Jackie Gleason, Pool player ?

PALMERJOHN

PALMERJOHN

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I know Jackie Gleason the actor, also liked the game of pool. I have heard
that he was pretty good. Is this true
 
According to Willie Mosconi, Gleason was a shortstop. Maybe for Mr. Mosconi everyone was.

I have heard some good stories about Gleasons pool ability. I think he was a very good 14.1 player............SPF=randyg
 
There was a pool room in Bar Harbor, Maine that had a 5x10 pocket table with a plaque that said it was donated by Jackie Gleason. I was in that room in the early 60's and saw it.
 
Not trying to be a jerk here, but there was a pretty extensive thread about this not too long ago.
 
A former night man at McGirr's in NY told me that Gleason, at his best, could run 45 or 50 balls. GF
 
Before the taping of The Hustler, it was said that Paul Newman needed extensive training at the pool table. Gleason needed none.
 
I watched The Hustler on ESPN classic and they had so slight commentary during commercial breaks. Turns out during taping (and really drinking whiskey) Paul Newman woofed up a game, race to 50 for 50 bucks and Gleason ran like 47 and out on him.
 
My grandfather told me of the hollywood types back in the day jackie Gleason was a solid player he was a guest of my grandfather's a couple times and he loved to play straight pool
 
Pool

randyg said:
According to Willie Mosconi, Gleason was a shortstop. Maybe for Mr. Mosconi everyone was.

I have heard some good stories about Gleasons pool ability. I think he was a very good 14.1 player............SPF=randyg
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HE WAS NOT A GOOD PLAYER
 
randyg said:
I have heard some good stories about Gleasons pool ability. I think he was a very good 14.1 player............SPF=randyg
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What do you consider "very good"? I have always heard that Gleason might have run 30 on a good day. That doesn't even put him in Shortstop class.
 
Pushout said:
What do you consider "very good"? I have always heard that Gleason might have run 30 on a good day. That doesn't even put him in Shortstop class.
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That would mean that Gleason played well below Jerry Orbach, who could run about 70 at his best.
 
sjm said:
That would mean that Gleason played well below Jerry Orbach, who could run about 70 at his best.
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I've never heard how well Orbach played but I have heard that Gleason didn't play any where near as well as what a lot of people thought.
 
George Fels said:
A former night man at McGirr's in NY told me that Gleason, at his best, could run 45 or 50 balls. GF
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In my humble opinion, being an old 14.1 player, AND a Jackie Gleason fan, and never attaining good shortstop speed myself, if Gleason could run 45-50 balls on occasion, he was far ahead of the average player. That would constitute an 'A' player in Nine Ball where I come from, and again, not a good shortstop but a very respectable level of play...Tom
 
The old time hustlers said that before Gleason became successful in films and TV, he hung around the pool rooms of New York and hustled pool between auditions. Mosconi was right, Jackie was a shortstop. And by the way, in the movie The Hustler, Gleason shot ALL his own shots. Newman did not.

Just take a good look at Gleason in the movie, good stance, good bridge, good stroke. Tell me he couldn't play!
 
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