Great 9-page article about the famous Johnston City “Hustlers Jamboree” 1960s worth reading/re-reading :)

[arnaldo]

For your holiday season idle time reading, here's my tiny evergreen annual gift to AZB-ers, an exceptional 9-page article that will be new to some AZBers and a very enjoyable re-read for many others. It's from a 1970 Playboy about the famous Johnston City "Hustlers Jamboree" excitingly and colorfully written by an eye-witness reporter. It's filled with various mentions of the more than 20 top-level players “convening” from all around the country, with a great deal of attention to the gambling between Luther Lassiter and a very cocky Ronnie Allen. (Also includes *plenty* of historical background about decades of American pool hustling during the 20th Century):

https://tinyurl.com/ycw3vw8b

Enjoy.

Arnaldo ~ Happy holidays to my newest and longtime AZB friends alike, on this ever-pleasurable forum -- itself a gift that keeps on giving.
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[Bob Jewett]

Nice! Here is the article as a local PDF so it's less likely to disappear.

 

[maha]

guy was a writer not a pool player and such glorifies everything. nothing was like he wrote but a very subdued version of the basic things that went on were true.
but were exciting times with action in pool which made it watchable and brought the crowds . the crowds are still around but of a different ilk

 

[arnaldo]

guy was a writer not a pool player and such glorifies everything. nothing was like he wrote but a very subdued version of the basic things that went on were true.
but were exciting times with action in pool which made it watchable and brought the crowds . the crowds are still around but of a different ilk

Remarkably, the style (and intent) of this gifted sports writer is pool's dazzling equivalent of French Impressionism wherein a skilled landscape painter truthfully, beautifully, and purposefully captured not photo-realistic depictions of a scene in Nature, but essential and moving truths about what the scene felt like to the uncannily sensitive artist experiencing it in the open air, on location.

If that's glorifying reality, the success of the accomplishment assures that it will endure as a classic over many future generations just as does this exceptionally well-crafted article (like the major work of the best Impressionist artists) does.

Arnaldo ~ IMO it's in the survival-based genes of all of us to notice and respect who among us is exceptional skilled at what positive work they provide to the entire "village" for its endurance.
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[mikemosconi]

Thanks- this was an excellent piece and enjoyable to read. It does not have to be 100% factual as much as it should be a somewhat accurate depiction of those times and written in a style that a reading audience will appreciate and enjoy. I feel that the author accomplished his intent in spades.

 

[7stud]

nothing was like he wrote

The ball didn't go??!

 

[garczar]

Whenever JC comes up i like letting people know the buildings are still there. Its a mattress store and the tournament 'pit' building in back is storage i think. The Jansco-built golf course, Stardust, is still open and just about a half-mile away. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Interstate+Furniture+and+Mattress+Outlet/@37.817613,-88.9514939,311m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m15!1m8!3m7!1s0x88772feb9dc9b545:0xb05dd0dd19e8e87!2sJohnston+City,+IL+62951!3b1!8m2!3d37.8206052!4d-88.9275695!16zL20vMHNqbHE!3m5!1s0x8877258a4c925aef:0x21d0d4d879332111!8m2!3d37.8175712!4d-88.9519467!16s/g/11g0g9kp2f?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI0MTIwOC4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw==

 

[Bob Jewett]

I decided I had to have a paper copy of the article so I bought a copy of the November 1970 Playboy. Lady in pearls on the cover. About $10.

I was surprised by two things -- how much political content the magazine had and how modestly it portrayed young ladies. My, how we have changed in 55 years. An article had a list of the penalties in each state for simple possession of marijuana. In California it was up to 10 years in state prison and in Texas it was two years to life.

 

[book collector]

I decide I had to have a paper copy of the article so I bought a copy of the November 1970 Playboy. Lady in pearls on the cover. About $10.

I was surprised by two things -- how much political content the magazine had and how modestly it portrayed young ladies. My, how we have changed in 55 years. An article had a list of the penalties in each state for simple possession of marijuana. In California it was up to 10 years in state prison and in Texas it was two years to life.

I often wonder if we would have had the drug problems of the last 60 years if we had not gotten involved in Viet Nam. About 98 % of the guys I knew who went to Viet Nam had never heard of marijuana in 1965 but when they started coming home , they all smoked pot and many dabbled in opium and a few in Hash . Quite a big culture shock.

 

[Bob Jewett]

I often wonder if we would have had the drug problems of the last 60 years if we had not gotten involved in Viet Nam. About 98 % of the guys I knew who went to Viet Nam had never heard of marijuana in 1965 but when they started coming home , they all smoked pot and many dabbled in opium and a few in Hash . Quite a big culture shock.

Some troops were smoking heroin (rumored to be from the North). According to a report, 90% quit without a problem. It was only the other 10% that were wired for addiction to it.

 

[book collector]

Some troops were smoking heroin (rumored to be from the North). According to a report, 90% quit without a problem. It was only the other 10% that were wired for addiction to it.

I remember the pictures of troops guarding poppy fields in the Golden Triangle, so not surprising. I would be highly suspicious of any numbers not given out by verifiable sources. I watched how cocaine went through a printing plant I worked at , it was 50% of the people went from doing none, to addicted in 6 to 8 months. It was on par with the Bubonic Plague. A lot of lives were destroyed or severely damaged . If I am not mistaken ,heroin is even worse.

 

[VTEC John]

Thanks- this was an excellent piece and enjoyable to read. It does not have to be 100% factual as much as it should be a somewhat accurate depiction of those times and written in a style that a reading audience will appreciate and enjoy. I feel that the author accomplished his intent in spades.

Right. Any article in Playboy was a much the product of an editor as it was the writer. The editor would have steered the piece to a non-billiard readership.

 

[219Dave]

I just drove through Johnston City a few weeks ago when I drove from Chicago to Memphis, and thought about its pool history. There's a good video on youtube about it, with some cool old interviews and footage.

 

[billiardshot]

For Cokes Fan!!

 

[garczar]

For Cokes Fan!!

View attachment 797023

Not a cat to fk with. He would cap your ass.