Los Angeles area players from the past
- Thread starter jay helfert
- Start date
Check your gmail :wink:
I slept many a time on the bench at the base of that Western Ave entrance. Never had an issue and always felt safe in that poolroom. On the street above, was an entirely different story - LOL
I started going there once and a while around 1956 and played snooker with Sleepy Bob and Fat Bill (With a spot), and with George The Drummer and Fitz. Played Ronnie Allen one handed one red ball snooker when he hung out there.
Lots of memories and stories about my visits to Hollywood Billiards.
Don Percy
Tony Banks
Ken Hoshide
Robin Bell
Ken Thomason
Jerry Decker
Steve Flowers
Carla Johnson
Bill Smith
Don Hensel
Charlie "The Ape" Romano
Dennis Berman
Dickie Renk
Rich Reif
Verne Peterson
Calvin Williams
Jan McWorter
Jerry McWorter
Bob Zelda
Jerry Brunstetter
Cowboy
Mark Tadd
Buttermilk
Larry Bohn
LA Moe
Long Beach Dickie
Kenny Anderson
Dave Moore
Bob Yamasaki
Roy Yamane
Jesse Mojica
Jimmy Van
2 Dollar Don
Little George Tufts
Don Jackson
Ron Sakahara
Jerimiah Johnson
Gary Hutchings
Paul Brienza
Bill Houck
Greg Chick
Frank Robutz
Richard Grenier
Ron Dickie
Ante Rossini
Al Geary
Jimmy South
Hotel Bill
Sweets
Jack Ide
Charlie Brown
Dave "Underdog" Chartier
Tony Banks
Ken Hoshide
Robin Bell
Ken Thomason
Jerry Decker
Steve Flowers
Carla Johnson
Bill Smith
Don Hensel
Charlie "The Ape" Romano
Dennis Berman
Dickie Renk
Rich Reif
Verne Peterson
Calvin Williams
Jan McWorter
Jerry McWorter
Bob Zelda
Jerry Brunstetter
Cowboy
Mark Tadd
Buttermilk
Larry Bohn
LA Moe
Long Beach Dickie
Kenny Anderson
Dave Moore
Bob Yamasaki
Roy Yamane
Jesse Mojica
Jimmy Van
2 Dollar Don
Little George Tufts
Don Jackson
Ron Sakahara
Jerimiah Johnson
Gary Hutchings
Paul Brienza
Bill Houck
Greg Chick
Frank Robutz
Richard Grenier
Ron Dickie
Ante Rossini
Al Geary
Jimmy South
Hotel Bill
Sweets
Jack Ide
Charlie Brown
Dave "Underdog" Chartier
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Jay, what about Ernesto Dominguez? If he'd just been playing pool for the last nearly 40 years like most of the pros, instead of working himself to death becoming the most in demand poolroom table mechanic in California and elsewhere, no telling how good a player he could have been.
He told me for one of the Camel tour events, he had to set up 16 tables from scratch in less than 2 days, with no help, and those were 3-piece slate tables. He worked 36 straight hours, no sleep, and went straight in to his first match right after finishing the last table!
Jay, I spent many a nights hang in out with Black Nate till sunrise when he was out here in the East. He's one cool cat. Played everything great but he was always the top one holer when he was in town. I saw you mentioned tonk lol, I love tonk but not too many seem to play it any more. Nate often got the cheese in our tonk games. He was also pretty " lucky " in Rollin the ball keno game as well as the C-lo dice games. Gotta love the way he dresses too - especially the hats lol. He's quite the golfer too, and most times when he came in the pool room it looked like he was ready to hit the links lol. I haven't seen him in some years now, but I asked about him on here and I think they said he's still out and about.
Ps- Thanks for the message Jay - good lookin out!
Ps- Thanks for the message Jay - good lookin out!
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We talked about him on page two of this thread. I'll try to find the write-up I did on him and Morro a long time ago and post it on here.
Nate was always at the top of the food chain, with the girls, the clothes, the Caddy's and the cash! He was what everyone else aspired to be in the hood. Nate was a man that had well refined skills at all games that he played and the discipline to know how to use those skills.
Jay, I only saw this thread when it was revived yesterday and hadn't read through all the pages. I just caught up on the threads from page 2 that talked about Ernesto. I'd love to read your past comments regarding Ernesto.
He's now been to our poolroom here in western NC twice in the past 20 years to work the pockets / cushions on our tables, and stayed with us at our home for a week each time, most recently the week before the 2017 US Open. He worked on different tables both times he came. Hardest working man I've ever met.
I really wanted to have a chance to play some with him before driving him to Norfolk for the US Open, but time did not permit. He finished up the final table and we had to leave in the middle of the night for Norfolk. He tried real hard to talk me in to 4-inch pockets for our tightest pocket table, and I wanted 4-1/4". We compromised for 4-1/8" corners, and I'm sure glad I did!
I just realized I’ve been in your room....Gabriels tables?
Tommy Baker...
He was a good player. The tourneys at Baker's billiards is where I first met Mark Kendall some 25 years ago.
He also ended up with one of three matching Rich cues that I still have one of, he has one of (stolen from my buddy's pool hall along with all of the other cues in the pool hall, Luckily I had taken mine home that night cause I went to play at another pool hall) and one was broken in half and cut down to a jump cue.
Also don't forget about francisco galindo, who I watched take 30K off of Johnny Archer getting just the eight in the mid nineties when Johnny was at the top of his game at goldball billiards.
Jaden
He was a good player. The tourneys at Baker's billiards is where I first met Mark Kendall some 25 years ago.
He also ended up with one of three matching Rich cues that I still have one of, he has one of (stolen from my buddy's pool hall along with all of the other cues in the pool hall, Luckily I had taken mine home that night cause I went to play at another pool hall) and one was broken in half and cut down to a jump cue.
Also don't forget about francisco galindo, who I watched take 30K off of Johnny Archer getting just the eight in the mid nineties when Johnny was at the top of his game at goldball billiards.
Jaden
Yes, we've been open about 22 years. We switched from the Connelly Ultimate tables to the Gabriels tables about 17 years ago, just a few years after Ernesto had worked on the Connelly tables. Where do you live, how long ago were you here, and did we by chance meet?
YEah...
Wayne was an awesome guy and a character. I remember one night we were playing hickey pool and there was a ball sitting up table a few inches out of the pocket and the cue ball was a couple inches off the rail at the first diamond on the other end of the table.
I drilled the ball and drew the cue back down table and it came to rest on the rail. Wayne, said" If I had a stroke like that, I'd frame it".
Jaden
Wayne was an awesome guy and a character. I remember one night we were playing hickey pool and there was a ball sitting up table a few inches out of the pocket and the cue ball was a couple inches off the rail at the first diamond on the other end of the table.
I drilled the ball and drew the cue back down table and it came to rest on the rail. Wayne, said" If I had a stroke like that, I'd frame it".
Jaden
Long shot
How Bob Tapella? I am not sure he was much of a player but he claimed to be:wink:.
Bob owned a pool room in Gilroy called Garlic city Billiards and his nick name was Action Bob.
What about Bucktooth? I think he might have been a bit further north than Socal but I think he ventured south now and then. The tooth might have been more of a gambler than a player but I think he could play a little.
How Bob Tapella? I am not sure he was much of a player but he claimed to be:wink:.
Bob owned a pool room in Gilroy called Garlic city Billiards and his nick name was Action Bob.
What about Bucktooth? I think he might have been a bit further north than Socal but I think he ventured south now and then. The tooth might have been more of a gambler than a player but I think he could play a little.
Two of my friends built those lightshades...Jyri Kari and George Papoutsas.
We stopped in to take a look on our way to a tournament in Florida.
...I had a meal, hit a few balls...your tables are great.
I remember George going around rooms in Toronto with a light meter and talking how
to spread the light evenly.
Beautiful town you live in....the Miz was thinking of moving to that area.
I remember the place in Glendale on Colorado, Jay. I think it was called Golden Billiards or Golden Cue, can't remember. I booked you for a lesson when I was just starting to play. I didn't know it, but you were watching me knock balls around before the lesson. I broke and ran a rack of 9B and you walked up and said, "After watching you, I'm not sure I can teach you much." LOL! I did in fact, learn from you though. The room you are talking about on Colorado in Pasadena was Jake's Billiards; my home room in my 20's. Sal was the House Pro there for a bit. Sadly, it deteriorated over the years with the tables (16 GC III's) in disrepair. It closed a couple years ago.
You also mentioned Tim Padgett in your opening post. He's still making cues and can still play. He and I play together weekly; usually Ring Games at poolhustler's place or mine.
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Hi guys,
Could the downstairs room in Glendale have been Jensen's?
I grew up a few miles east of Glendale in Highland Park, graduated from high school in '69 and we had a family billiards room called Chalk and Cue. At that time the room was pristine, 14 9' gc's and a 10' Brunswick snooker table, The room later became Highland Park Billiards and finally closed just last year.
Back then table time was $.75 per hour per player (max $1.50 per hour if more than two players) with a free half hour for every two hours played.
I worked there for several years on and off after graduating...used to brush the tables, clean the rails and empty the ash trays after each group finished playing.
Before it was a pool hall it was a Thrifty drug store. The owner/proprietor was Mike Sanders and his wife was a very pretty woman named Donna. For a period of time they lived in the converted offices that were upstairs but they moved out after the Sylmar earthquake. She said the place was swaying like a roller coaster and refused to sleep there again.
By that time I was working the desk, vacuuming the place at noon when it opened and checking customers in and out and they rented the upstairs room to me. I was on top of the world, the key to my apartment was the key to the front door of the pool room.
Of course i screwed up after just a few months and they kicked me out after I had an old girlfriend (underage by just a few short months) spend the night and her sister was waiting for her when Mike arrived that day. She gave him, me and the sister hell and Mike told me he couldn't afford any problems like that and I had to move.
Mike liked to gamble at pool and cards but overall Chalk and Cue had more characters than high stakes players. Back then you could get around Los Angeles pretty easily and many of the guys from Glendale visited Chalk and Cue as well.
Ginacues and Tads were the cues of the day and around 1971 I bought a beat up '64 Gina from a tall guy named Cam, still have the cue and had Ernie restore it a few years ago.
Mike and Donna treated me very well and they moved to Vegas in '71 or '72 and I'm curious if any of you ran into them or know what became of them. When they left L. A. he had one of the first Dodge Challengers, lime green and a sweet barbells and gunsights Ginacue.
After they left the room went through a couple of management changes. At some point one of the guys that had a few bucks (John Weissen) put up a few bucks and we were renting the room. He was the money man and I was the lackey but i was on top of the world again. We both also worked at Dodger Stadium because the room really wasn't paying for itself.
We had a falling out and he left me on my own. He was a good guy but we were both probably too young and headstrong. The room wasn't making any money and I was on my last legs without him and one night a buddy who watching the room for me stayed past 2:00 am as there was some action going on. I remember it was Johnny McGill and a guy named Cal, maybe the same California Cal that Andy mentioned from Pete's.
The room had big picture windows in the front but had some nice blackout curtains and although they had pulled the curtains, no one moved their cars and there were about 10 cars parked right in front of the building. This attracted the attention of the local police car that patrolled the local business district they busted the game up and sent everyone home.
Before this I already had two run in's with the local LAPD for having a little pot and even though neither one stuck I wasn't in the mood for more contact with the judicial department so I walked out the next day and turned in the keys to the local realtor that owned the place.
The next proprietor was a young man called San Diego Bill, tall and thin, looked like a rock star, and another beautiful wife that rode horses and always came in with those riding pants and boots.
I realized then i need to get myself together and my girl persuaded me to enroll in a junior college and for all intents and purposes my pool days were done.
Just retired last year and miss the old rooms. Been checking them out but haven't found the one that feels right yet but the search continues.
By the way, I used to hang with a guy named Andy Hughes who lived across the street from ERHS, you the same guy Andy? From what I can remember we had some good times, although a little crazy. If that's you it seems like you're doing well and I'm glad to hear it.
For those of you still reading, my apology for the long post, but the topic brought up some old memories of days gone by.
Best to all of you
Tony Centi
Very interesting. I'd love to get back in touch with those guys, just to tell them how pleased we've been with their lights. They were both extremely nice guys, and very understanding that I was a bit compulsive in wanting the lights / tables all in an absolutely perfect straight line - not easy to do. Please PM me with their contact info, if you would. - Thanks