Greenway 1973

[hemicudas]

$Bill,
Have anything to add about the Southern Opens? Didn't you stake Danny Jones in the payball game?

Lunchmoney

Yes, I did stake Danny a couple of times in the payball games, Lunch, but I was not at this tournament and I didn't see Danny in the video. I am still working on editing the video. I will have the rest uploaded shortly and will post it...... One question for you old guys. What was/is Bucky Bell's real first name? Could it have been Johnny or did he go by that name? I am told the guy Lambert is handing the money to and that won the tournament is Johnny Bell. Also, I do not know what Bucky Bell looks like. Could it be the same guy? Jay is right, it is Larry Hubbart.

 

[lunchmoney]

Yes, I did stake Danny a couple of times in the payball games, Lunch, but I was not at this tournament and I didn't see Danny in the video. I am still working on editing the video. I will have the rest uploaded shortly and will post it...... One question for you old guys. What was/is Bucky Bell's real first name? Could it have been Johnny or did he go by that name? I am told the guy Lambert is handing the money to and that won the tournament is Johnny Bell. Also, I do not know what Bucky Bell looks like. Could it be the same guy? Jay is right, it is Larry Hubbart.

Bucky Bell? Johnny Bell? Any relation?


Lunchmoney

 

[Scott Lee]

Bill...Several times in the video, after the music, you can hear people saying hello to the woman who was filming this video (you can hear a woman's voice hollering out to people). They say "Hi Pat"...do you or Jim have any idea who "Pat" is?

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com

The owner of this VHS shot video is Jim Wax. Jim converted it to DVD and sent it to me last week. So far I have only uploaded the first part of the video, it is in 3 parts. I will be uploading the other 2 parts shortly. I may try to combine them into one part. In the 3rd part of the video Jim, now 70 years old, executes the same trick shot for a Baton Rouge TV station. This was done in 2008. At the end of the video the TV announcer states that Jim preformed the original shot 27 years earlier which would make the first part have been shot in 1981, which is totally possible.

JAM, check out what you can find in BR for that year and see if anything jibes. That is Jamie Farrell for sure eating and he could easily be 21 years old at the time. I guess he could also be 18. I will ask him and get back to you guys. Part 2 and 3 will be up soon. It has to be shot in either 78 or 81.

 

[hemicudas]

Bill...Several times in the video, after the music, you can hear people saying hello to the woman who was filming this video (you can hear a woman's voice hollering out to people). They say "Hi Pat"...do you or Jim have any idea who "Pat" is?

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com

That question is sitting in Jim Wax's, In Box, as I type, Scott and it is a good one. I will let you know when I get an answer.

OK, here is what I have been able to deduced as of noon central time. Bobby "The Locksmith" Headrick, was on the road with Larry Hubbart at the time of this Greenway tournament. They both are in the video, Bobby is playing and Larry is sitting at the bar. Bobby tells me the tournament was in 1979 and that the start of the first TV exhibition by Jim Wax was in 1981. The second TV exhibition was done in 2008.

As many of you know, Gene "The Mighty Glove" Catron, made this dominoe shot famous and is still in the Guinness Book Of World Records for the most extensive pool trick shot ever. Gene, learned the basics of the shot from Jim Wax who invented it. Gene took it to the max.

This is the video in its entirety. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1490653580068911972&hl=en

 

[lunchmoney]

.

This is the video in its entirety. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1490653580068911972&hl=en[/QUOTE]

Thanks for sharing that $Bill. Brought back a lot of fond memories. I'll have to make an effort to send the link to Dan Louie and Dot's friend Rich Geiler. I don't have either of their e-mail addresses. I tried looking for regulars from that era like W. R. Jones, Jimmy Doucet, Hamp, Big Robert, J. D. etc. I thought that I saw Lindy but not quite sure. Hard to miss his big swept back pompadour toupee though! I did recognize a certain woman who used to make some pretty good money either in the back room, the men's room or the parking lot. I was in love with the future ex-wife at the time and cannot verify her activities first hand but I knew several that could.

Lunchmoney

 

[hemicudas]

.

This is the video in its entirety. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1490653580068911972&hl=en

Thanks for sharing that $Bill. Brought back a lot of fond memories. I'll have to make an effort to send the link to Dan Louie and Dot's friend Rich Geiler. I don't have either of their e-mail addresses. I tried looking for regulars from that era like W. R. Jones, Jimmy Doucet, Hamp, Big Robert, J. D. etc. I thought that I saw Lindy but not quite sure. Hard to miss his big swept back pompadour toupee though! I did recognize a certain woman who used to make some pretty good money either in the back room, the men's room or the parking lot. I was in love with the future ex-wife at the time and cannot verify her activities first hand but I knew several that could.

Lunchmoney[/QUOTE]

I hear ya, Lunch. Just got an email from Jamie's dad Harry Farrell. This is what he had to say about when the tournament was held.

"Jamie was 18. 1979. we had gotten our new gold crown ll in 1976. he hit the floor running. He waited outside the poolroom until 12:01 am to be of age to come in and the rest is HISTORY!!!!!!!"

 

[hemicudas]

Bill...Several times in the video, after the music, you can hear people saying hello to the woman who was filming this video (you can hear a woman's voice hollering out to people). They say "Hi Pat"...do you or Jim have any idea who "Pat" is?

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com

Just got an email from Jim Wax, Scott. He said his wife, Jannette, shot the video and he doesn't know who Pat is, sorry. I heard the name Pat a few times too,,,,,,,,,, got me.

 

[JAM]

Just got an email from Jim Wax, Scott. He said his wife, Jannette, shot the video and he doesn't know who Pat is, sorry. I heard the name Pat a few times too,,,,,,,,,, got me.

I hear "Pat" too. I think she said, "Hi, Dot," and then Dot said, "Hi, Pat." :smile:

I'm going to peruse 1980 and 1981 now. If the name of the tournament is "Southern Open," that gives me a little more to work with as I'm scanning the magazines and newspapers. Even an ad would help, so that I could get an exact date. Stay tuned. I'll be back!

 

[JAM]

I searched and came up empty for 1980 and 1981. It could be that Greenway did not contact the media with the results. The National Billiards News, though it does have national results, seemed to have a lot of results from Michigan area, as opposed to Beautiful Dixie.

In 1980 and 1981, it was all about "Queen Jean" Balukas and Mike Sigel. Steve Mizerak was the youngest ever inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1980 at the age of 36, and Gloria Walker must have sure gotten around. I saw her name in a lot of articles. Minnesota Fats seemed to be in full bloom, traveling the country, and there were many Minnesota Fats articles, much more than Willie Mosconi. People seemed to love Fats.

Fats hustled Johnny Carson out of a dollar on National TV, as depicted below. What a shooter, what a guy!

 

[JAM]

And Muhammed Ali recognized Fats was "The Greatest" at boasting! :grin-square:

EDITED: This photo was taken in Chicago in 1961. Fats and Muhammed Ali engaged in a debate on national TV, and after a back-and-forth between the two, Muhammed Ali soon conceded that Minnesota Fats was "The Greatest."

 

[JimS]

JAM... where can a guy get a copy of that photo with Ali and Fats? I gotta have that.

 

[JAM]

JAM... where can a guy get a copy of that photo with Ali and Fats? I gotta have that.

I found it in Googling searches. It is very cool. If I can find its origin, I will definitely let you know.

I wonder who has possession of all the photographs from The National Billiard News. They had some very unique photos in those newspapers. Priceless!

 

[TorranceChris]

.. Keith McCready and I just watched it a couple of times, trying to identify some of the players. Keith thinks that he is at Counter 2:41. :grin-square:

Hey JAM, that's gotta be Keith at 0:29 seconds. Look at how he put his hand on his waist like he does in TCOM and various times I have seen him play. Funny how some mannerisms stand out! :grin:

 

[Eieio59]

I haven't watched the video just yet, but I'm quite sure that the "Hi, Pat" references you guys are talking about are to Pat (I'll remember last name in a bit) but he used to work at Greenway for many years and was a good friend to Dot. He wasn't one of the greater players but was always around, working and doing a little gambling. I'm sure that Dennis "Oil Can" Hudson is in there somewhere also.....

I'm gonna pull up a chair, relax for a bit and stroll down memory lane because I cut my teeth in that pool room and it was there that I got my first glimpse of all the greats! I do mean all of them cuz everybody came to Greenway in those years.

And yes, Jamie did "live" there for many years..... JD from the Rack used to let him come in and play in the bar tournaments even before he was of age... and of age back then was 18. He used to torture all of those bar tournaments and then when he was old enough to head to Greenway....a whole new world opened up to him and he never looked back. Great Player. His Dad, Harry was there too...... pretty good player in his own right. We see him at Derby City each year - and hopefully this year too.

The Southern Open tournaments were very popular..............

Tammie Wesley-Jones

 

[androd]

I'm pretty sure that the years are correct. I moved down to Baton Rouge in 1977 and the tournaments occurred about a year after I got there. Grady talks about it in his book "Bet High and Kiss Low" and I believe he even specified the years. It was also the first time I ever saw Keith and people were saying he was a favorite to win. I seemed to remember someone saying that Keith was only 19 or 20 years old. After I heard he was the favorite I started sweating his matches, he played absolutely fearless. The tournament was set up by Buddy Bonacaze (sp). There was an empty store right next to the pool room. They rented it and made a doorway in the wall going from Greenway to the tournament room. Greenway served as the "Green Room". I can still remember a lot of the people that were there. Mizerak, Handsome Danny Jones, Buddy Hall, Grady, Larry Hubbart, Flyboy,Mike Siegel the list goes on and on. I finally remembered who won it in addition to David Howard, it was Jerry Brock. I can't remember what the payout for first and second was but Dan Louie got a thousand for third place. I have looked high and wide for any information about the tournament for years as I wanted to see a players list. I couldn't find anything at all. All I know is that the Tournament was called the Southern Open and it was set up rather quickly if I remember correctly. Somewhere out there someone has that information. You would think that a gathering of players of that caliber would warrant some sort of documentation.

Lunchmoney

I believe your correct about 1978, I was there but my memory is a little foggy. I don't remember Danny Jones there. Ronnie Allen, Gene the Machine, Popcorn, Mike Akins, Duke Dowell, Fat Randy and many players from the south and southwest. Jerry brock won from the losers side, he beat Keith 11/10 twice as I remember it. Keith had been up about 5 days.
Mizerak put on one of the two best exibitions I've seen. It was a flea market ( big metallic building )next door to Greenway that was used for the tournament, someone said Lambert and his partner arranged to lease it for one month each year.

 

[Eieio59]

I haven't watched the video just yet, but I'm quite sure that the "Hi, Pat" references you guys are talking about are to Pat (I'll remember last name in a bit) but he used to work at Greenway for many years and was a good friend to Dot. He wasn't one of the greater players but was always around, working and doing a little gambling. I'm sure that Dennis "Oil Can" Hudson is in there somewhere also.....

I'm gonna pull up a chair, relax for a bit and stroll down memory lane because I cut my teeth in that pool room and it was there that I got my first glimpse of all the greats! I do mean all of them cuz everybody came to Greenway in those years.

And yes, Jamie did "live" there for many years..... JD from the Rack used to let him come in and play in the bar tournaments even before he was of age... and of age back then was 18. He used to torture all of those bar tournaments and then when he was old enough to head to Greenway....a whole new world opened up to him and he never looked back. Great Player. His Dad, Harry was there too...... pretty good player in his own right. We see him at Derby City each year - and hopefully this year too.

The Southern Open tournaments were very popular..............

Tammie Wesley-Jones

OK, I got a look at it and the Pat that she was talking to apparently wasn't the Pat I was thinking...... Pat Bruner was his name and I didn't see him.

Toward the end there is a heavy fellow on the right of the screen....he was a local stake horse......he was killed years later in a horrible car accident. The older gentleman and his wife (she is prominent in the video for a few seconds) were also local - I'm thinking her name was Doris... I believe he was Earl. I also think I got a glimpse of another local - Jimmy Doucet. I believe he died back in the mid 90's. Jimmy Wax was great with the trick shots but was a pretty decent player too. His daughter was married to Jeff Padilla and Jeff's Dad, Jesse and Lambert were great friends. Jesse was a great player and super knowledgeable. I'm gonna take another look through the video and see who else I can spot.....

This is so cool.

Tammie Wesley-Jones

 

[hemicudas]

OK, I got a look at it and the Pat that she was talking to apparently wasn't the Pat I was thinking...... Pat Bruner was his name and I didn't see him.

Toward the end there is a heavy fellow on the right of the screen....he was a local stake horse......he was killed years later in a horrible car accident. The older gentleman and his wife (she is prominent in the video for a few seconds) were also local - I'm thinking her name was Doris... I believe he was Earl. I also think I got a glimpse of another local - Jimmy Doucet. I believe he died back in the mid 90's. Jimmy Wax was great with the trick shots but was a pretty decent player too. His daughter was married to Jeff Padilla and Jeff's Dad, Jesse and Lambert were great friends. Jesse was a great player and super knowledgeable. I'm gonna take another look through the video and see who else I can spot.....

This is so cool.

Tammie Wesley-Jones

You are right, Tammie, it is cool. As hard as I look I still haven't seen Shorty. Shorty used to be at everything the Greenway had going. He and I butted heads many times. This is also around the time Bob Dancer was living in BR and I didn't see him either.

 

[lunchmoney]

I believe your correct about 1978, I was there but my memory is a little foggy. I don't remember Danny Jones there. Ronnie Allen, Gene the Machine, Popcorn, Mike Akins, Duke Dowell, Fat Randy and many players from the south and southwest. Jerry brock won from the losers side, he beat Keith 11/10 twice as I remember it. Keith had been up about 5 days.
Mizerak put on one of the two best exibitions I've seen. It was a flea market ( big metallic building )next door to Greenway that was used for the tournament, someone said Lambert and his partner arranged to lease it for one month each year.

I don't thnik that Danny played in the tournament but he was there.In a match between Larry Hubbart and Buddy Hall, Danny stood up in the bleachers and yelled to Buddy to "Send that Yankee back to New York Buddy Hall".

Lunchmoney

 

[Tbeaux]

It turns out the video may be from 1978. I spotted Jamie Farrel eating and talked to $Bill about it and he is doing some checking to confirm the date but the people he knows say 1978. I believe it was during the Southern Open Tournament. I was there but can't seem to find me anywhere. There is also a shot of Lambert behind the counter.

Lunchmoney

Glad I found this old thread. I think you are right about it being 1978 (maybe later even). I don't think they had that noisey video game in there in 73. Hard to tell from the vid quality but I'm positive and my mother who was also watching it believe Eieio59 (Tammy) is right. The guy doing trick shots is Jimmy Wax. Edit: just finished reading the whole thread it is Mr. Jimmy. Recognize a few faces from being a kid hanging around in those days. I met Mr. Jimmy sometime in 1961 or 62....just after I was born. Heard his daughter Jennalie did marry a Padilla. His son Jamie is active in the theater here.

Very cool video!:thumbup:

 

[grindz]

Yes, I did stake Danny a couple of times in the payball games, Lunch, but I was not at this tournament and I didn't see Danny in the video. I am still working on editing the video. I will have the rest uploaded shortly and will post it...... One question for you old guys. What was/is Bucky Bell's real first name? Could it have been Johnny or did he go by that name? I am told the guy Lambert is handing the money to and that won the tournament is Johnny Bell. Also, I do not know what Bucky Bell looks like. Could it be the same guy? Jay is right, it is Larry Hubbart.

I never heard of Bucky being called anything else, and I think he was MUCH older than that guy in the video at that time. I was just old enough to vote back then, and he seemed to be old as the hills when I met him....
but you know how age distorts perception.

td