The Waterbury Democrat., 1934-11-06
BILLIARD GROUP | BACKSDRIVE FOR
 5,OOO,OOO PLAYERS
Worlds Best ExpOnents to Help Teach Game to
 the Public
fSnecial Tn Tfe ncunncrntl

Chicago, Nov. 6-Billiards, one of the oldest of modern sports, embarks, this week, on an ambi- tious campaign to return to the days when it was a participants rather than a spectators sport.
 5,O00,000 players in 1936!!! That is the objective of the National Better Billiards" campaign, which has been launched by the National Billiard association from its head quarters in Chicago.
 Officially, the drive got off to a start last week when R. F. Ben singer, president of the Brunswick Bake Collender company, who is supporting the drive with an ex- tensivc newspaper and magazine advertising campaign, gave dim ner for the officials of the Nation al Billiard association. and the twenty-one players taking part in this program.
 Cream Of The Crop
 In this group of players were such well-known experts as Willie Hoppe, worlds 1S.1 balkline and cushion-carom champion; Welker Cochran, worlds 18.2 balkline champion; Johnny Layton, worlds ,3-cushion champion and former pocket billiard title holder; Ruth McGinnis, women's ace of pocket billiards; Andrew Ponzl, present worlds pocket billiard champion, and Chas. c. Peterson, who can thing but climb up his cue.
 The tour of the twenty-one play CTS, which will last until about June 1st, will enable every town and hamlet in the country to .see these billiard players in action. However, the principal objective of these touring artists will not be exhibitions or competitions. It. will be to teach the public how to play and enjoy the game. a
 AS c. A. Storer, president of the National Billiard association, put 1t:
 we have a sport here with a distinctly American appeal to it.
 Designed not for experts or champions, but for the general public. and with the aid of these distinguished players. we hope to help the public to learn how to thoroughly enjoy the game of bill- iards.
 "Year by year we find great American sports becoming highly centralized, and more concentrated. The result is," said Storer, "that only the experts play the game, while the general public sits on the sidennes. We have notable ex- amples of this in football and base ball.
 For The Public
 "The object of the National Better Billiards" campaign is not to create more champions, nor to build more experts 50 that people may sit on the sidelines and cheer. We want actual players to be specific, 5,000,000 of them in 1885.
 gro this end, we hope to organ ize competitions and tournaments for the amateur. We want to in- terest women as we'll as men, as this is a recreation in which wom- en con indulge on an equal plane with the men. In short, we hope to bring this game to the American public, in such form, and under oughly enjoy participation in it."
 Besides those players named above, the following also attended the dinner:-
 J. N. Bozeman, Jr., Frank Tah- erski; Geo. (Handless) Sutton; Chas. Seaback; George Kelly: Kim rey Matsuyama; Robert Moore; James Caras; Wm. Mosconi; Ora c. Moringstar; Erwin Rudolph; Allen Hall; George Spears; P. Nat allie; Erich Hagenlacher; Mrs @" the mystic of billiards.
 Billiard rooms throughout the country are cooperating in tho drive and are inviting the public to take lessons, without charge, from the experts when they appear in the various towns.