Keith McCready Alive and Kickin'

[jazznpool]

Reminds me very much of an AzBilliards "regular" who made a big chunk of cheese off of unsuspecting consumers.

So many characters back in the day! Keith said there were a "couple of Mercedes Daves. He asked me to ask you if the last name of your Mercedes Dave was "Hershey Corn" (phonetic).

The news anchor on the Johnston City news reel video clip is from Chicago local News 5 with Dick Kay occurred in 1972. I loved the broadcaster's deep voice narrating all the the festivities and the brief snippets of the attendees, showing the cash moving back and forth between hands. The news anchor speaks about the man in the python shoes, none other than Minnesota Fats, and my favorite line is underlined below. Everybody's got a little larceny in them, whether it's hustling pool, avoiding taxes, creative tax deductions, fibbing on a CV, et cetera.

Then there's the King of the Hustlers, Minnesota Fats, who helped put the Johnston City tournament together. Fats lives about 12 miles from the show bar, but he never plays in the tournament. He waits for someone to win the $20,000 prize money and then shoots them for the cash. That's his hustle, but according to Fats, everybody's got one.

Yep, it was Dave Hersecorn (not sure of the spelling). I think Keith used to call him Hershey Corn sometimes. Lol. When I left that scene, I thought the entrance to Hell was located in Orange County!

After not seeing him for many moons, Dave make a comeback of sorts at Hardtimes circa 2007. I sold him a nice cue. A few years later when he died, his son had me sell it for him.

 

[straightline]

I think that was the Palace that Morgan owned. He was a golf player on the 6x12. It was where Jack in the Box is now I think.

I remember Morgan from the upstairs Palace; always golfing. They said he was a trucker. Didn't know he owned it. Anyway the first HT I know of was in OC. So technically Big HT is #2 and Sacramento is actually #3.

 

[tableroll]

I wouldn’t worry about old age, it doesn’t last long

Time and old age are like a roll of toilet paper. The closer you get to the end, the faster it goes.

 

[tableroll]

I think it was the magnitude of his ups and downs that made his story so important to tell. Everybody knows that he was a legendary talent at the pooltable and everybody knows that he had many demons to overcome, the kind some never manage to overcome. For many like me, learning that he has managed to find such a stable and tranquil life is inspirational, and the role you played in making that happen is a story well told.

Wish there was a link to read the article. Sound like a great read.

 

[jazznpool]

Wish there was a link to read the article. Sound like a great read.

Post #9.

 

[Gonzo09]

May I suggest listening to the "Legends of the Cue" podcast.
There is a four part interview with Keith that Keith fans will greatly enjoy.

Here is part one:

Keith McCready - Part 1 (The Early Hustle: From Elmhurst to El D…

In this first installment of our Legends of the Cue four-part series, hosts Mike Gonzalez, Allison Fisher, and Mark Wilson sit down with one of pool’s most electrif…

www.legendsofthecue.com

Thanks for sharing this!

 

[Gonzo09]

Listening to the podcasts posted above, 4 part interview. Great stuff!

So glad you enjoyed listening!

 

[Taxi]

My copy of BD showed up about a week late, and on the cover Keith's age was listed at 74! I wonder how many copies of this went out before it got corrected. The image on the BD website had it right.