Remembering Fast Eddie Parker

This is an assignment I had in 2000, when I worked as a newspaper photographer at the Monroe Evening News in Monroe, Michigan. It was a Sunday and I was told by the weekend news editor that some sort of trick shot exhibition pool player was coming to town to do a performance and that our paper would be sending a writer to cover the story as well. I got to the pool hall about 20 minutes before the show began and introduced myself to the man, Eddie Parker, and told him I was assigned to photograph his performance. He was more than happy to have me photograph him and we talked a little bit about pool. He mentioned a word "recherche," as in, a style of pool playing. It has several definitions, "careful systematic search" "systematic consideration" and "the work of inquiring into something thoroughly and systematically." He also mentioned rail and diamond systems for aiming.

Several months ago I was at Sophies and I noticed up high on one of the walls, near a corner, that there was an obituary for Eddie Parker. Immediately it all came back to me. So I called up the Evening News librarian, Marge McBee, to see if she could find that story. She made a photocopy of the clipping and mailed it to me. This is a photograph of that clipping so I'm sorry for the quality. But I've retyped the text of the story and posted it here. Makes for interesting reading six years later.

There's lots on the internet about whether Walter Tevis based some of his characters on certain players, who was real and who was fictional, etc. Won't go into any of that here. On February 2, 2001, less than a year after this shot was taken, Eddie Parker died in San Antonio.

published May 8, 2000

"If you're going to bet with a guy, bet on his first shot."
--Fast Eddie Parker, giving advice Sunday on the game of pool

Fast Eddie's shots fall

Renowned pool player Eddie Parker made an appearance at Silver Que Family Billiards Sunday, giving tips of the trade to interested onlookers.

by Joshua Kennedy
Evening News staff writer

Making five billiard balls in one shot, while candidly discussing how easy it is and sipping a drink is nothing new to Fast Eddie Parker.
The world-renowned pool player, most famous because the book and movie "The Hustler" were based on his experiences, spent a few hours Sunday night at Silver Que Family Billiards, 411 E. Front St., giving tips of the trade to those watching.
Continually lining up the balls and explaining where to aim, Fast Eddie cracked shot after shot. When one wouldn't fall, he'd reset the balls and shoot again saying, "C'mon, Eddie boy." Invariably the shots fell the second time.
He explained the diamond system-the dots along the rails of a pool table-and how to use the diamonds as targets for particular shots.
It was during this lesson that the nearly 30 people present may have guessed why they call him Fast Eddie. Many of the shots demonstrated were performed with such accuaracy and quickness that he was lining up the next shot before the cue stopped moving and the first shot fell.
Explaining a complicated numbering system of counting diamonds and rails, Fast Eddie lined up a shot-long and tight on a rail-and proceeded to bank the cue and make the shot all while talking near the speed of light.
He explained nine ball rules and tricky shooting techniques as casually as if seated at a dining room table and almost always made the first shot-which he turned into another lesson for those watching.
"If you're going to bet with a guy, bet on his first shot," Fast Eddie said.
At one point, during a particularly tricky "double clutch shot," in which the cue is slammed down the table lengthwise in the middle and is hit again with the cue stick causing the cue to spin back and sink a corner shot, Fast Eddie's billfold was placed on the table.
Fast Eddie was, at one point in his long career, what is known as a money player. That means he traveled around and made a living playing pool games for money. After missing the double clutch shot twice a patron of Silver Que said it was time to put some money on the shot.
Fast Eddie readily accepted, but was the only one to put his money on the table. To the chagrin of the vocal watcher, Fast Eddie sank the tricky shot seconds after laying his wallet on the table.
Once, Mike Donnelly, the former owner of the pool hall, was asked to help demonstrate something Fast Eddie called "the railroad shot."
It consisted of two house sticks side to side pointing from one corner to the rail pocket, and a third house stick from the same corner pointing to the opposite corner. A piece of paper was used to hold the cue ball up on the two side-by-side sticks, and four balls were put behind that.
"The cue represents the engine," Fast Eddie said while scurrying around the table lining up balls.
Another ball was placed in front of the side pocket the sticks were pointing at, the red three ball (because the caboose is supposed to be red). Then Mr. Parker hit the cue ball, which was set up in front of the same side pocket.
The cue ball traveled three rails around the table and then slowly became elevated by the sticks on the table. As it careened into the corner at the fat end of the "train" the caboose rolled into the rear of the balls and set the trick in motion.
The cue knocked in the ball in front of the side pocket, which Fast Eddie called the train station, and moved aside for the "cars" on the train to drop one by one into the pocket.
Every shot liked this was greeted with chuckles of amazement and applause.
After explaining many other rules and demonstrating other tricky shots, including one from a Miller beer commercial, and one that required 12 balls and three racking triangles, Fast Eddie said it was time to wrap up the show.
He said he performs about 200 similar shows a year all around the world. Anyone interested in more information can check out Fast Eddie's Web site at www.fasteddie.org.