24 April 2014

"A good pool player is a sign of a misspent youth"


My father used to quote that phrase when we played 8-ball.

I don't know the origin of the aphorism (?Twain, ?W.C. Fields), but I did find this while searching:

"I spent half my money on booze, women, and gambling. The other half i wasted." 
--W C Fields


6 comments:

  1. ZakApril 24, 2014 at 3:24 PM

    "Moderate skill in billiards implies a certain amount of mental capacity, but such skill as you have
    displayed is clear evidence of a misspent youth."

    Attributed to Herbert Spencer, but probably apocryphal. See here:
    http://books.google.com/books?id=R9QB0WBUBZoC&pg=PA27&lpg=PA27&dq=a+good+pool+player+is+a+well-rounded+gentleman,+while+an+excellent+palyer+mis-spent+youth&source=bl&ots=WCB1mtw9Hu&sig=9ahMyx4MYdZHoCxZAmbrpczL8LY&hl=en&sa=X&ei=M25ZU8fZBuvesAS5zoDgBg&ved=0CCsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=a%20good%20pool%20player%20is%20a%20well-rounded%20gentleman%2C%20while%20an%20excellent%20palyer%20mis-spent%20youth&f=false

    And Here:
    http://books.google.com/books?id=pojRAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA354&lpg=PA354&dq=%22herbert+spencer%22+%22misspent+youth%22&source=bl&ots=_9cjdQPhGO&sig=PiGoyT10VD-HrwG8tH6orrF1xIQ&hl=en&sa=X&ei=lHBZU6OcE_TLsQTE_ILgBg&ved=0CFsQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=%22herbert%20spencer%22%20%22misspent%20youth%22misspent&f=false

    and here:

    http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2289&dat=19031106&id=XUEoAAAAIBAJ&sjid=WgUGAAAAIBAJ&pg=812,3380347

    And finally:

    "Nor was there any truth in the one that
    has been constantly quoted in the papers
    about him, which states that when on
    one occasion he was beaten at billiards he
    laid down his cue and remarked to his
    adversary, " Moderate skill in billiards
    implies a certain amount of mental
    capacity, but such skill as you have
    displayed is clear evidence of a misspent
    youth." Something to this effect was
    said by a friend of his to a young military
    officer. No doubt Mr. Spencer often
    repeated it, as it was just the kind of
    story to tickle his fancy. And so it had
    come about that the speech was reported
    as having been actually made by him."

    https://archive.org/details/homelifewithherb00unknuoft at 155

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousApril 26, 2014 at 3:13 PM

    Better to hang out in pool halls, than in a lot of other places, like the mall, etc. and get into trouble.

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousMay 1, 2014 at 12:14 AM

    My father said the same. Where is yours from?

    ReplyDelete
  4. SattaMay 1, 2014 at 1:48 AM

    "I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars - the rest I just squandered".
    --George Best, soccer star

    ReplyDelete