Gary Spaeth....He passed on at the far too young age of 46. Man, could he fire in those banks! He was one of the most, if not THE most, aggressive bank players I ever saw. One of my all time favorite bankers, I regret that I never had the privilege of meeting him in person. I re-watch his Accu-Stats appearances often. What a talent!
Larry Lisciotti....Feb 9 will mark the 5 year anniversay of his death.
Even though he had been sick for a while, I remember how sad I was when I heard he died. I especially liked Larry. The very first time I met him, I congratulated him on winning the 1976 World 14.1 Championship. Since I wanted to ask him some more questions, I wanted to see if he was going to be a straight shooter with me or not. So I also said "And didn't you win the World 8 Ball Championship also?" He said "Not that I recall...." Then I knew he was telling the truth, so we kept talking. Very funny guy with lots of good stories. We got a picture together and it's one of the ones that hang in my pool room, along with pics of Billy, Grady, Shannon, Earl, Nick, etc. Saw him only another time after that. Gone way too soon.
Bill "Weenie Beanie" Staton....What a smooth, soothing graceful southern gentleman style of talking and commentating. What a stone cold killer style of gambling! It's best that Freddy chime in here on The Bean's gambling persona....I want him to rest in peace! I talked with him on the telephone a few times to get some of his pool info and stats. At the end of our first call, he thanked me for being interested in his career! Just such a nice man. Reminds me of JoeyA a lot.
Johnny Ervolino....the "Anti-Beanie!" The beloved "Velvet Foghorn" had a voice that sounded like a cartoon character, but he had as much pool knowledge as anyone. Especially "crafty" as a gambler, was sometimes not exactly "loyal" to his backer at the moment....When the term PHD (Pool Hall degree) was coined, it wouldn't surprise me at all if the inspiration for the phrase was Johnny. A more street savy player will be hard to find. I really think he liked the horses better than he did pool, but he was gifted at pool. He ran 361 balls in his late 60's! Despite his seemingly tough exterior, he had an exceptionally soft heart, IF he liked you!
I appreciate that Accu-Stats has helped preserve the memory of these great players.
Larry Lisciotti....Feb 9 will mark the 5 year anniversay of his death.
Even though he had been sick for a while, I remember how sad I was when I heard he died. I especially liked Larry. The very first time I met him, I congratulated him on winning the 1976 World 14.1 Championship. Since I wanted to ask him some more questions, I wanted to see if he was going to be a straight shooter with me or not. So I also said "And didn't you win the World 8 Ball Championship also?" He said "Not that I recall...." Then I knew he was telling the truth, so we kept talking. Very funny guy with lots of good stories. We got a picture together and it's one of the ones that hang in my pool room, along with pics of Billy, Grady, Shannon, Earl, Nick, etc. Saw him only another time after that. Gone way too soon.
Bill "Weenie Beanie" Staton....What a smooth, soothing graceful southern gentleman style of talking and commentating. What a stone cold killer style of gambling! It's best that Freddy chime in here on The Bean's gambling persona....I want him to rest in peace! I talked with him on the telephone a few times to get some of his pool info and stats. At the end of our first call, he thanked me for being interested in his career! Just such a nice man. Reminds me of JoeyA a lot.
Johnny Ervolino....the "Anti-Beanie!" The beloved "Velvet Foghorn" had a voice that sounded like a cartoon character, but he had as much pool knowledge as anyone. Especially "crafty" as a gambler, was sometimes not exactly "loyal" to his backer at the moment....When the term PHD (Pool Hall degree) was coined, it wouldn't surprise me at all if the inspiration for the phrase was Johnny. A more street savy player will be hard to find. I really think he liked the horses better than he did pool, but he was gifted at pool. He ran 361 balls in his late 60's! Despite his seemingly tough exterior, he had an exceptionally soft heart, IF he liked you!
I appreciate that Accu-Stats has helped preserve the memory of these great players.
