I need a name....???

jay helfert said:
Yeah I think so Jam. It's been so long since I've seen him. I remember a much younger guy. :wink:
Bob was well over 6' tall and had a lanky and angular body, one of those guys who always looked like he was halfway down on the ball. :rolleyes:
P.S. Who's the guy with Bob. He looks kind of familiar. :eek:

P.P.S. I've got a great idea. Make a shirt with Keith's likeness on it (just like in that pic) and simply put ETHER under it. You'll sell a million of 'em!
Click to expand...

That is a great idea: "Keither with the Ether." :grin-square:

Yeah, I remember Bob being extremely tall when I met him. He was kind of a quiet, unassuming man, very polite and nice. :)
 
freddy the beard said:
Geece would certainly qualify otherwise, in pool speed, hustle and personality. Since I am inserting some of your quotes already -- as I have had interaction with you -- What's the problem with you saying a little something about Geese?
Click to expand...

Make sure you spell his name right: Michael "Geese" (nickname "Geese" is with an "s" and not a "c") Gerace.

Here's a little color, and you can use it, I hope.

Geese grew up in Bladensburg, Maryland, at The Golden Cue. This used to be an action stop for road players. George Pappageorge showed Geese the basics of shooting pool when he was just a youngster, which basically was stroking one, two, three times before release and making contact with the cue-ball.

Some of the regulars who would frequent this pool room at the time were
Strawberry, Bus Driver Ronnie, Tom-Tom Wirth, Korean Lee, Left-Handed Ronnie,Quick Vic, Bobby Hawk, Scotty and Freddie Boggs, and Cigar Tom Hanover. Jack Cooney's old lady was shot in this pool room when she refused to give a robber the stake money. She survied.

How did he get the name "Geese"? One day somebody was writing the names of tournament players on a chart and left out the "a" in his last name "Gerace" and wrote "Geace." The name "Geese" stuck ever since.

Geese's claim to fame in the history books was that he came third at the young age of 19 in a Johnson City tournament which had a very strong player roster. Instead of embarking on the tournament trail with his God-given talent, Geese enjoyed being on the road and traveled all over the country, which was very popular during the late '70s and early '80s in the United States.

Geese was Italian. His father was a self-made man and made the best meatballs and tomato sauce I've ever had in my life, even to this day. He was the youngest of two boys. His mother loved Geese with all her heart and looked out for him always, even in his darkest hour, as a mother would. She did not have an easy life. Geese and his father both did have that Italian temper at times.

He lived in California for a while and hooked up with a side-armed pool player and competed with the best in California during this era: Cole Dixon, Billy Incardona, Larry Liscotti, Little Al, Wade Crane, Richie Florence, and Ronnie Allen. I don't know how Geese picked up his one-handed game, but he could draw his rock one-handed without the cue stick ever touching the table.

Geese was known as a strong one-pocket player. I've had the pleasure of seeing him in action and compete in a few tournaments. He devoted his life to playing pool, and his parents supported him in this endeavor. Yep, Geese was a road agent in every sense of the word.

Whenever he would walk into a pool room, the whole place would light up. His very presence would bring smiles and laughter in the crowd because they knew if Geese was going to play, it was going to be a good time for all. He was a born entertainer and enjoyed a huge following.

During one of his road trips in the South, Louisiana I believe, he was battling it out with a local for some big bucks in a pool room that was held up by some unscrupulous bandits. They made everybody in the pool room strip down naked and robbed the place. Geese was beaten up very badly, so bad that his older brother had to fly down to Louisiana to bring his younger brother back home to stay in a hospital for a spell. Geese never recovered from this beating and was haunted by it and required medical assistance for the rest of his life. He went through shock treatments in an effort to get better, but this experience haunted him. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Geese, who hailed from Maryland, moved to the Tampa, Florida, with his mother after his dad passed away. Having no "friends" in this area, his life consisted of going to the dog track and playing in a couple of local tourneys from time to time. He called Maryland, local pool rooms and a few friends including me, just about every day to keep up with the
happenings. He missed home, which for him was Maryland.

When Geese would beat a guy out of his dust, he would always give the defeated pool player a 10-percent bone of his winnings. His reasoning is: "You never want to leave a pool player busted or broke." That's the kind of guy he was.

When he was diagnosed with cancer, he retreated into a pit of despair. He was only 54 when he passed. He was a heavy smoker, and his cigarette of choice when I knew him was Lucky Strikes without the filters.
I write this post as a tribute to my friend, Geese, a great pool player who devoted his life to playing pool. His contributions to the sport may be miniscule some may say, but he will always be a shining star to all who know him.

Geese in the upper right-hand corner with the blond. :smile:
 

Attachments

  • mdstatetourney[1].JPG
    mdstatetourney[1].JPG
    37.3 KB · Views: 414
Last edited:
My Grandpa Charles Eberle was one of the best hustlers who ever lived.

Fed his family traveling the country and hustling in the Great Depression and sending the money home to the wife and kids... could run 100's and 15 ball rotation like water. Cue ball like Buddy Hall.

He died when he was 94... broke and ran 3 racks of 9-Ball on a 9-foot table when he was 83... after not touching a cue in months.

That was my grandpa! :)
 
maxeberle said:
My Grandpa Charles Eberle was one of the best hustlers who ever lived.

Fed his family traveling the country and hustling in the Great Depression and sending the money home to the wife and kids... could run 100's and 15 ball rotation like water. Cue ball like Buddy Hall.

He died when he was 94... broke and ran 3 racks of 9-Ball on a 9-foot table when he was 83... after not touching a cue in months.

That was my grandpa! :)
Click to expand...

I want to see a picture of your grandpa. There's been a few guys I ran into that I never knew their name. One was an older guy who came to the Michigan State Fairgrounds in 1963 and beat some good players. He was maybe in his 50's then and wearing coveralls. I watched him rob Pancho playing 9-Ball. Never saw that guy again and no one knew his name.

There was another guy who came into the Billiard Den in Hollywood back in the late 60's. He was a nice looking blonde haired young man who said he worked for the studios. He beat some good players and never came in again.

This is a big country and it was full of good players once upon a time, many of them unknowns. Very few people knew Keith Thompson when he won in Johnston City. :wink:
 
JAM said:
Make sure you spell his name right: Michael "Geese" (nickname "Geese" is with an "s" and not a "c") Gerace.

Here's a little color, and you can use it, I hope.

Geese grew up in Bladensburg, Maryland, at The Golden Cue. This used to be an action stop for road players. George Pappageorge showed Geese the basics of shooting pool when he was just a youngster, which basically was stroking one, two, three times before release and making contact with the cue-ball.

Some of the regulars who would frequent this pool room at the time were
Strawberry, Bus Driver Ronnie, Tom-Tom Wirth, Korean Lee, Left-Handed Ronnie,Quick Vic, Bobby Hawk, Scotty and Freddie Boggs, and Cigar Tom Hanover. Jack Cooney's old lady was shot in this pool room when she refused to give a robber the stake money. She survied.

How did he get the name "Geese"? One day somebody was writing the names of tournament players on a chart and left out the "a" in his last name "Gerace" and wrote "Geace." The name "Geese" stuck ever since.

Geese's claim to fame in the history books was that he came third at the young age of 19 in a Johnson City tournament which had a very strong player roster. Instead of embarking on the tournament trail with his God-given talent, Geese enjoyed being on the road and traveled all over the country, which was very popular during the late '70s and early '80s in the United States.

Geese was Italian. His father was a self-made man and made the best meatballs and tomato sauce I've ever had in my life, even to this day. He was the youngest of two boys. His mother loved Geese with all her heart and looked out for him always, even in his darkest hour, as a mother would. She did not have an easy life. Geese and his father both did have that Italian temper at times.

He lived in California for a while and hooked up with a side-armed pool player and competed with the best in California during this era: Cole Dixon, Billy Incardona, Larry Liscotti, Little Al, Wade Crane, Richie Florence, and Ronnie Allen. I don't know how Geese picked up his one-handed game, but he could draw his rock one-handed without the cue stick ever touching the table.

Geese was known as a strong one-pocket player. I've had the pleasure of seeing him in action and compete in a few tournaments. He devoted his life to playing pool, and his parents supported him in this endeavor. Yep, Geese was a road agent in every sense of the word.

Whenever he would walk into a pool room, the whole place would light up. His very presence would bring smiles and laughter in the crowd because they knew if Geese was going to play, it was going to be a good time for all. He was a born entertainer and enjoyed a huge following.

During one of his road trips in the South, Louisiana I believe, he was battling it out with a local for some big bucks in a pool room that was held up by some unscrupulous bandits. They made everybody in the pool room strip down naked and robbed the place. Geese was beaten up very badly, so bad that his older brother had to fly down to Louisiana to bring his younger brother back home to stay in a hospital for a spell. Geese never recovered from this beating and was haunted by it and required medical assistance for the rest of his life. He went through shock treatments in an effort to get better, but this experience haunted him. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Geese, who hailed from Maryland, moved to the Tampa, Florida, with his mother after his dad passed away. Having no "friends" in this area, his life consisted of going to the dog track and playing in a couple of local tourneys from time to time. He called Maryland, local pool rooms and a few friends including me, just about every day to keep up with the
happenings. He missed home, which for him was Maryland.

When Geese would beat a guy out of his dust, he would always give the defeated pool player a 10-percent bone of his winnings. His reasoning is: "You never want to leave a pool player busted or broke." That's the kind of guy he was.

When he was diagnosed with cancer, he retreated into a pit of despair. He was only 54 when he passed. He was a heavy smoker, and his cigarette of choice when I knew him was Lucky Strikes without the filters.
I write this post as a tribute to my friend, Geese, a great pool player who devoted his life to playing pool. His contributions to the sport may be miniscule some may say, but he will always be a shining star to all who know him.

Geese in the upper right-hand corner with the blond. :smile:
Click to expand...

I knew Geese and he was a fun guy to be around. His 9-Ball game was only average, maybe shortstop speed but he played high level One Pocket. I always wondered what happened to him, he just disappeared from the pool scene. And then one day I heard he was gone and I knew he wasn't that old. Thanks for filling me in.
 
JAM said:
Make sure you spell his name right: Michael "Geese" (nickname "Geese" is with an "s" and not a "c") Gerace.

Here's a little color, and you can use it, I hope.

Geese grew up in Bladensburg, Maryland, at The Golden Cue. This used to be an action stop for road players. George Pappageorge showed Geese the basics of shooting pool when he was just a youngster, which basically was stroking one, two, three times before release and making contact with the cue-ball.

Some of the regulars who would frequent this pool room at the time were
Strawberry, Bus Driver Ronnie, Tom-Tom Wirth, Korean Lee, Left-Handed Ronnie,Quick Vic, Bobby Hawk, Scotty and Freddie Boggs, and Cigar Tom Hanover. Jack Cooney's old lady was shot in this pool room when she refused to give a robber the stake money. She survied.

How did he get the name "Geese"? One day somebody was writing the names of tournament players on a chart and left out the "a" in his last name "Gerace" and wrote "Geace." The name "Geese" stuck ever since.

Geese's claim to fame in the history books was that he came third at the young age of 19 in a Johnson City tournament which had a very strong player roster. Instead of embarking on the tournament trail with his God-given talent, Geese enjoyed being on the road and traveled all over the country, which was very popular during the late '70s and early '80s in the United States.

Geese was Italian. His father was a self-made man and made the best meatballs and tomato sauce I've ever had in my life, even to this day. He was the youngest of two boys. His mother loved Geese with all her heart and looked out for him always, even in his darkest hour, as a mother would. She did not have an easy life. Geese and his father both did have that Italian temper at times.

He lived in California for a while and hooked up with a side-armed pool player and competed with the best in California during this era: Cole Dixon, Billy Incardona, Larry Liscotti, Little Al, Wade Crane, Richie Florence, and Ronnie Allen. I don't know how Geese picked up his one-handed game, but he could draw his rock one-handed without the cue stick ever touching the table.

Geese was known as a strong one-pocket player. I've had the pleasure of seeing him in action and compete in a few tournaments. He devoted his life to playing pool, and his parents supported him in this endeavor. Yep, Geese was a road agent in every sense of the word.

Whenever he would walk into a pool room, the whole place would light up. His very presence would bring smiles and laughter in the crowd because they knew if Geese was going to play, it was going to be a good time for all. He was a born entertainer and enjoyed a huge following.

During one of his road trips in the South, Louisiana I believe, he was battling it out with a local for some big bucks in a pool room that was held up by some unscrupulous bandits. They made everybody in the pool room strip down naked and robbed the place. Geese was beaten up very badly, so bad that his older brother had to fly down to Louisiana to bring his younger brother back home to stay in a hospital for a spell. Geese never recovered from this beating and was haunted by it and required medical assistance for the rest of his life. He went through shock treatments in an effort to get better, but this experience haunted him. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Geese, who hailed from Maryland, moved to the Tampa, Florida, with his mother after his dad passed away. Having no "friends" in this area, his life consisted of going to the dog track and playing in a couple of local tourneys from time to time. He called Maryland, local pool rooms and a few friends including me, just about every day to keep up with the
happenings. He missed home, which for him was Maryland.

When Geese would beat a guy out of his dust, he would always give the defeated pool player a 10-percent bone of his winnings. His reasoning is: "You never want to leave a pool player busted or broke." That's the kind of guy he was.

When he was diagnosed with cancer, he retreated into a pit of despair. He was only 54 when he passed. He was a heavy smoker, and his cigarette of choice when I knew him was Lucky Strikes without the filters.
I write this post as a tribute to my friend, Geese, a great pool player who devoted his life to playing pool. His contributions to the sport may be miniscule some may say, but he will always be a shining star to all who know him.

Geese in the upper right-hand corner with the blond. :smile:
Click to expand...

Now that wasnt so hard was it? Coupla edits. They must have left the "r" out of his name not the "a." You didnt mention and I will, that Geese was in the Popcorn John Miller stable in LA. A good size contingent was present with him at Johnston City the year he played.
Who is the blonde? JK, JK

Beard
 
maxeberle said:
My Grandpa Charles Eberle was one of the best hustlers who ever lived.

Fed his family traveling the country and hustling in the Great Depression and sending the money home to the wife and kids... could run 100's and 15 ball rotation like water. Cue ball like Buddy Hall.

He died when he was 94... broke and ran 3 racks of 9-Ball on a 9-foot table when he was 83... after not touching a cue in months.

That was my grandpa! :)
Click to expand...

Didnt know your gramps, Max. In the 30s, 40s and 50s everybody tried to stay undercover.

Beard
 
Here are a couple of short excerpt from my upcoming book, The Encyclopedia of Pool Hustlers that I had originally posted up in the Bank Pool Hall of Fame thread on Onepocket.org.

Mexican Johnny Vasquez, Big Head

We used to call him Big Head back in Chicago -- and his head was very big. If you filled it with quarters you could have retired. He was one of my first pool heroes and a Chicago legend for 20 years. He was a tireless competitor, and he probably hustled every single day of his life. He deserves a nomination for the Bank or One-pocket Hall of Fame, and that is for sure.

Before Bugs hit his peak, Johnny was the big gun in Chicago. Along with a great bar pool game, he played very strong Banks, One-pocket, and Nine-ball especially on the 5 x 10’s. All of the bar pool champs that came to Chicago had to go through Johnny. He had a frightening free-stroke that was very intimidating to his opponents.

Romberg Kenny Remus

I attended his funeral. We all called him Romberg or Romboogie. He was certainly not Jewish. He was a top young player who was on the improve until he was tragically killed. In Chicago he did not play as good as Artie Bodendorfer or Bugs Rucker, but who did?
At the Rack in Detroit he beat Weenie Beanie out of over 200k and Beanie’s Ford Thunderbird. In my joint, North Shore Billiard Club, he gave Larry Hubbart, one of the head’s of APA, a ball and the break and won easily.
He was a good, well-liked kid, who was murdered by his own partner Mitch, for no apparent reason after a night of smoking free-base. Mitch is now out of jail but no one will have anything to do with him.

Beard
 
Last edited:
jay helfert said:
I knew Geese and he was a fun guy to be around. His 9-Ball game was only average, maybe shortstop speed but he played high level One Pocket. I always wondered what happened to him, he just disappeared from the pool scene. And then one day I heard he was gone and I knew he wasn't that old. Thanks for filling me in.
Click to expand...

For sure, Geese's best game was one-pocket.

I did, however, see him beat Scotty Townsend in Altoona, PA at 9-ball. I didn't know who Scotty Townsend at that time was, though. I just remember the strange alligator boots and long blond hair in a pony tail. Scotty and a backer had come to Altoona looking for action, and a PA stakehorse called Geese up to play. He said he'd give Geese $200, win or lose, so off we went.

It was a tough battle that occurred in a bowling alley on Sunday. Everything else was closed. Geese would win two and lose one, win two and lose one. It was a tough back-and-forth, but thankfully for me, Geese came out on top. It would have been a long way for me to get home. When Geese would lose, one never know what he'd do next. He was very capable of leaving everybody behind.

Geese's 9-ball game wasn't so bad. He won the Maryland State Championship several times, as did Cigar Tom. But I guess on a national scale, his 9-ball game was not up to snuff.

The first time I met Keith McCready, he was with Larry Lisciotti. When they spoke about Geese, Larry called him a "B player." I was totally offended at that time, but after I got to know Keith and went on the tournament trail, seeing players like Keith, Earl, Buddy, Johnny, et cetera, I realized I had never even seen top speed pool before in my life back in Maryland. It's kind of funny how limited one's knowledge is on a regional scale. The first score Keith made playing pool that was five figures, I was totally awestruck. That definitely got my attention. :cool:

That's why when these "Who's the best" threads come up and I see the votes for regional favorites, I understand now much better. How can anybody think a player is not a good as a player in their region if they've never seen that player shoot pool before? As most know, there are no videos, or very few, from the '70s and '80s era. Word of mouth is basically the American pool archives. The print media didn't even provide the dates and venue places sometimes, sad to say. :sorry:
 
Last edited:
freddy the beard said:
Now that wasnt so hard was it? Coupla edits. They must have left the "r" out of his name not the "a."
Click to expand...

I was just seeing if you were paying attention! :grin:

freddy the beard said:
You didnt mention and I will, that Geese was in the Popcorn John Miller stable in LA. A good size contingent was present with him at Johnston City the year he played.
Who is the blonde? JK, JK

Beard
Click to expand...

It was the proudest moment of Geese's life. I can't tell you how many times I heard him say, "I came in third in the word in Johnston City." I didn't even know what "Johnston City" was at the time, but "third in the world" sounded pretty strong to me. You see, I was kind of green back in those days. :embarrassed2:

Never knew Popcorn, but I heard he hit somebody in the face with a sock full of pool balls. He doesn't sound like somebody I'd like to hang out with. :eek:
 
JAM said:
If you're doing pool hustlers, you better not forget Mike "Geese" Gerace from Maryland.

We also have Bus Driver Ronnie, Cigar Tom, Tom-Tom, Strawberry, Sterling, White Max, Danny Green, et cetera, just a few names that come to mind at the time of this writing. :cool:
Click to expand...

Buck Fisher. Did you ever see him play 9 ball in his prime, about 25 years ago? Nobody (local) could beat him. And Paul Buckman was a player, along with Punky Jones who beat Earl twice for big money about 30 years ago. According to Paul Buckman, at one pocket there was Strawberry, then Jackie Robinson (William Morton his real name I think), and then everybody else.. Jackie won the APA 8 ball championship about 10 years back. Then Jerry Nickols (sp?) one of the most feared bar box players (especially playing drunk :eek:) - people from all over the country used to come in town to play him.
 
JAM said:
I was just seeing if you were paying attention! :grin:



It was the proudest moment of Geese's life. I can't tell you how many times I heard him say, "I came in third in the word in Johnston City." I didn't even know what "Johnston City" was at the time, but "third in the world" sounded pretty strong to me. You see, I was kind of green back in those days. :embarrassed2:

Never knew Popcorn, but I heard he hit somebody in the face with a sock full of pool balls. He doesn't sound like somebody I'd like to hang out with. :eek:
Click to expand...

At Detroit's Rack he hit Jimmy the Pug over the head with a sock with a cue ball in it. I happened to be there for the "fun." That is one of the many stories in my book. Jimmy the Pug was begging for it and Popcorn had warned him the day before.

Beard
 
Freddy,

Anything on Buddy Dennis in your book ? ( I did not know, but do now that he was always in the columbia area off and on. Just last week I played a guy some one hole, named Bubba( black guy) in his late 60's. Buddy's name came up and he told me that when effren came through columbia, He played buddy some one hole and buddy had him backing up the whole time. "Man was he a demon" at one hole quote from black Bubba.

Also, Buddy hasn't been in a pool room in 8 months due to taking care of his wife.
 
Freddy, Ronnie Schmuck said Joe's real name was Vincent Petrocelli. He died in Ronnies Poolroom. In The Saddle.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top