Thanks, Rob, I'll read it when I get home later this afternoon.
It's a really informative magazine and I'll try to get them to send it down here to Dallas/Ft. Worth......Play Well
Looking Back on Billiards - Was the $1,000,000 Challenge Pro Pool's BIG Chance???
- Thread starter CJ Wiley
- Start date
Thanks, Rob, I'll read it when I get home later this afternoon.
It's a really informative magazine and I'll try to get them to send it down here to Dallas/Ft. Worth......Play Well
Hmmm. HBO Sports. While it wouldn't necessarily be my cup of tea, I could see someone like HBO putting together a REAL POOL SHOW. Put twenty guys in a room, they all get so much money and only one person gets to leave with the cash. No holds barred. All woofing is allowed (minus ridiculous sharking tactics). The players have to make the games. If any funny business happens players wouldn't be invited back.
You could have a whole host of characters on the show -- bangers and champions a like.
Having it on a premium channel would remove the need to censure anything out.
I think this format could be interesting -- watching the process of matching up and then showing a few of the exciting racks. The format would work well for one-pocket. You could just explain the game to the viewers and then show the exciting portions of the racks. Mix in some 9 and 10 ball and some bank pool for good measure.
Keep it raw and real.
I showed up the next day after Earl ran those racks. As I walked in there was a girl selling pictures someone had took of Earl shooting the combo for a million dollars. I bought it for 10 bucks. Got in the long line to have him sign the picture I had just bought. When i handed it to him, he started waving it and yelling "Who has these pictures?" The girl came over, and he started showing the people how difficult that last combo was. To know that I have the ACTUAL million dollar shot is pretty cool. Still today it hangs on my wall in my gameroom.
Jimmy Rempe showed him how to make the bridge he used.....it prevents the hands.....
That is cool, under the circumstances it's a very difficult shot. Earl told me when interviewed for the documentary that Jimmy Rempe showed him how to make the bridge he used.....it prevents the hands from shaking.
You better hang on to the picture, it's a "keeper".
That is cool, under the circumstances it's a very difficult shot. Earl told me when interviewed for the documentary that Jimmy Rempe showed him how to make the bridge he used.....it prevents the hands from shaking.
You better hang on to the picture, it's a "keeper".
Shane is like Tiger Woods?
Shane is like Tiger Woods? That's quite a stretch, and a funny combination to think about.
Shane is like Tiger Woods? That's quite a stretch, and a funny combination to think about.
CJ your memory is going...just kidding...but
They didn't start filming Casino until very late 1994/early 1995! No way Joe Pesci was in Vegas for filming in 1992.
I played in the 'Challenge of Champions' the following year and everything was ok in Vegas. We stayed at the Mirage (where the tournament was played) and got to play Steve Winn's private golf course (Shadow Creek is a 60 Million Dollar Golf Resort outside of Vegas....EVERY hole has trees, flowers, grass, etc. from a different country).
The line on me that year was 5/2, but I didn't bet anything on myself, and (just for the record) didn't bet on any other player either. I rarely bet on or against players in tournaments and the number of times I've made "savers" is very, very, low.
After the round of golf Johnny Archer, Earl Strickland, Allen Hopkins and myself went in to the club house and had some snacks/drinks.....Joe Pesci came in and joined us, come to find out Allen Hopkins and Joe used to frequent the same pool room in Jersey. We talked to Joe for about 45 Minutes, he was there filming some movie called 'Casino'.....I think it was a pretty good movie from what I've heard.Joe was an incredibly "down to earth guy"....it would be impossible to tell he's not just a normal "working stiff".
There may have been "savers" made in the $50,000 "Winner Take All" Tournament, but I don't know that for certain. I do know when I played there were no "savers," or at least not with me - it's impossible to know for sure what other people do, and anyone that guesses is usually wrong.
Mike Lebron is one of the best players of that era and also the one that told me the Filipinos were using this thing called 'The Touch of Inside"......he used it too, and if you watch the match with Buddy he misses a few shots by overcutting them, and if you look really close you'll see it was because he used TOO MUCH TOI (especially under pressure if you miss it will ALWAYS be to the "over cut" side of the pocket)......'The Game is the Teacher'
They didn't start filming Casino until very late 1994/early 1995! No way Joe Pesci was in Vegas for filming in 1992.
I think the most stable, reputable and feels just about right way to go about getting billiards back into the mainstream is to get behind the effort to have Cue Sports recognized by the International Olympic Committee and put into the Olympics. I mean come on.... synchronized swimming is recognized, yet billiards is not, WTF is wrong with this picture?
Please refer to the following:
http://billiards.about.com/od/poolhistoryfiction/a/poololympics.htm
There does seem to be an effort to advance the recognition of Cue Sports into the Olympics, but if you read the above link, you will see what obstacles lay ahead of us for this to happen.
So what do you think? Is this a good step on the path to greatness for Cue Sports?
Lesh
Please refer to the following:
http://billiards.about.com/od/poolhistoryfiction/a/poololympics.htm
There does seem to be an effort to advance the recognition of Cue Sports into the Olympics, but if you read the above link, you will see what obstacles lay ahead of us for this to happen.
So what do you think? Is this a good step on the path to greatness for Cue Sports?
Lesh
Even with all the hype and a TV broadcast on NBC Sports Network (then known as Versus), the $500,000 won by Efren at IPT Reno and the $350,000 won by Thorsten Hohmann at IPT Las Vegas wowed few. Similarly, a highly promoted "Battle of the Sexes" match between Sigel and Loree Jon in which numerous celebrities attended the Las Vegas spectacle in sparkling attire with $150,000 to the winner also was under the radar.
There's ample evidence that it takes more than big payouts to get the public's attention. Of course, when a nobody wins, that's different. Poker was not on anybody's map until Chris Moneymaker, an obscure amateur with an almost unimprovable name, won a couple of million. Moneymaker essentially hit the lottery, and people enjoy lottery-type stories. The TV show "Survivor" rode a similar wave when it's champion made $1,000,000. In each instance, the average Joe could imagine having won that same prize.
Hence, my inclination is to say "no, the million dollar challenge wasn't pool's big chance." Of course, maybe I'm wrong. Perhaps if the right spin had been put on it, Earl's accomplishment would have lured many to our sport.
It's not the easiest question to answer, but I think CJ is right to be asking it, for analysis of a historic moment in pool can help point the way forward.
Excellent thread.
There's ample evidence that it takes more than big payouts to get the public's attention. Of course, when a nobody wins, that's different. Poker was not on anybody's map until Chris Moneymaker, an obscure amateur with an almost unimprovable name, won a couple of million. Moneymaker essentially hit the lottery, and people enjoy lottery-type stories. The TV show "Survivor" rode a similar wave when it's champion made $1,000,000. In each instance, the average Joe could imagine having won that same prize.
Hence, my inclination is to say "no, the million dollar challenge wasn't pool's big chance." Of course, maybe I'm wrong. Perhaps if the right spin had been put on it, Earl's accomplishment would have lured many to our sport.
It's not the easiest question to answer, but I think CJ is right to be asking it, for analysis of a historic moment in pool can help point the way forward.
Excellent thread.
I played in the 'Challenge of Champions' the following year
That's why I started the post by stating it was the following year (it could have been 94, I'd have to check).....I didn't play in 1992, that's the year that Buddy beat Mike Lebron.
They continued to book the Challenge of Champions after 1992, I could have bet on my chances to win, and declined (I have never bet on any of my matches in tournaments).
That's why I started the post by stating it was the following year (it could have been 94, I'd have to check).....I didn't play in 1992, that's the year that Buddy beat Mike Lebron.
They continued to book the Challenge of Champions after 1992, I could have bet on my chances to win, and declined (I have never bet on any of my matches in tournaments).
even if the odds are 7.8 Million to 1 AGAINST me succeeding it may happen.
I've stated the results from our "Think Tank" many times in the past. According to your research the amount of money doesn't matter unless there's an emotional attachment created between the audience and the players.
This is part of the "Magic Bullet" that we have discovered after many years......it's exciting to know that there is a way to make pool entertaining and popular to a viewing audience. "IF" and "WHEN" this happens is out of my control.....after the Million Dollar Challenge I "Real Eyes" that even if the odds are 7.8 Million to 1 AGAINST me succeeding it may happen......it did on April 10, 1996.....will it happen again??? Only time will tell. 'The Game is the Teacher'
I've stated the results from our "Think Tank" many times in the past. According to your research the amount of money doesn't matter unless there's an emotional attachment created between the audience and the players.
This is part of the "Magic Bullet" that we have discovered after many years......it's exciting to know that there is a way to make pool entertaining and popular to a viewing audience. "IF" and "WHEN" this happens is out of my control.....after the Million Dollar Challenge I "Real Eyes" that even if the odds are 7.8 Million to 1 AGAINST me succeeding it may happen......it did on April 10, 1996.....will it happen again??? Only time will tell.
'The Game is the Teacher'
the billiard den carries the rackem and i picked up a copy this past weekend at rustys in Arlington. fyi
Yes, the emotional attachment is the key, and as you note, it may be possible to create it in pool.
Was the $1,000,000 Challenge Pro Pool's BIG Chance???
No, after it was done (regardless of the legal battles), there was ZERO major media coverage.
No, after it was done (regardless of the legal battles), there was ZERO major media coverage.
.'The Game works {and plays} in mysterious ways
Ironically, I believe we "accidently" figured out how to create this emotional attachment and that will be an interesting story at some point - the odds of this happening were not 7.8 million to 1, so it's still not as incredible as running 10 racks in a row.
Without everyone's input on this Forum this wouldn't have been possible..... the key is to showcase how it was originally meant to be played and emphasise the true competitive nature of the Game.....while simultaneously developing the personalities systematically, much like Minnesota Fats and Mosconi did years ago. 'The Game is the Teacher'
Ironically, I believe we "accidently" figured out how to create this emotional attachment and that will be an interesting story at some point - the odds of this happening were not 7.8 million to 1, so it's still not as incredible as running 10 racks in a row.
Without everyone's input on this Forum this wouldn't have been possible..... the key is to showcase how it was originally meant to be played and emphasise the true competitive nature of the Game.....while simultaneously developing the personalities systematically, much like Minnesota Fats and Mosconi did years ago. 'The Game is the Teacher'
Sounds like 'The Sopranos' meets 'Breaking Bad'
Sounds like 'The Sopranos' meets 'Breaking Bad' :groucho:
Actually, I think you're exaggerating, if they were that bad they'd already be making millions off a 'Reality TV Shot". LoL
Sounds like 'The Sopranos' meets 'Breaking Bad' :groucho:
Actually, I think you're exaggerating, if they were that bad they'd already be making millions off a 'Reality TV Shot". LoL
The PCA still did 4 years on ESPN and went out to tens of millions on ESPN TV
I was actually referring the the Million Dollar Challenge Tour which was going to 12 cities with ALL events televised. The PCA still did 4 years on ESPN and went out to tens of millions of people with the ESPN World Open, The Battle of the Sexes, The World Mixed Doubles and the Ultimate Pool Championships.
This was certainly MAJOR media coverage. We also had TV interviews in many other various media sources, print and TV.
I was actually referring the the Million Dollar Challenge Tour which was going to 12 cities with ALL events televised. The PCA still did 4 years on ESPN and went out to tens of millions of people with the ESPN World Open, The Battle of the Sexes, The World Mixed Doubles and the Ultimate Pool Championships.
This was certainly MAJOR media coverage. We also had TV interviews in many other various media sources, print and TV.
Hindsight is always 20/20 and there's no way anyone could have seen this coming....
Yes, indeed, it took over 17 years and many "bumps in the road" before this documentary could be released.......if someone doesn't believe in "miracles" or "fate," they may have a difficult time explaining the year of 1996 in pool.
We were riding the wave of 'The Color of Money' back in the late 80s and early 90s, and anything we did was going to go well.....and that's when the Pros made their epic mistake.
They allowed the rules to be changed to 'One Foul' and did away (slowly but surely) with 'Two Show Shoot Out'.....this is the equivalent of Poker suddenly wanting to change the TV format so you CAN'T see the "hole card".......in both examples it would be devastating to the Game. Only in the case of Pocket Billiards, it really happened and when the "wave" of popularity naturally came down in 1999, so did the entire Game.....and we never thought to change the rules back to how they originally were......the way that created the greatest Game.
Hindsight is always 20/20 and there's no way anyone could have seen this coming....except for {maybe} the 9Ball Game it's self 'The Game is the Teacher'
Yes, indeed, it took over 17 years and many "bumps in the road" before this documentary could be released.......if someone doesn't believe in "miracles" or "fate," they may have a difficult time explaining the year of 1996 in pool.
We were riding the wave of 'The Color of Money' back in the late 80s and early 90s, and anything we did was going to go well.....and that's when the Pros made their epic mistake.
They allowed the rules to be changed to 'One Foul' and did away (slowly but surely) with 'Two Show Shoot Out'.....this is the equivalent of Poker suddenly wanting to change the TV format so you CAN'T see the "hole card".......in both examples it would be devastating to the Game. Only in the case of Pocket Billiards, it really happened and when the "wave" of popularity naturally came down in 1999, so did the entire Game.....and we never thought to change the rules back to how they originally were......the way that created the greatest Game.
Hindsight is always 20/20 and there's no way anyone could have seen this coming....except for {maybe} the 9Ball Game it's self
'The Game is the Teacher'
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