Chris Wohlwend, writing for Like the Dew: A Journal of Southern Culture and Politics, has penned a great story about Eddie Taylor, the famous Knoxville Bear. Remembered as one of the greatest bank pool players ever, Taylor is a member of both the One Pocket Hall of Fame (2004 inductee) and the BCA Hall of Fame (1993 inductee). He was also the winner of the all-around title in Johnston City in 1964 and the Stardust Open in 1967.Wohlwend draws upon some old conversations with Taylor for his story. For instance,the story quotes Taylor describing some of his technique for road hustling:
“A guy in Lexington, Kentucky, showed me how to lose games on purpose. How to talk a big game until the money got big, then start really playing. I’d go on about how good I was, how I’d played Ralph Greenfield the week before and they’d all be laughing at me. They knew I meant Ralph Greenleaf, and thought I was too stupid to know his real name. I’d lose and then I’d say, ‘Well, I can’t really play unless we’re playing for big money.’"
Pool & Billiards Magazine editor Thomas Shaw has noted in a separate article that Taylor was born in the mountains of Anderson County, about twenty miles from Knoxville, on October 1, 1918.
"When I was about eight years old my Daddy bought me a little toy table," Taylor told Shaw. "Later on we lived near the amusement park where the fella who owned the batting cage bought a 2 1/2 x 5 foot table and I got to playing on that. Then we moved downtown near the YMCA and I played on the table there. It just seemed that everything came natural. This boy and I used to go across the street from the school and the guy would let us play one game of rotation for a nickel. Then I started laying out from school and playing. My mother finally caught me and threatened to blow up the poolroom but I just found another place until she caught me again."
Taylor died of cancer on Sept. 5, 2005, at his home in Bossier City, outside Shreveport, Louisiana. Want to read more? Billiards Digest ran an interview with the Bear back in 2005. Onepocket.org also ran a long interview in 2004.
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