes. He was meticulous with notes, as he seemed to be with other things as well. I studied the hell out of his notes, the detail was absurd but valuable. Also among the items were many cases in different states of construction. I studied the hell out of those too. Anyone know the story about Burton Spain and his pencil cue? Bob had a case that could be considered the same kind of build dummy, with notes written all over it.
And so I began. In my free time, I made a dozen or so cases to present to Bob for his approval. It took a while before I was confident enough in my work to be sure Bob would give it the thumbs up (everything had to be as good or better than what I had seen from Bob). I do not mean by that I am in any way better than Bob, I just wanted him to see that I had studied and followed his notes. By this time, Bob had known about the auction and didn't care one bit as he was done with case making and had other issues in his life (his health as I would later find out). That's when I reached out to him again (damn my timing…again). Once again, Travis, and the auctioners helped me track him down. I sent him an email with just about everything I stated above, as well my pictures, and my hope to bring Fellini back to life. I offered to partner up with him while doing most of the work myself, Bob doing the finishing touches, and kinda being the face of Fellini. Sort of a Dave Thomas to Wendy's. My email garnered no response.
It was time for a phone call. Bob said he had gotten my email, was flattered, and liked my work. Regarding the business and the inventory, he simply said 'it's yours'. He was also receptive to the idea of a partnership with little hands-on work from him as he was 'tired'. His last words to me were 'I've got some issues to deal with first, let's talk after that'. My plan was to surprise everyone with a Fellini booth at the ICCS last year with Bob in the flesh. Sadly, that was the last I would ever hear from Bob. Robert Hempel had passed. I miss him and regret not having been able to sit at the same bench with him while making cases and shootin the shit. At that point, I decided to close the door and turn off the lights in my workshop. Even though Bob had given me his blessing, I would stop all Fellini business for one year out of respect for Bob. Today, in celebration of Bob and his legacy, I have decided to bring them back out. I feel it important to state right up front, I will only be completing what Bob had started. I have no plans to continue making cases once Bob's stock is gone, and yes, this final batch will be indicated as such (I am a collector as well, so that was an important consideration). I will also offer repair work for any Fellini case. This is not a job to me, it is a passion. Please keep an eye out for things to come. Website will be up shortly, but it will essentially just be a tribute to Bob's legacy.
Best regards,