When Iwas a kid

[deanoc]

there were several of us who used to run around together,
We loved gambling and winning money,enough to think
that we were never gonna have to work

Oh,I went to college and planned on being something important
someday,but for the time hustlin was our lifestyle.
We played all kind of games and pool was just the one that
offered us instant cash,every night we could win a weeks
pay check for the average guy


And then we went to the Cotton Bowling palace,what a place,
There were characters there that you guys only imagine.

Titanic Thompson was an old man who had won millions of dollars back in the 20s
and he brought an aura of the unreal to kids like us,Fats would come through once in a while.

The old Fox,Boston Shorty,Red,Alfie Taylor,Vernon Litton,RD Matthews a
mafia type of professional hit man,and no telling how many others.

My head would swell with thoughts of making a fortune one day,you had to be there
to actually know what I am talking about.

So we went hustling golf in the day time and pool at night,along the way I became a card player
,my parents were just average people with hopes that someday their kid would amount to something
good and the gambling scared them,but when I was
bringing home enough money to pay cash for cars and get through college
they were willing to let it go

Those were strange days,unlike anything you see these days

There were no tournaments or leagues,and we didn't want them,what we wanted was action,
sometimes it is hard for me to understand the league mentality or the
Mosconi cup fan

All I know is that the lifestyle we kids knew is over,kinda like the indians must have felt when they were put on the reservation.

 

[ShootingArts]

used to be fun . . .

I could go almost anywhere there was a table and quietly make one and a half to two times union construction wages which were very good at the time. I was content to do that until somebody came along to hustle po' li'l me most nights. Back then I didn't consider it hustling when they came to me. Of course I laid a spread and did a little calling to encourage them to.

Tournaments were often for chrome, fifty added was big. For two-fifty added I would have to tangle with Buddy Hall and players near his caliber for several days. It just made sense to me to "chop wood", easy money and a guaranteed return. Wish now that I had tested myself at my peak but water long under the bridge.

Hu

 

[GoldCrown]

Me... a real poor card player. Learned early. Very fair "C" pool player...learned early. Playing for cash was not working for me so I never got involved.....however I should have stayed in school. :killingme:

 

[bstroud]

there were several of us who used to run around together,
We loved gambling and winning money,enough to think
that we were never gonna have to work

Oh,I went to college and planned on being something important
someday,but for the time hustlin was our lifestyle.
We played all kind of games and pool was just the one that
offered us instant cash,every night we could win a weeks
pay check for the average guy


And then we went to the Cotton Bowling palace,what a place,
There were characters there that you guys only imagine.

Titanic Thompson was an old man who had won millions of dollars back in the 20s
and he brought an aura of the unreal to kids like us,Fats would come through once in a while.

The old Fox,Boston Shorty,Red,Alfie Taylor,Vernon Litton,RD Matthews a
mafia type of professional hit man,and no telling how many others.

My head would swell with thoughts of making a fortune one day,you had to be there
to actually know what I am talking about.

So we went hustling golf in the day time and pool at night,along the way I became a card player
,my parents were just average people with hopes that someday their kid would amount to something
good and the gambling scared them,but when I was
bringing home enough money to pay cash for cars and get through college
they were willing to let it go

Those were strange days,unlike anything you see these days

There were no tournaments or leagues,and we didn't want them,what we wanted was action,
sometimes it is hard for me to understand the league mentality or the
Mosconi cup fan

All I know is that the lifestyle we kids knew is over,kinda like the indians must have felt when they were put on the reservation.

You missed a few other players like me, Savanna Red, Grady, Tommy Lambert, New York Blackie, Don Watson, Detroit Whitey, Pucket and of course Bobby Chapman.

$1000 a game 9 ball was common and sometimes even $5000 a game. A new Corvette was $4000. I know because I had one.

I also had a 10,000 dollar bill in my pocket as well as numerous 1000 and 500 dollar bills.

All the card players and thieves were always there to gamble. It was a wonderful place.

Bill S.

 

[drv4]

Thanks for the story deanoc. As someone that just got into Pool a few years ago I love hearing the stories, I feel like I would've thrived and had a blast in the day. Payed for my first mustang in college with cash won from winning poker tourneys. Wish I would've started playing pool at a younger age.

 

[Tramp Steamer]

The one thing that always strikes me as odd, is that you guys never talk about losing.
Titanic Thompson won millions? Well, what happened to those millions?
Where are those fortunes you speak of?
If memory serves, they had to hold a tournament in order to raise some cash to help defray Jersey Red's funeral costs.

 

[jackpot]

Billy, as I remember

You missed a few other players like me, Savanna Red, Grady, Tommy Lambert, New York Blackie, Don Watson, Detroit Whitey, Pucket and of course Bobby Chapman.

$1000 a game 9 ball was common and sometimes even $5000 a game. A new Corvette was $4000. I know because I had one.

I also had a 10,000 dollar bill in my pocket as well as numerous 1000 and 500 dollar bills.

All the card players and thieves were always there to gamble. It was a wonderful place.

Bill S.

As I remember didn't that Corvette get stolen, and it seems as if your, cue was in there
and that's what you were most worried about. It's only a car, for crying out loud, I can get another just like it.
jack

 

[jackpot]

That's the way it was

The one thing that always strikes me as odd, is that you guys never talk about losing.
Titanic Thompson won millions? Well, what happened to those millions?
Where are those fortunes you speak of?
If memory serves, they had to hold a tournament in order to raise some cash to help defray Jersey Red's funeral costs.

I was there and that's the exactly the way I remember it too. That's the way it was.
Did you ever see the movie Radio Flyer, if not check out the last few scenes .No
amount of questions and doubts will ever change it.
jack

 

[deanoc]

Billy Stroud was one of the best players there for sure
later he made the JOSS POOL CUES

I MENTIONEDTHE LOSSES IN MY JACKPOT THREAD
which was one of my last post

earlier i mentioned a long list of people who gave me big spots and beat me

including some of the most famous players ever

It is true that gamblers do tend to end up broke
particulaly the ones that don't eventually get jobs

I quit the serious gambling and went into the real estate business
not long after I graduated from college. i still get to play on occasion


It would be my advice to any one thinking of becoming a pool player to reconsider and get an honest job,a wife and God willing a family

The person who plans on being a professional pool player is really setting out for a life of
poverty and misery,

It does sadden me to think of jersey red ,Ronnie and many of the best one pocket high rollers
who think nothing of borrowing money with no thought of paying it back

momas don't let your babies fail to grow up and be pool players

 

[deanoc]

Hi to Billy
please forgive me for not listing your name in this Rogues Gallery

you were certainly worthy of mention

I would guess that you were the most successful of all

 

[philly]

The one thing that always strikes me as odd, is that you guys never talk about losing.
Titanic Thompson won millions? Well, what happened to those millions?
Where are those fortunes you speak of?
If memory serves, they had to hold a tournament in order to raise some cash to help defray Jersey Red's funeral costs.

I think what nobody says is that the gambling pool community is finite. The money won is also lost and the same monies simply gets passed around amongst the gambling players. The real money won is when a really wealthy guy, not from the pool community, walks into the poolroom and wants action. I believe this happened to Keith at the Rack in Detroit to the tune of 300k. I am sure it has happened elsewhere but is a relative rarity.

 

[Tramp Steamer]

Billy Stroud was one of the best players there for sure
later he made the JOSS POOL CUES

I MENTIONEDTHE LOSSES IN MY JACKPOT THREAD
which was one of my last post

earlier i mentioned a long list of people who gave me big spots and beat me

including some of the most famous players ever
It is true that gamblers do tend to end up broke
particulaly the ones that don't eventually get jobs
I quit the serious gambling and went into the real estate business
not long after I graduated from college. i still get to play on occasion
It would be my advice to any one thinking of becoming a pool player to reconsider and get an honest job,a wife and God willing a family
The person who plans on being a professional pool player is really setting out for a life of
poverty and misery,
It does sadden me to think of jersey red ,Ronnie and many of the best one pocket high rollers
who think nothing of borrowing money with no thought of paying it back
mommas don't let your babies fail to grow up and be pool players

Excellent reply, Sir.

 

[boogeyman]

there were several of us who used to run around together,
We loved gambling and winning money,enough to think
that we were never gonna have to work

Oh,I went to college and planned on being something important
someday,but for the time hustlin was our lifestyle.
We played all kind of games and pool was just the one that
offered us instant cash,every night we could win a weeks
pay check for the average guy


And then we went to the Cotton Bowling palace,what a place,
There were characters there that you guys only imagine.

Titanic Thompson was an old man who had won millions of dollars back in the 20s
and he brought an aura of the unreal to kids like us,Fats would come through once in a while.

The old Fox,Boston Shorty,Red,Alfie Taylor,Vernon Litton,RD Matthews a
mafia type of professional hit man,and no telling how many others.

My head would swell with thoughts of making a fortune one day,you had to be there
to actually know what I am talking about.

So we went hustling golf in the day time and pool at night,along the way I became a card player
,my parents were just average people with hopes that someday their kid would amount to something
good and the gambling scared them,but when I was
bringing home enough money to pay cash for cars and get through college
they were willing to let it go

Those were strange days,unlike anything you see these days

There were no tournaments or leagues,and we didn't want them,what we wanted was action,
sometimes it is hard for me to understand the league mentality or the
Mosconi cup fan

All I know is that the lifestyle we kids knew is over,kinda like the indians must have felt when they were put on the reservation.

Great story.

 

[bstroud]

As I remember didn't that Corvette get stolen, and it seems as if your, cue was in there
and that's what you were most worried about. It's only a car, for crying out loud, I can get another just like it.
jack

Jack,

You're correct. I didn't care about the cr as much as I did about my cue.
Besides I also had a Jag XKE to drive.

Bill S.

 

[pwd72s]

The one thing that always strikes me as odd, is that you guys never talk about losing.
Titanic Thompson won millions? Well, what happened to those millions?
Where are those fortunes you speak of?
If memory serves, they had to hold a tournament in order to raise some cash to help defray Jersey Red's funeral costs.

Bingo! Gamblers love to talk about their big scores...never mention the losses.
Just walk into a casino...see the rich carpeting, the lush surroundings, the pretty waitresses? Winners don't pay for that.

 

[maha]

all those big gamblers made money when it was thrown at them by fools. they themselves were as well as when they had the worst of the game they went off for all they had as well.
a select few were smart enough to quit quickly when the game was close to even or worse for them. they were called lock smiths. but usually had money in their pocket and were and still hated for that.

 

[SJDinPHX]

The one thing that always strikes me as odd, is that you guys never talk about losing.
Titanic Thompson won millions? Well, what happened to those millions?
Where are those fortunes you speak of?
If memory serves, they had to hold a tournament in order to raise some cash to help defray Jersey Red's funeral costs.

All that is true Tramp..The Cotton Bowling Palace was one of those very rare places, where there were enough wealthy 'go-off suckers' for the hard core hustlers to prosper!..The other was the Rack in Detroit, which came along later..Those are really the only two that I can recall..If pool hustlers would have been able to stay away from bumping heads with each other, there was always a lot of money to be made in a few places like that!

 

[jackpot]

old worn out cliche

I think what nobody says is that the gambling pool community is finite. The money won is also lost and the same monies simply gets passed around amongst the gambling players. The real money won is when a really wealthy guy, not from the pool community, walks into the poolroom and wants action. I believe this happened to Keith at the Rack in Detroit to the tune of 300k. I am sure it has happened elsewhere but is a relative rarity.

There were 20 or more full time pool players around the Cotton Bowling Palace during
that time. That was their job. The way they paid their bills. They didn't just pass the
money back and forth. When you get paid do you pass you're pay checks back and forth.
Sure we all played each other, but the place was jammed with people that couldn't run
three balls that gambled, blue collar, white collar. And all of the nasty ole hustlers didn't
sit around with their greasy hair and pointed toe shoes waiting to swoop down on some
poor soul and scam him out of his money. Every bar had tables and was full of people
that gambled. It was not hard to find action. There was a lot of good players that just
could not stand it to be winner and would find a way to go busted, but they could pump
back up in no time hitting the bars. A lot of players very seldom booked a loser.
I can't think of but 2 or 3 times I ever saw Billy S. lose, Pucket, Alf, etc. won, lost
record was very, very good. A lot of pool hustlers were, contrary to the image held
by people that were not around at that time were honest and generous. The best
tippers, and would spend their money freely. (Billy S had a corvette and XKE at the
same time). Dean and I both wore Johnson Murphy alligator shoes to high school in
Oak Cliff Texas. We bought stuff and pi--ed away money as did a lot of the players.
And you didn't even have to ask these people to play they asked you.
jack

 

[deanoc]

I can tell that some of you are not interested in reading my post

Let me remind you that for $100 will not post again this year

If Jack saw Billy lose 2 or 3 times
I believe he holds the record

If i had to have a partner to bet on and seldom to never lose

It would be billy stroud


I i were to pick a partner to face Svb and all the reat of those superstars today

I would pick Billy,he was crafty ,bold,tight and clever.I never saw him lose
unless he wanted to change his table image

I am not saying he is the best player,but he was very good

even today he is not much of a player,but if there is a big game room with lots of action

I will bet on Billy,Cooney was great ,but he lost big sometimes

Jackpot was the best from Oak cliff but he didn't get many games

He looked better than he was,and he was good enough to give me the 5678 and the break

Alfie was about as cagey,i never saw him lose,but from the Cotton Bowling Palace

Billy was the most dangerous

Now this was not counting san jose dick,

i never saw him play
but i heard lots of stories
about him

 

[TheBook]

Bingo! Gamblers love to talk about their big scores...never mention the losses.
Just walk into a casino...see the rich carpeting, the lush surroundings, the pretty waitresses? Winners don't pay for that.

Sure they do. They pay for it out of their winnings. It cracks me up every time I see the advertisements by the casinos showing how much in payouts they made in the last week. Play a slot machine. Put 3 coins in it. Make a play and it now pays back two with the wording that you won two. BS, I lost one. If I play 3 and get back two I don't count that as a win but the casino does.

A person could go into the casino with $1000. Run that $1000 once thru a slot machine and leave with $800. According to the payouts he won $800. But in reality he lost $200. So now that $800 goes into the daily payout.

Whenever someone wins big they want them to stay and keep playing because they know that if they play enough they will eventually leave it all on the table or in the machines.