Action Stories

Jeff sparks

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Apr 2, 2015
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3,317
From
Houston, Texas
I played Mario a few times when I was a kid getting the wild eight at fourth and Main in LA. I ran into him in San Jose in the early 80’s and he could not believe there was a game I could beat him at, and I beat him playing one pocket four or five times before he pulled up. He left LA for Florida for awhile and when he came back they touted him as a bar pool champion. I watched Don Watson destroy him at the 3P’s in El Monte.

I went to Daisy Maes a few times, but I was not much of a bar pool player and in those days my best game was snooker and golf. Chris, the manager there was a friend so I would go down and check out the action once and a while, but never played there. I could not play a lick with the big cue ball. I could beat suckers but that place was full of champions. I had three sons born in the early sixties, and while I still played a bit, I did not travel much and stuck to snooker and golf.

There was action everywhere in those days in the bars. I looked younger than I was and wore glasses and did not look like I had been hanging around pool rooms for 8/10 years. The local champions had no chance against a kid who grew up in a pool room. By the 70’s you needed someone along to make sure you got out alive. The known action bars were not a problem, but I could not beat those guys. I tried a few times, but after blowing a couple paychecks along with one of my brothers, playing Bakersfield Bobby and Tijuana Joe one night, I realized bar pool was not for me.

There was a Mexican guy named Leon from Odessa, Texas that would come to town once and a while chasing Archie The Greek to play one pocket, cards or dice. One time he brought this red headed Mexican player with him who beat Doc Brienza in the Golden Cue where I hung out. The Greek was not around and I figured Leon knew that and I asked him what he was doing in town. He said they were there to play Keith if they could get any weight.This was when Keith was riding high and staked by Charlie The Ape, who would bet high. Charlie said even or nothing and they did not play. I heard later on this was Canelo.

I met Charlie when he lived in Pasadena and hung out at Bahama Lanes and hustled a little pool and cards. He was a shortstop then and did not get into money until he moved to Orange County a few years later. I beat him out of a little money playing nine ball and when he dogged an easy nine, he stiffed me the last game then put the end of the cue in his mouth and broke it about 6/8” from the tip. Scared the shit out of me and then I he bit me for $20 more. I asked him if that was enough.:D

I played most of the guys on your list of players at one time or the other over the years, even booked a winner once and a while, and the ones I did not play, I sweated. Seems like anyone that could draw their ball came through California in the 60’s/early 70’s. Johnny Ervolino came to Five Points Bowl and I trapped him in a golf game and he might have lost $50 before he quit. Later on in the coffee shop he was holding court and someone asked him why the east coast players were in CA. Now he is still hot about losing the $50. He says ‘I come from The Golden Cue in Brooklyn. You want to win $100 there, you better never miss a ball and then be tough enough to get out with the money’. Then he points at me and says ‘Out here, guys like this run around with $500 and they will bet it’.

Good post John,
The Humdingers ( all 3 of them ) were run by the guy who brought me to La... His name was Wayne Copeland AKA “Fat Rat”. He was about 5’ 8” and weighed over 400 lbs... His alias was appropriate... He was fat, and he was a rat...

He wouldn’t bet fat meat was greasy, he was a total nut hunter... I had called him from Houston and tried to get him to stake me long distance and of course he wouldn’t go for that, no way he would send cash, but said he would send me a one way plane ticket to LA and I could stay at his place until I got pumped up... He said the action was non stop... Well I happened to be financially challenged at the time, so I said send it...

Life takes some strange turns and that trip to LA would basically shape the rest of my life... Fat Rat picked me up at the airport and took me to his place in Garden Grove where upon arrival, I met my future bride... She was visiting with a friend, and when I exited the car that day, she told her friend she was gonna marry that guy... We have been together now for almost 49 years and I gotta say, she’s the best woman I ever met...

Anyway, the Rat had me playing every night at the Humdingers... It was easy action and they played table challenge 8 ball mostly, mostly for $5.00 and $10.00 a game... You’re right about the bar pool back then John, you could go into almost any bar and play $5/$10 nine ball or 8 ball... I didn’t like it, but it was a way to get a bankroll without any risk other than maybe the occasional poor loser or drunk wanting to fight...

It wasn’t long until I broke up the partnership with the Rat, because anytime I wanted to stretch out a bit and play a player, he was out... He just wouldn’t gamble and that eventually led to us splitting up... The final straw was when I got challenged to play some by Jimmie Reid on a 9’ table and the Rat said no...
A guy who didn’t even know me that well said, “Here Jeff take this $500.00 and play him some 9 ball for $50.00 a game.” I didn’t win, but I didn’t lose either, we played for 8 hours and broke even... I remember how good that made me feel that a guy who barely knew me was willing to put up money for me to play tough competition... The only name I knew him by was Guatemala, I never knew his real name, but he showed heart that day and I never forgot it...We cut up money on several occasions after that, he was a good guy...

I met Archie Karas in Vegas, I watched him lose $4,000,000.00 in 45 minutes at the Shoe... I was playing at the table when two of those giant security guards Jack had working for him came and said they were closing down the table... Well I knew that meant one thing, Archie was coming to play and he had been beating their brains out and I wanted to watch... I just slide over to the next table on the end closest to the table they shut down and I had the best seat in the house... Archie showed in a few minutes carrying two racks of $5000.00 chips... That’s $1,000,000.00 in chips... He went to the cage 3 more times in the next 45 minutes and each time he brought back another $1,000,000.00 He left empty... He lost the $4,000,000.00 in 45 minutes, I couldn’t get over it...

Archie had started that unbelievable run playing Bobby Baldwin one pocket for $1000.00 a game, ON THE WIRE!!!
It’s my understanding, he had little or no money and they just kept track of the games on the overhead string... He would get 5 games up and Bobby just kept raising the bet, first to $5000.00 a game, then to $25,000.00 and finally to $50,000.00 a game... and Archie won $1.6 million and got paid... Then according to what Archie told me, he played Doyle, Chip Reese, and Johnny Chan head up Razz, each for a freeze out of $500,000.00, $250,000.00 each... And he beat all 3 of them... Then he started the craps... He told me he had every $5,000.00 chip that Binions owned at one time... About $30,000,000.00 worth of them...

Archie shot from basically the center of the table and apparently was able to have some control of the dice... He beat em up until they added an eighth inch of foam under the cloth on all their tables and that was the time I witnessed him lose...
Archie snapped to it, and took his business across the street to the Nugget, but Jack Binion reeled him back in... He had some $25,000.00 Horseshoe chips made with Archie’s picture on every one of them and that brought him back to the shoe... He lost it all...

Archie told me this story at the Commerce Club several years after the fact... Cole Dickson and I were there for the poker tournament and Archie sits down with us and is short on cash and wants to bite us for $200.00. I asked him to tell the story and he did... At the end, I asked him what was he trying to win??? He had $30,000,000.00 from nothing... He said he wanted to win $100,000,000.00 and be the biggest winner in history... Cole gave him the Duece...
 
Last edited:

jrhendy

Verified Member
Joined
May 24, 2004
Messages
5,717
From
Placerville, CA
Good post John,
The Humdingers ( all 3 of them ) were run by the guy who brought me to La... His name was Wayne Copeland AKA “Fat Rat”. He was about 5’ 8” and weighed over 400 lbs... His alias was appropriate... He was fat, and he was a rat...

He wouldn’t bet fat meat was greasy, he was a total nut hunter... I had called him from Houston and tried to get him to stake me long distance and of course he wouldn’t go for that, no way he would send cash, but said he would send me a one way plane ticket to LA and I could stay at his place until I got pumped up... He said the action was non stop... Well I happened to be financially challenged at the time, so I said send it...

Life takes some strange turns and that trip to LA would basically shape the rest of my life... Fat Rat picked me up at the airport and took me to his place in Garden Grove where upon arrival, I met my future bride... She was visiting with a friend, and when I exited the car that day, she told her friend she was gonna marry that guy... We have been together now for almost 49 years and I gotta say, she’s the best woman I ever met...

Anyway, the Rat had me playing every night at the Humdingers... It was easy action and they played table challenge 8 ball mostly, mostly for $5.00 and $10.00 a game... You’re right about the bar pool back then John, you could go into almost any bar and play $5/$10 nine ball or 8 ball... I didn’t like it, but it was a way to get a bankroll without any risk other than maybe the occasional poor loser or drunk wanting to fight...

It wasn’t long until I broke up the partnership with the Rat, because anytime I wanted to stretch out a bit and play a player, he was out... He just wouldn’t gamble and that eventually led to us splitting up... The final straw was when I got challenged to play some by Jimmie Reid on a 9’ table and the Rat said no...
A guy who didn’t even know me that well said, “Here Jeff take this $500.00 and play him some 9 ball for $50.00 a game.” I didn’t win, but I didn’t lose either, we played for 8 hours and broke even... I remember how good that made me feel that a guy who barely knew me was willing to put up money for me to play tough competition... The only name I knew him by was Guatemala, I never knew his real name, but he showed heart that day and I never forgot it...We cut up money on several occasions after that, he was a good guy...

I met Archie Karas in Vegas, I watched him lose $4,000,000.00 in 45 minutes at the Shoe... I was playing at the table when two of those giant security guards Jack had working for him came and said they were closing down the table... Well I knew that meant one thing, Archie was coming to play and he had been beating their brains out and I wanted to watch... I just slide over to the next table on the end closest to the table they shut down and I had the best seat in the house... Archie showed in a few minutes carrying two racks of $5000.00 chips... That’s $1,000,000.00 in chips... He went to the cage 3 more times in the next 45 minutes and each time he brought back another $1,000,000.00 He left empty... He lost the $4,000,000.00 in 45 minutes, I couldn’t get over it...

Archie had started that unbelievable run playing Bobby Baldwin one pocket for $1000.00 a game, ON THE WIRE!!!
It’s my understanding, he had little or no money and they just kept track of the games on the overhead string... He would get 5 games up and Bobby just kept raising the bet, first to $5000.00 a game, then to $25,000.00 and finally to $50,000.00 a game... and Archie won $1.6 million and got paid... Then according to what Archie told me, he played Doyle, Chip Reese, and Johnny Chan head up Razz, each for a freeze out of $500,000.00, $250,000.00 each... And he beat all 3 of them... Then he started the craps... He told me he had every $5,000.00 chip that Binions owned at one time... About $30,000,000.00 worth of them...

Archie shot from basically the center of the table and apparently was able to have some control of the dice... He beat em up until they added an eighth inch of foam under the cloth on all their tables and that was the time I witnessed him lose...
Archie snapped to it, and took his business across the street to the Nugget, but Jack Binion reeled him back in... He had some $25,000.00 Horseshoe chips made with Archie’s picture on every one of them and that brought him back to the shoe... He lost it all...

Archie told me this story at the Commerce Club several years after the fact... Cole Dickson and I were there for the poker tournament and Archie sits down with us and is short on cash and wants to bite us for $200.00. I asked him to tell the story and he did... At the end, I asked him what was he trying to win??? He had $30,000,000.00 from nothing... He said he wanted to win $100,000,000.00 and be the biggest winner in history... Cole gave him the Duece...

I met Archie when he was hanging around The Five Points Bowl in El Monte and later on he hung out at the Golden Cue around the same time I did. Lots of the hamburger joints around LA are owned by Greeks and he hustled them playing cards and dice. I played him pool many times. He always asked for an outrageous spot and I would usually give it to him and pull up if he won the first set. If I won he would double up and keep on raising the bet if I kept on winning. Beat him out of $4,800 once starting with a $100 bet. Once he started going off he would get helpless. He spoke Spanish well and quite a few of the Mexican players came around to get him down. He finally got to where he played fair one pocket, but he always played better players getting weight and usually went off.

Funny he started that big run playing pool because he was a go off for years at it. I was told Baldwin was actually a favorite over him playing pool. Archie told me he bet at least $500,000 a day for over a year before he lost it back.

I have lots of funny Archie stories and have told some on here. When I get to Houston we will have a beer and talk about Archie The Greek.
 

NH Steve

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Joined
Apr 25, 2004
Messages
12,283
From
New Hampshire
Jeff’s post about all the action at Daisy Mae’s on the bar tables reminded me of this one. I was at The Billiard Palace in Bellflower when the house man says ‘Heart Attack Jack is on the phone for you’. Now Jack was around 5’7’, built like a fireplug and weighed around 260. He was one of the original Darby’s Rangers during the war and used to tell us stories about the beach landings and how none of them thought they were going to make it out alive. They were the best of the best in their day and he still had a pearl handle 45 that he treasured.

Jack usually snuck guys up on me so I was a little suspicious when he asked for me, thinking he was going to try and put me in some kind of trap. When he got me on the phone he explained that he was at The Humdinger, a titty bar down the road a bit in Orange County, and he needed a player that was not known to everybody in the bar scene and I was perfect. I told him I wasn’t much of a bar pool player compared to my speed on the big table, but he said that was fine, the guy we were after was Hollywood Jeff, who just played good enough to go off to anybody that could play, and he would put up half the money.

So I go down to the Humdinger and get it on with Jeff. Jack is right, he could play a bit but it should be an easy score. But it wasn’t. I did not play much bar pool and did not know the layout at the Humdinger. A little while after we start playing, the dancing started on a stage about 15’ from the pool table and the music is loud enough for the whole joint to hear, with speakers a few feet away from the pool table. There is a naked lady grinding away and I can’t concentrate, get weak and of course Jeff starts playing like a champion. We blow a couple hundred and I quit.

Now Jeff’s occupation was he sold toys and stuff out of the trunk of his car. He gave me a couple of battery operated yoyo’s for my boys that lit up when you used them. I never told the kids they cost $50 each.
That's funny John!

When there were virtually no poolrooms around me in the early 80's a buddy of mine and I would drive down to a couple strip joints outside of Boston that had pool tables -- and one of them had two decent 8' tables just like you said -- right beside the stage :D:D
 

unoperro

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Feb 25, 2012
Messages
2,634
If I recall correctly, Bobby Baldwin was Dave Matlock's father in law. Bobby was a shortstop caliber player.
 

baby huey

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Oct 29, 2008
Messages
1,950
Jeff Sparks was one of the best players at Daisy Maes in Garden Grove back around 1969 or so. I got big headed about my bar game and we played a set of nine ball for $50 five ahead. Jeff treated me real bad, he won the flip and ran the set out. I think that's when I changed my game to One Pocket. Thanks Jeff for sending me home broke.
 

Jeff sparks

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Apr 2, 2015
Messages
3,317
From
Houston, Texas
:sorry Jerry,
But as it turned out, probably the best thing that could have happened at the time... You’re a very good one pocket player now and even today you’re a threat to beat a very good player... You’re welcome... :)
 

beatle

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Jun 21, 2009
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3,572
bobby came from oklahoma. moved to vegas in the 1980's. then worked his way up the ladder. and was a good pool player.
 

Jeff sparks

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Apr 2, 2015
Messages
3,317
From
Houston, Texas
Mike, Two different Bobby Baldwins. One from Oklahoma, the other a bigshot in Vegas.

You are not the first to mix them up.;)

The Bobby B. that Archie K. beat was a poker pro and also a casino executive for the Nugget, Mirage, and Belligo’s... He won the WSOP main event in 78... He was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma but moved to Vegas out of college, early 70’s I believe... Good poker player, average pool player... big gambler...
 

gulfportdoc

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Jun 25, 2004
Messages
12,654
From
Gulfport, Mississippi
Here he is from 1979's WSOP:


 
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