What ever happened to?

Gerry

Gerry

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The good ole days? Earlier today I posted a link about the Twilight Zone episode we all love, and the more posts I read the more I re-think the "good ole dayz" What I mean is....what happened to getting done work, and making a bee-line for the pool room to sit down for a few hands of Knock Gin, or matching up for a few sets?

I REALLY LOVED walking through the doors of the pool room and having some smart ass call out....." Hey fishcakes....I got you next!"....or..." you got 40 to 100 for $20"

Those days are what kept me steering my car towards the room everyday....at first to learn the game....and down the road...I worked there to earn my chops.

As some of you might not know......there is nothing better then having a "pool room" nickname,...being accepted by the crew,....and always knowing.....no matter how bad things are going in your life at that time....there is a place you can go to where the World melts away....and you are hopefully.....one of the guys!

With the new year I'm getting a little nostalgic, but WTF.......I do miss it! :)

G.
 
Gerry said:
The good ole days? Earlier today I posted a link about the Twilight Zone episode we all love, and the more posts I read the more I re-think the "good ole dayz" What I mean is....what happened to getting done work, and making a bee-line for the pool room to sit down for a few hands of Knock Gin, or matching up for a few sets?

I REALLY LOVED walking through the doors of the pool room and having some smart ass call out....." Hey fishcakes....I got you next!"....or..." you got 40 to 100 for $20"

Those days are what kept me steering my car towards the room everyday....at first to learn the game....and down the road...I worked there to earn my chops.

As some of you might not know......there is nothing better then having a "pool room" nickname,...being accepted by the crew,....and always knowing.....no matter how bad things are going in your life at that time....there is a place you can go to where the World melts away....and you are hopefully.....one of the guys!

With the new year I'm getting a little nostalgic, but WTF.......I do miss it! :)

G.
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The boats came.

What you describe is exactly how it was in St. Louis in the early 90's. I certainly don't claim that it was the same everywhere, but from that starting point, the first, and then second, and then more boats came. It totally eviscerated the pool room action.

Lou Figueroa
hoping the DCC
hasn't gotten in bed
with the devil
 
Those were the days, Gerry. For years, I went right from my office to the poolroom most days after work. It was back in the days when I wore a suit to work everyday, so I'd always show up at the poolroom wearing a suit, but nobody ever gave me any crap over it because I was one of the guys and had been even in the days before I worked for a living. Sometimes I played, sometimes I didn't. Sometimes I gambled, sometimes I didn't. Always had fun, though.
 
I was gonna say that exact same thing....

dave sutton said:
bc today they want 40 to 100 or they dont play
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Because now no one is willing to try and outrun the nuts, they all want it.

Jaden
 
Jaden said:
Because now no one is willing to try and outrun the nuts, they all want it.

Jaden
Click to expand...

Around here there is very limited action.

I equate it to fewer and fewer players. I started around 3-4 years ago and I swear I am one of the newbies at the pool hall.

So, fewer players, economy is down (less $$$ that people have), and then there are the regulars who won't play without the nuts. Too bad.

When I went to Rhode Island, it was nice to see guys walking up to us asking about action. Shooters was a great pool hall. I hope to get to some level where I can play with some of those guys :)
 
The pool room in my hometown had continuous pitch games (cards) and golf on the snooker table. The players would cycle in & out from the seniors at 5am to the 3rd shifters at 8am to the working stiffs taking a long lunch at noon to the school kids at 4pm.

The weekend brought in poker games and an occasional 9-ball game.

The camaraderie I felt in that room (which has since been torn down) is forever lost. People don't interact like that anymore. Hell, I miss listening to the fiery arguments that would erupt at the pitch table between the old schoolers. No hard feelings tho...they'd be back the next moring with everything forgotten.

The young guys were under a lot of pressure not to let down their partner down. If you f'ed up, you heard about it! ...you took the verbal abuse and learned not to repeat that mistake.

There were old men in that room that would sit & watch for hours. I learned that you can't assume they were there to BS and won't/can't play....if prodded they would yank a cue off the wall and walk my a$$ around the golf table. I was playing every day back then and I'd get torn up by a guy that would pick up a (house) cue maybe once a month!

RIP Mulberry Rec.
 
I guess what I miss most is KNOWING.....no matter what kinda mood
I'm in, or whatever the economy is doing.......walking into the pool room you know you will be having a good ole time for a few hours.



There,s a time not long past when I played for the Italian club pool league wednesday night.....bowled for the local hardware store bowling team on Monday night......played darts and drank beer on Friday night after work at the Gulf station.....showed up at the "outta town" pool room for action Friday/Sat night,....and traveled to EVERY local tourney we could find when time aloud.

I miss those days, and wonder what it will take to get them back again!

If more people could experience these things, I think bringing pool back would be a breeze.....:confused:
 
Gerry said:
I guess what I miss most is KNOWING.....no matter what kinda mood
I'm in, or whatever the economy is doing.......walking into the pool room you know you will be having a good ole time for a few hours.
Click to expand...

I played at The Pocket Billiard Lounge {now Ball Busters Billiards} in Binghamton, NY for 22 or 23 straight years before I moved to South Carolina. I know just what you mean. When I worked first shift or Saturdays half a day on second, there would almost always be a game, a ring game, or sometimes backgammon {after I taught some people to play}. No cards, owner wouldn't allow it. When I worked second shift I'd be there when the place opened and knew I could get from the room to the time clock in fifteen minutes flat. I've been gone eleven years now and it's the thing about NY I miss the most.
 
Up until I transfered a few months ago..... thats how my life was still....even down to the gin game for money....LOL
Hopefully when my current project is done, Ill be getting back to Anchorage in March, and resume that.
Chuck
 
the good old days

ah yes, i remember well.... well some of it anyway.:wink:

i would go to a poolroom when i got up til 7-8pm, then go to the bar for soft action and loose women.

depending on which i actually got, i would go the poolroom after the bar and hang til my eyes crossed.

this was a daily occurrence, but i was a little younger back then.

M.C.
 
:grin-square: I am glad to see there are others like me who miss the times when pool was celebrated in all its glory. Neighborhood taverns and pool rooms were like clubhouses where the "regulars" would meet. These people were almost like family. In fact, I may have seen many of the regulars in my neighborhood hangout more often than my family when I was younger.

I used to be able to tell you who was inside my hangout by the cars in the parking lot. I damn near knew them all. There are so many happenings that I can remember, like the time a stranger came in the joint and wanted to play anybody in the room for $100. I immediately went into the tall wooden phone booth -- today, an antique, I am sure -- and called Randolph Billiards, which was right around the corner.

I asked them who was in there, and they gave me a few names. So I told them to send over West Virginia Frank. Frank was a teacher by day. He was a strong player. So West Virginia Frank walked in and stepped up to the plate. $500 later, Frank left with his winnings. It was short and sweet.

Then there was the time when Clem sucker-punched Juan Alvarez. Clem was a mean drunk. When he got lit, he always went around trying to pick a fight. We all knew it, and so we'd just stay out of his way when he was drinking. Juan was from Spain, and he used to be in the Foreign Service in Spain. Well, Juan wasn't even phased after he got hit. He made one right hook to Clem's chin and knocked him out cold. :eek:

I remember one time, me and the bartender slipped a trick 8-ball into the one-and-only bar box. Moe the Boxer and Greg the Banker were playing for 5 bucks a game. That was high stakes for these two. My friend managed to slip in the trick 8-ball, and then he and I just sat back, waiting for the show. Greg was getting ready to sink the game-winning 8-ball. It was a straight-in shot in the corner pocket, piece of cake. He shot it, and the ball hit the end rail, rolled back up table slowly, looking as if it was going to come to a stop, and then, all of a sudden, it picked up speed, made a little loop-de-loop and went in the side pocket.

Wrong pocket, of course, for the called 8-ball. Well, Greg the Banker's facial expression was priceless. Moe the Boxer just shrugged his shoulders, but you could tell he was shocked. Me and Steve were laughing so hard, I thought my stomach was going to burst. :D

We had little subcultures of regulars. I was a member of the pool people, who hung out on the pool table up in the front. Then there was the bar people, who used to buy pitchers of beer and just sit there all night long. If you knew 'em, they were always good for a bite. ;)

Cardiac Corner was another group of regulars. All of these fellows went to school together, and they were now senior citizens. They usually came in during the day and sit in one booth that we called "Cardiac Corner." Interestingly, each of the three long-time friends died within the same month. It was really odd to see them all go together like that.

Well, I could write a book about my memories here. When I was younger without little to no responsibilities, I could spend hour after hour there. I do miss my friends, but like everything that passes with time, I took a right fork in the Road of Life and began a different era, away from pool. Fast-forward 25 years, and I'm back in this racket again, only this time I am a railbird, but I will always be a Dietle-ite! :p

"Hank Dietle's on the Pike. Surliness and flies, no charge!"
 
Last edited:
lfigueroa said:
The boats came...Lou Figueroa
hoping the DCC
hasn't gotten in bed
with the devil
Click to expand...
What is the boats? Riverboat gambling or immigrants?!:confused: :confused:

Oh- crap! I miss those days too. Kept me from getting a real job and from getting to my job on time!

Now, you go into a room and there isn't a penny being bet. Not one.
 
Jaden said:
Because now no one is willing to try and outrun the nuts, they all want it.

Jaden
Click to expand...

Why should anyone want to try to outrun the nuts? Both players should think they have the best of it. Why would you play for money if you don't think you have the best of it?
 
As a tear swells in my left eye, I'd prefer to not speak of the good ol' days. You know, when having the nuts meant a half ball the best of it. When the internet didn't screw up alias names such as "Harry Sacks." When a player came in and .... Oh, I'm gonna go mix a drink and cry.
 
JAM said:
:grin-square: I am glad to see there are others like me who miss the times when pool was celebrated in all its glory. Neighborhood taverns and pool rooms were like clubhouses where the "regulars" would meet. These people were almost like family. In fact, I may have seen many of the regulars in my neighborhood hangout more often than my family when I was younger.

I used to be able to tell you who was inside my hangout by the cars in the parking lot. I damn near knew them all. There are so many happenings that I can remember, like the time a stranger came in the joint and wanted to play anybody in the room for $100. I immediately went into the tall wooden phone booth -- today, an antique, I am sure -- and called Randolph Billiards, which was right around the corner.

I asked them who was in there, and they gave me a few names. So I told them to send over West Virginia Frank. Frank was a teacher by day. He was a strong player. So West Virginia Frank walked in and stepped up to the plate. $500 later, Frank left with his winnings. It was short and sweet.

Then there was the time when Clem sucker-punched Juan Alvarez. Clem was a mean drunk. When he got lit, he always went around trying to pick a fight. We all knew it, and so we'd just stay out of his way when he was drinking. Juan was from Spain, and he used to be in the Foreign Service in Spain. Well, Juan wasn't even phased after he got hit. He made one right hook to Clem's chin and knocked him out cold. :eek:

I remember one time, me and the bartender slipped a trick 8-ball into the one-and-only bar box. Moe the Boxer and Greg the Banker were playing for 5 bucks a game. That was high stakes for these two. My friend managed to slip in the trick 8-ball, and then he and I just sat back, waiting for the show. Greg was getting ready to sink the game-winning 8-ball. It was a straight-in shot in the corner pocket, piece of cake. He shot it, and the ball hit the end rail, rolled back up table slowly, looking as if it was going to come to a stop, and then, all of a sudden, it picked up speed, made a little loop-de-loop and went in the side pocket.

Wrong pocket, of course, for the called 8-ball. Well, Greg the Banker's facial expression was priceless. Moe the Boxer just shrugged his shoulders, but you could tell he was shocked. Me and Steve were laughing so hard, I thought my stomach was going to burst. :D

We had little subcultures of regulars. I was a member of the pool people, who hung out on the pool table up in the front. Then there was the bar people, who used to buy pitchers of beer and just sit there all night long. If you knew 'em, they were always good for a bite. ;)

Cardiac Corner was another group of regulars. All of these fellows went to school together, and they were now senior citizens. They usually came in during the day and sit in one booth that we called "Cardiac Corner." Interestingly, each of the three long-time friends died within the same month. It was really odd to see them all go together like that.

Well, I could write a book about my memories here. When I was younger without little to no responsibilities, I could spend hour after hour there. I do miss my friends, but like everything that passes with time, I took a right fork in the Road of Life and began a different era, away from pool. Fast-forward 25 years, and I'm back in this racket again, only this time I am a railbird, but I will always be a Dietle-ite! :p

"Hank Dietle's on the Pike. Surliness and flies, no charge!"
Click to expand...


Great stuff there JAM!

I remember working behind the counter and 2 of our regulars were gambling. Mac.....the local bookie, and real well off, had the worst of the game. After losing a few sets he tried to renegotiate. When the guy winning wouldn't give anything back, Mac took his pants off.....saying....if you are gonna beat my pants off I'll just help you out! He comes up to the counter in his boxers and asks me to hold the pants for him!!!:)....He handed them to me and winked....I got the best of this guy! then he said...put em in a good place I got 5 grand in the pocket!:eek:

Mac trusted me, I used to take bets for him, and collect payouts on the numbers....not to mention deal cards for them after the pool room closed...

MAN, I sound like a hoodlum! :) good times.
 
Gerry said:
Great stuff there JAM!

I remember working behind the counter and 2 of our regulars were gambling. Mac.....the local bookie, and real well off, had the worst of the game. After losing a few sets he tried to renegotiate. When the guy winning wouldn't give anything back, Mac took his pants off.....saying....if you are gonna beat my pants off I'll just help you out! He comes up to the counter in his boxers and asks me to hold the pants for him!!!:)....He handed them to me and winked....I got the best of this guy! then he said...put em in a good place I got 5 grand in the pocket!:eek:

Mac trusted me, I used to take bets for him, and collect payouts on the numbers....not to mention deal cards for them after the pool room closed...

MAN, I sound like a hoodlum! :) good times.
Click to expand...

I used to work behind the counter at Champion Billiards in Silver Spring, the night shift. That was the BEST shift as far as I'm concerned because that's when all the action would start. :grin-square:

There was a bookmaker named "Old Man Mickey," who would come in every night, take the bets from the "regulars" or pay out if anybody won. He was a gentleman's gentleman, always dressed nicely, and he could play pool too. He used to own a pool room in Tacoma Park, nearby Silver Spring. Everybody knew Old Man Mickey. In fact, it was Old Man Mickey who taught me how to break in 9-ball, as I was really more comfortable on a bar box playing 8-ball. Old Man Mickey taught a lot of the young'ns some tricks of the trade on a field of green. He was well respected.

When people used to call for Old Man Mickey and I answered the phone, his code name was Mr. Johnson. They'd call and say, "Is Mr. Johnson there?" I'd look out into the pool room at Old Man Mickey and say, "You gotta phone call." His last name was not Johnson. :wink:

Old Man Mickey booked sports bets for as long as I knew him. In fact, he put his three daughters through college with his earnings, and none of his family knew he was booking bets, until his funeral. His girls, full grown by then, loved their father and by then knew full well about Old Man Mickey's love for pool and action. At his funeral, it was like a "Who's Who" in the pool world. It was packed with pool people. Inside his coffin, Mickey was wearing his cap and holding his pool cue. As strange as it may sound, the funeral and wake was like one big party. That's the way the Irish do it! :)
 
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