Mary, it's a delight to have you posting on the site! You were present during a great era of pool in NYC. I'm wondering if the "Cohen" you referred to was Harry Cohen, or Harry the hook? I believe that Harry would winter in Miami, then he eventually moved out to L.A., where I met him. He was average to short in height, bow-legged, wore glasses, tended to stammer a little, and blink a lot. He was good at all games, but was a real shyster.
Was 711 a room upstairs, I think on Broadway in the 40's? The room I'm thinking of had 5-6 bowling lanes in it. When you walked in the door there was a wall which protected the left side of the bowling lanes. Then the pool room and bar were in the back, behind the bowlers. There were also a few tables around the other side of the lanes, in separate areas. An earlier poster said that this room was probably called Mayfair Billiards, which was 711.
Hope you'll share some stories with us.
Welcome~
Doc
You nailed it with Harry Cohen Doc. When I was just 18 years old I boarded a bus to Miami Fl. to visit a friend that was going to Miami University and hustle a little pool, it was a great trip and learning experience. I stayed in a hotel across the street from Dinty Morre's pool hall on Flagler street called the Tamiami Hotel. The Tamiami was a large hotel across the street from the pool hall, I believe it had around seven floors of rooms with at least fifty rooms on each floor.The rooms didn't have a bathroom, but there was a bathroom on every floor.
(A truly seedy hotel) Rooms were $5 a night..payed in advance.:heh That's where I first met Harry Cohen..Dinty Moore's 1962.
Harry was exactly as you described, short 5'6" glasses, and played every game good but not great. He was a "scavenger" he patiently waited for some one that was "ripe" for the pickings and then he made his move. I was young and stupid, and perfect for him to hustle, however, I played very good, much better than any 18 year old player was supposed to play, fortunately.
It didn't save me but it certainly helped me cut my losses. I played Harry 9ball and he quickly persuaded me to play him some "one pocket" and he clearly out classed me to the point of actually stalling with me, which I picked up on and quit. After he beat me for a few dollars ($5 a game) he sat back down in his chair and took out the "racing form" and just sat there reading it and drinking coffee. He had more patience then any one I have ever met, that's where and when I developed the understanding on the value of patience..he was despicable. (much like the Hacker)
There were other great characters that played in Dinty Moore's daily, here are a few. Mike Belle, a North Carolina 9ball player that played excellent, Mike was very a quiet guy who didn't say much but played great. His partner was a young man called "Canadian Pete" Pete played very good on the 6x12 "snooker table" in Dinti Moore's..toughest table I ever saw. Other players that played on the 6x12 were Marcel Camp.. Ray Saint Laurent..Johnny Vevus, though Vevus was a much better one pocket player he played snooker too, as a past time. Harry would occasionally get in the game but not often. There was a very strong unknown player that was referred to as 'the window washer" who shot as straight as any human. Cuban Joe also was one of the players that played there, I played and beat him playing 9ball. Joe was a jeweler from Cuba, and he lost a fortune in Dinti Moore's being hustled by all the hustlers that were there during that time. Joe became very irritated and resented losing to all the American players, and it was at that time that Joe promised himself that he would never let another American beat him playing pool for money. (that's what he told me later in life) He then went on to be one of the most successful road hustlers of all time playing pool.
Johnny Irish owned an "open air pool hall" down by the beach near the "dog track"where he played and beat any one that wanted to play. Not too many players went there to try him on the wet tables, truth known they wouldn't of beaten him on "dry equipment" either.
I never played Irish and never seen him play, he didn't frequent Dinti Moore's so I never got a chance to watch him play but word had it that he was the greatest. By the way, Vevus put me on Cuban Joe, I played Joe for $20 a game and won a little over $100 before Joe became 'irate" Like I mentioned earlier, Joe was a very angry irritated man, with a lot of pride and resented that every one was aiming at him and beating him, me included.:sorry Joe. Joe and I became very good friends later in life, and made decent money betting on one another. Joe was one of the hardest workers I have ever known which is one of the main reasons he became one of the best hustlers of our generation.
Yes I learned a lot from my experiences in Fl, lessons that I never forgot which actually aided me in structuring my understanding and ability to navigate through life's "choppy waters" And i'm still learning.:heh
Dr. Bill