One Pocket HOF Banquet

[NH Steve]

The One Pocket Hall of Fame Banquet went incredibly well! I will have some photos up soon, but I literally just got home from Louisville.

Bugs made it there -- in a wheel chair
Weenie Beenie made it too
Danny D was there
Ronnie Allen
Efren Reyes
Steve Lomako accepted Cornbread Red's plaque and said a few words
Grady did a great job as MC

The stories were flying all over the place!

[gulfportdoc]

The One Pocket Hall of Fame Banquet went incredibly well! I will have some photos up soon, but I literally just got home from Louisville.

Bugs made it there -- in a wheel chair
Weenie Beenie made it too
Danny D was there
Ronnie Allen
Efren Reyes
Steve Lomako accepted Cornbread Red's plaque and said a few words
Grady did a great job as MC

The stories were flying all over the place!

Steve,

What a wonderful job you've done on the One Pocket Hall Of Fame!! It was your baby from the beginning, and I can't imagine anyone doing it better-- from the first concept all the way through the successful HOF banquet at the DCC. I think most of us are not aware of how much organizing and work there is behind accomplishing a project like the HOF. It must have been gratifying for you to see your efforts come to fruition by having all those great player inductees showing up and accepting their places in history! I have a hunch the One Pocket HOF will continue to grow in stature, and that it will be a venerable and sought after distinction throughout the future.

Congratulations on an excellent job with this site in general, and the One Pocket HOF in particular!!

Art "Doc" Tripp

[NH Steve]

I've just put up two pages of photos from the banquet -- I'll have more in a day or so, but having just arrived home and a whole lot of things going on here, it will take me a little time.

http://onepocket.org/HOFBanquetGallery.htm
http://onepocket.org/HOFBanquetPhotos2.htm

I'd also like to thank Dennis Cox for giving me a disc full of the photos he took at the banquet, some of which are featured here.

[yobagua]

Steve you have done what many others have dreamed. Here we talk and hash over the game we so dearly love. You actually do it with all your hard work. You sir should be commended and I hope that you reach the goals you aspire to. As for me I take you as a shining example of dedication and honor.

PS If there is some kind of recording, visual or audio, of the event I would gladly purchase a copy. I too would love to hear some of those old stories those greats talked about.

[NH Steve]

Steve you have done what many others have dreamed. Here we talk and hash over the game we so dearly love. You actually do it with all your hard work. You sir should be commended and I hope that you reach the goals you aspire to. As for me I take you as a shining example of dedication and honor.

PS If there is some kind of recording, visual or audio, of the event I would gladly purchase a copy. I too would love to hear some of those old stories those greats talked about.Between the pics I took, Dennis Cox, Diane Hoppe and Paul Berg took, we have a ton of photos. Also, we have a video that Ed Brown took -- which I haven't seen yet. And I did a digital audio recording which I just listened to and it came out great -- for low tech, anyway. I'd like to see the best of that all edited together into a DVD, which I think could come out great.

It was an absolutely incredible success given it came together really only over the last three weeks leading up to the DCC.

I'll have more up in time as I decompress and get caught up with everything that I brought home from Louisville.

[jungledude]

:D Steve, you are really an amazing person. When I first read that you would have a $50 a plate dinner to honor the guys being inducted I thought
"this guy won't have three people there, he don't know the pool world." Well, I'm glad to admit I was sadly mistaken, the banquet was a sellout and these
old warriors recieved their awards that they all were completly deserving of. Grady, Ronnie Allen, Bugs, Danny D., Weenie Beanie, Efren, and I guarantee
Cornbread and Shorty were looking down from pool heaven with a smile on their face.
One man has taken it upon his self to do something the highly political
BCA would never do, that is, honor those who have had to scuffle most of their lives, and I commend you for this accomplishment. Given the choice, most of us from the real pool world would much rather recieve an honor from you than the other guys. Great job, Steve, I'm proud to say I'm your friend. :) :D :)

[hemicudas]

You have become my hero, Steve. I wear my OnePocket.Org tee shirt with great pride. Jungledude, has said it as well as it can be said. You have done a fantastic job sir. I thank you...................$Bill

[vagabond]

The One Pocket Hall of Fame Banquet went incredibly well!

Howdy Steve,
No one has ventured this before and u have done a fabulous job.Hell with BCA and it`s selection process for Hall of Fame.Absence of major print media reps is not going to diminish the value of these awards and ceremony.I know that two of the members of BCA`s HOF selection committee are from major print Media.Cheers
Vagabond

[J.D. Dolan]

Steve Booth did an incredible job on the HOF dinner. I was honored to be in attendance. Count me in for next year's ceremony.

[NH Steve]

Steve Booth did an incredible job on the HOF dinner. I was honored to be in attendance. Count me in for next year's ceremony.
Thanks for all your kind words. The event sure did snowball into something -- especially for the honorees, judging by the way they seemed to enjoy the evening.

I've put up another page of photos:
http://onepocket.org/HOFDinner3.htm

[hemicudas]

Thanks for all your kind words. The event sure did snowball into something -- especially for the honorees, judging by the way they seemed to enjoy the evening.

I've put up another page of photos:
http://onepocket.org/HOFDinner3.htm
All of the photos are great, Steve. The way you have elected to select the OPHOF inductees, by allowing us the members to vote on them, should be the way the BCA and any other org. elects their inductees also. I can only hope they will one day see the light and follow your lead.

[NH Steve]

By the way, some observant folks have noticed that the date on the plaques is 2004, not 2005. That is not a typo, it is because the voting for that group of inductees all took place in 2004, and of course Grady received his plaque in December 2004, so I considered the whole group the 'class of 2004'. With the DCC tournament in the third week of January, it wouldn't be possible to conduct the voting and get prepared for a presentation all in January. It is my intention to conduct the One Pocket Hall of Fame voting once each year of course.

Naturally, I'm already looking forward to next time, and certainly there are many, many more terrific candidates.

Of course, before we get to next year, we have some unfinished business in presentations for Eddie Taylor (intended for close to his home in Shreveport, LA -- date to be determined).

Also, the presentation of Jersey Red's plaque (intended for Houston, TX -- date to be determined)

Finally, something up my way (the Boston area) for Boston Shorty -- date and particulars to be determined.

If you are in or near any of those three areas and would like to either attend or help me out in the organization, please contact me.

Also, Nick Varner was just returning from China during the DCC this year, and was unable to make it to Louisville, so we need to work out a time and place for his presentation as well.

[dmyroncox]

steve

thanks for the memories,

dennis cox

[NH Steve]

steve

thanks for the memories,

dennis coxSpeaking of thanks, I owe a bunch of you guys big time!
I'd like to take a moment to thank some of the people that made the first One Pocket Hall of Fame dinner such a success.

First of all, I'd like to thank Grady Mathews for doing such an outstanding job as Master of Ceremonies -- without any formal notes or even a formal event agenda! Grady just came up with one great story after another in introducing each of the inductees.

I'd like to thank Greg Sullivan and Mark Griffin from Diamond Billiards, and all the staff of the Derby City Classic for their role in hosting the event -- I know you guys already had your hands full with 1000 or so tournament entrants and you don't need anything extra on your plate! Greg, I'm sorry your health didn't permit you to attend, and I wish you the very best in a rapid and complete recovery!

Thanks to the inductees and their families/entourage for coming -- although receiving the induction might be a big honor, I understand your health comes first, and I appreciate the sacrifice some of you made to come -- especially Bugs and Beenie, who were not planning the trip to Louisville otherwise. For all of you, the class you all showed in accepting the awards plays no small role in elevating the stature of the One Pocket Hall of Fame itself.

Thanks to Diana Hoppe for providing photos for the inductees to sign, and for taking great photos of the event as well! Also thanks to Dennis Cox, for your excellent photos, and your quick and professional job of getting copies to me. Paul Berg -- you too, as soon as I see them :) :) Ed, thanks for taping the event!

Thanks to Freddy Bentivegna for entertaining the crowd with your great story telling!

Thanks to Steve Lomako for spearheading the cue raffle that balanced the banquet bills, and raised a real nice chunk of change for Bugs' travel and medical expenses. Randi, thanks for your help with the raffle, and of course with a whole lot of other things before the big night.

Although the One Pocket Hall of Fame is about a six month old idea, the Banquet itself was pulled together on very short notice -- based on Grady's suggestion at his Gulfport event just a month earlier. It's a miracle it came together the way it did, but here's why it was such a good thing to do even on such short notice: Some of these guys are getting older real fast, and there is just no guarantee that they would be able to come at all if we waited for some future time when we might have been able to better organize and prepare.

For any of you there at the banquet, it was so clear that it's a really good thing that this took place when it did, so especially guys like Bugs and Beenie could enjoy it as much as they did, and that's what it's all about! The past year has been really tough on One Pocket, with legends like Steve Cook, Earl Heisler and Larry Lisciotti all passing...

Finally, thanks to everyone who came and supported the event -- and extra thanks to those of you who chipped in significantly extra -- you know who you are!

See you all next year!

[yobagua]

Steve any chance we could purchase a video copy???

[hemicudas]

Steve any chance we could purchase a video copy???
Great ?, Yo. I'm in if it is possible.

[NH Steve]

Steve any chance we could purchase a video copy???The video is pretty choppy, but a slide show burned on to a DVD, with the audio that I got as a soundtrack, is a definite possibility. My audio came out pretty well, and as you can see from the few photos up now, there are a lot of great pictures.

I'll keep you posted :)

[SactownTom]

I get 'sick' just thinking about missing this year's DCC and the inaugural OPHOF presentations.

What a guy you are Steve, taking this all on all by yourself...

Keep up the GREAT work and maybe we'll see each other again for the Summer Jamboree...


Proud to call you a friend.

[NH Steve]

I get 'sick' just thinking about missing this year's DCC and the inaugural OPHOF presentations.
What a guy you are Steve, taking this all on all by yourself...
Keep up the GREAT work and maybe we'll see each other again for the Summer Jamboree...
Proud to call you a friend.I sure do appreciate the kind words, but I didn't do it all by myself -- no way could it have happened without Grady and all the others I mentioned below -- plus those I didn't mention, like my wife :)

[yobagua]

I'd really like to hear all those stories.