John Parris Cues

[Semih_Sayginer]

right its all done. can we just leave this now.

hope so

hope i get answers to my questions about JP

[mattyuk]

my heads so messed, ive forgotten the point of it!

[Darth_Spud]

And finally to Mike, yeah Ive been killing animals since I was about 8. Rabbits, pigs, lambs, my grandad got me into it, then my dad showed my how to do it all. People are quite shocked at first that me could do such a job, but after all its a trade. And butchery is becoming a dyring trade like cuemaking. Im only thankful im in a good trade.

Were you in Saw 4?

"Ted Bundy, well known serial killer of perhaps as many as 40 women. As a child he spent time with his grandfather who was known to torment animals. Bundy admitted to killing animals when young, before killing women".

Run Mike run!!!!

Anyhooo! John parris - doesn't he make cues or something?

[LWB]

Were you in Saw 4?

"Ted Bundy, well known serial killer of perhaps as many as 40 women. As a child he spent time with his grandfather who was known to torment animals. Bundy admitted to killing animals when young, before killing women".

Run Mike run!!!!

Anyhooo! John parris - doesn't he make cues or something?

Hilarious lol. I thought John Parris was a boxing referee.

[mattyuk]

lol Darth!

I thought Bundy killed women because of erotic bondage comics in the 60's.

[trevs1]

when did JP 'start' making cues?

who did he learn off of (if anyone)?

has he ever worked in a cue making partnership?

Maybe early to mid eighties, self taught from what I've heard, and, always been more of a one man band until he become bigger and took on others.

Don't think he's worked in a partnership in cue manufacture, but could be wrong about that.

[MikeWooldridge]

Tut tut - Would you like to borrow a capitol Y and a full stop?

lol...

well spotted...

Very true Mike which is why I just spent £350 on a Playstation 3 - Why won’t the Misses see that it’s an investment!!!!

it's a burden we have to carry. training wives to understand the importance of such pleasures...

[MikeWooldridge]

when did JP 'start' making cues?

who did he learn off of (if anyone)?

has he ever worked in a cue making partnership?

i have no idea but was once told he originally worked for hunt & o'byrne then went on his own.

no idea if that's true or not. and never really given it another thought.

the boy done well. that's all i know...

[ADR147]

john parris isn't he the famous mountain man?

[Wity]

[keith auld]

most definitelty not true - John and I were working with the matchroom team about the same time - John preceeded Hunt & O'Byrne, as did I, John greatest asset was that Steve Davis became the greatest world champion and after he broke his cue in a car accident went to John who was local to him, and stayed at Johns workshop, which at the time was his garage, and he repaired Steve's cue which was broken in an awkward place and hence you see cues jointed in the middle of splices - which incidently is a total nightmare for cuemakers when customers ask for this - to his credit, he has taken that element and built his business on it - in the same way Hunt O'Byrne built their name on Jimmy White - Jimmy broke his 1 piece Mannock Cue just before the British Open - his manager at the time - Henry West came to see me to get a new cue for him, but I had nothing in stock and he went to Hunt & O'Byrne in the Elephent and Castle who ironically also had nothing in stock, other than this strange 3/4 cue that no-one had seen before.
All of us cuemakers at the time thought it was a joke and that Will Hunt had made a mistake and preduced something from a 1 piece cue that had gone wrong. How wrong were we!, Jimmy's talent was such that you could have put a tip on the end of a broomstick and he would still have beaten anyone. So those of you who play with 3/4 cues (myself included) and those of you who hate 3/4's and only want 1 piece cues, blame Jimmy for their worldwide popularity. All of us since, myself, Mike, John. O'min in fact anyone who has made a butt jointed 3/4 cue owes their livelyhood to Jimmy White and Hunt & O'Byrne. What this proves is that you've got to be in the right place at the right time, if I'd had a cue in stock at the time Henry walked through my shop door, then given Jimmy's natural talent then my cues would be as sought after as original Hunt & O'Byrnes - in a strange way its a bit like having a music hit - many years ago I played with a group called Rainbow in a recording session and they had a great hit with their single - but I was just a session musician and got no credit - that's where we cuemakers exist - in this ether that provides the tools for others to make theit fortune, as does Duncan Fearnley with his cricket bats. Come on guys - those of us who make cues do so because we love it and enjoy producing something that is part of us - a bit like Van Gogh - we make not make a fortune in our lifetime, but we're happy to get by and pay the mortgage, the same as the butcher, plumber or decorator. We're nothing special guys, just people, the same as you, trying to make a living

[ADR147]

are you seriously comparing yourself to van gogh ? because you know in many ways i am like gandhi !!!

[Wity]

Oh okay then photobucket have it your way. Simlar pic:

[poolqjunkie]

are you seriously comparing yourself to van gogh ? because you know in many ways i am like gandhi !!!

From what I understand, Van Gogh never received any fame nor fortune in his life time--but his life also proved to us that true talent will not go unrecognized.

I think cue makers are in a way like an artist, that much I am sure we all agree.

And if a cue maker has made a lot of cues and his work is good, his customer service decent, he will not get unnoticed. It may take a while but the words will get out. So, I have to disagree that someone is famous only because so and so was at the right time and the right place.

Mike Wooldridge is quite well known, although it is not due to any pro or world champions making magic shots with his cue--I am not even sure if he ever just gives cues to pro players for free. I would think it is rather his craftmanship and attention to details that has earned him the fame.

Then we have Trevor White, who is known for his top notch craftsmanship, customer service, not pro endorsement. He certainly has not been around for as long as Hunt.

But like I said, great talent will not go unrecongized.

I am also sure a lot of makers will be happy to give a cue to Alex Higgins, Jimmy White, and Steve Davis when they were at their prime. The fact that they ended up playing with a certain cue tells me they like that cue more than the other cues--so, I think the cue they use would mean more to them than just a broom with a tip on. If all cues are the same as long as one has talent, why was Steve Davis so desperate to fix his original cues to begin with? I therefore have to say that I do not agree if another cue maker had a cue for Jimmy White at the time, that this cue maker's cues would have been as sort after as Hunt--it may well be, but not necessarily so.

I am kind of surprised that Keith used Van Gogh as an example, because it is really not a very appropriate one in my opinion. Had Van Gogh lived to be 50+ in our time with such easy access to information, I would think that his work would have been widely recognized--and him a very wealthy man. Great work will not go unnoticed nor unrecognized especially in our internet age, whether such and such happened to be at a certain place and a certain time really should not have mattered much over time as long as the work is top notch. Just my humble opinion.

PS, I dont think Keith is comparing himself to Van Gogh though, he said in his own words he felt a bit like Van Gogh, but more like a butcher.

[mattyuk]

Good post Keith, very true. But I think cuemakers do make fortunes, look at Parris, and I think Mike will be a bit well off!!

Butchery and cuemaking has a lot on common too!
Being continually shouted at for the slightest mistake, low wage, and producing works of art!