Louie Roberts
- Thread starter atthecat
- Start date
It looked as if it was suicide but a few months ago, some forum members questioned this. I asked about the evidence surrounding the suspicion but didn't really get any good answers. Maybe we can revisit this and get some resolution.
Well this is a question that will never get answered. I grew up in MO this is where Louie called home really it was the St. Louis area.
The word there is a shotgun blast to the head is what killed Louie Roberts. No one will ever know exactly why, or how this was done. There were no witnesses that came foward.
I never had the chance to meet Louie Roberts only the legends that live on...I will say this if this forum could have exepted Danny Harriman a little better, then we could hear it from his wing man. Danny ran with Louie while he was a teen. This is another story all together.
If you want to see a nice piece of history about Louie then visit Cue and Cushion. They have more than a few pictures of him on their walls. This was Louie's hangout. Very nice place showing respect for all games they have carom, pool, and snooker.
The word there is a shotgun blast to the head is what killed Louie Roberts. No one will ever know exactly why, or how this was done. There were no witnesses that came foward.
I never had the chance to meet Louie Roberts only the legends that live on...I will say this if this forum could have exepted Danny Harriman a little better, then we could hear it from his wing man. Danny ran with Louie while he was a teen. This is another story all together.
If you want to see a nice piece of history about Louie then visit Cue and Cushion. They have more than a few pictures of him on their walls. This was Louie's hangout. Very nice place showing respect for all games they have carom, pool, and snooker.
I was a regular at Cue and Cushion Back in the 1970's, and while Louie use to come in at times it was not his Regular hangout. Hell I remember when the HUddleston Boy's the cue current owners were running around playing tag at Cue and Cushion. I also new their father Bob pretty well, he was really a great guy, during that time frame I was in my late teens, in fact I bought my first cue from Bob in the 73 or 74 time frame, it was made by Paul Huebler.
Back to Louie, I use to go to many places he would play, Afton Billiards, a Boweling Alley in South St. Louis, however, I don't remember the name, and there was a big place that opened up in the late 1970's that had A.E Schmitt tables where Louie was the house pro. I think the place had like 30 or 40 tables and they had a major tournament there in 77 or 78 time frame that drew everyone who could play into St. Louis, Steve Mizerak won the tournament. The last time I saw Louie was in late 1978, before I left St. Louis after I joined the US Army. However, from what I have been told Louie was pretty much down on his luck when he died. Up to that point he had lead a pretty wild life, the guy played and partied very hard. Some of the people I grew up with or have known ran with Louie through the 1980's and said that he was really living on the edge, and that it got to the point that it was hard to even be around him. At some point in the late 80's early 90's Louie's game had pretty much fallen apart, and that must have been pretty tough for one of the greatest shot makers who ever played the game. Sometime during the Mid-1990's I heard that Louie had died under suspicious circumstances, but that it may have been Suicide, to my knowledge it has never been proved either way for certain.
> The short article about it in BD said,according to his girlfriend,that he came back from a tournament at The Sands where he went 2 and out. It also said it was a small caliber handgun,not a shotgun.
Another thing the article said was that he had been duped by some people not too long before this. He got a phone call or a card that said "come to Arizona,you have action and a backer",but when he got there,he found neither and wound up having to stay a while.
The people I know that actually knew him agreed that towards the end,he was hard to be around. I only saw him a few times,and only 2 of those where he was actually playing. Tommy D.
Another thing the article said was that he had been duped by some people not too long before this. He got a phone call or a card that said "come to Arizona,you have action and a backer",but when he got there,he found neither and wound up having to stay a while.
The people I know that actually knew him agreed that towards the end,he was hard to be around. I only saw him a few times,and only 2 of those where he was actually playing. Tommy D.
Louie played out of 'The Sports Center' when home. This is where I saw him hanging out most frequently with Larry and Mark right before and during the AZ stint.
Watchez will be able to provide the details as he was close friends w/Louie's circle.
Please, hold off on the rumor mill.
Watchez will be able to provide the details as he was close friends w/Louie's circle.
Please, hold off on the rumor mill.
Louie also hung out at The Sports Center, owned by Larry Dabarber (thats how his last name sounds, probably not spelled right).
Watchez, where you at on this one?
Watchez, where you at on this one?
From the files of the Beard
Here's an excerpt from my book, The GosPool According to the Beard:
Functioned on Chemicals:
#1 "St. Louie Louie" Roberts, St. Louis, MO. While living with a hypochondriac Chicago cue maker, Louie once emptied the cue maker's medicine cabinet. The cue maker routinely had shelves of assorted medicines that could bring you up, take you down or eliminate all pain.
Louie (no pharmacist he), would just take potluck and play Pill-Russian–Roulette. He'd say, "I'll try two of those white ones with three of those pinkies and seal the deal with one of those red babies. I'll save these brown stripers for later." Louie would chase them all down with a few six–packs of beer, then play for days and never miss a ball.
the Beard
Louie's wife was wealthy and Louie's bro in law probably had him murdered.
Here's an excerpt from my book, The GosPool According to the Beard:
Functioned on Chemicals:
#1 "St. Louie Louie" Roberts, St. Louis, MO. While living with a hypochondriac Chicago cue maker, Louie once emptied the cue maker's medicine cabinet. The cue maker routinely had shelves of assorted medicines that could bring you up, take you down or eliminate all pain.
Louie (no pharmacist he), would just take potluck and play Pill-Russian–Roulette. He'd say, "I'll try two of those white ones with three of those pinkies and seal the deal with one of those red babies. I'll save these brown stripers for later." Louie would chase them all down with a few six–packs of beer, then play for days and never miss a ball.
the Beard
Louie's wife was wealthy and Louie's bro in law probably had him murdered.
Watchez has said in the past he doesn't think Louie killed himself, and I've heard rumors in St Louis area pool halls similar to what Freddie posted.
What happened to Louie is something that will never be resolved.
Thanks Freddy.
The first time I saw Louie he downed a fifth of clear alcohol right in the main pit of the pool hall.
The ol' timers in the local STL pool rooms would always call him a pharmacist.
Despite all this for those who are reading about Louie for the first time, the guy was such a neat guy and absolutely the most entertaining.
Watchez is here.....busy day at work.
Anyways, and I have posted many of this before....but here is what I know and don't know: (sorry for the long read but I have been accused by one person on here over and over that I don't know what I am talking about so I feel the need to post a lot of what I know to justify myself).
The first time I saw Louie was 1987. I went to the pool room as a customer that knew nothing about pool but banging balls with my friends. I saw the roped off pit table, Louie wearing some World Championship 9 ball hoodie, drilling some guy and beating him out of his cash and his pool stick. Afterwards, Louie turned to a guy to pay him $10 for a ride home. I had no idea what I was actually watching or how good Louie was compared to the rest of the world but was thinking, this guy plays this good and has to pay for a ride home.
Louie was the greatest 9 ball player that I ever saw. He was still playing great and making shots that no one else could at the time of his death. A year before he died I saw him give Joe Woolford (probably rated the best 9 ball player besides Louie in St Louis at the time) the 6 ball and rob him out of 3 sets. It was a joke and the best 9 ball that I ever saw played - even til this day. Joe's backer got up on a chair, hooting and hollering at one point while Louie was shooting. Louie turned to him and said, 'Dave - I don't care what you do. You can yell, scream, jump up and down, just don't touch me or the table. I am hypnotized and can't be sharked'. Dave proceeded to get up on a chair screaming and waving his arms then ran around the table like a mad man as Louie ran out. Louie didn't need clean balls or perfect conditions to play good.
Louie's main hang outs in St Louis in the early years were Affton Billiards, Grand and Olive Billiards (the big pool room that Manwon mentioned) and Saratoga Bowling lanes (also mentioned). Later on he was the house pro at both what is now The Break in Cahokia Il and the Sportscenter in South County.
The Sportscenter was owned by Mark Obrien and Larry Labarbera at the time. Larry is still one of the owners. Larry was Louie's best friend. There was no other best friend - Larry was it. Larry still has his US Open trophy, pictures and posters signed by Louie are hung up in his pool room, and has a few of Louie's cues. He mainly played with a Meucci, as far as I know.
I never heard of Louie ever running with Danny Harriman. Not saying that this is 100% not true, but I again have never heard of this. And if he did, I would think it would have been for one short trip.
Louie ran with Rusty Brandemeier, Tom 'OldHasBeen' Ferry, Jimmy Brooks, Roger Reel (sp?), Larry Labarbera, and Lil Ricky Van Uum.
Louie was also an 'owner' with Larry Hubbard and Terry Bell in what is now the APA. They bought Louie out for some small sum - like less than $5000 and Louie was in the process of trying to sue the APA at the time of his death. He was claiming that he wasn't given all the facts of the league/business.
Louie had his issues. As many of the pool rooms back then were no alcohol, he would hide bottles under the tables up in the workings of the table. He would pretend to go to sleep and get the bottle to take a swig.
Louie could do a flawless impression of Al Pacino in Scarface. He would do a whole scene, reciting the words exactly for 10 minutes. It was hilarious and good.
Louie was scared of his own shadow and never a tough guy or fighter. The first time I ever went anywhere with Louie, Larry warned me not to give him any money. Of course Louie talked me into giving him $60 to play a poker machine. When he was up $200, I asked him for my $60 back (at the time $60 was about 10% of my bank roll), and Louie started to stall. I told Louie (and wasn't serious) that I would go to my car, get a baseball bat and take my money back. Louie broked down in almost tears and gave me the money.
This is what makes me say - NO WAY did Louie kill himself. He wouldn't have had the guts to do it, no matter how messed up he was at the time. It was a gun not a shot gun. I was told that there were no powder burns on his hands, meaning he could not have fired the gun. He was found in a house, I believe dining room, of the house in Arizona that he was staying at - owned by his girlfriend at the time who was a rich, older lady. I am not sure what really happened with any investigation. Louie called The Sportscenter the night he died a few times. Cliff Joyner was playing Mark Jarvis one pocket on the pit table. I talked to him. He was on a cordless phone, walking in the street outside his house where he was staying. He was not drunk, he was not on anything. He was relaying how he just got back from the tournament, tried to gamble after the tournament and no one would play him. He burned $200 in fifty dollar bills trying to get a game. He had hit a slot machine for $50K or something like that. A few hours later, the call came in that Louie was dead.
Louie is buried in Jefferson Baracks in South St Louis, as he was an Air Force veteran.
It is a shame that Louie left us so early. If he was still around, I think I would have even better stories to tell.
Anyways, and I have posted many of this before....but here is what I know and don't know: (sorry for the long read but I have been accused by one person on here over and over that I don't know what I am talking about so I feel the need to post a lot of what I know to justify myself).
The first time I saw Louie was 1987. I went to the pool room as a customer that knew nothing about pool but banging balls with my friends. I saw the roped off pit table, Louie wearing some World Championship 9 ball hoodie, drilling some guy and beating him out of his cash and his pool stick. Afterwards, Louie turned to a guy to pay him $10 for a ride home. I had no idea what I was actually watching or how good Louie was compared to the rest of the world but was thinking, this guy plays this good and has to pay for a ride home.
Louie was the greatest 9 ball player that I ever saw. He was still playing great and making shots that no one else could at the time of his death. A year before he died I saw him give Joe Woolford (probably rated the best 9 ball player besides Louie in St Louis at the time) the 6 ball and rob him out of 3 sets. It was a joke and the best 9 ball that I ever saw played - even til this day. Joe's backer got up on a chair, hooting and hollering at one point while Louie was shooting. Louie turned to him and said, 'Dave - I don't care what you do. You can yell, scream, jump up and down, just don't touch me or the table. I am hypnotized and can't be sharked'. Dave proceeded to get up on a chair screaming and waving his arms then ran around the table like a mad man as Louie ran out. Louie didn't need clean balls or perfect conditions to play good.
Louie's main hang outs in St Louis in the early years were Affton Billiards, Grand and Olive Billiards (the big pool room that Manwon mentioned) and Saratoga Bowling lanes (also mentioned). Later on he was the house pro at both what is now The Break in Cahokia Il and the Sportscenter in South County.
The Sportscenter was owned by Mark Obrien and Larry Labarbera at the time. Larry is still one of the owners. Larry was Louie's best friend. There was no other best friend - Larry was it. Larry still has his US Open trophy, pictures and posters signed by Louie are hung up in his pool room, and has a few of Louie's cues. He mainly played with a Meucci, as far as I know.
I never heard of Louie ever running with Danny Harriman. Not saying that this is 100% not true, but I again have never heard of this. And if he did, I would think it would have been for one short trip.
Louie ran with Rusty Brandemeier, Tom 'OldHasBeen' Ferry, Jimmy Brooks, Roger Reel (sp?), Larry Labarbera, and Lil Ricky Van Uum.
Louie was also an 'owner' with Larry Hubbard and Terry Bell in what is now the APA. They bought Louie out for some small sum - like less than $5000 and Louie was in the process of trying to sue the APA at the time of his death. He was claiming that he wasn't given all the facts of the league/business.
Louie had his issues. As many of the pool rooms back then were no alcohol, he would hide bottles under the tables up in the workings of the table. He would pretend to go to sleep and get the bottle to take a swig.
Louie could do a flawless impression of Al Pacino in Scarface. He would do a whole scene, reciting the words exactly for 10 minutes. It was hilarious and good.
Louie was scared of his own shadow and never a tough guy or fighter. The first time I ever went anywhere with Louie, Larry warned me not to give him any money. Of course Louie talked me into giving him $60 to play a poker machine. When he was up $200, I asked him for my $60 back (at the time $60 was about 10% of my bank roll), and Louie started to stall. I told Louie (and wasn't serious) that I would go to my car, get a baseball bat and take my money back. Louie broked down in almost tears and gave me the money.
This is what makes me say - NO WAY did Louie kill himself. He wouldn't have had the guts to do it, no matter how messed up he was at the time. It was a gun not a shot gun. I was told that there were no powder burns on his hands, meaning he could not have fired the gun. He was found in a house, I believe dining room, of the house in Arizona that he was staying at - owned by his girlfriend at the time who was a rich, older lady. I am not sure what really happened with any investigation. Louie called The Sportscenter the night he died a few times. Cliff Joyner was playing Mark Jarvis one pocket on the pit table. I talked to him. He was on a cordless phone, walking in the street outside his house where he was staying. He was not drunk, he was not on anything. He was relaying how he just got back from the tournament, tried to gamble after the tournament and no one would play him. He burned $200 in fifty dollar bills trying to get a game. He had hit a slot machine for $50K or something like that. A few hours later, the call came in that Louie was dead.
Louie is buried in Jefferson Baracks in South St Louis, as he was an Air Force veteran.
It is a shame that Louie left us so early. If he was still around, I think I would have even better stories to tell.
You get your DAMN prorities straight!
I was somewhat surprised to find out that there was foul play suspected in Louie's death. I thought it was fairly straight-forward - he was diagnosed with liver cancer, he got together with Robin Dodson to say a prayer, shortly afterward he committed suicide.
I didn't know Louie but I know someone who did, while he was in Phoenix. I'm going to try to make contact with that person and get what I think should be important information. If I'm successful, I'll report back. This might take a couple of days.
I didn't know Louie but I know someone who did, while he was in Phoenix. I'm going to try to make contact with that person and get what I think should be important information. If I'm successful, I'll report back. This might take a couple of days.
Watchez,
Been a lurker for a few years and just signed up recently. I am from MO and love your stories. I am 43 and used to play alot in my teens but stopped when I got married. If I hadn't, Im sure our paths would have crossed. I always enjoy your stories, though, even when it is such a bad topic. He sounds like a lot of fun and a good friend. Maybe we will cross paths in the future. Don't know if you get to KC much,but if you come up, let me know.
Thanks
Andy
St. Louie Roberts
Did not know Louie, but do know a loss is a loss regardless of circumstances. To his family and friends it will always be painful, but he will always be remembered for who he was to everyone.
For me, I had the opportunity of seeing him play many times. There is nothing I have ever heard contrary to what has been said about him because it does describe the person I was fortunate enough to watch play. A true inspiration!
Did not know Louie, but do know a loss is a loss regardless of circumstances. To his family and friends it will always be painful, but he will always be remembered for who he was to everyone.
For me, I had the opportunity of seeing him play many times. There is nothing I have ever heard contrary to what has been said about him because it does describe the person I was fortunate enough to watch play. A true inspiration!
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thats a strong statement there!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here are a few more that were borrowed!!
Oh and by the way Louies Nick name was Elvis and when it came to the Ladies and Shot making he was certainly the King!!!!!
While I only knew him in his younger days I was truely take back when I heard he had died. I think I was in Somlia when he I heard of his death, and like others have said I Miss Him and the Pool World lost one of the greats the he died, may Louie rest in peace.:shakehead:
Oh and by the way Louies Nick name was Elvis and when it came to the Ladies and Shot making he was certainly the King!!!!!
While I only knew him in his younger days I was truely take back when I heard he had died. I think I was in Somlia when he I heard of his death, and like others have said I Miss Him and the Pool World lost one of the greats the he died, may Louie rest in peace.:shakehead:
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