Evening star., 1932-06-02
GOES FOR RING, MAT.
GAMES IN BIG WAY.
Gives Up Arcadia, but Keeps
Interest in Convention
Hall and Columbia.
BY r. ID. THOMAS.

YOHN S. BLICK, Americas S
foremost bowling promoter,
~ tomorrow will bid farewell
to Washington, his lifelong
home and the scene of most of
the ventures that have made him
a romantic and colorful figure in
the world of sport.
Lured by the prospect of realiz-
ing an ambition of many years,
Blick goes to Atlanta, Ga, to be-
come primarily boxing promoter,
but retaining a firm hand in the
affairs of the bowling game.
At Atlanta his principal associate will
be Walter Gambler of the famous soft
drink family.
Ever since I got into business" to
quote Blick, who ran a cake of ice into
a big ice and coal business and then
branched into sports, I've wanted to
promote championship fight. My
chance has come"
Dicks lease at the Arcadia expired
- yesterday and was not renewed.
At the same time he resigned as
president of the Convention Hall Co.,
but retained the general managership
under a contract which has IA years
to run. He organized the giant bowling
and market enterprise six years ago
and became its president
Blick also retains control of the Co.
lumbia bowling plant, which he leased
two years age With Joe Morgan. he
held a four-year lease on the Arcadia
drives, which we're installed when the
building at Fourteenth street and Park
road failed as a Madison Square Gar
den
1t was one of Blick's earlier sport
ventures. The building passed into the
hands of the Crandan Realty Co. which
will continue to operate the bowling
plant with Morgan as general manager.
VIIOOTTON E. YOUNG. cigar mer-
w chant. succeeds Blick as president
of the Convention Hall Co.. and
Harry Souder, superintendent of the
hall, has been placed on the board of
directors as Blick's representative.
Charlie Bell will remain as active
manager of the Convention Hall drives,
which constitute the largest one-foor
bowling alley in the world: Lon KrauSS
is to continue as manager of the Co
lumbia and Monk Fraser will carry on
as Morgan'S assistant at the Arcadia.
At Atlanta Blick will be close to his
most pretentious bowling enterprise.
The Atlanta establishment headed by
him contains 10l mapleways and is the
largest of its kind in existence. Walter
Gambler Is an associate in this.
DLICK, who calls himself the Ice
- Man" will continue to operate the
Terminal Ice Co. his original sue
Nothing will make me give that up"
he said today Blick is a sentimentalist.
and none of the new friends that came
with his rise in the sports world ever
replaced the braWny lads who helped
him up the hard grade in the beginning
of his career.
He goes to Atlanta under 10-year
contract to promote principally boxing
and wrestling, but any sports project
will be grist for his mill. During warm
weather bouts will be staged at the At
1anta ball park. which has a seating
capacity of 10000. An auditorium is
availabl for indoor shows Atlanta is
said to be even more enthusiastic over
wrestling than Washington, which is
SCIIlcllluik vi q VI IiiC
juvenated game. The Georgia metrop-
oils is on the Curley circuit.
The last wrestling show 1 saw there"
said Blick. drew 5000, and it was a
very ordinary card
DLICK is retaining his interest in two
- bowling plants at Richmond. Va,
comprising 68 drives. In fact. eX
tensive Improvements are in progress
there.
With characteristic enthusiasm, Blick
declares one of the Richmond places
will be ''the prettiest bowling alley in
the world
Until general business went haywire
Blick was well on the way to a goal
of 1000 mapleways. He had reached
a total of 468 when a retrenchment
became advisable, and one by one he
gave up places at winston Salem and
Greensboro, N c.; Norfolk, Va, and
the Arcadia here.
The iceman" spoke with Zest of the
new venture at Atlanta, but he was a
spiritless figure when couple of vans
moved up to his Sixteenth street resi-
dence to carry away the family be-
longings.
Fifty-odd years in one town, and par
tlcularly one like Washington. sends a
mans roots deep, and in Blick's case
they went far below the upper strata
of things in general.
And Washington wishes you we'll,
John Blick