Billiard Historians."Pool sharp"
SHARP VS SHARK
I just wanted to share a couple excepts from an article I found while looking for some clarity on Pool Sharps and Pool sharks which is believed to have been derived from Card Sharps.
Except:
If we combine the 1903 Police Gazette citation with the 1870 Trollope example, we get almost exactly the opposite of the claim made in this Wikipedia entry for card shark:
A card shark is an expert card game player who feasts on weaker "fish" players. A card shark is different from a card sharp, who uses deception for purposes of either card tricks or to cheat at a game like poker.
The "trade" of Trollope's 1870 card-sharper was "to tout and find prey for gamblers", while the 1903 Police Gazette article makes it clear that the "secrets" known to the card shark consist of methods for "cheating at cards". Still, there are two different occupations here, and it makes sense to have two different terms. And a pool shark is not someone who wins at pool by cheating, but rather someone who wins money from more naive players by being better at the game than they realize he is.
An excerpt from Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado (1885):
The billiard-sharp who any one catches,
His doom's extremely hard--
He's made to dwell--
In a dungeon cell
On a spot that's always barred.
And there he plays extravagant matches
In fitless finger-stalls
On a cloth untrue
With a twisted cue
And elliptical billiard balls!
If you would like to read more about shark vs sharp heres the entire article.
http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/003448.html
just thought this was interesting for you Historians.
SHARP VS SHARK
I just wanted to share a couple excepts from an article I found while looking for some clarity on Pool Sharps and Pool sharks which is believed to have been derived from Card Sharps.
Except:
If we combine the 1903 Police Gazette citation with the 1870 Trollope example, we get almost exactly the opposite of the claim made in this Wikipedia entry for card shark:
A card shark is an expert card game player who feasts on weaker "fish" players. A card shark is different from a card sharp, who uses deception for purposes of either card tricks or to cheat at a game like poker.
The "trade" of Trollope's 1870 card-sharper was "to tout and find prey for gamblers", while the 1903 Police Gazette article makes it clear that the "secrets" known to the card shark consist of methods for "cheating at cards". Still, there are two different occupations here, and it makes sense to have two different terms. And a pool shark is not someone who wins at pool by cheating, but rather someone who wins money from more naive players by being better at the game than they realize he is.
An excerpt from Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado (1885):
The billiard-sharp who any one catches,
His doom's extremely hard--
He's made to dwell--
In a dungeon cell
On a spot that's always barred.
And there he plays extravagant matches
In fitless finger-stalls
On a cloth untrue
With a twisted cue
And elliptical billiard balls!
If you would like to read more about shark vs sharp heres the entire article.
http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/003448.html
just thought this was interesting for you Historians.
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