Varner on Fats You will love this.
- Thread starter middleofnowhere
- Start date
you cant rate old people against young people in sports.
how do you think maybe the two greatest players in history varner and segal who both are alive and still hitting balls would do against filler and gorst or svb right now..
of course they would lose and if you watched as an idiot you would say they never would have had a chance when younger.
how do you think maybe the two greatest players in history varner and segal who both are alive and still hitting balls would do against filler and gorst or svb right now..
of course they would lose and if you watched as an idiot you would say they never would have had a chance when younger.
You just watched a movie of a guy that was a champion ,that actually played Fats , and {even though it was many years after Fats prime} , telling you what he thought, Then, people who watched him on television when he was 80 years old weigh in, and have his speed dialed in, as a sap, that couldn't make a ball all his life. Do you even realize how goofy that is? I'm not saying he was a world champion , but like Nick said ,he had a gear and to have won all the money he did against great players , he must have played better the higher the bet got.
Fats was definitely born before 1913. I am sure of that because George Rood was born in 1914, and he told me the first time he played Fats , he drove up in a brand new giant car, and George was only 16 or 17, and he said Fats was a full grown man at the time. That would have been around 1931.
I believe he was born between 1903 and 1905 , which makes a pretty significant difference when you get to be 45 vs 55 or 75 vs 65
George was a very unusual man, he played shortstop speed , clear up until he was in his late 80s and he had taken off from playing for 30 plus years because he had cataracts and couldn't see the edge of the ball . It wasn't until laser surgery came out, that he could have his vision fixed, I think he ran 90 balls on his 89th or 90th birthday .
RIP gentlemen.
Fats was definitely born before 1913. I am sure of that because George Rood was born in 1914, and he told me the first time he played Fats , he drove up in a brand new giant car, and George was only 16 or 17, and he said Fats was a full grown man at the time. That would have been around 1931.
I believe he was born between 1903 and 1905 , which makes a pretty significant difference when you get to be 45 vs 55 or 75 vs 65
George was a very unusual man, he played shortstop speed , clear up until he was in his late 80s and he had taken off from playing for 30 plus years because he had cataracts and couldn't see the edge of the ball . It wasn't until laser surgery came out, that he could have his vision fixed, I think he ran 90 balls on his 89th or 90th birthday .
RIP gentlemen.
Wikipedia is not always perfect, but here is what it says. In particular RW was not in the Hustler...
About
Born: January 19, 1913, New York, NY
Died: January 15, 1996 (age 82 years), Nashville, TN
Spouse: Theresa Ward Bell (m. 1993–1996), Evelyn Inez Graff (m. 1941–1985)
Movies: The Hustler
Nationality: American
Parents: Rosa Wanderone, Rudolf Wanderone
About
Description
Rudolf Walter Wanderone, commonly known as Minnesota Fats, was an American professional pool player. Although he never won a major pool tournament as "Fats", he was at one time perhaps the most publicly recognized pool player in the United States—not only as a player, but also as an entertainer. WikipediaBorn: January 19, 1913, New York, NY
Died: January 15, 1996 (age 82 years), Nashville, TN
Spouse: Theresa Ward Bell (m. 1993–1996), Evelyn Inez Graff (m. 1941–1985)
Movies: The Hustler
Nationality: American
Parents: Rosa Wanderone, Rudolf Wanderone
I think it would be great to match em up with a Spot and go at it.
Races to 15, both of em get NOW at their age, get 7 on the wire.
NOW
What's your pick, Filler of Sigel?
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he was older and did play better than short stop speed. how could he destroy richie and ronnie with a small spot at shortstop speed or less at his age even back then. i remember that. and took off richie myself twice for big scores.. even he said he way under estimated how good fats played. horses mouth.
Fats was old in the 1960s for a pool player, at least 47 and I believe probably 55 to 57. I have been saying this for 35 years, but I just read recently that in an interview they asked his age and he said his birth certificate say 1913 but he thought he was much older, {maybe 1903 ?
It's hilarious that under movies it lists The Hustler. he was the OG
When I saw Fats and Crane together, they seemed about the same age. Crane was born in 1913. In "The Bank Shot and Other Great Robberies", Fats (and Fox) give the 1913 birthdate listed in Wikipedia, and states that at the time of the writing, he was 53. The book was from 1966. I'm going with the birth certificate. Fats was not real good with facts.
Fwiw my dad was born in 1923 and looked much younger than Fats, my dad looked his age. I’d guess Fats was born somewhere around 1903-1907 as a guess. I’ve always thought Fats wasn’t on the square about his age, I believe he was older than he said he was. Not like he was always honest…….
Jus sayin’
Fatboy<———wished he got talking lessons from Fats
Jus sayin’
Fatboy<———wished he got talking lessons from Fats
The Fats that I've seen in all the videos has always rubbed me the wrong way. He always came across as bitter and always discounted all the other players abilities. If you compared him to another non-stop talking gambler like McCready, I'd take McCready's personality all day. He never came across as someone who was denigrating his opponents. Instead, he was just trying to stir up action.
That's how I see it.
That's how I see it.
According to the Wikipedia listing he married Evelyn Inez Graff in 1941 and, "In 1984, Fats abandoned his wife, Evelyn; they divorced a year later."
Did he have a wife before Evelyn?
Even the NYTimes, which is usually pretty good for an obit, wasn't sure.
timesmachine.nytimes.com
Lou Figueroa
Minnesota Fats, a Real Hustler With a Pool Cue, Is Dead
Rudolf Walter Wanderone, the charming, slick-talking pool hustler who labored largely in obscurity until he reinvented himself in the 1960's by claiming to be Minnesota Fats, died yesterday at his home in Nashville. He was 82, or perhaps 95. With Fats, who insisted he was the prototype...
timesmachine.nytimes.com
Lou Figueroa
No, she was in her Early 20's when they met at the restaurant where she was a server.
As Ev told me, Fat's didn't want to marry anyone, they married on a stairwell landing in MO.
When they were pronounced ''man & wife'' fatty took off immediately down the stairs, and Ev said, aren't you gonna kiss the bride, so he did and then tended to business, that he created while it took Ev awhile to find a parking spot because of what was going on at that time, with allot of others in some kind of fair? or, I'll have to go back and listen to the recording.
bm
This is a repost from me from last year.
I met in Minnesota Fats in 1978… he stamped a program for me when I was twelve years old at a tournament held at Hotel Senator in Sacramento. He stamped the front cover that had his picture and inside article about him. He walked up to me in the lobby, patted me on the head and said “how are you doing kid” I responded and he then said “would you like an autograph?” “I said yes Sir.” My cousin asked me “do you know who he is” and I said ”yes that’s Minnesota Fats” and then my cousin asked “why did he come talk to you?“ “I don’t why” was my response. I was a rather shy kid and there really wasn’t any other kids at the tournament that I can remember… that’s probably why Fats came over to talk to me. I had already had autographs from Louis Roberts, Dan Louie, and I think Kim Davenport and a few others but when Fats pulled out a silver stamp from his pocket and inked it up and stamped my program I thought that was pretty slick! To me that was way cool! I was old enough and around pool enough at that age to know that Fats wasn’t the greatest pool player of all time (at least at this point in his life) but I did know he WAS the greatest showman and a great ambassador to the game. Fats gifted me moment that I’ll never forget!
I met in Minnesota Fats in 1978… he stamped a program for me when I was twelve years old at a tournament held at Hotel Senator in Sacramento. He stamped the front cover that had his picture and inside article about him. He walked up to me in the lobby, patted me on the head and said “how are you doing kid” I responded and he then said “would you like an autograph?” “I said yes Sir.” My cousin asked me “do you know who he is” and I said ”yes that’s Minnesota Fats” and then my cousin asked “why did he come talk to you?“ “I don’t why” was my response. I was a rather shy kid and there really wasn’t any other kids at the tournament that I can remember… that’s probably why Fats came over to talk to me. I had already had autographs from Louis Roberts, Dan Louie, and I think Kim Davenport and a few others but when Fats pulled out a silver stamp from his pocket and inked it up and stamped my program I thought that was pretty slick! To me that was way cool! I was old enough and around pool enough at that age to know that Fats wasn’t the greatest pool player of all time (at least at this point in his life) but I did know he WAS the greatest showman and a great ambassador to the game. Fats gifted me moment that I’ll never forget!
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yea about 1930 he married first time. forget wiki its only what someone put in there. most times its fairly accurate if they got it off credible web sources. but if the sources are tainted then its junk .
he gifted me as well, a great time and experience, and half a very large score which he likely may have made without me steering him to it.
the only bad thing i can say about fats was that when you ate out with him, it took so long as he had conversations with every one and also ordered and ate multiple full rounds of meals. and somehow had the owner graciously pay the bill.