Don't hear much about Thursday night at Green Acres. I had to get permission from Gibby Sr to stay out late. Some of the greats I saw there were, Doug the Rug, Joe Berardi, Oscar (Pickenhime I think), Charlie Faino, Jimmie McHugh, I know I'm forgetting plenty...
Cookie Piacente was the best house bowler from there, another one who could have been great had he took it more serious...
dipper
Here's a very recent email the owner of this site received about Doug (the rug) Weinstein...
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Message sent to butch (aka Cliff) on Facebook 2-17-2010
Dear AC Butch, I am sitting here at this moment with my longtime friend, Doug the Rug Weinstein. We just came across your story about your doubles match against him and Dickie Wholin. After reading it out loud to him, he began to laugh until tears came to his eyes. When I asked him why it was so funny (you beating him and Dickie for so much) he told me he had somebody in the crowd that was betting on you with his money. He doesn't remember the exact amount, but he mentioned something about buying a new car shortly after that. He was glad you bowled well so he didn't have to look too bad and no one had any idea what was going on, not even you. Come on AC, do you really think you could have beat him, even on your best day? You seem like a smart guy, yet Doug played you like a fiddle. He sends his regards and wishes you well.
Gerard Jerry Nahay
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butch's answer:
I hardly ever come to Facebook but am glad I did and found this post. I remember that day well and if Doug did dump to me I didn't have any idea what was going down.
He was a very tough action bowler but I have beaten better, such as Tommy DiNardo and Bee Bee Notaro just to mention a few. I always stayed clear of the top action bowlers so I could bowl against guys I could consistantly earn from, which I did. Never had a loosing year.
Action bowling was the greatest years of my life and Doug was really very good at it. I always enjoyed watching him bowl...
It would be great if you guys posted to the actionbowlers forum, I'm sure you have many stories to tell...
actionbowler.proboards.com/index.cgi?pbuser=actionbowlerbutch@actionbowlers.com
PS
butch also beat Mac Wagner, Allen "buffalo" Dwoskin, Les Sager, Les Shirwindt, Beeper, Larry Starr, Mike Foti, Richie Grossman, Richie Devita and many others, he tried to stay with the 190 or so bowlers who gave him a good living...
One of the gimmick games he never lost a match at was (one step) he even took down Lenny "the cane" Dwoskin who many considered to be the best one step bowler. The truth of the matter is butch might of been better with his one step approach then with is regular 4 step approach.
Check out more about butch at:
www.actionbowlers.com/acbutch.htm Zoo...
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Original Doug "the rug" Weinstein story...
1961 - Ave M Bowl - Butch & Bernie Bannans vs Doug (the rug) Weinstein & Dickie Wholin
butch (aka Cliff)
at 18 years old
This was my all time favorite doubles match, I was 17 years old and in my prime, I was at my very best that year, Bernie who I've bowled with and against for the last 3 years at Ave M was just coming into his own, for the last 6 months had really stepped up his game and was bowling some real serious action. I was considered a notch above him.
It's a friday night about 12:30 am and in walks Irving the lawyer from downtown Brooklyn with his son Dickie and doubles partner Doug. Irving was a big better and was backing one of the best doubles teams around in what I call the class B action bowlers. Class B was where most of the everyday action took place, these were great bowlers within their own right, guys that could step up to the plate and beat most of the class A action bowlers on any one given night. For instance guys like Buffalo, The Cane, Bee Notoro, Beeper, Larry Starr, Les Sager, Les Shirwindt, etc. etc. the list goes on and on. as good of action bowlers as they were, their in my class B status.
They came in looking to bowl Mac & Stoop who hadn't showed up yet, I walked over to Bernie and said lets take a shot at some of Irvings money. Bernie said yea, lets do it. We bowled them on 21 & 22, the first game was for round $300, I bet 50, bernie bet about the same and the back covered the rest. Now $300 now adays might not sound like much but lets put it into proper perspective. In 1961 a brand new ford or chevy cost about $1500, a caddy about $2500, a slice of pizza was 15 cents, a hotdog at nathans 20 cents, a gallon of gasoline 25 cents, bowling cost 50 cents a game, get the picture.
We lost the first game, won the second, lost the 3rd, the bets remained between 3 and 4 hundred a game, each game was very close and the back action stayed with us, Irving was covering anything we put up. In walks my partner and best friend Paul, he sees what's going on and his eyes light up, he's there for the beginning of the 4th game, gives me a hundred to put up in the middle and says were partners now start cleaning their clock. The bet goes up to $500 and we win the next 2 straight. the four of us had been shooting between 190 and 220 the first 5 games, Ave M was never considered a high scoring house.
The next 2 games goes to the opposition for about $600 each. These two guys could really bowl and go the distance but it all finally came together for Bernie and myself, over the next 6 games Dickie and Doug bowled real well but not good enough to beat the 230 plus average I shot and the 220 plus average that Bernie shot, we won all six of the final games, All toll we took Irving for about 5 big ones, I split $2000 with Paul, a thousand each... These were the days when people didn't quit being 2 or 3 down...
Irving came over after the match, shook our hands, said great bowling I only wish Mac and Stoop had been here. The following week I bowled Doug the rug with his loaded ball on 5 and 6 and cleaned his clock, Irving wasn't with him so the money wasn't as big... Oh yea, Doug was a lefty, we did bowl lefties in those days.
