John was born in Salinas, CA July 8, 1939, the youngest of three boys. His father died in a car crash when John was 4 after which his mother moved the family to the LA area to be with her mother and grandmother. His mother was a piano player and singer, and as a working […]
James Walden was born March 11, 1964 in the town of Frederick, OK – almost in Texas. But his pool game really developed in Oklahoma City, where he got a chance to watch local players like Norman Hitchcock & Herman the German. OKC had a strong history of great players and a lot of pool […]
Born April 9, 1957, at a young age Keith moved to Anaheim, California with his father and brother. They all played pool and they got young Keith started when he was only about 8, which explains his sidewinder stroke. Keith is proud of that side arm stroke, and considers himself in good company, pointing to […]
Country came to NYC from West Virginia when he was young, and he brought along his southern drawl – which is why he got his nickname. There was another much older ‘Country’ around NY at that time who Country described as a lemon pool player, but who was “a real smart man” about making games. […]
In his early days as a player, Greg Sullivan loved to hit the road, where he specialized in Banks and one handed pool. Even though his game was a little under the pros, he traveled to tournaments all over the place, either entering himself or backing other players. His first pool related business was not […]
Studio portrait of Wade Crane Photo courtesy Diane Schmid Wade Arlyn Crane was born February 20, 1944. He got his start playing pool in Robbinsville, NC, when he was about 12 years old. He had a shoe-shine job in a poolroom which allowed him to get in and play at an early age, despite a […]
Harry Platis is a name synonymous with pool action over the last thirty years, yet at the same time, he is a successful lawyer – not your everyday combination. Yet as Harry describes it, his vocation in law is not unrelated to his avocation in pool. As a successful Seattle lawyer, most of his practice […]
Photo courtesy Jimmy Spears The Lifetime Pool in Action honor this year goes to action legend, Jimmy ‘Flyboy’ Spears. Over his long career as player, Flyboy has been known as a determined competitor with a reputation for skills, extraordinary stamina and an eagerness to gamble, making him one of the best high stakes players of […]
A young Jimmy Reid in action at Johnston City Photo courtesy Kenneth Cook ‘Hippie’ Jimmy Reid was born 8-23-46 and as a youngster grew up in Gloucester, MA – an old New England fishing port and an unlikely town for a top pool player. However, Boston and the Olympia Billiard Room, better known as The […]
George Rood, the legendary pool player who nearly bridged the 20th Century pool scene, died peacefully early in the morning of October 10 at the Widow’s Home in Dayton Ohio. George had been under the special care of Hospice of Dayton for his last days, but he had enjoyed visits from a number of his […]