Historyof U.S.

Table Tennis
Vol. II: 1940-1952
The War Years: (Some USTTA Victories,
But The Wounded Soldier Needs A Blood Transfusion)

BY TIM BOGGAN
USATT HISTORIAN

Lou Pagliaro (in background) and

Tibor Hazi about to play the 1942
Eastern Open Mens final

Copyright 2003

TIM BOGGAN
Tim Boggan is a former International Table
Tennis Federation Vice-President, and a former threeterm President of the United States Table Tennis
Association (now USA Table Tennis).
For 14 years he served as Editor of the National Publication, and is the author of Winning Table
Tennis (1976) and Volume I (2000) of this multivolume History of U.S. Table Tennis. For over 30
years he taught English at Long Island University in
Brooklyn, and since 1965 has been a prodigious
writer for the Sport. Having retired from teaching, he
is currently the USA Table Tennis Historian, as well
as the Associations Secretary.
He has received the ITTF Order of Merit
Award, the USTTA Barna Award, and was inducted
into the USTTA Hall of Fame in 1985. He has been
on the Halls Board of Directors since 1979.
He was a member of the 1971 U.S. PingPong Diplomacy Team to China, and since then has
attended, as official and/or journalist, almost every
World Championships. In 1975 he Captained the U.S.
Team to the Calcutta Worlds.
As a player through five decades, he has on
occasion, in addition to some modest early tournament success, and, later, some success in World
Veterans Championships, been the U.S. Over 40, 50,
60, and 70 Singles and Doubles Champion.
Both of his sons, Scott and Eric, were U.S.
Junior and then U.S. Mens Singles Champions.
Price: $ 50.00

History of U.S. Table Tennis

VOL. II: 19401952:

The War Years:

(Some USTTA Victories,
But The Wounded Soldier Needs A Blood Transfusion)

by Tim Boggan, USATT Historian

Copyright 2003
1

This book is for my father

who suffered through my not so misguided successes after all

PRINTERS INFO

ISBN NUMBER

COPYRIGHT 2003
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced
into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by means (electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the copyright
owner.

Acknowledgements
( From Oct., 1933 through Nov.-Dec., 1993, the name United States Table Tennis
Association (USTTA) prevailed; thereafter the Association is referred to as USA Table Tennis
(USATT). To me and many others, USTTA sounds much better than USATT (but Table
Tennis is an Olympic Sport, and the USOC prefers its national governing bodies to be USA
prefixed).
SELECTED SOURCES
Interviews, Conversations, Correspondence
Though some Im indebted to have helped me far more than others, I thank them all
and acknowledge them all here together: Earl Adams, Ray Arditi, Brad Balmer, Gordon
Barclay, Laszlo Laci Bellak, Nils Nicke Bergstrom, Guy Blair, Freddie Borges, Gene
Bricker, Ervin Brody, Bernie Bukiet, Chuck Burns, Bob Bushell, Doug Cartland, Elmer
Cinnater, Billy Condy, Barry Dattel, Bill DeMeyer, Frank Dwelly, Bill Early, Dick Evans,
Dickie Fleisher, Cal Fuhrman, Yoshio Fushimi, Al Gill, Bob Green, John Grinnel, Wally
Gundlach, Bobby Gusikoff, Helen Elliot Hamilton, John Hanna, Rufford Harrison, Tibor and
Magda Hazi, George Hendry, Allan Herskovich (a.k.a. Adolfo or Adolph Herscovic), Bernie
Hock, Larry Hodges, Herman Hoffman, Billy Holzrichter, Jack Howard, Steve Isaacson, Ives
Jackson, Carol Nidy Johnston, Sharlene Krizman, Harold Kupferman, Marv and Caron Leff,
Jack Lish, Betty Jane Schaefer McCloskey, Mary Reilly McIlwain, Jack McLarty, Jimmy and
Nell McClure, Dick Miles, Terri McSweeney, Al Miller, Reba Kirson Monness, Stan Morest,
Garrett Nash, Richard Neilson, Dean Norman, Lou Pagliaro and Paggys daughters Paulette
and Lois, Marty Prager, Marty Reisman, John Riley, Mayo Rae Rolph, Leon Ruderman, Dave
Sakai, George and Hilja Schein, Sol Schiff, Mildred Shahian, Mitchell Silbert, Howard Smith,
Thelma Tybie Thall Sommer, Cy Sussman, Sid Stansel, Frank Tharaldson, Zdenko
Uzorinac, Jim Verta, Bob Viducich, Henry Wiener, and Jim Williams.
Scrapbooks/Memorabilia
Ruth Aarons (RAS), Chuck Burns, Barry Dattel, Frank Dwelly, Yoshio Fushimi, John
Hanna, Tibor (birth-name Hoffman) and Magda (nee Gal) Hazi (T/MHS), Betty Jane Schaefer
McCloskey, Mayo Rae Rolph, George Schein (GSS I and II), Sol Schiff, Janis Uhley (whose
father was Executor of the Ruth Aarons estate), and Si Wasserman.
Records
Former USTTA Historian Leah Thall Neubergers Records. Separate Binders show,
from their beginnings into the beginning 1990s, the results of World Championships; Annual
Canadian National Exhibition Championships; U.S. Open Championships; U.S. Closed
Championships; U.S. Intercities (later called National Team Championships, still later, U. S.
Open Team Championships); Eastern Open Championships; and numerous City and State
tournaments around the country. Many of the tournament results I incorporate in this Volume,
and in Volume I, are from these records (records which Ive tried to confirm from other
sources).
I again want to thank Leah Neubergers sister, Thelma Tybie Thall Sommer, for
agreeing, after Leahs death, that I might, in my Historians role, have access to these unique,
3

labor-of-love Binders. I also want to thank again Leah and Tybies late, long-time friend Bob
Green for taking the considerable time and trouble of boxing up all these Binders (as well as
the many miscellaneous Folders Leah had acquired) and sending them to me.
Clippings and photos in the Scrapbooks, Binders, and Folders often do not show their
source or date, and many articles are written without a byline
Books
( I really havent had occasion to use books much, so it seems a bit much to list them
here. Ill note them in the text.)
Magazines
Of course Im greatly indebted to the official USTTA table tennis magazine of the
1940s/50s.
The changes in the official publication of the USTTA/USATT are as follows:
Initially it was called Table
Tennis Topics (TTT)I include under
this TTT heading the USTTA Newsletter
(loosely thought of as being Topics)
that, following the Oct., 1933 through
May, 1954 issues of Topics, took the
official place of that publication from
Jan., 1955 through Sept., 1961. The
name Topics was officially reinstated
with the Oct., 1961 issue, and the
publication continued through MayJune, 1983. Following a name change (see below), it again, from Jan., 1986 through Nov.Dec., 1992, became Topicsand included six interlocking issues, May, 1989 through Mar.,
1990, of U.S. Table Tennis News (which I also loosely include under this TTT heading).
Spinthe name of the official USTTA publication from the July-Aug., 1983 through
Dec., 1985 issues.
Table Tennis Todaythe name of the official publication from the Jan.-Feb., 1993
through Mar.-Apr., 1996 issues. It was described as The Magazine of USA Table Tennis,
and the name of the Association was then changed to USA Table Tennis.
USA Table Tennisthe current name of the official publication beginning with the
May-June, 1996 issue.
I want also to mention:
Timmys North American, ed. Tim Boggana rival publication to Spin (eight issues,
from July-Aug., 1983 through June, 1984).

Table Tennis World, ed. Larry Hodgesa

rival publication to Table Tennis Today/USA Table
Tennis (three issues, from Jan.-Feb., 1996 through
May-June, 1996).
CAL Table Tennisthe California
Newsletter (late 40s/early 50s). A special thanks
to Si Wasserman. Had he not sent me these hardto-come-by issues, I would know much less about
California table tennis than I do.
Im much in debt to two English table
tennis magazines of the 1940s/50s:
Table Tennisthe official publication of the
English Table Tennis Association.

Table Tennis Reviewa high quality magazine

independent of the ETTA.

Im also indebted to the Swedish magazine:

Svensk Bordtennisthe official magazine for Svenska Bordtennisfoerbundet (Swedish TTA).

Introduction
As we saw in Volume I (1928s
en
39), the 1930s fervidly autocratic
m
o
W en
USTTA President/Editor Carl Zeisberg
n Gre
e
p y
finally retired to be justly feted for his
. O Sall
S
U. on
leadership innovationsbringing in the
44 mpi
Expedite Rule, doing away with
40 a
19 Ch
fingerspin serves, and lowering the net
from 6 and 3/4 to 6. With his
retirement, the Associations war with
Parker Brothers and their trademark
Ping-Pongbelittled in editorial after
editorial by Zeisberg as p. p.nearly
e?
came to an end. There were just the
ell an
s
i
o m
occasional sniper shots still occuring in
em wo
d
t
a g
the official USTTA magazine, Table
M oun cke )
s
o
f
d y p
Tennis Topics. Zeisberg kept a sleight-ofea rt he chie
r
t
a
r
e
hand in, or occasionally even a heavy
Sh sm note dke
( an
hand in, for he continued for a while to
A
h
contribute his obsessive-minded fillers
and cartoons to the magazine (one
drawn-in character got a richly deserved
black eye from another because he buys
gyp bats not advertised in TOPICS). But yes, o.k., no less an authority than Mademoiselle,
The Magazine for Smart Young Women, agreed that Table Tennis was the name of the
Sport (TTT, Feb., 1940, 4). And now that that battle had been won, and the USTTA had a
new volunteer President and a new volunteer Editor (the decade of course would bring forth
others to take their place), there would be no more civil wars?
Uh, not exactly. Uncivil skirmishes, call thembetween players and officialswould
continue to occur. Indeed, one didnt have to wait for the later highly publicized Miles/
Reisman/Cartland controversies. Or even those about to involve McClure, Nash and Bellis.
Immediate case in point: Southern Californias uncooperative best players. Their Affiliate
President, C. M. Harrismake that their former Affiliate Presidenthad this to say in the
November, 1939 Topics:
Southern California is inactive as a T.T. center. Fundamentally, because the
leading players would not cooperate with the officials when tournaments were held.
They would send their entries in late, sometimes not at all. Frequently they would
defaultleaving weak quarters and semis. When exhibitions were required, they
were poor scouts about putting themselves out for the benefit of the game. And when
we had one of the worlds leading players visiting, and had an exhibition arranged, two
of our best men refused to play. A third agreed to play, then didnt show up. He had
no real reason for not coming. The play was a flop. At this time there isnt a man
capable of commanding the facilities to hold a tournament who will have anything to
do with T.T. tournaments (11).
6

The 1939-40 season continued, then,

with clashes between players and officials,
much as in the previous decadebut without
Zeisbergs intractable feistiness that in 1937
climaxed in a battle of egos with International
Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) President Ivor
Montagu that threatened our Associations
withdrawal from that body. The same U.S.
tournaments, held the same time of year,
prompted the same talk among dedicated,
unpaid officials about all those potential rec
players out there who just didnt want to
cooperate. Nope, not even when celebritycomedian Jimmy Durante said the Game was
dynamite and he was seen on the Oct., 39
cover of Topics raising his racket to the
imagined newstand readership much as he might
have raised his hat, fanning it right into center
court while smiling in homey, crooked-teeth
exuberance: Lets play!a piece of shtick rivaling
the enthusiasm given his celebrated schnozz.
Everybodys playing table tennisso
hyped the Associations magazine lead-off
editorial of the new season. A gigantic
Entertainer (and t.t. enthusiast?) Jimmy Durante
increase in players, it said. And two issues
later: Today table tennis is a great industry. Every major retail store carries a complete line of
equipment. Onlyit will be the same refrain, the same lament, every decade of the 20th
century and on into the new millenniumthe hordes of non-members just dont want to join
the USTTA. Why not? The explanations remain the same too. Most of the players are too
cheap. Theres too much pressure having to compete. The dedicated tournament players are
too goodindeed, you might just as well call them all professionals, especially the New
Yorkers of the 1940s, many of them so distant from the neighborly, amateur-minded
Midwesterners. The solution? Force the players who want organized playleagues,
tournamentsto join the Association. But for as many who join, as many wont remain. Still,
throughout this cycle of hope and despair, the Sport in the U.S. struggles on, come what may.
The crisis in Europebegun with Hitlers Mar., 1939 acquisition of Austria and
Czechsolovakia, and reinforced in September with his invasion of Poland that brought
England and Frances swift declaration of war against Germanyhad barely begun to be felt
in U.S. table tennis circles. But at least Topics Editor Harry Harriss opening-season editorial
paid lip service to the men, women, and children dying who should be playing (Oct., 1939,
3). Since the miraculous would have to occur for the French to hold the hoped for 1940
Paris World Championships, perhaps, said Harris, the U.S. could take over these
Championships, minus the Team events. Players from Europe (for up until 1952 the
Championships always centered on Europeans) might be able to brave an Atlantic ocean trip
on neutral ships? Naturally balls would be needed. But this wouldnt be a problemnot yet
anyway, or so Harris thought:
7

...Far from curtailing their exports, the warring nations [England, France, Germany]
will strive to continue to exchange their products for much-needed money to feed the roaring
guns. The amount of cellulose involved in making balls would not affect production of
explosives. Even blockaded Germany could export balls through neutral countries.
Coming into the 1940s, players in the U.S. were still far, far away from the devastated
courts of Europe. Two weeks after Hitler invaded Poland, Russia did too, then moved on
Finland. By Apr., 1940 Germany had occupied Denmark and entered Norway. The following
month Hitler attacked the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France. On June 17 the
Germans entered Paris. No miracle had occurred, far from it. There would be no World
Championships in Paris or anywhere elsenot for seven lean years.
During which time, the U.S. players would have a big advantage? Theyd already
proved their mettle in the 30s by winning World Singles, Doubles, and Team
Championshipsand while Great Britain would be subject to repeated air attacks, the best
American players would be showing up under well-lit tables for their nightly practice or
uninterrupted tournament matches.
That is, up to a point.
The Dec. 7, 1941 Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor had been preceded by an
unprecedented invitation for a U.S. Team to come to Japan in June of 1940 for friendly
matches. Our Association had accepted, and, as Team Captain Bill Gunn reported, all went
well for our players abroad. On their return, a July 2 letter from Japanese Association
President Usagawa spoke of more matches in the future for the sheer purpose of developing
amity between the two nations.
When our new U.S. Open Mens Singles Champion Lou Pagliaro was askeda month
after Italy had joined forces with Germanyon July 12, 1940 by New York reporters Fred
Herbst and Donald Spencer if he might exchange his racket for a gun and uniform, he said
bluntly what many young men would have, Any guy who wants America to enter this war
must be crazy.* But Selective Service trainees began registering in Oct., 1940, and as of
May, 1941, just before Germany attacked Russia, the U.S. declared itself no longer in a
limited but in an unlimited emergency state. More U.S. players began entering the Armed
Services. In Sept. not so amiable Japan joined Germany and Italy in Axis military partnership,
and after the Pearl Harbor attack, U.S. table tennis players mobilized for War.
In the same Dec., 1941 issue of Topics that stressed that veteran Tournament Chair
Dougall Kittermaster had all in readiness for the upcoming Chicago Intercities, Hungarian
official Ervin Brody, whod befriended our winning 1937 U.S. Teams abroad, was making the
following point:
...Expert opinion is unanimous here [in Hungary] that after the war the USA
will take over the lead in T.T....[for it] is being played and sponsored in your country
unhindered by the war while the game in other countries suffers considerably if not
totally from its effects (6).
Although there was a sameness about these Intercities in that New York was again
undefeated and had been since 1935, the Dec. 7 Japanese bombing would change the lives of
many of these players, some sooner rather than later. We would no longer be unhindered by
the war. Popular Yoshio Fushimi, whod emigrated to the U.S. in 1925 from Shizuoka,
8

Japan, promptly resigned his Captaincy of the Chicago Intercity Team, as if anticipating the
doggerel lines appearing in the Feb., 42 Topics: This is Gods country, great and clean/With
liberty he blessed it/And if some Jap tries to get in/Ill scalp the slant-eyed buzzard(15).
Yosh told me that on the morning of Dec. 8, 1941, when he went to open his employers Fuji
Trading Co., six F.B.I. agents were waiting for him. Of course in the 16 years hed been in the
U.S. he had a very clean record, and, until he could find new employment, for all goods from
Japan would be blocked, he had a host of friends willing to support him. In a sense, he was
luckyhe was a Japanese who didnt try to get in, he was in...with a sympathetic in group.
But though he wasnt sent to an internment camp, he later met with some hostility in getting
his U.S. citizenship.
As did Hungarian immigrant Tibor Hazi. A Texas Congressman apparently found it
very Un-American that Hazi had brothers who were officers in the Hungarian Army. He began
grilling Tibor with repulsive questionsasked, for example, If the U.S. asked you to serve
and you fought the Hungarians, would you kill your brother? Tibors response was blunt,
Id be happy to serve, but I wouldnt kill my brother. Serve Tibor eventually did, after he
and his wife Magda were awarded U.S. citizenship through a private bill, passed by Congress
and signed by President Roosevelt.
Toward the end of the 1941-42 season, Topics advised cheerfully that the first room
you blackout is your table tennis room....With a good supply of table tennis balls and a radio,
what could be nicer for the entire family? However, an editorial in the May Topics speaks of
how it had been a difficult year for table tennis from all angles.
A number of former members have been lost to the armed services. Many
who formerly played frequently are unable to devote much time to the game because
of defense work. The majority of our officials have had to curtail their table tennis
work somewhat because of defense business. And some players have been unfortunate
enough to lose their playing areas that the space might be utilized for the more
important purpose of war work (2).
So now, warns Topics in prose and verse, When you put away your bat for the
summer, make sure it is stored in a safe place. It will be difficult to replace next season. A
thought echoed in the first stanza of Bea Horowitzs poem Were Squelched:
Priorities affect our game,
The bats and balls are not the same.
Ball shipments sunk while on their way,
For rubber bats we sure must pay.
By the end of the 1942-1943 season, Topics had twice published Editor Wes Bishops
guide to The Care and Feeding of Bats For the Duration. If we dont want to go back to the
sandpaper racket era, he says, players have to keep rubber facings from getting sticky and
hard. So, members, do this:
Wet the paddle on both sides and scrub thoroughly with soap and water. A
fingernail, or hand brush is the best for this. Then let the water rinse off all the soap.
Do NOT use hot water. Slap the paddle against a towel to shake off the surplus water
9

and then wipe the edges of the bat carefully with the towel. This is to prevent the
water from seeping under the facing and dissolving the glue.
Bishop says the washing should be done at least once a month, or oftener, depending
how much the paddle is used. He warns that perspiration must not remain on the sensitive
rubber pips for very long. The acid in perspiration is the chemical that hardens or makes the
rubber sticky. Where keep your irreplaceable racket during the summer? It should be lying
flat in a cool place where there is some circulation, not, say, in an old bureau drawer. There
should be humidity in the room, too, as dry air will harden the rubber.
Got all that? Youd better, because next season will not just bring a shortage of
rubber, but a total lack of it (May, 1943, 20).
Meanwhile, USTTA 2nd V.P. Carl Nidy in his Topics article No Tires! No Gas! SooWhat! reiterates the USTTA position that during this past 1941-42 season tournaments
have benefited from a large entry list and also by the increasing interest of spectators. Dont
worry, he says, if the big stars cant get to your tournament, it may be a blessing in disguise.
You wont have to pay so much for trophies, can cut down on the promotional expenses, and
ought to be able to charge less of an entry fee. That will revive interest, as will the fact that
local players have more of a chance of winning if the better players cant participate. The
quality of play of these locals will be entirely adequate to please the spectators attending
the matches (Apr., 1942, 3, 11).
The prospect of locals watching locals play for the umpteenth time might prompt a bit
of a grimace from some. Of course if youre a USTTA official you hope for the best and try to
put a good face on things. But if youre 1940-41-42 U.S. Mens Champion Lou Pagliaro and
cant defend your title because youre working in a defense plant, its undeniable that the
War has hit you hard.
Also undeniable is the fact that the USTTA, as of Jan. 1, 1943, has only 1,320 regular
members. Nidy says that We are in the position of a coal miner who has been satisfied with
surface findings and has yet to develop the main vein which lies beneath. So our Sports got
to go even more underground?
Still, there are great hopes for Membership in the futureas there have been for the
last 10 years, as there will be for the next 60. Mrs. William Guilfoils Feb., 43 Topics guest
editorial adopts a thankful-so-many-are-playing, morale-building rationale: Men in the
Armed Forces are learning that table tennis helps them attain the prime objective of all
physical trainingthat of teaching the individual to think clearly and act quickly in combat
(2). Since its certainly true that many U. S. stars are giving exhibitions with United Service
Organizations troupes, and that recreational ping-pong is a hit in Service camps and U.S.O.
and Red Cross Clubs everywhere, USTTA Tournament Chair Dougall Kittermaster in the
Oct., 44 Topics follows up by saying, We hear from all over the world that Table Tennis is
the most popular game for the men and women in uniform and we can expect a great increase
in interest in the sport when peace comes (6). But of course, as History keeps insisting, and
our officials keep denying, theres a big difference between the Game, Ping-Pong, for the
masses and Table Tennis, the Sport, for the relative few.
From Oct., 1942 through Feb., 1944, Topics no longer put photos on its covers, or
anywhere in the magazine. Each cover, listing names and Service addresses, was dedicated to
USTTA members in the Armed Forces. A special May, 1943 issue revered those who have
given up the pleasures of civil life to make the supreme sacrifice, if necessary, to bring peace
10

again to the world. Further restrictions were required though, for the U.S. Government
Office of Censorship soon insisted that Topics delete from those names and addresses the
Company, name of the ship, bomber squadron or group...[since] this information could be
very helpful to the enemy.
Of course patriotic V-Mail began to appear in Topics. Here are excerpts from an
article, The Thrill of a Lifetime (Jan., 1944, 3, 12), by Budapest-born, 1933 World Doubles
Champion Sandor Glancz, whose oldest and youngest brothers, William and Andrew, while
living in Hungary, were captured and killed by the Nazis:
...The first thing I saw was a huge smoke in the ocean. As I found out later an
LCT [landing craft] shot down a Jap diver. I bet the boys in the boat were proud. The
next I saw was two Jap dive-bombers coming down with tremendous speed at a ship.
They let loose two torpedoes but they missed by about ten feet and both planes never
came out of the dive and crashed right in the sea....A bunch of planes appeared
suddenly from beneath the clouds about a mile and a half from where I stood and a
P38 right on their trail.
Thousands of soldiers were standing on the beach
watching excitedly. Just like a football game. Suddenly a tremendous ovation burst out
and I saw a Jap in flames falling in the ocean. Then another one, and another one, and
another one all in flames, paying for Pearl Harbor. We were screaming and cheering
just like at a Notre Dame game, only this time we had a lump in our throat and the
crowd was slightly prejudiced. I saw more Jap planes going down in flames and in a
few seconds I can count on my fingers. They were all blasted from the skies down to
their doom and not one of them escaped.
...[In] our mess hall we have a sign that reads as follows: Jungle restaurant,
with daily floor shows. At least one Jap plane guaranteed shot down daily.
The celebrated Victor Barna, with whom Sandor had won the 1933 World Doubles
Championship, had safely immigrated to England, but his younger brother, too, Tibor,
Hungarian Champion in 1941, perished in the Holocaust. After Glancz saw action in the
South Pacific and the Philippines, he was awarded the Purple Heart and two battle stars.
Then, not yet a U.S. citizen and concerned about where hed be if he were captured by the
enemy, he wrote a letter to Eleanor Roosevelt and very soon thereafter got his citizenship.**
During the War a number of well-known table tennis players served with distinction.
1934 APPA National runner-up Billy Condy, for example, after graduating from flying school
in Feb., 1942, flew 50 missions in B-17s from the Eighth Air Force in England and the 12th
Air Force in North Africa. Some prominent players and officials were killed in actionamong
them: Richard Tindall, 1935 U.S. World Team member; Gar Gomon, 1940 Nationally-ranked
player from Michigan; and William R. Gilfillan, Chair of the 1941 Manhattan Center
Nationals and former President of the N.Y. Metro TTA, who was buried at sea.
For many, Table Tennis life then returns to normalthough even at home change is
inevitable. Topics co-Editor, Berne Abelew, urges tournament managers to realize that the
player and not the tournament sponsor is the one that should be made happy. It is the player
for whom the entire affair is run. He says players have a bit of a reputation for being
temperamental, fussy, andas some people put itkind of screwy. Maybe more so after
the War? Anyway, he advises those who run tournaments that some players need kind
handling (Mar., 1945, 2). Perhaps his suggestion is taken to heart?
11

Elmer Cinnater, whod Captained our

winning World Championship Teams of 1937, will
be back in commandthis time as President of
the Association, and for an unprecedented five
years. In his first address to the Membership, he
offers Political Pablum: ...I realize it is difficult
for management and players to be always of one
mind as to what is best for the U.S.T.T.A., but I
see no fundamental reason why, if there is good
will and understanding on both sides, the
problems we are sure to encounter cannot be
amicably discussed and satisfactory agreements
reached to comply with majority opinion (Topics,
Oct., 1946, 2).
Wouldnt it be nice to think so? But, as
well see, four years into his Presidency, Cinnater
will have to acknowledge, as one observer points
out, that
differences of
opinion
between New
York and the
Middle West
take rather a
TTT, Jan., 1946, cover
long time to
Jimmy McClures coming home
heal.
Chicagos Lynel Overtonthe subject of early 40s
discussion as to whether he and other Negroes ought to be
allowed to play in our National Championshipshad
celebrated the day Japan accepted the Allies terms of
surrender, Aug. 14, 1945, V-J Day (Victory over Japan), by
giving an exhibition at a local Servicemens Center. Now, in
that same Jan., 46 Topics that has a cover picture of
former U.S. World Champion Jimmy McClure being
mustered out of the Navy, he offers some suggestions for
the advance of the Sport. Lynel proposes, among other
things, that the USTTA enlarge the magazine, put in a bid
to hold the next World Championships, and begin to
produce member-accessible films of the Associations
outstanding players. Result? Beginning next season, Topics
will expand considerably....And the USTTA will set a goal
of at least 10,000 new members.
Meanwhile, Topics is giving 1945 and 46 U.S. Mens
Champion Dick Miles singular attention: Miles is in a class
by himself at the present moment....There is nothing to
How to focus:
10-time U.S. Champion Dick Miles indicate that any player in the U.S.or any place elsecan
12

get within shooting distance of the classy New Yorker (Apr., 1946, 5). Such an appraisal of
course comes at that 1946 moment. What about at the World Championships that will follow
for the U.S.in 1947 (Paris), 1948 (Wembley), 1949 (Stockhlom), and 1951 (Vienna)?
Well, the forecasters were right, and the U.S. will again show itself after the War as a
World table tennis power. But Ill not spoil your fun, not share any of the details with you just
yet. A word of warning, though. Will it be heeded? The Japanese are comingbringing with
them historic, irreversible change. And having said that, I close this Introduction with one of
the best poems ever printed in Topics, and with the exhilarating admonition that some heady
moments are imminentand not just for Miles.
TABLE TENNIS
By Ralph E. Royer
It is a sight for rousing cheers
To see strong men drive tiny spheres...
Commanding with the tutored twist
Of paddle, and the snap of wrist.
For all experience in our ken
Reveals: The sphere has driven men.
An ancient spin turns us about,
Impels us in, and drives us out...
The angles of our incidence
Reflected in the consequence.
Aeons after we are gone,
The whirling ball will still whirl on.
How apropos, then, to reverse
The technique of the universe.
(May, 1946, 5)
SELECTED NOTES
*Louis E. Laflin, Jr. and Peter W. Roberts, in their History of Table Tennis articles
published in Topics in the late 1940s, say that Italian dictator Benvenuto Mussolini instituted
a ban against handshaking either before or after matches in table or lawn tennis. They quote
him as saying, Intimacy between opponents in sports is an ugly reed which should be
uprooted (TTT, Jan., 1949, 4). How foreign, how crazy, such thinking would have been to
Pagliaro, who was always considered a good sport, a class act.
**For this and more background information on Sandor read Reba Monnesss In
Memoriam article in TTT, Mar., 1974, 4-5. The reference to Barnas brother can be found in
Ervin Brodys article on Victor in the ITTFs Table Tennis Digest, May, 1993, 10.

13

Chapter One
1939: August-September Tournaments Herald the Coming 39-40 Season; 1939:
Hazis, Fuller, Barna, and Bellak On Tour. 1939: Penns Bellis and Sarner Take
Intercollegiate Teams. 1939: New York Wins Their 8th Intercity Championship.
As we saw in the first (1928-1939) volume of this History, the USTTA considers its
playing season as lasting from roughly mid-September through the early-Spring Nationals.
This means that, unless an unusual exception is made, not a single result of the many, often
strikingly contested Spring and Summer tournaments count either for the National Rankings
or for the Hammond (Mens) and Wilkinson (Womens) Cup races (in which points are
awarded and graded according to the importance of the tournament and ones performance in
it). Since this 6-month hiatus seems ridiculous to me, Id gone on, after covering the 1939
Nationals, to report on a number of post-season April/May tournaments. Now, in this second
(1939-1952) volume, Ill begin by noting some significant summer tournaments that preceded
the 1939-40 season proper.
Pinner, Magda Hazi Win at Provincetown
The 7th annual Provincetown, MA Summer Open, held Aug. 4-5 at the Town Hall,
might be said, at least for the vacation-minded Easterners, to have unofficially opened the
1939-40 seasonwith unseeded and unsung Eddie Pinner, ranked #12 in N.Y., taking the
unique Anton Van Derek-designed (fish-shaped) Silver Cod trophy. In the final played by the
five advancers in this unusual Quiniela format (modified round robinwinner of each match
stays at the one table in play until someone has accumulated five victories), the 15-year-old
Pinner upset both U.S. #12 Charlie Schmidt and the visiting world-class Hungarian, Tibor
Hazi, whod been runner-up to Jimmy McClure in our March U.S. Open. Magda Gal Hazi,
Tibors wife and the 1935 World Singles finalist, won the Womens 28-entry, single
elimination event, without dropping a game. She thus avenged her loss in last Mays
Connecticut Open to Ruthe
(pronounced Ruth) Brewer,
U.S. #3, who in the semis
here stopped two-time
winner Mae Clouthers bid
to retire the Bronze
Dolphin trophy (TTT, Oct.,
1939, 13).
Cook, Brewer Take
Canadians, But U.S.
Suffers Its First Loss in
Teams to Canada
Four weeks later, at
another vacation spot, the
Canadian National
Exhibition tournament in
Toronto, Brewer

Ruthe Brewer and Sol Schiff

14

successfully defended her Womens title by downing Columbus, Ohios Mrs. Norma
Hieronymus Studer, 19 in the 4th. New Yorker Harry Cook, about to be Stan Fields assistant
at the Washington, D.C. Ice Palace Clubthe exhibitions the two put on were the best said
Topics columnist Reba Kirsonhad an easy time in the Mens, winning in straight games in
the semis over Montreals J. J. Desjardins, and in the final over Detroits unranked Charles
Bernstein. A relative unknown, Bernstein (wholl soon change his name to Chuck Burns), had
captained the Northeastern YMCA basketball team for two years, and had also played one
season in Class C of the Detroit Baseball Federation, where he had a .600 batting average.
Sliding into base one day, he hurt his leg, and had to find another outlet for his gutsy, go-getem-style hustle.
In other CNE matches, Cook and Brewer won the Mixed in 5 over Montreals Pierre
Chapdelaine and Ohios fast-improving Leah Thall (later 9-time U.S. Womens Champion
Leah Neuberger). And Chapdelaine and Desjardins beat 1937 CNE Singles and Doubles
Champ V. Lee Webb and fellow Detroiter Max Hersh to take the Mens Doubles.
In the supposedly climactic 5th International Team Championship, the U.S. fell for the
first time to Canadaand in humiliating 6-0 fashion. Actually, this one-sided Match was really
U.S. vs. Montreal, for no local Toronto player was deemed worthy enough to represent his
country. At least not in that Small Judging Ring, the venue that for decades to come would be
used, on those dignified days that table tennis wasnt scheduled there, to award sight, sound,
and smell prizes to the Fair-beribboned animals. Chapdelaine, whod lost to Bernstein in the
Singles, downed Detroits U.S. #24 Harvey Davis, then squeaked by the Ohio #1, Cal
Fuhrman, deuce in the deciding 3rd. Desjardins hit through Cook (whom hed lost to 3-zip in
the Singles), then annihilated Davis. Leo Rosenzweig capped the Canadian attack with wins
over Fuhrman and (an I dont much care?) Cook.
After the matches, Fuhrman wrote this critique of the tournament:
...The Canadians were wonderfully hospitable and we had a very enjoyable
time. However playing conditions were far from good (very slow tables were the main
flaw) and the rules, besides differing from ours, were very indefinite. The anti-pushing
rule during one of the U.S.-Canada international matches was changed no less than
four times while the match was in progress and was finally finished under protest from
the U.S. player and team captain [Fuhrman himself?]. But Im pleased to say that
excellent sportsmanship was in evidence from both sides and in spite of differences of
opinion, a spirit of goodwill prevailed. Our USTTA should be criticized, however, for
not making proper arrangements for the Gimbel International Trophy team
competition well in advance. For instance, mutually agreeable rules were not made
before the match started; and the U.S. team did not have uniforms, in contrast with the
nattily attired Canadians (TTT, Oct., 1939, 20).
After Fuhrmans swipe at USTTA officialdom, he goes on to note an amusing
incident that occurred at this tournament:
While Gar Gomon of Detroit was engaged in a hectic doubles duel...one of
the spectators hurled vegetables at him! I am willing to testify that the aim was
accurate, too. Such incidents are common at wrestling matches but I believe my friend
Gar is the first American table tennis player to be so honored.
15

Schiff Strong in Brooklyn and Providence Tournaments

Last years CNE Singles winner, Sol Schiff, didnt come to Toronto this year, but in
late September, at the Metro Club on Flatbush Ave., Sol won the Brooklyn Closed. In the
quarters, he eased by the dangerous Pinner, then exhausted Schmidt, 18 in the 5th, and in
the 5-game final attacked the panther-like Bernie Grimes, driving him repeatedly to the
back-court and sidelines of the 50 x 80 foot arena. Grimes had beaten Abe Berenbaum, one
of the best U.S. players of the last decade, and had then trailed Cy Sussman, 1936 U.S. Boys
Champion, before -17, 21, -16, 19, 13 prevailing. Earlier, Sussman had upset Lou Pagliaro, 19
in the 5thone explanation being that Paggy, who began the summer by winning both the
New York Masters Invitational and the Connecticut Open, had not thawed out from a ride in
a rumble seat (TTT, Nov., 1939, 16). The left-handed Schiff, teaming with his exhibition
partner, Doug Cartlandfrom time to time literally pushing him out of the way, for Doug was
a lefty tooalso won the Doubles from Pinner and Sussman, soon to be, in both pre and postWar years, the most recognized doubles pair in America.
Sol didnt win the Oct. 19-20 Manhattan Openlost in the semis to Cartland, who
then went on, after being down 2-0, to take Grimes in the final. However, Sol did score a 1st in
Director Hugo Merks Nov. 4-5 Southern New England Open at Providence. After downing
Pinner and Schmidt, Sol was threatened in the final by
Not by the absent Grimes,
who
would
be lauded by Topics
Smokes a lot?
Sidelines columnist George Koehnke
(pronounced Konk-e) for the nice job
hed done in that vari-colored Camel
cigarette advertisement in the Sunday
newspaper supplements in which he
gave tips to beginners (TTT, Jan.,
1940, 11). In the last of nine panels,
Bernie, relaxing with a cigarette after
his two-panel workout, explains to a
pretty girl that Camels are milder
presumably because, as the ad
emphasizes, under the searching tests
of impartial laboratory scientists, slowburning Camels were found to contain
MORE TOBACCO BY WEIGHT and
Bernie Grimes
thus give smokers the equivalent of 5
EXTRA SMOKES PER PACK! Bernie must be smoking a lot, for he was said to be having
sleepless nights because of his mothers illness, and was so off form as to not make this
years N.Y. Intercity Team (TTT, Dec., 1939, 12).
Hazis on September-October Tour
The Hazis didnt play in Toronto, New York, or Providence. Faced with an uncertain
future after their March arrival from Hungary on visas of limited duration, they started
Touring. Firstwith the legendary Hungarian Victor Barna and U.S. Womens Champ Emily
Fullerin the Northeast, beginning at Hartford, Sept. 26. Then, continuing on, playing
against good local competitionRhode Island State Champ Tony Fionte, for example, at
16

Providence, and the promising 16-year-old Frank Dwelly at Cambridge. And ending Oct. 13
at Philadelphia (where back in late July Hungarian churches and societies had arranged a
Hungarian Day of exhibitions by the Hazis and Gene and Vi Smolens). Topics reported
some unusual dramatics at this final City of Brotherly Love engagement:
BARNA BEATEN, BELLIS BOOED
The first defeat met by 5-times World Champion Victor Barna in America, in 5
years of playing here, was administered to him in Philadelphia by Izzy Bellis, U.S. No.
3 player, on Friday, Oct. 13, in what was supposed to be an exhibition. After the first
game it developed into a dog-eat-dog battle, in which the famed Barna flick finally
succumbed to the poisonous Bellis chop, 2-1. Barnas Hungarian compatriot, Tibor
Hazi, thereupon challenged the Philadelphia star, and his attack likewise was muted, 21, after he had held impressive leads. However, Belliss double victory was pyrrhic, as
his own hometown fans applauded the sensational hard-hitting game of Hazi and
booed Bellis for his monotonous defensive play. They even hurled a shower of
programs into the arenajust like baseball fansto indicate their disgust with
chiseling tactics. The finale, a marvelous exhibition by Barna and Hazi, was what the
cash customers wanted (Nov., 1939, 16).
Bellis, who, with his brother Leon, had just opened the 10-table Arcade Club on
Chestnut St. in Philly, later defended his defensive tactics, said he didnt know the matches
were supposed to be exhibitions, and therefore he played to win. But this defense was greeted
with much skepticism (TTT, Dec., 1939, 12). As we saw in Vol. I, Bellis apparently always
was one to work angularly. Schiff thought that Izzy was a very sharp kid, that hed been older
in his age-group competitive play than hed professed to be, and later was not surprised that
hed become a lawyer.
Hazis Midwest Fall Exhibition/Education Tour
By late October the Hazis had taken out their first U.S. citizenship papers and had
struck out on their own. Kansas City foils included U.S. #30 Dr. Herman Mercer and
Womens City Champion Mrs. Dorothy Joseph Benson. Doubtless, Hazi, who always took
care to look his best on court, was himself impressed that Kansas City league play required
players to wear gray flannel trousers with a special sewed-in crease (TTT, Oct., 1939,
21).
At Omaha, where the venues varied from a hotel ballroom to a high school gym, local
lights Virginia Perkins and Joe Camero took their best shot...or tried to. Although
Minneapolis would see Tibor and Magda playing in such diverse places as the Federal Reserve
Bank and the Marigold Bar, no venue on their Tour could match the one at this Omaha stop
where they played at the halftime of a football game between Creighton and St. Louis
Universities. A strong wind prevented...table tennis at its best, but the [12,000] fans
appreciated the innovation, which was broadcast by radio (TTT, Dec., 1939, 10).
For their weeks stay in Milwaukee, the Hazis might be seen offering instruction at
Daytons sporting goods store, or, through the efforts of the Department of Municipal
Recreation, coaching and giving exhibitions at the Wisconsin Ave. Social Center (regular
admission 25 cents, but the Senior Optimist Club planned to treat the Junior Optimists, so
the kids would only have to pay 15 cents).
17

Milwaukee Journal sports

editor R. G. Lynch wrote
that, during the Hazis
Nov. 13 exhibition,
Wisconsin State Champ
Don MacCrossen, Tibors
long, lean opponent, was
as hot as an old-fashioned
stove lid on washday. Of
course Magda beat
Womens State Champ
Shirley Carson with ease.
Afterwards, the Hazis
were guests at a dinner
given in their honor by the
Milwaukee Hungarian
Athletic Club (T/MHS, 2526).
At Toledo, with the help
of Larry Minneker, soon to
be the Ohio TTA
Governor (that is,
President), the 72-member
Toledo TTC regularly met
at the Heather Downs
Country Club. Play was on
7 Detroiter tables, with
750 watts of illumination
Milwaukee Journal
above each table, and
The Hazis in Milwaukeeand no one claustrophobic
with access to the dining
room and cocktail room,
operated by the [ t.t.] club
as part of its social
program. Topics reported (Dec., 1939, 12) that Tibor and Magda won the hearts of
Northwestern Ohio players with the hard work and long hours they put in [in their coaching
clinics].
1939 Barna-Bellak Tour
After his Northeast Tour with the Hazis, Barna later teamed up for a 6-weeks U.S.
TourRochester, N.Y....Chicago...Omaha...Denver...Houston...Portland, ORand, after the
Christmas/New Year holidays, an additional two weeks in CanadaVancouver
CalgaryEdmontonwith Hungarian 3-time World finalist, Laszlo Laci Bellak, the 37
and 38 U.S. Open Singles Champ and with Hazi the current U.S. Open Doubles holder.
Portland is where for a year or two at this time Bellak, selling equipment out of the Mead
Building, called home, and where (coincidentally?), on Sept. 30, according to Oregonians, the
BEST EQUIPPED T.T. Club in America opened.
18

Originally, Bellak wanted to tour here with 1937 and 1939 World Singles Champion
Richard Bergmann, but Bergmannwhod learned the game as a boy in Viennacouldnt
leave London, where hed immigrated to, because of the War. As youd expect, tournament
table tennis was seriously curtailed in England. According to Bill Pope, Honorary General
Secretary of the English Association, the ETTA was maintaining merely a skeletal
organization, especially since in wartime the danger of air raids forbade any large gathering
of players and officials (TTT, Jan., 1940, 14). This was a wise move, for, though during the
blitz diehards might be playing table tennis with friends in the cellars of homes in and around
London, the High Holborn St. Headquarters of the ETTA was hit with a bomb blast and
demolished and all Association records lost (TTT, Dec., 1940, 6).
Though Laci didnt have the benefit, or the handicap, of sharing this Tour with the
inveterate womanizer Bergmann, Im reminded of a story he told me about the time he and
Barna, after putting on a very successful exhibition, were guests at a private dinner party with
the hostess sitting between them. Though of course both these very experienced
internationalists spoke English with this woman, it no doubt added to their continental charm
that they occasionally addressed one another in their native Hungarian. Such was the occasion
when Laci, smiling, said to Victor, You know this lady has a hand on my knee. To which
Victor, also smiling, replied, You know she has two hands.
In late Jan. Barna set sail for his adopted home, England, where he planned to put on
exhibitions for British soldiers. He and Bellaks strongest competition on their U.S. Tour had
been at Chicagos Towers Club (formerly the Medinah Club) on Dec. 3, before Illinois TTA
President James. J. Leahy and 1200 spectators. Chicagos best included U.S. #10 Billy
Holzrichter, U.S. #11 and Illinois Open Champ Ralph Muchow, U.S. #14 Bob Anderson, U.S.
#19 Al Nordhem, U.S. #23 Paul Popple, and the veteran Herbert Chubby Anderson. The
ambidextrous Aronson, who sometimes stood at the ready gripping the racket with both
hands, reportedly had a firm make him one with two handles. If he really played matches with
this, it must have been damn disconcerting to an opponent to see him hit the ball with one of
the racket-handles jutting out. Also joining the Barna/Bellak Program here were Chicagos #1
woman player, Mildred Wilkinson, and the retired but momentarily resurrected Jay Purves, a
mainstay of the U.S. Womens Team that in 1937 had won the Corbillon Cup.
University of Pennsylvanias Bellis and Sarner Intercollegiate Champs
The same weekend that 17-year-old Billy Holzrichter and his Intercity Chicago
teammates were playing host to the traveling Hungarians, collegians from 14 schools,
including for the first time, Navy, Pitt, Virginia, and Dartmouth, were playing for the
prestigious Thomas C. Bradley Trophy in the 3rd National Intercollegiate Championships at
Princeton. U.S. #3 Izzy Bellis and U.S. #31 Len Sarner, winners in 37-38, but losers in 3839, regained the title. In the final four-team round robin that followed the format of four
singles and one doubles, they beat George and Don Hendry, representing Culver-Stockton
Military Academy, in a taut 3-2 match-up. Don lost his two singles as expected, but teamed
with brother George, whod won his two, to force the doubles to a 19-in-the-3rd climax.
Defending Champion Princeton again fielded U.S. #15 Dan Kreer, but their #2 man,
Abbott Nelson, whod upset Kreer to win the Nov. Greater Newark Closed, had been
declared ineligible by the University authorities two weeks previously. As a result, Princeton
could not even come second, falling to the runner-up Hendry brothers. George, whod lost
that memorable 28-26 in the 5th match against Barna at the 38 Wembley Worlds, had
19

recovered from his July appendectomy and, with a 19, 19 win over Bellis, was undefeated and
so earned the Outstanding Player Award (TTT, Jan., 1940, 9, 15). Two weeks later though, in
a friendly touch-football scrimmage, George broke two bones in his racket-holding handand
until they mended could only be an Outstanding Spectator.
New York Wins Intercities for the 8th Time
New York is the Intercity winner again, yesbut, wow, what a difference from that
disappointing Jan. 31-Feb. 1, 1939 5-team (Eastern teams only) Intercities in Philadelphia.
This time, Chicago, St. Louis, Indianapolis, Boston, and Detroit, all absent last winter when
the customary hotel-and-meal hospitality wasnt offered, brought renewed vigor to the
tournament. And what a start! Midway up Philadelphias City Hall building, a large electric
sign blazoned, WELCOME NATIONAL TABLE TENNIS STARSand welcomed they
were by the Mayor himself.
Washington could have fielded a team with or without CNE winner Cook, perhaps still
incapacitated from a minor nose operation, one that would have included the present D.C. #1
Stan Fields and the former #1 Eli Schumanbut that team wasnt invited. Nor was (too-faraway?) Minnesota represented. Hard to tell what the Twin Cities men would do against
tougher competition, but they had reason to be proud. Dave Krawetz had triumphed in the
late Oct. 10,000 Lakes Open over Harry Lund, after Dave had taken out Ed Litman, and
Harry had upset Ed Sirmai, whod go on to win the Dec. Nebraska Open over Camero
(humpbacked the more because of his job setting pins in a bowling alley?). Seattles Closed
Champion, U.S. #25 Ray Pearson, whod made the long trip to the 38 Nationals, might
already have gotten his student wings, completed his first solo as a beginning pilot, but of
course one could hardly expect him to fly in his buddies for the weekend.
Certainly, though, there were teams that traveled to these National Intercities that
didnt have a chance to win, or even come second. Weakest, with 1-5 records, were Detroit
(Hersh, 6-6; Webb, 3-10; Gomon, 2-4; Bernstein, 1-6) and Boston (Lowry, 8-5; Dwelly 6-8;
andwell, they needed a third, didnt they?Frank Connor, 0-14). Also weak, in the
unexpected absence of U.S. Champion Jimmy McClure, was the Indianapolis team (Earl
Coulson, 8-6; Charles Tichenor, 3-4; Jimmy Shrout, 2-3; Ned Steele, 2-4, and Roger Downs,
1-8).
Question: Where was McClure, the advertised feature player of the weekend? It was
said that no U.S. #1 had ever absented himself from the Intercities before. Answer: Out on a
Tour with Sandor Glancz, adding insult to injury, playing exhibitions elsewhere in
Pennsylvaniaat Oil City on Friday and Uniontown on Saturday. An offense which prompted
the PTTA to ask the USTTA to discipline McClure and Glancz for violation of By-Law 8 in
playing exhibitions in the state sans PTTA permission. A request that was pursued on paper
by the newly appointed USTTA Executive Secretary Vic Rupp. As one can see from his Jan.
3, 1940 letter to the USTTA Executive Committee and Board of Regents, Rupp himself feels
that Jimmy is quite out of line and wants to stop other top exhibition players from following
suit. Heres a pertinent excerpt from his three-page, single-spaced letter, which not
surprisingly illustrates his Official vs. Player point of view:
...While it is true, as Jerry Woodruff [USTTA Recording Secretary and
Exhibition Chair] points out, that the No. 1 ranking player has his best chance to make
money the year he holds the title, nevertheless the selfishness of the players to gain
20

financially at the expense of the association should certainly not

be condoned. After all, as Carl [Zeisberg, former USTTA
President and now one of the USTTA Regents] explains, the
officials work hard to arrange events for the benefit of the
players, and the players should certainly be sufficiently
appreciative of the work done for them to take an active part in
tournaments where the association will be apt to benefit.
McClure says he is all for the game. I do not doubt this in the
least. It is one thing to be for the game and another for the
association. We all know that exhibitions help popularize the
game but have little effect on increasing the number of USTTA
members. In fact the players in exhibitions are the ones who
benefit most; the local affiliate or sponsor next, and the USTTA
gains only by the small Exhibition fee charged. The players must
be taught that the association which helps make possible their
opportunities to make money should receive consideration, and
their selfish desire for profit should not be permitted to
Wants players to
outweigh the loyalty they owe.
cooperate.
At the [Intercity] matches George Schein [USTTA
1941 U.S. Open Program
Ranking Committeeman] informed me that he had received
Vic Rupp
absolutely nothing up to that time for McClures ranking record
for the current season. Jimmy himself wrote that he would not participate in the EastWest matches if selected. This can indicate only one thing: that Jimmy feels absolutely
no responsibility to the association or its progress. In the past it has been necessary to
clamp down on various top-notch players because of their failure to cooperate. If
McClure is permitted to run rife, increasing difficulty will be encountered in
controlling players in the future. While the player deserves every consideration, he in
turn must have some consideration for the association and its officials....
Rupp suggests four changes in Exhibition By-Law 8. One, restrain tournamentenhancing players from arranging exhibitions that would prevent them from playing in major
tournaments. This would also prevent an unscrupulous exhibition team from performing
nearby while a major tournament was going on. Two, insure that the Exhibition team notify
the USTTA Exhibition Chair of their itinerary (which McClure/Glancz did not do), so that he
could refuse sanction of a conflicting tournament. Three, provide a severe penalty for failure
to apply for permission of the local affiliate to hold exhibitions in its territory (Rupp says
Pennsylvania TTA President Robert Metcalf had good cause to resent McClure/Glanczs lack
of consideration). And fourth, insist that, unless excused for good reason, top-ranked players
must participate in major tournaments or forfeit their title. (What, though, does that mean? If
someone doesnt defend, the tournament will have a new winner, and the previous winner will
obviously no longer hold the title, right? Is the previous winners win then to be purged from
the record booksnever again to be affixed to his name?)
Rupp also recommended that the USTTA take definite action against McClure for
failure to cooperate.
So was McClure made a bad-boy example of? No. And why not? Perhaps because
E.C. members were in awe when theyd heard that a Battle Creek, Michigan reporter had
21

written that Jimmy and Sandor had amused the crowd by hitting and
returning the ball with the butt end of their pencils [sic: or paddles?].
As it happened, the weak teams at these Intercities, including of
course Indianapolis without McClure, provided much of the drama.
Though Boston had the handicap of the hapless Connor, their 54 edge over Indianapolis could be sharp-penciled-in because Lowry
scored twice (losing only to Central Indiana Open Champ Downs),
and Lowrys teenage teammate Dwelly downed Downs, Coulson, and
Shrout.
The Indianapolis 5-4 win over Detroit came despite the fact that
Steelewhom Topics (Apr., 1940, 20), quoting Red Smith of the
Philadelphia Record, said, makes his living winning jitterbug
contestswas perhaps a little too jumpy here, for he lost all three,
to Hersh, Webb, and Bernstein. But Coulson countered by winning all
three, and U. S. Boys Under 15 titleholder Tichenor added the
necessary two, losing only to Hersh, MI #7 last year but just this past
Nov. Indianapolis Open Champ over Shrout.
This same Dec. weekend as the Intercities, the Detroit News
finished up its 4th annual Novice tournament, having attracted 16,000
players. Both Bernstein and current Detroit Closed Champ Hersh had
been previous winners of this tournament (TTT, Jan., 1940, 12).
Bernstein, as columnist Betty Stoll Angelo tells us in her Dec. 24,
Frank Dwelly
1981 interview with him, had learned his table tennis at a Detroit Y,
had graduated from Eastern High School, then, after attending Wayne State University for a
couple of semesters, had just this year opened Campus Table Tennis Courts with the $400
he had saved from his sales work of notions to Detroit businesses. Though Bernstein was
having a tough time at these Intercities, within two years, as Chuck Burns, hell be a very
steady and very fierce competitor.
In St. Louiss easy victory over Detroit, Lester Perlmutter scored his only win of the
weekendagainst Bernstein. Less teammate Bill Diller (1-10) would also be badly battered,
but his 19, 19 win over Connor allowed St. Louis to sneak by Boston 5-4. That left it up to
Garrett Nash (9-2) and Bill Price (9-6) to 5-4 do in Indianapoliswhich they did, though
Garrett lost to Coulson.
Last spring, at the March Missouri Valley Open, won by Nash over Price, Garrett,
after defeating Downs in the semis, flopped himself down on a convenient couch to await the
outcome of the other, strongly contested Price-Hendry semis. As Topics Associate Editor
Wes Bishop tells it, Nash, staring at the ceiling, began to amuse himselfand drive us nuts
by calling the type of shot, who was doing the hitting, the score, and the position of the player
by the sound of the ball! (Oct., 1939, 5). That Nash could drive others nuts would be
apparent at these Intercities.
Ill speak of New York and Chicago players in a moment, but the only close tie
remaining was in fact a tiebetween St. Louis and Philadelphia. A tie, that is, until with the
score 2-2 and Nash and Bellis fighting it outbickering and arguing as to what constituted
chiseling and fingerspinUSTTA Referee & Umpires Chair Frank Yetter, as he details in his
Feb. 1, 1940 letter to USTTA Disciplinary Chair Jack Hartigan, came into the court. First, to
explain the chiseling rule, then, later, to officiate after umpire Richard Geiger was forced to
22

ask to be relieved because of

the players ungentlemanly
conduct. Or, as Topics put it,
after scenes reminiscent of a
wrestling match that were
called sour by the
Philadelphia Inquirer (Jan.,
1940, 8).
Since what followed will have
significant repercussions, here
(as Yetter explains in his letter
to Hartigan, copies to 15
others), is apparently what
happened:
...When the score had
reached ten all, in the first
game, Nash was continually
heckling the umpire and his
opponent by asking how he
could make this a chiseling
match. Of course, as is his
Caustic
custom, he was continually
hustler
asking advice from the gallery
which in his vicinity was
decidedly partisan and that
vociferously so. After defining
Expedite rule A to the players
Izzy Bellis
Garrett Nash
and the umpire, I left the floor
at which time Nash deliberately forced the chiseling rule...[by matching] Bellis
defensive game....[Now] the Philadelphia faction in the gallery began to add its bit
to...the actions of both players who were attempting to make a farce of the whole
match....
[Yetter takes over for Geiger, insists that a players fingers or thumb may not
touch the ball while being served, and says he manages to quiet the most offensive players
in the gallery by threatening to have them removed from the room. Then, after Nash wins the
first game, Yetter says he threatened to disqualify either player if his gallery continued to be
noisy.
After Yetter had called the score 20-16 for Nash in the second game, Nash
made the sarcastic remark Thats right for a change. Now, Bellis, serving, stopped
his service motion because he realized that his fingers were touching the ball, then
quickly completed a legal serve, mumbling aloud a half apology, half prayer.]
...As he [Bellis] tossed the ball into the air, Nash selected this moment for one
of his caustic remarks...which could well have upset his opponents service. I decided
at this moment...that both players had exceeded the warnings that had been given them
and I called a let with the intention of defaulting both players for un-sportsmanlike
23

conduct. While my throat was articulating the one word let, Belliss serve had been
returned by Nash [the local Inquirer said it had been deliberately set up by Nash] and
driven for an excellent placement by Bellis. This would, of course, have made the
score 20-17 had I not called let....The ball, after being struck by Bellis, bounced high
in the gallery among Nashs friends and after Nash had had the ball returned to him, he
stood leaning across the rail for a period of approximately 15 to 20 seconds
conversing with the gallery.
Naturally, without a microphone, I did not care to announce the double
default when Nashs back was turned and while he was not listening. While I was
awaiting Nashs return, Bellis, without knowledge of my intention and because of
Nashs last remark and his present action with the gallery, picked up his sweater from
under the table and announced to me his intention to default, giving me his reason that
it was impossible to play under such conditions....[On Nashs return to the table Yetter
then announced a double default.]
Yetter, noting that the disgust of the paying spectators was apparent, recommended
to Hartigan that disciplinary action be taken against both men. After the players had left the
court, Nashs team then defaulted the tie to Philadelphia. Thus, on losing to both New York
and Chicago, St. Louis finished 4th with a 3-3 record.
Indianapolis (2-4) avoided a last-place tie with Boston and Detroit (1-5) by beating
Philadelphia with 5-1 easeclearly because Bellis (10-1) didnt play.
Against favored Chicago though, Izzy did play and with three big, bad wolfish breaths
blew away the whole Windy City team, including a pay-back match with Holzrichter whod
had little regard for Belliss #1 seeding at the March Nationals. As someone said, Izzy didnt
have a stiff chop, but he was fast and could run all day. It was Ham Canning, manager of the
Philadelphia TTC, even more though who came through for Philly (4-2) by knocking off both
Holzrichter and Anderson.
In the final tie, Chicago (4-2), the only team to compete in a complete identical
uniform, was no match for undefeated New York who turned up with a combination of the
old and the new. Not only did Grimes, the Topics-advertised Instructor at the 16-table
Duncans Club (2555 Broadway),* not make the N.Y. team, but Cartland, Oct. Manhattan
Champ over Bernie and Schiff, had been absent from the N.Y. Tryouts, incapacitated with a
bad back. As for Pagliaro, hed married a neighbor friend, Josephine Modica (theyd lived in
the same apartment building), and had moved to Washington, D.C. to manage the new B. R.
English-owned Columbia Club, which, like his rival Fields Ice Palace, charged probably the
highest playing rates in the country (80 cents an hour). Ranking Committee head Elmer
Cinnater, re-elected St. Louis TTA President, said in a Dec. 5, 1939 letter to new USTTA
Executive Secretary Vic Rupp, Chair of this Intercity event, that if hed have known Pagliaro
had moved to D.C. he would have considered a team from there before one from Boston.
But arriving in Philadelphia were other equally formidable N.Y. players. By bicycle
pedaling the 90 miles through the dark, wee hours of the morningcame Schiff. Table tennis
requires a great deal of running and to keep in shape for a tough match I try to build up my
wind, Sol told local Evening Bulletin reporter Edward J. Magee. Pedaling a bicycle
strengthens the leg muscles and gives me that extra bit of stamina when the pressure is on
(GSS II, 88). And, sure enough, Sol had no trouble with Chicagos bestposted a 7-1 record
overall, losing only to Nash. Former U.S. Champion Abe Berenbaum (4-1) was 15, -24, -9
24

stubbornly beaten by Holzrichters two-winged

attack, but contributed a win over Ralph Muchow.
And, as Nov. Northern New England Open winner
Charlie Schmidt (5-1, lost only to Bellis) and N.
Y. Metro Champ Eddie Pinner (5-1, lost only to
Lowry) watched from the sidelines, 17-year-old
Cy Sussman (9-1, lost only to Nash) went on to
take the Outstanding Player award by downing
Muchow and Anderson. Bellis had a slightly better
percentage record, 10-1, but, after falling to
Sussman, and being, as usual, a problem to
officials, he was certainly not going to win any
award.
Given this Philadelphia fiasco, the Illinois
TTA decided that they wouldnt risk any similar
disruption, and so cancelled the Jan. 7 Chicago
Mens East-West Matches. The reason? Because
un-sportsmanlike actions of high-ranking players,
who do not appreciate officials efforts to promote
the game, did not presage success for the event
(TTT, Jan., 1940).
TTT, Oct., 1940, 11
Bob Andy Anderson

1949 Internationell
Bordtennis Program

Outstanding Player
at 1939 Intercities
Cy Sussman

SELECTED NOTES.
*Club managers could list their Clubs in Topics
under Places to Play at a cost of $3 for eight
consecutive issues (said advertisement to be no more
than five lines). Duncans Club was at the SW corner
of Broadway and 96ththe almost identical site of
Marty Reismans two later clubs. About forty blocks
south, at 1721 Broadway, was the soon-to-becomelegendary Broadway Courts known as Lawrences.
As the 1940s began, Abe Berenbaum and Dan Klepak
were listed as the Broadway Courts Instructors. At this
time, too, the 12-table Manhattan Fifth Ave. Club, a
Bronx club, three clubs in Brooklyn, and two in
Jamaica, Long Island were listed (see TTT, Jan., 1940,
20, and Mar., 1940, 19).

25

Chapter Two
1939-1940: Establishment of First Womens East-West Matches. 1939-1941:
Continued Popularity of League/Intercity Play. 1940: Pagliaro/Magda Hazi Win Easterns;
Anderson/Leary Take Westerns. 1940: Champions-To-BeMcLean and MilesMake Their
Teenage Appearance.
Although the Mens East-West matches had been canceled, the officials ire did not
extend to the women. Who among them would make a scene? Though of course that didnt
mean they were satisfied with their lot. To date, the women had never had their own National
Intercities, and only once, in Chicago in 1937, had even a modified National Team Tryout
been held for them. So, given the expense of traveling to tournaments, they just hadnt the
opportunity to play many matches against players outside their own geographic areas. This
was even more true for the Far West players, or for, despite their 217 USTTA members
(second only to Pennsylvanias 398), the relatively isolated Minnesota players like State
Champion Grace Janowiec or Jean Wadsworth who, at the Jan., 1940 Minneapolis Closed,
after being down 2-0 and 20-15 in the 3rd and then down 20-17 in both the 4th and 5th to
Grace, certainly could be said, on winning, to have upset her.
A fun competition for the best of the women players therefore was the newly-formed
East-West Matches. These were planned by USTTA Womens Chair Mrs.
Violet Smolens, who was assisted in the West by Mildred Wilkinson. First,
there were the Preliminary Sectional Qualifiers, each composed of 10 selected
playersone held in the East, at the Philadelphia Club under the direction of
Mrs. Smolens; the other in the West, at the Indianapolis Riviera Club under
the direction of Fred Green, Sallys father. Unlike the single-elimination
Nationals, these were round robin matches, and the top five finishers from
each of the two Sections would then meet in a Final
round robin in Cleveland with the winner to receive
the newly donated Emily Fuller trophy.
The Eastern Zone matches were played, as
were the Westerns, on the Nov. 11-12, 1939
weekend. National Champion Fuller would not be
playing because she wanted to pursue a singing
career. As she said later when urged to play in the
Nationals, she had promised her new singing
teacher, to devote all my time to music and not
play in tournaments this year. Perhaps Emily feared
what she said her teacher did, that the mental and
physical strain of competitive table tennis was
injurious to my voice (TTT, Mar., 1940, 4).
Still, her presence would be felt for some
time. Chance to pick up the Jan. 22, 1940 issue of
the Philadelphia Record and, on following the 13
photos of whatever shes doing there, youll get six
free lessons. Perhaps these provide the impetus that,
with Sam Silbermans help, will result in Emilys
26

1942 instructional book, Top-Notch Table Tennis.* The only other strong Eastern player
missing was U.S. #4, Dorothy Dot Halliday, whod lost to Fuller in the final of the 38 and
the semis of the 39 Nationals. A tonsilectomy had taken her out of competition...and she
would never return.
The week before, at the Providence New England Fall Open, New Rochelle, N.Y.s
Mrs. May Spannaus had 17, -22, -21, 17, 19 outlasted Arlington, Mass.s Mae Clouther and
then in the final, after being down 2-0, had gotten by Ruthe Brewer. As expected then, all
three did well in these Eastern Zone trials. Qualifying 1st for the Final East-West round robin
were USTTA President Jim Clouthers wife, U.S. #5 Mae (with an 8-2 record), followed by
U.S. #17 Mrs. Matilda Plaskow (7-3), U.S. #9 Spannaus (6-3), U.S. #3 Brewer (6-3) who,
though suffering still another tough (19 in the 3rd) loss to Spannaus, led her as of Dec. 31 in
the Wilkinson Cup standings, and Helen Germaine (7-4). Helen had long been a table tennis
threat to high-ranking players (she lost 19 in the 3rd here to Brewer), but was often unranked
due to insufficient data because, as her National Public Parks title would suggest, her first love
was tennis.
This trial-by-combat produced a cluster of close matches and thus an enjoyable,
exciting tournament. Clouther and Philadelphia Champ Plaskow played 10 matches, not 9, for
they were 7-2 tied for first place before Mae in a play-off beat Matilda again. The surprising
Plaskow, on posting a 26-24-in-the-3rd win over Germaine, would have come first had she
not lost, 19 in the 3rd, to Philadelphias Mrs. Henrietta Wright (2-7 with a deuce-in-the-3rd
win over Smolens). Germaine played 11 matches because she, Alice OConnor, and Mrs. Reba
Kirson Monness (after a 19-in-the-3rd loss to Brewer) were all tied at 5-4. In the play-off,
Helen again defeated Alice and Reba.
U.S. #14 Molly Kareivis might have been thought more likely to win an upset
Qualifying spot than her New Jersey rival, U.S. #22 Alice OConnor, but Mollyd recently
been handicapped by an arm ailmentthough two weeks hence she wouldnt have any
trouble winning the Essex County Closed over Alices sister, Newark City Champ Hazel
OConnor. Moreover, at the Jan. 20-21 Newark Garden State Open, Molly seemed quite
herself, for shed play a sensational, though losing, 26-24-in-the-5th match with Northern
New England Champ Brewer. As for U.S. #8 Mrs.
Murray Monness, shed not only gotten married to an
attorney during the summer, but with perhaps Keatsian
sensuousness had written a book of poetry called
Autumn Souls. Though -15, 19, 18 rallying to beat the
#1 Qualifier Clouther, she seemed, in her 15, 16 loss to
Plaskow, drowsed with the fume of poppies.
At the Western Zone Qualifier, South Bends
Betty Henry, 1938 World semifinalist by virtue of a
highly favorable Draw, finished first with an 8-1 record.
Her play, it was said, had greatly improved. Perhaps,
too, she was tougherno longer quite the teenage
innocent whod burst into tears on confiding to someone
the awful thing that English International Hyman Lurie
had said to her in London: Ill be around in the morning
to knock you up (meaning of course in Brit parlance
TTT, May, 1940, 9
hed warm her up, practice with herhit some with her).
Betty Henry
27

Second to Henry was 1939 National runner-up Sally Green (7-2) who, though beating
Betty, lost a deuce-in-the-4th match with Wilkinson and struggled with not only #9 finisher,
Toledos Gladys Pete May (winning deuce in the 4th), but #8 finisher, Columbuss Mrs.
Norma Hieronymous Studer (surviving the 23-21 3rd game to win in 5). Fred Green, in a
write-up of the match between Betty and his daughter, spoke of how play elsewhere had
stopped as both players and spectators watched Sally driving Betty back 15 and 20 feet from
the table and Betty making impossible returns of 5, 10 and more drives for each point.
Though Betty lost this marvelous match, 25-23 in the 5th, it was Sally, said Fred, who was
finished...as far as the tournament was concerned, a torn muscle in her upper arm putting her
under doctors care (TTT, Dec., 1939, 13).
Other West Qualifiers were Wilkinson (6-3), whod gone 5 with Henry; an apparently
lucky Leary (5-4), helped, I presume, by a last-round 9, 17, 9 win over an injured Green; and
Helen Baldwin (5-4). Fred Green thought that probably the most improved player, showing
now a more forcing, aggressive game, was South Bends Mary Baumbach (4-5). Although
Mary beat both Wilkinson and Leary, and played a challenging 24-26 in the 4th match against
Green, she lost badly to Baldwin, and had to work hard to defeat both Studer and May. What
really killed her chances, though, was her -19, 22, -17, -20 loss to Omahas Mrs. Virginia
Perkins Merica, winless except for this match. Toledos Norma Schmaltz (4-5) also had
opportunities. But her gutsy play against Qualifiers Leary (19, -19, 20, -14, 17) and Baldwin
(19, 23, -20, -17, 28) werent enough, for she lost to Studer in 5 (after being up 2-1) and,
worse, to May, 19 in the 5th (after being up 2-0).
As it happened, the Final East-West Matches were disappointing. Held in Cleveland,
Feb. 17-18, under the direction of Carl E. Heyl, CTTA Secretary, they were missing six of the
10 Qualifiers. Wintry weather was said to have prevented Easterners Clouther, Plaskow, and
Germaine from attendingthough Brewer, Spannaus, and one Alternate, OConnor, managed
the difficult trip. Flu kept Westerners Green and Wilkinson away, and Baldwin, who a month
earlier had won the Missouri Valley, for some reason canceled. In addition to Henry and
Leary, one West Alternate, Baumbach, also attended, doubtless to balance the two sections.
The results of this six-woman round robinin which the East topped the West 6-3
were as follows: (1) Henry, 5-0with working wins over Spannaus (18, -19, 18, -19, 19),
Brewer (6, 19, -19, 17) and Baumbach (16, -9, -20, 16, 17); (2) Brewer, 4-1pressed not by
her nemesis Spannaus, whom she finally beat, and three-zip at that, but by the hard-driving
Leary, deuce in the 4th. Leary, Baumbach, and Spannaus were all tied at 2-3. OConnor was
shut out.
In a Mar. 16, 1940 letter to Ranking Committeeman George Schein, Womens Chair
Smolens said that she didnt want to meddle in Ranking matters, but that she couldnt help
making a point. Since these round-robin matches were planned, for the first time in the
history of table tennis, to provide the Ranking Committee with considerable data on East vs.
West women players, she felt strongly that...
the girls who went to all the trouble (braving one of the worst
blizzards in the East) and expense to go to Cleveland, should certainly get superior
ranking to those girls who didnt go. After all, the girls who wentand spent on an
average of $30.00 or $40.00 for expensestook a chance of hurting their
rankings,...while the girls who didnt go wont have any losses....Id like to see the seedings
at the nationals...[based on] these girls showings at the sectional try-outs and the final.
28

Smolens suggests that the seedings for the Apr. 5-7 Nationals be (1) Henry, (2)
Brewer, (3) Leary, and (4) Spannaus. Of course, as well see shortly, the Ranking Committee,
having considered the results of the Feb. 3-4 Easterns and Westerns and other tournaments,
wont feel obligated to follow Smolens seeding restrictionsand perhaps for this reason
Violet will not continue as Womens Chair.
Popularity of League/Intercity Play
By now women were more and more finding their way into what was predominately
competition for menthe leagues. In some cities in 1939-40 they were already secure. The
Philadelphia Womens League was now in its 6th season. And the St. Louis TTA had 11 teams
of four women each in their Womens Division44 players in all. Other Midwest womens
leagues were going strongfor instance, in Lansing, Minneapolis, Kansas City, and Omaha.
Moreover, in Omaha, if not this season in an upcoming one, in an effort to improve womens
play, each of the mens teams would have a woman playing with them.
The MidwestDes Moines, Iowa, to be precisewas home to Carl Nidy, whod
succeeded Stan Morest as the USTTA Leagues Chair. Carl would eventually rise in the
Association hierarchy to become its President. Married, with two daughters, he was a
distributor of animal vaccines and serums. A member of the Drug Travelers of Iowa (as well
as the local Chamber of Commerce), he covered much of the state for the Anchor Serum
Company, the worlds largest producers of anti hog-cholera serum and virus. The familys
social life centered round the University Church of Christ, and a unique Club in which 58
couples owned their own clubhouse and enjoyed Friday and Saturday night get-togethers
(bridge games, dinners, dances). In addition to his local, regional and national League duties,
Carl organized and promoted tournaments, and taught a table tennis class to youngsters at the
local Y (TTT, May, 1941, 10-11).
The popularity of leagues, especially mens leagues,
along with intercity and intra-city team play, that wed seen in
Volume I, continued during both the 1939-40/1940-41 seasons.
Here are some examples of how in these two remaining preWar years they flourished in all their variety in all parts of the
country.
The powerful Eastern 1939-40 Intercity League
consisted of six men on each of five teamsPhiladelphia (the
Defending Champion), Newark (Captained by Essex TTA
Treasurer Bill Cross, who by seasons end would be U.S. #26),
Washington (Captained by 1938 U.S. World Team Leader and
former USATT President Morris Bassford), Baltimore
(Captained by Maryland TTA President Dr. David N. Banen),
and New York (Captained by Richard Geiger, described by
TTT, Dec., 1940, 9
Topics as that anomaly, an excellent table tennis player who is
Bill Cross
also an excellent official).
Also, there was a 1939-40 Eastern Pennsylvania League consisting of teams from
York, Reading, Harrisburg, and Lancaster.
As in the case of Reading, where the Feb., 1940 Easterns are to be held, or Lancaster,
site of the Dec., 1939 Pennsylvania Open, interest in league play sometimes leads to an
interest in putting on tournaments. Tournament Chair Mel Evans, Jr.inspired perhaps by a
29

Lancaster Franklin and Marshall

University Professor of Education who
did a study that concluded that
swimming, tennis, and table tennis were
Gingers
the three most popular sports in the
best serve
U.S.enthusiastically hyped the
Pennsylvania Open, even went so far as
to not only invite the real West Coast
players but popular movie star Ginger
Rogers.
The actress was pictured on the
Dec., 39 cover of Topics with a
sandpaper racket in hand, serving a
karate-cut slice of sidespin to her
costumed opponent, Santa. Shed even
penned a lead article in the magazine
(5)though not to everyones liking. I
have been annoyed, one reader was
later to write (TTT, Feb., 1940, 21), at
seeing pictures of moviedoms great and
having to skip the drivel with which the
articles drip. The 28-year-old Ginger
(nee Virginia Katherine McMath of
Independence, Missouri) spoke of how
much she depends on the game for exercise and diversion, and how much fun playing the
game is for, oh, say, her movie-star friends Jimmy Stewart and Henry Fonda. In answer to
Evanss invitation to her to come east to Lancaster and play in the tournament, she responded
with a nice letter, regretting she couldnt be on hand to compete, but her studio contract
forbids extra activity.
There was league depth not only in the Mid-Atlantic statesMaryland, for example,
in the 40-41 season had 14 teamsbut in New England too. Providence, according to Topics
(Mar., 1940, 20), favored a 100% USTTA-membership Home League for less proficient
players 23 years old and over....Its 32 3-player teams meet in members homes.
In the Midwest, Louisvilles 12-table Municipal T.T. Center hosted 1940-41 Falls
Cities leagues. During the 39-40 season, National Champion and Indianapolis club-owner
Jimmy McClure said that Indianapolis had more league play than any other city in the
country. He thought it amazing how many factories and business places wanted to sponsor
teams this year. And, whats more, offer trophies and medals galorefor the winning teams;
the 8 players with the best records; the 8 showing the best sportsmanship; and the 8 voted
most improved. Moreover, if you hadnt won anything by seasons end, perfect attendance for
the 14 weeks got you a gold medal (TTT, Oct., 1939, 21).
The 1939-40 Minneapolis/St. Paul leagues, like a number of others, had a 100%
USTTA membership. During 1940-41, Denver, Colorado Springs, and Pueblolike Omaha
and Lincoln, Nebraskaenjoyed intercity play. As did Tulsa, Skiatook, and Ponca City,
Oklahoma, as well as Topeka, Lawrence, and Kansas City, Kansas (with Bill Guilfoil as its
Closed Champion).
30

Topeka had a thriving league of 14 four-man teams. City Champ Cecil Woodworth
noted that for the 39-40 season all league players had to be Club members at a cost of $1.25
per month. When a howl went up from many who said they couldnt afford it, an agreement
was reached where non-members would pay $.15 an eveningand, said Woodworth, the old
installment plan worked! (TTT, Dec, 1939, 13).
Membership was always a problem with the Association, and, powerless to draw-in
huge numbers, or stop the geographical infighting, the Board of Governors repeatedly
resigned itself to think small. Hence, any provisional affiliate with over 25 regular members
is eligible to apply for change to a District Association, and thus acquire the right to vote in
the national election of officers, sanction its own closed tournaments, and have the same
jurisdiction over the territory [not to exceed five counties] granted to it as a State Affiliate
(TTT, Mar., 1940, 9). One need only recall New York Metropolitan TTA President John
Kauderers fall-of-1938 troubles with the rival Ross Ackerman-led NYTTA (that didnt like
the, uh, membership mix of the MTTA and sought to wrest jurisdiction from them) to
understand why the MTTA, with its varied leagues, was one of the first to apply for this
District Association control.
Naturally one thinks of leagues being played in the evening, but in Denver 35 or so
postal employees who work late shifts were said to be planning a once-a-week morning
league (TTT, Oct., 1939, 19). And in designated hotels in towns in southern Oregon,
traveling salesmen were playing in a league (TTT, Dec., 1939, 12).
If you wanna play, you find a way.
And theres no better example of wanting to play and finding a way than the Hazis.
Back East after their Midwest Tour in time to participate in the Dec. 9, 1939 Lancaster
Pennsylvania Open, Magda, in Ginger Rogers absence, won the Womens final24-22 in the
4th over Brewer. Her husband reached the Mens final after just getting by Schmidt 19 in the
5th. His opponent was Pinner, whod smashed through Bellis at will, then received a belated
default win over Pagliaro who, stopping repeatedly during the match because of a leg cramp,
could not recover sufficiently to finish the fifth game. Paggy, according to
the local covering reporter, was leading 16 to 9 but probably feeling that his constant
interruption of the match was throwing Ed off his game...decided to be a sportsman and
discontinued the match (GSS II, 25). In the final, ruddy-looking Tibor got slapped in the
face, as it were, and so turned even redder than usual. Leading Pinner 19-18 in the 5th, he
served three times and watched three times as Eddie blasted in winning returns to power away
the title.
The Midwest stars, too, continued their peripatetic play. At the (Illinois, Iowa,
Missouri) Tri-State Open, held Jan. 13-14, 1940 in the Burlington, Iowa Memorial
Auditorium, Billy Holzrichterhis ability to counter-drive is exceeded only by his uncanny
judgment as to when to do itwon the Mens for the third straight time, downing Garrett
Nash in the final. Sally Green, to no ones surprise, took the Womens over Helen Baldwin.
Entertaining Elks Club magician, Norval Prugh, made table tennis balls disappearbut could
he have had anything to do with what was stranger still, the reappearance at this tournament
of our first woman International, Helen Ovenden? (TTT, Feb., 1940, 15).
Eastern Open
The Feb. 3-4, 1940 Eastern Open (Hi, Pal began the PTTA announcement urging
participation in this tournament) was held in the ballroom of the Rajah Temple in Reading, Pa.
31

There was nothing unexpected in the 45-entry Mens matches until the last 16but then,
though the favorites came through, they all had to go 5: Pagliaro with Cross, Bellis with
Philadelphia County Champ Ham Canning, Klepak with Phillys Al Butowsky, and Hazi with
Hartfords Johnny Abrahams.
The Easterns, second in prestige to the Nationals, was not, as they say, a players
tournamentnot like, to take an unusual example, next months Minnesota Closed where
innovatively not only first- round losers in the Mens went into a Consolation, but losers in
that went into still another Consolation! You lose early in these Easterns and youve only one
consolationthat the matches youve come to watch will be good ones. So it was with three
of these quartersSchiff over Hazi, 18 in the 5th; Bellis over Grimes, deuce in the 4th; and
Klepak over Pinner, deuce in the 5th. Unfortunately everyone seemed so spellbound watching
these games that no one wrote anything about them.
The semis? Not exactly anticlimactic: Pagliaro over Bellis, 16, -19, 19, 16, and Schiff
over his doubles partner Klepak, 20, 22, 17. To the delight of the onlookers the last match of
the evening brought the tournament to a climax: Paggy over Sol in 5winning the last two,
23 and 19.
The 15-entry Womens featured the appearance of 13-year-old Margaret Peggy
McLean, who by decades end will have become a world-class player. In one half of the draw,
Reba Monness, who I suspect had the most helpful warm-up matchagainst Chevy Chases
14-year-old, D.C #1, Carolyn Wilsonsaid, if not a prayer, a poem, and advanced with a 2220 in the 3rd win over Philadelphia County Champ Maltilda Plaskow. In the semis, however,
Reba was stopped in 3 by Magda Hazi. In the other half of the draw, May Spannaus
eliminated Alice OConnor, then in the semis followed through with her usual win over
Brewer. Oh, will I ever beat her? Ruthe must have thought. In the final, Magda had a fairly
easy time with May.
Western Open
The Western Open, played on the same Feb. 3-4 weekend as the Easterns, was held in
the Grand Ballroom of the DeSoto Hotel in St. Louis. When in the Mens 8ths, Defending
Champion Nash lost two deuce games to a local Omaha player, Warren Hotz, no one for a
moment thought he was in trouble. Not that Garrett avoids troubleon court or off. Hed
been threatened by the Nebraska TTA with USTTA suspension after failing to return the
Eugene Eppley Perpetual Trophy in time for its presentation to the winner of the Missouri
Valley Open, and for subsequently ignoring four requests for its return. But he did finally
return it, at these Westernsand so no point trying to suspend him for his negligence now,
especially since he was already, after this tournament, going to be suspended for the rest of the
season because of his and Belliss ungentlemanly behavior at the Intercities.
The nations #1 defensive player, Bellis, might likewise have been doubly suspended,
had there been any point to it, for Pennsylvania TTA President Robert G. Metcalf and his E.C.
had insisted that Chiseling matches must stop, and so had issued the directive that all
tournament sponsors in Pennsylvania refuse entry to known chiselers, and specifically Bellis.
So, no Nationals, no U.S. ranking for either Garrett or Izzy this season.
Milwaukees Wild Wampus, Don MacCrossen, was 9, -19, 20, 18 extended here at
the Westerns in the 8ths by Chicagos Bill Ablin, then lost in 5 in the quarters to U.S. #11
Ralph Muchow. Against Ralph, the Wampus continued to whomp the ball, but, as
Tournament Chair Claude Camuzzi wrote (TTT, Mar., 1940, 16), this match was a slugfest,
32

with long rallies that had more counter-driving, both forehand and backhand, than ever before
seen anywhere. Anywhere? Well, anyway, the spectators kept applauding wildly.
Muchow in turn was stopped by Bill Price. Camuzzi pointed out that the usually
defensive-minded Price, the games stylist, had lost to Ralph every time they met in the last
four years. This time, however, Price determined to hitand boy! he did. Commanding the
Singles spotlight, though, was U.S. #14 Bob Anderson, for he became the new Western
titleholder, gaining more and more confidence with each successive late-round winfirst over
Holzrichter, 19 in the 5th (after being down 18-16), then Nash in 4, and in the final Price in 3.
Peorias Marge Leary took the Womens from Delores Kuenz, 18 in the 5thwith the
second most interesting match being Topekas Mrs. Rose Baeders 12, -19, 21, 19 win over
the St. Louis TTA Secretary and Womens Chair, Mrs. Esther Guenther.
Pre-Nationals Warm-Up Tournaments
Immediately following the Westerns, in the Michigan Open, Feb. 10-11 at Battle
Creek, Holzrichter rebounded. In the semis he avenged his South Bend and St. Louis losses
to Don MacCrossen (whose fathers T.T. Company was now advertising an ELEVEN PLY
basswoodnon warp, virtually unbreakable racket). Then in the final Billy finished off Ralph
Muchow three straight. Ralph, who was about to receive his dental degree from
Northwestern, and who perhaps even now had begun acquiring his eventually fabulous
collection of antique radios,** had been upset in the Central States by U. S. Boys Champ
Charles Tichenor. But here in the semis he drilled enough balls through fellow Chicagoan
Anderson to advance in 5. The greatly improved Baumbach won the Womensbut had to go
4 in the semis with recently married Norma Schmaltz Landwehr, and 5 in the final with
Gladys Pete May.
In the Feb. 23-24 Illinois Open final against Holzrichter, it was
Andersons turn to recoverand in the most satisfying -21, -16, 15, 22,
19 way. Marge Leary took the Womens, downed Chicagos unranked
Gladys Hotsenpiller, the Illinois TTAs Recording Secretary. But Gladys,
after just three years of play, was able in the semis to beat Wilkinson,
rallying from 2-1 down to win the 4th, 28-26, and then the 5th. In the
Veterans, Ed Dugan, still managing (with Helen Ovenden?) the Chicago
TTT, Dec., 1940, 5
Gladys Hotsenpiller Stay & Play Courts, got by former Western Open Champ Mort Ladin in
5. And in the Boys, the young Negro star Carl Manley defeated Ralph
Bast, a Chicago player well hear more of later.
Beginning next season, slender, blonde Hotsenpiller, wife and mother, would accept
the newly established Topics position of Womens Social Editor. Wonder how important that
job could be? Take a tip from the USTTAs retiring First Vice-President Ed Cannon. He says
his Toledo Association has been mindful not just about sport-page but society-page attention.
The latter, he said, gives table tennis social prestige in a community, and automatically
attracts the interest of a higher grade element both in play and tournament attendance. This
emphasis, he says, is probably being neglected in most table tennis communities. Ah, yes.
One reflects on why over the decades this great social-leveler of a Sport, in one vanishing
low-rent-urban-club after another, does not attract the interest of a higher grade element.
Anyway, at Toledo they were trying. If you attended the Mar. 2-3 Lake Cities Open
Players Party, you were given a Bingo card free and permitted to participate in 10 Bingo
games. Prizes were $35 in cash and approximately $50 in merchandise (TTT, May, 1940, 25).
33

Perhaps the idea of being able to win money encouraged the desired participationcertainly
the tournament entry was said to be the largest since the 39 Nationals.
Gratifyingly, everybody saw a Mens final worth the price of admission. Holzrichter
and Anderson did another crowd-thrilling flip-flopwith Billy outperforming Bob on the
highwire, 24-22 in the 5th. In the lead-in semis, Max Hersh, fell to Holzrichter, while next
weeks repeat Wisconsin Closed holder MacCrossen went down swinging to Anderson. With
the Indianapolis Nationals only a month away, the #1 and # 2 Womens seeds, Henry and
Green, were upset here at Toledo. Wilkinson, who went on to win the tournament, came from
two games behind to thwart Henry, and runner-up Baumbach, trailing Green, won the 4th at
deuce, then the 5th easily.
So either Wilkinson or Baumbach will be the next U.S.
Womens Champion? Perhaps not. An announcement in
Hotsenpillers new Social Register announces the marriage of
Mildred Susan Wilkinson to E. William S. Shipman on Mar.
23just two weeks before the Nationals. Mildreds gonna
spend her honeymoon practicing? As for Baumbach, she no
sooner beat Green than the very next weekend at the South
Bend Mid-Western she lost to her.
I dont know if the Kansas City Western Missouri Mens
winner, Dr. Herman Mercer, entered the Mar. 16-17 Des
Moines Central Western States. But George Hendry did, and,
no broken bones about it, bluntly did away with Minnesota
Closed Champ Ed Litman in the semis, and Harry Lund in the
final. Since Harry had lost not only the Minnesota Closed to
TTT, Apr., 1941, 7
Litman but the Minneapolis Open to that other Twin-Cities Ed,
Mary Baumbach
his 5-game semis win over Sirmai here was sweet.
Although Helen Baldwin won the Womens, runner-up Marge Leary got the most
attention because her semis opponent was the 10-year-old sensation, Helene Tiny Moss,
already the Minnesota Closed Champion after a 5-game win over Grace Janoweic. By the end
of the 40-41 season, Tiny would stand tall, be ranked among the Top 10 women in the
country.
The last pre-Nationals warm-up tourney for the Westerners was the Mar. 30-31
Middle States Open at Cincinnati. Here the itinerant Hazis couldnt have been more
formidable, for they won everything. Most difficult, and most rewarding, for Tibor was the
Mens title, for, down 19-17 in the 5th to his winning Mens Doubles partner Bellak, he was
said to have smashed over four consecutive points to win. The Womens final, according to
the covering reporter (T/MHS, 37), was a bitter struggle....With the score tied at one game
each and Mrs. Hazi leading 22-21 in the third, Miss Green unconsciously struck an out ball
on the fly, costing her the last point. The young Indianapolis star then blew up and the last
game was a rout. Sally always was intense, huh?
The Easterners were also sharpening their games. Pagliaro, on winning the Feb. 22
New York State Open at the 92nd St. Y, continued to establish himself as the favorite to take
the Nationals. By this time hed given up his managerial job at the D.C. Columbia Courts, had
left Washington and returned to New York because his wife, Josephine, was pregnant with
Paulette and she wanted to come back to her East Side roots, to be near her family, where she
felt comfortable. Paggy, of course, was no longer a teenager working as a floor boy/clerk for a
34

furrier firm and given to an occasional small-time hustle,*** but a recognized name, and one
with added responsibilities. Hed soon be a father, had been managing, I believe, the New
York Olympic Centre Club on Broadway between 91st and 92nd Streets (Harry Pisers
Club?), and had to be gaining confidence. Since hed married, he hadnt, except for the one
tournament hed cramped in and defaulted, lost a match.
Here at the New York State he beat in succession Klepak, Schiff, and Schmidt. Such
wins deserved praise, but perhaps N.Y. Metro TTA President John Kauderer had exaggerated
a wee bit when hed told a reporter from the N.Y. Sun that powerful Paggys bullet-like
drives travel at a scientifically estimated speed of 250 miles an hour and if you happened to
be in the way of one, youd be nursing a half-inch welt.
Brewer, also priming for the Nationals (did she ever voluntarily miss a tournament?),
won the Womens over Clouther in the semis and Alice OConnor in the final. Before losing
to OConnor, 18 in the 4th, Californias Pauline Betz, the 1939 U.S. Indoor Tennis Champion,
upset both Plaskow and Monnessan historic oddity, and an embarrassing one I should think.
But being aware of such a
result, one can see how
later Pauline and Sandor
Glancz could stage (on
The Ed Sullivan Show,
for example) sophisticated
table tennis exhibitions
together. Another historic
moment occurred at this
Open, for, in listing the
results, Topics mentions for
the first time Dick Miles
perhaps the most famous
player the U.S. ever
produced. At 14 he lost the
Boys Singles (-19, -14, 20,
-17) to Roy Weissman, one
of New Yorker George
Scheins proteges from the
92nd St. Y.
A more publicized
tournament was the Mar. 910 Rochester, N.Y.
Northeastern Open,
sponsored by the Rochester
Democrat & Chronicle. In
preparation, the paper even
inaugurated a table tennis
school that was said to
have almost 100 students
enrolled for an 8-week
Moss Photo
Tuesday-night course under
Symbiotic Symmetry: Pauline Betz/Sandor Glancz
35

Tex B. Lloyd, five-time Monroe County champion, aided by Ted Mosher and others (TTT,
Mar., 1940, 17).
Pagliaro won the Mens, 27-25 in the 4th over Schiff, and received what he wanted
not a mens wristwatch, but a womans...for his wife. This win over Schiff, Louie would say
later, was very importantfor it broke the psychic barrier Sol had over him.
Magda Hazi won the round-robin Womensbut it wasnt easy for her either. Earlier,
after Molly Kareivis lost to Hazi but upset Brewer, Ruthe, with a win over Magda, forced a
play-off. This time Hazi beat them both. However, the most thrilling match of the tournament
had to be the rally the Hazis staged against Schiff and Brewer in the Mixed. After surviving
the 3rd game at 19, Tibor and Magda were down 20-14 in the 4thyet won it, 23-21, and of
course the 5th...under 10.
At the Mar. 23 Connecticut State Open, Pagliaro again won the Mensover Bellak.
Brewer, on her way to winning the seasons Wilkinson Cup, defeated Spannaus in 5. Mae
wont be at the Nationalsis retiring due, as she says a little cryptically, to domestic duties.
Miles again lost the Boys to Weissman, 3-0which may momentarily have dampened his
enthusiasm, not for playing, but playing in tournaments.
The final pre-Nationals warm-up tournament for the Easterners was the Mar. 30-31
Newark Atlantic Coast Open. This was held at the Evergreen Club, where 20 players were
reportedly improving their games by means of table tennis movies. [Movies of whom?] They
chip in to buy the films, and study them carefully (TTT, May, 1940, 15). Dan Klepak won all
three titles. He beat the still active Jimmy Jacobson in the Singles, and took the Mens
Doubles with Brooklyns Mel Rose, and the Mixed with Womens winner Brewer. Value of
the three trophies? Maybe as much as the $15 Dan would later
win by answering a football question on KYWs Truth Or
Consequences program? His mother wasnt impressed. As Dan
said on being interviewed years later by Sandor Glancz, she
thought I should do something productive. So, he said, I took the
state civil service exam. After he moved to Albany, where there was
no one to play table tennis with, he re-focused his energies toward
new goals, and eventually became Special Assistant to New York
Governor Nelson Rockefeller (TTT, Nov.-Dec., 1973, 16).
So for a while many of these stars in our Sport shine, then
are goneinto another space-time continuum, another life.

SELECTED NOTES.
*Top-Notch Table Tennis was published by Ziff-Davis as
part of their Little Library Sport Series (another author was World
Champion boxer Barney Ross). In her short Foreword, Fuller
pays homage to Silberman as a Coach and thanks him for his help
in the preparation of this book (9-10).
**Muchows Mar. 7, 2000 obituary in the Chicago
Tribune said that Ralph had a private, not-for-profit museum of
3,000 working antique radiosthe largest collection in the
worldand that it was featured in the February, 1997 issue of
Smithsonian magazine.
36

Dan Klepak

***At a May 13, 1990 get-together of players at Dick Miless house, I heard a story
about how teenage Louie had turned up anonymously at a New York City pool hall where
they had a ping-pong table or two and began playing a fellow for 25 cents...then 50
cents...then Want to make it for a dollar? To which the apparent pigeon responded,
Look, Lou Pagliaro, if you want a dollar this bad, take it. Years later, Portland, Oregons
Jack McLarty, an Art student in New York who spent a lot of time at Lawrences legendary
club, wrote of another way Louie would try to make a buck. Louie, he said, was barred from
playing the pinball machines at Lawrences. The Club paid cash for high scores at that
time, and Paggy could run the score up endlessly (Table Tennis World, Mar.-Apr., 1996,
10).

4-time U.S. Champion

Lou Pagliaro ...
a guys gotta make a
buck

37

Chapter Three
1940: Sally Green and Lou Pagliaro Win Their First
Nationals. 1940: U.S. Team Makes Historic Trip to Japan.
Our 10th U.S. Open was held Apr. 5-7, 1940 in
Indianapolis at historic Tomlinson Hall, called by one local
reporter a rambling old structure thats seen bicycle
races and heard the rantings of political orators and the
screeches of old fiddlers contests (GSS I, 195). The
Program for these Nationals offered the message that
modern table tennis is not a sissys game, but a real heer
v
mans sport, and one that is clean and wholesome.
ram co
Open Prog
1940 U.S.
Naturally participants vying for the $1600 in trophies had
regulations to observe: Hats, vests, VISIBLE suspenders or shirts
with commercial advertising were barred.
Though there was a good turnout175 listed entriesmost areas outside the
Midwest, even where thered been tournamentsin Texas, for examplewere not
represented. The Houston Texas Open had been held the week before with Paul Snively easily
defending his Mens title against tennis star Bobby Riggs in the semis and Curtis Clark in the
final. However, Mrs. Sylvion Kivlins 18-in-the-5th loss to Angeline Puccio had prevented her
from winning back-to-back titles. Players werent thinking about gas rationing being just
around the corner, so no drawing the line yet because of that, but apparently traveling was just
too tiring, too expensive for many.
One California-based player did come to Indianapolisbut this was Verdyn Stapleton,
who with her husband Wally formed a professional, onthe-road dance team that played swank supper clubs, and
surely they had an engagement at, say, Chicagos Chez Photo courtesy
of Mayo Rae
Paree or somewhere else in the area.
Rolph.
Three players made the long trip from the
Hal Philan/
Northwest, where of course play had long been well
Mayo Rae
Rolph (Jan.,
organized. The woman was 3-time Pacific Coast
1942)
Champion Mayo Rae Rolph. In 1937 she had come to
Chicago to try to win a place on the U.S. World Team
and, in losing very close matches, had finished 4th, one
position short of having her way paid to Baden, without
which assistance she was unable to make the trip. The
men were Seattles Ray Pearson, Pacific Coast
Champion, and winner of the Dec., 39 Oregon Open,
and Harold Philan, Pacific Northwest Champion and
Oregon State titleholder. Both Mayo and Hal attended
Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon and commuted
the 50 or so miles to Portland to play. Something more
of a commute, though, was their journey to Indianapolis
via Chicago by rail. But at least the McMinnville
TTT, Oct. 1941, 17.
Chamber of Commerce financed Mayos trip.
Ray Pearson.
38

Also coming to Indianapolis by train, and

apparently inspiring by far the best filler poem in the
Topics doggerel of 1940to wit:
Toot-Toot
She stood on the tracks at midnight
As the train to the Nationals sped,
She was very much struck by the moonlight,
But thats not the reason shes dead

TTT, May, 1940, 9

En route to the
Nationals

were a number of Chicagoans, including Mildred Wilkinson Shipman, Gladys Hotsenpiller,

Bob Anderson, and Ralph and younger brother Gordon Muchow. They might have scored a
firstfor they had a table tennis table set up for practice in the club car and a picture in
Topics to prove it. USTTA Public Relations Chair George Konk Koehnke had hyped a
Beauty Queen photo contest in Topics for this Nationals, andin a judgment rendered by
none other than George Petty, the famous creator of the Esquire Petty Gala 19-year-old
Northwestern coed from a skiing family, Mildred Bjone, won. Koehnke wrote that she not
only received train fare (gamely showing her hammer grip in a doubles match with Ralph
Muchow enroute), but was put up in a hotel suite, and given the use of a private car. In her
role as Queen, she wore earrings, a necklace, and a bracelet made of table tennis balls, and
was crowned by Governor Townsend of Indiana. Even better, she was invited by
interested spectator Guy Lombardo to make a personal appearance with his Lady Esther
orchestra at the Lyric Theater, where her beauty drew enthusiastic applause (TTT, May,
1940, 8).
Wow, the attention she got! And the USTTAs attractive young table tennis players,
where were they in all this?...Uh, Ladies in waiting....
Since the Association had to change its original Mar. 29-31 U.S. Open date and
National Guard Armory venue on discovering that the Indiana State Basketball finals would
39

be played in Indianapolis that weekend, there was now a great opportunity for media
coverage of the tournamentwhich influential local sponsor George Binger* took full
advantage of:
Mildred Wilkinson spoke over WCFL, Mayo Rolph over WBBM, and
Ted Chapman, vice-president of the Indianapolis TTA, over WIND.
Accounts of the tournament were carried by all three major news
agencies (AP, UP and INS) and the National and Mutual Broadcasting
companies. Plus the Fox, MGM and Pathe Newsreels.
Commented Jack Lieb, MGM newsreeler: Its not trophies that make a
tournament; its pretty girls in shorts.
One pretty girl, Mary Reilly of Glenside, PA, later USTTA Hall of Famer Mary
McIlwain, made an inauspicious U.S. Open debutlosing in the 1st round to Chicagos Jayne
Weber who was then pitilessly crushed by the 17-year-old Henry, 6, 2, 7. L.A.s Stapleton, not
a regular tournament goer, did well to -18, 12, -19, -18 challenge (even win more points than)
Marjorie Blattner, whose famous brother, Bud, though retired, had a series of 40 table tennis
articles syndicated in newspapers. Praise, too, for the fine -15, -26, -19 effort by tender-aged
Tiny Moss against U.S. #7 Plaskow. The only win of real note in the opening rounds, though,
was Leah Thalls 13, 14, 9 rough dispatch of the #7 seed, Helen Baldwin.
The more amazing then that later in the Womens Doubles Helen and Marge Leary
could upset, first, Hazi and Kareivis, then (a minor accident, wrote the covering reporter)
Brewer and Plaskow, to reach the final. There, against Defending Champions Shipman and
Green, they 20, 21, -7, -11, -20 almost pulled off the most stunning victory of their table
tennis lives.
In the 8ths, Thall rallied to down Baumbach; Hazi
stopped Plaskows threat; and. Rolph deuce-in-the-5th
advanced over Kareivis.
Three of the quarters were won in straight
gameshome-town favorite Green over Clouther,
Brewer over Rolph, and, with the lift of more than
one spectators eyebrow, Shipman over Hazi
(perhaps Mildred did practice on her honeymoon?).
But in the other quarters match, what, unanticipated,
was happening? Henry, the #1 seed, was facing
disaster in the 5th with Thall. That Betty survived this
19, -19, 17, -19, 20 scare, after trailing 20-17 in that final
game, one local reporter attributed to the fact that Miss
Thall proved to be a great retriever, but lacked the finishing
punch (GSS I, 214). However, this explanation needs to be
coupled with Tournament Referee Reginald Hammonds far
from clear comments on the match:
TTT, Nov., 1950, cover

Mildred Wilkinson Shipman,

1940 U.S. Womens Doubles Champion

...[The Expedite Rule] was not applied to the

Betty Henry-Leah Thall match because while it was
a pooping match of the worst degree, it violated
40

neither of the requirements of being uninteresting to spectators, or upsetting the

schedule of other matches. The crowd had watched so many good matches that it
seemed to welcome this pushing battle by way of novelty. In any event, the referee
[Hammond himself?] felt that, in spite of the hardship on Miss Thall, it was not
advisable to invoke the pushing rule during the final game (TTT, May, 1949, 7).
What was Miss Thalls hardship? Apparently the fact that the Rule hadnt been
invoked. But why would putting in the Rule have been to Leahs advantage? Especially if she
were a great retriever but lacked the finishing punch. Granted one infers that, according
to law, the Rule should have been put in. But when? At 20-17 in the 5th, with Henry serving?
Thus putting pressure on her to be more aggressive than Thall?
Anyway, its hardly surprising that Leah, feeling comfortable
pushing, and with three match points and a win in sight, didnt
risk trying to throw a knockout punch.
In the semis, Green defeated Shipman, and Brewer beat
Henry. Earlier, practicing at Jimmy McClures Club with
Bellak, Ruthe had argued with reporters that she wasnt
dressed right for table tennis photographs. Presumably she
was now. But after the 4-game final, newsmen were less
interested in Wilkinson Cup winner Brewer and more interested
in the National Champion17-year-old Shortridge High
School senior Green who, for luck, it was said, kept the first
and second fingers of her free hand crossed while playing. Sally
also appreciated the attention she received from the absent
TTT, Apr. 1939, 21
1939 Champion, Emily Fuller, who wired her a congratulatory
1940 U.S. Open Womens
Singles and Doubles Champion bouquet.
It was her comeback Doubles win with Millie Shipman
Sally Green
that so pleased Sally though, for in her view (TTT, May, 1940,
29), Doubles play is more exciting than singles, and in the not too distant future I may
forsake singles and play womens doubles and mixed doubles only. Oh?...
In the Mens, Doug Cartland was originally seeded #7, but he withdrew to go to
Florida, where as the Recreational Director of the Hollywood Beach Hotel in Hollywood,
he would teach tennis and table tennis, and play some exhibitions with defensive star Harry
Cook. Doug as teacher had recently been giving some pointers to Donna Dae, singing star of
the Fred Waring program. Other standout N.Y. players absent from these Nationals were
dental supply salesman Charlie Schmidt, U.S. #3 for the season, and the teenagers Eddie
Pinner and Cy Sussman. Cy had played in 10 tournaments without a single bad loss and, on
not being penalized for missing these Nationals, would climb to U.S. #4, while Eddie,
unranked last season, would earn the #8 spot.
The 8ths saw almost all the favorites hold strong. Only the placed Pearson, seeming
to cruise on autopilot with his easy victory over BobAnderson, upset the seedings. McClure
smashed his way to a straight-game win over MacCrossen, giving himself pep talks along
the way to keep forcing the attack. Les Lowry, whod recently retired the Massachusetts State
Mens Trophy, downed Sam Shannon. Good-natured Sol Schiff dropped a game to Herb
Aronson. Bellak also went four, first with Al Nordhem, then with George Hendry. A reporter
whod checked out the pre-tournament scene at McClures Club had written how the fun41

loving Laci had kept fellow players entertained with tricks and antics that included using
the edge of his paddle to return shots, and rattling off quips like, I dont care who wins
just so I do (GSS I, 195). Hazi lost the 1st to Holzrichter, but then didnt allow Billy more
than 10 in any game. Bill Price, however, found himself continually 18, -15, 20, 21 embattled
by the Indiana #1 Earl Coulson. And Lou Pagliaro, down 2-1 to Ralph Muchow, decided hed
better quit playing defense, and in the remaining two games, running around his forehand, 14,
12 ran roughshod over Ralph.
Pagliaro over Price, Bellak over Pearson, and McClure over Lowrythese contests
were convincing enough. But the Schiff-Hazi match, won by Sol, -20, 12, 20, -8, 17, could
have gone either way, for, though each man scored precisely 92 points, had Tibor started his
cluster of winners at the end of the 3rd, he, not Sol, would have advanced.
The semisas former USTTA Ranking Chair Reginald Hammond, brought out of
retirement to be the Tournament Referee, tells usalso shakily belonged to Schiff. McClure,
leading 2-1 and 17-16, blasted a shot down the sidelines for a sure winner. When Sol returned
iteven though it was a sitter that any dub could finish offJimmy was so amazed that he
drove it off to lose his lead. Perhaps, too, McClure lost in part because he wasnt tournament
tough enough. Preoccupied with dual responsibilitieshis sports shop and table tennis club
he hadnt played enough this season to get a ranking.
Hammond also writes about the Pagliaro-Bellak semis. After referring to Lacis ability
to pull new shots out of his bag when they are most neededas he did in the 1938 final
when, at two games all, he passed Schiff time and again with shots that Sol just couldnt
touchHammond says that in this 5th game Pagliaro was ready to return them accurately.
What he doesnt say is that it took Paggy, up 2-0, the 3rd and 4th games to continue adjusting
to them. Years later, Paggy, reminiscing, speaks of how at this time he was managing a Club at
91st and Broadway and how when Bellak came in every day for two or three weeks hed play
him 25 cents a game, game after game, and never beat him. Finally Lacis friend Sandor
Glancz warned him, Youd better watch outLouies learning how to play you. And, says

TTT, Mar., 1941, cover

Lou Pagliaro (right) on way to winning 1940 U.S. Open Mens final over Sol Schiff
42

Louie, I was. Id lost to him at the 38 and

39 Nationals, but by this time Id learned just
enough and went on to win my first
Championship and the confidence that went
with it.
Hammond praises the umpire of this
match, Claude Camuzzi of St. Louis.
Apparently the audience had to adjust to him
calling the shots, since in at least four
places...Claudes instant decisions, with a brief
explanation of the reasoning, reassured the
spectators that the players were getting fair and
impartial treatment. Would that Reggie had
gone into detail, for when is such extensive
explanation from an umpire required? Theres
TTT, May, 1940, 4
no doubt though that Louie, whod also win
1940 U.S. Open Beauty Queen Mildred Bjone,
the Hammond Cup, deserved Reggies
Mens Champion Lou Pagliaro, and Governor
accolades: For sheer quickness of movement
Townsend of Indiana
and ability to make split-second decisions, Lou
has no equal. Coupled with his sound game and ideal tournament temperament, he may well
stay at the top longer than any previous American champion (TTT, May, 1940, 7). Which,
given Schiff and McClures successes, is saying a lot.
The Pagliaro-Schiff final, won by Paggy, 16 in the 4th, was
somewhat anticlimacticbut wouldnt we all love to see, whereabouts
unknown, Indiana TTA V.P. Harry Kitselmans 16 mm film of this match.
The six frames in the May, 1940 Topics show how Sols attack
progressively takes him in his follow-through almost into the gallery
while Louie, trying to retrieve, has disappeared, leaving the camera to
focus on an empty table (12).
In the Veteran Singles, Defending Champ George Bacon was
beaten in the quarters, after being up 2-0, by Nebraska State Champion
Johnny Tatom, manager of the Omaha TTC and a local tennis pro. Tatum
would then defeat Ed Dugan, the Chicago Stay & Play Club owner who
wished he could have won to stay and play here. In the other semis, Bill
Gunn, Westchester TTA President, outlasted previous titleholder Morris
Bernstein in 5. Gunn then stopped Tatom in the final in 4, for as local Star
reporter Al Roche tells us (GSS I, 218) Johnny was tense from the
outset...and never was given a look in by observers after the first set
(though, if these observers had taken another peek, they might have
encouraged Johnny to win more than the 3rd game?). This National
Championship was quite a win for 38-year-old Bill, President of the Gunn
Brothers Oil Co., a home heating firm in Mamaroneck, N.Y., for, as years
later he told interviewer Bob Brink (West Palm Beach Post, Mar., 1981,
6), he didnt start playing the game until he was 33.
Charles Tichenor,
The new Joseph D. Berna Memorial Trophy for the Boys
1939 and 1940
Championship, donated by George H. Perryman, was won by Defending
U.S. Jr. Champion
43

Champion Charles Tichenor over Roy Weissman in 5.

In Mens Doubles, only one upset but that high on the Richter scale: Defending
Champions Bellak and Hazi were beaten in the 8ths by the last-minute pick-up pair of
Doubles specialist Al Nordhem and about-to-be Indiana Closed Champ Roger Downs.
Downs, wrote one reporter, was so amazed at the outcome he stood there [at the table]
blinking, as if to say, Can it be true? He then shook hands with his partner, and still
thrilled to his shoetops, shook hands with him again (GSS I, 214). Next round Nordhem
and Downs lost deuce in the 4th to Dan Klepak and Delaware Champ Paul Capelle who
fell in the final, as expected, to former World Champions McClure and Schiff.
First and second-round matches in the Mixed Doubles started at the ungodly hour of
10:30 Saturday night, just an hour before the buffet supper and get-together party at the Hotel
Washington. For whatever reason, McClure and Green defaulted their scheduled opener.
Perhaps the fact that not only had they already played on Saturday evening but that, being in
contention for other titles on Sunday, they didnt want too many singles and doubles matches
to pile up on them. One thing sureit wasnt because McClure was in a hurry to get to the
buffet, for Topics Sidelines columnist Chair George Koehnke said that Jimmy was so
involved in running the tournament and playing in it that he didnt eat a meal the whole
time.
In the Mixed, Defending Champions Nordhem and Shipman were upset in the
quarters by Bob Anderson/Mayo Rae Rolph. Bob and Mayo then did themselves one better
by besting Holzrichter/Marge Koolery to reach the final. In the other semis, Bellak and
Monness, to Rebas rousing cry of Lets beat these foreigners!, annihilated the Hazis 12 and
8...then lost the 3rd at 19, the 4th at 19, and the 5th at 16. Given
that reprieve, the Hazis went on to win, and Reba went home to
incur the wrath of her poodle who, she says, always growls his
disapproval when she returns home from a tournament winless.
After this season-ending Nationals, there were of course a
number of Spring and Summer tournaments. Strangely, the
Pennsylvania Closedwon by Mike Lieberman and Henrietta
Wrightwas held the same day that the Finals were played at the
U.S. Open. The following weekend Ham Canning and Matilda
Plaskow won the Singles at the Philadelphia Closed. Canning,
someone said, had this habit of wiping his fingers on the table
during points. Which suggested that maybe he (rather than the
English International Ernie Bubley who wore a glove on his racket
hand) should have been the subject of Dr. Stan Morests much
Ham Canning
lauded essay The Unrecognized Case of Hypothyroidism, and
should have been playing with Becker and Companys new AirFlo bat?the one that had the air-cooled handle advertised not to slip and turn in the
hand.
At the Ohio Mid-Summer Open at Columbus, unseeded Harry Sage upset Tichenor in
the semis and got by Bob Green in the final. Because of some sportwriters error, Bobs last
name would invariably have an e added to it. But nobody in Columbus would be confused
because Bob had just arrived to open his first club there (on Buttles Ave. and High St.), and
for the next decade hed be a strongly-felt presence.
But while all was repetitively normal in U.S. table tennis sites the country over,
Change was about to enter the lives of our playersthough at first only a few were
44

affected.
U.S. Teams Trip to Japan
Out of the blue, the Japan TTA surprised the Americans. General Secretary Numa
issued a letter of invitationa friendly challengeto the USTTA to send a U.S. Team of five
players for a stay of 21 days in Japan with all hotel charges and travel expenses defrayed by
the Japan TTA (TTT, March, 1940, 3).
Great! So who would represent what Topics called our Expeditionary Force to
Japan? Of our men, not U.S. #1 Pagliaro, U.S. #2 Schiff, #3 Schmidt, #4 Sussman, and #6
Lowryall of whom, it would seem, were unable to give up their commitments. But #5
Anderson and #7 Holzrichter agreed to go. Of our women, teenagers Green and Henry,
respectively U.S. #1 and #3, declined. But #2 Brewer and #4 Shipman accepted. USTTA
Vice-President Bill Gunn would Captain the Team, and his wife Mae would accompany him.
Off they all went then to San Francisco to sail across the Pacific on the Tatsutamaruthe
only serious complication being that the married Shipman found out on her way to the West Coast
she was pregnant and decided to stay home. Mayo Rae Rolph, now about to turn 21, was U.S. #12
but last-minute geographically available, and, as shed just reached the final of the U.S. Open
Mixed with Anderson, and had been eligible for but unable to go to the 1937 Worlds, she was a
natural choice to take Mildreds place. So Rolph left independently from Seattle on the Heian
Maru, and, after suffering some ill effects from a shipboard vaccination, joined the others in Osaka.
Years later, describing her teammates to me, Mayo pointed out that because the name
Holzrichter was of German originJapan was more and more about to use conquered
Manchuria as a vast arsenal (the Heian Maru had been loaded down with scrap iron)his
passport wouldnt allow them to go on a side trip to Shanghai. Mayo thought Billy outgoing,
with a big smile, friendly and sensitive. Anderson, who had diabetes, didnt take care of
himself, and so would die early, she deemed pleasant, handsome, quietly retiring. But
Brewer, whom Mayo had lost to in the Nationals, was, at least with her, distant and aloof
though by September Ruthe was married to a fellow shed met aboard ship coming back.
Our Team, and a weaker Australian one (composed of Arthur Bowe and Kenneth
Adamson), was welcomed, Gunn said, with extra courteous consideration as we played
matches in various cities, including Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Hiroshima. Accomodations
were often luxuriousMayo particularly remembers the famous Imperial Hotel that Frank
Lloyd Wright built to withstand earthquakes.
Gunn, in his Captains Report (TTT, Oct., 1940, 3; 14-15) speaks of the astounding
interest in table tennis shown by the Japanese:
...Everywhere we played there was never less than 1500 spectators present,
and in many cases it jumped to four or five thousand. The only two T.T. parlors we
saw in Japan were superior to any we have seen in the U.S. At one industrial plant in
Nagoya there were at least 500 tables used during the day as working tables, but filled
to capacity with table tennis players at lunch time or after working hours.
...[We] could not help but feel that many of...[the Japanese Associations]
important t.t. activities were handled so much better than ours back home.
This, after our USTTA had shaped an Expedite Rule, Lowered the Net, and Banned
Fingerspins, and our U.S. Team members had won World Championships in 1936-37-38!
45

Sometimes our players were victorious in the match of the moment, often they were
not. But of course on a trip like this it was more important to be diplomatic than to play well.
Obviously, faced with changes in custom, one needed to have sophisticated responses.
Hungarian table tennis aficionado Ervin Brody wrote of receiving postcard after postcard
from his friend Miklos Mike Szabados when he and his fellow International Istvan Stefan
Kelen were making their celebrated Tour, their late-30s Odyssey, to Oceania and the Far
East. Brody says:
In Japan they played in the court of the Tenno, where they were given a
beautiful silver plate, and reported that Nippon players touched their noses to each
other before the match started. They were told that this gesture corresponded to the
handshake of prizefighters at the beginning of a boxing bout (TTT, Dec., 1941, 21).
Gunn doesnt mention seeing any such handshake, but he does say:
We had the privilege and rare honor of playing before royalty. The first night
at Tokyo [June 12] we performed before two of the Emperors brothers, Princes
Chichibu and Mahasa. We all bowed our respect before and after each match and as
they entered and left the hall. Our willingness to abide by this traditional etiquette
brought us rounds of applause from many spectators.
The Japanese would not send a team to the World Championships until their
auspicious debut in Bombay in 1952 when they introduced the new sponge rubber racket that
would change the face of the Sport. But Gunn (echoing what the Hungarian world-class
players, Szabados and Kelen, had said of their 1938 matches in Japan) made it clear that the
Japanese had very fine players:
...They invariably use cork surfaced bats [two years before, said Kelen, they
used just plain wood]** which they grip in pen-holder style. All of them are fine
forehand hitters although they do not drive except on a sure kill chance. Their main
weakness, we discovered, was their disregard or lack of a chop defense. Effective
strategy, we learned, was to feed them a chop and then counter drive their return.
Holzrichter applied this technique...and it was cold-blooded murder. The rest of us,
however, could not seem to put the theory into practice, mostly because of the
peculiar bounce the balls took on those soft-top tables.
Brewer, in a June 26 postcard to George and Leo Schein that was stamped again in
New York City July 17, confirmed Gunns view of their Japanese opponentsT. Kon, S.
Suyama, J. Hayashi, K.Yasuhara, and K. Osada. These Japs are really good, Brewer wrote.
They take the attack all the time. No defense just steady killing. A chop means nothing to
them. Holzrichter told me that the tables the U.S. practiced on there were slick (the ball
would slide), but that the tables the International Matches were played on were vastly
different: they had a chalky, rough surface, and though you put heavy chop on the ball it
would pop straight up and be hit away. On one such table Billy remembers losing a match, 2321 in the 5th, to one of Japans best players, Takashi Kon (whod also beaten Kelen in their
initial encounter).
46

Summer, 1940, Osaka, Japan: U.S. team of Brewer (far left) and Anderson vs. Japans
Nisitama (near left) and Sai.
Americans and Australians Party in Japan: U.S. Team Capt. Bill Gunn (far left), his wife
Mae (5th from left), and (next to Mae) Mayo Rae Rolph with Bill Holzrichter, then (hugging Ruthe Brewer) Bob Anderson. The Australians (middle row, right) are clinking glasses.

47

If the Japanese had a motive other than Friendship Matches in hosting this U.S.
Team, it certainly wasnt clear to our players. Gunn said the Team received so many gifts that
shipping them home became quite a problem. Rolph said that Our Japanese hosts were
exceedingly kind to us. She particularly liked a box of oriental make up cream and a pair of
exquisitely carved wooden shoes she was given. Mayo told Topics (Nov., 1940, 10) that in
general the Japanese women have a charming poise. They are always sweet, charming and
natural. They smile a great deal and laugh softly. As in many foreign countries, the womans
place is strictly in the home. The men are considered socially superior to the women. In this
unequal-partner connection, Gunn reported that In many Japanese cities it is against the law
to play mixed doubles.
Holzrichter, whod be rescued from his downed B-24 in the War, said years later, As
long as I wasnt a prisoner of war, the Japanese couldnt have been nicer. In retrospect,
however, a remark made by a Japanese liaison to the Team that summer of 1940 proved
startling. Billy had happened to say, Well be going home in a week or so, and Machita San
had replied, You may be our guest longer than you think.
Still, the July 2 letter JTTA President Usagawa sent to our USTTA President Clouther
would seem straightforward enough:
...[We] have to mention that good-will between U.S.A. and Japan, promoted
by means of the table tennis matches, is a most valuable result of the scheme. With this
aim in view, let us hope for the continuation of the Pan Pacific table tennis matches
and also the exchange of players for the sheer purpose of developing amity between
the two nations (TTT, Oct., 1940, 16).
Amity aside, there would be no continuation of this kind of U.S.A.-Japan exchange.
SELECTED NOTES
*McClure told me that Binger was formerly the Advertising Manager of Blocks
Department Store in Indianapolis, and that if the local paper in which his advertisements were
placed didnt put in the table tennis results theyd been given, it usually meant the loss of an
ad. At the time of these Nationals, Binger had his own advertising agency.
**See Kelens A Journey In Styles... in the Japanese Tamasu Butterfly Companys
Table Tennis Report, Nov., 1981, 4. Kelen writes of how surprised he and Szabados were at
these Japanese who kept on attacking with relentless energy, without variation to their game
and with wooden bats.

48

Chapter Four
1940: Changes in USTTA Officials, Membership, Serve Rule. 1940: Summer Vacation
TournamentsMinneapolis, Providence, Toronto. 1940: Professional Exhibitions Continue.
1940: No Womens East-West Matches. 1940: Pre-Intercity Tournaments. 1940: N.Y. Again
Wins Intercities.
When our Pan-Pacific players returned from their once-in-a-lifetime experience, they
would soon find the usual summer/fall tournaments to play in or read about. So, regardless of
what had happened or was about to happen in their lives, little apparently had changed in the
table tennis world?
ChangeBut Not Unexpected Change
Since the USTTA Executive Committee was made up of volunteers, it could come as
no surprise that some of them had had enough, didnt want to continue serving. Jim Clouther
of Arlington, MA agreed to carry on for one more season as Presidentbut 1st V.P. Ed
Cannon of Toledo, 2nd V.P. Robert Sturtevant of Minneapolis, and Treasurer Urban Lamay of
Philadelphia, after a year in their respective offices, called it quits. Jerrold Jerry Woodruff of
Omaha moved to 1st V.P., while his previous position as Executive Secretary was taken by
Victor Rupp of Philadelphia who, for two issues in 1939, had been Editor of Topics. The 2nd
V.P. position was left vacant until late fall when Carl Nidy was appointed. Bill Gunn continued
as 3rd V.P. Former USTTA President Morris Bassford was backthis time as Treasurer.
Completing the leadership was the newly elected Recording Secretary, Don Larson of
Minneapolis, who would give up his position as head of the Minnesota TTA.
Thomas Bob Berna remained the General Secretary of the Associationthe
Headquarters of which was at the Middle Building, 34 South 17th St., Philadelphia. After but
a single season, the 1939-40 Editor of Topics, Harry Harris, was succeeded by Mel Evans, Jr.
of Lancaster, the Pennsylvania TTA Executive Secretary. He, too, would edit the magazine for
only a year. In a Sept. 5, 1940 letter to Evans, President Clouther agreed to his suggestion
that TOPICS PRESS CARDS be issued to members of his staff and selected affiliate
reporters. This would enable them to attend all tournaments and exhibitions free. The
Exhibition players themselves paid the USTTA an annual $5 registration feefor which they
saw their name in small print on a Roving Racquets list in Topics. Clouther thought the
Press Card perk would be an incentive to add color and life to the reporting. That is, if there
was any reporting.
The USTTA Membershipwas that in flux too? In Feb., 1939 the total number of
members was 3,198alas, a misleading total, for it included those with either a regular or
group membership. The idea of the group membership was to induce socially-minded
beginners, not tournament-minded players, to bind together in an area and join the USTTA for
a mere $.10 a player a year. The Association had in mind bona-fide members of certain
specific church, school, social, business and industrial organizations. Naturally this
opportunity was abusedand so something had to be done about it.
By Oct. 1, 1940, the USTTA had 2710 regular membersno longer at a fee of $1 a
year but now $.75 a yearand 1915 group members. Ridiculous that over 40% of USATT
members were paying just a $.10 membership fee, thought Larry Minneker, President of the
Ohio TTA. He sponsored a Constitutional Amendment that would deny cheapskate offenders
49

the right to participate in any USTTA sanctioned open tournament, to receive a National
ranking or to hold a National office (TTT, Dec., 1940, 10). This Amendment, retroactive to
Sept. 1, 1940, and extended by several affiliates to forbid offenders from playing in a State
Closed or receive a State ranking, was passed by the USTTA Board of Governorsthe
Affiliated State Association Presidents, of which at the moment there were 15. (The USTTA
also had District Associations, such as W.C. Vogts Kansas City, Missouri TTA; Affiliates in
Unorganized States, such as Boone, Iowa that had only the requisite 5 regular members; and
the Group Membership Affiliates in Unorganized States, such as the San Diego YMCA TTA.)
Just how many members the Association had for its fiscal year after Oct. 1 was not
made clear to the membership. Headquarters itself didnt always knowsince sometimes
persons collecting memberships were guilty of holding them up...then submitting them in
one lot. Thus members whod paid their dues several months before they were forwarded
to Headquarters complained that theyd missed issues of Topics. Month after month, through
the 1940-41 season and beyond, the Association talked of races between states to see which
Affiliate would bring in the most members. Butas only monthly tallies among the changing
leaders were enthusiastically mentioned,* never any total summaryit was impossible to tell,
through the changing rhetoric beginning with the Feb., 1942 Topics (We regret to report that
several of our Eastern affiliates have dropped greatly in membership), just how much
progress had been made, if progress there was, in total regular membership.
That W.C. Vogt I mentioned a moment ago wrote a Sept. 18, 1940 letter to President
Clouther expressing confusion about the wording of the USTTA Close Law No. 4. He
thought perhaps one could still serve holding the ball with thumb and hand. Frank Yetter,
Chair of the USTTA Rules Committee, in a return letter patiently explained the obvious. The
rule states thumb free, and specifically
warns that the player may not pinch the ball
with the palm of his hand.
To clear up any confusion, the USTTA
changed the wording of this Close Law No.
4 so that it read: Any form of spin in
service imparted by any agency but the
racket is prohibited. The player shall in all
cases serve with serving hand OPEN and
FLAT, fingers straight and together, thumb
free (TTT, Dec., 1940, 6). Strange, then,
that months later, the March, 1942 cover of
Topics shows Tibor Hazi, readying himself
for the Easterns as it were, preparing to
serve, fingers not cupping but clawing the
ball as hes about to throw it into his racket.
Later, in a Nov., 1941 Topics article, Dont
Throw it Up, Yetter issues a further
clarificationsays there is no service rule
that says you must throw the ball up. If any
umpire asks you do this, Dont throw it
up (9).
TTT, Mar., 1942, cover

Tibor Hazi (demonstrating in 1942 how not to serve?)

50

1940 Summer Vacation Tournaments

Circuit as well as local players, with little or no interest in whatever USTTA
Headquarters was momentarily preoccupied with, likely took advantage of the additional
summer fun offered themswimming, fishing, boatingat both the Minneapolis July 20-21
Aquatennial Open and the Aug. 9-10 Provincetown, MA Open.
Bill Holzrichter and Bob Anderson on their return from Japan resumed their normal
Mid-west tournament playthough, as George Koehnke tells us, Billy, who works for his
dad in the Acme Sheet Metal Works, recently fell asleep on the job, dreaming no doubt of
exotic trips to come. Result: he fell through a basement window, and had to have over half
a dozen stitches in his arm (TTT, Nov., 1940, 17). In that Minneapolis Auditorium, however,
Holzrichter was up, not down, for he won the Mensover his winning Doubles partner
Anderson. U.S. Team Captain Bill Gunn (vacationing on the way back to returning to normal
life in Mamaroneck?) took the Mens Consolation. Marge Koolery was the Womens
Champion as expected, but in the semis Grace Janowiec exacted revenge on #2 seed Tiny
Moss for having beat her in the March Minnesota Closed. Grace also teamed with new
Minnesota TTA President Ed Sirmai to win the Mixed.
Forget the summer mosquitoes, Chicago-based Anderson seemed to have been bitten
by the travel bug. Three weeks after the Aquatennial tournament Andy turned up in
Provincetown, 1200 miles east, having a good time but losing in the Quiniela to Defending
Champ Eddie Pinner. Perhaps the player who most enjoyed this years Cape Cod vacation
though, and he hadnt missed a one, was Mt. Vernon, N.Y.s Jack Hartigan who, there on his
honeymoon, rose to the occasion by upsetting #2 seed Cy Sussman.In eliminating both Charlie
Schmidt and Johnny Abrahams with ease, Pinner again took the coveted Mens Silver Cod
trophy and now needed only one more victory to retire it.
Mae Clouther, meanwhile, did retire the Womens Bronze
Dolphin trophyby defeating Massachusetts #2 Corinne Delery in the
final. Mae also teamed with Barbara Shields to snatch a 19-in-the-5th
Womens Doubles thriller from Delery and Alice OConnor. But Alice
got a first-place prize anywayfor after Anderson and Sussman had
rallied to down Pinner and Cross in the Mens Doubles, Bob sweetly
passed his Cup to Alice. Passing the hat, you might say, were the
tournament organizers who donated whatever proceeds there were to
the War Relief Fund of the American Red Cross.
The annual Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) tournament in
early September in Toronto was a further reminder to the Americans
enjoying themselves that there was a War going on and that it had
somehow come close to homefor a number of Canadian players could
be seen wearing Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) uniforms. Detroiters
duked it out in the Menswith Hersh steadily outpointing the
mercurial, ever gallery-minded V. Lee Webb. Ruthe Brewer won her
third straight CNE Womens Championshipin 4 over the increasingly
ambitious and competitive Leah Thall.
In her Topics column (Dec., 1940, 5), Gladys Hotsenpiller writes
Alice OConnor
that shortly after this tournament, on Sept. 26 in New York, U.S. #2
Brewer married H. Dyer Crist, whom shed met only three months earlier in a shipboard
romance. Chris, as she called him, had been on a newspaper assignment in Manila and was
51

coming home to work at Michigan State College. They would make their home in East
Lansing, Michigan, Ruth would practice in DetroitMayor Jeffries himself had just offically
opened a new 18-table downtown Club thereand would continue playing in
tournaments...almost as if her table tennis lifeher lifewould hardly change.
Jimmy McClures Aug. 24-25 Indianapolis Membership tournament Ill mentionnot
because Earl Coulson won the Mens over Joe Kolady, but because the U.S.s #1 and #3
women players, Indianas Sally Green and Betty Henry didnt play. Since there was no
Womens event, I assume no new women members were to be gotten at this Membership
tournament. Sally was on summer vacation, with of course a racket packed in her bag. In
Buena Vista (not in Mexico but Colorado), she couldnt resist combining pleasure with
pleasure, and played some competitive matches at Colorado TTA President Charlie Coxs
Denver Club. Betty, however, in perhaps as much of a surprise move as Ruths, decided not to
play table tennis this season (or any season to come?). But could even aficionados blame her?
Life offered so muchthe future had so many possibilities for one so young.
Vacation spots some players might have chosen were Puerto Rico and Hawaii. There
were table tennis tournaments there too. According to San Juans Enrique Otero (Topics,
Oct., 1940, 18), Puerto Rico held its first official Island Championship beginning in 1937
with Pilo Braschi the winner in both 37 and 38, and Luis Rigual, a civil engineering student
at the College of Agriculture and Engineering at Mayaguez, the Champion in 39. Hawaii and
Honolulu reportedly had a (former?) Champion in Michael Bud Creamer (TTT, Nov., 1940,
13), but his quarters loss in a September, 1940 San Diego tournament to winner Carl Heyl,
Ohio #17 for 1938-39, didnt suggest that his play was impressive. Heyl, whod run the Final
phase of the Womens East-West Matches in Cleveland, on resettling in California had become
Secretary of the San Diego TTA. He arranged an October Intercity Match with a 6-man Los
Angeles team that included moviedoms Don Terry and Don Siegel.** Result: L.A. 32San
Diego 4.
The New York player/official Dick Geiger, an Ensign in the Naval Reserve stationed at
Pearl Island, Hawaii, just before the bombing of Pearl Harbor (which he survived), said he
talked with Al Fortier, second ranking player in the islands, and learned that this past
summer when the U.S. Team stopped there, Bill Gunn trounced Otto Schilling, reputed to be
the islands best (TTT, Jan., 1941, 14).

Co

Professional Exhibitions Continue

Vacationers looking for autographs of celebrities would do well
to follow Coleman Clarks peregrinations round the country. The
Oct., 1940 issue of Topics features three photos of Cokey at the
exclusive Coconut Grove nite club in Los Angeles (6). Dressed
impeccably on court and off, this consummate table tennis
professional is shown going about his business. Which is....(1) to
performwith the well-rehearsed help of his foil of a partner Mark
Stevens, both dressed all in whiteon a table set up on the dance floor
between the bandstand and the seated patrons. To any one of these onlookers
game enough to challenge him and beat him while he plays sitting in a chair, he
offers a cup bearing the modest inscription, I beat Coleman Clark.***
Cokeys business is also...(2) to workdressed in white jacket and dark tie, he
works the audience, particularly the important people. Here hes shown smiling and
ke

52

talking amiably with elegantly-dressed-actors Heather Thatcher and Basil Rathbone....And,

finally, Clarks business is(3) to realize that fellow entertainers like the limelight, like at least
momentarily to be part of the show. At a ringside table, comedians Arthur Treacher and Joe E.
Brown, also in tuxedos, are shown obligingly absorbed in Clarks current book, Table Tennis.
Bellak and Glancz were out west too. Laci had a table tennis equipment base in
Portland, ORwas importing good-plywood Slazenger rackets for $.75 and selling them for
$2, and had access to the best balls from abroad.****He was getting orders from local
sporting goods stores, but when the War started in Europe, he could no longer get rubber
rackets or balls. Bellaks status and influence could be seen in a Topics ad from the local
Rodda Paint Company. It urged players to surface their own table with a new slate-like
finish that offers a perfect bounce and thats been Acclaimed by world champions who
have played in Portland. Perhaps, too, Lacis theatrical background provided the Portland
TTC with the idea of holding the finals of their City Tournament on the stage of the
Orpheum Theatre before a crowd of 3200 fans and theatre goers. As anticipated, Hal Philan
and Mayo Rolph were the winners.
In another sense, Portland player/artist Jack McLarty was a winner, for on attending
art school in New York City he came up with sketches of some of the top Eastern players,
including National Champ Lou Pagliaro. In an article, Table Tennis in 1940, in the Bob
Viducich-edited Dec. 6-7 Pacific Northwest
Open Program (13), McLarty praised Paggys
reflexes, and said his eyes were so good that he
could read the labels on phonograph records
while they were turning on the old 78 rpm
machines (a claim which I sought
confirmation of from Louie in his
old age, and which he
proclaimed to be
Nonsense). What does
Jack most remember about
playing Pagliaro? This:
...[It] was his quickness.
If I went to hit a hard drive, he
was already back twelve feet,
waiting; but if I changed my mind and
drop-shot,
he seemed to be right at the
Lou Pagliaro drawing by Jack McLarty
table, ready to kill anything the least bit high;
and, of course, he had that 250 mile an hour forehand. That stroke, by the way, was
almost circular in motion rather than back and forward. I think Miles picked this
stroke up from Paggy. [As well see shortly, Dick certainly had the opportunity to
copy Louies strokes.]
During their West Coast Tour, Bellak and Glancz played serious-minded opponents
like Seattles Ray Pearson, San Franciscos Charley Sarber (who went 5 with Philan in the
Pacific Coast Championships), and L.A.s Don Terry and others at Russ and Spark Magnuss
Hollywood Courts. But they also had their moments of frivolity. Topics Editor Mel Evans, Jr.,
53

in continuing the USTTAs tradition of trying to link table tennis with actor-celebrities,
claimed that while Dorothy Lamour was appearing at the Golden Gate Theatre Laci was
supposed to teach her table tennis and she was supposed to teach him how to sing. Evans also
wrote that the boys played Clark Gable and [his wife] Carole Lombard in a private match at
Beverly Hills Chasen Restaurant and also took on Peter Lorre (of Mr. Moto fame) and
Paul Lucas, both of whom are considered good players.

Ruth has studied dramatics: Victorians Sandor Glancz and Ruth Aarons

Of course Ruth Aarons cant resist the show-biz life eitherand continues to find
success of sorts. Her fall season opens at New Yorks Hotel Astor with Bernie Grimes.
Several months later, with Glancz back in town, you can find her giving an afternoon
exhibition with him at Bloomingdales Department Store on 79th. Then in March shes in
Pennsylvaniaat Butler, and afterwards Pittsburgh. From a Butler reporter I find out what I
didnt know before: She has studied dramatics at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the
Theatre in New York....She has studied voice under Joseph Regneas of New York City and in
the near future expects to make her debut as a singer. The Butler newspaper columnist John
J. Hall says that Miss Aarons was born to the part of a dainty little fairy queen... (RAS,
110)but then, wow, when she plays table tennis, she...what? Looks like the 53, 110-pound
young athlete she is?
54

Come July-August, 1941 shes still an attraction in her third engagement with Sandor at the
chic Rainbow Room atop New York Citys Rockefeller Center. Sitting in a chair, spotting her
opponents 9 points a game, she makes everybody happy by sometimes awarding a bottle of
champagne to those brave enough to accept her challenge. After Ruth and Sandor come down from
on high, common folk can catch them on stage at the Beacon Theater, Broadway and 74th.
Aarons is hypedand in the most outrageous, fiction-over-fact mannerin a Colliers
article written by Bill Davidson shortly after the U.S. enters the War. Its called This Babe,
RUTH, and Ive a copy of it inscribed by Davidson To Ruth, my first star interview. That
its a first I can believeand, had his Editor been interested in truth, it would have been
Davidsons last interviewat least for that magazine. Forget his mention of the possibility
that Ruth isnt married yet because shes already been harried so by rumors that she is married
to this or that exhibition partnersay, Michele Glichman, the Russian champion (that is,
Michel Glickman, the 1931 French Championstage name: Michael French). Forget such a
minor mistakeor Davidsons perpetuation of the myth that Ruth had never lost a
tournament match. Here are just a few howlers that make for an inimitable read:
Miss Aarons is not only the greatest table-tennis player in the worldshe is
also beautiful and streamlined. She possesses all the glamor of a besweatered starlet.
In a game which features lanky, wizened males, and chunky horse-faced females [can
you guess whos alluded to here?], she stands out like Betty Grable in a Home for
Aged Spinsters....
It is the consensus of the experts that Ruth possesses the hardest forehand the
game has ever seen....
Ruth also plays a defensive game that is amazing. She can retrieve any
shot within thirty-five feet of the table....In Bucharest in 1937 [sic: for Baden near
Vienna], she kept a ball in play for one hour and thirty-five minutesin the process of
which she exhibited so much grace that she was approached with ecstatic offers by the
manager of the Rumanian Ballet....
In 1936...when she first arrived in London to appear before a record crowd in
world-famous Wembley Stadium [sic: on their way to the Prague Worlds, the U.S.
Team played an exhibition at Paddington Baths], the girls were still playing in ugly
tennis skirts. This was all Ruth needed. The next day she stepped onto the floor of the
stadium, clad in her most clinging, contour-revealing, scarlet and blue slacks. The
dowagers gasped, as only English dowagers can. The police made ready to close the
establishment for indecency. Ruth was yanked off the floor, and deposited on the
carpet before the International Table Tennis Association. The officials thundered, they
pleaded, they wept. But Ruth refused to take off the slacks.
Finally the officials yielded and allowed play to resume. Before the end of
that tournament, there wasnt a skirt to be seen on the floor of Wembley Stadium.
Every girl in the place was wearing slacks!... (RAS 116-117).
Incredible lines, as anyone whos read Vol. I of this History knows. And Davidson
speaks of Ruths flair for the dramatic!
Could she really be pleased by this account? Alas, maybecause, as we know, in
show-biz, exaggerations are a given.*****Anyway, back now to the real world of fall, 1940
tournament table tennis.
55

No Womens East-West Matches

Because of the apparent lack of mobilized t.t. activity in the Eastthough months go
by, no one volunteers to succeed Violet Smolens as USTTA Womens Chairand because the
pregnant Mildred Wilkinson Shipman, past organizer of womens play in the West, is no
longer active (on Jan. 20 shell give birth to a daughter, Susan), there are no East-West
Matches scheduled this season. Had there been, by the Nov. 30-Dec. 1 Mens Intercities,
some, though not all, of the following women would have been chosen to qualify for the West
team.
Gladys Hotsenpiller, whod begun calling her Topics column Glad Tidings, won the
Sept. 27-29 Chicago District over Mrs. Jean Scranton, unranked last season but 18, 19 tough
in this final.
In U.S. #1 Greens and U.S. #3 Henrys absence, the third Indiana star, U.S. #9 Mary
Baumbach, did not win the Oct. 12-13 Indianapolis Open. She lost to that citys Dorothy
Elkin, who also beat Louisvilles Martha Kiefer and South Bends Liz Hornyak, gold medal
winner, almost 45 years later, at the Helsinki Worlds Veterans Championship.
After successfully enduring a 28-26-in-the-5th test of nerves against unranked fellow
Ohioan Violet Schoonover in the quarters, Leah Thall won the Nov. 2-3 Dayton Air City
Open, deuce in the 4th, over Defending Champion Norma Studer.
U.S. Champion Green, devoting much of her time to her studies at the Arthur Jordan
Conservatory of Music, maintains that the heavy load of her schoolwork is preventing her
from practicing or playing in many tournaments. But in winning the Nov. 23-24 Miami Valley
Open at Hamilton, Ohio, she appeared able to spot her opponentsToledo Public Parks
Tennis Champion Pete May in the semis, and Leah Thall in the finalseven points a game.
There was a fantastic ending in the Minneapolis 10,000
Lakes Open the last weekend in November. For, though 12year-old Tiny Moss (even in adulthood shed be known as Tiny)
knocked out Grace Janowiec, 19 in the 4th in the semis, few
could expect the Ed Litman-coached prodigy, after only two
years of play, to defeat Des Moines U.S. #11 Helen Baldwin in
the final. But she did, and, withtake your choiceastonishing
maturity, or the fearlessness of youth...33-31 in the 5th. Many
TTT, Dec., 1940, 8
Ed Litman
years later, when Moss was in her mid-to-late 60s, she wrote a
letter to Minnesota TTA President Rex Harris on the occasion
of Litmans induction into the Minnesota Table Tennis Hall of Fame (see Rexs article in Table
Tennis Today, Sept.-Oct., 1955). Eddie, she said, had a profound effect on my life. He was
not only my mentor, but my best friend and superb role-model (41). In the Mens, #3 seed
Harry Lund began to establish his superiority over the older Twin-Cities Eds, defeating Litman in
the semis and Sirmai in 5 in the final, thus earning for himself his first National Ranking (#39).
Pre-Intercity Tournaments
In the Sept. 27-28 Chicago District Championships, Bob Anderson avenged his loss to
Holzrichter in the summer Aquatennial. Billys victim in the 8ths was the artist Gustav Gus
Rehberger who nearly 30 years later would do the action-drawings for Dick Miless The
Game of Table Tennis (1968). Also, Chicagos well-known Radiologist-to-be, Bill Meszaros,
makes an early appearance here in the first of his several decades of competitionloses to
Ralph Muchow in the 8ths, 22-20 in the 4th.
56

The Topics reporter said of the Mens final at the Nov. 9-10th St. Louis tournament
that Price made remarkable returns and then came in to drive and win his points. How Nash,
who lost in 4, scored his points wasnt made clear, but the reporteranonymous, perhaps for
fear of reprisaldid say that Garrett has a world of natural ability and a minimum of thinking
ability (Jan., 1941, 17).
1940 Intercities
Question to the Players: Who would win the Intercities this year?
Possible Answer: New...New...New York. Which would suggest that the Empire
States opponents were so cowed they could hardly get out the intimidating name? For
certainly there could be nothing new in New York winning its 9th Intercities in the last 10
years. Maybe all the opposing teams did stutter, as it were. Maybe they faltered because they
were too self-conscious. Maybe they needed to learn to relax a little with their opponents,
have a chat in between points with them, or with the spectatorslike Nash, everyones
exception to the rule of intimidation. Anyway, one could read in the Nov., 1940 Topics that
Dr. Bryng Bryngelson, Director of Speech at the University of Minnesota, uses table tennis
in his clinics to help his stammerers. He makes the point that ones hand patterns [are]
coordinated on the same side of the brain where his [her] speech functions. So the doctor
brings his patients to the t.t. table and as they play he has them communicate purposely for
the relief of self-consciousness and the eradication of fear (5).
Possibilities here, right? At least for Dr. Bryngelsons patientsand the good doctor
himself who, for his pathological article in our magazine, was rewarded with an honorary
membership in the USTTA. But forget the analogy. Right answer to who would win? A single,
curt New Yorksaid with a snarl by the St. Louis forces who, as well see in a moment,
would lose a 5-4 last-tie fight that showed them to be anything but whimpy.
As opposed to the Columbus team that would finish with zero wins, the 4-man
Detroit squad got off to a great 1st-round start against St. Louis, the only team to use five
players, though Les Perlmutter and John McCloskey, whod be winless, would play just
one tie apiece. St. Louis felt they had an obligation to risk playing Perlmutter (0-3) against
Detroit (McCloskey theyd put in against hapless Columbus), and when Nash lost right off
the bat to Hersh and Bernstein, St. Louis was beaten 5-3. Garrett, Id better hasten to say,
lest anyone think otherwise, was complimented in the Topics tournament write-upnot for
his mediocre 6-7 record, but for his (and Belliss) courteous conduct. Give credit where
credit is due, eh?
Later, however, Detroit had Bernstein (5-6) sitting out their last two ties versus teams
they might beatIndianapolis and Philadelphiawhile Taggart, taking Bernsteins place after
winning two from Ohio, dropped all 5 of his matches. A down day for Jack, but much worse
was to come. Less than three years later, The plane in which he was a radio operator and
gunner took off from a carrier, and after flying a few hundred yards suddenly dived directly
into the sea. On Nov. 11-12, 1943 the Michigan TTA would hold a Memorial tournament in
his honor.
Against Indianapolis, Detroits Webb lost to McClure 18 in the 3rd, and his teammate
Hersh failed to win a 3-game must-win match from Coulson. Against Philadelphia, Webb, who
it was said from time to time, tie to tie, amused the crowd with his humorous antics, gamely
came through19 and 21 over Ham Canning, and -20, 19, 17 over Abbott Nelson. So that
after Hersh beat Nelson, but lost to Bellis, 22-20 in the 2nd, the tie was 3-3. Then, however,
57

Webb succumbed to not-so-dizzy Izzy, -20, 16, -18, and Hersh to Canning, 10, -19, -18.
Hence Detroit, despite that upset start, ended with just 2 wins.
Indianapolis quickly took their lead-off tie against Philadelphia when Coulson beat
Canning, and Kolady 19, 19 beat Nelson. It only remained for McClure to win his 3, which he
did. However, in the Indianapolis-St. Louis tie, though Jimmy got the better of both George
Hendry and Nash, albeit 19 in the 3rd against Garrett, Indianapolis could do no more.
Unaccountably, this Intercities, the 5th hed played in for Indiana, seems to be Earl Coulsons
last tournament.
Bad enough that St. Louis had severely diminished much of the home crowds hopes
with their opening loss to Detroit. But when midway in the tournament they were beaten 5-2
by Chicago, everyone knew that their cause was hopeless. Down 3-2 after Holzrichter had
done in both Hendry and Nash in 3, and Anderson had added a key 3-game win over Price,
and after Nash had easily waved away Herb Aronson, and Hendry had gained control to
thwart Anderson, St. Louis, down 3-2, still had a chance. When, however, Aronson finished
off Price in 3, Nash had to win. And up 1-0 and at 21-all, it looked like he mightbut then
Anderson turned the match his way, and Chicago remained unbeaten.
Though not for long. New Yorks Lou Pagliaro was just too strong, and Eddie Pinner
almost equally so. Only Andersons deuce-in-the-3rd win over Irving Whitey Sheraga
prevented runner-up Chicago from being 5-0 blown away.
Undefeated New Yorks last tie had been scheduled against St. Louis in the hope that
it would be a climactic, tournament-deciding one. But though St. Louis, with two losses
already, had no chance to win these Intercities, they resisted New York mightily and so did not
totally disappoint their supporters. To upset the Easterners, and set up a New York-Chicago
play-off, Price, Hendry, and Nash would all have to beat Sheraga. And, since reportedly for 20
tournaments now Pagliaro had been invincible, two of the St. Louis players would have to
defeat Pinner as well. When Garrett in his 1st match downed Eddie, getting by him deuce in
the 2nd, St. Louis was primed. But after Pinner pummeled Price, it was left to Hendry to stop
himand George couldnt quite do it, lost this tie-turner 19 in the 3rd. In the 8th match, Price
20, -13, 19 held on to beat Sheraga, as his teammates had earlier. This moved St. Louis into a
4-4 tie, after which the still undefeated Pagliaro recorded his 12th victoryan easy one over
Priceand with it earned the Outstanding Player Award.
Tournament Chair Claude Camuzzi is praised for a job well doneand History is
made with a scoring system called Scorite. Apparently the scorekeeper doesnt have to say
a wordhe merely pulls one of the two cords to his left or right on the apparatus in front of
him, and, voila, you have the first automatic score keeper that not only tabulates the score
accurately but designates who is serving....The time may come, says Topics, when all large
tournaments will be using these automatic score keepers (Jan., 1941, 18).
SELECTED NOTES
*As Ohio TTA President (succeeded, sometime in Feb./Mar., 1941, by George
Sturgiss), Larry Minneker had pressed for more regular USTTA memberships. He was still
pressing for them in his role as Editor of the Ohio Net Newsa relatively short-lived
publication, I gather, because Ohio TTA members apparently werent very receptive to its few
mimeographed-off, pictureless pages. In the Vol. 2, No. 8, Apr. 15, 1941 issue, Minneker lists
in order the five states with the most USTTA memberswhich are, as of Apr. 1, 1941: Ohio,
Pennsylvania, Illinois, Kansas City, and Minnesota. He professes to speak rationally to
58

Ohioanssays, With the thousands of players in

our state, there is no reason for not having at
least a thousand members.
**Siegel, whom Id given some background on
in Vol. Ias the director of Clint Eastwood
movies, for examplewas remembered as a table
tennis player into the new illennium. U. S. Hall of
Famer Dick Evans told me in July, 2001 that
host-critic Robert Osborne, for I believe Turner
Classic Movies, had prefaced a recent showing of
Charley Varrick, starring Walter Matthau
(then young enough to be a lover, Dick said),
with a comment about the former California
titleholder being in this movie. A famous
ping-pong champion, Osborne had called him.
So of course Dick watched carefullyand, sure
TTT, Dec. 1941, 3
enough, in a three-second or so scene in the
Don Siegel and Coleman Clark
back of a Chinese restaurant, there was Siegel
playing, as promised.
***One of the I beat Coleman Clark cup winnersthough in a performance in
Cincinnatiwas famed bandleader/pianist Eddy Duchin.
****Bob Viducich tells the story he heard about Bellak and his balls:
He [Laszlo] ordered the finest balls available from France in the bulk at
perhaps 100 to 1000 gross at a time. (The numbers seem to get larger with each
passing year.) Anyway, everything went well with his business until a U.S. customs
official decided that each ball had to be marked Made in France to identify its
country of origin.
Since the balls had no such mark on them, Laszlo had to fly to New York and
hand stamp each one of the 15,000 to 150,000 balls! [Dec. 6-7, 1980 Northwest
Open Program, 22]
*****Id mentioned in Vol. I how violinist Jascha Heifetzs prowress at table tennis
had been hyped (hed even been made an Honorary Vice-President of the USTTA). Now in
the Nov., 1940 issue of Topics, Metropolitan opera singer Eleanor Steber, on being
interviewed by Editor Mel Evans, Jr. maintains that Heifetz, whom she knew quite well, talks
table tennis as much as he does music. Steber also says that when she attended the New
England Conservatory of Music at Boston, the table tennis tables there were always crowded
with eager young musicians, who made up in spirit what they lacked in playing ability (10).
Another Topics article, dealing with musician Oscar Levants book A Smattering of
Ignorance, reveals that the distinguished composer, Arnold Schoenberg...when he went
visiting, used to carry his own table tennis rackets with him. Levant also says that he used to
spend hours playing table tennis with George Gershwin (May, 1940, 16).
With regard to Gershwins play, the July 5, 1993 New York Times had an article by William
Grimes on Gershwin...Family Memories as recounted by 82-year-old George and Iras singer/
dancer sister, Frances (Frankie) Gershwin Godowsky. The following passage caught my eye:
59

The Gershwin family lived [in New York City] on 103rd Street at Riverside
Drive, keeping a kind of artistic open house that drew hordes of show-business folk
and Broadway and film stars. Youd walk in the entrance and thered be people
standing all around, with very exciting Ping-Pong games going on, Mrs. Godowsky
said.
Turns out that Ruth Aarons half-brother Alex produced a number of Gershwin
successes from Lady Be Good (1924) to Pardon My English (1933). And since Ruth lived at
150 Riverside Drive, within easy walking distance of the Gershwins, and since her brother had
this close association with George and Ira, I cant help but speculate that she had casually
watched, if not tried her hand at, the competitive play that was often going on at the Gershwin
house. Further, though in Vol. I I documented how she repeatedly said she came to play table
tennis on a rainy day that saw her tennis game interrupted, I wonder if, consciously or
unconsciously, in her formative childhood, amidst those show-business people she lifelong
wanted to be like, she might have acquired her initial liking for the Sport.
Another Times article, this one by Alex Witchel on the actor Mickey Rooney, and
appearing just two days after the Gershwin one, has Mickey claiming, I lost my hair because
of tennis and Ping-Pong....I was the Southern California Ping-Pong Champion for five years.
But I took too many showers and the soap was not Vidal Sassoon. Oh, ohmore hype. For
when Andy Hardys Double Life opened in New York in 1943, Mickey was in his early 20s,
and from the photo of a scene in that movie I saw reproduced in the Times, unless he had the
most miraculous toupee of the day, he sure had all his hair. Of course in an article back in
1938, Rose Stradner, former Viennese stage star, then with M-G-M, said that the teenage
Rooney was a player of almost professional skill (TTT, May, 1938, 3). Truth or illusion?
Probably, as in the films many a reader sees, something of both.

60

Chapter Five
1940-41: Dec.-Jan. Holiday-Season Tournaments/Shahian Appears. 1941: Pagliaro/
Carolyn Wilson Win Easterns; Holzrichter/Leah Thall Take Westerns. 1941: Pre-Nationals
Play.
As players all across the country begin to combine their table tennis with Christmas
shopping and holiday parties, I, too, as it were, will drop in here and there, pay selected visits
to sites of fellowship and good cheer. Providence beckons:
WELCOME!
Welcome, wielders of the paddle, whether here by train or saddle!
Welcome one and all!
York or Boston, old New Hampion, Mickey Mouse or mighty champion,
Gather to the call!
Cellarites and home league terrors, watch the champs correct your errors,
Twenty-one to one!
Gorgeous lassies slim and slender, champions of the dainty gender,
Show them how its done!
One and all a hearty greeting, welcome to New Englands meeting,
Table Tennis kin!
Fellowship in friendship fetes you; competition keen awaits you
May the best man win!
Open to this Dec. 7-8, 1940 Southern New England Open Program-poemand the
tournament sure sounds inviting, doesnt it? Mae Clouther showed them how its done. So
dainty, or at least easy, were her victoriesin Singles, over Alice OConnor, and Mixed
Doubles (with Eddie Pinner) over Frank Dwelly/Mildred Shahianthat it seemed she might
have been winning points while sipping a champagne glass for balance. Cy Sussman took the
Mensdowned his winning Doubles partner Pinner in the final. Perhaps semifinalists Bill
Price and Washington, D.C. #1 Stan Fields had come so far from home not merely to play in
this tournament but to do exhibitions in New England, ala Les Lowry and unregistered
Roving Racqueteer Harry Cook?
If so, John Kauderers N.Y. Metro TTAs wintry Resolutions wouldnt affect them.
But, be alerted: Metro players could not, under penalty of suspension, play in tournaments or
give exhibitions for which any prize or title...is being offered without the written sanction of
the MTTA; in fact, they couldnt play in any tournament for which no title is offered without
written MTTA approval. Violators would be subject to disciplinary action, as would any
ranked player who participated in unsanctioned tournaments without permission. New
Yorkers were a notoriously independent bunch, but, as well see, with MTTA Secretary
William Gilfillan taking the initiative,* theyre about to band together to organize and
publicize the upcoming Apr. 2-4 Nationals at the Manhattan Center.
Good Fellowsthats the name of the Dec. 20-21 tournament in Chicago won by Bill
Holzrichter over Bill Ablin, and by Elah Rice over LaVera Weber. Billy, surely, but perhaps
Elah as well, had already autographed one of the 200 t.t. balls decorating 1930s star Yoshio
Fushimis Christmas tree?
61

New Years Eve and/or New Years Day tournaments were held in YMCAs in
Birmingham, Alabama, Tulsa, Oklahoma, and San Antonio, Texas (with the McCarley
familyespecially Cubby and his brother Jodiebecoming prominent in the T.T. Association
there, on court and off).
Maybe every time Holzrichter won a tournament another ornament was hung on
Fushimis tree? If thats the case, and the trees still up, Yosh, add to your string Billys little
white-world wins the first two weekends of the year.
At the Jan. 4-5 Battle Creek Michigan Open, in the quarters, Holzrichter so 9, 10, 6
subdued V. Lee Webbs characteristic scampering shots and quips that one wondered just
what sort of new years recovery the poor fellow would need. But then in the semis it was
Billy who needed reviving. Chuck, no longer Charley, but still Bernstein, had defeated
Webb to win the just-before-Christmas Grand Rapids Michigan Closed. Now he had the
makings of Im a very good player epiphany when in the semis he had Holzrichter down 2-0
and at deuce in the 3rdbut couldnt win.
At the South Bend St. Joe Valley the following week, Holzrichter again had to go 5
this time from down 2-1 in the final against another Chuck, U.S. Boys superstar Tichenor.
Ruthe Brewer Crist, winner of both the Michigan Closed (not much residency required, eh?)
and the Michigan Open (over LaVera Weber in 5), was stopped in South Bend. Winner Mary
Baumbach came 1st in round-robin play, in which the best match saw Windy City Negro star
Willa Gant, in gusts of 4th and 5th-game winners, rally to defeat Toledos Pete May.
Only four women entered this South Bend tournamentand just one from the entire
state. So what use were the Indiana regular and group members to the USTTA, or the
USTTA to them? Perhaps thats what W.B. Hester came to think. Anyway, hed retired, and
the new President of the Indiana TTA, as one could see from the first (3-page) issue of Jimmy
Shrouts mimeographed Indiana TTA Drop Shots, was E.W. Ted Chapman.
Although in the winter of 40-41 Hesters 12-page xeroxed-off Table Tennis Tournaments:
Information and Suggestions was available if one sent a return envelope with 9-cent postage, its
clear that, whether Hester is still the YMCA Boys Secretary or not (he will soon become
connected with the Canton, Ohio Y), John Varga, progressing toward his legendary South Bend
Coaching career, is now living at this Y and running the St. Joe Valley tournament.
To have a sponsor like the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company, as the Jan. 18-19
Ohio Open at Akron did, seemed totally apropos for the Midwest circuit regulars who were
driving weekend after weekend to tournaments. Maybe, instead of still another trophy, thered
be (while there still could be in these months before the War) a tire, a set of tires, for the
Singles winners? But, no, merchandise prizes were not the norm, were seldom awarded.**
Hersh beat Ohio #2 Sam Shannon, then #7 Harry Sage to win the Mens. In the Womens,
Crist had 19 in the 4th semis trouble with Koolery, but caught a break when in the other
semis Leah Thall upset Sally Green.
Sally was in no mood to lose again, and at the Jan. 25-26 Indiana Open she beat, first,
Baumbach, then Crist. In the Mens, #3-seed Tichenor upset Nash in 5 in the semis, then
downed Chicagos Eddie Ray in a straight-game final. Tichenor also took the Boysover
Allan Levy, who no doubt in traveling with Nash was learning to be a teenager ahead of his
time. And a good player, too. For Allan already knew what Tibor Hazi was advising in a
Topics coaching article, If you have the time [and money?], enter them all [tournaments, that
is]...far and wide, for this is without doubt the best method of developing ones headwork,
courage, and confidence (Jan., 1941, 10).
62

At the Jan. 11-12 Omaha Missouri Valley, Harry Lund threatened Nash supporters
with what might have been a 3-zip downer in the semis before Garrett 23, -16, -9, 13, 11
rebounded, then knocked off Hendry in the final. Helen Baldwin, in good form after winning
both the Nebraska and Missouri Opens, avenged her 33-31-in-the-5th late Nov. loss to teenterror Tiny Mossturning the table tennis ball into an undeviating psychic snowball, as it
were, hurrying to catch Tiny going downhill and, at the -17, -18, 19, 24, 13 end, burying all
her hopes.
If California was getting new competitors, the Northwest was losing old ones. In
effect, the War had already hit the Pacific Coast. Both Hal Philan (whod won the Oregon
Open over Ray Pearson) and Mrs. Audrey Fowler (#3-ranked woman player in the state)
speak mournfully of the demise of the Northwest Intercity Association that featured players
from Portland and Seattle, Victoria and Vancouver, British Columbia. The problem? Because
of war conditions, the Canadian players find it difficult to secure visas to get out of the
country. After they do obtain visas they are allowed only five dollars in currency to bring with
them into Oregon (TTT, Feb., 1941). Philan says that, in addition to this setback, the Seattle
Club was unable to remain open, and many Seattle players dropped from competition
which left Portland to weather the loss (TTT, Mar., 1941, 6).
All of which brings not only Laci Bellak and Sandor Glancz full circle back East
through such whistlestops as, say, Mandan, North Dakota and.Warren, Ohiobut us...to the
Jan. 11-12 Baltimore Middle Atlantic States Open. Here, in the final in 5, Bellak beat Stan
Fields, who only a few months earlier had become the proud papa of son Bobby, future U.S.
Hall of Famer.
In the following weeks Jan. 16-17 New York Metro Open, held in the Western Union
gym while telegraph lines outside were being subjected to an ice storm, Monness won again
rallying to defeat Helen Germaine in 3, then Magda Hazi in 5 after being down 2-1. National
Champ Lou Pagliaro downed Eddie Pinner in the Mens final.
Pagliaro/Wilson Win Easterns
The Easterns were held Feb. 1-2 at Heurichs Gym, 26th & D Streets, in Washington,
D.C.with the first matches not scheduled to go off until 1:00 p.m. Saturday afternoon. Of
course there were only four eventsMens and Womens Singles, Mens and Mixed
Doublesplus a Consolation for the Men.
Topics Social Editor Gladys Hotsenpiller would ask her readers if they didnt think
there ought to be a Senior Womens event in all majorsfor women over 29 years of age, for
of course in many tournaments there was a Mens Veterans event for those over 35. But since,
among the 8 members of the D.C. TTA Executive Committee, headed by President Carl R.
Meininger, and the 12 members (not counting the 2 Hostesses) of the Tournament Committee,
there was not one woman official, it shouldnt be too surprising that there was no Womens
Doubles, no Womens Consolation, and certainly no Womens Seniors here at these Easterns.
In fact, though this tournament would continue year after year, into the next millennium, there
would be no permanent Womens Doubles event until 1947, no Womens Consolation until
1954, and no Womens Over 35 until 1976 when one was tried and quickly discontinued.
The Topics write-up of this tournament began, To the delight of the crowd witnessing
the finals...Lou Pagliaro successfully defended his title by downing fifth seeded Bernie Grimes
in three straight games, 21-14, 21-12, 21-10 (Mar., 1941, 4). The crowd just wanted Louie
to win? I mean, could this one-sided match have been a delight to watch? Or Paggys 4663

point slaughter of (a smiling?)

Tibor Hazi in the semis? (Based
on Bellaks view that whenever
Tibor began to lose, hed smile,
I speculate that Hazi, to try to
save face over this poor
performancepoor, why it was
absurdsmiled a lot this
match). However, Lous 18-inthe-4th win over Cy Sussman in
the quarters had to have been at
least entertaining. Grimes, too,
deserves credit for downing
Pinner, then Schiff.

Stan F

ields

In the Womens, in the

one semis, the darling of D.C.,
Carolyn Wilson, rallied from
down 2-1 to slip by Alice
OConnor, 19 in the 5th, and, in
the other, Priscilla Woodbury,
(Ice Palace News, Nov. 15-Dec. 1, 1939)
down 2-0, found the strength to
come back and upset Defending
Champion Magda Hazi. There
followed an anticlimactic final, however, for Wilson, youngest ever to win the title, did to
Woodbury what Paggy did to Grimes. And this despite the fact that when, the season before,
Louie had for a brief time been managing the D.C. Columbia Courts and Carolyns parents
had urged him to give her a couple of lessons, the future young Champ had told him she didnt
really want to play.
In a Mixed Doubles semi, OConnor, paired with Sussman, retaliated against Wilson,
paired with Fields, to win 19 in the 5th. But one could understand why the Hazis again took
away the title. Everyone knows, says Tibor, that doubles is the hardest game to play, for it
requires perfect footwork and cooperation between partners (TTT, Jan., 1941, 10). Which
means that, since Sandor Glancz will later note in an article that Tibors footwork has
improved a lot, his marriage to Magda will long endure?
64

Making his first appearance in Topics is Johnny Somael, future

U.S. Champion. His contemporary, Freddie Borges, tells me he
discovered Johnny playing table tennis in a Brooklyn playground and
(Hey, kid, you oughta be playing in
tournaments) urged him to come to the
Broadway Courts. Somael won the Consolations
in the deciding 3rd over D.C.s Bobby Bensinger,
National Indoor Junior Tennis Champion.
After the Easterns, the March 3, 1941
issue of Life featured the Hazis playing Eddie
Pinner and Alice OConnor in photographer Gjon
Milis sequence of fast-action, tracer-like shots
the photos taken with a repetitive flash, at
intervals of 1/50 to 1/100 of a second to reveal
the bouncing course of the ball and the swift,
magician-like movements of the players hands
Left: Freddie Borges; Right: Johnny Somael (T/MHS, 42-43).
Holzrichter/Thall Win Westerns
The Westerns were held on Feb. 8-9, in the General Motors Ballroom in Detroit,
under the very capable direction of C. Bronson Allen, President of the Michigan TTA for the
last three years, who was now retiring. To show their appreciation for Brownie, the Detroit
players gave him a birthday party at the Detroiter Hotel, and among the gifts he received was
a beautiful traveling bag and, from George Blom of Detroit Wood Products, the company
making the Detroiter tables, a poker table.
Billy Holzrichter won the Mens finalover Chuck Bernstein in three closely
contested games. Since Chucks backhand was heavily loaded, and he had a good flick from
that side, Billy played ball after ball to his forehand. Both Holzrichters and Bernsteins semis
had been great crowd-pleasers. Billy, down 2-1 to Nash, won 18 in the 5th, and Chuck beat
Price in a fierce, drawn-out battle, 32-30, 21-10, 13-21, 22-20. Chuck said that Price, who
was not a chopper but a retriever, gave him a lot of high, no-spin balls, and that when the
game got close Bill would often come in and roll a ball or two, hoping with that maneuver to
create a chance for a winner. The Boys was won by Allan Levy over Carl Manley.
In the Womens, Leah Thall had been down 2-0 in the semis to
Ruthe Crist, but had persevered to meet, then easily defeat Mary
Baumbach in the final. Though not yet a teenager, Tiny Moss played well
in both Doubles, was not in the least timorous. Leaving her home in St.
Paul, shed taken the train alone to Detroit, where shed been met at the
station by a representative of the MTTAGraham Steenhoven, 30 years
later the President of the USTTA who on the famous 1971 Ping-Pong
Diplomacy trip to China would be meeting Chairman Chou En-lai.
Pre-Nationals Play in the East
With the Easterns and Westerns completed, the season was
moving towards its New York climax. On Wednesday, Feb. 12, in the
Bernhard Mayer Gym of the 92nd St. YMHA, the Metro TTA sponsored
65

1946-47 Intercity
Program

Graham Steenhoven

its 10th annual New York State Opena four-event, one-day tournament beginning at 1:00
p.m., with a dinner break from 6:00 to 8:00 (admission: $.60 for the evening session).
The Topics write-up begins with It happened at last! Which could mean almost
anything. In this context, however, the it refers to Pagliaros first defeat in 20-some
tournaments. Eddie Pinner beat him in 4 in the finala loss that was perhaps foreshadowed in
Louies 16, -19, 20, 18 quarters struggle with the retired, or at least semi-retired New
Yorker, Abe Berenbaum, who wouldnt be playing in this years Nationals even though it was
being held in mid-town-Manhattan. That close match with Abe couldnt have been a
confidence builder.
Helen Germaine had little more to do than walk to the table to win the Womens.
Runner-up Alice OConnor beat youthful teenager Peggy McLean in the semis. Peggy,
though, was paying her dues. Reportedly as a child she was a weakling. So since her doctor
advised exercise, her father, Vincent, coaxed her interest in playing table tennis on his
home-made table, and, having a natural aptitude for the Sport, she graduated to high school
and Lawrences.
Three days
Wally and Verdyn Stapleton
after this New
York Open,
Readings 10table Coconut
Grove TTC
hosted the
Pennsylvania
State Open.
Bellak
clowned
through the
early rounds,
then took to serious play and beat
Fields in the semis and Schmidt in the
final. Charlie teamed with Bill Cross to
down Fields and Paul Capelle in the
Mens Doubles, while in the Mixed
Bellak and professional ballroom/tapdancer Verdyn Stapleton defeated Izzy
Bellis and Mrs. Henrietta Wright,
Womens Singles winner over Charlotte
Ordway. One reads how writer Scott
Fitzgeralds wife, Zelda, suddenly
thought she could become a really good
ballet dancer and pursued that goal with
frenetic energy. With Verdyn its as if
shes taken her cue to play passionately,
participate in more and more tournaments, from the results of a recent poll conducted at
Birmingham, Alabamas Southern Collegeone that concluded more students play table
tennis than dance (TTT, Apr., 1941, 12).
66

Two New England tournamentsthe Massachusetts Closed and the later New
England Openhad pretty much identical results. Les Lowry won both over Frank Dwelly
though in the Open Frank was 2-1 up before succumbing 19 in the 5th. Mae Clouther, whod
recently given a clinic at Wellesley College for the Womens Section of the American
Association of Health, Athletics and Recreation, also won both over a fast-improving
Mildred Shahian.
The Mar. 29 Connecticut State Open, held at the Greenwich Y, served as a last-chance
warm-up for the Nationals. Pagliaro, whose expenses on the road, including his trip to last
years Indianapolis U.S. Open, were reportedly paid for by the Boys Club, beat Schmidt to
win the Mens. Monness defeated Mayo Rae Rolph to take the Womens.
Pre-Nationals Play in the West (Including Intercollegiates)
The Pacific Northwest held late Feb. and mid-Mar. tournamentsminus of course
such Canadian players as Vancouvers Bill and Harold Keenlyside, #1 and #3 in the seasons
Western Canada rankings, and such lesser lights as Art Barron, future President of the
Canadian TTA. In the first of these tournaments, Pearson defeated Defending Champion Hal
Philan, then took the Doubles with Seattle buddy, Class A winner Roland Jones whod drive
East to the U.S. Open with Ray. Considering that Pearson beat longtime rival Philan quite
easily, USTTA Ranking Chair Elmer Cinnater, in a May 26, 1941 letter to Reginald
Hammond, seemed too dismissive in judging that Ray has a peculiar type of game and is
always hard to play the first time but after solving his unusual style he is not so tough.
In Pearsons absence, Philan won the rescheduled Pacific Coast Open without
dropping a game. The tournament had been moved up, so that Hal, along with runner-up
Portland Club Secretary Bob Hage, Club Treasurer Jim Robinson, Pacific Northwest
Veterans winner Fred LaMear, and the Northwests #1 woman player, Rolph, would be able
to make their necessary coast-to-coast train connections in time for the Nationals.
The Mar. 1 Colorado Open, held at Denvers Shirley-Savoy Hotel, earned a photo in
Topics, for 11 of the playersincluding Mens winner Cecil Woodworth of Topeka, Kansas,
but not Womens winner Mrs. Ariel Smith of Casper, Wyomingwere shown uniquely
grouped around a microphone doing a pre-tournament KLZ radio broadcast.
George Hendry was the Mens winner at the Iowa Open in Cedar Rapids. Nationalsbound Tiny Moss, rallying from 2-0 down, beat Baldwin 23-21 in the 5thwhich of course
was just deja vu, another incredible match between these two, and another disappointment for
Helen.
Much hoopla preceded the first annual Feb. 22-23 Ozark Open, inaugurated to take
advantage of the 400th anniversary of the discovery of Ozark territory by DeSoto. Held in
the DeSoto Hotel, it was sponsored by the St. Louis TTA, whose President was still Elmer
Cinnater, now with his wife Helene proud parent of a 2 and 1/2-year-old son, Ricky. Elmers
with the Missouri Pacific Transportation Company, is a respected Junior Chamber of
Commerce man, lives in the suburb of Rock Hill Village, and commutes by car to work. Hes
a statisticianprepares and compiles such detailed data as the depreciation of motor
coaches, bus tire mileage, recapitulation of division and gross earnings, payroll statements,
etc. (TTT, Feb., 1941, 9-10).
St. Louis official and Topics reporter for this Ozark Open, Tommy Gibbons, speaks of
a Billy Holzrichter-George Hendry nip and tuck battle, won by Holzrichter, and also of a 5game fight that saw McClure and Nash blast away at each others defense with Jimmy
67

proving just a bit steadier. Though one fellow said, McClure isnt the star he used to be, he
was still pretty damn good, and forced Holzrichter to 5 in the final.
The regular partnership of Holzrichter/Anderson beat Bill Price/Allan Levy in the
Doubles. With Allan no longer a Boy, Don Lasater won that eventover another comer,
Mel Nichols. In the Womens, pretty much a St. Louis Closed event, Tamma Hotze almost
lost the final to Jane Allison in 3 but beat her in 5.
The 4th Intercollegiate Team Championships were
held Mar. 22-23 at the Culver-Stockton College gym in
Canton, Missouri. Umpires included St. Louis TTA
officials Cinnater, Camuzzi, and Gibbons. The home team
of George and Don Hendry won with ease, for, despite
talk of the best-Intercollegiate-tournament-yet, there
really wasnt any player in the 10-school field comparable
to George. Moreover, brother Don tied for runner-up
individual honors with Washington University of St.
Louiss Lester Perlmutter by winning three key
matchesover Wilbur Eckstein of 2nd place Washington
TTT, Mar., 1941, 5
University; over last years nationally-ranked, now out of
1941
U.S.
Intercollegiate
Team Champractice Roger Downs of 3rd place University of Illinois,
pions:
Don
(left)
and
George
Hendry
19 in the 3rd; and over Bill Guilfoil of 4th place Kansas
City, Kansas Junior College. One female player participated.***
In Chicagos mid-Feb. Cook County Open, Eddie Ray defeated South Shore Open
Champ Paul Popple, and Willa Gant prevailed over LaVera Weber, winning the 4th game at 19,
the 5th at deuce.
Miss Gant, along with Carl Manley, and Lynel Overton,
President of the Washington Park T.T. Club in Chicago, were,
unbeknownst to them, the subject of interest in a Mar. 23, 1941 letter
to Nationals Entry Chair George Schein from USTTA Executive
Secretary Vic Rupp whos about to succeed Jim Clouther as USTTA
President. Rupp writes that hes received a letter from Illinois TTA
Secretary George Koehnke in which Koehnke lists these three players
as about the only ones [Negroes] likely to apply for entry in the
Nationals from Illinois. Rupp, whos also the National Tournament
Chair, then says in this letter to Schein, I do not know whether you
have received entries from any of them, nor do I know whether you
desire to omit them from the draw. The final decision is entirely up to
the Met of course, but I am passing them along so you may know who
Photo by Danny Ganz.
Lynel Overton
they are.
Obviously, though Manley and Gant have played in tournaments
in the Midwesttheir entries would be accepted in South Bend or Detroit, as well as in
Chicagoand though Overton has written articles that have been printed in Topics (No
Coaching from Sidelines, Please!), the USTTA would apparently allow them to be
discriminated against anywhere. Strange, is it, that Koehnke and Rupp feel the need to relay
this racial warning even to New Yorkers, whose most celebrated ClubLawrencesis run
by a black man?
At the Illinois Open, played in an Amphitheatre at the Chicago International Outdoor
68

Sportsmans Show, LaVera Weber, down 2-1 to Tiny Moss in the semis of the Womens, won
the 4th, 25-23, then the 5th, and went on to defeat Gant in a close but straight-game final.
The Mens featured a surprise appearance by National Champ Pagliaroand an even
bigger surprise, for Paggy lost his second match of the season, his semis to Nash. Marvin
Thomas in the Mar. 3, 1941 Chicago Sun-Times offered this explanation: Pagliaro, who
staged nightly exhibition games during the nine day table tennis affair sponsored by the
TIMES A. A. as a feature of the Outdoor Sportsmans show, was obviously fatigued.Nashs
forehand smashes to the corners caught Pagliaro flat-footed and out of position too often
(38). Perhaps unexpected, too, was Bill Prices deuce-in-the-5th semis win over Holzrichter,
especially after the Chicago star had rallied to win the 3rd and 4th games. In the final between
Price and Nash, the first two deuce games, split, must have taken a lot out of Bill, for
afterwards he wasnt in the match. Nash also won the Mens Doubles with Paggy over
Holzrichter/Anderson. However, they had to struggle in the semisbarely beat Price/Levy,
19 in the deciding 3rd. No doubt Price, wholl continue to be recognized as a first-rate table
tennis and tennis coach over the years, kept passing on valuable tactical advice to his young
partner.
The annual, Ed Cannon-promoted Toledo Lake Cities Open Invitation Tournament
(Invitation suggesting that black players werent welcome?) was held Mar. 8-9. In the
Mens, Holzrichter won a bang-up semis from Nash, 8, -23, 19, -18, 20, then took down
Anderson whod earlier survived a 5-game threat from Chuck Bernstein. Thall, behind 2-1,
again beat Sally Green, winner of the Mixed with her upcoming Nationals partner, McClure.
Jimmy must have had a calming effect?, an exhilarating effect? on Nash, for they easily won
the Mens Doubles.
And now on to glamorous New York, to the 138-entry Nationalsthe biggest
tournament of the year.
SELECTED NOTES.
* In a Jan. 27, 1941 letter to Elmer Cinnater, MTTA official George Schein wrote that
The Nationals as predicted was making no strides at all, until Gilfillen [sic: for Gilfillan],
Secretary of the MTTA, took it upon himself to see that something was done. He lacks
experience but is a very good organizer and worker. Apparently by taking the initiative,
Gilfillan became the agreed upon Chair of the Nationals Committee. George is indirectly
criticizing John Kauderer, President of the MTTA? Didnt think from the beginning he could
organize the event? (Though in the 39-40 season Kauderer, who worked for the New York
Federal Reserve Bank, was said to have gotten 750 entries for the City Bank Championships.)
Reportedly (see Apr. 3, 1941 Tom OReilly column in GSS I, 232), George, a city engineer,
put up some of his own money, as did Kauderer and Gilfillan, to finance these Nationals, and
would be relieved to get it back when enough spectators (Kauderer would later say on the
average 1,000 to 1,500 a session) made the tournament a success.
**Id read where one unusual prize was given: at an army camp in Kansas, the
winner [of the tournament] was permitted to call any city in the United States by long distance
telephone and talk for fifteen minutes (TTT, Jan., 1942, 12).
***And yet the Feb., 1942 Topics spoke of a Girls table tennis tournament at the
University of Kansas with 120 entries (12).

69

Chapter Six
1941: Sally Green, Lou Pagliaro Repeat as National Champions/Charney, Hawthorn
Are Noticed. 1941: USTTA Officials: Some In, Some Out for Coming Season. 1941: Summer
Tours.
Beginning with its Jan., 1941 issue, Topics began hyping the Apr. 2-4 (Wednesday
through Friday) Nationals with photos of New York, New York. The towering New Yorker
sought to be the official tournament hotel. But, though it was conveniently next door to the
playing venue, it was also by far, in offering a Double Room with Bath$5.00 to $10.00,
the most expensive of the nearby hotel options. As if aware that table tennis players might
need some special inducement to book there, it had ads in the Feb. and Mar. Topics stressing
its newest service: Protecto-Ray Bathrooms. Be assured that their 2500 bathrooms were
rendered thoroughly sanitarythen sealed with Cellophane!. The Feb. issue of Topics
also had a page devoted to Packing Hints. Yetta Sachs, Famed Fashion Stylist, suggested
the appropriateness of: A two-piece gabardine suit with matching top coat. More dashing
and sporty is the fine tweed outfit, in either plain color or plaid, with matching or contrasting
top coat. For the sophisticates a dressmaker suit worn with furs is the acme of smartness (7).
Later, in a letter published in the Mar., 1983 issue of Topics, John Kauderer, who was
in charge of Publicity for this Nationals, spoke of all the newspaper coverage the tournament
got: Allison Danzig of the NY Times, Al Laney of the NY Herald Tribune, James Pryor Allen
of the New York Sun, Damon Runyan, John Kieran, Peter Brandwen, and a host of sports writers
covered the event. The NY daily News, Daily Mirror, Journal American, New York Post all had
people there. Even the magazines like Life and Look had interesting photos of Pagliaro (12)
Of course some columnists just continued to mouth...anything. Heres Dan Parker in
the Apr. 2, 1941 Daily Mirror:
...[The] 11th Annual National Table Tennis Championships get under way
today in the Manhattan Center, with 200 entrants from all over the country. And,
illustrating the manly progress of the game there isnt a swish in this carload. True,
almost 50% per cent of the contestants are women [sic: not 30%] but the effeminacy is
all on their side of the house. You can travel from one end of the mens division to the
other and not run into a single whiff of Cashmere Bouquet or Chanel 5. If even one
hand is discovered resting on a hip, you have the managements permission to slap the
wrist thereof as a stern reminder to the transgressor that this is the new order.
Listless lobbing such as one would expect from Sweet Alice, Ben Bolts friend,
is no longer seen in table tennis. He-men like Little Dynamite Louie Pagliaro, the
national singles champion, can volley like a Tilden....[Louie] has the fastest serve in the
game. If he ever quit table tennis, he can remain right at the table as a waiter and win
his mark (GSS I, 229).
Such inaccurate hype, such snide drivel. This brings people in to enjoy the matches?
Kauderer, perhaps after seeing a squib in Topics that 1940 Republican Presidential
candidate Wendell L. Willkie played table tennis, invited him to the tournament, but (as John
wrote Manny Moskowitz years later) Willkie in a Mar. 29 letter of reply regretted he could
not accept my invitation to award trophies because of a full calendar.
70

When the table tennis players werent sightseeing, or dressing and dining, they
could be found, via their Program player-numbers, on the 7th floor of the Manhattan
Center (8th Ave. and 34th St.). Matches in the six events would be on seven tables,
starting each day (in deference to the expected post-play supper-club nite-life?) at 1:00
p.m. and, after the dinner break, supposedly concluding not later than 11:00 p.m. The
Grand Ballroom venue could accommodate 1400 spectators at a price that ranged from
$.55 for Wednesday afternoon General Admission to $5.00 for a reserved Box Seat good
for all six sessions. From such a Box, 1938 and 39 U.S. Womens Champion Emily Fuller
was introduced and took a bow.
Some of the USATT directives to the Metro TTA sponsor were as follows:
The five final matches were to be: one Mens semis, then the other, then the Mens
Doubles, the Womens Singles, and the Mens Singles in that order. Also, the schedule of
matches in the next to last session had to be carefully arranged to prevent more than one
outstanding match being played at the same time.
Hotel hospitality was to be provided by the sponsor for members of the National
Executive Committee, Board of Regents, General Secretary and the National Ranking
Chairman.
With regard to keeping the public informed, Arm bands may be worn by the umpire
to indicate games won by the player lateral to each arm. Umpires should announce the score
plainly at each change of service and arise at the conclusion of each game or match to
announce the winner and score.
As usual, Detroiter A tables would be used, accompanied by the P. Becker & Co.
Coleman Clark ball, rather than the McClure one understandably in play last year at
Indianapolis. After a short welcome speech, Newbold Morris, acting Mayor during [Fiorello]
La Guardias absence, opened the tournament by throwing out the first ball to Defending
Womens Champion, 18-year-old Sally Green.
Green Successfully Defends Womens Title
The 31-entry Womensin which Ruthe Brewer Crist was conspicuously absent
(shed given up on table tennis? on her marriage? wanted to start a new life?) saw all eight
seeds advance unchallenged to the quarters. However, two early-round matches deserve
mention. Brooklyns Anne Sigman Willner, 1936 U.S. Open Womens Singles runner-up to
Ruth Aarons, now married, was momentarily back. Before losing in 4 to Mayo Rae Rolph,
Anne held -17, 12, 20, 15 firm to get by Edna Sheinhart who after her play next season would
be ranked U.S. #10. And in the most contested opener, Chicagos Willa Gant rallied to take
out New Rochelles Annabelle Slenker in 5.
Two newcomers headed for the USTTA Hall of Fame appear on the scene. One is
year-old Bernice Charney, wholl be the 1946 U.S. Open Champion, and who, a remarkable
17 years later, as Mrs. Bernice Chotras, will again be the Champion. Here shes a stubborn 11, -18, 20, -17 loser to Ohios Gladys Pete May. The other newcomer is 23-year-old
Davida Hawthorn, wholl be the 1945 U.S. Open Champion. Though never in the match with
Magda Gal, she scored an impressive 26-24-in-the-4th 1st-round win over Marge Koolery,
last seasons U.S. #10.
At this time Hawthorn was playing in the New York City Bankers Athletic League.
J.P. Allen of the New York Sun, a friend of Kauderers whom John considered the dean of
the tennis writers of the period, gives us some background on her:
71

Miss Hawthorn, a native of the Bronx, is a tall, typical

outdoor girl, blonde and blue-eyed. Sports have always claimed
her attention, and she has played football, baseball and softball
and won honors at track and swimming. Her devotion to
table tennis started a little more than a year ago in the
recreation room at the bank. Last May she gained the final
round of the New York City banks championships and also that
of the Guaranty Trust. In both instances she lost her chance at a
crown to her teammate, Ella May Schnepf.
Leah Thall, who came by plane to N.Y. but was delayed a day
going back because of the continued heavy rain, flew high for one
game with Hazi,
but then was
TTT, Feb., 1947, 4.
grounded. In
Lawrence pupil:
the only
Davida Hawthorn
contested
quarters, Reba
Monness, down 2-1, rallied to wet-weather
Mary Baumbachs sunny hopes. But then in
the semis, Reba, up 2-1 on Green and
seeming to have taken to heart that action
photo in the N.Y. Journal-American
showing her with the Drive That May Win
Table Net Title, was rerouted, and couldnt
come through a winner. Said the Apr. 4 N.Y.
Times, in reference to this Green-Monness
match where Sally, though behind in games,
was perilously up 17-16 in the 4th: The
champion, whose forcing topspin-forehand
had been overreaching the table, steadied at
this tense juncture and, in spite of Mrs.
Monnesss sturdy defense and severity from
the backhand...went on to win the game and
take the fifth fairly comfortably (GSS I,
240).
Perhaps it was after this match that
Reba gave her Apr. 5 interview to Dave
Camerer of the N.Y. World-Telegram in
which she states that most playing venues
are pretty awful and that the Sport isnt a
particularly healthy one. You work up
terrific steam in a good match....Then you sit
around in damp clothes waiting for your
next match. Its a bad circuit for colds
Sally Green crosses her fingers
(GSS I, 238).
makes it two in a row
72

Germaine, sweeping by Hazi, had reached the final without losing a game. But Sallys
consistent driving didnt allow Helen any match-making control and she lost in straight
gameswas again the runner-up as she had been seven years earlier. Sally of course now had
back-to-back Championships. No, she told Camerer, quickly composing herself after crying
for a moment (she hadnt been as confident of repeating her 1940s win as Pagliaro), I dont
expect to make a career out of the game. Im attending Jordan Conservatory of Music at home
and expect to go on to teach theory and harmony (GSS I, 241).
Since Mildred Wilkinson was tending to baby Susan, she couldnt defend her Womens
Doubles title with Green, and Sally apparently didnt try to find another partner. In the final,
Hazi/Henrietta Wright lost a 23-21-in-the-5th trauma-tester to Thall/Baumbach. This U.S.
title would be Leahs first, Marys last.
In the Mixed, Lowry/Clouther had the defending Hazis 1-0 and at deuce in the 2nd
before faltering. After which, Tibor and Magda easily disposed of Pinner/Moss to reach the
final. On the other side of the Draw, Holzrichter/Baumbach proved 24-22-in-the-3rd shockresistant to McClure/Green who might otherwise have been the events winners. After Bellak/
Monness -17, 19, 17 escaped Schiff/Wright they fought a 5-game finalin which Reba
reportedly drove the ball hard when she could, and Magda perhaps too safely concerned
herself with merely placing the ballwith the result that Bellak/Monness avenged their last
years semis loss and became the Champions.
The 22-entry Veterans event was
won by soon-to-be Massachusetts
TTA President Lloyd
Shepherdson, 20, 18, 19, over
Phillys Al Nachsin. Shepherdson
outlasted Defending Champ Bill
Gunn, 18 in the 5th in the semis,
and Nachsin knocked off both last
years finalist, Tatom, 19 in the
4th in the quarters, and, in a 5game semis, George Bacon,
whod beaten Al in the Veterans
final at the 39 U.S. Open. In
other notable matches, Long
Islands Bob Savage fell to
Bacon, but earlier had -19, 13, 14, 21, 15 stopped Rochesters
Tex Lloyd, while Fred LaMears
1941 U.S. Open Mixed Doubles Champions:
long trip back to Portland would
Reba Monness and Laszlo Bellak
have been lightened had he won,
not -18, -19, 18, 19, -21 lost, his long, 5-game comeback against N.Y.s Bob Strahl.
Carl Manley became the first USTTA Negro National Champion by pulling out a
seemingly never-ending -18, 16, -26, 13, 20 Boys final over Allan Levy.
Pagliaro Successfully Defends Mens Title
In the 72-entry Mens, the following 1st-round matches were of more than routine
interest: Bob Green, down 2-0, came back to beat Abbott Nelson, 19 in the 5th; Carl Manley
73

prevailed 18 in the 5th over Paul Capelle, Ham Canning took a 5-gamer from Johnny Tatom,
and Cal Fuhrman, affirming that, yes, this was his 11th straight Open, let a 2-0 lead slip away
but still won in 5 from Jack Hartigan.
In the 2nd round, two favorites went down, and another almost crash-dived. The May,
1941 Topics, with I presume Editor Mel Evans, Jr. writing up the highlights of the tournament
(8-9), said that against 16th seed Cartlands flat cross corner drives Stan Fields pulled the
unexpected by suddenly switching from defense to offense with devastating backhand shots
and mixed them with bothersome drop shotsthus eliminating Doug (soft from teaching
and non-tournament play in Florida?). Jimmy Jacobson got 19-in-the-5th by 10th seed Bill
Price who, on sending in his entry, had filled in the Date of birth space with, Im sensitive.
Seattle aeronautical student Ray Pearson, seeded #15, went into what might have been a fatal
tailspin against Johnny Somael but -18, 19, -12, 22, 16 pulled up just in time. This match, and
the fact that hed won the Easterns Consolation, would help Somael earn his first National
Ranking, a last-place #40. And yet in just three years hed be our U.S. Champion.
The Mens Consolation (no Womens
Consolation was held) was won by Ben Dattel.
Almost 40 years later, Ben would tell Reba
Monnesssee her Profile of him in the JulyAug., 1979 issue of Topicsthat Johnny
Somael always said he, Ben, had been an
inspiration to him. Though Ben had lost in
the 1st round to Chicagos Bill Ablin he was
by this time a pretty good player (would be
ranked U.S. #38 this season). A New Yorker,
born in 1917, hed started to play table tennis
in the public playgrounds...[then] graduated to
the Y.M.C.A., and later to Herwald
1941 U.S. Open Consolation Winner: Ben Dattel
Lawrences Broadway Courts. While he was
still a teenager hed won P.A.L. (Police Athletic League) tournamentsso that when Somael
first began playing him at Lawrences, Ben, a southpaw, would play Johnny with his right
hand and beat him (29).
Dattel defeated Tatom 3-0 in the Consolation finalbut his toughest match was his
deuce-in-the-4th semis against Freddie Borges. Earlier Freddie had been -23, 23, 15 almost
beaten by Gar Gomon who, with Detroit buddy, Max Hersh, had thumbed his way East and so
wouldnt be one of those likely to stay at the Hotel New Yorker.
Through the Mens 8ths, the most notable match had to be Pearsons big upset of #2
seed Charlie Schmidt who, as Elmer Cinnater said, was simply at a loss to solve Rays unusual
game. But poor Pearsonhe then had to meet Bellak for the second Nationals in a row.
Which reminds meyoull guess whyof a story Laci once told me. He was playing in a
tournament somewhere and in the 1st game beat his opponent soundly. So of course this fellow
asks his coach how better to play Bellak. The coach says, Dont let him hit his forehand.
When the guy is getting killed halfway through the 2nd game, he turns and asks for help again.
Play to his backhand, says the coach. But of course the result is the same. So before the 3rd
game, he asks again, What should I do? Aw, says the coach, give up. Much to the
coachs astonishment and Bellaks amusement, the fellow takes the coachs advice literally
and comes over and shakes hands with Laci. Pearson, as he did last year, at least played out
74

the 3rd gamethough Laci just kept the ball low, wouldnt allow Ray to topspin. After this
match, Bellak had to struggle for a deuce-in-the-4th win over #7 seed Garrett Nash. Topics
commented that Nash played a smart defensive game, mixed with lightning placements which
forced Bellak to open up his assortment of drives (8).
Three of the four quarters matches were closely contested. Strangely, Topics hadnt a
word to say about Pagliaros 5-game match with Sol Schiffthough the two had played in the
final last year. Nor would 21-year-old Pagliaros private practice with 15-year-old Dick Miles
at the 79th and Broadway Club Louie was managing (want lessons? $2 an hour) be mentioned
in printthough Sol or any other potential threat to Paggy must have been aware not only of
how Louie was staying sharp but how fast Dick was improving.
In Pagliaros half, Tibor Hazi, after leading 3rd-seed Billy Holzrichter 2-0, seemed -7,
-11 out of it, but then managed to win the 5th (for after Tibor had seen his 18-13 lead shrivel
to 18-all, Billy hit the last three balls off). Completing Bellaks half was what Topics called
the finest match of the entire tournament up to the semi-finalsbetween Eddie Pinner and
Les Lowry, whod earlier eliminated 39 U.S. Open Champ McClure. Apparently -14, -19
about to be overcome by Eddies terrific cross court driving, Les came back strong to flick
over some lightning backhands that Pinner couldnt even reach. In the 5th, Lowry for a while
continued to outdo himselfat one point went clear back to the barricades to countersmash a Pinner drivebut couldnt pull out the win. Still, as Elmer Cinnater said in a letter
to a friend, You never saw Lowry play before like he did at the Nationals.
In his semis against Laci, Pinner made remarkable retrieves of Bellaks forehand
drives and often leaped in quickly with a sudden backhand placement that caught the
Hungarian completely
off guard. The
Pagliaro-Hazi semis
went to whoever could
sustain the attack.
Paggy, wearing his
wifes ring for luck,
caught Hazi off
balance consistently
with perfectly executed
drop shots, while Tibor
scored with a powerful
point-getter, a terrific
backhand smash to
Lous backhand corner.
Match, finally, to the
Defending Champ, 18 in
the 5th.
Commenting on
the final, one reporter
was struck by how
wonderfully
secure
TTT, May, 1942, cover
the 5, 2, 115-pound
nd
rd
Pagliaro
was with his
Paggy wins 2 , on his way to 3 U.S. Open
75

sliced backhand and praised his mobile

defense. Another spoke of how an
unbelievable return from 20 feet...[drew] a
startled gasp from the crowds then a
tremendous roar as Lous get ball sailed
over the net.however, this reporter said it
was really Lous ability to attack, by driving
to both corners, that allowed him to defeat
Pinner in straight games (the last at deuce
after Eddie, whom Leah Thall called the best
driver at the tournament, had led 17-11).
So Paggys private practice with
15-year-old Dick Miles had paid off, and,
as well soon see, for Dick too.
The Mens Doubles was
noteworthy for the unusual number of close
matches played. In the top half of the
Draw, against Defending Champions
McClure and Schiff, Jack Hartigan and
Harvard student Jimmy Jacobson acquitted
themselves well, losing 25-23 in the 4th.
1941 U.S. Open Mens Doubles Champions: Eddie
Then, in an extraordinary quarters match,
Pinner (left) and Cy Sussman
Hersh/Gomon took a 2-0 lead over the
former World Champions, but couldnt hold it. Advancing to meet Schiff/McClure was
Holzrichter/Anderson, their established partnership never more tested than in their down 2-0,
19-in-the-5th victory over Hazi/Bellis in the quarters. In the semis, it turned out that the
deuce 1st-game winner for Schiff/McClure would permit the 5th-game winner, so exit Billy/Bob.
In the bottom half of the Draw, Pinner/Sussman moved to the semis where their deuce
in the 5th match vs. Paggy/Nash enabled them to reach the final. There, in another 5-gamer,
Sussmans backhand shots were the big siege guns of the attack, a convincing counter-force
to McClures smashing forehands. Thus the 17-year-old Pinner and the 18-year-old
Sussman became the youngest team to win the Doubles in the 11-year history of the Open.
Some players and officials were in no hurry to get home from the Nationals, and may
well have begun a looked-forward-to Apr. 5-6 weekend in New York. Topics took inventory
of the New Yorkers cocktail bar at 3 a.m. Saturday and found the [Jimmy] OConnors,
Hazis, Greens and Clouthers. Also George Blom, Will [ard] Rogers, Bill Gillfillan, Jimmy
McClure, Leah Thall, Marge Koolery, Sandor Glancz and a host of others. Gillfillan deserved
to celebrate, for the Metro TTA deemed this season-ending Nationals a big successand as
of May 1 would claim 142 paid-up members, only 30 of whom were group members. With a
well-planned soliciting campaign, many more could be expected? Well, maybe notfor,
within a few May days, George Schein, whod taken over the MTTA Membership Chair,
would be inducted into the Army and sent, at least for the moment, to the 42nd Engineers
Corps in Shelby, Mississippi, not exactly a beehive of table tennis activity. After several
months, George thought he wouldnt have to serve long because men over 28 were going to
be released from compulsory training. Little did he know that he was about to spend five years
in the Service as a mine demolition expert.
76

Before George left, he tried to console Elmer Cinnater, dejected because his bid to
hold the 1942 Nationals at St. Louis had been rebuffed in favor of one from Detroit. In an
April 28, 1941 letter to Elmer, George tries to dissuade him from retiring, says: I still believe
that you are fortunate in not having the Nationals in St. Louis next season. (Reasons:
conscription, financial responsibilities, and work.) Table tennis in St. Louis needs your
guidance and I cant see why an unjust decision by a few officials of the National Organization
can make you retire. To Elmerwhose other hobby is sailing, so much so that hes known to
his Seascout Troop as Skip or SkipperGeorge urges, Dont give up the ship!
1941-42 USTTA Officials
Cinnater did continue to be the USATT Ranking Chair (rather than turn it over, as he
thought of doing, to Reginald Hammond or Harry Kitselman). But USATT President Jim
Cloutherhe, too, had another hobby: was a member of the Minute Men Sportsmens Club
and the National Rifle Associationretired from office, his leaving hastened perhaps by the
beginnings of appendicitis hed been stricken with at the Nationals.
Morest had taken Kittermasters place as Nominating Chair, and when his
Committee proposed an unchallenged slate, Vic Rupp became the new USTTA President;
Larry B. Minneker replaced Bill Gunn as 3rd V.P.; and C. Bronson Allen succeeded Don
Larson as Recording Secretary. Thomas E. Bob Berna was now both General Secretary
and Executive Secretary, as well as Tournament Chair. Omahas Mrs. Louise Woodruff
(West) and Mary Reilly (East) were named Co-Chairs of the USTTAs Womens Division,
and advocated, among other things, having attractive uniformed Umpirettes and
Usherettes on duty during tournaments. George Egee succeeded Mel Evans, Jr. as Topics
Editor, but he didnt even get two issues out before, about to be inducted into the Army, he
joined the Royal Canadian Air Force, and left Rupp and Berna to do the editing. Because
the USTTA said it needed more space, its Philadelphia Headquarters, including its
Publication Office, moved from the Middle City Building to the 7th floor of the C.R. Smith
Building, S.E. Corner, 18th & Market Sts.
Cartland/Schiff, Clark/Hendry on Tour
So what else is new? Cartlands means of making a living? Dixie, as he was
sometimes called, had been an honor grad at the University of North Carolina, had
reportedly written stories for pulp magazines, and, most importantly was a puzzle expert.
Indeedhad won $15,000 in a New York Post contest. Worst thing that could have
happened, he later lamentedall the players kept trying to borrow money from me. Which
of course didnt stop him from winning $10,000 in another contest only a year later, one he
wasnt eligible forthis time under an assumed name.
Likely it was for one of these contests that Doug went to the sponsors headquarters
and got the official Dictionary the contestants would be bound by. He then saw what 99% of
the others didnt seethat a single word could become two if used as a noun: nut, and also as
a verb: to nut, to seek for or gather nutsand so ended up a couple of thousand words
ahead of his competition.
Since Cartland was so adept at reading dictionaries, and once at least constructing one
(using all the letters of a contest word or phrase), it may not have been surprising that on one
occasion Websters gave Doug a job going through their New International Dictionary to
check out misprints. Since Doug was being paid so much for each misprint he uncovered,
77

one could readily believe he found 150-160 misspelled wordsrerag for retag, for
example. Alas, though, when the computer came in, Dougs rapt attention was no longer
needed.
No doubt this sort of exacting work was fun for Cartland, but surely there had to be
more chance for rewards through an illegitimate rather than a legitimate application of such
diligence. Likely a new automobile hed win in a contest was the result of some energetic
deception. However, sometimes a hustle wouldnt come off. As when Doug enlisted a West
Coast player to enter a contest for him, then sent the fellow a contest-unlocking list of words,
and followed by dispatching an intermediary to check and see if all was going to plan. The
intermediary and the player quarreled, the police came and confiscated the golden list, and
only after the contest was over did Doug get it back. Ah, well, win someand with more than
a bit of foot-stamping and more than a few choice wordslose some.
Ten days after the Nationals, Doug had returned to Florida and was the model of
respectabilitydoing shows with Schiff who, since it was essential not to make errors,
appreciated the dependability of Dougs locked forehand. Of course by this time their
exhibitions were routine. Theyd get used to whatever table theyd be playing on, do the
trick shotshit the ball behind their back, under their leg, blow the ball, pretend to swallow
it, blow it back out, keep 1-2-3-4 balls going, play jingle bells with pots and pansthen
follow a 7-point pre-arranged game plan, and finally invite audience participation.
Nightclub shows would last 12-15 minutes; theatre shows maybe half that because
there were more of them. During one-night stands before a table tennis audience, they would
play a 2/3 game match and accept challenges from the best local player(s)Doug or Sol
giving a talk while the other played. On Apr. 16, for example, they were doing an exhibition at
Stetson University in De Land, Florida. And if in their free time Cartland wasnt too busy
writing letters to set up future exhibitions, or if they werent traveling that day, they could see
a Hope/Crosby/Lamour Road movie, then go over to Jo Anns Coffee Shop and have a
Fountain Specialan ice cream soda, two for $.15.
On the road is where of course Coleman Clark always is, and, according to the
proposed new USTTA Exhibition rules, so long as he performs under sanction of the affiliate
in which the exhibition is being played, he need now only pay a registration fee to the
Association of $2. This will allow him to be considered in the Show rather than the
Educational class, and so hell be permitted to receive a remuneration.
As it happens, however, Cokey needs a summer partner. So whos willing to tour not
only in the summer but in the fall before he returns to his Missouri Military Academy but
George Hendry, following in the footsteps of other St. Louis stars. From the number of balls
that Clark can routinely stuff into his mouth and spit back at him, George understands that his
share of the proceeds wont be much. But he cant pass up the opportunity, for he and Cokey
will be booked big timeChicago, Pittsburgh, Montreal....In New York, theyll play the Roxy
Theatre and Radio City Music Hall. Along the way theyll share celebrity billing with singer
Dinah Shore and renowned bandleaders Benny Goodman, Jimmy Dorsey, and Cab Calloway.
And itll all be great fun, so long as George remembers not to play anything to Cokeys
backhand, or chop a ball. High ones to Cokeys forehand that George cant returnthose are
the winners.
And that most humorous of all exhibitionists, Bellak? Where with the wind might he
be blowing the ball about these hot-air days? Ill tell you: hes begun his tourtour of duty
serving at Fort Davis, North Carolina. Hes in the Balloon Squadron there.
78

Chapter Seven
1941: Emergence of Dick Miles. 1941: Herwald LawrenceLawrences. 1941:
Summer/Fall Tournaments. 1941: N.Y. Again Wins Intercities (the Last Until 46).
Balloons, blown-out candlesbirthday wishes, presents. And so it was that Dick
Miles, perhaps our greatest U.S. Champion, was introduced to the Sport. For my 11th
birthday, says Dick, a woman friend of my mothers gave me a miniature Tea-Table Tennis
set, and my uncle and I used to play with it in the evenings over our dining room table.
At this time, Dick, a lifelong New Yorker, born there on June 12, 1925, was living in
an apartment on 84th St. between Columbus and Amsterdam Aves. with his mother, her
parents, and her brother (Dicks father had left the family when Dick was only 2). When I
came home from lunch, he says, Id eat in a hurry, then with my Tea-Table racket, which
was probably sandpaper, Id hit hundreds of balls on the fly against my bedroom wall, trying
of course not to miss a single one.
As a boy Dick always loved games and sports that stressed hand-eye
coordination. He was good with marbles and yo-yos and enjoyed that
paddle-walloping pastime of trying to control-hit out, again and again,
that little rubber ball rubber-banded to a racket (more ping-pong in
miniature?). He played stickball in the streets and had a good arm; he
was a pretty fair second baseman in Saturday games at Van Cortland
Park; and he played golf with cut-down clubs his mother had given
himlearned, as he was later to do in table tennis, to hit the ball square
to the line of flight, occasionally sneaking onto such a famous course as
Winged Foot in Mamaroneck. He was a semifinalist in a PAL Paddle
14-year-old Dick Miles Tennis Championship, and says he owes his singular table tennis chop
defense to hours and hours of Chinese Handball where you had to learn
to slice the ball into the correct pavement-block.
At PS 166 on 89th St. between Columbus and Amsterdam, where one of his
classmates was Ty Neuberger (later to become Leah Thalls husband), Dick began playing
something more than Tea-Table Tennis. From there he made the transition into the
Manhattan clubsat first playing with a MacCrossen, then a Hock bat. In the late 30s,
early 40s says Dick, it was possible to find as many as four table tennis clubs located up
and down Broadway from 54th to 96th streets.
The first club Dick played at was Mitch Karelitzs (basement, ground floor, and
upstairs) at 76th and Broadway. (After Karelitz lost his lease here he would open another
place at 80th and Broadway, and then would move again to 79th and Broadway.) After
school, says Dick, Id bring in my penniesmaybe 15-20 cents worthand would play
anybody until a light would flash indicating my time was up.* Mitch himself, Dick said, had
the fastest backhand serve I ever sawcame right out of his hand. The best junior at this
club was Billy Levinson and its to this 16-year-old that Dick owes an historic debt.
Dick, said Billy, youre smothering your forehand. Youre hitting on top of the
ballthats why its going into the net so much.
Ordinarily, says Dick, I wouldnt have listened to himwouldnt have listened to
anybody. But I could see he was saying this in a nice way, was trying to help me. So I changed
my forehand, learned to hit underhand, and this helped my game a lot.
79

Harry Pisers 12-table club was on Broadway, between 91st and 92nd Streets. It was
here that Dick first saw the world-class Hungarians Bellak, Glancz, and Hazi. I remember
seeing the Hungarians out there at the table hitting balls, warming up, enjoying themselves,
talking and laughing in a very intimate, in-group way about their strokes and styles. It
impressed me very much that they had a private table tennis language I didnt understand
that table tennis itself had such a languageand I wanted to know more.
Two other Clubs were Duncans and Macs. ** Macs, says Dick, was largely a
residential club. I dont want good players here, Mac told Dick. I thought he was
kidding, says Dick. The idea was ridiculous to me. But he was serious. He said, All my
customers stop playing to watch them. Then sometimes they get discouraged with their own
games, and dont come back.
When Miles first began going to Lawrences, he thought the good players there were
outta my class. Who did Dick play that first time at 25 cents a game (the price of five
subway rides)? Freddie Borgesquite a decent player himself, and six decades later still a
tournament-goer and one of Dicks closest friends.
Of course Dick began to improve. When there wasnt anyone around for him to play,
Lawrence was helpful. Hed set up half a table with the other half as a backboard, and Dick would
spot coins on the table surface and spend hours developing his stroke, trying to put the ball exactly
where he wanted it. Miles still thinks the plays the thing, thinks physical traininglifting weights,
jumping rope, sprinting, cross-country runningis overvalued. To Dick, getting the right touch
has always been far more important than even superb physical conditioning.
Miles certainly did play a lot. At one point in his teens, he quit DeWitt Clinton High
School, would sleep till about two in the afternoon, and would then get up to put in his 11hour day, or, if it were a Friday, 15-hour day. Lawrence generally opened around 1:00 p.m.
and closed around 3:00 a.m., or later if money matches were still being played. Dick says in
those days it was generally safe to come home in the wee hours of the morning. Sometimes,
however, there was a problem.
My grandmother, he says, was a very strict and strong-willed person. Because she
so strenuously objected to my obsession with table tennis, shed periodically lock me out of
our Riverside Drive apartment, bolt the door so my key wouldnt do me any good, and muffle
the sound of the doorbell. Its a terrible thing for a teenager to go back home and find his
grandmother has packed his bag and put it out in the hallway in front of a locked door. Some
nights Id be sitting out in the hall crying until finally someone would open the door and Id
hear my grandmother yell at me, Youre a bum! We dont want a bum in the family!
Even Miless family doctor had a few mocking words to say. He came one day, says
Dick, to take out a blister on my big toe the size of a golf ball. He injected a hypodermic
needle into the blister and I watched as the needle filled with fluid. Now, Dickie, he said
calmly, why do you do this? Why do you play thisand here he went into an exaggerated
sing-songPinnnggg-Ponnnggg?
Why indeed? To become very, very good, of course.
Dicks apprenticeship started to move toward its inevitable conclusion when in 1941
Pagliaro wanted to be ready to defend his National Mens title but didnt want to practice dayin, day-out at Lawrences against his chief N.Y. competitorsPinner, Schmidt, Hazi, Schiff,
Bellak, Grimes, Sussman, and Cartland. When Paggy saw his chance to run Mitch Karelitzs
club and import Dick as a sparring partner he did so...with the result that the initial spot soon
started coming down, down, down.
80

To a number of players surprise, Miles did not enter the Apr., 1941 Nationals, even
though it was held at the Manhattan Center in New York. I just didnt have the $5 entry fee
to waste, Dick says. I never did get much table tennis allowance money. Id never won a
tournament, not even a local junior tournamentId always lose to the perennial Champ Roy
Weissman. What possible reason did I, at 15, have for thinking I could win the U.S.
Championship? My feeling was that if you went into some big tournament youd certainly
want to win it. Youd want to be the best. The idea of beating Pagliaro was ridiculous to me.
He was a great player. I also think that McClure and Schiff were great players. McClure had
one of the best forehands in the world and could go on incredible streaks. Schiff was an
explosive player. There were nights when nobody could beat Schiff. It was very embarrassing
to play him when he was hot. He could go through you like you were a beginner.
However, after Miles saw Somael almost beat Pearson in the Nationals, he felt
differently about entering tournaments. Dick knew Johnny as a peer, and decided that, even if
he couldnt beat Pagliaro, he, like Johnny, could surely beat a number of other good players,
and perhaps that would be satisfying after all. That summer, Topics shows Miles playing in
two N.Y. tournaments.
At the first of these, at the Aug. 8 Broadway Courts, Edna Sheinhart won the
Womensin the final over Bernice Charney, in the semis over Peggy McLean, who, like
Hawthorn, was coached by Lawrence. Pinner was the Mens winner after Sussman had upset
Pagliaro in the semis, and Eddie had beaten Bill Cross. Miles didnt make the quarters, but
with Cross he was runner-up in the Doubles to National Champions Pinner and Sussman. In
their semi, Eddie and Cy had downed two German immigrantsround-shouldered,
aggressive-minded Eddie Arie, and the usually crouch-positioned Jacques Tartakower (who
later, on entering the Army, took his mothers maiden nameto simplify mattersand was
known as Jack Cherry). Partnered with Ben Dattel in the other semi was Mitchell Silbert, an
Intercollegiate Champion first at Vanderbilt and then at Columbia, where hed been presented
with a medal by the famous football coach Lou Little. Silbert would have an optometry
practice on Long Island and in the 1960s and 70s would become very involved in running
and/or playing in LITTA tournaments, including the 1979 U.S. Open at the Nassau Coliseum.
No rankings had been possible yet for Miles, Charney, and McLean; and this past season
Davida Hawthorn had been ranked #29, dead last among the Women. But all four of these players
were being primed at Lawrences for Hall of Fame greatness.
Herwald LawrenceLawrences
In the Apr., 1975 Topics (4B), Reba Monness gives us a
portrait of Lawrence, a man usually reluctant to talk about
himself. Everyone always called him by his last name,
Lawrenceeveryone, that is, but Reba, who called him
Herwald. He was born in Barbados on Oct. 26, 1902
reportedly his mother being native to the island and his father a
white minister.
Herwald Lawrence [Reba wrote] was a
gorgeous hunk of man, even when he was in his forties
and fifties. He was six foot, three inches tall, lean of
build, with a beautifully-shaped head. He wore his curly
81

Dick Miles - looking to

Lawrences Broadway Courts

hair closely cut, he had hazel-light eyes, perfectly

chiseled features, and a light complexion. His cultured
voice was deep, cultivated, and resonant. He elicited
perfect diction, was very graceful in his movements,
and was gracious and charming whenever-he-wantedto-be.

Herwald
Lawrence

On coming to Lawrences from Portland, OR, Jack

McLarty found Lawrences beautiful voice and perfect and
precise pronunciation intimidating. It quite embarrassed
meand made my enunciation very sloppy. I already had
(though I didnt know it) a western drawl that New Yorkers
considered a cowboy accent. When they would notice this
they would ask me where I was from. I would say, The
Broadway Courts Proprietor
West. And they would say, Oh, Chicago.
Reba said Lawrence had infinite patience and was
very explicit in his teaching. Miles and Reisman recall his favorite device for teaching the
beginner. This was to take the horizontal line of a coat hanger, stick it through a ball, and
then, as he held it out, a la a marshmellow over a fire, with his racket hed rub the ball,
sending it into topspin or backspin rotation. His number one protege was Davida Hawthorn,
whom he called Champquite possibly before she was one. During the summer of 41,
Davida was featured, playing table tennis Friday evenings at Lawrences, on early CBS
television.
It may be that on coming to the States Herwald at one time served in the U.S. Army
and had once studied to be an engineer. But History meets him at Lawrences1721
Broadway (between 54th and 55th Streets).
Supposedly the place was first famous as a Legs Diamond-frequented gangster
speakeasywith bullet holes to prove it. It was taken over as a table tennis establishment by
Bernard Joel, whod been the General Secretary of the 1931-formed New York Table Tennis
Association. When later Joel ran into financial difficulties, it was owned by John Morgan,
Director of the 1934 USTTA N.Y. Astor Hotel Nationals, as well as the President of the
Metro TTA before John Kauderer. Morgan, a man at this time in his mid-60s, was a wellknown commercial artist whose Coming Attraction posters at movie theaters the country
over seduced many a patron into returning week after week. He was an avid player, but, as he
didnt want to run the Broadway Courts, he worked out an arrangement. Lawrence the player
would become Lawrence the manager, and Lawrences prize pupil, Davida Hawthorn, or,
more precisely, her father, Norman, would be involved in a sponsorship (TTT, May, 42, 15)
until Lawrence himself became the proprietor, with or without an extended lease. Reba said
that Lawrence became the first black man to own a business establishment in the Times
Square area on Broadway, and that it was AFTER the landlord met him and was so
favorably impressed with him that Lawrence was allowed to own the place.
Lawrences was located above an automobile showroom, and had at least 7 tables on
the second floor and 5 more upstairs on the third. He had his control desk downstairs, and
into the wee hours of the morning the famous Table #7 would sport gambling matches played
by some of the most illustrious names in table tennis. On Tuesday nights Lawrence held
Handicap tournaments, and, said Reba, he had an extraordinary ability to judge strangers
82

handicaps. Care for a game, old top? he might say to someone whod wandered in off the
street. Then, after hitting a few with the newcomer, hed assign him a fair spot relative to any
habitue he might pair him with. The Friday night single elimination tournament, thoughin
which Lawrence would split the entry fees between himself and the two finalistswas what
everyone wanted to play in and stay to see, many of course making round by round bets on
the matches. There were often so many people crowding in that if you werent on court it was
hard to move.
Heres an excerpt from Robert Lewis Taylors Jan. 31, 1942 New Yorker Profile that
will illustrate how Lawrence gave class and dignity to our Sport, and how, as he says, his
tournaments keep a steady finger on the pulse of table tennis, for the best practitioners
have favored me with their custom:
...To get the tournament underway, Mr. Lawrence sits down at a card table on
the sidelines and picks up the microphone of an amplifying system. In grave tones he
announces the pairings for the nights play. Then a cluster of bright lights go on over
the tournament table. Suddenly Lou Pagliaro steps onto the floor, looking solemn. As
befits his station, he is to play the first match. Mr. Lawrences voice booms out over
the loudspeaker: The national champion, ladies and gentlemen. Shall we give him a
hand? It is when Pagliaro hears the applause which follows that he thinks life and ping
pong have been very good to him (26).

Future U.S. Champion Peggy McLean came to look Lawrences over ... and stayed to play.

Ping-pong also seems to be very good for Lawrences, and Lawrence himself. Topics
reports on the publics reaction after this issue of The New Yorker hit the New York
newstands:
83

...It is said that in a twenty-four [hour] period, from Saturday night to Sunday
night, about one thousand people, new faces not known to the management, came up
to look the place over and to play. Many were agreeably surprised. Since the
appearance of the article, Mr. Lawrence, the proprietor, has become famous with
people greeting him openly on the street, in hotels, restaurants, etc. (TTT, Feb., 1942,
12).
Ping-Ponger, Table Tennisis, as usual, being hyped in Topics as being very good
for everyonethe players, the Association. The Nov., 1941 issue declares that From the
numerous tournaments already held this season, it is seen that present world conditions have
in no way interfered with the number of entrants or attendance. In fact, interest seems to be
greater than in previous years (4).
Meanwhile, as USTTA members read this, theres (1) confirmation that world
conditions arent too good, for Germany has just taken Kiev and is besieging Moscow and
Leningrad, and (2) that in this same Nov. issue, in an article called Uncle Sams Table
Tennisers, theres strong evidence that, though its not yet Dec. 7, quite a few table tennis
players have already had their lives disrupted. In case you miss some of the old familiar
faces at tournaments this season, the Uncle Sam article begins, there is a good chance
the fellow is serving in the army or has been drafted (14). Among players I havent
already mentioned as being in the Service are George Hendrys brother Don; Al Beals,
formerly Ohio #2 whod kept open the now closed Cleveland Club; one of the pioneering
Moskowitz brothers, Harold, of N.J.; Phillys Ted Bourne who was in the Anti-Tank
Corps; Herb Chubby Aronson, a Chicago team member at six Intercities; and Jimmy
Verta, Secretary of the D.C. Association.
Summer/Fall Tournaments
Of course table tennis is an addictive game; and players
continue to have their haunts, attend their tournaments,
wherever they live.
In the East, the 9th annual Provincetown Silver Cod
Quiniela was won by Defending Champion Pinner who
dropped only one gameto Miles, whom he beat twice.
Dick recalls Eddie as a hard forehand hitter, particularly
cross-court (though perhaps he smothered that forehand a
little?), and a doggedly athletic rather than a graceful
player. His opposite, complementing their successful
TTT, Oct., 1950, cover
Doubles partnership, was the bespectacled Sussman, who
1941 U.S. Open runner-up Eddie
had a typically tall mans long, sweeping strokes and a
Pinner
wristy backhand flick, his best shot. Surprisingly, Miles
and Cross took the Doubles title from the National Champions here, so all the more was Miles
being touted as a very talented newcomer. Mae Clouther again won the Bronze Dolphin
Trophyproving too steady for her now most accomplished New England challenger, Millie
Shahian.
U.S. #2 Pinner, regardless of his determination and extremely decisive strokes, was far
from invincible. In mid-Sept. at the Brooklyn Courts he lost in the outstanding match of the
evening to Doug Cartland, whom Sandor Glancz in the Nov. issue of Topics said plays the
84

best game in the city. Apparently youd have to compliment Edna Sheinhart that way, too,
for she again beat both runner-up Charney and 3rd-place finisher McLean.
Nor did Pinner win the N.Y. Metro TTA Brooklyn Closed, played on Sunday and
Monday evenings, Oct. 12-13. (Brooklyn Closed? Why then were so many of the players from
Manhattan?) Eddie got by Miles, -16, 18, 20, 12 in the semis, but, after losing the key 2nd
game, 20, -22, -11, -12 collapsed against Pagliaro. Though Bernie Grimes couldnt power
Paggy away from the table like Pinner, he could very nearly match Lou steady stroke for
steady stroke. Down 2-0 in the semis, he didnt give in to the two-time National Champion,
but fought 22-20, 21-19 back, only to lose 18 in the 5th. Miles remembers how Bernie cupped
his outstretched free hand, then, as if he were going to catch the ball coming at him, he
dropped it back, and came through with the forehand all in a balancing, graceful motion, often
rolling ball after ball. In Mens Doubles, Pinner/Sussman, comfortable in their partnership,
downed the lets-try-it pairing of Pagliaro/Miles. The Womens was won by Helen Germaine,
something of an eccentric, who fashioned a wet plastic wrap around the handle of her racket
so that, when it dried, it gave the
imprint of her gripwhich to Helen
made all the difference.
In the only other 1941
tournament in the East of note, the
Dec. 6-7 Southern New England
Open at Providence, Les Lowry
struggled in the semis to beat Miles
1934, 1941 U.S. Open runner-up Helen Germaine
in 5, then zipped by Ham Canning
her first love was tennis
who, on being forced to close the
doors to his Arch Street Club, would leave those in Philly without a place to play. Miles
thought Lowrywith his stylish strokes and balletic mobilitya fluke in the sense that he
was so superior to anyone in his area: an exception to the cluster theory that good players
develop because of their close proximity to the good players whod come before them.
Clouther didnt drop a game in winning the Womensdowned Hawthorn in the semis,
Shahian in the final.
Ohioans Harry Sage, Sam Shannon, Bob Green, Violet Schoonover, and Leah Thall all
traveled to Toronto to attend the Sept. 5-7, 1941 Canadian National Exhibition. Because of
the War, this would be the last of these annual Fairgrounds tournaments until 1947, after
which theyd be held into the 1990s. Canada had declared war on Germany back on Sept. 10,
1939, but it wasnt until June of 41 that military service for men 21-24 was compulsory. The
duration was two yearswith the stipulation that service could only be in North America.
French Canadians were opposed to changing this rule as the War progressed, but the RCAF
increased to 50 times its pre-War size and included some American table tennis volunteers
George Sturgiss, for example, former Ohio TTA President.
Both the Mens and Womens draws were weakbut Sage had an excellent win over
Defending Champ Max Hersh to take the Mens. In Mens Doubles, Sage and Shannon
defeated the Cleveland team of Dick Stone and Sanford Gross. Sandy, who in the 1950s
will run two very successful U.S. Opens, was said to have earlierperhaps when he was
living in Toledovisited New York, where at Harry Pisers Club he remembered playing Laci
Bellak for $.25 a game. Must have been quite an experience.
Thall won the Womensan easy final over Marge Koolery. In the semis, however,
85

against Schoonover, she had to come from two games down to survive.
At the Oct. Indianapolis Open, Leah, maybe keeping her fingers crossed, at least in
that 5th game, prevailed over National Champ Sally Green. John Varga had coached Betty
Henry and Mary Baumbach in their South Bend locale, but now that these women were
approaching marriageable age, he had new pupils, one of whom, Dale McColley, was the
Boys winner that fall at Indianapolis. Apparently Johns engineering career at Bendix
Aviation was secure, so he had the time and inclination to become more involved in table
tennis as Player, Coach, and Organizer. From now on he would be going regularly to out-oftown tournaments. No doubt hed officiate on occasion, and so, along with others, would be
interested in those Topics-advertised USTTA Membership Pins (recommended as nice gifts
for officials). Theyre in the form of a
red, white, and blue shield,
surmounted by a golden eagle, with
either a pin back or a lapel button
screw back (Nov., 1941, 2). And, as
they cost only $1, why not buy half a
dozen?
Up in Cleveland, Dr. Robert
Mengle, Dick Stone, and Sam
Shannon, among others, decided to
resuscitate the local Association.
Philadelphia bad-boy Isadore H. Izzy Bellis had packed his table tennis traveling bag
(which, as Schiff noted, usually contained a number of little medicine bottles) and with his
childhood sweetheart Helen Koenigsberg, now Mrs. Bellis, had moved to Cleveland. Here,
on Dec. 7, in the Allerton Hotel ballroom he won what Topics called the Cleveland
Closedover George Haddad. Henrietta Wright (no longer living in Philly?) defeated local
enthusiast Mrs. Hazel Stambaugh, 19 in the 4th. Hazels co-hostess for the out-of-town
players, 1938 U.S. World Team member Clara Harrison, though for some time rather
inactive, still played well enough to take the Mixed.
All Souls Day at the Chicago District Open saw Holzrichter beat Anderson in the
Mens final. LaVera Weber was 6-0 in the Womens round robin, with Verdyn Stapleton, 4-2,
the runner-up. Verdyn and husband Wally seemed sooner or later to be in every big city.
Topics speaks of them playing dailyback stage, in between theater shows, in Philadelphia,
for example, with members of the Glenn Miller band, and in New York, where, no matter if
Lawrences happens to be closed, Wally simply takes one of Verdyns hairpins and picks the lock.
N.Y. Again Wins Intercities
The 11th annual National Intercity Team Championship (NTC), the last such
Championship for five seasons, was played in the Bal Tabarin room, on the 6th floor of
Chicagos Hotel Sherman, Dec. 27-28, 1941. Only 7 teams could be accommodatedand this
year Boston replaced last years blitzed Columbus team. The 4-table venue offered a
hardwood floor, high ceilings, a window-free background, and air-conditioning. As was
customary, there would be no morning playthe afternoon session started at 2 oclock, the
evening one at 8 oclock. Box seats were best, for they lined both lengths of the playing
area. General admission tickets ($.75) put you in a bank of bleachers at the end of the
room (TTT, Dec., 1941, 5).
Harvard had been advertising its equipment (made in America from American made
materials) in pre-War Topics, and for almost a year now its new USTTA-approved Rocket
and Zenith balls. But the Chicago-based P. Becker & Co., owned by long-time USTTA
supporter Will Schnur, provided for this Intercity (as it had for Chicago Intercities in the past)
the Coleman Clark balls, net posts, and tables. Becker, it was said, brought the famous English
86

Leyland rubber to the U.S., and during the War, when there wouldnt be much rubber for table
tennis, Becker came out with a Wembley ball that was used in several Nationals. But by 1946,
when these Intercities resumed in Detroit (with the popular Detroiter A table), Schnur was
almost 65 and P. Becker & Co. almost History.***
After N.Y.Pagliaro, Hazi, Milesopened with a 5-0
whitewash of Philadelphia, they met Boston. Since
Lowry won all 3, Chicago reporter William Fay,
recalling that Les had moved out of the
Windy City area to Boston six years
ago, lamented that if hed just
stayed in Hyde Park,
Chicago couldnt very
well miss taking the
intercity table
tennis title
away

Early 1940s Stars: (top to bottom) Garrett Nash, Bill Holzrichter, Tibor Hazi, Laszlo Bellak, and Lou Pagliaro

from New York. Maybe they will anyway? Sixteen-year-old Miles seemed shaky in losing first
games to Sam Babener and Bill Dwyer, relatively weak players. NopeDick won, so N.Y. won.
Then: N.Y. 5Indianapolis 2. Topics said McClure looked bad in losing earlier to
Chicagos Billy Holzrichter and Bob Anderson, but then he had straight game wins over
Pagliaro and Hazi.
Another loss for Pagliaro in N.Y.s decisive victory over St. Louis: Price beat him 13,
14 handily.
Against Detroit, Pagliaro opened by losing 9, 19 to Burns (who in the Detroit-St.
Louis tie had outsteadied Price, Hendry, and Levy), and, as Miles would lose all three (he
fell in straight games to V. Lee Webb, Nash and Burns), Hazi would have to come
throughand did. He beat Nash deuce in the 3rd, Burns 25-23 in the 2nd, and Webb
without a struggle. Which brought the tie to 4-4. Paggy then 8, 15 dominated Nash to give
N.Y. the win.
87

Shortly after Burns had beaten Pagliaro he was at the Chicago USO, where he was
introduced as The man who had just defeated the U.S. Champion. It was then that Chuck first
began to think of giving exhibitionsfor money of course. On approaching an agent he was
booked on the spot. With Nash he worked Frank Barbaros Bowery (where comedian Benny Rubin
also entertained). There were other Detroit engagements in the early 40sfor example, at Carl
Oglesbees Haymarket Club, and at the Michigan Sportsmens and Boat Show with Webb.
The final of these 41 Intercities pitted undefeated N.Y. against undefeated Chicago.
Surely Pagliaro was long over that bout of spinach-induced food poisoning that back in New
York had sent him to the hospital, so what was the matter with him? Granted Dan Kreer could
play somehed 18, -20, 21 won a close one from Webb, and had scored over Hendry.
Granted he off-court sold his teammate Holzrichter insurance, wholeast of all the Tribunes
covering reporter William Fay (T/MHS, 46)expected him to provide Chicago with the extra
protection of an unexpected win against Paggy? Who could believe hed run off the first 9
points against the National Champion, and, on winning that game at 11, that hed be at deuce
with him in the 2nd? Paggy 24-22 held Kreer off though, and afterwards was no longer
threatened. But then against Anderson, Hazi lost the 2nd at 19, and the 3rd from 19-all when
he missed two forehands. Advantage: Chicago.
Facing Miles, Holzrichter faltered, lost the 1st at deuce, but then with hard-hit drives
took the next two. However, Hazi, on giving up the 21-19 1st to Kreer, again prevailed when
he had to. After which, Pagliaro gave a determined but helpless Holzrichter his only loss of
the tournament.
N.Y. was leading 3-2, and Paggy figured to down Anderson in the 9th match, but N.Y.
had to get to the 9th match. Since Holzrichter would probably beat Hazi, that put pressure on
Miles, who had 5 losses already. How, people were wondering, with all that strong New
York City competition, had he earned 3rd place on the team? Anyway, it was pretty clear Dick
had to win at least one of his matches. When he had an easy time with Anderson, N.Y. was
looking goodwent up 4-2...then 4-3 when Holzrichter, as predicted, did beat Hazi. Now,
though, the New Yorkers had a train to catch. Dick didnt want to miss it. With the cockiness
of youth, he told his teammates to go get changed, pack their bags and his too. Paggy
wouldnt have to playDick would take care of Kreer, finish the tie. This, some critics felt,
smacked of unwanted arrogance. But he did beat Kreer, easily. Midwest observers were
surprised. Up until this weekend Miles had been an unknown teenager to them.
SELECTED NOTES.
*A short article in Topics mentions a table invention. Can it be what Dick
remembers? Its an automatic light-control switch which works like a juke box. Put your
money in and on go the lights. Time up and there is no squeezing in that last game for free
(Mar., 1942, 10).
** Reba Monness in one of her More or Less columns (TTT, Feb., 1945, 4) says that
Mac Lebow of the Riverside T.T. Courts at 9th Street and Broadway[had] mostly a
neighborhood clientele. Perhaps thats the Macs that Dick remembered?
***In his old age, however, Will Schnur was remembered. In 1961, USTTA Executive
Secretary Jimmy McClure presented an Honorary Life Membership to him, primarily for his
many contributions to the fledgling Associationsuch as financing the First American Zone
Qualifier for the 1933 World Championships, and underwriting the famous 1935 Barna/Glancz
Tour of the U.S. Schnur died Feb. 18, 1966 at the age of 85.
88

Chapter Eight
1941-42: Hazis Become U.S. Citizens Through a Private Bill Passed by Congress,
and Move to Washington D.C. 1942: Winter Tournaments/First Appearance of Thelma
Tybie Thall. 1942: Price, Tiny Moss Win Westerns. 1942: Pagliaro, Magda Hazi Take
Easterns. 1942: Pagliaro and Green Win Third Successive U.S. Open Singles.
At the Intercities, Hazi, in helping his New York team to the Championship with his
12-4 record, was the second choice of the Team Captains who voted to give the Outstanding
Player Award to Holzrichter (13-1). But Tibor (and Magda too) had already won a bigger
prize than any table tennis tournament could givean Outstanding Citizen Award, as it were.
The Feb., 1942 Topics reported that...Through the efforts of Dr. Harold Dudley, Secretary to
Hon. James J. Davis, Senator from Pennsylvania, a [private] bill was recently passed by
Congress admitting Tibor and Magda Gal Hazi as [U.S.] citizens (9). This bill (For the relief
of Tibor Hoffman and his wife Magda Hoffmanthe Hazis legal names) was formally
approved Nov. 21, 1941 and signed by President Roosevelt Nov. 26, 1941 (T/MHS, 61).
On Jan. 14, 1942, the Hazis met with a number of Senators and other officials in the
rotunda of the Capital, publicly affirmed their wish to be citizens, then, prior to an evening
organ recital in their honor at the Mormon Washington Chapel, were feted at the Shoreham
Hotel at a dinner attended by Senator Davis, Dr. Dudley, and USTTA and DCTTA officials,
among them USTTA Treasurer Morris Bassford,
The Hazis were helped in part because former USTTA President Carl Zeisberg
introduced them to Washington, D.C. table tennis official, Lt. Col. George Foster, who was
about to resign as Chair of the USTTA Law and Organization Committee, citing the pressure
of his work in the Assistant Secretary of Wars Office. At Fosters urging, the Hazis moved to
Washington, where Tibor became Manager of the Beryl English-owned Columbia Courts
(14th St. & Park Rd. NW), and promptly committed himself to running the Mar. 14-15
Easterns there, even putting down a new floor for the event.
Wasting no time, he and Magda began giving exhibitionsat high schools,
universities, a Boys Club, the National Press Cluball before well over 30,000 people in
just the first month after their arrival. When President Roosevelts (1941-45) Vice-President,
Henry Wallace, whod visited Hungary as a young man, and had always enjoyed playing table
tennis, found out that Hazi had moved to Washington, he asked him to come for a visit.
Dont stay for more than 15 minutes, Tibor was advised. But Hazi and Wallace hit it off so
well that Tibor stayed 2 and 1/2 hours.
Afterwards, Tibor saw Wallace two or three times a week, occasionally had dinner at
his home. (The Vice-Presidents wife washed dishes, he said. I was amazedI dried.)
Hazi and Wallace played tennis together, and, when Wallace even came to Tibors Columbia
Courts (Never asked for a favor, said Tibor), the hype was that the V.P. might play in the
Veterans at the Morris Bassford/Beryl Shapiro-run 1943 Easterns.
Winter Tournaments
The Jan. 29-31, 1942 Manhattan Championships, however, were strictly for Broadway
Courts New Yorkers. In the Womens, Edna Sheinhart beat Davida Hawthorn, then Bernice
Charney in the final. Pagliaro, not surprisingly, won the Mens. Miles, having taken out Pinner
in 5, was runner-up. I liked attackers, Freddie Borges, reminiscing, told me. Pinner was my
89

idol until Miles came along. Dick had a very unusual style. He wasnt a retriever, he didnt just
get the ball backit was very difficult to handle his heavy-spin chop. When he chopped, he
was still the aggressor, for those who normally attacked had so much trouble with his ball that
they began to push, and then Dick would come leaning in and begin hitting that precise
forehand.
Miles, on reflection, would echo Freddies thoughts. In the old Hardbat game, he said,
the public could perceive what was happening on court. They could understand that a players
stiff chop was helping to set up his follow-up forehand winners. In the new spinny sponge
game, the publics perception is that the players are making lots of mistakes. But really its
those players opponents who are responsible for the winners. Only, the exact ways in which
these winners come about are not perceived by many in the modern-day audience.
The 60-entry Jan.
17-18 Ohio State Open at
Akron saw 27-year-old
Leah Thall win every
event open to her. This
was the more noteworthy
because she broke her
glasses before the
tournament started and
had to keep borrowing
this or that pair from
others. In the Singles
Leah beat Toledo
teenager Barbara Cannon,
13 years her junior. In the
Womens Doubles she
paired with Gladys Pete
May to defeat Barbara
and her older sister June,
TTT, Feb., 1947, 8
fast-improving daughters
Cannon family: (left to right) June, Ed, Barbara, and Deal
of Ed Cannon who,
having retired momentarily from t.t. office, was about to come back as USTTA Tournament
Chair and Co-Editor of Topics. In the Mixed, completing her hat trick, Leah scored a 1st with
Billy Holzrichter over the newly married Nashes (Garretts wife?Formerly Marie Van
Loonsweet, soft-spoken deb of the Motor City).
Holzrichter won the Mensover Max Hersh. And also, paired with Bob Anderson,
the Doublesregistering his own hat trick with a 16, 13, -20, 21 victory over the obstinately
resistant Harry Sage/Sam Shannon duo. Toledo tavern-owner Don Feak was the Veterans
winnerover Hammonds Matt Fairlie, next seasons Indiana TTA President.
At the Jan. 3-4 St. Joe Valley Open in South Bend, Holzrichter took the Mens from
fellow Chicagoan Wilson DuMez, Jr., after Wilson had survived a 5-game struggle with Bob
Green. In the Womens, Leah Thall was unchallenged by runner-up Helen Morozo who in the
semis beat Mary Baumbach.
Baumbach might for this one last hometown tournament have been lured out of
retirement to please her former coach John Varga. But this was itshed marry Dick
90

Cornwall, a South Bend player and Notre Dame graduate, move to New Jersey, and would
seem to have given up table tennis competition forever.
Suddenly appearing on the scene, in a Feb. 8 Cincinnati tournamentthe Jewish
Center Midwest Closedwhich Im sure only Leah could have reported to Topics, was
Leahs younger, tennis-playing sister, 17-year-old Thelma Jane (Tybie) Thall. She was a
straight-A student and the first girl in the history of [Columbus, Ohios] East High to win a
varsity letter in the sport (TTT, Dec., 1946, 4). But, giving up the larger racquet for the
smaller one, and, though beaten by Leah 10, 12, in the Womens final here, she, too, in time,
being, like her sister, a determined practice partner and fierce opponent, would be destined for
greatness.
There were some exciting matches in the Jan. 24-25 Michigan Closed at Pontiac.
Chuck Burns, down 2-1, rallied to beat Nash in the Mens. But Garrett paired with Chuck,
and also with his wife Marie, to win both Doublesthe Mens over Hersh and Webb, 19 in
the 5th, and the Mixed over Gar Gomon/Margaret Koolery Wilson. Marge, up 2-0, held on
against Marie, to take the Womens in 5. The Dec. issue of Topics mentioned that Koolery had
been wearing a glittering ring (12), given her by John Twigg, Secretary/Treasurer of the
Michigan TTA, but that no date for the wedding had been set. Understandably sofor, as one
can see from these Closed-to-outsiders results, Marge
Koolery by January was Marge Wilson.
The Jan. 31-Feb. 1 Central Western States at Des
Moines was won by Ed Sirmai over Joe Camero. In the
Womens, Helen Baldwin got the better of Virginia Perkins
Merica, who later in the March Colorado Open would be
beaten by Wyoming-born, Kansas State Teachers College
at Emporia graduate Mrs. Dorothy Benson.
Baldwin, whod never had any coaching, would
accumulate just this season alone 24 trophies, bringing her
total tocount em...(there in her trophy case, on her
mantle, and among the books still remaining on her
shelves)...65 in all. Of course, when she deigned to play in
even such a soft tournament as the March Iowa Closed,
in which her final opponent at Waterloo scored 21
pointsthats a 3-game totalHelen couldnt help but
succeed Sally Green as Wilkinson Cup winner.
I must say, though, I wonder what Miss Baldwin
TTT, Mar., 1941, 10
thought come the end of next season when she read about
Helen Baldwin
Pvt. George Lymans suggestion in Topics...
...that the members of the USTTA start a metal drive, giving their trophies
collected over the years, to be turned into bullets to fight the Axis. He further
suggested that photographs could be taken of the prized possessions. The photo
would take up less room and will collect less dust and at the same time a great
contribution toward the all out war effort would be made (May, 1943, 16).
On Feb. 21-22, the first St. Louis County Closed, held in the suburb of Kirkwood, was
sponsored by Seascout Ships, including Tournament Chair Elmer Skipper Cinnaters own
91

Fairfax. In the Mens, Price outsteadied Levy, whod gotten to the final with a 19 in the 4th/
19 in the 5th win over Laszlo Laci Bellak, furloughed for the occasion. Mrs. Delores Kuenz
was the acknowledged Womens winner before she even stepped to the table with Mrs.
Virgina Dueker.
If you were looking over the St. Louis
audience for the once familiar face of Buddy
Blattner, eventual USTTA and Missouri Sports
Hall of Famer, you werent apt to see him. After
losing to Prices steady floating defense in a
local tournament two years ago, the ex-World
Doubles Champion, whod been encouraged to
enter his first tournament by Cinnater, wasnt
dreaming any more dreams about table tennis.
Hed already positioned himself with the
Cardinals organization as an infielder for the
Columbus, Ohio team in the American
Association and so was on his way to making a
living as a professional baseball player.* Of
course he would also soon be on his way to a 3
and 1/2-year hitch in the Navy (during which
hed give both table tennis and tennis
exhibitions all through the Marianas and
Honolulu with Bobby Riggs).
Price, Tiny Moss Win Westerns
Coming to the Feb. 14-15 Westerns was
a 17-player contingent from Coloradothe
women led by State Womens Champ Lois
Woodward and Denver City Womens
titleholder Mary McCall; the men by State and
recent Denver City Mens Champion Bob Best.
TTT, Oct., 1946, 3
Robert Bud Blattner:
Perhaps these out-of-state participants might
Big Leaguer in two sports
want to do some sightseeing while they were in
the Omaha area? There was the Union Pacific
Railroad Museum to see, the $15,000,000
bomber assembly plant at nearby Fort Cook, and of course Father Flanagans Boys Town. I
wonder: did Mickey Rooney ever come off a set and pay a visit there? Give a ping-pong
exhibition for the 200 boys on one of those three (slightly chipped?) tables in the Rec Hall?**
It might have been brash fun for everyone.
Topics was certainly upbeat about this Westerns, held at the spacious Omaha City
Auditorium. The magazine gushed that every match was played to a large audience and more
than five hundred persons previously unfamiliar with the game witnessed the thrilling finals,
becoming ardent enthusiasts (Apr., 1942, 9). In the Mens final, Bill Price prevailed in 5 over
Holzrichter and won the Doubles with Allan Levy. Tiny Moss beat Baldwin in 5but Helen
took solace in winning the Womens Doubles with Virginia Merica, the Mixed with
Holzrichter.
92

Pagliaro/Magda Hazi Win Easterns

March 14-15 was also the date of the delayed Eastern Championships which, if Hazi
hadnt moved to Washington, might not have been held. Opening play didnt start until
Saturday evening in order that Defense Workers might have an opportunity to attend.
Attend? I presume that meant play. Pagliaro had worked for the Brunswick Balke Collander
Company as an order clerk helping bowlers get the right size and weight ball. (Always an avid
bowler himself, even in his 80s he could still roll a 200+ game.) Now he was involved in
Defense work, putting together shipbuilding parts. Of course since hed been winning Feb.
Friday night tournaments at Lawrences, he scarcely needed a warm-up and so no problem
with him advancing.
But Miless early-round loss in the Mens was a big disappointment, for it suggested that,
though Dicks rise had been mercurial, hed not yet arrived. He was upset by Baltimores agile 300pound heavyweight, Gordon Barry, who never tired of pummeling cross-court forehands at Dick.
By far the best Mens match of the tournament was Hazis 21, -19, 19, -14, 14 semis
win over Eddie Pinner. Though Hazi couldnt contest the final with Pagliaro, he did pair with
Pinner for a straight-game Doubles win over Paggy and Miles.
The Womens final was very climacticcouldnt have been more sofor Hazi beat
Mae Clouther, 26-24 in the 5th. This match would be Magdas last in a major; she would end
her long career on a winning note. But no matter she was no longer competitive on court
she was what her husband wanted in a wife: the cosmopolitan woman who knows how to
maintain her poise both in the home and out in the world (T/MHS, 58). Tibor himself became
an accountant for the Charles H. Tompkins Co., builders, and continued managing his
Columbia Courts at night.***
Although Cy Sussman didnt enter the Easterns, he did play two weeks later at the
Mar. 28 Connecticut Open in Greenwich. This for him was a necessary tournament tune-up
(along with maybe listening to Woody Herman records) for the fast-approaching Detroit
Nationalsand he did o.k., reached the semis before losing to Pagliaro. Miles, meanwhile,
as at the Manhattan Championships, was Pinners undoing. But then, for Dick, Paggy
continued to be invincible. However, in the Doubles, Miles teamed with Abe Berenbaum
who, as weve seen, keeps revisiting the tournament sceneand the two of them chopped
down Pinner/Sussman. In the Womens, Edna Scheinhartthe only N.Y. woman whod go to
Detroitwas again unbeaten by either Davida Hawthorn or
Manhattans promising George Washington High School
teenager Bernice Charney.
Pagliaro/Green Make It Three in a Row at the Nationals
Play at the Apr. 10-12 Nationals was in the General
Motors Building Auditorium. Since Detroitwith its
Chrysler Tank Arsenal....new huge Ford bomber plant...[and]
Hudson Naval Arsenalwas being called the Arsenal of
Democracy (TTT, Mar., 1942, 3), could any player anywhere
have felt more patriotic, more proud to be an American than
he who went to the courts here? And just to let you know that
the Tournament Committee under Chairman George Abbott, a
well-known Detroit attorney, meant steely-eyed business,
Topics would issue a warning:
93

1942 U.S. Open Program cover

...Every organization like ours [USTTA] has a few members who can or will
not conduct themselves in ways befitting ladies and gentlemen, but try (and usually
succeed) in making fools of themselves. It is in the hope that some of these individuals
will be spared such ignominy that this editorial is written.
Each of us should realize that our hosts are making every effort to give us a
good time, both at the tournament and in our free hours. We should respect the
hospitality that is afforded us and do everything we can to cooperate with our hosts
and lighten their burden. The fellow who complains bitterly about having to wait for
his match and the girl who cannot understand why she is defaulted after showing up an
hour late for her match have no place at our Nationals. Neither have the rowdies who
believe it is funny to keep other hotel guests up all night by creating as much noise as
they can in the hallways during the wee small hours, or believe it is smart to duck out
without paying their hotel bill.... (Mar., 1942, 2).
Enough said?
At least until the USTTA Executive Committees high-noon-Sunday Open Meeting at
Detroit where the question of whether Negroes should be allowed to play in sanctioned
tournaments was brought to the floor. (Was there a black player in Detroit? The three
Chicagoans whod been questioned last year werent. Apparently a local tournament in
Detroit might be different from a National tournament in Detroit.) Such discrimination drew
Miless astonishment and fellow New Yorker Freddie Borgess outrage, expressed in his
public outcry of Whos the Fascist bastard that thought that up?
There were 90 entries in the Mens with play beginning Friday evening at 7 oclock
and, as no morning matches were scheduled, running to midnight. Absent were Sol Schiff, out
on Tour; Bernie Grimes, whod be leaving competitive play to eventually die young
(perhapsafter all the cigarettes hed lit up, of lung cancer?); and George Hendry who, after
traveling about with Cokey Clark and returning to Culver-Stockton, would soon go into
Service, be stationed in the Philippines, and never take racket in hand again until discharged.
Early round matches had to have kept the spectators entertained. St. Pauls Ed Litman,
losing games by the intimidating scores of 6 and 11, nevertheless managed to stop John Varga,
23-21 in the 5th. Izzy Bellis, now back playing out of Philadelphia, 19-in-the-5th barely
contained all the artists passion in Gus Rehberger, two of whose murals would hang this
summer in Chicagos Union Station. Chuck Burns, surprisingly, went 5 with 5-game
Preliminary winner, Joseph Elliff of Toledo. Clevelands Sam Shannon, soon to be the Ohio
TTA President, was extended into the 5th with Detroits Glenn Whitcroft. And Johnny Somael
had to go 5 with Minnesota Closed Champ Harry Lund, whod then win the Consolation prize
from Cincys James Ratliff.
Also quite watchable according to a local reporter were V. Lee Webbs 19-in-the-4th
capers against Chicagos Dan Cory who later, up 2-0, would lose the finals of the Boys, 19
in the 5th, to St. Louiss Mel Nichols. The most uncertain of the 16ths matches were
McClure over Chicagos Dick Morgan, Miles over Shannon, and Somael over Webb, all in 5.
And yet in the eighths Somael was leading the Defending Champion Pagliaro, 18-17 in the
5th...when, as John Kauderer told J.P. Allen of the N.Y. Sun, Johnny became self-conscious,
his heretofore sure hitting failed him, and he hit into the net and off the table, letting Louie
escape. Nevertheless, in just this one season, Johnny had moved from #40 in the USTTA
Rankings to #13.
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In another tension-filled eighths, Bellis, after losing the 2nd game at deuce to go
down 2-0 to Price, rallied and ended up winning deuce in the 5th. For Bills psyche this was a
wound, but not a fatal onehed move on. As he later told Tennis World reporter Axel
Kaufmann, he and Coleman Clark had been featured at Earl Carrolls Restaurant in Los
Angeles for a while, and, since hed liked California so much, he decided to go back there. He
became acquainted with a tennis crowd, and, though, before, hed never even thought
seriously about enjoying tennis, made a move that would change his lifehe joined the Los
Angeles Tennis Club.
Other matches in this eighths round were not so spectacular. Miles, on dropping the
1st game, had no trouble thereafter with furloughed Corporal Bellak. By this time Dick knew
how to play him, but woe to those who met even an aging Laci for the first time. Invariably it
was a unique not to say baffling experience. You never knew where the ball was going, Dick
saidin part because he really enjoyed clowning with you. On or off the court he had a great
sense of humor. Laci would affectionately tease Dick, playing on the fact that he was still a
Junior. Drinnnk, your meeelk, Dickie, he would say.
In the quarters, Bellis forced Pagliaro into the 5th, and Pinner rallied to down
Holzrichter in 5a very good result, for Billy would lay claim to winning 19 of the last 21
tournaments hed entered and so would be ranked U.S. #2 for the year.
In the semis, however, Eddie, on losing that 2nd game 27-25, succumbed 3-0 to last
seasons U.S. #20 Burns and his backhand-favoring, up-close table game. Paggy also took out
Lowry in straight games. And then, though Chuck had beaten him in the Intercities, Louie
zipped Burns in the final too. Chuck told me that Paggy had given him some sort of hook
forehand that hed never seen before and that it was very effective. After this third successive

1942 U.S. Open Mens final: Chuck Burns (left) vs. Lou Pagliaro
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win, the Champion

unexpectedly
announced his
retirement. But could
you believe him?
Especially when those
photos of him (and his
unseen partner, Davida
Hawthorn) in Life were
giving him more
recognition than ever.
Pinner and
Sussman, whod lost in
Greenwich to
Berenbaum and Miles,
looked a lot better here
in successfully
defending their Mens
Doubles title. The
teenagers toughest
competition was a 5game semis in which
they led 2-0 against
McClure and Bellak.
Runner-ups were
Pagliaro anda
surprise to me
Jacobson whod not
1942 U.S. Open Mens winner, Lou Pagliaro (right), and finalist Chuck Burns
played enough this
season to get a Ranking. Jimmy was about to call it quitseventually to become owner of the
very successful Pocket Books, Inc. But wanting to go out with a bang, he gave himself a going
away present in the form of Little Dynamite. They won a 5-gamer from Price/Levy in the
quarters, then came through with two big deuce-games against Hazi/Lowry in the semis, and -7,
-19, 19, -13 at least contested the final. Sixty years later, Paggy would tell me, I could have been
a good doubles playerI could run everywhere.
In the Veterans (35 and Over), which saw long-absent, pioneer N.Y. player Chet Wells
entered, Marlin Tucker, on 23-21-in-the-5th avoiding elimination in the quarters by fellow Chicagoan
George Ochs, went on to take the titleover 1940 Champ Bill Gunn.
I counted 40 players in the Womensbut how many matches could most of them
play? Perhaps the Tournament Committee felt guilty about not having a Womens
Consolationthey charged the Men a $5 entry fee, the Women only $3. Maybe with the
lower fee they meant to encourage the Women not so much to play but to attend, mix.
To reach the quarters, two East players defeated two West players: Edna Sheinhart,
up 2-0, just got by U.S. # 11 LaVera Weber, deuce in the 5th; and Carolyn Wilson, whod
jump in the Rankings this season from U.S. #22 to U.S. # 8, rallied to beat Leah Thall, 16, 18, 20, -18, 13. Wilson then lost a tough 5-gamer to Pete May. Clouther reached the final
96

with shutout victories over Sheinhart and May. Sally Green, meanwhile, really had to keep
her fingers crossed, for, had she been unluckynets and edges do happen at awkward
timesher 17, 20, -17, 23 win in the quarters over Tiny Moss might well have been a loss.
Thereafter, in straight-game taking out Baldwin, then Clouther, she matched Pagliaro in
winning a third successive Singles Championship.
In Womens Doubles, Green/Thall, after being -18, 20, 13, 19 tested by Moss/
Janowiec, advanced to the final. But they couldnt take the titlewere 19, 21, 20 repeatedly
thwarted by Clouther and her partner Shahian, unranked last season, Top 10 this one.
The Mixed holdersBellak and Monnesscouldnt defend. Reba was sickhad
missed defending her Metro title too. Holzrichter/Thall, down 2-0, came back to win the
Championship, deuce in the 5th, over Lowry/Clouther.
Late April would find 24-year-old Schiff and his New York partner Cal Skinner (#12
in this seasons Metro TTA rankings) giving Exhibitions while traveling with one of the four

Photo by Southeast Air Corps Training Center

Hoosier entertainer Herb Shriner MCing a Sol Schiff show.

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units of the Camel Caravan Tour. This Tour offered free entertainment for servicemen at
Army camps, Naval stations, and Marine bases (admittance only to men in uniform). At
Camp Pendelton, Virginia, for example, according to the Apr. 25, 1942 G.I. Gazette, while
pretty young women passed out free smokes and Sol and Cal did their thing to constant
applause, and a singer and a girl magician entertained as well, the hit of the evening was a
young chap named Herb Shriner, the master-of-ceremonies. His barrage of witty remarks,
made funnier by his Hoosier drawl, kept the soldiers laughing throughout the review. Sol
tells me that it was he who gave the harmonica-playing/quipster his first break, bringing him
in as a substitute commentator for his Exhibitions when Pinky Tomlin got sick.
Sometimes the Camel troupe gave stage shows for the general public. One was at the
Erie, Pennsylvanias Columbia Theaterto benefit the Erie Times and its Keep Em Smoking
Fund. The idea behind the grand show for this worthy cause was to send out as many
cigarettes as possible to Eries men in the Service.
Quickly now the Sport would lose a number of its top players. Miles was still too
young to be draftedbesides, hed have a heart murmur that would keep him out of the
Service. But McClure joined the Navy in May, and some other top players serving, or about to
serve, were Anderson, Holzrichter, Lowry, Nash, Somael, Irving Whitey Sheraga, Ralph
Muchow, Minnesotas Ed Sirmai, Oregons Don Vaughan, N. J.s Bill Cross, Chicagos
Wilson DuMez who was in Flight Preparatory School, Massachusetts Frank Dwelly,
Indianas Jimmy Shrout whod become a bomber pilot, Wisconsins best, Duane Maule,
Toledos W.A.A.C. Gladys Pete May, and, forget about Doubles Championships for a while,
Sussman, and his pal Pinner who, in the winter of 1942-43, would be an aviation cadet
listening to Glenn Miller records while stationed at Atlantic City, and of course unaware as
yet of what awaited him in the Pacific.
SELECTED NOTES.
* By 1942, Blattner had moved on to Sacramento, where he batted in 95 runs for an
average of .295, stole 25 bases, and smashed out 17 homers. Then hed signed with Branch
Rickey as a rookie second baseman for the Cardinals. After that, he was with the Giants and
the Phils. When Buddys playing days were overtheyd started back at Beaumont High
where hed played not only baseball but basketball and tennishe teamed with Dizzy Dean to
broadcast the St. Louis Browns games and institute the TV Game of the Week. In 1953,
when the Browns left St. Louis, he moved to basketball, became the voice of the St. Louis
Hawks. Then he was hired by Gene Autry to be a sportscaster for the Angels, and nine years
later went to the Kansas City Royals. For this and other background on Blattner, read: TTT,
Mar., 1942, 12; TTT, Oct., 1946, 3; 14 (articles by Editor Mel Evans, Jr. and Blattner, in
which Bud extols all the virtuesphysical, mental, and socialof playing table tennis); TTT,
Oct., 1963, 14; and USA Today, Aug. 3, 1996. After being welcomed into the USTTA Hall of
Fame in 1979, Blattner was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1980.
**Theres a write-up of a Boys Town tournament, with a photo of not Spencer Tracy
but Father Flannagan, in TTT, March, 1940, 7.
***See the rather lengthy Rod Thomas Profile article on Tibor in the Mar. 26, 1954
Washington, D.C. Evening Star (T/MHS, 100).

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Chapter Nine
1942: USTTA Begins to Feel Impact of the War: Changes in Leadership,
Membership. 1942-43: Season Slow to Start, Shows Drop in Tournaments. 1943: USTTA
Institutes Junior (Under 18) Play. 1943: Holzrichter/Green Win Westerns; Hazi/Clouther
Take Easterns. 1943: U.S. Open-Clustered Tournaments. 1943: Vargas Debt to Hungarian
Coaches.
As the blind poet said, They also serve who only stand and wait. The single Slate of
USTTA officers submitted for the 1942-43 season met with no resistance, and so Vic Rupp,
though hed never been an ardent player, was re-elected President, and Thomas Bob
Berna would continue as Executive Secretary in charge of the Philadelphia Headquarters, and
presumably, too, as Tournament Chair and co-Editor of Topics with Rupp. Staying on as well
would be Larry Minneker as First Vice-President, Carl Nidy as Second Vice-President, and
Morris Bassford as Treasurer. One of Bassfords non-table tennis activities was being an air
raid warden, so perhaps it was he who introduced the Thought in Topics (Nov., 1942, 8)
that there ought to be a table tennis table in everyones basementnot only for recreation, but
for protection. The construction of the table tennis table is such that it has the strength of
steel. While the table will not stop a bomb, it will give you protection against falling debris if
you are under it. (Would Barna giving Exhibitions in London bomb shelters take extra
comfort in such a thought?)
Coming in to replace the former First Vice-President Jerrold Woodruff was E. Everett
(Ed) Kuhns (while Dougall Kittermaster took over Kuhnss job as Illinois TTA President).
And taking the place of C. Bronson Allen as Recording Secretary was Bob Wood, past President of
the Nebraska TTA. So, all in all, not much of an Executive Committee change, eh?
Except that no sooner had the season started than both Rupp and Berna
simultaneously resigned. Which, as Ed Cannon put it, was almost enough at first glance to
cause the U.S. T.T.A. to close shop for the duration. Rupp found his increased
responsibilities as an official of a large manufacturing plant, now working entirely on
important war orders, rather all-consumingthe more so Im sure when he learned that his
right-hand man Berna was entering the Army Oct. 7.
Elevated to the Presidency then was Minneker. In addition to being Membership Chair,
he would co-edit Topics with his friend and fellow Toledoan Ed
Cannon, whom he also appointed Tournament Chair, and who
became, as the other V-Ps moved up, the Third Vice-President. John
Kauderer then took Bernas place as Executive Secretary. By midseason there were more changes. Wood went into the Service, and the
position of Recording Secretary remained vacant until at seasons end
when Kauderer assumed that office, and the position of Executive
Secretary was momentarily left vacant.
Minneker, according to Cannon, had gotten into table tennis
back in 1936 when, in charge of operations for the Ohio Department
of Bank Liquidation that held a mortgage on the Toledo Athletic
1949 U.S. Open Program
Center, hed added an Industrial Table Tennis League to the Athletic
John G. Kauderer
Center activities, and, though hed never swung a paddle up to that
time and had no particular interest in the game,...he ended up as Secretary of the League.
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Now, half a dozen years later, as USTTA President, he had the heavy responsibility of moving
the Association Headquarters to...his Superior Street home.*
Aside from the scarcity of equipment[t.t.] manufacturing companies are accepting
orders under the delivery not guaranteed conditionone of the two major Association
casualties of the changing times was of course the Membership, which had been drastically
reduced. In Nov., 1942 it had fallen to 1740, a loss of roughly 1000 regular members in the
last two years. By Jan., 1943 (It almost pains us to report the condition of the membership,
says Topics), it was down to 1320. Given the considerable reduction in revenue, the other
major casualty was the official 8 x 5 USTTA magazine, which would lose much of its
readability. Though it was still part of the membership package and sold to the chance
outsider for $.15 a copy, it was reduced to half its former 24-pages.
New USTTA members were desperately needed. A Topics editorial says with
unconscious irony that there are thousands of boys and girls in the high schools who will not
be ready for war for a few years to come [sic], but are ready for table tennis NOW. So, o.k.,
again the all-too-familiar questions are raised: Whos going to get these teenagers to play the
game seriously? Whos going to get our Membership up to where it should beto at least
10,000 members?
Apparently not Cory Snow, Inc. out of Boston. Theyd advertised in Topics for three
issues just before the Nationals, then gave it up. Their pitch? Wanted: A sporting goods
account with a sales probleman organization who really needs help in solving a sales,
service or advertising problem. Such an organization trying futilely to sell itself and needing
help was of course the amateur-minded USTTA itself.
1942-43 Season Slow to Start
The Illinois TTA did run a Membership Openand consequently it led all other
USTTA affiliates for the month of October with 36 new or renewed memberships, while, as of
Nov. 1, in total memberships it had 132, second overall only to Ohios 151.
This October, Holzrichter enlisted in the Naval Reserve and went, like Jimmy McClure
before him, to the Great Lakes, Illinois Naval Training Station. Still conveniently able to play
in a number of tournaments, though not of course weekly as hed heretofore done, he lost the
Dec. 13 Chicago District Closed to the visiting Harry Cook. Harry was in the area on Tour
with Doug Cartland, and the two were permitted to play in this Closed only by joining the
Illinois TTA. Billy, up 2-1, had a lead in the 4th, but became a little overconfident and was
missing the corners, and so perhaps lost patience. Topics said Cook did not hit a ball
throughout the match and that his defense was marvelous (Feb., 1943, 8). Although Cook
had to go 4 to down Bob Anderson, Holzrichter in his semis was able to blank a tournamentsoft Cartland.
As of Jan. 1, Minnesota, under President Helen Grant, was tied with Indiana for 5th
among affiliates with 73 members. At the Dec. 5-6 10,000 Lakes Closed, held in the
Minneapolis Y, Dave Krawetz won the Mens over Ed Litman, and Tiny Moss the Womens
over Grace Janowiec.
At the 4th annual Colorado Closed, held Dec. 12-13, Bob Best (with the help of Jim
Cress and Sue Tornow) again accomplished the triple-trophy hat trick. In the Singles final he
beat Private Phil Hurst. In the Womens, Leslie Friedman 8, 14, -23, -22, 19 barely escaping a
never-say-die Tornow, won over McCall whod defeated Woodward whod defeated Kerns. I
cant help but think much of Denvers success has to be attributed to the relatively deep
100

strength of the women players, and the fact that there are matches for them not only in Singles
but in both Mixed and Womens Doubles. Always nice to have both a competitive and a social
mix.
Second Half of Season Shows Drop in Tournaments
Like the Kansas City, Kansas TTA, the Toledo TTA lost their Club site. Due to
rationing and travel restriction, players had to abandon the Heather Downs Country Club for
the more centrally located Walter Weller Post of the American Legion. An Open House
tournament for about 80 players was held there on Jan. 14, and a Thursday-night 12-team All
City League was forming. Also, a Handicap League meant to appeal to high school and
basement players was scheduled to get under way at the
local Y.
A special 20-entry Womens event for the WAACs
(later WACs) was held at the Feb. 20-21 Central Western
States Open in Des Moines, site of the WAACs Officers
Cadet School, where in April Ohios Gladys Pete May
would be commissioned a Second Lieutenant. Play
without Miss Maywas held in the beautiful Shrine
Temple Building, and the entire proceedswhich might
have been considerable since the Des Moines TTA was 3rd
behind Ohio and Illinois in USTTA membershipswere
given to the Infantile Paralysis Fund. John Tatom won
every event he entered, as did Helen Baldwin, though in her
final against Virginia Merica she had to go 5, yet swept the
three games she won by scores of 5, 8, and 10.
Bill Holzrichter, 1943
Western Open winner

TTT, May, 1942, 20

Holzrichter
Gladys Pete May
Wins
Westerns
Participants at the Feb. 6-7 Western
Open were greeted with a heavy blizzard
and the temperature dropping to 5 above.
Matches were held in the gym of Toledos
Walter Weller Post of the American Legion,
and winners were awarded War bonds and
stamps.
One of those winners was Holzrichter,
U.S. Navy, now streamlined (Billy would
later, on regaining his normal 200-pounds
playing weight, say he always regretted
someone not forcing him to take off, and
keep off, 25 pounds). In his matches from the
16ths through the final, Holzrichters
opponents found only slim pickingsearned,
respectively, a 3-game total of 30, 35, 39, 37,
and only 41 points by runner-up Allan Levy.

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Also, before stopping Chuck Burns, Lee Webb had first to down Marv Nichols in 5,
after Marv had eliminated Clevelands Sanford Gross. Sandy was about to go into the Service
and, as his friend Sam Shannon would tell us, after Sandy had endured 130 consecutive days
in the Italian Campaign and won a Silver Star for gallantry in action, he received a
medical discharge that enabled him to return home and resume tournament play.
USTTA Institutes Junior (Under 18) Play At Westerns
Teenagers were the recipients of a new USTTA event, played in the Westerns for the
first time, and thereafter in all the Nationals to comethe Under 18 Juniors. However, this
new event would soon have to undergo modification because for the moment there was no
separate Boys Under 15 eventthat had been subsumed into the broader Under 18s.
Earlier, the Wisconsin TTA, to stimulate interest in high school play, had, on its own,
introduced a 16-20 age division into some of its tournaments, so the idea was not new. Many
local coaches felt that youth needed to gain experience by competing against their peers
before being thrust into seasoned competition. However, it was a view, one later subject to
change, expressed by John Varga in the Jan., 1943 Topics (4) that allowed the Junior-event
idea to catch hold.
John said he wanted to raise the Under 15 Boys Singles to include those 17 years
and under. But, he added, once a boy won that event at the U.S. Open, he could not,
regardless of his age, play in any Boys U-17 again. And if he were a runner-up in that Open
event, or a winner of the Easterns or Westerns U-17, the only Boys Under 17 he could play
in again, regardless of his age, was the U.S. Open one.
Johns reasoning was twofold. One, this extended age limit would give the youngsters
more play, give them a better chance to ripen into outstanding men players (traditionally up
to this time, and especially in the 1930s, it wasnt entry-fee practical or perhaps even seemly
for youth to play in both the Boys and the Mens). And, two, it would cause less players to
fall out of the game at an early age (why? because boy wonders wouldnt be able to
dominate the Championship for years, and thus other juniors would be given hope that they
too could be a U.S. Champion).
The more sensible modificationthat both a Boys U-15 and a Junior U-18 event be
incorporated into major tournamentswas soon adopted, beginning with the 1944 U.S.
Open. And by then Charles Dorseys Jan., 1943 statementthat up in John Vargas South
Bend, we Hoosiers are breeding champions of the eight and nine-year-old variety (9)will,
with the arrival of Gordon Barclay, be taken quite seriously.
Green Womens Winner at Westerns
Neither at the Westerns nor at the Nationalsnot until 1949was there an Under
18 Junior Miss. Girls not of course that there were very many of themwould have to be
content playing in the Womens.
The Westerns Womens winner was Sally Green who staged a down 2-0 and down 82 in the 3rd comeback to defeat Leah Thall. At that critical juncture when all seemed straightgame lost, Sally smacked in a cross-court forehandand seemingly with just that one shot
turned the match around.
Hazi/Clouther Take Easterns
Balmy skies for the Morris Bassford/Beryl English-run Easterns at the Washington,
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D.C. Columbia Courts. The Topics write-up said that Hazi, on his way to winning this
tournament over Schiff in the semis and Defending Champion Pagliaro in the final, sailed
through Cy Sussman in the quarters. But this was hardly trueSussman was Hazis most
difficult opponent. Talk was that Tibor usually had time to very effectively change his grip
during play (two fingers drop from the forehand side of the blade, steadying thumb comes up
as he switches to backhand attack), but here, suddenly, he seemed to lose his grip altogether.
With games 1-1, Tibors leading in the 3rd 20-11only to lose 9 in a row before finally
prevailing 23-21. In the 4th, Tibors up 20-12only to lose 6 in a row before getting match
point.
In Mens Doubles, Schiff/Somael, after playing a 16, -21, -20, 20, 17 semis stunner
with Hazi/Schmidt, defeated Pagliaro/Miles who, despite knowing one anothers moves so
well, didnt seem really to be gelling that well together. Sol was on leave for this tournament,
for on January 13, hed enlisted in the Army. According to Ben Dattels son, Barry, Ben was
entering the Service with Sol, and because Sol said, Ben, join mecome on over in my
enlistment line, Ben was spared being sent to where those in the line he had been in were
sent...all to Italy, all to die.
Topics omitted the Easterns Veterans winner, but it was likely Don Feak, who with
Cannon repeated their Westerns Veterans Doubles winan unusual instance of players
holding both Eastern and Western titles in the same season.
Mae Clouther took the Womens, it would seem without once toweling, for neither
Edna Sheinhart nor Peggy McLean in the final had a chance against her. Peggy, though, had
satisfying winsover Barbara Cannon, then Davida Hawthorn in 5 in the semis, after Davida
had upset #3 seed Carolyn Wilson, 18, 19, 23.
The Washington, D.C. TTA President John L. Meininger, whod be re-elected in May,
then appointed to the USTTA Executive Committee, shared with Feb. Topics readers a letter
hed recently received from a self-described four-year duffer who had this to say:
...Table tennis should become an almost universal game, sport and exercise. I
have mentioned its value to the eyes in my case (and there is a good scientific
foundation for this), but of course it has the advantages of making the mind alert and
exercising practically every part of the body without over straining. It is also a fairly
cheap pastime. It can be played by all ages and by both sexes. It is a good family game
and party game. It can be played any time of the year and during any kind of weather.
Furthermore, one gets the kick of meeting his opponent face-to-face in always
continuous competition. One does not have to wait long for his time at bat, as a ball
player, and the shots or strokes are more varied than in tennis. Its a good all-around
game, sport and exercise and it should have a big future (6).

Yes, to this duffer, table tennis is obviously a pastimemuch more of a game than a
sport. But why is this encomiumreally to recreational ping-pongprinted in a magazine
thats cramped for spaceor would be, should be, if it had readability? Meininger and
USTTA President/Editor Minniker are seeking to convince Topics readers (themselves?)...of
what...why?

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U.S. Open-Clustered Tournaments

How strange that all year, except for the Rhode Island TTA (in the first half of the
season) and the Washington D.C. TTA (in the second half), theres no mention in Topics of
any affiliate in the East holding so much as a single tournament. From Massachusetts,
Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania we hear nothing. Does this mean that
the largely Midwest-centered USATT officials have a serious communications problem with,
dont care to seek out, any potential Eastern-state tournament organizer?
And yet the New York Metro TTA will award a season-ending ranking to its men
players (none to any women players). The Top 10 were, in the following order, Pagliaro,
Schiff, Miles, Pinner, Somael, Cartland, Arnold Fetbrod, Schmidt, Borges, and Silbert.
The 10 Topics-reported tournaments, 4 of them State Closeds, that define the rest of
the season are clustered within 4-6 weeks of the U.S. Open.
Hal Philan, already in the Army but able to play in the Mar. 12-13 Portland Pacific
Coast Open, won the Mens in 4 over Victoria, British Columbias Wilmont Browne-Cave, the
#2 player in Western Canada. In light of Mayo Rae Rolphs retirement (at 22 shed married
Roger Barrett, a fellow student at Linfield College and a Baptist ministers son), the Womens
winner was Barbara McKayover fellow Victorian Ruth Payne after Ruth had defeated
Portlands 1943 City-Champion-to-be, Jeanne Robinson. Philan, having recently developed a
driving game to accompany his formidable defense, took both Doubles. In the Mens he
partnered Howard Wease, who, later, when Hals Service duties prevented him from
defending his title, would be runner-up in the 1943 Portland City Championship to Isaac Ike
Benveniste (then 1st V.P.in the Oregon TTA under President Jack McLarty). Philan also won
the Mixed, persevering 21, 19, -21, 18, 13 with Robinson over Browne-Cave/Payne.
Two months afterwards, apparently because he was stationed in the area, Philan was
able to compete in and win the May 8-9 Colorado Open at Charles Coxs Denver Club,
downing the visiting Columbus, Ohio Club Manager Bob Green in the final. In the Womens,
Leslie Friedman stopped Rita Kerns in 4. Because the Denver TTA was putting on more
tournaments than any affiliate in the country, local champion Bob Best would be able to get a
National Rankingnot the best but the worst: U.S. #34. Still, thats a Pikes Peak height for
men in his part of the country.
This season the Michigan TTA had been having a difficult time finding a playing site,
so obviously the 18-table downtown Detroit Club that was opened in late 1940 with such
fanfare by Mayor Jeffries wasnt in these times (or in any time?) sustainable. Still, the Apr. 3-4
Michigan Closed was held at Detroits Fairview Gardens, and in the Mens final Defending
Champion Chuck Burns avenged his loss in the Westerns to V. Lee Webb by trouncing him
10, 13, 5this after 8, 12, 10 destroying Max Hersh in the semis. (Good wins for Chuck,
huh? Webb would be U.S. #8 this season, Hersh U.S. #9.) Marge Koolery Wilson, also
successfully defended her Womens title by defeating Jean Smith, and won the Mixed with
Hersh. In the Mens Doubles, Max teamed with the fraught-and-fun-lined Webb to tickle and
tingle the crowd with what was likely the best match of the tournamenta 19-in-the-5th win
over Burns/Glenn Whitcroft.
At the Apr. 11-12 Toledo Closed, Defending and 5-time Champion Gus Louris was
badly beaten in the final by former Champion Pat Gillen. Norma Landwehr, playing the finest
in her career, retired the Toledo Athletic Centers Three Year Trophy by winning key 19
games against runner-up Barbara Cannon.
The Feb. 27-28 St. Joe Valley Open was a smashing success for John Varga since he
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not only ran this South Bend Y tournament, but won itover Hershey Miller. The Womens
round-robin trophy winners were Barbara Cannon with a 6-0 record, and sister June who was
5-1 second best. The Cannons also won the Womens Doubles over Helene Morozo and, after
almost three years...a suddenly reappearing Betty Henry. Perhaps Varga appealed to Betty to
play, for coach and pupil were reunited in the Mixed, where they lost in the final to Miller/
Morozo. Would Henry disappear...reappear again?
Such certainly seemed to be the case with Ruth Aarons. Ruth really wont make it as
an actress or a singernor as a songwriter, though Sandor Glancz would later tell Topics that
Guy Lombardo is preparing to plug one of her hits [sic] on the airwaves. She makes a game
try, however, and, as always, she has help from the show-biz media. Heres James R.
Treverton, writing for the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, May 11, 1943:
Versatility plusdescribes the charming and talented Ruth Hughes Aarons,
five times world table tennis champion [sic] who is amazing the upper strata of caf
society at the sedate Cotillion Room of Hotel Pierre, one of the top night spots of
Manhattan. In less than one-half hour, twice nightly, she first appears in white shortsto
bring down the house with her lighning-like playing in two table tennis exhibitions, and
then leaves the room for a few minutes to return in a dazzling evening gown to sing
with a rich soprano voice which the audience receives as enthusiastically as the
brilliant celluloid-ball-swatting of a few minutes before.**

St. Louis Globe-Democrat, May 11, 1943

Ruth Aarons performing in the Cotillion Room at N.Y.s Hotel Pierre

105

Vargas Debt to Hungarian Coaches

Vargas coaching success in the mid-1940s with McColley, Les and
Richard Leviton, Bill Early, and Gordon Barclay began to make his name
legendary. Those last three players, as well see, will be National Championsand
since right now, under Johns authoritarian tutelage, theyre practicing diligently at
the South Bend Y, we might make a calculated guess as to what this expatriate
contemporary of Barna and Bellak expects of them. Key to such an understanding
comes from some points made by the much-beloved Hungarian World Champions
Team Captain, Andor Wilcsek, in a series of mid-1930s articles in Topics about
young players (like Varga) whod learned the game in Budapest.
Each enthusiastic youngster, Wilcsek says, should have regular practice
Hungarian
play...several hours serious play almost every day. He (she) should practice with
Team Capt.
opponents of various styles, not minding if there are among them some players a
Andor Wilcsek
few shades weaker than he is. A player is properly coached only if [in practice]
he does not care for points made or missed, but strives to eliminate his faults. He
can be helped by practicing with those weaker than he if he can force his practice partner into a
style of play he [the stronger player] needs to play against to complete his game.
In addition to these elements of coaching technique, Varga may also have brought to
South Bend Wilcseks point of view that Hungarian players are always modest, and that,
most importantly, they have a strongly defined, traditional relationship with their very seriousminded coach. Consider as relevant, too, these comments by Wilcsek:
Players and leaders leave no stone unturned to reach big results. The
fanaticism of players is shown in their diligent training, fighting ability in competition
and very sporting mood of life before great tournaments. Moreover, their respect and
obedience toward their leaders is notable. The fanaticism of leaders unfolds itself in
material sacrifices in labor and maintaining full harmony with the players.
One never sees a Hungarian player gainsay the referee, even if his decision hurts
the players most important match. A Hungarian competitor has no desire to question
anything in connection with a tournament, but duly follows his leaders instruction.***
Certainly Vargas proteges, many of whom were not yet in their teens when he
passionately began to coach them, were not expected to question his paternal-like
authority. However, not all Hungarians agree on everything. Victor Barna advised:
Dont take up table tennis too young.Fourteen is quite young enough.
The reason is simple. A child of ten has not the height, and plays his shots from quite a
different angle and with quite a different style. When he attains about his full height the
angle is different and he finds it next to impossible to change his style.
Also, he warns that, Perhaps, too, if you start to play at a very early age, by the time
you are a teenager you may have lost some of your interest or enthusiasm, and today, of
course, there many other outlets for your energy.****
Im sure not only Varga but other coaches, excellent ones, believe in starting their
pupils years before their teens. But its as if Barna knew what he was talking about, for Vargas
youthful champions, for whatever reason, will never progress to be really strong adult players.
106

SELECTED NOTES.
*For information on these USTTA officials I draw on two issues of TTT: May, 1942,
12-13, 20 and Oct., 1942, 4, 7, 9. Few USTTA members knew how bad a shape the
Association was in. Future USTTA President Carl Nidys May 25, 1945 letter to his E.C.,
Board of Governors & Committee Chairmen would explain:
As we became involved in World War #2, our membership dropped to the
extent that at the time we actually became involved in war, we were no longer able to
maintain [the Philadelphia headquarters office].A good source of our revenue was
received from the sale of seals for equipment and the manufacturers of such equipment
were restricted in sale to the Armed Forces, Red Cross, etc. Our revenue dropped to
the point where it was necessary that the USTTA borrow money from its affiliates in
order that we might close up the Philadelphia office in good shape.
Larry Minneker took over as President at a time when we were without funds
and personally guaranteed the USTTA that the organization would not go into the red
during his administration. By furnishing much of the equipment, help, etc., Larry
ended up his two year administration with a satisfactory organization and $2000.00 in
the bank for the USTTA.
**Richard Bergmann, in his Twenty-One Up, says Aarons crooned with Frank Sinatra
on the stage and for good measure played table tennis against him, all in the same
programme (59). But theres no mention of this in Ruths huge scrapbook, and where
Bergmann got this information he doesnt say.
***For these and other comments by Wilcsek, see his series of articles in TTT, Oct.,
1935, 5; Nov., 1935, 3; and Feb., 1936, 3. With regard to Wilcseks comment that One never
sees a Hungarian player gainsay the referee, its amusing to read in Laszlo Bellaks Table
Tennis: How A New Sport Was Born (1990) Lacis account of how his Hungarian friend and
Doubles partner Sandor Glancz got a mite upset during their semis match at the 1928
Stockholm Worlds:
...The referee called a return by Glancz out. Glancz was outraged over the
call and began arguing with the referee. This went on for some time, and, in order to
pacify Glancz, I said, Let the point go; we have a big lead and are going to win
anyway. Instead of becoming calm, Glancz got angry with me, saying, You, too, are
against me, and walked away from the table.
...We were playing in a circus [that is, a ringed-in venue] and when Glancz left,
our captain and the trainer were running after him....[But as he was a tall man and
took long strides] I knew they would never catch him. They looked like horses
galloping around the ring. The spectators caught the comic atmosphere and were
enjoying the sight. Finally, the referee had enough, and, when Glancz stubbornly
refused to return to complete the game, he defaulted us (31).
**** Barna himself started playing table tennis at 13. See either his Table Tennis
Today (London, 1962, 19; 22-23) or Your Book of Table Tennis (London, 1971, 16-17) where
he takes up this question of when a child had best begin to play.
107

Play at the 1943 St. Louis U.S. Open

Chapter Ten
1943: Holzrichter/Green Win Nationals
And speaking of agreements and disagreements, Elmer Cinnater was feeling a lot
better. This time his bid for the Nationals had been accepted, and play would be held at the
St. Louis University Gymnasium Mar. 26-28. All players were requested to send glossy
photos of themselves in action and to list on the back of them local rank, national rank, if
any, and any titles...[theyd] held or now hold. Of course, aside from the occasional top
player, or the most exhibitionistic (the cover of the Open Program showed the tournamentinactive Sandor Glancz leaping table-top high)only the most innocent would comply.
The Topics write-up of some of the Nations greatest athletes and finest citizens was
upbeat:
...From coast to coast, north and south, to the middlewest came some 146
players and several hundred table tennis enthusiasts....They came by train, bus, auto
shhh! and maybe a little thumbing, to be met not by a brass band but by the 1943
National Tournament Committee headed by [Tournament Chair] Elmer Cinnater and
[St. Louis TTA President] Tommy Gibbons, who made everyone feel as welcome as
an old-fashion juicy tenderloin steak (Apr., 1943, 6).
As for the venue: Six tables are spaced across the length of the gym floor, wrote
covering reporter Harold Flachsbart, under a battery of numerous strong lights, and each
table has its own referee, perched in a high vantage point. Officials keep the fans informed
over the public address system as to what is transpiring at each table.
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In the 55-entry Mens (sans Defending Champ Pagliaro who

couldnt be spared from his job at a National Defense plant), all 8 seeds
advanced to the quarters. The top half of the Draw, though, had little
drama. Holzrichter (seeded #1) hadnt the least problem with Price (#6)
who because of so little play wouldnt be earning a ranking this season.
Price would go into the Service, but, strangely, his name wouldnt be on
the USTTAs published Honor Roll until fellow St. Louisan Marv Nichols
wrote a letter to Topics urging that Bill, whod like to hear from his old
friends, be remembered and his name honored. Editor Wes Bishop
poetically agreed:
TTT, Nov., 1940, 6

...Bill with the flying blond hair, returning seemingly ungettable

Wes Bishop
shots with that superb defense. Bill always under the spotlight in
the finals. The din and cheers still ring in those bunting-clad ballrooms for us and
always will. No one in table tennis will ever think of St. Louis without thinking, too, of
modest Bill Price.
Bill, wherever you go, you know your table tennis friends will be with you.
Hoping youre playing whenever you can and hoping this war will be over so well
again have the pleasure of seeing you again and seeing you play again. Your excellent
sportsmanship has inspired many an aspiring player...players better for knowing you
and who have profited by your patient coaching. Its with great pleasure that we add
your name on the Honor Roll (Dec., 1943, 4).
In the companion
quarters, S/Sgt. Bellak
stopped Les Lowry just in
time, else Laci might not have
been around to lose to
Holzrichter in straight games
in the semis. Back in the 1st
round, Laci had disposed of
John McCloskey of St. Louis,
the Consolation winner over
Hal Green whose daughter
Alice, as yet unborn, would be
a multi-time U.S. World Team
member.
There was much more
action in the bottom half of the
Drawespecially the Hazi
(#2) vs. Levy (#7) section.
Young McColley -19, 20, 15,
15 gave Tibor some have-tokeep-cool moments, and Levy,
though down 2-1, maintained
his poise in getting by Johnny

TTT, May 1946, cover

The stylish
Bill Price

109

Tatom 19 in the 5th. More fun for the spectators eyeing the 6-table play, be they in box seats
fronting the bleachers or in the spacious balcony above, when young Levy, though eventually
losing to Hazi, won the 4th at deuce to send the match into the decider.
In the Burns (#3) vs. Miles (#5) section, Dick had a good 1st-round 19, 15, -18, 14
warm-up with Bob Green. Earlier Bob had to give up his Ohio TTA Presidency as it was
taking too much of his time, and he certainly didnt want a recurrence of an old ulcer problem.
He now had a new site for his Columbus Club on North High, and, in order to get needed
publicity for it, he literally wined and dined members of the Columbus pressLou Berliner,
for exampleand gave them Christmas presents. Though the Club flourished, it didnt afford
Bob a living. So he worked the third shift at Curtiss-Wright1:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. on what
had to be an all-too-conscious nightmare for some: the two-seat Helldiver bomberslept
during the day, then opened the Club at 5:30 in the afternoon, and on closing it went to work.
After Miles had disposed of the furloughed Pfc. Garrett Nash in 4, he was faced with
last years finalist, Chuck Burns. A stocky type, Chuck was not one to flash around court
swatting forehands. Because of an old (torn-cartilage) knee injury that would later keep him
out of the Service, he developed a close-to-the-table gamefancied himself something like a
boxer in the ring of the court, except he didnt dance.
At the 1941 Intercities Burns had beaten Milesand though of course Dick had
improved, so had Chuck, who had the reputation of being a wily player given to trying to
psych out his opponent. There was also the matter of Burnss style. Here, in the advice he
would one day give to others, is the patient, pugnacious stance he early adopted:
...[O]ffensive strokes, forehand and backhand, I try to use like a left jab, or
flick shot, with no backswing, hitting with follow through quickly. I find it easier to
return the ball, particularly offensively with the same angle my opponent moves it to
me. On return of serve, if unable to attack, chop first ball to opponents forehand,
second to middle, third to backhand, then repeat with varying spin on every third shot
if possible. This will enable you to possibly upset opponents timing. Get set to hit
every good loose ball and quickly prepare to defend against a possible counter. On
defense, move laterally with the outside foot. Defensive or control players [like
Chuck] must gradually assert their offensive moves as the match wears on, so that the
offensive player will tend to rush and hopefully try bad shots.
Burns again beat
Milesthis time -20, 14, 21, 20
in what he always considered
his greatest match. In the
semis, however, against Hazi,
whom hed defeated in the
Nationals the year before, he
suffered what might have been
his biggest disappointmenta
21, 19, -12, -20, -15 loss. I
was on top of my game, Burns
reminiscing, would tell Detroit
suburban reporter Don Vogel

Photo by William R. Haid

Chuck Burns

110

46 years later (Oakland Press, Aug. 19, 1989, D-13). In the semifinals the ball looked like a
balloon, and late in the end-game 4th he was leading. I had two straight where all I had to
do was drop the ball over the net for the points that would have won it. Both stayed on top
[then fell back]. Then I smashed two forehands into the crowd and that was it.
Chuck was always saying, Winning is everythingand that it was his lifelong credo
no one could doubt, least of all his son Ron who once wrote that he had memories of my
father flying off into winter snowstorms in precarious looking DC3s to an endless string of
tournaments (Newport News, VA Daily Press, Aug. 2, 1973). So when Chuck told reporter
Vogel that It took me six years to get over that loss to Hazi one can believe it.
Tibor, however, would no doubt dwell more on his 5-game losses to Schiff and
Pagliaro in the 40 and 41 Nationals than his 4-game loss in the final to McClure in 39 or
now here in 4 to Holzrichter. Billy had said of his earlier match with Bellak that as long as he
could keep control of the play, keep Laci on defense, he had a good chance to win. The same
with Hazi, whose grip-shifting backhand (hopping topspin or flat hit) was as good as his
forehand. Anyway, too bad for Tibor, for on May 17 he would report for active duty and
would never again have such opportunities to be the U.S. Champion.
Singles Champion, that is. As for Mens Doubles, 1939 Champions Hazi and Bellak
did it againrallied from 2-1 down to defeat Miles/Lowry in the final.
Miles had also entered the
no longer Under 15 but
1943 U.S. Open Doubles Champion
extended now to Under 18
Laszlo Laci Bellak
Boys event, but had been
persuaded by Bellak and
Hazi to withdraw. It
wouldnt be seemly, they
said, for the U.S. Junior
Champion to be also the
U.S. Mens Champion. Dick,
who was seeded 5th in the
Mens, had been unseeded in
the Boys and was scheduled
to play a Preliminary match.
Last years runner-up, #3seed Dan Cory, who would
have met Dick in the
quarters, survived a 5-game
match with Omahas John
Marchese, then lost to Allan
Levy in the semis. Don
Lasater reached the final
with contested wins over
Dale McColley and #4-seed
Charles Schaaf of Chicago,
followed by a surprisingly
easy victory over Defending
Champ Mel Nichols. In the
111

final, Levy beat Lasater, 19 in the 4th. This apparently emboldened him (Id warned you he
hung around with Nash) to go Miles one betterhe offered to play U.S. Mens Champion
Holzrichter a match for $100.
The Veterans Singles winner, former Champion Morris Bernstein of Newark, N.J.,
had his toughest (19 in the 4th) match with N.Y.s Martin Aronson. Runner-up John Tatom
beat Chicagos George Ochs in 5, then hurried by Don Feak. The Toledo officials in charge of
this U.S. Open decided to inaugurate a Veterans Doublesand Bernstein and Tatom won
that over Cannon/Feak.
Over in the 40-entry Womens, all the seeds advanced but one. Louisvilles Martha
Kiefer (#8) was beaten in 4 by Marge Koolery Wilson who, in one of the two 5-game
contested matches in the 16ths, got by Manitowacs Charlotte Brewer. In the other 16ths,
Leslie Friedman scored with a spirited two-down rally over Oak Parks Vee Bishop. This
turnaround promptedin the unsigned Nationals write-up (written by Vees husband,
Associate Editor Wes Bishop?)the gratuitous, not to say nasty, assessment of Friedman as
having the type of game that went out 20 years ago with the dining room table sets and that
was very uninteresting. This woman, U.S. #17, came all the way from Denver to read such
a piece of vengeful pettiness? (Actually, maybe
Vee didnt like it either, for within a year or so
shed split from Wes and remarried.)
Alas, nothing exciting in the quarters
except for 15-year-old, hard-hitting Barbara
Cannons 13, -15, -19, 18, 18 plucky win over
Helen Baldwin. In the one semis, Barbara
threatened Sally Greens supremacyforced her
to deuce in the 4th. And in the other, Leah
Thalls heavy chop, often as much aggressive as
defensive (but as yet not with enough follow-up
attack?), could muster only a 10 in the 4th effort
against Mae Clouthers grimly-steady table
game. Then, a disaster in the final: and not -9, -8, 14 just for Mae but for the spectators. Still, more
power to Sally Green, the girl who never lost her
most pleasing personality nor her popularity. Her
win here in St. Louis, her birthplace, made it 1-23-4 Championships in a row. Smashing.
1947 U.S. Open Program
In the Womens Doubles final it was
Sally Green, U.S. Open Womens Champ for 4th
Clouther/Thall in 4, with a wipe-out in the 3rd
straight year
and 4th, over Dorothy Benson/Marge Leary.
Some very taut matches in the Mixed, though. Ed and daughter Barbara Cannon lost a 16, 27,
-15, -19, -19 killer to Brodski/Benson; and Eds wife Deal and Don Feak dropped a -17, 21,
15, -21, -19 gasper to Bob Green/Carrol Blank. In other 5-gamers, Bellak/Moss, before falling in
the semis to Holzrichter/Thall, defeated Webb/Janowiec, and in The Match They Oughta Give An
Endurance Trophy Foralright, by acclamation, make that Four Endurance TrophiesLevy/
Carolyn Wilson 33, -12, -26, 18, 18 finally, finally won out over Nash/Helen Grant. After Nichols/
Green, up 2-1 in the other semis just -10, -8 collapsed, Hazi/Clouther advanced to the final, but
were no match for Holzrichter/Thall who successfully defended their title.
112

Naturally, Holzrichter, as both U.S. Open Singles and Mixed Doubles Champion,
hoped he might have opportunities not exactly to cash in on his accomplishments but, well,
find a sponsor or two that might be interested in him. One at least wasand so there
appeared in the May, 1943 Topics a one-issue ad from the Libbey-Owens-Ford Glass
Company out of Toledo, Ohio (where USTTA President Minneker and Vice President Cannon
were from).
Holzrichter, back to the wall, up to the table, is shown pushing a ball over the
GLASSIC tablenot Classic, Glassic, for the table has a glass top. It takes everything,
grins Bill. I like the way it bites the ball.
Of course plywood is scarce. A section of the ad reads:
Champions were enthused about the uniform rebound of the ball, the glass
tops response to every type of shot, its true flatness which will not gouge or mar.
They commented on its satin-smooth, specially treated surface designed to minimize
glare. One player summed up his opinion by saying the Glassic table has all the
advantages and none of the disadvantages of other tops.
Further, says this one-time ad: ...The GLASSIC table made its debut at the National
Tournament, and was officially approved by the U.S.T.T.A.
The suggestion is that it was used in competition at the Nationals. But as play there
was on Detroiter tables, it could only have been shown as a novel alternative. Moreover, if
one looks toward the back of that May magazine, to the listing of USTTA Approved
Equipment with
its qualifer,
Products listed
are not necessarily
equivalent in
quality or merit.
Official approval
indicates only
compliance with
USTTA
requirements
(19), one looks in
vain for a Glassic
table. Nor will any
other issue of
Topics ever list
one.
Of course
this was a oneshot opportunity
for the U.S.
Champion to
make
TTT, May, 1943, 7
what?...anything?
1943 U.S. Open Mens Champion: Billy Holzrichter
113

Chapter Eleven
1943-44: USTTA Midwest-Centered E.C. Hasnt the Savvy to Increase Membership.
1943-44: Servicemens Letters Home. 1943-44: Only D.C., N.Y. Hold Eastern Tournaments/
Hazi, McLean Win Eastern Open. 1943-44: Cluster of Midwest Tournaments/Mel Nichols,
Leah Thall Take Western Open.
Re-elected to the 1943-44 USTTA Executive
Committee were President Larry Minneker, Vice Presidents
Ed Kuhns, Carl Nidy, and Ed Cannon, and Treasurer
Morris Bassford. However, Bassford of Silver Springs,
Maryland, had to almost immediately resign because he
worked for the Travelers Insurance Company, and his new
office, entailing new responsibilities for him, was in Newark,
N.J. Coming in to take his place as Treasurer was John L.
Meininger (the just re-elected President of the District of
Columbia TTA, who was succeeded there now by Guy Irving
Burch). For the 1943-44 season Kaudererthe senior bank
TTT, May, 1946, 3
analyst in the Bank Examinations Department of the New
Berne Abelew
York Federal Reserve Bankwas re-elected Recording
Secretary. And Toledos Ralph Berry was appointed by Toledos Minneker as Executive
Secretary. All these men then finished out their termwith the exception of Meininger who,
on being inducted into the Army, was replaced by Bassford, who had a habit of moving in and
out of office.
Wes Bishop became the Editor of Topics, while Berne Abelew remained Associate
Editor and was responsible for finally, after 15 months, getting cover photos back on Topics
(the firstin March, 1944of Wes Bishop!). Welsh-born Peter W. Roberts, who once
worked as a bricklayer on the Westminister Cathedral in London, and who was now a
septuagenarian living with his wife Annie in Lake Forest, Illinois, took over as History Chair
from Bishop.
Of course as sure as History repeats itself, the season starts off with Topics trying to
talk up the USTTA Membership:
...Of the several millions of table tennis players in the U.S. it seems like a
small task to secure 5000 new members. Some of our affiliates were unfortunate in not
being able to secure a place to play last year and the condition may exist again this
year. The fee of $1.00 is small but means so much to the Association that we feel it a
duty of each member to give as much of his and her time to secure as many new
members as possible. Give one week of your time to secure members for your
Association and we are sure the satisfaction you will receive in being a part of this
great endeavor will be well worth the effort.
We had hopes of reaching our goal [5000 members] by the time this [Oct.]
issue went to press; however, we appreciate that a number of the clubs do not open
until October 1st. We will be expecting a deluge of memberships during the month....
I dont know which is more patheticthe paragraphs above (Oct., 1943, 7), or the
114

ones below (6) which concern the E.C.s newly passed Resolution No. 2 and which Topics
says should be of great interest to all members:
...Tournament sponsors should read this amendment very carefully. The
resolution reads: that paragraph number (4) REQUIREMENTS, on page number
two (2) of Form S Tournament Sanction, line A-3 be amended to read: Remit a One
Dollar ($1.00) fine for each non-member permitted to participate either through
negligence or other reason. If a membership fee in the sum of One Dollar ($1.00) is
received at USTTA National Headquarters within fifteen (15) days from the stated
date of the tournament described herein, the One Dollar ($1.00) fine for each
membership so received, will be returned to the tournament sponsor. Any player
participating in any USTTA sanctioned tournament without the benefit of USTTA
membership, shall immediately be barred from participating in future USTTA
sanctioned tournaments until a One Dollar ($1.00) membership fee plus a One Dollar
($1.00) fine shall have been received at USTTA National Headquarters; said nonmember player shall lose credit toward ranking for his or her participation in such
tournament, unless good cause can be shown by player for lack of membership.
How is the Sport gonna go anyplacein the best of times, in the worst of timeswith
preoccupations like this? At seasons end, the regular membership will be 1167.
But tournaments continue to be heldthough, sponsors, again youd better be careful,
or else Judge John J. Winn, another Toledo appointee, the new Disciplinary Chair, will be after
you. Remember Resolution No. 1: if there are 8 or more boys who want to enter the Boys
Under 15, that event must be held and so takes precedence over a Junior Boys Under 18
event.
Of course, common sense would tell you that even if you had half a dozen boys for the
U-15s youd find a way to hold the event; or that even with a few entries an U-18 round
robin could be held. And certainly U-15 boys could enter both the 15s and the 18s. Better,
some would say, that the USTTA E.C. should resolve to resolutely spend their time on
weightier matters.
Also, tournament sponsors, please remember that, excluding Mixed Doubles, males
are allowed to play in 7 eventsMens Singles and Doubles, Mens Consolation, Veterans
Singles and Doubles, Juniors, and Boysand females in 2 eventsWomens Singles and
Doubles. Under no circumstances in any of these events can the sexes mix....Whats that? No,
there isnt any USTTA Womens Chairnot this season nor for almost half the next.
And, sponsors, one other thing. Please dont accept any Serviceman or womans entry
without a definite statement that he (she) will play until fairly and honestly defeated. Too
often Servicemen are on short time passes and are apt to have to default matches. At the
same time, it behooves sponsors to include a Servicemans Event in their tournament in
which players in uniform are permitted to play without entry charge. Why? Because, since
table tennis balls are no longer available for civilian use, it may be possible to get them for
tournaments if such an event is offered.
Servicemens Letters Home
While a number of sponsors had prepared for the ball shortage and so were able to
hold tournaments on what stubbornly remained of a circuit, those in the Armed Forces often
115

had to take their play where they could find it. Here are some excerpts from this seasons
Letters Home:
N. Y.s Jack Cherry (formerly Jacques Tartakower) writes Kauderer from somewhere
in Iran that hes about to play for an Army team against an Iranian team. He asks Kauderer if
John couldnt please send over a table via the Red Cross.
In another Cherry (V-Mail) letter to Kauderer, a thoroughly censored one, John
took the liberty of trying to reconstruct the obliterated words with what Editor Bishop says
seems to be excellent, logical reasoning. But the first sentence in what follows is clearly
whacky:
...I met the king of Iran [he means Muhammad Reza Shah?] at the table tennis
Worlds Championships in Cairo in 1939 when I played in the finals. [!] About a month
ago I had the luck to be introduced to someone who told me he could get me into the
palace since the King already knew me. He told me the King was a great table tennis
fan and played the game very well himself. I really got to go to see him and played
with him twice so far. This should make a pretty good story for Topics, I think. Also
we played, I mean another American and myself, against the Iranians and beat them 32. This time in the Palace of the King. We got beautiful presents and a lot of pictures
were taken... (Oct. 1943, 3).
Yes, Jacks rightthat does read like a good story. And yet theres confirmation
that its true. Turns out that other American was Ted Bourne, and that Teds good friend,
Floridas Randy Hess, says hed seen documentation in Teds huge photo album that
hed played with Cherry before the King and Queen of Iran and received a silver cigarette
case, or cigar box, with engravings. Also, the Iranian Champion M. F. Mohtadi in the Feb./
Mar., 1947 issue of the English TTA magazine Table Tennis, says, In 1944, the Middle
East Championship was held at Khorramshahr (Southern Iran) and was won by Sergeant
Jack Cherry, of U.S.A., who beat me 3-1 in the finals. Cherry (Yank) and I played many
exhibition matches throughout the Persian Gulf Command army camps as well as in the
Royal Palace (2).
And now to continue with another letter home, heres Huntington, Indianas Ned
Steelehis letter censored not only by the Army but by the USTTA:
...It might surprise you to know that I am in India. When we wake up in the
mornings, most generally a cow is bawling beside the bed. Cant blame them as we
took their home so they should kick.
...For a while I was working for the Red Cross doing recreation work. Not
bad. No action as yet so not much to tell. Words are limited anyway....
Anything to drink besides water costs $15 a quart. It is lousy too. Hope to be
getting some American canned beer soonat least thats been filtered.
Coming over on the boat, whom did I meet but Dr. [Harry] Sage from
Columbus, Ohio! I played table tennis with him every noon for about 45 days. Sure
made the trip over interesting for me...
Expect it [action] soon and I can hardly wait to get one of those
little_________
_________ and give him an _________ with some gasoline...
(Oct, 1943, 3).
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New Yorks former Hungarian World Doubles Champion Sandor Glancz writes from
somewhere in the South Pacific:
[Former Hungarian World Singles and Doubles Champion Miklos Mike]
Szabados is in Australia, is married and has a table tennis club. We tried to get
together but I dont get a chance to see anything but cocanuts [sic] and fuzzy wuzzies.
As a matter of fact there is much intense T.T. activity in the various parts of Australia
among the Americans and Australians. And the irony of it is that I cannot possibly get
permission to participate and the same time lots of events are advertised as U.S.A. vs.
Australia and the Americans always get beaten disastrously. The American Red Cross
and the Australian T.T.A. tried to take advantage of my being here and have me play
Szabados but no diceI cant get leave when he is free (Oct., 1943, 3, 6).
Then, Sandor again:
We have a recreation tent here with two tables in the jungles and have
wooden coca cola bats. You can imagine what they are. And the balls are bad too, but
this is the Army Mr. Jones. However, the boys play a lot and it is a great source to
overcome boredom.
The boys who played the Aussies are unknown to me. The only one I know of
who played them was Dan Klepak. I dont know if he lost too, but I know that is
where these matches were held.
Harry J. Dickel, he was Wisconsin Champ, hails from Muskegon, Mich., and
played all over the Midwest and is a very good player. He is here and I saw him many
times. He is a first lieutenant in the Air Corps and he has one of the most interesting
jobs in the Army as he is right in the thick of the events you read about in the papers.
He is busy, of course, but when we have a chance we put on an exhibition for the boys.
Of course most of it is outdoor stuff. At the last games we had about 1500 boys
watching us. It was really a beautiful scene as it was in the middle of an airfield, planes
all over and a little green table and the white celluloid ball and a huge crowd all
around. The boys do enjoy it a great deal. Of course we have to combat the wind,
poor equipment and the dirt that is all the time on the ball....But the most amazing
thing I saw was when I played for the officers. In the middle of the jungles neon signs,
_________, slot machines, beautiful porch at the winding river, the inevitable poker
and dice tables, and a most modern bar with coca cola, ice cream and G-I-N. I had 12
gin and coke. The amazing part is that the enlisted men are getting all the things
themselves. And of course they all like the game and many of them saw me and Ruth
Aarons at the Rainbow Room and the Palmer House. And it is amazing how many are
playing a pretty good game with proper strokes. Only a chop is what hinders them a
lot. But all in all Table Tennis is here to stay in the jungles and maybe some day we
may have a fuzzy wuzzie as a world champion. In as much as the females here go
around half dressed, their participation in tournaments would be quite an added
attraction. Am looking forward to get Topics... (Dec., 1943, 3).
The last of the seasons letters Ill include here is from Herb Chubby Aronson whos
recuperating from a leg injury somewhere in India:
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...Now that I know my leg will get better and soon be 100%heres the
news.
I have been running a TT tournament for the Red Cross. The patients at the
hospital thought it was wonderful. I put on sort of an exhibition on crutches
showing them the different strokes, trick shots and old-fashioned trick serves,
finally playing someone with a paddle in my mouth. Today Capt. Melvyn Douglas
came to the hospital with a show. Ive never met a nicer fellowhe looks just like
he does in the moviesand wanted to know if Id be interested in going around
playing exhibitions and running tournaments for his show. I hope it works outits
tentative yet, but it would mean Id get to see the whole of China, Burma, and
India. Ill be out of the hospital in a couple of weeksso, table tennis, I hope we
go! Apr., 1944, 9).
Everyone in the little sphere of our world among worlds hopes table tennis will
go. And that includes nearby Puerto Rico, where, on Dec. 27, 1942 as Topics belatedly
reported, Clemente (Kaki) Fernandez of Rio Pedras, after downing former Champion Jose
A. Salivia in 4, defeated Luis Rigual of Santurce, -20, 21, 16, 15 for the Island
Championship. Ex-champion Salivia played under protest and registered an appeal before
the Commission of Recreation and Sports...[arguing that,] because of his place as
champion, he deserved [to be byed] to meet the winner of the final match. But the
Commission upheld the official rules of the USTTA obliging the champion to risk being
eliminated with the other contestants.
Absence of Eastern Tournaments
This season, as last, however, theres no Go, no Green light for tournaments in the
Eastern part of the U.S. By years end, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvaniaonce
powerful states with hundreds of USTTA membersnow have in toto a mere 30 members;
Connecticut and Rhode Island have none. Apparently, the players, the officials, the clubs are
gone. (One Pennsylvanian writing to Topics laments how the once mighty PTTA has
become non-existent and says that the Reading group [theyd run the 1940 Easterns] has
disposed of all its equipment and deposited the proceeds from its sale in the bank so that
activity can get under way when our members come back.)
Lack of plywood rackets and decent balls were taking their toll on the Sport. Jim
Williams, a longtime Western Maryland player, was telling me recently that, at the rec room in
the Cumberland Y during these War years, there were two makeshift ping-pong (board on
billiard-slate) tables, and that players used homemade aluminum rackets. These rackets had
riveted handles, were affixed with rubber, and were so floppy-thin that, if you swung really
hard, the aluminum would bend and so force you to turn the racket to the other side to smash
it up straight again. Jim also said that if you put $.05 into something like a gumball machine,
out would come a table tennis ball curled with ridges that, never mind the bounce, was
absolutely unbreakable.
During the 1942-43 and 1943-44 seasons Maryland had no more than 10-15 USTTA
members, and Williams said he never saw a regular table tennis racket for sale in any local
store. In the East, only New York (including Long Island)and the District of Columbia
affiliates that made up 20% of the entire USTTA regular Membershipcontinued to help the
Association survive by running a few tournaments.
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Sol Schiff: Serviceman at the ready

At the Nov. 19-20 N.Y. Metro Open, Pagliaro 15, -15, 23, 16 defeated Miles in the
final. And Bernice Charney beat Peggy McLean. Though Sol was in the Army he may not
have participated in the play-for-free, 24-entry Servicemens Singles, won by Pvt. Johnny
Somael over Pvt. Gus Rehberger.
Northwest veteran player Earl Adams was telling me 50 years after Pagliaro had won
his first Nationals how Louie could look at you, talk with you, while bouncing a ball on his
racket. It was with such seeming nonchalance that he scored againat the Jan. 21-22 New
York State Openby downing in the final Somael (whod knocked out Miles in the quarters,
Schiff in the semis). Bill Gunn won the Veteransover Simeon Sabre. Keith Schaber, after
18, 19, 21 getting by George Chotras, took the Juniors, 18 in the 5th, from Fred Storfer
(whod eliminated Bob Wilkenfeld in the semis). Charney again won the Womensfrom
down 2-1 in the semis to Hawthorn, and from down 2-0 to McLean in the finalher seeming
casualness reflected in an on-court mien of expressionless, gum-chewing impassivity.
Hazi/McLean Eastern Open Winners
With the entry of the Easts top playersmany of them furloughedthe Feb. 12-13,
44 D.C. TTA/Washington Star-sponsored Eastern Open was sure to be a success. Earlyround matches would be held at the Stan Fields-managed Columbia Center, followed by the
finals at Heurichs Gym, later site of the Kennedy Center.
Before the competition started, the Stars covering reporter, Rod Thomas, focused on
the Columbia Courts former manager and Defending Mens Champion, Cpl. Tibor Hazi.
Appearing downright natty in his uniform, Tibor took a few minutes out from practicing
with the Honorary Tournament Chairman, Col. George Foster, to talk of how much he
preferred being in the U.S. Army as opposed to the Hungarian Army he once served in.
Dressing well, making a neat appearance, was always important to Hazi, and well he
remembered how in Hungary as an officer student, not even my shoes fit.
But here at the Easterns, everything pretty much fitted him to a T. This was the fifth
year in a row that Tibor had been at the forefront of the actionand again he won the Singles,
beating Schmidt in the quarters (-14, 10, 23, 16), Miles in the semis (20, -18, 16, 19), and
last years runner-up Pagliaro (12, 20, 16) in the final.
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Against Schmidt, the third game was key. Heres the

apparently very inexperienced, new-to-the-Sport
Thomas reporting: With Schmidt leading in games 2-1
[sic], and needing a single point to clinch the match
[sic], Hazi returned six well-hit shots, gradually
approaching the table from a deep defensive position
and driving back his opponent. On the seventh return
Charlie Schmidt
Tibor Hazi
Hazi lightly dropped the pellet [sic] over the net and
Schmidt, hot-footing, got there just in time to smack it into the mesh [sic] and lose the game,
23-25.
Earlier, Pagliaros toughest match had been with Sgt. Laszlo Bellak. As in their 1940
U.S. Open semis, Lou had Laci 2-0, but had to go 5 to beat him. Paggy then teamed with
Miles to take the Doubles from Hazi/Bellak.
Defending Womens Champ Mae Clouther, though now managing the Colonial Club in
Somerville, Massachusetts, hadnt been practicing much. Why? Becauseas her recently
received citation from the USO for outstanding service to men and women of the Armed
Forces would attest toshe was captain of the Junior Hostesses of the Boston Stage Door
Canteen and was assisting in other war work and relief agencies (TTT, Apr., 1944, 5). Mae
did get to the final, thoughafter a 22, -16, -13, 18, 18 semis struggle with Davida
Hawthornbut then was beaten quite convincingly by Peggy McLean.
Midwest Tournaments
At the Jan. 8-9, 44 Colorado Closed, Jim Wolfe, a winner in Charlie Coxs last
Denver tournament, almost won againin the final had a two-game lead over Warrant Officer
(jg) Don Hendry, Georges brother, who was stationed at Colorado Springs. However, on
losing that, deuce in the 5th, Jim had to be content with taking the Veterans from Cox, the
Mens Doubles (with fellow Vet Ray Thomas), and the Mixed with Lois Woodward. In the
Womens, Kerns, down 2-0, rallied to beat 4-time State Champion Leslie Friedman who must
have taken last years nasty criticism of her playing style to heart, for this time her game was
much changed from former years and even in defeat she looked like a champion.
Lots of good vibes at the new Omaha Club, especially if players continued to follow
up their league play with some friendly socializing and liquid refreshments. Four marriages
among the members in just four yearsthat, at the moment, was the Club record.
How nice for any playerespecially a woman playerto feel wanted. The Des
Moines, Iowa TTA wanted to have a Womens league, and the local WACS had been
encouraged to participate. Affiliate President Herb Smith was pleased that although the girls
are transferred every few weeks, Lt. Martin guaranteed to bring a five-girl team each
Monday night. Regardless of whether in the beginning each new group of five can keep a
point going, Smith hoped that in this way table tennis play for the womenso badly
neededwill be greatly stimulated. Im not sure if this Womens league ever got underway
for, from Jan., 1943 to May, 1944, the Des Moines TTA lost a third of its membersbut
Smith was willing to give all the WAC participants membership in the USTTA.
Minnesotas former President Helen Grant in hyping the Feb. 4-5 Minneapolis 10,000
Lakes Closed spoke of the half hundred active, enthusiastic players...hoping for a big
tournament. They got itbut by May they had only 13 USTTA members left (out of 73 a
year and a half ago). This Lakes Closed had as its highlight a Servicemens event. Dan
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Kwong, Chinas Number 1 player [sic], stationed at Camp Savage, beat New York Citys
Paul Feuerstadt, 17 18, 22. Dan used the outmoded penholder style, but it was good enough
to play one of the best finals and exhibitions of American style table tennis [sic] ever witnessed
in Minnesota. Every point had spectators leaving their seats and screaming and often the
umpires senatorian [sic: for umpires stentorian] voice was completely drowned out (TTT,
Dec., 1943, 6).
Quite a trick, too, for a New Yorker to show up for the St. Louis County Open...until
you realize hes Pvt. Eddie Pinner stationed momentarily at Scott Field. Eddie downed Don
Lasater in the Mens final. Earlier, Lasater had upset his former teacher and coach, Pvt. Bill
Price, who, down 2-0, had stubbornly saved a 27-25 3rd game but couldnt survive the 25-23
4th. As anticipated, Mrs. Delores Kuenz won the Womens without difficulty. Shirley Nelson
was the surprise finalist.
Where was U.S. #4 Allan Levy? Off with Coleman Clark, who kept picking up
different partners whenever he needed them. Last summer the two had made a Columbia
Pictures short called Table Tennis Topnotchers (as of its release date, May 5, Topics
requested readers to ask their theater manager to order Reel 5808). Now they were just
finishing up a tour of the theaters on the Pacific Coast with the Martha Raye shows. Also
missing from this St. Louis tournament, and also almost missing in action for the moment, was
Claude Camuzzi, Second Lieutenant, Bombadier, who had to bail out of his plane, My
Devotion, somewhere over England. Camuzzi chose an English cottage upon which to land
and didwith a thump. His parachute caught in the roof and Claude was left dangling four
feet from the ground. The residents of the cottage, assisted by the village police, released
[him].
At the Illinois Membership Open, held in Chicago, Oct. 16-17, U.S. #18 Berne
Abelew beat Dick Suhm in the final of the Mens after Dick had rallied to defeat Veterans
winner George Ochs, deuce in the 5th. In the quarters Berne lost his only game in the event
to 1942 National Veterans Champ Marlin Tucker. Marlin had taken over managing Chicagos
only remaining table tennis club, North-Town, from Herbs brother, Norm Aronson, whose
wife Sylvia was now pregnant (come May Day, little Dennis, thanks to Norm coughing up a
dollar, would be the youngest member in the USTTA). Next to Aronsons playful letter to
Topics on the birth of his son (weve made some enlargements and additions to our home
shelves galorefor the trophies. My boy!!!), theres one from Herbert Freundlich, another
Chicagoan and National Veterans Champion (1935), who, as a traveling salesman, recalls
playing t.t. in the homes of mayors, congressmen, bankers, fire chiefs, actors and even in the
establishment of an undertaker.
In June, former Illinois Womens star Mildred Wilkinson Shipman gave birth to
another daughter, Sara Gay. Later in the new season George Koehnke, who wanted to start
his Glen Ellyn Winter League, was urging Mildred and every other past or present player in
the Chicago area to help him by quickly buying up the retail limit of two table tennis balls per
person at wherever they were still sold.
At the Dec. 12 Chicago District Open, Abelew again took the Mens when his cool,
heady playing swept through the entire tournamentor so the Topics write-up said,
ignoring his 5-game semis struggle with South Bend teenager Bill Early to focus on his
uncontested final with John Varga.
At this tournament Varga won the Mixed withsurprisehis former pupil, 1938 U.S.
World semifinalist Betty Henry Link, who, after marrying Radioman 2/c Edward Link in Sept.
121

of 1943 had again come out of retirement, perhaps again merely to oblige her former Coach,
for she would not be playing in next months St. Joe Valley Open in her own hometown. In
fact, Betty leaves no record of ever playing in a tournament again, for in less than a year,
while still in her early 20s, she died in her aunts home in South Bend, after an illness of
several months, of cancer.
Betty and Mary Baumbachs Varga-coached South Bend
successor, Helen Morozo, lost the Womens in straight games to
Milwaukees Carrol Blank. Vargas Y proteges, recipients of his
patient teaching, fought it out in the Juniorswith Dale
McColley defeating Boys winner Les Leviton in 5. Topics
praised John for his young players sportsmanship, conduct, and
true table tennis ability, and said that every city, large and
small, needs its own John Varga (Dec., 1943, 6).
Actually, it seemed Varga was everywhereincluding the
Feb. 19-20 Illinois Open, which he won by downing Abelew.
Leah Thall added another Womens title to her growing
collectionbut the win was an unexpectedly precarious one, for
she beat Illinois Membership Open winner LaVera Weber in the
final, deuce in the 5th. This tournament marks the appearance of
Chicagos Mary Specht whose play was terminated by Baldwin,
TTT, Apr., 1947, 4
John Varga
3, 4, 11a defeat so discouraging itd be apt to send anyone
back home to try another sport. But in just three years, Mary
would be U.S. #6.
South Bends Jan. 8-9, 44 St. Joe Valley Open certainly had Vargabut since he was
offering 11 events, his tournament was becoming more and more popular and, as the matches
ran into the early hours of Monday morning, he had more entries than he could reasonably
handle. However, his overseeing responsibilities didnt stop him from winning the Mens
Singles. After rallying from 2-0 down to Junior Stan Webley in the semis, he took the title in
4 from Antonowicz. Earlier, Walt would have met Sterling Mitchell, whod dispatched #3
seed Abelew, if Sterling, on a short time pass, had not had to hurry back to his base. Abelew,
playing with Green, also had to defaultunfortunately the final of the Mens Doubles. Like
some other players he had to catch the last train outin his case to Chicagoso the title
went to the Indianapolis pair of Webley/Dorsey.
Thensurely this was unprecedented, in South Bend or anywhere elsetwo more
defaults. National Champion Sally Green, who, Topics said, carries a very heavy teaching,
selling and school schedule with very little time for table tennis, developed a sore arm in the
late afternoon on Sunday. As a consequence, shed played two shaky matches6, -19, 22,
18 against Weber, and 19, -11, 18, -20, 17 against Carrol Blank in the semis. In the final
against Thall, she was down 1-0 and 19-14 in the 2nd when she believed that she could not
continue without doing further injury to her arm, so called it quits. Though Sally was able
earlier to play in and win the Womens Doubles with Leah, she and Dorsey had to default the
Mixed to Green/Thall, which put Bob in the strange position of being in two finals, neither of
which were played.
In the Boys, Varga-coached Richard Leviton won out over Varga-coached Gordon
Barclayabout to be the most preeminent of Johns 1940s whiz kids. In a Jan. 14, 1981
interview with Bill Moor of the South Bend Tribune, Gordy, born in 1932, said he must
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have been about 10 when he came under Johns no-nonsense, very directing tutelage at that 5table basement Club in South Bends Main and Wayne Y. It was a time when the sound of the
balls bouncing attracted a lot of youngsters like myself downstairs to the tables. Thereafter,
said Gordy, It seems like I spent most of my free time there at the Y.*
Mel Nichols, Leah Thall Win Western Open
Unfortunately, at the March 4-5 Westerns, neither Defending Mens Champion
Holzrichter nor last years runner-up Levy were available to play. Billy (though hed be able to
get leave to defend his Nationals title) was in Aviation Radar School in Corpus Christi, Texas
where hed shortly be part of a B-24 squadron crew seeing action overseas, and Allan was
about to start off with Clark on an extended USO Camp Show...playing chiefly at army
camps.
But Mel Nichols, 1943 Mens Doubles winner with Levy, as well as runner-up to him
in the Juniors, was strikingly present. In winning the Mens, Nichols had no trouble at all with
finalist Dave Spence, but was fortunate in the semis to outlast Max Hersh, 27-25 in the 5th.
Spences only 5-gamer was in the quarters with Dr. Harry Sage whod upset #1 seed Varga,
24-22 in the 5th. Like Holzrichter, Sally Green wasnt around to defend her Womens title.
Leah Thall really had no competition. Runner-up Barbara Cannon beat Leahs sister, Thelma
(Tybie) Thall, 19 in the 4th. Tybie, just turned 20, whod played sparingly this season,
would be Ohio #7, but the fact that she could engage in such a contested match with Cannon,
whod be U.S. #3, shows either that the USTTA V.P.s daughter was overrated or that Tybie
was underrated. Students of the Sport must wonder just how good those players who arent
from the East are when, in the semis of the Womens Doubles, Cannon and U.S. #10 LaVera
Weber have to go 19 in the 5th to get by Ohio #9 Virginia Driscoll and Ohio #14 Loriene
Taylor. Meanwhile, theres no doubt who the Womens Doubles Champions are. Leah and the
as yet inexperienced Tybie will do a lot more winning in the years to come.
SELECTED NOTES.
*In 1992 at the St. Joe Valley Open, I met Bill DeMeyer whod first brought 10-yearold Barclay to the South Bend Y. He was accompanying Gordy, now a spectator using a
walker, but still his indomitable self after by-pass surgery and speech-slurring strokes.

123

Chapter Twelve
1944: Somael/Green Win
Nationals. 1944-45: Familiar
E.C. Officers, Familiar Voices.
1944-45: USTTA Servicemen
Abroad.
The Nationalswhere
hold them? Well, in such an
uncertain time, why change
what in St. Louis at least, you
could count on? The venue for
this Mar. 31-Apr. 1-2, 1944
event would again be the St.
Louis University Gym, and the
Tournament Committee would
again be headed by USTTA
Ranking Chair Elmer Cinnater
and St. Louis TTA President
Tommy Gibbons. Last year, the
Mutual Broadcasting Company
had agreed to broadcast the
finals of the tournament
TTT, Apr., 1944, cover
beginning at 10:00 P.M.
1944 St. Louis Nationals
Whether that happened
satisfactorily or not, or even
happened at all, I dont know. But this year Mutual apparently wasnt interested, and so the
USTTA began asking members and their friends to write letters to the Company urging that
the exciting matches the night of April 2 be broadcast to the millions of table tennis players
and enthusiasts who will not be able to attend.
Missing in the 66-entry Mens were Tibor Hazi, Chuck Burns, and Dick Miles, all
ranked last season among the Top 5 in the U.S. Tibor initially was able to get a furlough but at
the last minute it was canceled. Chuck, who perhaps was working at a war plant and months
away yet from testing his trick knee on a USO Tour, had pulled a ligament in his leg and was
wearing a brace. And Dick, according to Hazi, didnt come out to St. Louis because he knew
Tibor would beat him (though likely 19-year-old Dick just didnt want to make the effort and/
or didnt have the money to spend).
Also missing was Garrett Nash, beaten in last years U.S. Open by Miles. Garrett was
stationed with the Eighth Air Force Service Command in England, and that winter, at the
Polytechnic Institute in London, became the first American ever to compete in, and
consequently the first American ever to win, the South of England Singles and (with
Geoffrey Harrower) Doubles. Harrower, in his 1966 Table Tennis, speaks of one of the
players from the Free Czech Forces stationed in England, Lance Corporal Berger, whom Nash
beat 3-0 in the Singles final, as being a very clever player, who could hit accurately down the
center of the table (125).
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However, an event of far more

importance, one that greatly increased
name-recognition for Nash, occurred
on Apr. 12 following our U.S. Open.
At the Queensbury Club in London,
Garrett would (17, -13, 10, -12, 8)
win a celebrated money match from
the current World Champion Richard
Bergmann. Both players had played
up the encounter. Said Bergmann,
Im doing six miles of roadwork
every day to get in shape. Said Nash,
Im doing six miles of roadwork
every day too, but these taxi fares are
keeping me broke (TTT, Dec., 1947,
3).
ITTF President Ivor Montagu,
in his later In Memoriam tribute to
four-time World Champion
Bergmann, said that Richards rare
losses were often due to some
unanticipated factor. In this case,
because Nash was one of those
comparatively rare and fortunate
TTT, Oct., 1941, cover
players who are able to hit the ball
Garrett Nash
with no swing back, and so both late
and giving away no clue as to its
direction. Just exactly what either player, and their backers, could risk wagering,* and did, is
highly speculativebut word had it that it was in the thousands of pounds (or, well, hundreds
anyway) and Garrett on winning took his share and said, I spent it well.
As for the man often labeled The best player never to win a World Singles
Championship, S/Sgt. Laszlo Bellak, he was here in St. Louis for the Open, on leave. But
after downing Don Lasater, deuce in the 4th, Laci fell in the quarters in 5 to Johnny Somael.
Defending Champion Billy Holzrichter, though out of practice (or, say, rather, he wasnt
tournament tough, for he seldom practiced), advanced to the semis with an 18 in the 4th
win over Mel Nichols. Then it was Army (Pfc. Somael) vs. Navy (P.O. 1/c Holzrichter)with
Somael again winning in 5 to reach the final.
In the opposite half of the Draw, Sol Schiff went 4 with Marlin Tucker, Consolation
runner-up to Bob Green. Then, tested more severely, Sol 26-24 in the 4th eliminated Max
Hersh, who in the two weeks previous had won both the Michigan Open and Closed over S 2/c
V. Lee Webb. That was the end of Sols advance though. In the quarters he dropped a 5-gamer to
fast-moving Les Lowry. Meanwhile, Varga, though on a runhe was about to be elected Indiana
TTA President, win the Indiana Closed over Sterling Mitchell, then triumph as Chicago Cook
County Open hat-trick winnercouldnt take a game from #2 seed Allan Levy. But Levy in turn
was beaten 3-0 by Lowry. If you had to name someone who had a good-looking game, said
Freddie Borges, a U.S. Top 25 player, the first person youd pick would be Les Lowry.
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The resultant final between Lowry and

Somael would be talked about for decades.
Into the 5th theyd goneabout which Topics
had this to say:
...Lowrys drives were burning
the corners and Somaels returns were
beautiful. The counter-driving of both
players brought the crowd to their feet.
John could do nothing about the score
as it now was 20-14 in favor of Lowry
and everyone, except Somael, thought
the match was over. Slowly, with fine
driving and beautiful returns, John
finally brought the score to 20-20.
Then the impossible was done and
completeSomael took the next two
points and with them the
championship (Apr., 1944, 6).

1943 Almost Champion: Les Lowry

1943 U.S. Open Mens Champion:

Johnny Somael

I assume Editor Wes Bishop, who lost in the 1st

round to Somael, wrote this account, for
Associate Editor Berne Abelew had a by-lined
article in the same issue in which he said that
Somaels fine all around game, his deadly
steadiness, topped off by a never wavering
courage in the face of seemingly certain defeat
combined to produce...the little miracle of
1944.
Although covering St. Louis GlobeDemocrat reporter Bud Thies said Somael came
back from 20-14 (Monday, Apr. 3, 1944, 1C),
Leah Neuberger, later the USTTA Historian, who
was also very prominently at the tournament,
wrote that the score in the 5th game was actually
20-13. Pauline Robinson Somael, Johnnys wife,
in a Nov., 1970 letter to Topics purportedly
written by her young daughter Katie, likewise
126

gives 20-13 as the score (9). Borges also agreesand 45 years later he described to me what
happened from 20-13:
Lowry had been playing carefully, would get into long points. But leading 2013, he tried quick smasheswanted to end the match with a bang. At 20-16 Somael
got a net. At 20-17 Somael got an edge. Then Lowry choked.
The only problem with this rendition, told to me so definitively, was that, unlike
Editors Bishop and Abelew, Borges wasnt at the tournament. Millie Shahian, then a New
England neighbor of Lowry and later to win both the English and U.S. Opens, wasnt at the
tournament either. But Millie said, in a 1983 letter to Somaels wife, Pauline, shortly before
Pauline died July 31 of a heart attack, that Les, whom she considered a very sweet guy, told
me that he did not choke at 20-13 but that John outplayed him each and every pointand this
despite the fact that Sally [nee Green] Prouty had put a four-leaf clover under each leg of the
table. I mentioned to John that Les had not played since the nationals, and he said sincerely,
If I knew hed feel that bad, I would have let him winand I believed it.**
Bellak couldnt defend his Mens
Doubles
title with the absent Hazi, so
y
Barcla
r
n
e
o
v
d
o
r
c
o
he paired with Holzrichterand won
45,
il G
ar., 19
ze Pup
TTT, M arga and Pri
again...without losing a game. Laci, a
V
Coach
lefty, preferred Doubles to Singles
because he could use his deceptive
strokes to greater advantage, get his
usually righty partner set-ups. In
Singles, he said, he needed to hit
harder, but the fact that he had two
fingers on the blade prevented him
from hitting with powerthough
Miles, for one, disputed this, and cited
how well Schiff smacked the ball with
his two fingers on the blade. Holzrichter
felt that Laci was a fabulous doubles
player. He could receive with his
backhand and shove the ball all over the
place. Their last two victims were, first,
Schiff/Somael, then Levy/Nichols. Until
the War was over, this would be U.S. #3
Billys final match.
Levy, whod lost two 19 games to
Lowry in the semis, successfully
defended his Under 18 Junior
Championship, again defeating Lasater in the final. In the new Under 15 event, Varga-coached,
Indiana Boys #1 Richard Leviton downed Varga-coached, Indiana Boys #2 Gordon Barclay, not yet
a teenager, 19 in the 4th. Naturally there were big ovations for plucky little Gordy.
Vargas pupils at the South Bend Ys small gym paid a minimal fee for their
table tennis fun, but they had responsibilities. As big, barrel-chested John had a deep
127

John Varga
presiding

1995 North American Championships Program

South Bend Y Basement Club

1957 U.S. Open Program

South Bend YMCA

128

voice and a
disciplinarians
manner, there was
never any
question about
whether they had
to follow Club
rules. Wheres
my sweater? one
kid asked. In the
wastebasket,
boomed John. If
youd have
cleaned the Club
like you were
supposed to,
youd have found
it. Some rules
were perhaps
whimsical. One of
which was that
you couldnt wear
a hat. In fact,
John had a sign
hanging in the
Club that read,
Please, the hat.
Wearing a hat at
the table in Johns
presence was a
sign of
disrespect? More
understandable
was the penalty
imposed for
losing your cool
and hitting the
table with your
racket. You might
not play for a
week.
The winner
of the Veterans
was #1 seed Johnny
Tatom who went
through the field

more or less unchallenged. Runner-up Louie Scharlack, playing with his air-conditioned bat,
was voted the most untiring player in the tournament. To us in the new millennium, where
50/60/70-year-olds remain vigorous, he may not seem to have any reason to be tired. He
played one match in the Mensa 19-in-the-4th good one against young Mel Nicholsand
one Veterans Doubles match. But perhaps his five Veterans Singles matches (5 games in the
quarters and semis) were played straight through, without much of a break? As if, given an
unrelenting schedule and the often extended points of Hardbat play, a winner needed as much
on-court endurance in the slow, slow pace of yesterday as in the fast-paced present?
Of course for yesterdays Topicsthe Apr., 44 one anywaythe action at this St.
Louis Nationals was anything but slow, the Womens winner hardly an inveterate grinder:
...things happened as fast as a three-ring circusso much going on at the
same time that we all went mad trying to keep up....
Sally Green, Indianapolis, Ind., sailed through all competition, winning
everything three straight** to not only defend her title, but to establish a new all-time
record by winning the Womens Singles National Championship five times in a row.
Her drives and slams were as accurate as a rifle shot, but faster, and her beautiful, but
seldom used, defense swept everything before her (6).
Later, on seeing her play, the famous English Coach Jack Carrington said, Sally
Green uses the dropped bat style and is easily the most deceptive hitter I have seen in the
girls game (Table Tennis, Mar., 1952, 9).
Early-round matches of particular interest in the 45-entry Womens were: Shirley
Nelsons down 2-0, deuce-in- the-5th win over George Hendrys sister Melba McLain;
Barbara Cannons up 2-0, 19-in-the-5th near elimination by Colorados #1 Rita Kerns; and
San Antonios Marjorie Willcoxs 5-game win over South Bends Helen Morozo. Two seeded
players drew a Blank and came up short against Milwaukees twin threats: 7th seed Michigan
Closed titleholder Margaret Wilson lost to Carlyn, and 8th seed Kansas City, Missouri TTA
Secretary Dorothy Benson went down to Wisconsin Closed Champ Carrol.
Conspicuously absent were the strong East playersBernice Charney, Peggy McLean,
Mae Clouther, and Reba Monness. Hawthorn beat Kuenz 3-0, then lost -14, -14, 20, -19 in
the quarters to #4 seed Helen Baldwin. In the semis, Helen played perhaps the best match of
her life, but from the edge of her dusted-off mantlepiece tottered and fell what might have
beeninvisible Destiny favored Leah Thall, 26-24 in the 5th.
Though not all the time. Fortune winking at Leah was wickedly fickle. Defending her
Mixed title with Holzrichter, she lost in the semis to the eventual winners Lowry/Green2624 in the 5th. Down match point, Billy juiced a chop return low over the net...and Sally
pulverized it past an astonished Leah. Give her 10 more tries and she couldnt do it again,
said Billy It was the shot of the match. Bellak and Barbara Cannon, recent Michigan Open
runner-up to Leah, could do no more than reach the final with a win over Somael/Hawthorn,
whod been lucky to slip 22-20 in the 5th away from the South Bend team of McColley/
Morozo.
Leah Thall/Baldwin won the Womens Doublesover the Cannon sisters whod taken
a 27-25-in-the-4th semis-sneaker from Hawthorn/Wilson.
So? Is anybody counting? Ask Leahas of now thats 1-2-3 U.S. Open Womens Doubles
and 1-2 Mixed Doubles titles for her. Can it be long before she adds a Singles Championship?
129

1944-45: Familiar E.C. Officers, Familiar Voices

For the upcoming 1944-45 season, the USTTA Nominating Committee (Stan Morest,
Dougall Kittermaster, Ed Cannon) proposed a slate that was to be voted on by the 11
Affiliates (actually, 17 Affiliates were listed in Topics). Only 8 Affiliates Voted For. The
other 3District of Columbia, Michigan, and St. Louis District (piqued for one reason or
another?)didnt vote at all, and were publicly chastised in Topics: The presidents of these
affiliates deprived the members in their associations their rights and privileges to vote as
provided in the Constitution, by not casting their ballot either for or against the slate [each
individual member vote wouldnt necessarily count; the majority of member votes would
determine the one vote the Affiliate would register]. As of Oct. 1, 1944, Illinois under
President Berne Abelew had the largest USTTA membership of any state (144). But D.C.
under Guy Burch had the second largest membership (112), Michigan under Graham
Steenhoven the third largest (110), and St. Louis under Tommy Gibbons the seventh largest
(86). Why this huge chunk of USTTA membership (more than a third) didnt vote was never
discussed in the magazine.
Meanwhile, we read:
Todayin steamy jungles, in Alaskan huts; in fact, wherever tables can be
brought to, or madetable tennis is being played...and enjoyedand is becoming a
permanent part of the sports habits of millions of people who not only never played it
before but possibly scoffed at its manly possibilities.
Civilians as well as members of the armed forces are newly becoming
acquainted with table tennis as it really istruly a full fledged sport.
For years we have been carrying on an educational program [sic] to bring table
tennis to the point of mass population. Gradually, progress has been made. But, in the
past two years, war conditions gave table tennis an impetus that did this very job for
us, and did it wonderfully.
As a result when the day of peace comes, table tennis will be at a point where
expansion can be quick, thorough and permanentIF PLANS TO MEET THE
SITUATION ARE MADE, and are ready for operation....
To make a plan function means that every member of the U.S.T.T.A. will have
a part to play. We are confident that when the time for action arrives, and the plan is
laid out, everyone will be ready and willing to jump in and help do a real job (TTT,
May, 1944, 12).
Now, of course, is not the time for action, so there isnt any planjust the
hopeful refrain that there are thousands who like t.t. and will gladly become USTTA
members.
For better or worse then, some officials are hanging in there. Vice-President Carl Nidy
(he receives as much pleasure from organizing as he does in playing) was elected President
of the USTTA, and as of June 1, 1944 the Association Headquarters had been moved from
Toledo to the Insurance Exchange Building in Des Moines, Iowa, I presume to Nidys own
office. This meant that, although Morris Bassford continued on as Treasurer, and John
Kauderer as Recording Secretary, the three E.C. members from Toledo had bid their fellow
workers adieu. With Past-President Larry Minneker retiring, Executive Secretary Ralph Berry
followed suit and was replaced by Des Moines Helen Baldwin. When Ed Cannon gave up his
130

Vice Presidency, that left only Chicago civil engineer Ed Kuhns remaining as 1st Vice
President, so two new Vice-Presidents had to be brought in.
One was a salesman for a Chain Company, E. W. Ted Chapman, former President
of the Indiana TTA, who back in the 30s had sometimes courted his wife-to-be, Isabel, a
nurse, by devoting date-time to learning to play table tennis. Chapman will later be
profiled in Topics as someone on the move, who doesnt care, for example, to sit and
watch movies. By 1946 hell be serving his third term as USTTA Vice-President and will
be characterized as a joiner. And rightly sofor by then hell be past President of the
Hammond [Indiana] Junior Chamber of Commerce, President of the Community Hospital
Association, a Director in the Lake Hills Country Club, and a member of four or five
lodges (Oct., 1946, 8).
The 3rd V-P, a traffic representative for the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway
Company, Charles F. Cox, Jr., had been President of the Colorado TTA, the affiliate that under
his three-year leadership had shown the greatest growth of any in the Association. Twelve
years ago he and his wife came to table tennis because they were looking for a sport in which
both could participate in and one that would afford good, clean exercise and one that
promoted friendliness, goodwill and good sportsmanship (TTT, May, 1944, 5). A genteel
Idealour Sport promulgated that? It was announced that Cox would move to Tulsa because
of a business promotion, but shortly thereafter he was elected Tournament Chair for his
Denver Club whose President was now Denver Post reporter Frank Haraway.
Wes Bishop remained as Topics Editor, Berne Abelew as Associate Editor. Bishop
justly lamented last years lack
of nation-wide representation
in the magazine: Personally,
as the editor, I think New
York players have taken up
sewing. Likewise for Portland,
and anything west of
Minneapolis [except Denver
of course]. Anything south of
South Bend (thank the Lord
for guys like Varga) have
decided mothballs are more
interesting than Table Tennis.
He urged every Affiliate to
appoint a TOPICS
correspondent (TTT, Oct.,
1944, 5).
The first two issues of
the magazine (Oct. and Nov.,
1944) featured cover cartoons
by Chicago commercial artist
Frank Fosterone showing a
bombardier, preoccupied,
neglecting to pull his bomb
release as hed been ordered
TTT, Nov., 1944, cover
131

to; another a bailed-out airman, anti-aircraft fire exploding all about him, even zipping through
his parachute, totally oblivious to it all. And why was this? Because both airmen were deeply
immersed in reading Topics.
These cartoons were meant to dramatize the intense interest members of the Armed
Services the world over were showing in Table Tennisboth in playing it and watching it.
Says one letter writer to Topics, its amazing how many of the boys from the mountain
country and farm regions never heard of the game at allbut these are the ones who seem to
take to it the quickest and with the most enthusiasm. The cartoons also suggested that our
Service men and women might like to read Table Tennis news from home. So why not buy
them a USTTA membership or at least a subscription to Topics? (Actually, since either costs
just $1 a year, you might as well buy them a membership.) There was a little complication
though. According to the Post Office, USTTA Headquarters may accept subscriptions from
persons serving in the Armed Forces overseas only upon written request from the individual
to whom TOPICS is to be mailed....If this is impossible, the membership may be taken out
with an address in the U.S.A. and re-mailed...for 3 cents regular or 12 cents airmail (TTT,
Nov., 1944, 8/Jan., 1945, 2).
USTTA Servicemen Abroad
Before moving on to the 1944-45 season at home, lets take note that during this next
year some of our USTTA members are quite far flungand most of them maybe not having
the greatest time. Bellaks usefulness to the Army began not by blowing balls across an
exhibition net, but by being trained to put up, over all of San Diego (best to be prepared, eh?)
a balloon barrage of the sort that had saved England. Lacis job, since helium wasnt available,
was, first, to machine-generate, out of silicon, hydrogen that would be put into containers.
Then hed see to it that the balloons that were attached to cables would be brought down,
andCAREFUL!just the right mix of oxygen and hydrogen hosed in to refill them.
But then Bellak was re-classified with Army engineers and assignedwhere hed
be for 2 and yearsto India. From there the U.S. could bomb Japan. Except there was
no gas available for the would-be bombing planes. Hence Lacis responsibility was
twofold: (1) to construct out of metal plates the occasionally needed landing strip for
planes flown into the jungle, and (2) most importantly, to lay down pipelines from Calcutta
through Burma. Every 30 miles in the jungle thered have to be a pumping stationone
capable of exerting 300 pounds per square inch (three times the force necessary to start a
locomotive, said Laci).
Bellak was in charge of about 25 men, and one of the first things he had them do was
dig a deep well there in the jungle where clear water was precious. Then he cleared a lake
made a swimming pool out of it. Continuing to civilize jungle life, he saw to it that generators
not only provided the luxury of hot and cold running water, but that they also allowed for an
electric fan over everyones bed, and outlined at night the path to the four-seat outhouse. Ah,
but the flies in that outhouse. To try to get rid of them, the men would pour gasoline into the
holes. However, Laci said, one fellow had a smoke in the outhouse, then flipped the butt of a
lit cigarette down one of the holes. That night, as they say, the shit really hit the fan.
This experience reminds Bellak, who delights in telling his life stories to anyone wholl
listen, of the time before the War when he was in India putting on exhibitions with Barna.
Given the crude conditions where they were staying this particular night, it was necessary that
Laci, in order to relieve himself, go to a nearby outside pit. In the dark, following a well-worn
132

path, he suddenly stepped right into this shit hole and sunk up to his hips. Some time later,
after Laci had privately cleaned himself up, Barna asked him for directions to this pit. Without
warning Victor, Laci told him, Just follow the path. Barna left, returnedand said he
almost fell into the shit-pit. Laci ends this story by shaking his head and saying, Victor always
was lucky.
Ill return to Bellaks 44-45 overseas adventures in a moment, but first I have to
speak of what in the meantime his friend Hazis been doing. Sometime after his induction in
May of 43, Tibor had spent three months at Fort Harrison, IN attending Finance School.
Now he was settled in, working at the Base Finance Office at Kelly Field, in San Antonio,
Texas. During the summer he gave more than 30 exhibition matches for Army installations,
hospitals, and local USOs during his off-duty hours. He also appeared in a local Brooks Field
Night of Champions with other sports figures, including former World Welterweight
titleholder Fritzie Zivic and St. Louis Cardinal Enos Country Slaughter, 1942 National
League batting champ, who was in Cadet School. Among those assisting Tibor in all these
shows were the Texas tournament regularsCubby and Jodie McCarley, Marjorie Willcox,
Louie Scharlack, Manning Fowler, and Martin Krakauer who told Topics that, after being in a
plane wreck and getting glass in both eyes, he credits his table tennis play with restoring his
normal vision (Feb., 1945, 3).
In mid-November, Hazi of course won everything he entered at the San Antonio Texas
Openthe Singles over Krakauer, the Mixed with Willcox whod won the Womens over
Marteen Ronk, and the Mens Doubles with Scharlack (who enjoyed inviting local Servicemen
to his home where he had a 25 x 40 playroom with two Detroiter AA tables, good lighting,
and air-conditioning). Following these three wins, the Kelly Field Flying Times put the
number of awards tallied by Tibor to date at 1,339.
Since I sometimes get information about Tibor from storyteller Bellak, lets go back,
see how Lacis doing after whatever New Years high he could muster. Yep, hes still on that
pipe dream of a mission. But by February, 45 who else should be in India but Hazi.
According to Laci, Tibors wife Magda was worried about him, so she asked Laci to try to
find him. He obligedtold me he traveled, staying with missionaries en route, until he was
close to the Burma border. And there, somewhere, was Haziforlornly peeling potatoes (or
at least thats what Laci said he was doing). Got a cigarette? Tibor cried, literally cried, on
seeing Laci.
I suspect, however, having seen Tibors scrapbook and a clipping therein from a
Servicemans Holy Cow Newsletter (Assam, India, Feb. 13, 1945), that Hazi, who was with
the Air Force and about to give a local table tennis exhibition under the direction of a Special
Services officer, was not quite so forlorn as Laci pictured him. Perhaps it was through actor
Melvyn Douglaswho, as weve seen from that Aronson letter, was in charge of USO
recreation troupesthat Hazi came to Calcutta to do exhibitions. At any event, Laci said that
once a month he had to journey to Calcutta for supplies and that Hazi would see him there.
They frequented a Chinese restaurant, which, according to Bellak, Hazi didnt much like until
he ate shrimp fried rice. Then, every meal, it was shrimp fried rice, shrimp fried rice.
Its not clear to me whether Tibor was in attendance when Laci lost a deuce in the 5th
final there in Calcutta at the Bengal Championships to Aronson, for it was on Christmas Day
that Chubby wrote home to his family in Chicago that hed had this great win (he was down 20 and down match point in the 5th but stayed alive with, as Topics put it, one of those
incredible two-handed drop shots he made so famous. Thanks to Douglas, Chubby had
133

indeed, along with Ned Steele, been touring the China-Burma-India (C-B-I) area, and had
been a big hit at exhibition after exhibition.
He was shown on the cover of the Dec., 1944 Topics playing in a chair, one foot
propped up on the table, while, to the amusement of the Servicemen in the background, he
casually read from a small book at the same time he ho-hum block-returned his opponents
ball. Topics reported that The Evening News of India found Aronson irresistible, and said
that he brought the house down with his clowning. The best feature of any Aronson
Program was his effort to play with his racquet in his mouth. It sounds utterly incredible,
said the News article, but Aronson controls his return with precision and beats his opponents
with superb placements. Word was that during one particular exhibition, which also had its
serious side, Aronson defeated the Bombay Provincial Champion R.S. Cooper (later a student and
Central league player in London), and that back in October hed won the All-India title (8; 12).
For some reason,
however, Aronsons name was
never on the USTTA Honor
Roll. A not forgotten Bill Price,
you remember, did belatedly get
his name thereand that was
before he wrote to Coleman
Clark that hed been wounded
in action:
I was hit by a
fragment of a German 120 mm
mortar shell, the fragment
lodging in my right ankle where
it is going to stay. An operation
to remove it would endanger
the tendon so were letting well
enough alone. I dont know if
Ill go back in show business or
not, a lot depends on how my ankle
reacts (TTT, Nov., 1944, 5).
Several months later
though, Bill writes again from
TTT, Dec., 1944, cover
Italy that he was part of a
Herbie Aronson entertaining G.I.s overseas. (Is that forehand
hastily gathered U.S. Team
against Ned Steele one of Herbies two-handed specials?)
that beat a British Team, so
apparently his ankle couldnt have been bothering him too much.
Table Tennis was always popular at hospitals. The Rochester, N.Y. player Ted Moser
played exhibitions at them when he was stationed in Algiers. And Londoner C. Corti
Woodcock, former English TTA Chairman and now Honorary Vice President of the USTTA,
who acted as Ruth Aarons advisor at her 1937 disciplinary hearing with Ivor Montagu,
says that Barnas exhibitions alone (U.S. Army Medical Corps Capt. Stan Morest, based in
England, prevailed on Victor to come to his hospital) have so far earned the best part of
134

15,000 pounds for Red Cross funds. Manny Moskowitz wrote Topics from somewhere in the
Pacific that, after he suffered a broken bone in his right, playing hand, he won a Red Crosssponsored tournament playing left-handed. Later, well see that Hazi will team up with Bellak
on an Exhibition Tour of India and Burma (once remarking that they performed at Red Cross
clubs with eight tables and were busy all day).
Also, in the
absence of her
husband, Magda
Hazi, back in
Washington, D.C.,
answered the call
of the Red Cross
and went out to
play table tennis
with the wounded
at Walter Reed
Hospital. Some
of them are in
wheel chairs, she
said, some have
already their
artificial legs and
some lost either
their right or left
arm; but it is
amazing how
Magda Hazi - plays with the wounded
cheerful these
boys are and how anxious they are to learn the game, or to re-learn it with their left hand
(TTT, May, 1945, 7).
Yessir, everybody wants to get a handle on the Game, play table tenniser, pingpong.
SELECTED NOTES
*At Nashs 1991 Hall of Fame Induction, he, and indeed a son echoing him, seemed
very proud of the fact that Garrett had never worked a day in his lifehad always found it
challenging to take what opportunities he could to survive by his wits.
**See Tribute to John and Pauline Somael in TimmysSept.-Oct., 1983, 25.
Though its human nature to want to exaggerate and so mythologize the more Somaels
amazing comeback, there does seem to be more evidence that the score was 20-13 rather than
20-14 when Johnny began his rally. In the Nov., 1945 Topics, 3, an article by Oldtimer also
says the score was 20-13.As for Les not playing after what had to be a traumatic loss, there
werent any tournaments for him to play in. New England wasnt holding any, and by the time
N.Y. got round to having their first of the season, the Dec. 8-9 N.Y. Open, Les was already in
the Service.

135

Chapter Thirteen
1944: Opening Half-Season Tournaments. 1944: Appearance of Marty Reisman.
1944-45: Midwest Tournaments; Western Open. 1945: Other Tournaments; Eastern Open.
Its Wartimepeople on the home front are busy. Can they be serious about playing
table tennis? Serious enough to become a USTTA member? War or no War, its the decadesold questionand approached in the decades-old way. President Nidys right-hand, his
Executive Secretary Helen Baldwin, the new Membership Chairman whod succeeded the
Ive-had-enough Larry Minneker, announces a Membership Contest between the USTTA
Affiliates. Except that, with regard to some of these Affiliates, ought we to think, Whats the
use? Until the necessary local Saviour arrives, forget Maryland, Minnesota, Massachusetts,
and Pennsylvania? Those states, once with hundreds of members (five years ago Pennsylvania
had 501 members, now they have 9), couldnt even qualify for consideration, for to be in the
Contest an Affiliate had to have at least 25 of the now only 1232 USTTA members listed in
the season-ending May, 44 Topics. Of course there are incentive prizes for the current 13
Affiliates eligible (you can soon make that 14, for all Texas has to do is hold that Nov.
tournament with Hazi to increase its members from 5 to 48). Two prizes: one for the Affiliate
with the largest membership, and another for the one with the largest percent of increase.
Specifically the prizes will beready? high quality pre-war balls and paddles. Uh, how
many of these are there, and they will go specifically towho?
Never mind. With Berne Abelew as its new President, Affiliate leader Illinois144
members as of the Oct., 44 Topicsis game. Indeed, even before they have their fall
Membership Open, they put on their first ever Chicago summer tournamentand maybe their
last, for the temperature, as Editor Wes Bishop reported in that same issue of Topics (7), was
90 degrees in the shade, and strictly ceiling unlimited for the player. Mens winner in this
Western States Summer Open was Bob Andersonangling-in drives in the final against South
Bends Henry Gish. Andy had just been given a medical discharge from the Service, and was
about to take Allan Thomass (that is, Allan Levys) place touring with Coleman Clark.
Bishop said that Milwaukees Blank twins, Carrol and Carlyn, hit the jack pot of
audience-favor by appearing in different costumes, so that it was the first time that people
have been able to tell which was which. Carrol, unmistakably, was the twin who won, while
Carlyn, unmistakably was the twin who was upset 27-25 in the 5th in the semis by Mary
Specht.
Bishop also covered the 14th annual Illinois Membership tournamentand opened his
write-up by noting that Mens winner Chief Petty Officer Don MacCrossen had just returned
from serving in Tunisia, Anzio, and Salerno. The wild wampus from Wisconsin had a tale
or two to tellat least, according to Editor Bishop whod taken over the telling (see the
unsigned Overseas News in TTT, Dec., 1944, 5). Turns out Don had been only about 50 feet
from Mt. Vesuvius when it started erupting (buta quick end to that storyfor apparently he
got the hell out of there and never looked back). However, near the city of Pozzouli, said
Bishop, Don was walking back from a few hours shore leave when his curiosity got the
better of him
It was late, in a lonely, deserted water-front village. The only sound was
this weird noise that Don heard as he passed a dimly lit house. Weird, strange, yet
136

familiar. Don stopped and cautiously peered in the window. Two small Italian boys
were playing table tennis on a home-made 4x8 table, with not much more than a rag
for a net and two home-made paddles. Don of course knocked and was cordially
received. The children knew no English, Don knew no Italianbut managed to
explain topspin, chop, and a few finer points of the game. He said he left there about
dawn with the memory of two ear-to-ear grateful grins following him down the
narrow, crooked street.
These small boys lived alone? Though it was late at night, maybe even in the wee
small hours of the morning, Don of course knocked andwhy, hello there!he was
cordially received, and he and the kids played until about dawnwhen others in the house
(if there were others in the house), uncomplaining sound sleepers all, awoke to hear of this
fairy-tale-like strange visitor.
I tell you, you gotta watch what you read in Topics. But I do believe that in this
Chicago Membership tournament the wampus whumped Anderson in the semis and then
Columbus, Ohios Naval Aviation Cadet Guy Blair (9, 18, -20, 19) in the final. Bishop thought
highly of Blairs play: Just imagine, if you can, he says, kill shots being driven backand
murderous drives being killed. As it happens, I can imagine it, can imagine Guy beating John
Varga in the quarters and Abelew in the semis, and then contesting Anderson. For in little
more than half a dozen years, Ill be playing in Columbus and have occasion to see Blairs by
then only occasional hot forehand, and chuckle over his You know, aerodynamically
speaking, bumblebees cant flywhich I assume now was something that struck him in those
impressionable days when he was an Aviation Cadet.
Since Illinois had been leading all other Affiliates in total Membership, to try to hold
their position in front of the pack, they quickly ran their third tournament, the Chicago
District. In the Mens final, Varga downed his protg, Early, the Junior winner, Big John,
who this season would go from #11 in the USTTA Rankings to # 6, maintainedastonishing
as it might seem at first glancethat his game was IMPROVING by teaching and playing
with players much weaker than himself. Why? Because he, as Coach of all those South Bend
Juniors, was suddenly finding small or large flaws in his own game (TTT, March, 1945, 2).
Of course the fact that hes now playing in tournaments weekend after weekend might have
something to do with his game improving.
Boys Champ Gordon Barclay brought Defending Mens Champ Berne Abelew to a
struggling 5-game end. Topics said of Barclay, His temperament, winning or losing, is a
pleasure to behold, and he seems to have that rare quality of playing his game and fighting all
the time no matter who he plays. In short, hes the Sports All-American Boy. In the
Womens, Carrol Blank drew just that this tourney. Recently married LaVera Weber Levin
beat Carrol and then Baldwin with surprising ease. An exciting Veterans final, though, in
which Carl Nagy 12, 18, -19, -21, -14 outlasted Marlin Tucker.
Michigans membership dramatically increased (from 110 to 147) after Detroit held its
Nov. 11-12 Jack Taggert Memorial Open. As I mentioned before, Taggert, a member of
Detroits Intercity team before going into the Service, died when the plane he was in, on
taking-off from a carrier, crashed into the sea. A 5 x 3 enlarged photo of Jack was displayed in
his memory. The unusual trophies given out in this Arsenal of Democracy were exact scale
models of B-17s and P-40s mounted on bases.
Meanwhile, if there are tournaments in the East, Topics sure doesnt know about them.
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Theres nothing much happening in the former hotbeds of New England. Mae Clouther, well
hear, continues her work at hospitals, continues to Captain the Boston Stage Door Canteen,
and continues to keep the Colonial Club open two nights a week. Her Massachusetts cochampion Les Lowry got a bad breakwas the victim of the Army Air Forces decision to
release a large group of pilots in training and put them in the ground forces, so Les, much to
his disappointment, is now with the infantry. As for New Englands most promising young
player, Frank Dwelly, hes already a vet of the Marshall Islands, Saipan and Tinian
campaigns.
But at least New York was organizing. At an Oct. 9th meeting at the Park Central
Hotel, Reba Monness was elected to a 1-year term as President. Henry Herrmann, Dick Miles,
Lou Pagliaro, and Mary Reilly were named Vice-Presidents. William Saltzman was the
Treasurer, and Davida Hawthorn the Secretary. John Kauderer, Arnold Fetbrod, and Herwald
Lawrence were among the established Committee heads.
Reba is also back writing her More or Less column for Topics. Shes strongly urging
the USTTA to make it mandatory that every player wear a dignified white in tournaments and
exhibitions (like the very successful Coleman Clark who, Reba tells us, meticulously washes
and irons all of his clothes and presses all of his suits and ties). Reba says that every top-notch
player in the country she and her friends interviewed agreed that, no, they would not lose sight
of the white ball against an opponent dressed in white (Dec., 1944, 4).
Influential John Varga, however, is adamantly opposed to white playing attire. Editor
Bishop, though he objects to the riotous rainbow of distracting colors worn by the players,
and agrees that whites fine for exhibitions, argues that in tournaments the constant strain of
looking at all white might affect some, if not all players. He points out that army surgeons
and hospitals are demanding pastels to ease eye strain (TTT, Feb., 1945, 3). Mildred
Shipman, while also agreeing that whites right for exhibitions, says that for tournament play
we need a dark colored uniform. Heres her ideal suggestion (though she admits it might be
too advanced for our present tournament play):
Why doesnt each state adopt a style of jacket and slacks (or shorts for the
girls who prefer them), making the color agreeable to the tournament rules. A shirt
style and color (either contrasting or matching the jacket and slacks) would also be
decided upon, and all players from each state would wear said uniform with state
emblem thereonto all tournaments.I think it would appeal to the spectators to see
all players dressed alike, with variations of color, and with the state emblem indicating
the many states represented in each tournament (TTT, May, 1945, 7).
Ah, Millie, youll wait way too long for New Yorkers to dress uniformly. They will
finally get round to holding a tournament, thoughtheir Dec. 8-9, 1944 New York City
Open. In the Mens final that provided a large crowd of spectators with thrill after thrill,
Pagliaro completely mastered the terrific blast of Miless forehandthat is, after Louie had
lost the first two games to Dick. Schiff partnered Mae Clouther to a win in the Mixed over Dr.
Mitchell Silbert and Davida Hawthorn. Reba sort of salivates over Clouther who she says has
lost pounds and pounds. Maes figure, she says, is truly pleasing, she wears white shorts in
tournaments, with [cant get nylons, you know] suntan leg makeup, ooh la la, wait until you
see herElizabeth Arden ought to pay for an ad in TOPICS (TTT, Feb., 1945, 4).
Absent from this strong tournament were: Eddie Pinner who was a waist gunner on
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B-52 missions somewhere in the Pacific; Johnny Somael who was up at Cornell taking a
special army course for medical students; and Doug Cartland who was in Italy on Tour with
Harry Cook. Doug told me much later that he and Harry were with other GI entertainers
Jascha Heifetz, Mickey Rooney, and then acrobat Burt Lancasterand that, starting at
Naples, as the English and the Americans pushed back the Nazis, they followed.
In the Womens, Peggy McLean beat Charney in a 5-game final that for audience
appeal rivaled the Mens. The Juniors? Well, that event was very special, historic, in factfor
it was the first time in Topics wed read of the Reisman brothers. David, the older of the two,
came through with a 5-game semis win over Irwin Miller, and Marty joined him after a
momentous 19, 23, 18, -24, 14 set-to with former winning N.Y. Intercity member Morris
Chait. After David lost this final to Marty in straight games, he took out whatever frustrations
he might have had not on a table tennis court but in a boxing ring, and we wouldnt hear about
him any more. But MartyMarty!
Appearance of Marty Reisman
THE Reisman was born Feb. 1, 1930. Baby Reisman it said on his birth certificate.
Mother: Sarah, 20 years old, from Russia. Father: Morris, 25, living with his wife and now
two sons on East Broadway in Manhattan. Brother: David, 1 and .
Martys father was a cab driver, a bookmaker, and a gamblera compulsive loser,
says Marty in his celebrated fact-become-fiction autobiography, The Money Player (1974). In
other words, a father, you might say, who did not practice what he preached but showed by
his example how wise it would be for Marty to hustle bets on some sure thing. Morriss
marriage lasted until 1940, after which Marty lived with his mother until he was 14, then,
since it was obvious his father would encourage him to play table tennis and be proud of his
successes, he moved in with him. Marty wont forget that Broadway Central Hotelits
grandiose ballroom, dining room, and soft lobby couches a fading reminder of what a plush
place it had once been.
In the beginning it was Martys brother David who played table tennis, while Marty
only wanted to collect balls used in the Game. Perhaps almost mystically he sensed the worlds
in miniature they could contain for himit was only a matter of concentration, of focus to
show him what might be found therein. This was a schoolboy who enjoyed using a
microscope (today he collects them).*
In 1960 hed tell a reporter for the New York Times how, at the age of 12at the
Educational Alliance, a settlement house on the Lower East Side [its chief benefactor the
stage and screen star Eddie Cantor], he was first drawn to table tennis. It was a process of
discovery:
I was in the chemistry club dissecting frogs, he recalled, but one day I went
down to the gym to watch my brother play table tennis. I hit the ball a couple of times
and I knew that this was it.
Marty waved his racket hand over something magical that day and, as worlds
formed, he had a new identity, the first of many: the Seward Park Champion.
Where now, he wanted to know, was the fabled Lawrences Club?
Not where he thought it wasthe table tennis place he frequented for a few months,
indeed, for $7 a week and free table time, was responsible for opening the doors to in the
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afternoons, cutting his last class, typing, to do so. This was Arnolds, just down from Jack
Dempseys restaurant, on Broadway between 49th and 50th. Here he kept asking everyone,
Where are all the good players?
Out on the road, they said.
When are they coming back?
In the Spring,
The Arnolds habitus liked having Marty aroundthis enthusiastic innocent. Liked
his energy, his humorfor those in some clubs too soon start to grow old.
But Marty wised upa little at a time. Just a few blocks up Broadway he found
Lawrencesand who he thought was the porter therea black man sweeping the wooden
floor, his broom sprinkled with a curious green powder that caught the eye. The man looked
at him. Care for a game, old chap?
It was as if the dust this man was trying to keep down had gotten into Martys eyeshe felt
hed been misled. Could this be the place he was looking for? But, really, he was at Lawrences,
and this man, originally from Barbados, was the gentlemanly, articulate Lawrence himself.
Perhaps on this particular day Reisman had been satisfied just to make a confused
appearance. But count on him to be back, to sooner or later find this fellow Milesand, when
Dicks opponent of the moment took a break, brash young Marty jumped over the barrier of
protocol to ask, Want to hit a few?
To which Dick, one of the best players in the country and the 4 and years difference
in age between them then meaning something, responded,
No. Thus signaling the opening salvo of, if not their
continued, sometimes playful insults, round after round of
mutually explosive shots and spectators shouts of anguish or
approval.
The Nov. 19-20, 1943 Metro Open, held at
Lawrences, had a Junior eventbut Marty, then, according
to The Money Player, the Citys Under 13 Champion, was not
listed among the semifinalists. Of course hed been trying to
improve his game against any good player he could find.
Mitchell Silbert, at that time one of the Top 10 players in New
York, remembered to his dying day in the 1990s, and always
with a chuckle, how Marty had pleaded plaintively, Dr.
Silbert, would you play with me? And Silbert, as we see in
coming back to that Dec., 44 New York City Open, was
good enough to get to the semis before losing to Paggy, 16,
17, 20.
NYTTA President Monness, in her Dec., 44 Topics
column (10), correctly predicts that Miles could win the
Nationals but shes less right in saying that this terrific
young player Reisman within the very near futureshould be
U.S. champion. She lauds Marty for being intelligent and
for having an excellent competitive temperament. No
wonder theyd be friends for 40 years.
Though with the coming of the second half of the 44TTT, Jan., 1948, 3
45
season,
Marty was just going to turn 15, a boy could more
Marty Reismancoming of age
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easily mature in those War years than at another earlier time. It would therefore be acceptable
for him to be called on, as a youngster when young men were scarce, to give table tennis
exhibitions. And how convenient, and how important it made him feel, to be picked up in a
limousine. Marty remembers putting on several exhibitions for bandleader Fred Warings show
at the CBS building in Manhattan, and for Servicemen being rehabilitated at Fort Dix and Fort
Monmouth in New Jersey. Once he recalls even playing in a mental hospital where an inmate,
on observing Marty, ran around the table ranting and raving. Marty also speaks of several
performances he gave on the stage of New York theaters with Clark, and how astonished he
was to see Cokey catch and hold 1-2-3-4 ping-pong balls in his mouth. However, Marty also
had the impression that if he ever put any spin on the ball, Cokey, refined gentleman off-court
that he was, would look at him like, Forget about me blowing these balls out and back, Im
ready to spit at you for real.
Midwest Tournaments; Western Open
That Clarks regular exhibition partner will continue to be Bob Anderson is clear when
Cokey, with his genial personality, his honest friendliness, and pleasant smile, dropped into
Chicagos North-Town Club toward the end of winter to rehearse with Andy and their
commentator Earl Wing, youthful veteran of NBC radio shows. Naturally the players at the
Club, many whod never seen his act, all gathered round to watch. Pretty soon there were
screams of laughter. Heres what Topics had to say about this consummate professionals
practice:
The Jingle Bells with the frying pans is one of the neatest take-offs of table
tennis ever to hit the stage or screen. The balancing of the ball on Clarks nose has a
surprising outcome that will leave you howlingno, you cant guess, youll just have
to see it. The rubber ball that hops back and forth over the net and leaps from side to
side with both Andy and Cokey swiping and missing it is a killer. The machine-gun
like chatter from commentator Wing keeps you on the edge of your seatand that 11
point game they play is, without a doubt, table tennis at its best! (Apr., 1945, 5).
At the Jan. 6-7 St. Joe Valley Open at South Bend, Anderson had some free time, but,
without Cokey to crack the whip on him, didnt perform up to expectations. He was beaten in
the semis of the Singles, 3-zip, by Hersh, and then in the Doubles was accused, as Topics put
it, of nonchalant playing in the consequently marred final when he and the now elevated
to Topics co-Editor, Abelew , went down, deuce in the 4th, to Bill Early/Sam Shannon. In the
other Mens semis, Bob Green was eliminated by Varga in 5. In the 25, -19, 14, 18 final, Max,
with superb drives and four consecutive killshots at the end of the 4th, had the crowd
screaming (TTT, Feb., 1945, 5).
Minnesota planned to emphasize one day tournaments, for they had the following
advantages: easy to run,no long waits between matches, and [better] spectator interest.
But by seasons end, since Minnesota tournaments hadnt been reported to Topics, and since,
of all the major Midwest affiliates, Minnesota had lost the most membersalmost 40Mrs.
Grant, Minnesota Womens Champ and newly appointed USTTA Womens Chair, has maybe
put a made-up face on the state of play up there. However, shell write out a series of table
tennis questions for a Sport Quiz program on WLOL Minneapolis-St. Paul.: When the
table tennis game reaches the score of deuce, what is that score?When is the center white
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line on the table used in a contest?. These questions will stump the experts and earn
her $15.
On the Jan. 20-21 weekend, Chicago held the Illinois Open. Seaman 1/c Billy
Holzrichter wasnt therebut he did write to Topics from the Philippines: Im living five men
in a tent with a raised wooden floor and electric lights. We have open air showers. The grub
isnt bad either, but incomplete. Billy was optimistic enough to enclose money to renew his
USTTA membership for 45-46-47.
Who arrives from overseas, however, to win the Mens from Varga but the Bengal
Champion himself, Corporal Herb (Chubby) Aronson. The Topics write-up says the spectators
were amazed and delighted by Aronsons two-handed dexterity, and impossible dropshots. His game was distinctly better than ever beforeperhaps because hes added a
backhand chop and drive to his pre-war stock in trade (Feb., 1945, 6).
Quite surprisingly Aronsons semis opponent turned out to beMax Rushakoff,
runner-up to Jimmy McClure in the 1934 Parker Brothers APPA Nationals. In practice, Max
had been fooling around, amusing old timers, by playing with a tennis gripuntil suddenly
shouting with his old spontaneity, What am I doing? Im a penholder!he switched to his
old penhold grip and started smacking in balls. Which is precisely what he did in this
tournament in his 19-in-the-5th quarters win against U.S. #8 Mel Nichols. Says one writer in
one issue of Topics, were all glad to see him back for he puts color, sparkle and an
occasional explosion into the game. (Like when he combines playing serious points while
munching on a banana?) Says another (or the same?) writer in a later issue, if Max would
only learn to control his emotions (strangers just cant understand him) he would be a
welcome addition to every tournament. The man is sometimes an embarrassment?
Sgt. Sam Hoffner from New York (but stationed at least momentarily in the Chicago
area?) said his lack of competition while in Service distorted my sense of values to such an
extent that I thought I had a fair chance of winning [sic: the Mens]as the dark horsewhat
with all the good players in the army (I thought). He then went on to say, after seeing
Barclay lose in the Juniors that he is really amazing at his age. Ed Pinner and Lou Pagliaro,
with whom Ive played from the start, never were as good until years latera judgment,
which, with all due respect to all concerned, is also likely a distortion of reality.
In the Womens, LaVera Levin showed true grit in 14, -20, -22, 14, 12 fighting off Mary
Spechts challenge. But neither woman had an easy time getting to the final. LaVera had to go 5 to
beat fellow Chicagoan Jean Scranton, and Mary, to her great credit, knocked off U.S. #9 Carrol
Blank and U.S. #4 Helen Baldwin. Last year, after only that one season of competitive play, Specht
was ranked U.S. #25. Now she was featured in an action shot on the cover of the Jan., 1945 Topics,
and described therein as having a hard, accurate drive from forehand and backhand, a biting chop,
and a fine temperament (2). Before losing to Levin, Mildred Shipman continued her return to
form by besting Mona Buell, 20, 17, -18, 20. The Blank twins won the Womens Doubles in 5 over
Baldwin/Helen Dziubinski (formerly Helen Morozo).
With tournaments every week in the Midwest, no wonder the USTTA Membership
slide had been stoppedindeed, by seasons end the Association will have gained 200
members, up from 1232 to 1417. The Michigan Affiliate, under President Graham
Steenhoven, won both prizes in the Balls and Paddles contest. In Oct., Michigan had 110
members; four months later they had 222, a 100% increase, and were ambitiously ready to
host the April Nationals. Howd they get so many more to sign up when, unfortunately, in the
last month of the Contest five other states lost a balancing 100 members? Well, the fact that
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Steenhoven was opportunistic helped. At the Feb. 3-4 Michigan Open, Graham displayed a
large poster with names of players in service in the left hand column. The right hand side,
reserved for names of sponsors, was quickly filled in by stay-at-home members who
volunteered to buy a membership for the soldiers and sailors (TTT, Mar., 1945).
At this Michigan Open,
Hersh won his sixth straight
Detroit News, Apr. 8, 1945
tournamentbeat Varga in the
Max Hersh
final, from down 2-0 and 20-17
triple match-point in the 3rd.
However, in the Doubles, Hersh,
partnered by Abelew, lost to
Shannon/Early. So much was
made of the fact that Shannon
had grown a beard (no one in
table tennis wore one in the
1940s?) that the cover of the
Feb. Topics showed him in a
dual role as hallowed saint
(via a photo-doctored halo of
light) and as (turn the cover
wrong-side up) turbaned
swami. Just some imaginative
fun (for your Table Tennis
Album) by boyish Editors Bishop and
Abelew.
TTT, Feb., 1945, cover
The St. Louis District TTA was another
Sam Shannon
Affiliate that initially had made a big
Doubling as Saint?
advance in their membershiptheyd
Or Swami?
picked up over 50 members. Where, you
might ask, was St. Louiss ex-World
Doubles Champion Buddy Blattner? Here
and there in the South Pacific giving table
tennis exhibitions with tennis great Bobby
Riggs who reportedly once said that
playing table tennis ruins his lawn tennis
(TTT, Mar., 1938, 7). Apparently, it was
Sussman, not Blattner, who won the
Hawaiian Championships for those in
Service.** Further, Cy then got
permission from his commanding officer
to tour the Islands playing USO table
tennis shows with Miss Jini OConnor,
one of the well-known New Jersey sisters
of that name.
At the Feb. 17-18 Milwaukee Open, South Bends Bill Early scored the greatest
triumph of his table tennis career. After surviving a 5-game match with Abelew in the semis,
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he defeated Varga, his acid-tonguedmentor and guiding hand, and did it under
circumstances requiring the utmost in nerve, courage and stability. Down 2-0, Bill wound
upand in a driving attack that took its toll of Johns steadiness, won the next 3 (the 4th at
deuce). His victory was greeted with a standing ovation (TTT, Mar., 1945, 2; 12-13).
It wasnt until the Feb. 24-25 Western Open at Chicagos North-Town Club that current
and 5-time National Womens Champion Sally Green made a re-appearance in Topics. Surely she
must have hit balls somewhere? Enough, anywayfor she was able, with her ever present crossed
fingers, to get by the formidable Leah Thall in the final. Leah made some beautiful gets when
Sally burned them down the backhand corners, but lost 18 in the 5 th. Said one observer, Was not
Sally simply superb when she was proudly, even arrogantly, defending what she claimed as her
rights, by bitter contest, to the Championship? What a recovery, after Leah had her down, when
Sally hit her stride through those final terrific drives.
Sally apparently didnt play the Mixed, but just as if it were yesterdaywell, 1939,
1940she and her former U.S. Open co-Champion Mildred Shipman won the Womens
Doubles. I was surprised that Kuenz, who generally only plays locally, went to Chicago, but
she knew what she was doing, for she and Lasater upset Thall/Varga in 5 in the Mixed final. In
the Mens, Hersh, having gotten by Abelew in a 19-in-the-5th semis, had an unexpectedly easy
time with Aronson who was bewildered by Maxs blistering drives.
Other Tournaments; Eastern Open
Tibor Hazis absence in D.C. had proved disastrous. President Guy Birch had been
wildly enthusiastic at the start of the season. Earlier, the D.C. TTA had initiated a junior and
boys tournamentevery Friday nightwhich drew 21 stories in the Washington
newspapers. Then Burch got the idea of a series of point tournaments (with points being
awarded, much as in past Hammond/Wilkinson Cup play, for both participation and results).
All this local interest, he thought, was sure to pay off. So confident was he that he put in a bid
to hold the 45 Nationals and issued a challenge to Membership leader Illinoissaid if they
couldnt get 225 members they wouldnt win the Balls and Paddles Contest, D.C would (TTT,
Nov., 1944, 7). So what happened? Never mind the Nationals, the D.C. Association didnt
run a single sanctioned tournament, and their membership suffered the worst decline of any
Affiliate during the seasonwent from 117 to 55.
At seasons end, Dougall Kittermaster, USTTA Tournament Committee Chair, could
take encouragement from the fact that there were almost twice as many sanctioned
tournaments this year as last. However, almost all of these, as were seeing, are being played
in the Midwest. Anyway, Kittermasters tournament duties, after more than a decade, are
over. Soon hell leave Chicago for Windsor, Canada with his new bride, to be top man of a
Gold and Copper mine which he inherited from his family.
The only remaining tournament played this season in the East was the March 10th
(one day only) Easterns, held at the Masonic Hall in New Rochelle, N.Y. Stanley Church, the
Mayor himself, was there and gave someone the key to something, though apparently not to
the venue, for it was made clear that, whether play was over or not, the Hall would be locked
up promptly at midnight.
Never fearMiless win in the Mens was quick. Likewise, Peggy McLeansshe
mercilessly 12, 8, 8 annihilated Davida Hawthorn in the semis before allowing Bernice Charney an
average 18 points a game. McLean may have started with Herwald Lawrence as her mentor, but
Reba Monness says that for four years now Peggys been taking lessons from Pagliaro. As for the
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17-year-old Charneya shy girl, never wore make-up, said her contemporary Harold
KupfermanReba grants that she has natural talent, but claims she needs more strokes and
strategy. Reba also points out that Bernice isnt the fighter she was since her brother David, five
years her senior, who helped her learn the strokes and gave her pep talks, has been in Service.
However,George Chotros ardent rooting should inspire her.
Reba thought Somael had put on too much weight, but he and Sol Schiff defeated
Webb and Milwaukees Duane Maule to win the Doubles. Only in the Juniors was there much
excitement. In the one semis, Marty Reisman 14, 23, -19, 14 downed Irving Miller; in the
other, Keith Tibby Shaber outlasted Morris Chait in 5. Marty then won the final in 4.
Long Island held a Closed, but it doesnt seem to have been a sanctioned
tournamentthe more so because it was played at East Rockaway on Apr. 13th, the first day
of the Detroit Nationals. Mens winner Arnold Fetbrod didnt care, and neither did the
runner-upnone other than Mark Matthews (yep, the Marcus Schussheim of old), who keeps
mysteriously reappearing from time to time to remind us of what our heritage was and how
weve progressed. Under President Frank Milano, the LITTA currently had 70 USTTA
members, most of them playing in weekly 16-team round robin matches. .
The only sanctioned tournament reported in the Souththe Feb. 4th Miami Open, held
in Miami Beachgave the USTTA 18 new members. New Yorker Sam Hoffner, who
apparently didnt play in the tournament, said that interest in the Game in Miami Beach was
only fair, with not enough tables or good enough equipment and facilities in most cases for
the number of players.
Could that same assessment of the Game be made in cities everywhere in the U.S.?
SELECTED NOTES.
*Marty once sent me a Dec. 19, 1995 N.Y. Times article about a device called a
scanning interferometric apertureless mircroscope [SIAM] that can directly examine and
analyze fragments of matter as small as genes.
**In the Jan. and Mar., 1945 issues of Topics, the Overseas News column speaks of
Blattner and Riggs playing a series of exhibitions in the South Pacific. In the Apr., 1945
Topics, Dr. Harry Sage, Chief Medical Officer aboard the U.S.S. Typhoon, reports that in the
Hawaiian Championships, for service personnel, Bud Blattner defeated Joe Kolady in the
finals and defeated Bobby Riggs in the semis (6). However, in the Feb., 1945 Topics, Reba
Monness says Cy Sussman just won the championship of Hawaii (4), and in the Nov., 1945
Topics, the Overseas News receives a letter from Sussman himself that says, The only table
tennis Ive played was in the Hawaiian Open (which he won) [this is an interpolation by the
Editor] and a few exhibitions with Bobby Riggs. Newspaper clippings I have show two
Servicemen at a base fighting it out to play Riggs, supposedly for the 14th Naval District
Championship, then Riggs easily defeating the winner. When, immediately afterwards, the
call went out for Riggs to play volunteers, Sussman was the army entry and beat Bobby, 2-1.
In a Mar. 7, 2000 letter to me, Cy recalls the famous challenge match when I was stationed at
Hickam Field in the Pacific. In a short bio of Sussman, which presumably he got from Cy,
George Schein says Cy won the Hawaiian Open Championships and the servicemens
championship (the above 14th Naval District Championship?) by defeating Bobby Riggs in the
finals. It would seem, though, that if Cy did win both Hawaiian Championships, he still
considers the challenge match the most significant.

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Chapter Fourteen
1945: Seasons Remaining Midwest Tournaments. 1945: Davida Hawthorn, Dick
Miles New U.S. Open Champions. 1945-46: USTTA Elects Veteran Officials. 1945-46: May
and BeyondNot All Players Home After V-E, V-J Days.
At the Mar. 3-4 Ohio Open in Columbus Bill Early upset Max Hersh in 5this after
Max, in winning 1-2-3-4-5-6-7 straight tournaments, had gone through the season undefeated.
John Varga, as President of the Indiana TTA, and probably the most respected coach
in the country with the success of Early and just-turned-teenager Gordon Barclay, often found
an audience and when he did was apt to speak authoritativelyespecially when, as here in
Columbus, he was watching his South Bend charges.Early won the Juniors from Ohios
Spencewhod 19, 16, -22, 24 had to work hard in the semis to beat Barclay. Exactly 50
years later, the 67-year-old Early was telling me that while Gordy was playing a match John
would explain loudly to others what the boy was doing wrong. This Early found
disconcerting. Perhaps the more so because he realized Varga would be talking that way about
him when he was playing? As I presume Vargas loud play-by-play description wasnt meant
as an indirect coaching communication to his on-court pupil, would both Barclay and Early,
though unable to hear just what Varga was saying off-court, understand that he was being
critical, his tone negativeand would this put added pressure on them? If so, they certainly
learned to keep their self-possession.
Moreover, by all accounts no one was going to change Vargas modus operandi. God
forbid, said Early, if John caught one of the kids gambling or swearinghed have a fit.
Another of his strongly-held-to-Rules was that no one could come through his Clubs streetdoor to get to another part of the Y. One time, said Early, he saw barrel-chested John
physically stop someone trying to do just that. He started shaking this guy up and down, even
while he was telling one of the kids to call the police. You are a stranger here but once, read
a sign in the Club. Apt, ironically, for this intruder too. And yet John could also be flexible. He
knew the personalities of his pupilsEarly was excitable, Barclay modest and quietand he
handled them accordingly.
At the Mar. 17-18 Toledo Lake City Open, Early had to strugglefirst, to beat
Shannon in 5, then Abelew, -12, 23, 19, 19, and finally Varga in 5. Topics had a photo of 5time U.S. Champion Sally Green on its Apr., 45 cover with the caption, How long can Sally
win? With regard to this Toledo tournamentall through all the events she entered. The
description of Sally in that Apr. Topics goes like this:
[It] looks as though Sally is a top heavy favorite to win her 6th
National.And table tennis is proud of having produced such a fine champion. Sallys
ever crossed fingers and her self-admonishing Oh Sally bring smilesher superb
game, unquenchable spirit, and gentle sportsmanship mark her as a true champion.
Should her time come to lose, we know that such a situation will be faced with the
same sincere graciousness that has accompanied her victories, Yeswe are very proud
to say, Thats our Sally (2).
This encomium is prophetically ominous?
Yes.
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Davida Hawthorn New U.S. Open Womens Champion

The Topics write-up of the Apr. 13-15
Nationalsheld at Detroits Catholic Youth
Organization Community Center under the direction of
C. Bronson Allenbegins with the eye-catching:
Davida Hawthorn furnished the upset of the decade
(May, 1945, 3). Then continues:
By far the most thrilling match of the
entire tournament was that between Sally
Green and Davida Hawthorn, in the quarters.
With Sally the top favorite, Davida went to
work with that chop of hers, and it proved to
be the weapon that toppled the womans
champion. The final game, ending at 23-21,
wasin its wayas exciting as the 1944 mens
finals match between Somael and Lowry.

N.Y. World Telegram photo by Greene

1945 U.S. Open Champion

Davida Hawthorn

Pauline Robinson later wrote, I was recently told that when Sally lost her title after
five yearsthere was a great, stunned silence over the hall as if no one could quite believe
that Sally could lose (TTT, Jan., 1953, 11).
It didnt seem possible, but rivaling this great Hawthorn-Green match was another yet
to come. Heres the Topics writer again:
The finals, between Davida and Peggy McLean, was highlighted only by the
Sally-Davida match. Peggy went down in the fifth game by the score of 22-20, fighting
every point of the way, and in a way that made you stand up and cheer! With Davida
favoring her defense, Peggy drove forehand and backhand. Beautifully, steadily, to
attackattackand attack. With the score 20-18 against her in the fifth, Peggy drove
her way to deuce before losing out.
Said the covering Detroit Times reporter, Miss McLean [a 3-1 favorite] had the
more polished strokes. Tenacity and better control saved Miss Hawthorn. Not only had
Davida never beaten Peggy (in fact, this may have been the only time she beat her), she had a
history of losing close games, not only to Peggy but to others. So all the more to her credit
had been her semis win over Reba Monness after losing the 3rd 25-23 to go 2-1 down. If ever
a U.S. woman player rose to the occasion for three straight supremely important matches it
was Davida.
In the other semis, McLean, winning the 1st at deuce, defeated Leah Thall in 5 after
Leah had labored to (20, 24, 14, 20) get past Mae Clouther. Monness was extended to 19 in
the 4th in the quarters by LaVera Levin, apparently playing her last tournament. Shed risen to
be ranked U.S. #8, but was now retiring (per husbands wishes?).
As predicted, Green recovered from her Singles trauma to win her third Womens
Doubles title with Mildred Shipman whod had back trouble in losing to Clouther in the
Singles. They won in 5 over Thall/Monness whod reached the final via a 17 in the 5th
quarters match with the Blank twins.
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In the Mixed, Lasater/Kuenz continued

their seasons winning waystook the title by
downing in the final another established
partnership, Somael/Hawthorn. No romance
there with Johnny and Davida though, for as
fellow New Yorker Sol Schiff said, Davida
was just one of the guys. (Except, as quite a
few habitus of Lawrences surmised, maybe
she did have asignificant friendship with
Herwald?)
Dick Miles New U.S. Open Mens Champion
In U.S. Open Mens play, Miles lost a
game to Marty Reisman in the quarters and
Mel Nichols in the semisbut he was never in
danger of losing to either of them. Nichols
went through Bob Green and then Guy Blair
whod come from California to Columbus to
attend Ohio State. Blair had played at Greens
first Columbus Club at Buttles and High in the
basement of a medical building where Harry
Sages father had his offices, and had
developed a go-for-broke attacking game that
had swept him through Berne Abelew here in
Rackets taped for added weight:
the 8ths. Reismans advance to Miles, however,
Gives a better touch.
couldnt have been shakier.
Marty may have been a cocky kid,
1949 English Open Program, 6
proud
of
his early hustling career that no doubt
1945 U.S. Open Champion Dick Mileshis first
began somewhere with nickels, dimes,
quarters, but in the 2nd round of the Mens, he
went 19 in the 5th with Toledos U.S. #42 Michael Gus Louris. Schiff said that Reisman was
often cold in the beginning and that it sometimes took him as much as an hour and a half to
warm up. Marty then went on to upset the #5 seed Early in 5 (after being down 2-1 and at 21all in the 4th).
Defending Champ Johnny Somael, meanwhile, made his uneventful way to the semis
where, 1-1 with Hersh, he won the key deuce 3rd game and moved on to the final. Johnny,
Dick knew, was a very tenacious player, and would never make the match easy for me. But
though on occasion hed beaten Dick in the past, he was invariably at least a 3-point
underdog. Johnny was strictly a chiseler, said Dick. He had a little backhand flick, but no
forehand at all. He had a backhand grip on his forehand that more or less forced him to
smother the ball completely.
Miles of course has to remember this Detroit Nationals as the one where he finally
arrivedcould claim the first of his record-setting 10 U.S. Opens. (Dick always preferred the
more embracive U.S. Open to the homey Nationals.) In recalling his final with Somael,
Dick said, Johnny was a clean-cut, good-looking kid, Polish not Jewish, who the year before,
in winning the Championship from 20-14 down, had proven himself to have a great heart. I
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was playing in my first National final, was a skinny 111 pounds, and had a big nose. There
must have been 3,500 spectators there, and the crowd was so much for Somael that the first
point of the match, when Johnny scored a net ball, there was great applause. This irritated me,
and though Johnny threw up his hands to me and said, in effect, I didnt applaud, I made no
attempt to conceal my irritation, for I thought the audience showed very poor sportsmanship.
I was always very conscious of such things, since I myself always wanted to be a good
sportsman and believe that I was.
Michigan TTA President Steenhoven seemed to think otherwise, for Dick remembered
Graham handing him the trophy. Here, he said, I hope you behave like a Champion.
These guys in the Midwest were the real Americans, said Dick. We were the New
Yorkers, the wise guys, the Jews. Acidity, humor, pride50 years later, his voice held all in
equilibrium. As weve seen, both Miles and Freddie Borges were absolutely stunned when, at
that earlier USTTA Open Meeting in Detroit, the question was raised whether Negroes should
be allowed to play in sanctioned events. Was it mere chance that President Steenhovens
opening match here paired him against (the only black man in the field?) Lynel Overton?

Photo by Jack Gould, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Feb. 16, 1947

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Mar. 6, 1944

Don Lasater

Mel Nichols

Somael, whom Ive shown losing two finals, did not lose the third. In the fierce freefor-all of the Mens Doubles, he and Max Hersh came throughwere 5-game pressed only by
the Toledo teenagers, Bob Wisniewski/Bob Harlow. The runner-ups, Nichols/Lasater,
however, had a succession of close encountersthey were forced into 5 by two unheralded
Wisconsin players, Bill Holton/Phil Szarlata, had to 22-20-in-the-5th dodge
the would-be fatal bullets of Blair/Green, then, only on breaking free of
Varga/Abelew in 5, were they able to gain the final.
Reisman doesnt mention anything in his fact/fiction Money Player
about his early-round 19-in-the-5th Mens match with Louris (whod earlier
beaten Consolation winner Alan Bass). But Marty does say that
preparatory to playing South Bend whiz-kid Barclaythat he made an
innocent mistake. He went up to a man who he thought was the
bookmaker he was doing business with, for he wanted to bet on himself
TTT, Ma
against Barclay (bet, uh, $500 Marty says entertainingly), and was
y 1946, 4
Graham
Steenhov
shocked to learn that this man was Graham Steenhoven.
en
149

Steenhoven was aghast to find this 15-year-old juvenile (juvenile delinquent?) blatantly
gambling, a USTTA no-no, so he responded, according to Marty, by allowing him to play the
match, and then by having a policeman escort him out of the Hall (48). Borgesprotector of
youthful, pained innocence, as well as New Yorkers and Jewsadds to the story by saying it
was he who rescued Marty, got him reinstated when (in tears?) Marty came to him and said
hed been thrown out of the tournament. How much all this affected Martys play in the
Juniors is unclear. Maybe now, faced with officialdoms wrath over his future as a role model
for USTTA youth, he was afraid to win the title? Dont bet on it. He did beat Barclay, 18 in
the 4th. But then he lost to Toledos #2 seed Bob Harlow, -20, -20, 16, -17. After which, the
#1 seed Early, on getting by Tibby Shaber in 5, trounced Harlow in straight games.
In the Boys, Barclay achieved proper revenge for his 1944 defeat in the finals at the
hands of fellow home-towner Richard Leviton, and so became everyones favorite
championhes that well loved!
Another finalthe Veteranshad to have found favor with the spectators, regardless
of who they were championing. This marathon match was won by George Bacon over Bill
Gunn, 29-27 in the 5th. Both finalists, unseeded, had earned the tense attention given them
earlier, Bacon had staved off elimination by beating Marlin Tucker, 16, 23, -14, -17, 21; and
Gunn had knocked out Don Wilson in 5 after Don had eliminated Perc Secord, 25-23 in the 5th.
The National Champion and runner-up of every event were awarded the #1 and #2
Ranking. But Elmer Cinnater, USTTA Ranking Committee Chair whod been on the
Committee ever since he joined the USTTA 10 years ago, said that the job of ranking during
the war has been extremely difficult. Heres why: Lack of tournaments in some localities,
particularly in the East, the cancellation of the Intercity Matches for the duration [counting for
so much, they often provided relatively easy differentiations between top-ranked players from
separate locales], the inability of some of our top ranking players to perform in the
tournaments that were held, and the everlasting [hot and cold] change of our player status
(TTT, Dec., 1945, 6).
USTTA Elects Veteran Officials
Following the season-ending Nationals, State Affiliates unanimously elected the
Nominating Committees slate of USTTA veteran officials for the 1945-46 season. Re-elected
were Carl Nidy, President; Ed Kuhns, 1st Vice-President; Ted Chapman, 2nd Vice-President;
Morris Bassford, Treasurer; and John Kauderer, Recording Secretary. Coming in to take
Charlie Coxs place as 3rd Vice-President was former Michigan TTA President Steenhoven,
whod been succeeded by Bill Byrnes. Also, taking Bassfords place before hed even had a
chance to servehe resigned, he said, due to a change in businesswas Robert Metcalf,
former Pennsylvania TTA President and longtime USTTA Auditing Chair. After Executive
Secretary and Membership Chair Helen Baldwin left office to join her brothers in California,
Thomas E. Bob Berna would return from Service, resume his former position as Executive
Secretary, take over Membership, and re-establish the Association Headquarters in
Philadelphia in the same Middle Building in which the U.S.T.T.A. established its first fulltime operating office in 1939.
May and Beyond
The May, 1945 Topics spoke of an Old Timers Comeback at the Apr. 28-29 Chicago
Cook County Open. The high spot of the tournament, it was said, was the presence of
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Mort Ladin, Jerry Lavan, Max Rushakoff and S/Sgt. Al Nordhem. In the Mens, all four
of these has-beens were in the quarters. There, Lavan (Luh-VAN), who as early as 1934
was on the Chicago Intercity Team, lost to Barclay in straight games; but Nordham, the
1939 U.S. Open Mixed Doubles Champion with Mildred Wilkinson Shipman, up 1-0 and
at 21-all in the 2nd, gave Varga some uncomfortable moments before losing. Ladin, the
Western Open Champ and U.S. #13 in 1935, down 2-1 and at 21-all in the 4th, stayed
strong against Milwaukees Russ Sorensen, U.S. #20, to advance in 5; and Rushakoff, who
won this tournament in 1932, astonished everyone with his penholder attack that 10, 26, 11, -20, 19 knocked out Bill Early, U.S. #5. In the semis, Rushakoff fell to Ladin in 5, and
Barclay wasnt psychically ready yet to threaten Varga. In the final, John convincingly
defeated Ladin, Veterans winner over Paul Buell. In the Womens, Chicagos Jean
Scranton, down 2-0 to Carlyn Blank in the final, rallied to win her first major
tournament.
The very day after the May 5-6 Indiana Closed, the World started to open. Although
V-E Day wasnt officially celebrated until May 8 (when President Truman, Prime Minister
Churchill, General de Gaulle, and Premier Stalin would all make simultaneous statements),
New Yorkers couldnt wait. The announcement on May 7 of Germanys unconditional
surrender prompted John G. Rogers in the May 8th New York Herald Tribune to write of
yesterday afternoon and evenings reaction:
With shouting and paper throwing, with horn-tooting and dancing, with
banners and bottles, the city poured hundreds of thousands of joy-fevered celebrants
into the streets from mid-morning to mid-afternoon in an ebullient revelry that defied
restraint.
the Statue of Liberty will be floodlighted with unprecedented brilliance and
will remain so illuminated for all time as a victory symbol. Since Pearl Harbor the
world-famous statue has been dark, except for its torch.
The sight of a slender young corporal with left leg off at the knee, picking
his way on crutches through Times Square at the peak of the civilian shouting, was a
sobering reminder that there was still a war on, that several million Americans still
have to fight Japan.
a marine who won his ribbons in the Pacific stared stonily at the Times
Square revelry. I guess its all right, he said, if they feel like it. They dont know
what its all about though.
As it would be more than three months yet before Japan accepted the Allied surrender
terms, and more months after that before many of our Servicemen and women would be able
to return home, table tennis players continued to entertain our troops abroad. Preeminent
among them were Chuck Burns, U.S. #3 for the 1942-43 season, and a number of last years
Top 10 players, all absent from the Nationals just concludedBellak, Hazi, Pagliaro, and
Schiff.
Detroits Chuck Burns had for some time been registered as a USTTA exhibition
player. In fact, hed remember for a lifetime how, once, when trying out for a show (it was his
first?), hed choked like a ratwas so nervous he couldnt even serveand yet was hired
(You guys are terrific said the guy watching and hiring). Now he was about to set off on an
8-month USO Tour with Ruth Aarons who last summer had been reported doing exhibitions
151

in France with Garrett Nashthough hed then split with her and Topics would have him in
Algiers performing on one occasion with Ted Mosher before 1000 people, most of them
Arabs who according to Mosher were quite apt to sit stonily with their eyes moving and
then cheer and yell like mad. Chuck said Garrett as an entertainer was good with his delivery,
but, though he could hit down the lines and smack a backhand anywhere, he couldnt hit a
forehand cross-court when it was called for.
Burns took his physical on May 16 and 5 days later started drawing a salary. As writer
Bob Latshaw tells us, Chuck was mustered in with comedian Jack Benny, harmonica player
Larry Adler, and actress Ingrid Bergman, the Ilsa of Casablancawhich, as it happened,
was the place where Chucks particular Camp Show started out. There he was challenged by
Ed Gardner, the Archie of the very successful radio program Duffys Tavern. Chuck gave
him 15 pointswon. He also remembers playing, on the rooftop of a hotel there, the tennis
and later movie star Jinx Falkenberg (who preferred to play table tennis as a penholder).
Unit #612:
The Racketeers
that was the troupe
Chuck and Ruth
were part of. They
traveled with Ann
Sharon, a
puppeteer; Lois
Sterner, a tap
dancer (who was
accompanied by
accordionist Hal
Freeman); and
Jimmy Treston,
who did
impersonations of
singers Frank
Sinatra and Bing
Crosby and of
singer/comedian
Danny Kaye. A
Chuck Burns (2nd from left) and Ruth Aarons (far right) with their fellow USO
photo of them in
Camp Show performers in Tripoli, 1945
bathing suits on a
beach in Tripoli
appeared in National Geographic and was later reproduced in the Nov., 1988 Michigan
Jewish Sports Hall of Fame Dinner Program (Chuck being an inductee on that occasion).
Sometime that summer Chuck threw his bad knee out. Can you do the show?
Ruth asks. All you have to do is just stand there. Then, said Chuck, she moves me
around like crazy. Perhaps its to this particular performance that an Oct. 11 article
published by Hq Port Service, Khorramshahr, Iran alludes: Ruth Aarons and Chuck
Burns, the table tennis experts, put on a good show for the crowd, with Ruth
demonstrating that the fair sex isnt always the weaker sex. Chuck, however, was hindered
by a bad leg, and couldnt play his usual driving gamewhich, come to think of it,
152

maybe was their usual line

everywhere they went? Ruth
herself was a tough act to
follow: she could drink
boilermakers like a man, and
enjoyed going with her troupe to
such exotic places as Karachi,
Cairo, New Delhi, Benghazi.
Early in 1946 Ruth went
on Touring without Burns. The
War Department gave Chuck a
Civilian Service Emblem Award
for his USO service outside the
U.S., and he returned home and
sooner or later would go into the
real estate business. For a while
Ruth was with Johnny
Abrahamshed won the 1938
U.S. Open Mixed with Womens
Champ Emily Fullerbut Johnny
up and left Ruth in India
somewhere, and Bellak said she
had to call on him to help her out,
Photo by Roland E. Kluger
though Id also read that Glancz
Ruth Aaronsup close but far from home
was with her in Calcutta in
February. In the late spring of
46, Ruth and Chuck were together againappearing at Loews State Theater in New York
with headline performer Benny Fields. Bill Smiths not too encouraging May 10th review
appeared in Billboard:
Ruth Hughes Aarons on this trip has Chuck Burns and Lou Perry with her.
Combo started ragged but finished nicely. Table tennis work of Miss Aarons and Burns
gets over okay particularly when arguments occur, tho in latter it was Perrys ad libs
which helped. Perry (who doubles in brass as agent) does the commentating chores
with speed and keeps act on toes.
Ruths performing days were about over, but, as Lee Mortimer said in 1948, shed
busy herself guiding the careers of Shirley Jones, Sean and David and Jack Cassidy, Janis
Paige, Celeste Holm, and Oscar-winner George Chakiris.
That summer of 1945, Bellak and Hazi did exhibitions all over India, playing two
and three times a day in that hot, punishing climate. At the All-American Table Tennis
Tournament in the India-Burma Theater, held July 27-29 at the Monsoon Gardens
Army Rec Center in Calcutta, Hazi and Bellak were deemed too good to play, but they did
put on an Exhibition there, and again in Septemberone hour and fifteen minutes of
clowning, trick shots, serious play and humorous interjections by Bellakbefore a large
and appreciative crowd.
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Laci said that when

hed been in India in the
late 1930s, prior to
performing in one large
arena he and Barna were
told theyd receive half
the receipts. As thousands
were filling up the stands,
Laci practically screamed,
Victor, were going to
make a fortune! Only, as
it turned out, the
spectators were paying
the equivalent of just one
U.S. penny to see the
performance.
This time theyd
Bellak (left) and Hazi playing somewhere in China-Burma-India area.
managed a better deal
had an Army Special Service #1 priority, even over military officers. Once, said Laci, as they
took their time soaking themselves in a marble tub in a maharajahs palace where they were
staying, soldiers with guns came banging at their door. Would they please get dressed? The
exhibitionists were keeping the generals waiting at the airportgenerals who couldnt leave
without them.
Of course in entertaining the troops they were always taking whatever flights were
available. One time over the Himalayas, Laci and Tibor were huddled over cases of beer
roped in, because the high-flying C-47 had no door. How Hazi felt about this experience can
be deduced from another. One clear moonlit night, Bellak was lucky enough to get a pilot in a
propeller plane to fly the two of them over the Taj Mahal. Look! exclaimed Laci. Tibor
dutifully leaned over, closed his eyes, said, Beautiful! and quickly leaned back. He was
afraid of heights.
And, said Laci, who delighted in telling stories at Hazis expense, Tibor wasnt too
good on the ground either. Tibor wanted to learn how to driveand in the steep Himalayas
yet. Coming into what he thought was a straightaway, but was actually a hillside, he lost
control even of his slow-moving jeep, and had to jump out before it went rolling off into the
jungle. Ah, the weaknesses, the foibles of even our much admired Hall of Fame Champions.
Tibor, promoted to Sergeant, would stay in the India-Burma Theater at least to
years end, while Laci would return home to his fiance. But as hed seen too many Indian
princesses, or the like, he broke off the engagement, asked for his ring back, and got instead,
what was perhaps more important to him, the photos of himself hed given her.
Garrett Nashwhere, after his celebrated match with Bergmann, would he be?
Entertaining others of course. Attached to Special Services, he was with the Mickey Rooney
Jeep Show touring Europe. Mickey himself could play, and served as commentator for
Nashs act. When the War ended, Garrett joined USO shows (which is how he met his future
wife, a USO top spot singer named Dorothy Matthews). Nash would tour Newfoundland,
Greenland, Iceland, and even played a special show at a radio station just 400 miles from
the North Pole (TTT, Dec., 1947, 3).
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Also absent from the 45 Nationals was 3-time U.S. Champ Lou Pagliaro who was on
a USO overseas Tour (South Atlantic, African, and Middle East war theaters) with Mary
Reilly, who back in 41 had done an article on him for Topics). In Iran Louie played not only
that Iranian Champion Mohtadi Id mentioned before, but the Shah himself. Also, he says, Ill
never forget when Mary and I were in the Ascension Islands, this guy had a pet jaguar, on a
leash of course, who must have sensed I was afraid of it, for when it supposedly friendly-like
came nudging me, and I said, Hey, its biting me, others laughedthey thought I was joking,
until I showed them itd drawn blood.
A pretty redhead, Mary had spunk.
Shed come up out of her Philly basement, off
the homemade table one of her brothers had
built, to join the Philadelphia Club, and had
then moved to New York. In school, shed
gotten an A+ in her Journalism class for her
fearless interview with John B. Kelly, father of
Actress/Princess Grace Kelly, when he ran for
Democratic Chairman in the City of Brotherly
Love. By next spring shed be hyping cigarettes
in The Sporting News, dressed in table tennis
shirt and shorts, a paddle in her left hand, a
pack of Chesterfields outstretched Statue of
Liberty-like in her right hand. For this
particular brand that held the They Satisfy
title, Mary was expected to be smiling, and of
course she wasperhaps enjoying the private
joke that she didnt smoke.
Oh well, a bucks a buckwhich I
suppose is what the new U.S. Womens Champ
Davida Hawthorn thought, for she, too, was
reportedly off on an Overseas Tour.
Sol Schiff, meanwhile, had been
promoted to Sergeantwhich in a March 12
letter to him from his commanding officer first
praised him, then offered advice:
Mary Reilly, later McIlwain

it is your privilege to prove to the theater and to the War Department that
this type of athletic activity has a real value in the war effort. At the same time that
you are giving the Armed Forces full services we want you to use your powers of
observation to train yourself so that you will be able to return to us and be of even
greater service to other theaters or in the zone of the interior, dependent on where you
are needed most.
Sol and Johnny Somael would, Im sure, observe quite a bit in their months-long
European Theater of Operations Tour of France, Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Germany. In
their troupe were George Lott, tennis star; Billy Conn, former heavyweight contender; [and]
golfer Horton Smith. Sol said his most satisfying exhibition ever was during this Tour when,
155

Courtesy of Barry Dattel

Cover of July 3, 1943 issue of Time Zero drawn by Ben Dattel

156

watching the French Championships from a top-level balcony, he was recognizedand, though not
exactly in his playing togs (he was wearing his Service combat boots), was called on to play an 11point Exhibition game with Defending and 7-time French Champion Guy Amouretti.
Sols friend Ben Dattel, born within a few days of Sol in 1917, had been an habitu of
Lawrences, had taught table tennis there and elsewhere, and for a while had managed the
Burnside Table Tennis Center in the Bronx. After he and Sol were inducted into the Army
together in Jan. of 43, Ben, as he later told Reba Monness, served with the Infantry, Coast
Artillery and Anti-Aircraft and of course gave table tennis exhibitions where he could.
Since after the War hed be a commercial artist with a background of having studied at two
New York schools
Cooper Union and City
Collegeit was only
natural that he did artwork
for Topics. That is, for the
87th Central America AntiAircraft Time Zero, a
Newsweekly featuring
Topics of the Tropics.
In Panama, U.S.O. table
tennis tournaments were
held where Ben was
stationed for both soldiers
and civilians, and from
Rebas Profile of him we
learn just how well known
there hed become:
The
prizes were a few
dollars in Postal
Savings Stamps.
Courtesy of Barry Dattel
Ben accumulated Ben Dattel receiving Camp Davis, N.C. Antiaircraft Artillery School Table
quite a bit by
Tennis Award
winning every
week for several months. He kept his book of stamps in plain view and no one dared
to steal them. One evening Bens buddy wanted to borrow some money; since Ben
was short he gave his buddy the book of stamps to cash in. A few hours later Ben was
called to the Captains office where he was informed that his buddy was picked up in
town for trying to sell Bens book of stamps. Ben explained the circumstances, his
friend was released, and the book of stamps was returned to Ben.
After spending two years in Panama, Dattel fought in The Battle of the Bulge and
did combat duty until the end of the War (TTT, July-Aug., 1979, 29). This season hed again
be playing in tournamentsand so would Schiff, Doug Cartland, Eddie Pinner, Bill Price, Bill
Holzrichter, Dan Kreer, V. Lee Webb, and Laci Bellak, among others. The boys were coming
back. Would table tennis?
157

Chapter Fifteen
1945: ITTF President Montagu and Others Discuss the State of the Sport and
Possible Post-War Changes. 1945-46: First Half-Seasons Tournaments. 1946: Lowry Takes
Pacific Olympics.
In an Aug. 7, 1945 letter to USTTA President Carl Nidy, his Executive Committee,
and the Board of Regentsformer USTTA President Dr. Stan Morest reports on a
conversation he had in London on July 13 with ITTF President Ivor Montagu
regarding possible post-War changes as the Sport reorganizes.
First, writes Morest, we both agreed on considering a possibility of a return to the
high net because:
a. the most thrilling part of table tennis spectator appeal, namely deep defense,
has been mostly lost due to the low net (the ball takes off lowerthe competitors have
been pulled in. As proof we used to provide 12 to 25 feet backcourt space with a 6
net, now 10 to 15 feet run back is plenty with the low, or 6 net); b. there are in
force anti-chiseling rules [so we no longer need the low net to encourage attacking
play]c. [with the low net] players of average abilityhave such an easy and sloppy
time playing that some detriment to the full ability of their game has occurred; andd.
there are far more skilled players today who can execute offensive strokes than there
were some 10 years ago when the wave of chop stroking swept the country at a time
when only a relatively few playershad any conception of how to execute offensive
strokes.
And, second, though Ivor did not favor a larger ball, or larger table or racket,
Morest says hed like to extend the table for doubles:
We must remember that regular tennis uses the outside lines for doubles and
the inside lines for singles play. This fundamental of tennis play, that two players can
cover more space than one, and that crowding the play of two players into the space
originally intended to be for one, is detrimental to the advancement of our sport before
spectators....H. N. Smith [one of the USTTAs Honorary V.P.s, who had an expanded
Jaques Experimental table in his home] says that table tennis play on the large table
(6 longer and 6 wider) is absolutely marvelous to behold! Corti Woodcock [another
USTTA Honorary V.P.] suggests increasing the length and width of the table 3 in
each dimension and lowering the table 2 as a measure which would make doubles
play thrilling to lay spectators. As it is, there is too much jostling and crowding until
the players can neither play their best or fans see so well. My idea is to keep the
singles play on the same court, but for doubles, the hinged sides and end board can be
raised and the four corner legs moved to new positions.
Morest thinks that exhibition players ought to give the larger doubles court a try, and
if the change seems successful then it should be adopted for tournament play.
Don Hendry, Georges brother, on returning home from overseas, wants to go
Morests suggestion one better. In a letter to Topics, he says:
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It seems to me that players have developed their offense to such an extent,

made possible by the 6 net, that table tennis is now a slam-bang sport which is not
too interesting to the spectators and I do not believe that the players receive the full
enjoyment possible from the game.
No, I dont advocate going back to the 6 net, but I do believe a larger table
would make the game more interesting to the spectator and player alike. By making the
table larger and raising the net, the offensive player could win by maneuvering his opponent
out of position, by the use of the drop shot, and by running the opponent ragged. In the
present game it doesnt make much difference if one smokes two packs of cigarettes a day
and drinks a keg of beer every week, one plays almost as well. In my opinion stamina
should be an important factor in a sport (Jan., 1946, 7).
Some players, however, focus on improvements already made. Heres Chicagos Dr.
Bill Meszarospleased that the fancy spin services of a few years ago are now illegal:
Formerly we wound up and executed a wicked serve which our opponent
either missed or returned high and with our own spin still on it. We then smashed this
return, which either won the point or missed the table entirely. Matches tended to
become a battle of services instead of strokes, which was not only harmful for our
games, but uninteresting to spectators.
[Dont think with the new rule the serve is] just a means of putting the ball
into play. It is used in order to get the jump on the opponentusually to get him off
balance and put him on the defensive. However, instead of smashing his return, as of
yore, we must now be content with a hard, well-placed drive. If we stop to take
inventory of our games, we will find that this has improved our driving and our strokes
in general. The receiver of the serve now has a better chance to drive ittherefore
there is more opportunity to fight for the offensive. This makes volleys longer, but
more keenly contested, and much more interesting to watch. In addition, the service is
now more likely to be a tricky shot, such as one just dropped over the net. As a
consequence, we must be more alert and on our toes. Without a semi-finger-spin
service as a weapon, we must increasingly rely on strategy and wits to compensate
(TTT, Jan., 1946, 3).
From the perspective of the 21st century, we can see our table tennis forefathers at the
close of World War II grappling with the same problems, and having the same discussions
those in the Sport will have more than half a century later. Should we raise the net? Enlarge
the table? In both Singles and Doubles should we force the players to move more, so stamina
becomes more important? Should we insist on Service Rules that force players to maneuver
the ball, fight for points that last longer? Again and again aficionados from every generation
focus on what will make the Sport fascinating to both players and spectators. And that is:
contested points of some duration. Without such a struggle, the Sport can never offer fan
involvement, engage the Imagination.
Montagu didnt think America would ever hold a World Championship. The players in
Europe and elsewhere had to work for a living, he said, and the loss of 21 days time from
their positionsmade it impossible for enough players from enough countries to come to
the U.S. Morest argued, however, that with air travel of the future the loss of time from
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employment would only be 10 daysa mere holiday or vacation. (Though surely the cost of
airfare would for a time be prohibitive for many?) Morest emphasized that the publicity and
prestige of a Worlds Title Competition in the U.S. was something our sport needed badly.
First Half-Season Tournaments
The summer of 45 was memorable for those at the late July Mid-Summer Open.
Why? Because who should come to Columbus, Ohio at organizer Bob Greens invitation but
New Yorker Marty Reisman. How fast this 15-year-old was progressing could be seen when
he won the Menseliminating Early in the semis in 5, then Guy Blair in the final in 4. Varga
and his now about to enter the Navy protg Early won the Mens Doubles from Green and
Lt. Dan Kreer. Back from the Service, married just last year, Kreer was about to regain the
form that would bring him a Top 10 Ranking.
I dont know if the organizers of the Oct. 6-7 Chicago Membership Tournament were
selling tickets to spectators, but many years later Ives Jackson, a Midwest circuit player, told me
that at a Chicago tournament in the Hamilton Club Hotel on Dearborn St. in 1938 tickets were
being sold for 52 cents including tax, and each player who sold a ticket would be credited with
ten cents toward his entry fee in the tournament. Had that ever been tried again?
Berne Abelew won both the Mens (over Bob Anderson) and the Mens Doubles (with
Varga over Anderson/Bill Meszaros after trailing 2-1 and at 23-all in the 4th).
Carolyn Wilson, formerly the Maryland #1, but now living in Chicago, took the
Womensover Carrol Blank in the semis in 5, and Specht in the final in straight games.
Even before Sally Green had won her first U.S. Womens Championship in 1940, shed said,
Doubles play is more exciting than singles, and in the not too distant future I may forsake
singles and play womens doubles and mixed doubles only. Sally didnt play Singles here, and
apparently neither did her winning Womens Doubles partner, Mayo Rae Rolph Barrett, last
seen losing to Green in the quarters of the 41 Nationals. Maybe Mayo wasnt into playing
that much, for I believe she was getting her Masters degree in Philosophy at the University of
Chicago, perhaps while teaching at Shimer College in Mount Carroll. Still, she must have
practiced some at the North-Town Club, for in the Mixed semis she and Bill Ablin put up 19
in the 5th fierce resistance against the winners, Sally and Berne Abelew.
At Detroits Nov. 10-11th Michigan Open, Max Hersh, winner of this tournament the
last two years, was beaten in the final, 17 in the 5th, by Abelew. Displaying an improved
defense and an explosive forehand that nicked the corners, the Chicagoan played the finest
table tennis of his career. Abelew also took the Mens Doubles with Vargaover Hersh and
former Detroit Champion Al Marshall. USATT V.P. Graham Steenhoven, who plans to
promote teams for league and tournament play from many local manufacturing concerns,
achieved a life-long ambition by winning the Mens Novicefrom Bill Swinyar, Michigans
stentorian-voiced referee-in-chief (TTT, Dec., 1945, 4).
Thirteen-year-old Gordon Barclay, whod lost to Bob Green, deuce in the
4th in the Mens, didnt sweat the small stuff. The 4, 8 90-pounder abandoned
his usual offensive tactics long enough to chop down his older opponent [Bob
Harlow], whose classic forehand drives gradually weakened. Barclay was now
showing such superiority in the Juniors and Boys that even he might have been
in danger of feeling just the least little twinge of elitism were it not for the fact that
Varga at his South Bend Y Academy avowed humility. That is, you couldnt just go to
Johns Club and play your equals; you were required to play weaker players as well. Bob Harlow
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In the Womens, Leah Thall, clearly the strongest woman player in the Midwest, killed
the Milwaukee twins chances, shot them both point-blank. Earlier, Carlyn had rallied to beat
Specht in 5, and Margaret Koolery Wilson had done the same to Tybie Thall.
This fall, an anonymous contributor to Topics a well-known official, but here in
print not known at all except for his Oldtimer bylinesaid, in effect, that were Leah, or any
woman of comparable ability, to play constantly against men, she wouldnt feel inferior, and
so might be the best player, period, in the Midwest. Theres no physical reason why this
couldnt be so, said the writer, since women, in general, play a harder, more competitive
game [than men]. But then, implied the writer, they go softyielding a point to their
opponent, on questionable decisions, with much grace and sportsmanship (Nov., 1945, 3).
Well, what can I say to that? Other than the Association asked for itadvertised that
TOPICS needs items and interesting articles.Why not try your hand at writing? This, the
Oldtimer did.
Reportedly, trophies werent available at this Michigan Openwhich seems the more
strange because the USTTA Trophy Chair was Michigans C. Bronson Allen. So the winners
got fountain pen sets and compactsand good ones tooand most players thought this a
welcome change from the usual rewards.
Thanksgiving timeand in the Chicago District Open who should oust Abelew in the
semis 3-zip (sparked by a 29-27 1st game) but the about-to-be discharged Major Billy Condy,
a penholder known for his tricky fingerspins when he was runner-up to Jimmy McClure in the
last (1934) Parker Brothers American Ping-Pong Nationals. Billy lost the final here to Don
McCrossen, now out of the Navy and subduer of Junior winner Barclay and his tournament
father Varga. But Condy certainly could be thankful not just for his fine showing at this
tournament, but that, after 50 B-17 missions, he was safely home to make that showing.
Condy and Max Rushakoff had to be enjoying a fun reminder of how they were always in
contention in tournaments 10-12 years ago. In the Doubles, they lost to the eventual winners
Barclay and Henry Gish 19 in the 5th (after being down 2-0).
In the Womens, Sally Green was back playing Singles, and winningover Mayo
Barrett, 17, 22, 19 in the semis, and Carrol
Blank, in a less-contested 3-gamer in the final.
Green and Abelew took the Mixed, with
runner-ups Barrett and Condy making it 19 in
the 5th clear to MacCrossen/Carrol Blank it
was stupidly premature for former USTTA
President/Editor Carl Zeisberg to write that
1930s obit on the penholder style.
Perhaps Sally was primed for her hat
trick because she was also primped for it. It
was her original idea that all the women players
wear the same attractive playing outfits
though in different colors: fuchsia, forest green,
black, rust, soldier blue, and peacock blue
(worn by the winning doubles pair Green and
Barrett)and nearly all did, having agreed on
TTT, Apr., 1945, cover
something practical and comfortable from
Sally Green
Marshall Field & Co. for under $10.
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Turkey time in the East, toowith its only Topics-reported tournament of the first
half-season, the New York City Open. The write-up begins:
No doubt Elmer Cinnater, USTTA Ranking Chairman, ordered another gross
of aspirin from the nearest drug store when he read [that]Douglas Cartland and Ed
Pinner, playing in their first USTTA tournament in the past two years ended up in the
finals after Cartland defeated U.S. National Champion Richard Miles in the semi-finals
and Pinner, not to be outdone, eliminated U.S. ranked No. 2, Sgt. John Somael (TTT,
Jan., 1946, 4).
Neither finalist breezed through his earlier matches. Pinner was down 2-1 to both
Somael and U. S. #19 Freddie Borges, whod just been elected 1st Vice President of the
NYTTA under President Henry Herrmann (successor to Reba Monness). Cartland had to go 5
with both Sol Schiff and Miles. In the final, Doug outsteadied Eddie to win 18 in the 4th.
Tell it to Cinnater, or anyone elseCartland was always a vastly underrated player,
said Miles. He was an amazing competitorsomeone who never, never beat himself; you
always had to beat him, and he was an even more tenacious player than Somael. Like Bobby
Riggs (I thought I could give Bobby 12 or 13, said Dick, but no matter what I gave him I
always lost), Doug was a great hustler. He was always figuring out games to play. Once he
played with a black eye patch on, deprived himself of depth perception, but still attacked and
defended so well that soon his opponent and those betting on him came over to check that
black eye patch to see if there wasnt some way that Cartland was seeing through it. There
wasnt.
The day before this New York City Open, Miles remembers giving Cartland a 6-point
spot at Lawrences and taking his money. He also remembers this tournament matcheven
the umpire, Mel Rose, whod recovered from a couple of eye operations hed had several
years ago and was now back as the newly elected Treasurer of the NYTTA. I literally cried
on losing, said Dick. I told a girl friend Id lost to a man 30 years old. He seemed like the
oldest man in the world to me then.
It wasnt a good day for Mileshe and Cartland lost in the final of the Mens Doubles
in 5 to Schiff and Somael. It wasnt such a good day for Reisman eithernot according to
John Kauderers reminiscence almost 30 years later. For John said he beat Marty three
straight in the second round and I know how bad he felt losing
to an oldster like me who had no standing. I think he actually
wept at the loss. Marty, however did win the Juniors over
Irwin Millerthis after two deuce games in the semis with
Norm Schuman whod had a nice win over Morris Chait.
Other Juniors in this field were John Read, future Captain of
the U.S. World Team, and two players, later based on Long
Island, who are still occasionally active in tournaments
todayHarold Kupferman and Walter Shur.
In the Womens, Bernice Charney didnt lose a
gamebut the surprise runner-up was Millie Shahian
whod upset the #1 seed Peggy McLean in the quarters,
then, with her up-close table game, downed Helen
Photo Prints ... Bombay Worlds
Germaine.
Doug Cartland
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The Dec. 1-2 Detroit Open was won by Hersh over Bob Green. In the semis, Max
beat Montreals Jean-Jacques Desjardins, the 1936 Canadian National Exhibition (CNE)
Singles and 36, 39, and 40 Doubles Champion before hed joined the Royal Canadian Air
Force. In Mens Doubles, Desjardins was given the privilege of partnering the important U.S.
official and Novice winner Steenhoven. Dont laugh, best not to underestimate Grahamhe
and Desjardins not only beat Green and Bill Byrnes, the Michigan #2, but they had Hersh and
Marshall down 2-0 in the final before losing (the 4th at 19). In the Womens, Margaret
Koolery Wilson, behind 2-0, broke Marie Nash by winning the 3rd at 19, and steadied herself
home.
The Topics write-up of the Jan. 19-20 Illinois Open begins: Garrett Bad Boy Nash
returned from the European Theatre Camp Shows.
Yes, Nash was back, and here in Chicago for this
tournamentand with a returning Bill Price as wellwhich had
to have prompted some Bad Boy stories about Garrett, this
fellow who prided himself on never working a regular job in his
life. Since you cant overhear any of these stories, Ill provide
you with some from several years back, courtesy of that same
Stan Morest I opened this chapter with.
At a Missouri State Tournament in Kansas City, in midwinter, he [Garrett] gambled away St. Louis Club expense
Garrett
money and had to sleep in a fellow St. Louisans car in his
Nash
overcoat. When he appeared for warm-up wearing his wrinkled
overcoat [the poor guy was still cold], I had to go out on the
court and take it off!
[After Morest had thus preserved proprieties at the
expense of a sorry-state human needing comfort, he
says][Garrett] approached me for a loan; and with a guilt
complex I complied. K.C. players told me I could kiss the fiver
goodbye. Catching up with Garrett, who flashed an impish grin,
I asked, You want to play in the Nationals? Yes, he answered.
Svensk Bordtennis
So, I said, forward a check by return mail as soon as you
reach St. Louis. [Morest, then a USTTA V.P., had clout.]Two
days later a check which was good came in.
[Wonder of wondersGarrett must have liked Morest, and/or saw him as a
source of possible income?] At another K.C. tourney, I asked him [Nash] as a favor to
blast off an entrant who had haggled incessantly with my committee over his position
in the pairings. Later, Garrett brought me the scores: 21-4; 21-3for which he
received a five-spot.
In a St. Louis tourney during a practice session, Garrett delivered from the
balcony of the DeSoto Hotel a perfect serve sent down on to the 4th table away. This
he repeated 5 times in succession at a dollar a serve until I waved my handkerchief.
[Just as I suspected: Morest was so pleased to have gotten that $5 loan back, he found
other ways of allowing Garrett to keep it. He really did like Nashs dash.]
He [Garrett] then told me how at the St. Louis Club through an open door
from the hallway hed often sailed a ball into the room and onto the table for a perfect
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serve. His buddies, Blattner, Price, and Hendry always quipped, Nash will be coming
in next (TTT, Nov.-Dec., 1975, 6).
Nash certainly made a triumphant reappearance here at the Illinois Open. Defending
Champ Herb Aronson Garrett had to go 19 in the 4th to beat. But Bob Anderson in the final
was straight-game easy. Andy had strewed in his runner-up path, first, the recently
discharged Wisconsin #4, Radio Man 1st Class Duane Maule who, after a near deadly fall in a
freak accident, had spent 28 days in a hospital recuperating. Then, in the quarters, he had
another 4-gamerwith V. Lee Webb. Lee, after his destroyer had been in Tokyo Bay,
probably wasnt all that concerned with something so commonplace as being 2-1 down and at
deuce in the 4th with Russ Sorenson. Before reaching the final, Andy was 28, 16, -17, 19
tried by Price who back in St. Louis would soon be establishing a Table Tennis Club for
youngsters from 10 to 16 at the North Side YMCA. Bill said hed always liked kidsand
thought they deserved the chance I had to play and enjoy the game.
Lowry Takes Pacific Olympics
There remains one more tournament in Jan. thats covered by Topicsbut it takes
place outside the U.S.in the Pacific Area. Reba Monness, whod given an exhibition or two
this past summer with Coleman Clarkat, for example, that same Times Square Loews State
Theater that Chuck Burns and Ruth Aarons performed atsaid that Clark and former
Pennsylvania star Ham Canning were going on a USO Tour of the Pacific. Though, from the
look of the Oct., 1945 Topics cover, it seems Cokeys going on Tour in Africa. The Abelew/
Foster drawing has an Umpire/Commentator in pith helmet, mike in hand, keeping up an isntthis-exciting line of patter, while the Ubangi in loin cloth leans in over the table with his lip
of a paddle jabbing a return back to Clark who, as he does in his show, is playing with the
handle of his racket gripped tightly in his mouth.
These two get equal billing, find a place in the cartoon world of Topics, but in real life
its not at all clear where in the Pacific Coleman is, just as its not immediately clear whats
going on with the so-called Pacific Olympics. An article in the Feb., 1946 Topics said theres
been an outstanding elimination tournament (200 entries playing on 10 tables) held in the
Manila area in preparation for the Olympics which were just recently staged in the
Marianasunder the able supervision of Cpl. John M. Riggs, brother of Bobby of tennis
fame. When the elimination tournament got to the last 8, a complete round robin was held
and the top four finishers competed in the Marianas. The eligible players were: New Yorks
Harold Goldstein (6-1), Massachusetts Les Lowry (6-1), Wisconsins Richard Suhm (5-2),
and Michigans Arnold Brown (5-2), with Ohios Dave Spence (3-4) as Alternate. When
Brown was discharged, Spence replaced himand supposedly won the tournament. Dave was
then set to represent the Navy in contests against the 35th CBs, NSD, Marines, Sub Base and
Receiving Station to decide the championship of Subic Bay (4).
However, Daves friends at his Base had apparently been misinformed, at least with
regard to the Pacific Olympics. For in the next (March) issue, Lt. Paul Nesenkar (former
President of the City College of New York T.T. Club) in a letter to Topics speaks of a
Pacific-wide tournament, army sponsored in which he, Les Lowry, Harry Goldstein, and
Californias Dr. Monroe Engleberg (with Missouris Lester Perlmutter as unused alternate)
qualified to go to Saipan in the Marianas as a Manila-based team representing the Philippines.
There in a grand play off in a Red Cross Bldg., on January 26, 27, 28, Nesenkar says,
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Lowry beat me in the finals [19 in the 4th], while Engleberg and myself won the doubles [over
Lowry/Goldstein, 3-0]. In the 8ths, Nesenkar downed Chicagos Herman Leavitt
(representing Japan Base), who as far back as 1935 was a member of Chicagos Intercity
Team. Then, in the quarters, Paul eliminated Minneapoliss Harry Lund (representing
Hawaiis Oahu), and in the semis New York Citys Goldstein.
Nesenkar says, Attendance was between 1500 and 2000 each of the three nights.
Watches were awarded to the winners and runner-ups in each event. John Riggs, brother of
the famous Bobby Riggs of tennis, was our non-playing manager and received a beautiful
trophy for the team championship.
Nesenkar closes by writing that he and Lowry are preparing to ship homeand will
probably enter the 1946 Nationals (5). Thus echoing earlier lines in Topics that say
Our members are returning from the service so thick and fast it is difficult to keep the
news right up to date on the boys still in service. One week they are playing in a tournament in
the Pacific Islands and the next couple of weeks they pop up in a tournament in the U.S. Such
is the miracle of modern transportation and the efficiency of the Army and Navy in getting
men back to civilian life (Feb., 1946, 4).

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Chapter Sixteen
1946: Tournaments up to the Westerns. Price/ Leah Thall Win Westerns. 1946:
Miles/McLean Take Easterns. 1946: Midwest Tournaments Prior to Nationals. 1946:
Nationals go to Miles/Charney.
I dont know what the Groundhog prediction was for 1946, but the Feb. 2-3 Boston
Closed did bear out Topics contention that Servicemen were fast coming home. How else
explain Greater Bostons first post-war tournament and the accompanying line that, in the
two events offered, Returned vets dominated the play?
Frank Dwelly, a member of the famous 4th Marine Division, won the Singlesover
Henry Steadman in the final. Dwelly, with Steadman, also took the Doubles in a 5-gamer from
Bill Dwyer, a former prisoner-of-war, and Bill Corcoran, a Navy Medical Corpsman who
saw much action at Iwo Jima (TTT, Mar., 1946, 12).
Im sure the weather was likely to be pretty awful in Minneapolis, so at the Twin City
Closed you might say that Dave Krawetz, in winning the Mens, threw a psychic snow-storm
at Ed Litman, giving up on average only 14 points a game. At least the Womens final was
contestedMabel Smith over Shirley Lund, 18 in the 4th. Soon there wont be any more
letters, ShirleyHarry himself, later a rural letter-carrier, will be in the mail, so to speak.
Litman/Krawetz won the Mens Doublesover ex-Philippine-stationed vet Ed Sirmai and
Mayo Beske.
The Feb. 16-17 Chicago Central States saw the return
of 1943 U.S. Champion Billy Holzrichter. During his stay in
the Pacific, Holzrichter had seen action in the Marianasat
Tinian and Saipanand had experienced his B-24 being
shot down in a belly flop, then being rescued and flown
back to Manila. Having survived a 20, 14, -18, 16, 18
struggle here in the States with Bill Price, Billy went on to
a comfortable win over Andy Anderson in the final. I
just had natural strokes, Billy, reminiscing, said decades
later. It didnt take me long to come back. Indeed not.
Price, however, had to show all his fabled tracking power to
26, 19, 19, -18, 18 bring down the Bengal tiger in Herb
Aronson. Anderson, in his semis, downed another Champion
TTT, Apr., 1950, cover
returnee, Laci Bellak.
Billy Holzrichter
Mort Ladin added another Veterans to his laurels
over former Indiana TTA President Ted Chapman, now the USTTAs Expansion Chairman.
While he sees no shortage of equipment, he does see a big problemone that will always
plague the Sportand that is, High rentals still prevail and space to establish parlors is at a
premium. While we hope that this condition will improve it will certainly not be in the near
future.
That anonymous Oldtimer whom Id mentioned in the last chapter as saying that
women should play just as well as men also claimed that A man weighing more than 160
pounds, or [whos] more than 58 in height, is decidedly handicapped. The game is too fast
and the strokes too delicate for the big boys (TTT, Nov., 1945, 3). At this very moment, of
course, Englands Johnny Leach and Hungarys Ferenc Sido are preparing to prove him
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wrong, but we neednt wait for the 47 Worlds. At the Feb. 23-24 Missouri Valley Open in
the Des Moines YMCA, Ed Sirmai, a towering, dark-haired ladwith shoulders similar to
Minnesota fullbacks of yore, took honors in the Mens Singles. His 23, -19, 21, -16, 21 final
with Ed Litman was gladitorial.
Price/Thall Win Westerns
The March 2-3, 1946 Columbus, Ohio Westernsthe first major organized by Bob
Greenwas held at the Knights of Columbus Gym with all players being assured full use of
locker rooms and showers. Mens winner was Bill Price (tends to be over-cautious
someone said)22, 11, 25 over a stubborn Dan Kreer. Schiff and Somael, who had to have
been Touring, showed up, but they didnt play Singles. Possibly they werent prepared to risk
a loss, for, though they won the Doubles23-21 in the 5th over Kreer and Abbott Nelsonit
might be argued they were at least somewhat off-form.
As anticipated, but understandably with no anticipatory enthusiasm, the spectators
saw Leah Thall (12, 11, 119, 9, 1310, 8, 11) dominate the Womens fieldpresent, as it
were, an abatis of stiff impenetrable chops, a defense that was yet an offense, for it pointedly
set up some aggressive forehand winners. Runner-up Tybie beat Mary Specht in 5. So, though
this may have been one of those times Tybie snapped her bra-strap and, a bit frantic, had to go
hunting for a safety pin, she did just fine.
Miles/McLean Take Easterns
At the Mar. 15-16th Easterns, Defending Champion Dick Miles was as dominant a
winner this year as lastwhich suggests hell again outclass the field at the upcoming
Nationals? Two of the most watched matches were, as you might expect, Cartlands. In both
of these Doug showed his legendary tenacitybeating Cy Sussman, from down 2-0, 19 in the
5th, then losing to Lou Pagliaro in the semis but only after stubbornly insisting on carrying on
with a 23-21 win in the 4th. It was Cartland Paggy gave credit to for improving his backhand
defense. How angry Doug used to get at Lawrences when he was unlucky and losing, said
Louie. Hed clutch in fury at his shirt, his pants, as if he wanted to rip them off. And yet he
was always in control. Hed be forever driving to my backhand, and I really have him to thank
for improving my game. Paggy did have an easy quarters win over Lowry whod
nevertheless been quick to reestablish himself as a threat by knocking out Junior Champ Marty
Reisman in the 8ths, 3-0.
In Mens Doubles, Pinner(forehand)/Sussman(backhand), together again, didnt expect
to score a quick knockout over any serious contender, but they got in enough one-two
combinations to win a unanimous decisionover Schiff/Bellak and Miles/Cartland, both in 5.
In the Mixed, Schiff and Peggy McLean defeated Bellak and Boston Wave Corrine Dellery
(whom Reba Monness once called the best t.t.-dressed gal hereabouts), then Cartland/
Mildred Shahian in the final.
McLean, a Long Islander by birth (and still playing out of her hometown, Hollis,
N.Y.), won the Womensthe final over Shahian, and the (19, 7, -19, 11) semis over a
Bernice Charney whose generally placid demeanor belied the inner emotional swings that
made her either want to charge (as in her quarters rally to down Clouther in 5) or wimpily
give up (as in those 7, -11 losses to McLean). In the other semis, Shahian defeated U. S.
Champion Davida Hawthorn whod just returned from an 8-month USO Tour. Although while
overseas Davida had sent Topics a cablegram from Antwerp saying that her Camp Shows
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sponsor had given her permission to play some competitive matches in England, it appears
these were scheduled for March and that shed opted to come home instead. So after at least
two table tennis shows six days a week, she really wasnt prepared, other than to beat
Henrietta Wright 18 in the 4th, for tournament play, and, as the Nationals was only two weeks
away, would not be expected to retain her title.
Midwest Tournaments Prior to Nationals
At the March 16-17th Milwaukee Open, Holzrichter in winning the
Mens didnt drop a game. But runner-up Kreer was challenged by
Milwaukees Maule, 19, -18, 20, 19. Supported by a partisan crowd and
bolstered by last months confidence-builder, Maule, the Wisconsin Closed
Champ whom someone would call a chiropractic roamin romeo, had
earlier steadied to win in 5 from Chicagos hard-hitting Carlton Prouty.
Carlyn Blanks win in the Womens was as straight-game easy as
Holzrichters in the Mens.
Late-round Veterans matches were all 5-game intense. In the
semis, the eventual winner, Marlin Tucker (Tuck), defeated Racines
Clarence Gloede, while Paul Buell beat Rees Hoy. When, as USTTA
TTT, May 1953, 8
Tournament Chair, Hoy was interviewed by Topics, he was asked a
Carlton Prouty
number of questionstwo of which Ill note here. The first: Do you
favor additional tournament attractions such as music, speeches, etc.? Answer: Not.t.
itself should be enough attraction to keep the spectators interested. And the second: Are
you in favor of free entry fees for the best players? Answer: Definitely not.
In the Mar. 23-24th Michigan Closed at Pontiac, Max Hersh kept a firm grip on his
state championship for the fourth consecutive year. In the roughly 50-entry Mens, V. Lee
Webb was the 5-game runner-up. Hersh and Webb took the Mens Doubles from Brown and
Cliff Bishop who in the near future, like Pinner and Nash, will give up table tennis for
duplicate bridge tournaments.
Michigan TTA Secretary Grace Wasum, seeded #4, became the new Womens
Championover Marie Nash in 5. In the semis, Marie, down 2-1, was able to come back
against Ann Arbors Jean Smith. At a Michigan TTA meeting at this tournament, Harold
Jacober, whod been the Pontiac TTA President the past two years, was named to succeed Bill
Byrnes as the MTTA President, with Bishop as Vice-President. At seasons end, Michigan
would continue to lead the affiliates in USTTA Membership. Now, however, the USTTA is
not giving us membership numbersis only indicating that Michigan leads because it has
10.8% of the 100% Membership (to Ohios 10.5%).
Mar. 23-24th was also the date of the Missouri State Open. Allan Levy, playing in his
initial tourney since returning from service in the Merchant Marine, displayed his pre-war
form and super tournament temperament to defeat Price in 5. Marv Nichols was back from
Service in Japan and attending Culver-Stockton College with brother Mel. Together they
forced Mens Doubles winners Levy/Price into the 5th. The Juniors saw future U.S. World
Team member Wally Gundlach surfacehe lost in the semis to Don Schuessler, the 19-inthe-deciding-3rd-winner over Fletcher Abbey. Delores Kuenz, in defeating Betty Jane Schaefer,
19 in the 4th, and Nelson, deuce in the 4th, annexed her eighth state singles title to establish a
record that will probably never be topped. And all this achieved while shes the mother of
three children and recent victim of an appendectomy operation (TTT, May, 1946, 11).
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Nationals to Miles/Charney
The 16th U.S. Open, held Wed. through Fri.,
Mar. 27-29, 1946 at New York Citys 4500-seat St.
Nicholas Arena (66th St., Off Broadway), was the first
Nationals to be played in the East since 1941. The
Programwith an attractive multi-colored cover
design by Abe Berenbaumlisted 185 entries received
by Entry Chair Herwald Lawrence, half of them from
New York. (What had happened to table tennis in New
Jersey? As many players came from Colorado or
Quebec as New Jerseyfour, to be exact.)
Several members of the N.Y. Nationals
Committee, co-chaired by Henry Herrmann and
Bronson H. Alexander, were laudedLeo Schein
for keeping those [Detroiter] tables filled, Ed
Wetzel for making sure enough Becker Wembley
balls were available and for hunting referees, and
especially George Bacon whod prepared the venue
for play, working all night putting up lights[and]
1946 U.S. Open Program cover
arranging tables. The lighting in those days when
by Abe Berenbaum
balls were seldom lobbed was often better than it is
today, but only because accommodations were made over the courts. Because the usual St.
Nick fistic lightsarent shaded and might blind the players, Bacon rigged 200-watt string
lights with shades, four to a table. For the 10 tables in play, two lights were directly over
each table and two were hung eight to 10 feet behind the players.
The110-entry Mens draw was one of the strongest up to this time and in attendance
put to shame the far fewer entries last year in Detroit (table tennis was coming back). In the
round of 64, local N.Y. player Warren Bondy did well to force Jackson Heights Arnold
Fetbrod to 5. Fetbrod, U.S. #19 this season, continued to be the best player on Long Island
#2 was his Doubles partner Frank Milano, former LITTA President, whod been succeeded by
Frank Davison. It figured that the Sid Cohen-Harry Lund match would be closeand it was,
with Cohen winning in 5. But I was surprised that Arthur Buddy Draper (formerly
Drapkin), 1935 Atlantic Coast Champion and afterwards disqualified from the Middle Atlantic
States Open that followed for chiseling, was able, with apparently so little tournament play,
to beat Bob Green, last seasons U.S. #10.
I must now mention two 8ths matches. First, theres Holzrichter and his 17, -15, 12, 7 poor showing against McClure. What a live wire Jimmy was, said Billy. He could tell
jokes all day long. But here McClure must have been electric on court too, and Holzrichter
couldnt have been smiling. Jimmys mustering out photo from the Navy appears on the front
cover of the Jan., 46 Topics, but, as theres no report of him playing in any tournament, I
dont know how he kept up his game. Then theres Reisman, whose 12, 15, -19, -19, -18
turnaround loss to Schiff was probably the most disappointing of his up-to-this-point career.
In the quarters, Cy Sussman, taking full advantage of his Draw when Nash and Hazi didnt
show, advanced in straight gamessurprisingly over Cartland. (According to George Schein,
it was Hazi whod said that Cy would become National Champion if he could combine a bit of
headwork with his strokes.)
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In the one
spectator-pleasing
match that would
remain as the Mens
came anticlimactically
to a close, Schiff, again
down 2-0, again
ralliedto beat
Pagliaro with a
blazing forehand.
Paggy, mindful of the
newsreel shots the
media wanted, had
joined with Miles in
going through their
antics for the benefit of
the theatre crowds all
over the nationand
with Bellak clowning
too. Afterwards, Sol
was unchallenged by
Sussman, Miles
unchallenged by either
the 21-year-old Pinner
in the semis or Schiff
in the final. James A.
Burchard, the covering
Dick Miles wins 1946 U.S. Openhis 2nd
reporter for the WorldTelegram, wrote that
Miles took the [28-year-old] old-timer rather easily, capitalizing [on] a blistering forehand
and sound defensive tactics. I knew I had him after the first game, said Miles. He couldnt
stand up to a solid offensive attack.
Dick, as it happened, was once a copy boy for columnist Dan Parker of the New York
Daily Mirror, but soon discovered this was not his calling. (Ill never forget, Parker wrote,
the day two editions went to press while Dick was rushing my column to the composing
room.) But boss and copy boy remained cordial, and after this 46 U.S. Open they met, and
the story Parker tells is that
Dick took a frayed clipping out of his wallet when I talked to him recently,
and handed it to me. It was an item that appeared in my Broadway Bugle column
four years ago, reading: Dick Miles, Mirror copy boy, is getting so good at table
tennis, he sometimes beats Sol Schiff.
I just thought youd like to know, explained the national champ, that Sol
Schiff was the chap I beat three straight in the 1946 championship final.
[Ah! What then would be better for Dan than an autographed ping-pong ball
from Dick?Done.]
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In a Topics of the time, Miles is described as in a class by himself. But then the
writer says in somewhat contradictory fashion that Dick is classy, but
Miles lacks color and is not interesting to watchhis forehand drive is a
clock-like motion, so well grooved its monotonous. Miles plays a smart game, never
changes expression and seems to follow the policy of taking command of the
situationforcing the defensive player to hit and the offensive player into defense
(Apr., 1946, 5)
.
That same Topics clearly dismissed the 16-year-old
Reisman. Miles has reached a peak in his game that will not
be surpassed by any present outstanding players. Someone
new and fresh will have to come along to dethrone Dick
(3). U.S. #18 Reisman was no longer in linenot unless you
read Reba Monnesss More Or Less column, though even
she expressed some reservations:
Dick Miles is playing very well. [Reba
wishes she were in his shoeswishes she were a
National Champion? Further on, she says Dick just
Svensk Bordtennis
won the Nationals in her shoesliterally, her
Marty Reisman
borrowed sneakers.] Marty Reisman who is a definite
threat to the National title at some future date [no
longer the near future of two years ago] has grown five inches within five months
[perhaps thats slowed the growth of his game?].Marty has an excellent offense,
[and a ] beautiful retrieving game but hes still weak on defense(TTT, Oct., 1946, 6).
And weaker still, on occasion (but well not count him out completely just yet),
Reisman might have appeared. Leon Ruderman, who half a century later would be the U.S.
Over 70 Champion, tells of a match he watched in 1946 at City College that amused him.
Here was Marty and another anonymous player out to outhustle one another, each trying in
the beginning to lose the first game so as to increase the bet. Except, as they went into the
end-game, Martys opponent got wise to the fact that Marty was better than hed thought,
and, wanting to grab the one-game money and run, smacked in a winner to take the lead. But
of course in the process hed outed himself and his intention, and so Marty quickly finished
him off.
Come the new 46-47 season, Reba will let us know that Reisman, about whom you
have heard and will hear more and more, defeated Miles in a Friday night tournament [at of
course Lawrences, so no wonder, with a match like this, the place was always jammed on
Friday nights]. And Dick will say years hence that when Marty as a whiz-bang kid first began
appearing regularly at Lawrences, I probably wouldnt even play with him. Later [when
Dick used Marty as a practice partner much as Pagliaro had used Dick?], I couldnt give him
5.Couldnt give him 4.Couldnt give him 3.So we went to 2 (-1). He got good very,
very fast. And so helped Dick to get even better?
In Mens Doubles, Pinner and Sussman took up right where theyd left off in 41 and
42won their 3rd National Championship. They beat Miles/Cartland, deuce in the 4th in the
171

semis, and Schiff/Somael 18 in the 4th, in the final. This was Schiffs tournament for winning
the close ones, thoughnot only in Singles but Doubles. In the quarters he and Johnny were
down 2-1 and at 23-all with Reisman and Bill Cross, and then in the semis against Pagliaro/
McClure, after they were up 2-0 and at 22-all in the 3rd, they almost let the match slip away,
but just hung on to win the 5th at deuce (Jimmy said that at match point Paggy had fly-swatted
a putaway ball that floated out and away on him).
New Yorkers were also at the fore in the Mens Consolation. Jack Sontag, after
getting by Greater Boston TTA President Douglas Allred, 19 in the 5th in the quarters, beat
Nick Grippi of the Bronx in 4 in the final. Reisman remembers Sontag as a jocular, fun guy
who presented Marty with a set of fanciful (childhood to old age) caricatures he did on him
which Marty still chuckles over to this day.*
The only major missing players from the 36-entry Womens were: 5-time Champion
Sally Green who reportedly at the last minute, after practicing 10 hours a daybecame ill
and was forced to withdraw; Mildred Shipman, Sallys winning Womens Doubles partner at
last years U.S. Open (and in 1939 and 40 as well); and Mayo Barrett, a member of that 1940
U.S. Team to Japan and
Sallys recent Doubles
partner in Midwest
tournaments.
All the seeded and
placed players advanced to
the round of 16, but three
early matches (the only ones
that werent straight-game
decided) are worth noting.
Mary Reilly almost pulled off
TTT, Apr. 1941, 7
Margaret
Koolery Wilson
a major upsetlost deuce in
th
the 5 to Mary Specht. Ruthe
TTT, Jan. 1945, cover
Crist, formerly Ruthe Brewer, 1940 U.S. Open runner-up
Mary Specht
to Green and a team member of Barretts on that trip to
Japan, defeated Margaret Koolery Wilson, 19 in the 4th. And Elayne Mohr, soon to be Ben
Dattels wife (theyd met at a public playground in the Bronx where they played t.t.), did
well to take a game from Carroll Blank, U.S. #6 for the season.
Crist had been divorced for some time now, was back living in New York, and was
returning to serious play. In the 8ths, Ruthe showed she was still very much a competitor in
15, -20, 18, 18, -19 just falling short against Helen Germaine, Womens runner-up in both the
1934 and 41 U.S. Opens. In the other most contested 8ths, Carroll Blank 20, 19, -12, 20
stopped a stubborn Clouther. But then in the quarters against Hawthorn, Carroll couldnt win
the deuce 3rd game she needed and fell in 4. Charney, blocking if need be, but usually
aggressive from either wing, joined Davida in the semis. Initially, Eastern Champ McLean had
been a little 19, -17, 10, 15 shaky with Carlyn Blank, which might have caused her father
Vincent (he was on the NYTTA St. Nick Organizing Committee) an anxious moment or two,
but then neither Peggy nor he had a worrisome moment with Germaine. Leah Thall, however,
had 5-game trouble with Shahians close-to-the-table play.
It wasnt a good omen for the returning Hawthorn that in transit from Europe two of
her bags vanishedespecially as her rackets were in them. Now the Defending Champ wasnt
172

getting good vibes from covering World-Telegram reporter

Burchard. Prior to her semis, the heading of his article read,
Seen Too Old to Repeat. This was in part, he said, because
Davida was purely a defensive player: She concentrates on
returning the ball until her opponent errs, only racing in for a
kill if she receives a setup. This means she generally is hopping
around some 10 to 15 feet behind the table, which calls for
plenty of stamina when the going becomes rugged. And, well,
shes 28. So, sure enough, when, at 1-1 with Charney, Davida
loses the 19 3rd game, shes done forthough I for one am not
so sure its because shes exhausted.
Of course Leah Thall is 30so, from Burchards point
of view, its almost hopeless for her. And as if its now or never,
Leah beats 19-year-old (Shes a Queens College student? She
TTT, Nov., 1946
looks 5 years younger) McLean, 3-0 to gain the final against
1946 U.S. Open
Bernice. This is only Charneys second Nationalsin her first
Champion
one, in 1941, she lost her opening match. Shes come a long
Bernice Charney
waythe more so when (with Tybie Thall and Mary McIlwain
as ball girls) she 18, -17, 22, -23, 15 outlasts a determined
Leah to win the Championship. Nothing secret about that
match, Burchard quoted the referee (most likely Bill Gunn, but possibly Mel Rose) as saying.
Miss Charney had the guts to gamble everything on an all-out offensive. It was make or
break and she won.
Reba Monness will interview the new Champion112 pounds, wavy brown hair, a
fetching dimplewho makes her living as a filing clerk for a publishing firm. Here are some
essential things to know about her:
Her favorite dish is chow mein, her favorite beverage is milk and her favorite
past-time (when not table tennising) is attending the movies. B is also very fond of
jazz, her main ambition being to become a top-flight drummer in a name band. Other
than table tennis she does not play athletic games and admits she is a poor swimmer
(TTT, Nov., 1946, 3).
In Womens Doubles, the #6 Singles seed, Shahian, teamed up with the #8 Singles
seed, Cloutherand if ever a pair worked hard to earn a major Championship these two did.
In the quarters they came from 2-1 down to beat the Blank twins; in the semis, against
McLean/Hawthorn, they lost the first two yet won in 5; and in the final they triumphed over
the Thall sisters 24-22 in the 5th.
In the Mixed, Schiff/ McLean pretty much cruised all the waybeating Holzrichter/
Leah Thall in the final.
McLean wasnt the only ranked Long Islander to win a National Championship here at
St. Nicks. Beechursts Howard Gorges, #1, who was about to succeed Frank Davison as
President of the LITTA, and his partner, John Keinker, #2, took the Veterans Doubles title
over Defending Champions Bacon/Gunn in the semis and Nidy/Chapman in the final.
In the Veterans, in a replay of their 1942 U.S. Open final, Tucker defeated Gunn,
again in 4 to win the Championship. Gunn, who with his melodious bass voice announced
173

matches in various events, had a relatively easy time reaching the final. Tuck, however, had
a deuce in the 5th scare from Lipschutz; a 7, 20, 19, 19 quarters tussle with 39 U.S. Open
Veterans runner-up Al Nachsin; and then another 5-game semis with Simeon Sabre. What
happened to Defending Champ George Bacon? George, Burchard says, blew the duke to
Sabrelost 19 in the 5th in the quarters. After going without sleep for two nights putting up
those lights, he was dead on his dogs. Runyanesque 1946 New York reporting, eh?
Reisman won the Juniors without dropping a gamedowning, as he had at the
Easterns, Irwin Miller in the final. Richard Leviton, who lost to Marty in the semis, won a
21, -28, 16, -18, 14 marathon quarters match from Norm Schulman. Barclay, 102 pounds of
concentrated dynamite who just turned 14 last February, took the Boysover Abbott
Glasser. Reporter Burchard quotes Bill Price, who flew to New York with Barclay, as saying
that Gordy plays six hours a day at the South Bend Y, surely an exaggeration. Price declares
that Nobody his age can touch him, which is true. And adds, Hes also a darn good
quarterback on a high school team, playing against 200-pounders, and he excels at baseball
and basketball. Pagliaro, on losing a game to the young teenager, told Burchard that Gordy
has a great fighting spirit and will be unbeatable in two or three yearshe means of
course in the Mens. Do you really think so, Louie? Would you look 20-year-old Dick and 16year-old Marty in the eye and say that?
SELECTED NOTES.
*Sontag was one of those N.Y. players whose table tennis life slipped into
obscuritythen was resurrected, hyped out of relation to reality. An article on him, and his
photo, racket in hand, appear in the Mar. 23, 1970 Davenport, Iowa Times-Democrat. Here
we read that whereas he now plays at the local Y, he once played at, coached at, even
managed for three years the fabled N.Y. Lawrences club, that he coached Peggy McLean, and
taught 12-year-old Reisman who would skip school to come play with him and learn from
him, for then he was #15 in the country and his snake backhand was unique. Another
quarter of a century passes, and a writer named Bill Wundram does a Jan. 15, 2001 piece on
him for the Quad-City Times. And now we read that a month after his death Jacks body still
lies in a funeral home. But Jack had once been at the top, the Forest Gump of his time,
had reigned as National Mens Singles Champion.

174

Chapter Seventeen
1946: Varga Posits Tight Post-War Ranking Conditions. 1946: Spring Tournaments.
1946: USTTA Reorganizes with New President at June 22-23 Chicago Meeting. 1946:
English Open/Reactivation of ITTF.
Ah, the thrill of seeing ones name in the USTTA Rankings, of being acknowledged
right up there with Miles and Reisman as one of the best competitors in the Sport. What does
a player have to do to even be considered for such an honor? According to Ranking Chair
John Varga, this:
MINIMUM CONDITIONS FOR RANKING ELIGIBILITY
1. Participation in at least three (3) USTTA sanctioned tournaments.
2. Of these three tournaments at least ONE (1) must be 4 star (****)
Nationals (class A)or 3 star (***)Eastern, Central, Western Open
and National Intercities (class B).
3. A total sum of Participation Credits (P) of at least twelve (12) points.
A 4 star (****) tournament (class A) carries eight (8) points.
3 star (***) tournaments (class B) carry four (4) points.
2 star (**) tournaments (class C) carry two (2 points).
1 star (*) tournaments (class D) carry one (1) point.

[Note.] These rules can be deviated from by the USTTA Ranking Committee
at its discretion and by unanimous vote. In rare instances and only if a player has
fulfilled conditions No. 1 and No. 2 but is a few points short for condition No. 3 the
committee can consider him PROVIDED his personal record against other
outstanding players warrants such a step.
The rules are set down mainly with an eye on rankings in the Singles events.
Although the same principles hold true for Doubles play the committee will be entitled
to take a more liberal viewpoint, due to the fact that there are usually changes in
player pairings, very few combinations playing together in all the important
tournaments (TTT, Oct., 1946, 4).
Its hoped that, when the Tournament Schedule is formed for the upcoming season,
players will be able to note the star-power of the respective tournaments and plan their
participation accordingly. (However, as the months will go by, the Tournament Schedule in
Topics will not show stars for the tournaments listed.).
With the enforcement of these conditions for National Ranking, there will be a dropoff this season as opposed to last in the number of men and women ranked. In 1944-45 there
were 42 men and 38 women ranked; in 1945-46 there will be 38 men and only 24 women
ranked. However, this year more players will get their name in print, because last season there
was no Insufficient Data listing and this season there will be: 24 men and 19 women will be
IDd.
Obviously the USTTA wants to highlight their major tournaments, but if you dont
have the time or money to go to a geographically distant National or Regional, you cant be
ranked. (The Eastern and Western Opens have a tradition that goes back to the beginnings of
175

the USTTA; it remains to be seen, however, if a comparably prestigious Central Open can be
established.) Also, for the Association to be hard-pressed to rank even three boys in the
country because there arent enough Boys events in the season to make the 3-tournament
rule stick presents a serious problemas does giving a National Ranking to a Doubles pair
that played only a few matches in one tournament, albeit the Nationals.
Moreover, what about other sections of the country? Are they to be ignored? Is
anyone trying to figure out how their players (for theyre out there) might get a much hyped,
much prized National Ranking? Of course the world of computers and quick-changing ratings
is far in the future, and standards have to be applied now. But more tournaments have to be
run everywhereand, as Reba Monness says, Wouldnt it be nice to have time-scheduled
matches?
Since its been publicly stated that the Tournament Season has now been extended
beyond the Nationals through May 31st , and the Rankings wont be published in Topics until
the fall, I want now to pick up some remaining Spring tournaments.
Spring Tournaments
When former USTTA Executive Secretary Thomas E.
Bob Berna returned from Service to take up his old
position, and Headquarters was temporarily moved back
to its old building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania players
began reappearing. A slate of PTTA officers was
electedamong them, returning vet Bob Temple as their
enthusiastic President (in the Philippines where he was
stationed, hed wanted the Filipinos to give up their
cock fighting and organize a table tennis club); Mel
Evans, Jr., a Plant Layout Engineer whos Lancasters
best darts player, as one of their V. Ps; and Henrietta
Wright as their Corresponding Secretary.
The April 13 Pennsylvania Closed was held in
Philadelphiawith Chesters Paul Capelle downing
Phillys Al Butowsky in the final of the 60-entry Mens,
and ex-Champion Wright defeating the long retired,
former U.S. #3 Ruth Wilson Millington in the final of the
TTT, Feb., 1946, cover
Womens. Berna couldnt have been prouderfor the
USTTA Executive Secretary
resuscitation of his home state, yes: they already had 175
Thomas Bob Berna returns
USTTA members; but also for winning his first State
trophy, the Doubles with Capelle. Later, Bob would give a 20-minute exhibition with Izzy
Bellis that was televised in the Pennsylvania region by Philadelphias Philco TV station. Likely
the two werent paid anything and didnt expect to be. But new USTTA rules next season will
require anyone giving an exhibition, not just those receiving remuneration, to register (the fee
is $2) with Exhibition Chair Phil Kenner.
The Indiana TTA continued to publish its Drop-Shots newsletter, and one could see
in the July, 46 issue the results of various Closed events in this state that at seasons end had
332 USTTA members146 regular and 186 group. At the May 5-6 Indiana State Closed,
Gordon Barclay, South Bends bundle of never-say-die spirit showed superman stamina in
spite of his adolescent 14 years, and went on to establish an all-time record in Indiana tourney
176

history by winning six events. Sally Green, whose illness prevented her from playing in the
Nationals, was back in the hospital againthis time for an appendectomy.
After South Bends Maryhelen Perry became the Womens State Champ by beating
Helen Schosker, 25, 17, -22, 17, she received the Betty Henry Memorial Trophy presented to
her by Bettys father. The Jimmy Stout Memorial Trophyin honor of Stout (Indiana Top 10
for 39-40) who gave his life in service to the countrywas presented by Jimmy McClure
to young Barclay who then had to have help from his admirers to carry home his 1-2-3-4-5-67 trophies.
USTTA Reorganizes with New President
With the retirement of Carl Nidy, Elmer
(Skipper) Cinnater, Captain of the famous 1937
World Champion U.S. Mens and Womens Teams
and a member of the (Advisory) Board of Regents,
became the USTTA President for the 46-47 season.
Retiring with Nidy was his 1st V.P., Ed Kuhns, who
was replaced by Chicago advertising executive and
two-term Illinois TTA President Berne Abelew.
Presumably those in line, 2nd V.P. Ted Chapman, and
3rd V.P. Graham Steenhoven, a very sincere worker
who never quits until success is assured in any job
assigned to him, didnt want to move up (and such
an in-line hierarchy was thereafter abandoned). For
whatever reason, Abelew would only serve a few
months, then Kuhns would come back in to replace
him. Also, by mid-winter Steenhoven had resigned
President/Player Elmer Cinnater
and was replaced by George Schein.
With the exception of Kauderer, all these officials attended the Summer Executive
Conference, held June 22-23 at the Hotel Seneca in Chicago. Among other attendees were
three Board of Regents members (ex-high level E.C.ers): Vic Rupp (whod been two years
overseas with an Ordnance Company), Morris Bassford, and Carl Nidy (who in his May
Presidential farewell had said, I cannot imagine myself becoming totally inactive in table
tennis matters. Once in your blood, the urge to do something for the game is ever present, so I
can see that after a summer vacation, the temptation is going to be strong to get back into
promoting the game).
Also conveniently attending were Chicagoans Rees Hoy whod replaced Abelew as
Illinois TTA President, Mary Specht, the Conference Secretary, Jimmy Shrout, another Illinois
TTA representative (like Sally Green hed moved to Chicago from Indianapolis), and Morris
Alexander, USTTA Law Committee Chair. Present, too, was Clyde Downing, the President of
the recently formed Mississippi Valley TTA that included Rock Island and Moline, Illinois and
also Davenport, Iowa (Abelew and Specht had been part of a Chicago exhibition team that
had driven the 175 miles to jump-start this Affiliate at its Davenport Y Headquarters).
In addition, three USTTA Chairmen from Indiana attended: South Bends John Varga
(Ranking) and Nelson Poole (Courts & Clubs), and Hammonds Jim Michaels (Lighting).
The first order of business (after Nidy was presented with a watch for his past
services) was USTTA V.P. Chapmans Organization Chart that had appeared in the May, 46
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Topics. Chapmans aim (like anyone elses), which he first outlined in the Mar., 1946 Topics,
was to secure at least 10,000 new members; increase revenue so as to afford the
Association with sufficient capital to embark upon the many programs for expanding and
improving the game, especially with regard to playing conditions, tournaments,
leaguesrulesuh, whatever; work with manufacturers to improve and at the same time, if
possible, keep down the cost of table tennis equipment; support our affiliates so that we
may eventually reach the goal of 48 state associations; put out attractive pamphlets that
may help establish the game as a recognized sport in the primary, elementary, and high
schools, colleges, courts, YMCAs and Civic Centers; and gain publicity through
newspapers and magazines (3). In order that the Association might better do all this, he
proposed that the President who sets the organization policy and program and co-ordinates
the activity of all the other executive officers, be relieved of unnecessary detail work (4).
That meant delegating to each E.C. member (what hadnt been delegated before) the
responsibility of certain specific committeesfor example, all of the following Chairs would
report to the one V.P. in charge of them: Exhibitions, Leagues, Ranking, Courts & Clubs,
Rules, Tournament, Referees, Trophies, and Lighting. Enough saidChart adopted.
Tournament Discussion
Since the Association is dependent on tournaments, this E.C. is right to want them to
be scheduled in advance. In the past, many were spur-of-themoment organized, and couldnt be announced in Topics. Also,
some affiliates were practicing false economy, making the
mistake of sending out entry blanks for tournaments by fourth
class mail1 and 1/2 cent postagewith the result that, as
theres no date line on such mail, it may just sit in the post office
until the entry deadline, or even the tournament itself, has passed.
Two tournament resolutions were passed unanimously.
One was Steenhovens suggestion that $100 be advanced by the
sponsor of the U.S. Open so that $50 could be awarded to both
the Mens and Womens winner to help defray the expenses
theyd incur in defending their title the following year. (Would
Steenhoven like that $50 to be given retroactively to New
Yorkers Charney and Miles?) The other was Tournament Chair
Hoys suggestion that Affiliates planning on running tournaments
put up a deposit$100 for the 4-star Nationals; $50 for the 3star ones; and $25 for the 2-stars. This deposit would be
refunded if the results were received at Headquarters within 10
days of the tournament. Hoy was planning on sending to each
sponsor a set of rules for running a tournament, and, if they
werent followed, their deposit would be forfeited. However,
on moving to Iowa come winter for business reasons, Hoy would
find it necessary to resign both as Illinois TTA President (Billy
Condy would replace him) and as USTTA Tournament Chair (Rupp
would replace him).
George Schein would take Matt Fairlies place as head of
the Referees and Umpires Committee, while Fairlie would remain
George Schein
178

as Rules Chair. No one could quarrel with the following Committee suggestions (though
implementing them might be another matter): Chairs for the referees [read certified umpires?]
to be at least 30 inches from the floor. Referees provided for all 2-star and 3-star
tournaments from the quarterfinals on, starting with the Easterns and Westerns. All
matches at the Nationals to be refereed. Method of indicating the game scores to spectators
to be implemented. And official uniforms for the referees and umpires to be worn. (Referee
and umpire seem to be interchangeable words here.)
Lighting Chair Jim Michaels suggested setting up a grading system for clubs and
tournament venues in regard to their lighting systems, and said hed investigate fluorescent
lighting and determine whether or not this can be used effectively.
Steenhoven felt that the current $5 entry fee for inter-city teams was way too low, and
it was agreed unanimously that teams pay an entry fee of $25 per team to the host city and
that 25% of the net profits be given to the USTTA. Sanction fee for the event shall be 25% of
the net profit in addition to the standard sanction fee of $25.
Womens Chair Reba Monness sent in a report urging the resumption of Womens
East-West Matches to help determine the Womens Team to the 1947 Worlds. She also wants
tournaments to have Womens Doublesits a colorful eventand, dont forget, our women
will play Doubles at the Worlds.
Hoy said hed received many requests to raise the Veterans age bracket to 40 or 45
years of age whatever the star tournament. That could mean both an Over 35 and an Over 45
event. Abelew felt that would be a detriment to the game. Rupp thought that the state
associations would not have enough men to support the two groups. So, go with just the
Over 35, no second event at this time. It would be five years before the Nationals had an
Over 50 Esquire event.
Membership Discussion
As of June 1, Membership Chair Rupps report showed a total of 27 affiliates,
2037 regular members, 198 group members, 10 state organizations, 7 district associations,
and 10 provisional associations, with 48 members from miscellaneous, unorganized
areas. This is probably the most complete Membership summary the USTTA to date had
ever put together. But it still suggests something of a hodge-podge Association. Perhaps a
doubling of the dues would tighten things up? Though costs had increased, the dues were
still what theyd been as of Dec. 1, 1938$1, with affiliates remitting $.75 for each
USTTA member. Better they be made $1.50 ($1 to Topics, $.50 to the USTTA General
Fund) plus optional $.50 local affiliate dues. Thats a total of just $2 a year, for which
members receive 8 issues of the magazine. But the E.C. would not vote for an increase
said that the problem could be solved by expanding the game and increasing the
membership. A mistake of course.
(Later in a Dec., 1946 Topics poll, only 33% said they were downright opposed to
dues being raised. So the following season, drastically short of funds, the USTTA went ahead
and doubled the dues. Individual memberships went to $1.50$2.00 in areas not governed by
an affiliateand Group memberships from $.25 to $.50.But then, unexplainably, this
increase was put on holdaffiliates would continue to remit $.75 for each member, while new
members could join the USTTA for $1.)
The E.C., however, did agree to institute a Life Membership, which would include
a subscription to the USTTA magazine for the term of its life. The cost of this was $25
179

$15 went to Topics, $5 to the USTTA General Fund, and $5 to the members Affiliate. The
E.C. then discussed the idea of a Foundation Life Membershipfor $100. The funds
received would be invested in Government bonds or other suitable interest-bearing securities
to provide a permanent fund for the continuation of the USTTA. Although the USTTA
member would get little more than what hed get for a $30 Life Membershipjust a suitably
engraved card and general admission entry to any open tournamenthed certainly be
helping the USTTA, so this Membership, too, would eventually become part of a have-to-be
revised Constitution.
Lynel Overton had suggested in a Jan., 46 article in Topics that the USTTA could
offer prizes to USTTA members who secure one or a certain number of
membershipsone such prize being instruction from a recognized player. Though theres
nothing in these Chicago Conference Minutes about such a suggestion being adopted, I know
that in one instance it was, and cant resist including it here.
A Long Island player, Bob Bushell, recalled to me, with the coming of the new
millennium, how when he was a kid he won his age division at a tournament played at the
New York Armory and received as a prizea lesson from U.S. Champion Dick Miles. As
Bushell tells it, Miles comes out to the table, and says, O.K., what am I supposed to do?
Give you a lesson? Play a game with you? Actually, says Bushell, Miles really doesnt
want to do anything, regrets having volunteered, and just wants to get the hell out of there.
Being a wise-ass kid, Bob replies, Both. Dick, knowing hes just supposed to give the
kid a lesson, starts with a game and beats young Bob 21-0. Then, abruptly ending his
obligation, Dick says to him, Young man, youve just had a gameand a lesson. Which,
though an unforgettable experience for Bob, wasnt quite the scenario the prize-maker had
intended.
Although the USTTA had only 10 state associations, the E.C. voted to increase the
needed membership for a state association from 25 to 100 members and said that after one
year [by Jan. 1, 1949] state associations must have a minimum of 150 or be in danger of
having their charter revoked and reduced to a district or provisional status. Likewise, though
the Association had only 7 district associations, the E.C. voted to increase the needed
membership for a district association from 25 to 50 and said that after one year [by Jan. 1,
1949] a total of 75 members would be required (along with a minimum of five members in
each of the counties requested in the district). Likewise, though the Association had only 10
provisional associations, the E.C. voted to increase the needed membership for a provisional
association from 5 members to 25 members, with a minimum of 40 members after the first
year [by Jan. 1, 1949]. A later addition allowed small groups of players in unorganized states
to form a temporary affiliate with a minimum of 5 members. All affiliates would be required
to submit a complete list of their members as of June 1st to USTTA Headquarters for checking
purposes.
All changes to the Constitution would be approved by the Board of Governors
(combined state and district Presidents) and go into effect Jan. 1, 1948. Any affiliatestate,
district, or provisionalthat was formed after that Jan. 1st date would have to adhere
immediately to the new requirements.
Equipment Discussion
The E.C. continued with its post-War resolutions by terminating as of July 15th all
equipment approval agreements prior to March 1, 1946, and indicated that new agreements
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might require the re-testing of equipment. Bernas resolution that the USTTA approve
rackets at the same scheduled rates for nets, namely 3 cents per racket, was passed
unanimously. Members are asked to buy only equipment that bears the USTTA seal of
approval.
The USTTA didnt seem to be too concerned about getting balls to play with
perhaps because they were willing to settle for something less than the best or even good
balls? But the English (see the Feb./Mar., 1947 issue of the ETTA magazine Table Tennis)
were lamenting the more than double prices [for balls] ruling in 1939. The British
manufacturersone of whom advertised the famed Halex ball, another the re-introduced
Dunlop ball pushed by Barnaexplained that the cost of manufacture had tripled since 1939
due to the doubling of the price of celluloid, the increased cost of labor, and increased
overhead. Further, to meet Association ball-approval standards, elaborate testing must be
done largely by hand [to weed out the many rejectsthat would then find their way to the
U.S.?] (and is
consequently
expensive) (12).
Publication
Discussion
Chapmans
resolution (perhaps
prompted by
Overtons earlier
suggestion in
Topics) to enlarge
the magazine to the
size of 8 by 11
(after eight years of
6 by 9 issues) was
passed unanimously.
Chapman also
suggested
Louis E. Laflin, Jr.
Peter W. Roberts
preparing a series
of articles for
TOPICS about the history of the game. These articlesby Louis Laflin, Jr., a Yale Ph.D.
specializing in theatrical history, and USTTA History Chair Peter W. Robertswont
begin until Nov., 1947 and will run intermittently for two years (to end rather abruptly with
the coming of V-E and V-J Day and the close of World War II). Taken in toto, they
represent the first and only comprehensive work of Table Tennis History attempted by
anyone in the U.S. before this one. While I praise Laflin, a Mayflower descendent with a
wife and three children, who attended Princeton and Yale and was said to be a playwright
and author, I wonder how he got involved in this time-consuming project and suspect that
he came to regret it. Too bad, though, that still another suggestion of Overtons wasnt
taken seriously. Other great sports, he said, have motion picture films of their
outstanding players in action, which the public can rent or purchase at will.Why not
table tennis?
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Mel Evans, Jr., the 1940-41 Topics Editor, was named

Editor for 1946-47, and a new cover (without the
customary photo), designed by Abelew and Shrout, was
adopted (however, the cover photo would soon be back).
Toledo T.T. Courts Manager Mrs. Dana Young will be the
Associate Editor (beginning with the Dec., 1946 issue, shell
write a Side-Lines column), and Bill Price will be the Art
Director. Berna will handle all advertising for the magazine.
As Headquarters becomes more and more organized, Bobs
aim is to get Topics in the mails at the end of each preceding
monthand, sure enough, by Nov. 27 hell get the Dec.
issue to the Philadelphia post office. However, after the first
six issues, budget problems will reduce the magazine from 16
pages to 12.
Here are USTTA member responses to some of the
TTT, Dec., 1946, 6
questions the Association will ask them in a fall poll thats
Dana Young
then published in the Dec., 1946 Topics. Half the members
say they play 2-3 times a week. One in 10 has been a member
for 10 years. Sixty percent say theyve never attended a tournament as a spectator. Almost
another 30% say they attend two tournaments a year as spectators. Hence t.t. does not seem
to be much of a spectator sport for those who play seriously. Do you suppose it is for those
who dont play seriously? Thirty percent have never won a trophy. Only 8 % feel theyre in a
dub classwhich, in view of their answer to the remaining question Ill include here, is highly
suspect.
Who gets their votes for the greatest U.S. mens player of all times? Thirty-eight
percent say the two-time U.S. Champion crowned in the space of the last year and a half, Dick
Miles. Twenty-nine percent say 3-time World Doubles Champion Jimmy McClure (a photo of
him with some of his 1937 teammatesSol Schiff is not includedappeared in the November
Topics). And 12% sayColeman Clark who, not to knock his importance to the Sport as a
Promoter and Exhibitionist, could hardly be called a great player. Three-time U.S.
Champion Lou Pagliaro and 1937 U.S. Swaythling Cup sensation Schiff, whod again been
teaching tennis at a Catskills resort this summer, are somewhere behind Clark, always of
course a great self-promoter. Former USTTA President Carl Zeisberg who, as readers of Vol.
I will know, suspended the teenage Schiff, takes pains in the following issue to remind readers
what they never knewthat Sol won 21 out of 22 Swaythling Cup matches against the
worlds greatest players. So many dub assessors, uninformed and unaware of excellence, equal
so many dub players.
Since communication is all important to the USTTAs plans, Expansion Chair Abelew
(soon to be replaced by George Koehnke) was allotted $1,000 to proceed with the printing
[at least 10,000 copies] and distribution of a 16-page booklet [itll be 14 pages], giving a
short history of the game and the fundamentals of how to play it. This introductory booklet,
Table Tennis For You, is to be designed for people who know nothing about the game,
and will be distributed through Headquarters and also the manufacturers. Individual copies
will be distributed without charge and larger quantities at a nominal fee (this will turn out to
be $4 per hundred, $35 per thousand). Its also decided that both the USTTA Manual and
Nidys brochure on league organization will be revised and available.
182

ills

k
ats

In

C
.Y.
N
e

th

Sol and pupil agreeing on the rackets sweet spot

183

English Open/Reactivation of ITTF

The last item of business at the USTTA re-organizational meeting in Chicago I want to
take up is Bassfords report on the Mar. 19-23, 1946 ITTF Conference held in London in
conjunction with the resumption of the English Open (Bassford will be named the NorthCentral-South American liaison V.P. with the ITTF). But first I want, with the help of C. Corti
Woodcocks letter in the May, 46 Topics (12), to familiarize you with the results of the most
recent international play. As weve seen earlier, the French wasted no time in getting back to
the courts, held their Closed Championships in 45 shortly after the War had ended. Following
his exhibition with Schiff, Amouretti had lost in the final to one-time winner Alex Agapoff.
Now the English Open was held, and with great success. Woodcock says Wembley
was filled to capacity, 9,000 strong, andI feel impelled to emphasize this at least 10,000
more could not get in. All eleven nations entered were from Europe, except for the U.S.
(though I dont know who could have played for usno stars certainly, perhaps Servicemen
abroad). The 193 Mens entries eventually played out to the late rounds as follows. Quarters:
Vana (38 Czech World Champion) over Ehrlich (36, 37, and 39 Polish World runner-up);
Barna (Hungarys multi-time World Singles and Doubles Champion) over Belgiums
Evalenko; Andreadis (future 3-time Czech World Doubles Champion) over Haguenauer
(former French Champion); and Bergmann (37 and 39 Austrian World Champion)down
triple-match point in the 5th, he says in his autobiography Twenty-One Up, over Slar (a Czech
about-to-be World Doubles Champion). Semis: Vana over Barna, 18, 16, 18; Bergmann over
Andreadis, -18, 17, 12, 14. Ill come to the Vana-Bergmann final in a moment, but first other
results. Mens Doubles: Vana and his Czech teammate Slar over Barna and his stage partner
Alec Brook, 3-1. Womens Singles: Hungarys Dora Beregi over former English Junior
Champion Elizabeth Blackbourn (whod upset Defending Champ Vera Dace), 3-1. Beregi also
won the Womens Doubles (with Dace) and the Mixed (with lawn tennis star Eric Filby). Now
heres Woodcocks account of the Mens final:
World Champion Bergmann started off full of confidence, only to realize
almost at once that he had not a chance. Vana went for him like a panther, bombarded
him with a stream of lightning on both wings, dropped him, wrong-footed him,
outplayed, outstroked and outpaced him; and inside a quarter of an hour had
nonchalantly recorded a smashing win in 3 straight games, 10, 11, 16. Bergmann
played just as well as Vana allowed, that isfar below his best. He was made to look
nearly a second-rater and seemed lucky to have got into double figures. On this form,
Vana surely rates with the great Victor Barna himself at his greatest, and unless the
U.S.A. can produce something very special out of the bag (and admittedly they have
done it before) there can be no possible doubt who will be the favorite for the next
Worlds Crown. (In an editorial note, Topics added: Heres hoping our own Dick
Miles and Vana may have the opportunity of meeting.That would be a match worth
rowing across the Atlantic to see.)
The ITTF member-countries meeting in London, Bassford reported to those at the
Chicago Conference, took no formal action because the opinions of absent countries must
be considered, particularly the viewpoints of the USTTA. However, here, as Bassford
outlines them, are ITTF recommendations made at that March meeting:

184

Suspension of ITTF membership rights of those associations opposed to

the Allies during the war, and Austria, which is in a separate category. These
associations, or individuals, would not be accepted into membership except by
decision of an Annual General Meeting, unless the country concerned shall meanwhile
have been accepted into the United Nations, at which time it would be entitled to
resume full rights.
[Temporary suspension of] the rule banning play between members and nonmembers of the ITTF, with only World Championship events to be restricted to
members.
Emphasis [as in the USTTA Constitution] that no affiliate of the ITTF have
any bars of color, race or religion.
Nations be accorded voting rights on the basis of their strength and
importance in table tennis.
No association shall make as an honorary member a member of another
association, without prior consent of that countrys association. (The English TTA
didnt like it that the USTTA made Englishmen H.N. Smith and C. Corti Woodcock
Honorary Vice Presidents of the USTTA. As a result of this recommendation, Topics
in its Directory will no longer list anyone as having an Honorary position in the
USTTA.)
Two other thoughts raised at this 1946 ITTF Meeting in London should be noted. One
was whether table tennis should be included in the Olympics. ITTF President Ivor Montagu
was against the inclusion, and many others felt the Games would be a duplication due to the
fact that most countries having organized play did engage in competition with most other
countries.
The other thought had to do with the World Championships being run by the U.S. It
seemsaccording to an article in the May, 1946 Topics (13)that the ITTF was getting the
idea that the U.S. players were the strongest challengers for the titles, and that since it was
hardly practical to hold the contests in the U.S.A., maybe the World Championships should
be eliminated (they werent), and Team Championships should be played in European zones
(they were).
All this seems quite premature to me and an example of unduly negative thinking. The
more so because the ITTF has already awarded the World Championships for 1947 to Paris
and for 1948 to Wembley. Why not wait and see what happensat least in 47? Is it that
likely the U.S. will win titles the next two years and then try to insist that the World
Championships be played in their home country? President Cinnater did talk of the possibility
of a European Team coming to tour in the U.S., for, mindful of Fighting Fund Chair Nidys
needs, he thought this tour might give the Association the opportunity to raise money for our
Team to Paris. But certainly the Conference Elmer had called for in Chicago concluded
without the USTTA even making a bid for the Worlds. Who knew how long itd be before
they did?

185

Chapter Eighteen

TTT, Dec., 1946, 5

Carl Nidy

1946: USTTA Reinstitutes Fighting Fund for 1947 Worlds. 1946:

Summer/Fall Tournaments. 1946: New York Again Wins Intercities
Miles, Pagliaro, Schiff, Holzrichter Selected for Worlds. West
Triumphs Over East in Womens
MatchesLeah Thall, Hawthorn,
Monness, Clouther to Play in Paris.
1946-47: Winter Tournaments. 1947:
Miles/Leah Thall Take Easterns. 1947:
Price/Kerns Win Westerns. 1947: Hazi,
TTT, Feb., 1949, 6
Bellak Back in States.

The USTTA hoped, and indeed expected, that a U.S. Team to the 1947 Paris World
Championships would pick up right where the previous ones had left off. Theyd won World
titles in 1936, 37, and 38 (but hadnt participated in the abbreviated entry at the 39 Cairo
Worlds, the last to be played). Of course, raising money for the Teams trip abroad was as
much of a concern to the Association as it had been in the 1930s. Since the E.C. had specified
that no money from the USTTA general fund be used, again a Fighting Fund was needed
and quickly, for the Worlds were in February. Ex-USTTA President Nidy, the Funds Chair,
set his goal at $3,500. It was thought that $1,000 could be raised by the contributions of
individuals, by raffles (Pennsylvania, for example, will chance off Ronson lighters), by
exhibitions, and by special Fighting Fund tournaments. Affiliates were asked to contribute
the other $2,500. Each was assigned a quota to be reached or surpassed, usually based on the
number of members each hadwhich as the season progressed remained relatively stable.
By Jan. 1, 1947, the USTTA Membership had risen to 2500, more than double what
itd been at seasons end in 1944. The New York City Association (178 members) was asked
to raise the most money$350 (perhaps because E. C. Recording Secretary Kauderer was a
Senior Analyst with the Federal Reserve Bank, NYTTA President Herrmann worked at the
R.C.A. Building, and many New Yorkers they knew were well-heeled). Michigan (232),
Pennsylvania, whose membership had quickly spiraled upward (229), Illinois (190) and St.
Louis (185) were all asked to raise $200. Nidys home affiliate, Des Moines (78 members),
immediately came through with $200. Ohio (202 members under its new President, Dick Farr)
and Indiana (198 members) had a quota of only $100, as did Colorado (91 members). Most of
the other affiliatesincluding Californiahad a quota of $50. So come on gang! urges
Nidy. Lets get behind the FIGHTING FUND AND FIGHT! As an added incentive, Topics
reports, Nidy says that for every contribution of one dollar or MORE, the donor will receive
a picture of the team! Whats more, he says, the picture will be that of the WORLDS
CHAMPIONS!*
1946 Summer/Fall Tournaments
At the July 20-21st Chicago Western States Open, Mens #1 seed Bill Price was upset
in the 8ths (though Topics doesnt say by whom). Anyway, that gives Bill a chance to be
interviewed and us to know something more about him. According to Topics Associate Editor
Dana Young, In spite of once making his living coaching basketball, being able to swim 100
yards in 57 seconds, playing excellent tennis and shooting golf in the seventies, Bill says his
186

first love is still T.T. Right now he [along with Allen Carvell?] operates the [St. Louis]
Table Tennis Club on Natural Bridge Boulevard where, after a long practice or coaching
workout, hes apt to say, Beer is probably the best beverage in the world.
Price, as weve seen, has
been around. Heres more of
World Tennis
Youngs interview:
Bill Price ... a fine life
in the Bavarian Alps

As a
demolition experthe
served in the African and
European theatres and
saw North Africa, Italy,
France and Germany.
Hes one army man who
thinks the navy is very
much alright. During the
invasion of Southern
France [Bill says]we
were supposed to blow
up the German pillboxes
on the beach but the navy
had already knocked
them out with their big
Beer makes him bouncy!
guns. Dont anybody ever
knock the navy to me.
Bill was wounded
by shrapnel in Northern France in September, 1944, and flown back to a hospital in
Naples where he hibernated for five months. While there he managed to carry on with
his interest in table tennis by commenting for Cartland and Cook who appeared at the
hospital on a USO tour. With his usual aplomb, Bill did a fine job of commentingon
crutches and dressed in a hospital robe! After an extensive convalescence he was
chosen to play a match against a picked English team at the Kings Palace in
Naplesand he, Ted Mosher, and Jim Moran managed to beat them 5-4 before 2000
English soldiers who, Bill says, were a wonderful audience. Shortly afterwards he was
sent back to rejoin his outfit, the 45th Infantry Division, in time to participate in the
drive into Germany.
During the German drive his outfit liberated the occupants of the infamous
Dachau concentration campamong whom was Ehrlich, the Polish champion and
runner-up in several world championships. Ehrlich had been there five years.
After the war, Bill spent three months at a rest center in the Bavarian Alps as a
lifeguard and that, he thought, was really a fine life. He spent a month in Paris on the
way home and took time out to play against a French team, winning two matches and
losing one to Haganauer [sic: for Haguenauer], the French Champ.
The Champ here in the Western States, to no ones surprise, was Billy Holzrichter.
Finalist Eddie Ray had earlier 16, 24, -16, -17, 19 barely held on to beat Jimmy Shrout.
187

In the Womens, Peggy Widmiers quarters win from down 2-1 and at 27-all in the 4th
was far and away the most crowd-pleasing. Peggy then lost to Leah Thall who was much too
good for the rest of the field, including in the final her sister Tybie. Good, did I say? She
hasnt even won her first National Singles title yetand from the accompanying photo you
can see the trophies she and Tybie have accumulated.

Columbus Dispatch, Apr. 21, 1946

Leah and Tybie Thalls trophies (mostly Leahs), as of April, 1946

Both Thalls, we learn from an unsigned article in Topics probably by Dana Young, are
book-keepersLeah writes a beautiful long-hand. They have three sports-minded brothers,
Abe, Lou, and Bennie, who in basketball, baseball, handball, and golfhave made quite a
name for themselves in Buckeye circles. While the brothers served in the War, the girls
helped to entertain the wounded soldiers by giving t.t. exhibitions throughout Ohios many
hospitals. Leah, it turns out, likes fudge cake and so as not to risk putting on extra poundage bowls
in a Columbus league, where she has a 160 average and a high triple of 606. Tybie enjoys cheese
blintzes with sour cream and might be seen, rain or shine, riding about on her red and white
Roadmaster bicycle, holding up an umbrella if need be (Dec., 1946, 4, 12). No umbrella needed in
Womens Doubles. But in the Mixed, the sun gave way to clouds and high winds as Leah and
Vargas chances were blown away by Windy City winners Holzrichter/Carolyn Wilson.
Toledo also held a Mid-Summer tournamentan Invitational, whatever that meant.
This I think is the tournament where theyre making the draw a week ahead of time and one
of the locals comes in to say, Please cancel my entry for the mens singles as Im being
married that Saturdaybut Ill be there for doubles on Sunday. Max Hersh, down 2-0 to
Barclay in the semis, defeated Dick Leviton in the final in 5. Leviton, convincing as a junior,
took steps to being a grown-up when in his semis hed triumphed over his long-time imposing
Coach, Varga, 24-22 in the 5th. Big John, I note, professes to be pleased when his pupils beat
him. Like Toledos Bob Harlow, the Ohio #1 Junior and #2 Mens player behind Guy Blair,
Leviton was poised to graduate, for in the Juniors here, he beat Harlow 19, -18, 22, 21 in the
semis and Barclay -16, 17, -21, 9, 17 in the final.
Guy Blair didnt make the semis of the Mensand, watching him play hit and miss,
someone more used to a gallery of another kind, might have thought of an action painter like
188

the mid-30-ish Jackson Pollock. The guy was obviously trying to make points and yet his
aerialist strokes at times seemed unreasonably random. Blair and Bob Green won the Mens
Doublesover Hersh and Harlow. In the Womens, Tybie showed grit in overcoming Mary
Specht in the semis in 5, and also in losing in the final to Leah in 4 (after succumbing 27-25 in
the 3rd).
Oh! Ow! Thats what three Detroiters were saying in succession after playing Owsley
Harper in the Mens at the Nov. 2nd-3rd Toledo Maumee Valley Invitational. In a 20, -19, 19, 26, 17 quarters win, Harper stopped Michigan #9 Cliff Bishops desperate try for an end play.
Then he downed Max Hershwho with straight-game losses like this would see in the space
of two seasons his National Ranking go from #3 (in 44-45) to #8 (in 45-46) to #15 (in 4647). Finally Harper took the title by 22, 19, 14, 16 ousting the mercurial V. Lee Webb
likely quipping in the beginning but carping at the end. The Thall sisters were good but not
enthralling. Leah beat Tybie in straight games.
At the Nov. 9th-10th St. Louis District Open, the most acclaimed mens player never to
have won the Nationals (of course from 1940 through 45 he played in only one) did win
here. And who was that? Why, New Yorks Doug Cartland of course who was touring in the
area with Harry Cook. Giving up only a 100 points in 9 games, he went through Fred
McAvoy, George Hendry, and Bill Price. Delores Kuenz, whod won the Oct. 12-13 St. Louis
Membership Open from Betty Jane Schaeffer, beat her again here. Someone said it marked the
9th time that Kuenz had won this District Championshipall against different opponents in the
final.
During this time there was only one Eastern tournament reported in Topicsthe Nov.
rd
th
23 -24 New York City Open, held at Haaren High School (10th and 59th), under the
Chairmanship of Ben Dattel. In the Mens quarters, Pinner not only killed Somael, but then,
up 2-0 and at deuce in the 3rd with Miles, seemed to be playing better than anyone else in New
York. Except that he didnt beat Miles, who went on to defeat Sol Schiff in the final. Pagliaro
had said that hed broken Schiffs psychic hold on him some years agobut Louie lost to Sol
after being up 2-0 in the Spring Nationals and now he lost to him here. As for Charlie
Schmidt, who five years ago was U.S. #3 and just last season was U.S. #12, he became
eligible for the Veterans, so surely he was a cinch to win? Wellwin he didover Simeon
Sabre, 13, 22, -15, -17, 20. In the Junior final, Reisman was slow to start, fell behind 2-0
against Morris Chait, but came out a winner. Do you suppose 16-year-old Marty, who looked
boyish, read Miless table tennis article in Calling All Boys magazine?
In the Womens final, Davida Hawthorn, in splitting the first two games with Peggy
McLean seemed ready to make a fight of the match, but then was embarrassingly defenseless.
Topics reported that the final round of the Mens Doubles [Pinner-Sussman vs. MilesPaggy] was not played because of the lateness of time, and because of electrical trouble which
developed due to overloading the circuits with news-reel equipment. The most exciting of
the Mens Doubles matches was the Reisman/Freddie Borges deuce in the 3rd quarters win
over Sam Hoffner and Ben Dattel. Hoffner I would remember decades later, after having a leg
amputated, playing just as seriously as he could with a walker. Dattel may already have begun
his puzzle-solving conquests. To begin with, Reba Monness tells us, Ben won, or would win,
a $1000 puzzle contest but had refused to take the $1000 because taking it would have made
him ineligible for any other contest. Think this was smart? He went on, says Reba, to win
the much-coveted $50,000 prize in the Herald Tribunes puzzle contest!He was the only
one who ever completed the solution to the Herald Tribunes puzzle contest office tie-breaker
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which had a limit of three hours. Bens interest in drawing would lead to advertising work,
but meanwhile over the years hed win over $200,000 in puzzle contests (TTT, July-Aug.,
1979, 29).
New York Wins Intercities
The Intercitiesthe first to be held since 1941was played in the Crystal Ballroom of
the Masonic Temple in Detroit the Nov. 30th-Dec. 1st weekend. Tournament Director Graham
Steenhoven broke with precedentallowed 8 teams to play rather than the previously held-to
7. So, two surprises right offMilwaukee made its debut, and Philadelphia, without Izzy
Bellis or Ham Canning, decided, or Steenhoven decided, they werent strong enough to play.
Another surprise in the 1st round: powerful Chicago barely beat the Doug AllredCaptained Boston team 5-4, for Boston Universitys Les Lowry won all three against
Holzrichter, Kreer, and Condy, and Dwelly took Kreer. Boston went on to finish 4th (4-3) by
blanking Columbus, and winning its two other ties, 5-4, from Indianapolis and St. Louis.
Although Topics doesnt report any individual results, the ties of the teams not in contention
had to be fun because any one team was a threat to beat any other.
Columbus (2-5)with Non-Playing Capt. Dick Farr, Bob Green, Dave Spence
(undefeated in the Ohio Tryouts that gave Columbus the Ohio team title), Mark Neff from
Dayton, Ralph Ramsey from Hamilton, and Bob Harlow from Toledo (but not Ohio #1 Guy
Blair, or Dr. Harry Sage down in Florida taking a post-graduate course in Opthamology, or
Daytons Cal Fuhrman)beat Indianapolis and Milwaukee. Indianapolis (2-5)with Indys
Jimmy McClure (one of the few stars who supplied action shots of himself for publicity
purposes) and Charles Dorsey, and South Bends Gordon Barclay, John Varga, and Dale
McColleydowned Milwaukee and St. Louis. Milwaukee (1-6)with Don MacCrossen,
Duane Maule, Russ Sorensen, Bud Carson, and Ken Kasten (whod take over the
MacCrossen Co.)had a lone win over St. Louis. And once powerful St. Louis (1-6)with
Bill Price, Fred McAvoy, John McCloskey, and Bob Brodski (but not Garrett Nash, George
Hendry, Allan Levy, Don Lasater, or the Nichols brothers!)lost four ties 5-4 and could
defeat only the Ohioans.
Host Detroit
fielded Max Hersh,
Chuck Burns (back
playing after his knee
problems), Arnold
Brown, Glenn Whitcroft,
and V. Lee Webb (who,
because of an injury
didnt try out for the
Team, but as U.S. #13
was put on it anyway).
Positioned as the home
team, Detroit won its
first five ties and so
climaxed as best it could
1946 Detroit Intercity Program
before losing to N.Y., 5- Detroit Intercity Team: (right to left) Max Hersh, Arnold Brown, Chuck
0, and Chicago, 5-2.
Burns, Glenn Whitcroft, and V. Lee Webb
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The deciding tie of the tournament, as everyone figured it would be, saw the Jimmy
Shrout-Captained Chicago team extend the winning George Schein-Captained New York
team, whod not lost a single match. Kreer and Berne Abelew for Chicago, and Pagliaro for
New York (undefeated hereand so, with his three U.S. Championships to back him up, a
lock for the U.S. World Team) sat out this tie. This was a big one for Holzrichter, for he
earned his way to Paris with wins over Schiff and Somael. And Johnny killed his chances not
just by losing to Billy but also to Anderson. Chicago would come up short this tie, 5-3, but the
issue was very much in doubt when Condy astounded everyone by forcing Miles to deuce in
the 3rd. Billy Condy had a terrific forehand, Holzrichter said. When he got hot, he got
unconscious. Primarily for this great match Condy won the Outstanding Player Award. In
these important Team matches Miles was undefeated, Schiff, whod been runner-up to Dick at
the last U.S. Open, lost only to Holzrichter, and Billy only to Lowry. So the Mens Team
with its four National Championswas set.
Renewed East-West Womens Matches
Because the U.S. had to field a representative Corbillon Cup Team at the 47 Worlds,
the East-West Womens Matches (played only once beforein the 39-40 season) would
likely determine who those Team members would be. Initially two separate round robins
composed of selected high-ranked players were heldone in the West, at the North-Town
Club in Chicago, Nov. 9th -10th (15 players eligible); the other in the East on Long Island, Dec.
7th (9 players eligible). The three top finishers from each of these two sections then came
together at the Mae Clouther-managed Colonial Club in Newton Corner, Massachusetts, Dec.
14th for a mandatory 9 Singles matches (each player being pitted against the three players
from the opposing Team) and 2 concluding Doubles matches to determine the East or West
winner. The woman with the best Singles record would receive the Emily Fuller Trophy.
In the West, 13 players began competition, but 5-time U.S. Champion Sally Green
had apparently not fully recovered from her summer operations, for she collapsed after her
2nd match and was unable to continue. The only two players Sally faced, Delores Kuenz and
Betty Jane Schaefer, thus had to play one match more than others in the field and, ironically,
they were the ones who could least afford to do that since, crazily, they had to hurry back to
St. Louis to play in a tournament there this same weekend. Carrol Blank, though eligible,
opted not to playcould think only about planning her April wedding? Twin sis Carlyn,
plagued by leg-cramps, had all she could do just to finish her matches and so, along with
fellow Milwaukeeans Lois Carlson and Mona Buell, had a record to forget. As did 19-yearold Toledo University soph Barbara Cannon whose older sister June just married Toledo
player Dick Blas. Denvers plucky traveler, Rita Kerns, shared a 6-5 record with Chicagos
Dolores Mortenson and Peggy Widmier who started with the jitters but did have a nice win
over Tybie Thall. After playing almost continuously, Kuenz (with a 4-8 record) was so
exhausted that she finally had to default her last match to Leah Thall, the # 1 West qualifier
(10-0) who didnt lose a game. The much improved Missouri #4 Schaefer (6-6) did better
than expected, for had she won one more match, she would have finished 4th behind qualifiers
Tybie Thall and Mary Specht (both 9-2).
Topics didnt report on the East Tryoutsbut National Champ Bernice Charney didnt
compete because shed become Mrs. George Chotras and moved, at least for the moment, to
Reno, Nevada. (No, she couldnt have played for the West if shed wanted to, for she hadnt
yet established a 30-day residencewhich was all you needed to play in a City or State
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Closed?) Almost certainly Reba Monness and Mae Clouther tried unsuccessfully to qualify, for
they were serious enough to later pay their own way to Paris. (Odd photo of photogenic Mae
on the Jan., 1947 cover of Topicsshes sitting on the table, hands on brought-up knees,
derriere pushing back the net as if ready to start a ride on a swing.) The East Team, then, to
meet the West was Peggy McLean, Davida Hawthorn, and Mildred Shahian.
The East-West Final was won 6-5 by the West, and undefeated Leah Thall was given
the Emily Fuller Trophy and of course awarded a place on the U.S. Team. Since both Peggy
McLean and Davida Hawthorn defeated Tybie Thall and Mary Specht, it would seem that, for
the second member of the U.S. Womens Team (the Fighting Fund would pay for only two),
thered be little to choose from between the two New Yorkers. True, Hawthorn, down 1-0
and at 21-all in the deciding 3rd , could easily have lost to Specht (who, though she played
good doubles, was also beaten by Shahian), but the fact that Davida won when she had to
could be a point in her favor. Of course Peggy had beaten Davida two weeks earlier in the
New York City Open. Anyway, for whatever reasonperhaps because Hawthorn had won the
45 Nationalsit was Davida and not Peggy who was selected.
Winter Tournaments
Its a fault, I think, that, though New York Citys John Kauderer continues to be on
the USTTA E.C., we just never read much in Topics about play in the Northeast and
specifically in New York. The National Association, its magazine Editors, Americans, as
Miles says, have been very Midwest oriented and so havent been interested in taking the
lead to establish a liaison with the socially and culturally suspect New Yorkers who
remain, and seem to want to remain, outsiders. But meanwhile readers country-wide are
deprived. For those many interested in weekly tournament play at Lawrences, the lights
might as well be out at that fabled Club, its cluster of great players, the Broadway night life
there, non-existent.
In the Nov., 1946 Topics, we did hear about unusual play in New York Cityat
Midston House, a residential hotel, where Ross Ackerman ran a Reverse tournament.
(Ackerman, a friend of both Bellak and Glancz, is the guy who, back in 1938, wanted to
sustain a rival NYTTA to Kauderers established Metro TTA because there were, well,
undesirables in that Affiliate.) Turns out Ackerman was having problems getting players to
participate in an annual Midston House tournament. They felt they werent good enough,
didnt want to be embarrassed. Then one evening Ross heard a player say, If they would
hold a tournament where the poorest player winsI sure would win it. Yeah? Really? So,
O.K., Ross thought, Ill run such a tournament. And, wow, players immediately signed
up. Ackerman umpired each match, and if he judged a player wasnt trying his best, he/she
would be disqualified. A cup was presented to the woman who won the tournament for being
the poorest player and the tournament itself caused real fun for both players and spectators
(3, 13). Caused fun? Imagine that.
With USTTA Executive Secretary Bernas return and the Association Headquarters
back in Philadelphia, we of course hear whats happening in Pennsylvania. And, my god,
wouldnt you know that in Bethlehem, Lillian Caretta, the new PTTA Recording Secretary,
picked up on Ackermans success and ran a Reverse Tournament of her own. Then she set
up the Clubs Challenge Board in reverse, so now members would have to dethrone the
losers in order to obtain their rightful position on the board. All this and a picture of her in
Topics too.
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The Pennsylvania Intercities, meanwhile, was won by Philadelphia, led by Al

Butowsky. Lancaster, with Bob Fritsch losing but one match, was 2nd, Reading 3rd. Other cities
competing were Bethlehem, Hazelton, and Norristown.
According to Topics, then, aside from the Easterns, thats about it for whats going on
in the East halfway through winter. Oh, Guy Burch, because of ill health, resigned as President
of the D.C. Associationwhich didnt stop him from being Director of the Washington
Population Reference Bureau. Jimmy Shea took his place. And soon George Foster,
Commissioner of the U.S. Court of Claims, whod encouraged the Hazis to move to
Washington, would take Sheas place.
Count on the South Bend St. Joe Valley to be held the first weekend of January. But
surprisedont count on the results always to be in Topics. Somebody goofedcould it
possibly have been Varga? Hard to believe, but this was his tournament. Table tennis was his
life. Wasnt it? Not totallythough he seemed almost every week to be at a tournament with
his kids, whom he sometimes helped with expenses. A lifelong bachelor, with seemingly no
interest in women (reportedly he once had a girl back in Hungary who died), he could play the
European gallantJimmy McClures wife Nell told me that John, on greeting her, used to kiss
her hand. He was still at Bendix (though long ago officials had stopped him from rollerskating round the place)indeed, he had an important position there as Research and
Consulting Engineer for the Universal Joint and Axle Division. As Dana Young in an Apr.,
1947 Topics interview with him tells us, hed helped the War effort by working on the design
of the front drive axle of the Jeep and amphibian Duck and the hydraulic pump of the
famous 5 inch dual purpose naval gun. Moreover, Dana tells us, John did have outside
interests:
He enjoys working on various
committees of the South Bend YMCA, is a
member of the Society of Automotive Engineers,
a member of the St. Joseph Valley chapter of the
Engineers Club, a member of the South Bend
Motorcycle Club (and enjoys cross-country jaunts
on his high powered Ariel), plays tournament
chess, is active in photography and model aircraft
work and plays a wicked game of bridge. He likes
to eat and eats a lotwith steak smothered in
onions, chilled tomato juice by the gallon, pink
Texas grapefruit, toasted almond ice cream,
freshly baked pumpernickel bread with Hungarian
style cottage cheese heading the list. [Also, as
some of his charges testified to in awe, he did
open-mouth justice to the Oliver Hotels Sunday
Prime Rib Buffet.] (4, 6).

TTT, April, 1947, 6

John Varga

At the Feb. 1-2 Ohio State Open at Cincinnati, Bob Green won the Mens over Dayton
City Champ Cal Fuhrman in straight games, and this despite the fact that Tournament Director
Nellie Weier (WHY-er) refused to call the Expedite Rule which would have given Bob an
advantage over Cal who hadnt much of an attack. Tybie Thall, who was enjoying teaching a
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weekly t.t. class for Columbus youngsters, was an easy winner in the Womens. Later, in the
final of the Ohio Closed, Green was up 2-0 and had a big lead in the 3rd against Bob Harlow
when he made an awkward chop-stretch to his backhand and, ohhh, hurt his arm so badly,
pulled two ligaments, that he had to default.
Philadelphia Easterns
The 1947 Easterns were held Feb. 1-2 at Philadelphias Fleisher Auditorium, but
without Sol Schiff and Lou Pagliaro who were forced to remain in New York due to illness
in their families. Topics Editor Mel Evans, Jr. had to have come over to the tournament from
his Lancaster, PA home, for he had a couple of complaints to make in the next issue of the
magazine:
Recently I witnessed a major tournament [some indirectionthis could only
be the Easterns] and was very much surprised to notice a singles match being
sandwiched between two tables that were being used for doubles play. Practically
every other point at the singles table had to be replayed due to un-intentional
interference. Conditions like this (which might be avoided so easily) are certainly not
conducive to the best brand of table tennis.
Another annoying item proved to be the utter disregard of time. Practice was
supposedly limited to a few minutes, but I watched several players [Id like to bet $5
one of them was Reisman] enjoy a 25-minute warm-up session. This malpractice,
coupled with the inability of the committee to properly schedule the events, delayed
the final matches until long after midnight (Mar., 1947, 2).
Since Ohios Thall, who heretofore had not played in the Easterns, would be sailing
for Europe from New York before next weekends Westerns, she made the most of this
tournament opportunity. Down 2-0 in the semis to Monness, she rallied and, after winning the
4th at 19, advanced to the final. There, against McLean, with games 1-1, she won the 3rd at 19
and with the 4th the title. Leah also took both Doublesthe Womens with Hawthorn who,
though losing to McLean in the Singles, had (-19, -21, 19, -21) played her almost point for
point, and the Mixed with Eddie Pinner over Reisman/Monness, then Hazi/Clouther, both in 5.
Miles won the Mensdowned Reisman, who, in the semis, behind 2-1, had outlasted
Pinner. Also, in winning the Juniors, Reisman was said to have had a slam-bang counterdriving battle with Chait. Pinner and Sussman took the Mens Doubles from Miles and Freddie
Borges, 23-21 in the 4th. Borges, whod be fighting it out in the Over 80s in U.S. Nationals
come the new millennium, would be U.S. #27 this season, but seemed to be playing better
than that. He and Miles had beaten Hazi and his fellow D.C. partner Hal Green in the semis,
deuce in the 5th. And Freddie himself, playing for Columbia University in the Jan. 18th New
England Intercollegiates, had won the Singles in 5 over Les Lowry, and the Doubles with
Eugene Fately over Les and his brother Dick.
Des Moines Westerns
The Westerns were held Feb. 8-9 in Des Moines in one of the worst blizzards there in
years. Defending Champion Price, who was never really threatened, won the Mensover
Dan Kreer. The best matches were in the quarters: Kreer finally outlasted Ozark Open winner
Lasater, 31-29 in the 5th; and Hendry, who fell to Kreer in the semis, 19 in the 4th, beat
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Barclay in 5. In the Doubles, Price/Nash had to rally from down 2-0 to take the title from
Barclay/McColley. Daytons Howard Thomas, a long way from home (did he drive his cab to
Des Moines?) was the Veterans winnerover Omahas Dominic Rocco. Veterans Doubles
went to Ramon Williams and Lynel Overton, runner-up in the Consolations to fellow
Chicagoan Wayne Stille. In the Junior final, Barclay, pressed, rebuffed Schuesslers 11, -14,
20, 19, -14 bold try.
In the Womens, the four quarters results told their tale: Kuenz defeated Jamieson, 17
in the 5th; Dolores Mortenson defeated Hendrys sister Melba McClain, 25-23 in the 4th;
Specht, down 2-0, defeated Lund, 18 in the 5th; and Kerns defeated Schaefer, 24-22 in the 4th.
Kerns was the eventual winnerin 5 over Mortenson. In the Mixed, Price/Schaefer slipped by
Hendry/McLain, 24-22 in the 5th, then stopped the winning run of Lasater/Kuenz.
Hazi/Bellak Back in the States
Hazi had finally returned to Washington after 39 months overseas and had gone to
visit his friend Henry Wallace, former Vice-President under President Roosevelt. Tibor had
corresponded with Wallace while he was in the Servicethough, as he said, Every letter I
sent was censored, since I could never indicate where I was. When Tibor arrived at
Wallaces, Mrs. Lyndon Johnson was visiting too (her husband was in the hospital having a
gall bladder operation). When the liaison in charge dutifully but skeptically informed Wallace
that a Mr. Hazi wished to see him, the response was, Tibor here? Bring him right up! Hazi
said the liaison was amazed. But Wallace had throat trouble, couldnt speak, could only write
notes.
Bellak, whod been giving exhibitions with Hazi in India but had preceded him home,
didnt play in this tournament, nor would he in the upcoming Nationals, for hed gone off
with Henrietta Wright to do USO shows in such places as Hawaii, Iwo Jima, the Philippines,
and Japan (where Laci said the Japanese players, who understandably didnt like Americans,
refused to go on court with any of our Occupation Forces). When he came back to the States
from overseas, Bellak was asked, Dont you want to meet your fiance? A line which youll
agree needs a bit of explanation.
Years earlier, Laci had met a fellow named Paul Moss (originally Moskowitz), a
Hungarian immigrant who was running a successful photography shop in New York City at
46th and Broadway. Moss made glossy photos of celebrity performers and when Laci and his
friend Glancz wanted to do showsthe Easter Show at Radio City Music Hall, for example
they needed publicity shots. After Bellak introduced himself by saying, Im Hungarian too,
and Moss jokingly replied, In that case youll have to pay in advance, they became friendly.
Moss as it happened had a sister, Lilly, whod been caught in the Warher husband killed on
the Russian front, and she herself having suffered in a concentration camp for more than a
year. When liberated shed made the three-week walk from Vienna back to Budapest. Moss
asked Laci to do him the favor of writing a letter pretending that he was engaged to Lilly and
so getting her into the U.S. as a possible G.I. bride. Of course you dont have to marry her,
said Moss. Laci obligingly wrote the letter, but thought nothing more about it.
When he came back to New York, he agreed to at least meet this Lilly. They went to the
Tavern on the Green, had dinner, danced. She had five brothers, was something of a tomboy but
was also attractive, feminine, could play the piano, had a sense of humor, and seemed comfortable
with him. He liked her, began voluntarily to see her. Shed been trained as a dressmaker, so got a
job in the New York Garment District, but she was too precise, other girls worked fastershe
195

didnt like the life, even had difficulty breathing. Laci wanted to be with Lilly, but he also wanted to
be free. No obligations, said Lilly, continue your table tennis shows.**
Eventually they married, lived somewhat spartanly in small digs. Lilly made a kitchen
out of a big closet, put in a small refrigerator, and got a chance to show off her gourmet
cooking by inviting that same Ross Ackerman I spoke of earlier to dinner. Laci was pleased
proud that Lilly had made a home for me. After a while, Moss, more a salesman type than
an organizer, not only had Lilly working for him but was asking Laci to take on the job of
managing his large shop and the tens of people he had working for him. This Laci did, and,
gaining experience, would eventually strike out on his own.
SELECTED NOTES.
*See TTT issues: Nov., 1946 (6), Dec., 1946 (5), and, for the USTTA Membership
Report, Jan., 1947 (12).
**After the War, Laci did at least one Tour with Sandor Glanczwherein the two
used their old pre-War M.C., Herbert W. Allen, whod served with the Occupation Forces in
Austria. Allen was a serious stamp collector, so knowledgeable that through his collecting he
became rich. Yet for $55 a week and expenses, he went on this gig with Laci and Sandor,
presumably just for the fun of it. In Cleveland, their last stop, there was a team of Chinese
acrobats on the bill with them (for two weeks, said Laci, the two performing families had lived
in a single, foul-smelling dressing room). At the very last show of their Tour, traditionally one
where the participants dont care much, take liberties with their performance, Herbert was
calling the score when one of these acrobats came out of the wings behind him andTwenty
to nine-TEEN!goosed him.

196

Courtesy of Carol Nidy Johnston

1947 U.S. Team to Paris Worlds: Back row: (left to right) Dick Miles, Billy Holzrichter, Lou Pagliaro,
Sol Schiff. Front row: (left to right) Team Capt. Carl Nidy, Leah Thall, Reba Monness,
Davida Hawthorn, and Mae Clouther

Chapter Nineteen
1947: U.S. Team Has Disappointing Results at Worlds
On their way to the Feb. 28-Mar. 7 Paris Worlds, the U.S. Team, led by Carl Nidy
(who was accompanied by his 18-year-old daughter Carol), played warm-up matches in Great
Britain. After arriving in Southampton on Feb. 13, some of our players, tired though they
must have been, participated in a Feb. 14-15 tournament in Glasgow against English and
Scottish players. Pagliaro, showing a sticky chop defence and incredible agility, won the
Mensbeating Englands Kim Stanley, then Benny Casofsky of the English Swaythling Cup
Team (after Casofsky had eliminated Schiff hit [him] off the table). Paggy also won both
Doublesthe Mens (with Schiff) over the Manchester team of Casofsky/Les Cohen; the
Mixed (with Monness) over Schiff/Clouther in the deciding 3rd. Eighteen-year-old Scottish
Champion Helen Elliot, a determined fighter, took the Womens from (the only non-Scottish
players in the field) Monness in the semis and Clouther in the final. Elliot, partnered by Betty
Pithie, also came first in Womens Doublesover Monness/Clouther in 3.
After exhibitions on the 17th at Middlesex and Wolverhampton, it seems that only
Miles, Holzrichter, Hawthorn and Thall (has a fierce drive on both wings) played against a
North of England squad in Liverpool on Feb. 18. At any event, the U.S. won this match 9-0.
Then after an exhibition in Surrey on the 19th, the U.S. on Feb. 21 defeated England,
7-2, at Westminster Central Hall in London, with Ivor Montagu himself as Referee. Highlights
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of this Match that might easily have gone to the English included Pagliaros lead-off deuce-inthe-3rd win over Manchesters George Goodman; Holzrichter/Hawthorns comeback from
17-9 down in the 3rd to 46 English Mixed Doubles Champion Eric Filby/Betty Blackbourn;
Schiffs -19, 18, 16 turnaround to beat the English #1 Leach; Thalls 21, 20 victory over the
46 English Open runner-up Blackbourn; Miles/Pagliaros 19-in-the-3rd win over Leach and
his mentor Jack Carrington, Editor of the official English TTA magazine Table Tennis; and
Schiff and Holzrichters successful 17, 20 close-out of Filby and English Team Captain Adrian
Haydon, 8-year veteran of Swaythling Cup play. Vera Dace, Englands best, scored twice
paired with Leach for a surprisingly easy win over Schiff/Thall, then beat Hawthorn in 3.
So, with these small triumphs behind us, and, somewhere along the line, a Match with
the Irish in Omagh involving Miles and Pagliaro, and in which Thall and Hawthorn were to
compete against two Irish men, on to Paris.
Mel Evans, Jr., the Topics Editor, quoted the following lines from an unidentified
writer that he thought best summed up the U.S. Teams entire overseas trip:
Following a whirlwind tour in which snow and ice lent their hazards to the
normal strain of traveling, the Americans came up smiling and pleased the crowds
everywhere by their cheerful and sporting table demeanor and their dashing style of
play (May, 1947, 3).
Hmmm, perhaps. (Did they get to see Paggy stick in his ears, then pop them out? That
would have drawn smiles all around.)
Surrey Champion Ron Crayden, in the Feb./Mar., 1947 issue of Table Tennis, described the most touted American, Miles, proud of his first USA jacket, as a slim, slight lad
of 22 [actually 21], with dark, wavy hair, exceptionally bright eyes and great natural charm.
Showing a chop defence like Amourettis and a forehand whip-drive like Vanas, he had us
guessing, because no one could say how hard he was trying. Agile, but rather lazy, talented
but inexperienced, here is a player and personality for all to see (3). In Paris, howeverwhat
with, as Mae Clouther put it, the extreme cold, weak lighting, and the poor tablesyou can
bet that the Americans, particularly Miles (whose best playing weight was about 118 pounds),
were not smiling, not cheerful. In fact, said Mae, Dick was always sleeping. The Palais des
Sports was so cold (because of a strike the whole city was freezing?) that many players
donned heavy sweaters or scarves to play. Scotlands Helen Elliot (later Hamilton) told me
years later that she remembered seeing a very thin Miles out there on court with two hot
water bottles tied to his waist.
For Swaythling Cup play, the 18 teams were divided into two round robin groups. The
co-favorites, Czechoslovakia (in Group 1, where Scotland didnt show) and the U.S. (in
Group 2), were shoo-ins. No other member-nations of the ITTF at this time had the topplayer strength or at-home depth of these two countries. The Czechs (35-0) didnt lose a
match, and the Americans (40-4) werent challenged either, except perhaps in the 5-2 tie with
the English in which Miles won all three of his matches. I havent the individual results, but
more than half a century later Pagliaro led me to believe that hed avenged (or at least would
have avengedYouve no chance now, Bubley) his 1938 26-24-in-the-3rd Swaythling Cup
loss to the eccentric Ernie Bubley. Ernie was the current English #2 who still wore a glove on
his playing hand and on just recently becoming engaged had his fiance, Jackie, wear one too
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when she played.

In the final, Czechoslovakia, whod won the last Swaythling Cup in Cairo in 39,
defeated the U.S. 5-2. Pagliaro defeated Ivan Andreadis, but fell to Bohumil Vana. Schiff
downed Vaclav Tereba, but was beaten by Andreadis. Miles lostaccording to one teammate,
gave up from the beginning, reallyto all three Czech players. Word had it that most of the
time here in Paris Dick suffered from a severe head-cold. But as this Team final was played
after Dick was eliminated in Singles, and consequently had asked Captain Nidy not even to
play him in the Czech tie (a request of course that Nidy had to refuse), there sure was something more troubling Dicks head than a cold.
Whereas, as well see in a moment, all the other U.S.
men did at least respectably well in the individual events
(Singles and Doubles), Miles did not. On these slow, dead
tables, he lost in the 2nd round, 3-0, to Leach, whom hed
beaten in the Teams. It was sad watching him play and lose,
Holzrichter said, because he was so much better than he
showed. A combination of the cold and nerves forced Dick to
repeatedly cramp up (Schiff said he tried to rub some life into
him); his forearm would lock, and he couldnt hold the racket.
He thus became fearful of playing long points, and so suffered
long-term psychic consequences. That is, in later matches in his
career, he said he sometimes felt he had to attack when he
1952 English Open Programme
didnt want to, else he feared his arm would tighten. Lots of
Englands Johnny Leach
negative thoughts went into Dicks head as a result of this
match with Leach.
Of course Johnny, even now, had to be considered a great player; he would go on to
beat Tereba before losing to Vana in the semis. When Miles first saw Vana play, he thought,
I can give this guy 5 points. But writing in the Dec., 46 issue of Table Tennis, Leach had
said that Vana was invinciblewas maybe 5 points better than any of the other world-class
Czech stars. The speed and accuracy of his footwork and shots are a table tennis players
dream (9). And 46 English Championships Program Editor Bill Parker in the Nov., 46 issue
of Table Tennis Review, the other English table tennis magazine, had said that Vana, at the
age of 26, retains all his old speed and the forehand kill and has in addition developed a very
fine backhand (8). Richard Bergmann, who in the last big tournament of the English 45-46
season at Wembley Town Hall had lost to Leach 24-22 in the 5th, picked Miles to win the
World Singleswith 46 English Open winner Vana and Tereba his other choices. Because
Richard agreed that such a cold venue as this one affected both the players muscles and the
flight and resiliency of the ball, he could say that Miles needs a years play outside the
U.S.A. before he can be fully judged.
Bergmann had refused to defend his 1939 World Singles title here in Paris, but had
made up thousands of leaflets (in supposedly six languages) issuing a 500 pound ($2,000)
challenge to anyone whod accept. Which raises the question whether a player could accept
(as Garrett Nash did earlier) without being accused of gambling and being banned from
National and International tournaments.
There were still no seedings in World Championships at this time. But players from
any one country were drawn into different quarters of the draw, so that it would have been
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impossible for any of our men to play one another before the quarterfinals. However, very
good players could meet in 1st round playas witness Leachs win, after being down 2-0,
over Frances 45 Champion Alex Agopoff, or Pagliaros elimination of the 35-year-old
Barna. According to Bill Parker, the plate that had been put into Victors arm after hed
broken it in a car crash in 1935 had been taken out, and hed been winning recent tournaments
in Britain, twice over Leach. I had great respect for Barna, Louie said, but he couldnt read
my chop. Records passed on to me by former Historian Leah Thall Neuberger, who may
have seen the match, have Paggy winning in 5, but Louie in his old age would tell me he killed
Barna 3-0, and perhaps he did.
Sol Schiff, considered one of the favorites to win the World Singles 10 years earlier,
gave the Hungarian Ferenc Sido, winner of a recent international tournament in Vienna and
destined (with earlier wins over the Czech Ladislav Stipek and the Frenchman Michel
Haguenauer) to be World runner-up here, quite a battle before falling in the 2nd round in 5.
As for Billy Holzrichter, heres what Ron Craydon in the Feb./Mar., 1947 issue of
Table Tennis had to say about him: [Hes] a carthorse where Miles is a racehorse. Bulky and
genial, and employing a repertoire of Bob Hope facial expressions to cover the little eventualities of the game, this courtly squire of the table will amuse and delight many, and surprise a
few, but never win a key tournament (3). Billy, too, thought the playing conditions were
deplorablehe complained how the freshly-painted tables quickly turned the ball so green he
had difficulty in the poor lighting seeing it. But en route to reaching the 8ths, he may well
have surprised two-time World semifinalist Adrian Haydon, as well as the French #2 Maurice
Bordrez, before losing to Hungarys Ferenc Soos.
Soos, who would be beaten by Vana, had been fancied a winner by fellow Hungarian
Ervin Brody. Soos, said Brody rather extravagantly, is much superior to everybody in the
game and if he gets beaten once in a while it is because he likes to please the crowd with some freak
shots.
Pagliaro, after getting by Barna, went on to
defeat Swedens Arne Andersson (Consolation
winner over Casofsky), then Switzerlands Hugo
Urchetti, President of the Silver Star Geneva Club,
then current and future 7-time French Champion Guy
Amouretti, then in a 9/4, 19, 13 quarters match (in
which if a game wasnt finished after 20 minutes,
whoever was leading was declared the winner)
Polands Alex Ehrlich, 3-time World runner-up.
Earlier, Alex had knocked out the stylish Andreadis,
Czech National Champion at 15, considered by
someone writing in the Nov., 46 issue of the Danish
TTA magazine, Bordtennis Bladet, the #1 player in
the world. In the semis, against Hungarys Sido, a
long-time factory worker whod not been recognized
by many, even Bergmann, as a possible contender for
the title, Louie, down 2-1, but up 20-16 in the 4th,
Lou Pagliaro (almost high enough
thought his ball hit the edge. But, he said, the
to win the Worlds?)
200

umpire ruled against me, and no onenot our Captain, I dont know if he was even
therenor any of our playerssaid a word. And I lost six points in a row, the game and
the match.
If Id have taken Sido, said Louie, I think, with my consistent defense, Id have
beaten Vana and been World Champion. Maybe so. But though Paggys cut strokes were
stylishly crisp, and though he had good ball control and kept the ball low over the net, he was
unable to start any sustained topspin offense. Sido, on the other hand, was patiently aggressive, maneuvering again and again to create the opportunity to pick a ball hard to set up a
winning point.
1951
Worl
Vana beat Leach in the semis 10, -19, 20, 16, and Sido in the final 21/20,
ds P
rogra
m
14, 9. In hitting his great forehand with a racket he claimed was 13-14 years old,
he accompanied his upstroke with a little body hop. This prompted Miles to call
him The Fleathe more so because Bo didnt like to be made fun of. In fact,
Vanas vulnerability had earlier made him the butt of a story by the mischievous
Bellak:
In 1938, the Worlds
began at the Royal Albert Hall in
London. Vana had come from
Czechoslovakia alone, and couldnt
speak a word of English. Worse
yet, for some reason whoever was
to meet him at the station didnt
show up. So Vana didnt know
what to dohe just walked around
saying, Ping Pong?PingPong? Of course the police soon
picked him up (PingPong?Ping-Pong?) as a
vagrant and a loony.
Ping-Pong?PingBo Vana
Pong? Finally somebody made the
World Champion
connection and called the English
Association and later Vana came
back to that same train station as
the World Champion. It just shows you, you dont have to have brains to play pingpong.
The English women were the aficionados choice to win the Corbillon Cup (the donated Cup itself was lost during the War)and, Captained by Margaret Osborne Knott, their
#1 player in the 1930s, they didwithout losing a single match. As the U.S. women were
originally in Group A with the English, they couldnt get to the final. Dace, also an excellent
lawn tennis player who at Wimbledon in 46 had reached the quarters of both the Womens
and the Mixed, defeated Hawthorn; Blackbourn defeated Thall in 3; and Dace/Blackbourn
defeated Thall/Hawthorn in 3. But a 3-2 win over Scotland (after Elliot had beaten both Thall
201

and Hawthorn) allowed the U.S. to come 2nd

in their Group. In Group B (which saw nearly
half the field not show for their ties), Hungary,
led by Government typist Giselle Gizi Farkas
(married name: Fekete), advanced to the final
with a 3-2 win over Czechoslovakia.
In the 64-entry Singles, the Czechs
entered six players, which meant that four of
them would be in different quarters. By
chance, however, Eveta Hruskova, whom wed
hear much of later, played teammates in both
the 2nd and 3rd round, reaching the quarters
with a 5-game win over 26-year-old Defending
Champion Vlasha Depetrisova (married name:
Pokorny). She then lost in 4 to Dace whod
easily defeated our Hawthorn. In the 2nd round,
Thall, after winning the 4th at deuce, led Farkas
16-9 and 17-13 in the 5th, and so almost caused a
sensation, for after escaping Leah 21-18, the 21year-old Hungarian would go on to win the title
without dropping another game. In the Oct., 1947
issue of Table Tennis, Editor Carrington paid
tribute to Leah by putting her picture on the cover
and writing about her as follows:
Does not rely upon defence to win
her titles, however; her strength lies in her
Leah Thall (played great match with Farkas)
ability to make sudden breakaways from defence, swing two sharp forehand drives to opposite corners before her opponent has
realized the crisis. If these are returned Leah usually settles down to close play again,
until the next opportunity.
Socially as well as tactically, Leah is a good mixer, and during the wearing
and wintry sessions of the World and English Championships, there was always laughter to be heard in any little group which gathered around her. A favourite subject for
the Paris caricaturists, her comments on their efforts were more amusing than the
pictures themselves! (11).
Associated Press, London

One of Farkass victims was the 1933 and 35 Czech World Champion Marie
Kettnerova whod fiercely challenged our own Champion Ruth Aarons at the 36 and 37
Worlds.* (Ruth, 10 years after her suspension and retirement, could still be seen, not only
with Sandor Glancz in the 46-47 seasons back-page Munro Sports ad in Topics, but in solo
graceful action on the front cover ofwhy her? why there?the very first, Sept., 1946, issue
of the English Table Tennis Review.) To get to the final, Farkas then stopped lefty attacker
Dace, whom Bergmann had picked to win the Championship.
On the other side of the draw, in the 8ths, Mae Clouther was beaten by Elliot, 3-0
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Keystone Press Agency, London

Hungarys 1947 World Womens Singles Champion: Giselle (Gizi) Farkas

(They made a
packet on me, said
Helen, referring to
those whod bet on
her against Mae).
Meanwhile,
Blackbourn was
spared a 1st-round
meeting with Angelica Adelstein
Rozeanu, the perennial World Champion beginning in
1950, when the
Rumanian contingent didnt show.
Blackbourn, 23, a
brilliant hitter forehand and backhand,
who as a corporal in
the War had been a
driver of a different
kind, motoring
vehicles about, beat
Vera Votrubcova, in
the late 1930s the
World Womens and
Mixed Doubles

Champion, and then the Scot Elliot to reach the semis.

Coming out to meet Blackbourn, and lose to her in straight games, was Austrias 1938
World Champion Trude Pritzi whod at least been 13, -13, 11, 10/8 engaged in the 2nd round
by our Reba Monness. But although Blackbourn had beaten Farkas in the Teams, she lost to
her three straight in the final. One observer of Gizis game, writing in the Feb./Mar., 1947
issue of Table Tennis, said she was, Hardly spectacular, but sure and courageous, and possessing the champions instinct for turning the pressure on or off at the right moment in a big
match. Has a splendid defence but wins mainly by a sudden backhand flick varied with drop
shots (19).
In the Mens Doubles, although Miles was so down on losing to Leach he didnt want
to play, he did finally agree to go on court with Pagliaro, but they lost a rather uncontested
2nd-round match toa team theyd beaten in a warm-up exhibition match a week earlier
Leach and his friend Carrington. This English team then bested the formidable Czech pair of
Tereba/Stipek to reach the final. Schiff/Holzrichter lost in 5 to Sido/Soos who in turn were
beaten by Vana/Adolph Slar, easy winners in the final over Leach/Carrington.
Fate flipped outcame up with a ridiculous pairing in the Womens Doubles. Farkas
and Pritzi, the eventual winners, had for their 1st-round match Blackbourn and Dace, surely
203

the #1 team. Then in the 2nd round they met the 1937 and 38 Champions, Depetrisova/
Votrubcova. And in the semis Thall/Hawthorn (who earlier had only to beat the lesser known
Czechs Fuerstova/Zelenkova). In the lower half of the draw, in the 2nd round, Elliot and
Englands #3 Peggy Franks whod won the Nov. Ilford Open (over Blackbourn and Dace)
were knocked out by Hruskova/Kettnerova. Clouther/Monness then rallied from 2-1 down to
beat these Czechs and eventually reach the final. But there, on dropping a 21/20 1st game,
they couldnt recover and had to settle for 2nd place.
Neither Miles nor Pagliaro played in the Mixed. Clouther paired with the Czech
reserve Moudry and they were immediately eliminated by Agopoff/Elliot. Monness got to play
two matches with Sido before losing to Stipek/Hruskova. Ditto Schiff with Thall before
succumbing to the Austrians Otto Eckl/Pritzi. But Holzrichter/Hawthorn, making the most of
their advantageous draw, advanced to the semis where they were beaten by Slar/Depetrisova.
In the other semis, Soos/Farkas finished off Barna/Franks, then won the title in 4 from the
Czechs.
At the 47 English Open, played Mar. 12-14 at Lime Grove Baths, then the finals on
the 15th at Wembley, the Mens was won by Tereba, the Womens by Farkas. (Former Hungarian star Dora Beregi Devenny, now a naturalized Briton, having married a British soldier,
was pregnant and couldnt defend her title.) The Mens Doubles went to Vana/Slar, the
Womens Doubles to Blackbourn/Dace; the Mixed to Vana/Votrubcova.
The American men, including Miles, fought well.
Schiff again lost a disheartening match early19 in the 5th
to Marinko, the veteran penhold blocker with the outsized
bat. Holzrichter, after 18-in-the-5th downing Bubley,
couldnt be upset at not upsetting Vana in the quarters.
And, while Pagliaro must have headed home as planned,
for he wasnt listed in the Programs draw, Miles beat the
many-time French Champion with the hammer grip,
Michel Haguenauer. Then hed had to wait (uncertain as to
who hed like to see win?) until Tereba finally outlasted
Leach, 19 in the 5thafter which Dick dropped -19, -18, 23 games to the formidable Czech and his terrific forehand
1955 Utrecht Worlds Program, 72
that allowed him to win the title.
Frances Michel Haguenauer
Perhaps after seeing the above summary of U.S.
and his hammer grip
play overseas readers wont think our overall performance
too disappointing. But everyone expected our players to bring home at least one World title
and we had our chances. Team Captain Nidy was not sympathetic to our National Champions
loss: Dick Miles faced the hard facts of life for the first time and came out second best. In
another year he might be wiser, but I somehow doubt it. Here, too, is the about to be naturalized Britisher Bergmann in his Twenty-One Up giving his impression of the Yank effort as
typified by Miles:
Poor Dick Miles, knocked out by Tereba this time, his confidence undermined, dazed and shaken by constant defeats, began to reconsider his rash presumption that because he was a Yank and had beaten everything over there without hardly
ever conceding a game, no one in the world could obstruct his victorious path. He
204

found out at no negligible cost that it is no mere coincidence that continental players
won all the world titles ever since the game started in real earnest (110).
Of course Bergmann has conveniently forgotten all our World title wins back when the
game was played in earnest in the 1930s.

*In 1937 after Defending Champ Aarons beat 1936 runner-up Kettnerova in the
semis, she faced Austrias Trude Pritzi in the final. Because of a controversial time-limit rule,
this match was stopped, and despite a near-even vote by Jury members the title was declared
Vacantquite an historical oddity. However, decades later, USATT Hall of Fame founder
Steve Isaacson requested, through me as ITTF Council Member for North America, that both
women posthumously be declared co-Champions. ITTF President Adham Sharara agreed. At
the Federations General Meeting at Osaka, Japan in 2001, with the approval of the delegate
body, Sharara awarded appropriate plaques and certificates to representatives of the U.S. and
Austrian Associations. Accepting for Aarons was USATT President Sheri Pittman, who was
very pleased that a U.S. woman player could again be recognized as one of the greats of her
era.

205

Chapter Twenty
1947: Pre-Nationals Tournaments. 1947: Leah Thall/Dick Miles Win Nationals.
1947: USTTA Building Its Hopes On Mid-Western Novice Tournament.
Out on the West Coast, in the Feb. 22-23 Southern California Open, held at the Long
Beach Polytechnic High School gym, Ham Canning sharpened up for the Nationals by sticking it to Frank Nemes in a 5-game semi, then quickly finished off Charles Engler. Katharine
Linsley said goodbye to a slow-starting Jane Little, stopping her 24-22-in-the-3rd attempt at a
comeback, then, in the final, despite losing the first two games at deuce, rallied to down Jean
Hermann.
Long Beach was one of those places where, even before John Hanna began forming a
California Affiliate, there had repeatedly been organized play. Future 1976 U.S. Closed Over
70 Champion Dr. Harold Dutch McCallister said he won his first ping-pong tournament at a
Long Beach Y. That was in 1917, 13 years before Hanna started playing, perhaps in that very
same building. By the late 1930s there was a thriving Long Beach TTA, headed by P.G.
Gruneisanand sporting a Mens Champ, Jack Irvine, and a Womens Champ, Mrs. Glen
Brown (TTT, May, 1938, 13). Hannas contemporary California player/organizer, Hollywoods
Bob Lupo, would later share honors at the Apr. 18-19, 1947 3rd Annual Vallejo OpenBob as
Singles and Jacques Helfer as Class A and (with Ross Peavey) Doubles Champ.
Canning turned up at the Mar. 6-7 Northern California Open tooonly not to play,
but with Coleman Clark to watch. They were obviously still working their well-established
nightclub and theatre act in select parts of the State. Apparently the Berkeley players werent
quite used to one another yetfor Chuck Chinberg not only won the Class A but the Championship as well.
At Detroits Mar. 15-16 Michigan Open, which Director Harold Jacober was pleased
to say drew 181 entries, Hersh had -18, 20, 18, 20 difficulty with Barclay
in the semis, but in the final easily beat Michigan Closed Champ Burns.
In the Doubles, Hersh/Burns eked out a deuce in the 5th win over
Barclay/McColley. Hugh Fredenburg won the Veteransthis time over
last seasons #1, the popular Pontiac barber Perc Secord. Barclay of
course took the Boys from he who came up shortBobby Short. In the
Womens, the relentlessly improving Tybie Thall, turned 23 a few days
earlier, was unchallenged by Barbara Cannon.
It was at this Michigan Open that Topics first took notice of Chuck
Medick whoan amazing feathad umpired there. Chuck would
soon become a highly publicized USTTA umpire. Why? Because hed
TTT, April, 1947, 10
been blind since he was two. More on Medick shortly, for hed be going
Perc Secord
to the Chicago Nationals, and, if unheralded there, might bet a nonbeliever a pint of ice-cream that, o.k., just watch him, he certainly could keep the score of a
match.
Meanwhile, over at Ann Arbor, City Championships were at stake. In the Mens, Ted
Peck dethroned perennial winner Laurie Ault. Jean Smith scored the hat trickwon the
Womens, Womens Doubles, and Mixed Doubles. This coming Labor Day Jean would pitch
her Dads Root Beer amateur baseball team to the State title, and by 1948 would sign a
contract with the All American Girls Professional Baseball League.
206

At the Mar. 22-23 Wisconsin Open at Shorewood, Dan Kreer left no doubt he was at
his U.S. Top 10 best when he zipped Condy whod gained the final with a 5-game win over
Abelew. Mary Specht took the Womens in 4 over newly married Peggy (nee Widmier)
Ichkoff. Peggy (whose husband Dick won the Consolations) eliminated Carlyn Blank in the
semis, 19 in the 4th. Sally Green (playing only Doubles because of ill health) teamed with
Specht to defeat Blank/Wilson, and with Condy to defeat Specht/Abelew.
Leah Thall U.S. Open Womens Champion
The 1947 Chicago Nationals was dedicated to those who offered themselves completely in the service of their Countryand to their comrades-in-arms who paid with their
lives while serving our cause. Held on 8 brand new Detroiter tables Mar. 28-30 at the Rainbo
Arena, it was hyped as a Players Tournamentrun BY players FOR players. The Tournament Committee was pleased to provide a free Players Pass that would allow players to sit
anywhere they wanted to in any unreserved section. Which means they couldnt do that
before, lest they take away a seat from a possible paying spectator? The Tournament Chair
was Illinois TTA President Billy Condy, the Chief Referee Berne Abelew, and the U.S. Open
Program Designer Jimmy Shrout. This Programs cover featured a striking photo by Berne
Abelew of a distant lit-up Chicago skyscraper at night viewed from the blacked-out foreground of a rooftop setting; a floating beige shield in the blackness announced the tournament.
Inside the Program, an effort was made to explain to an
uninitiate audience what tournament table tennis was all
abouteven to the etiquette expected of the onlookers:
Applaud as much as you wantand
loudBUT, wait until a point is completed.
Players depend a lot upon hearing that ball
bouncing on the table. Please dont applaud
accidental shots, such as net and edge balls.
Dont cheer any players errors, no matter how
much you want his opponent to win. We know
most such applause is purely spontaneous, so
wont you be careful?
Dana Young hyped this Open in Topics: For
the first time, European players will compete. Many
are expected to enter directly from the World Championships. Alas, however, these expectations were
quite grandiose. Those at station W.B.K.B. who were
televising play would have to be content with a grand
total of one European player, Englands Betty
Blackbournand she was in the States not to get
chicken-pox, which she did, but to study to become a
chiropractor.
Swaythling Club International News, Oct., 1999
World runner-up Blackbourn did not win this
Betty
Blackbourn, 1947 World runner-up,
17th U.S. Opens Womens Championship. Indeed, like
and U.S. Open Mixed Doubles Champion
some of the other seeds, all of whom had advanced to
with Dick Miles
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1947 U.S. Open Program (photo of Chicago by Berne Abelew)

208

the quarters from out of an exceptionally large field (49 entries in all), she was readily challenged. After a 17, 22, 18 workout against Ichkoff, the #3 seed Blackbourn was forced into
the 5th by #6 seed Mary Specht. In the companion quarters, Defending Champion Bernice
Chotrass 2nd-game win at deuce stopped #5 seed Tybie Thalls flesh wound threatthis after
Tybie had gone 5 with Carlyn Blank. In the semis, with both Betty and Bernice capable of
two-winged attacks, Bernice gained the final, 18 in the 4th.
In the bottom half of the draw, #2 seed Leah Thall had 19-in-the-4th trouble with #7
seed Mae Clouther. Meantime, the remaining quarters saw from the beginning some spirited
play. Chicagos Margaret Woodruff 14, -16, -15, 19, 21 survived a 1st-round encounter with
Silver Springs, Marylands about to be D.C. District Closed Champion Toni Coletti. And in
the 2nd round, the self-taught table-game of San Antonios Marjorie Willcox proved durably
effective against St. Louiss Betty Jane Schaefer. However, both the advancing #4 seed
Mildred Shahian and #8 seed Reba Monness found their first test to be against one another
with Reba, in leopard-skin slacks, scratching out a win in 5only to lose to Leah in the semis.
The final, but with a
different result, was a
replay between last years
contenders. In 1946, Leah,
up 2-1 and at 21-all with
Bernice, had come very
near to winning the title. So
many years now shed paid
her dues, been in contention. From the 1940-41
season on, shed been
ranked U.S. #3, #3, #3, #2,
#4, #2. Finally, at 31just
before old age would
overtake her?she made
her breakthrough. She beat
TTT, May, 1947, 5
Leah Thall (right) on way to winning 1947 U.S. Open over
Chotras in 4, losing only the
finalist Bernice Charney Chotras
discouraging 2nd, 25-23.
In Womens Doubles, Blackbourn/Monness,
having gotten by Ichkoff/Dolores Mortenson in 5,
and, having built up a 2-0 lead in the semis with a
(spirit-breaking?) 24-22 2nd game over the Thall
sisters, looked on course to the final. But when all the
figures were in and totaled, it was Leah and Tybie,
allowing only 40 points in the last three games,
whod advanced to the final to meet Clouther/
Shahian. Last year the New Englanders had beaten
the Thalls, 24-22 in the 5th. This year the two teams
played another 5-gamer, but with a different result.
Thus Tybie won her 1st National Championship, and
Leah, counting her Singles win, her 7th.
209

Niklasson Pressfoto, Goteborg

1947 U.S. Open

Womens Doubles Champions

In the top half of the Mixed draw, I dont know how seriously Miles was taking his
partnership with Blackbourn and/or their opposition, but I can guess, for they won their first
two matches 24-22 in the 4th ; thereafter, however, they never lost a game. Tybie Thall/Arnold
Brown were able to beat Ralph Bast and wife-to-be Carolyn Wilson, but couldnt save themselves in the 5th against Schiff/Delery who then in the quarters fell 3-zip to the increasingly
focused #1 seeds. Leah Thall/Doug Cartland were straight-game advancers. However, who
theyd meet in the quarters was for a while in doubt. Kreer/Ichkoff, though down 2-0, finally
beat the Lunds, then, up 2-0, lost to Holzrichter/Shahian. Against Doug and Leah, Billy and
Millie won the 1st at 19, but lost the 4th and the match at 20. Afterwards, in the semis, with
Miles/Blackbourn blasting away, Leahs hope for a sweep of titles couldnt have lasted long.
In the bottom half of the draw, Reisman/Monness won their quartersupset the #2
seeds Hazi/Clouther 18 in the 4th. That meant theyd meet who? Not the #4 seeds Lasater/
Kuenz, for in the 8ths, leading 2-0, they were stopped cold by Bob Anderson/Dolores
Mortenson. After Sussman/Chotras escaped Hersh/Cannon in 5, they faced another life and
death struggle in the semisonly, down 2-0 to Reisman/Monness, and despite winning the 4th
23-21, they couldnt make it to the final. This would be Miless first U.S. Open Doubles win.
Blackbourns too, but she would not
play in the U.S. again; instead she
disappeared into the heart of America
to prepare for her career.
The English TTA magazine,
Table Tennis, would have Blackbourns
picture on its Oct., 1948 cover, and
would speak of how her play was a
mixture of dull aimless plodding and
brilliant calculated aggression. Apparently this was because her attitude to
the game was a mixture of benevolent
apathy and sudden violent enthusiasm
(2). And, if you can believe Reba
Monness, her Doubles partner at these
Nationals, perhaps this Janus-like
nature of Blackbourn opened then
slammed shut many a door. In a Dec.
27, 1951 letter to USTTA Historian
Peter Roberts, Reba shows shes quite
upset with Elizabeth (though not enough
upset here to use the nastier language
Dick Miles, a double 1947 U.S. Open winner
she was capable of):
Mens Singles, Mixed Doubles
actually she [Blackbourn] is one of the most selfish people I have ever met,
with very bad manners where they counted most.I was very, very nice to her when
she was in New York, went out of my way to see that she was comfortable and entertained every moment, the same at [a] Chicago tourney; also she slept at Dick
Miles[s], ate there too, and never did we hear one word of thanks or acknowledgment; it was very common and crude of her.
210

Miles U.S. Open Mens Champion

In Mens Singles, Miles reached the semis without incident, but of course others in his
section of the draw had to work for their wins. Freddie Borges, #12 seed, 23-21 in the 4th
thrashed his way out of V. Lee Webbs distracting entanglements (for no one played to the
audience more than Lee), but then Freddie fell victim to #8 seed Dan Kreer who rallied from
2-1 down, just as he had in the 16ths against Hazi. Cartland, the #4 seed, by besting Chuck
Burns deuce in the 4th, reached the semis against Miles.
Schiff, the #2 seed, gave up only one game on his way to the semisto Allan Levy in
the quarters after Allan had eliminated #7 seed Johnny Somael. Arnold
Fetbrod, whod had a 2-1 lead on Levy, was a player that little was ever written about. Fellow New Yorker John Grinnel told me that Lawrence had repeatedly banned Fetbrod from the Broadway Courts for using foul language.
Moreover, Arnold had this strange and disconcerting habit of making little
noises while pushing back ball after ballpursing then quivering his lips as he
expelled trapped air. Miles said that since Fetbrod never hit a ball, he could
give him 12 points. Told me, too, that he, Reisman, and Cartland would play
Triples against Fetbrod, would spot him 7, and that he had no chance.
Arnold
Connecticuts #1 player, George Ferris, in a Letter to the Topics
Fetbrod
Editor (TTT, May, 1947, 5), questioned Chief Referee Berne Abelews
implementation of the Expedite Rule in the Levy-Fetbrod match. After Fetbrod had decisively beaten Billy Condy, who couldnt or wouldnt chisel against him, and then, with
his heavy back-hand chop and impregnable table defense, had taken a lead against Levy,
the Westerners began booing and the Easterners cheering. When the Westerners exhorted
Levy to chisel, he did, and Abelew, after warning the players that there had to be more
offensive play, too abruptly from Ferriss point of view snatched the ball from Fetbrod
who was about to serve and called the rule. Ferriss point was that, though Levy might
have continued to push, he might not have.
Hence Abelew should not have been so dictatorial, so eager to rule (see Laws in TTT,
Nov., 1946, 9) that play was uninteresting to the spectators, and therefore detrimental to the
game. It wasnt fair to Fetbrod, who had no chance with Levy in Expedite. It also wasnt fair
to Fetbrod, said Ferris, that Abelew, showing prejudice, tried to quiet the Easterners but not
the Westerners. More discretion is needed, Ferris argued, if good will is to be promoted
among East and West players, and players and officials. Helene Cinnaters comment was
PU. Levy had no choice but to chisel, she said, and, she might have added, if Ferris himself
said Fetbrod had no chance with the Rule in, didnt Levy understand this too? So why in the
world once committed to chiseling would he stop?
Reisman, the #6 seed, after being 19, 22, 20 playful with Cal Fuhrmanwho, as well
see, will have a life-changing reaction on feeling victimized by the Expedite Rulewent down
to #14 seed Jimmy McClure, outscoring him in points but losing the vital deuce games.
Holzrichter, along with the other top seeds, advanced to his seeded place in the semis
dropping only one game to Hendry, but being 22, 20, 19 extended in the quarters by McClure
whod eliminated him last year. Hendry had obliged Bridgeport, CTs George Ferris with an
early loss, thus allowing him to win the Consolation.
Abelew, the Chief Referee, had been reluctant to let the blind Chuck Medick umpire.
But, as Gary Ellis of the Long Beach, CA Independent Press-Telegram tells us, his point of
view changed:
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During his [Medicks] stay in Chicago, Jack Brickhouse (announcer for the
White Sox and Cubs) conducted a television interview with Medick. The Chicago
Tribune wrote an article on Medicks antics. Two players were warming up and I said,
the ball is cracked. Medick laughed, adding, every official worth his salt carries an
extra ball. Later they tested the ball and it had a very small crack. I heard it. The
newspaper reporters raved, the players raved, and the tournament directors became
believers (reprinted in TTT, Nov.-Dec., 1972, 18).
Reportedly, Chuck umpired one of the semis, I dont know which. But both would
have put pressure on him. In the one, Schiff rallied to beat Holzrichter in 5. Billy, seemingly in control of the match, was the victim of a freak occurrence. As he came in for a
shot, his racket
caught the table
edge, shearing
off the rubber. A
5-minute recess
was called while
a player helped
out with some
Chuck Medick: This umpire
fast-drying glue.
really is blind
However, said
Billy, after that,
the racket wasnt
the same, and
when I had to
serve I just had
no feeling with
it, and lost the
match. Maybe I
just psyched
myself out.
Perhaps the lack
of a back-up racket reminded Billy, U.S. #4, hed better help mind the storethe one that
sold the Leyland rubber rackets, the Gus and Bill Holzrichter Pro Sport Shop on Cicero. In
fact, wasnt it time to expand. How about another shop on Devon?
In the other semi, Miles, a bit testily, overcame Cartland in 4. According to local
reporter William Fay, Dougs unorthodox habit of talking to himself, plus his agile
retrieving, irritated Miles. After losing the 2nd game at 19, Dick asked the umpire or
referee, or both, to ask Cartland to keep quiet. And Doug didthough inwardly he must
have fumed. Afterwards, as he did last year, Dick beat Sol in straight games for his third
straight Open win.
That Eddie Pinner didnt come to Chicago to defend his Doubles title with Sussman,
or that last years runner-up Schiff and Somael werent paired together, couldnt have been
more obvious when Bob Anderson/Somael beat Sussman/Hazi in the quartersan upset
matched by Cartland/Fetbrod over Holzrichter/Price. The super steady New Yorkers then
made their unimpeded way to the final. Schiff/McClure, trying to reach back for a pre-War
212

performance, knocked off Kreer/Hendry, but then were beaten in the semis by Hersh/Burns
whod eliminated Miles/Borges. Thus all four seeds were eliminated, and Cartland/Fetbrod,
surely thought an unlikely winner in the beginning, proved as invincible in the final as they had
in the semis.
Though Defending Champ Marlin Tucker was seeded #1, Hazi vs. Varga in the Veterans final had been pretty much a given from the startwith Hazi winning 3-0. Tibor apparently didnt play Veterans Doubles, and when neither the Varga nor Tucker pairs could win,
the victors were the Indianapolis duo of Ed Baase/Don Wilson.
There was another Indy winner when in the Boys Under 15 Eddie Hancock 8, 4, 8
seemingly annihilated Fred Rogers of Columbusexcept one has to add that this was a 5game final. In the Junior Under 18s Reisman beat all comers, including finalist Barclay, in
straight games. Despite Gordys precociousness, thered be no more National Championships for him.
Reisman, however, didnt always enjoy being the Champion. He tells a poignant story
about how one of his hoped for hustles didnt work out. A prospective pigeon, having won
two games from Marty (for sure, the last one just got away, as they say), and $20, and
pleased that hed shown this upstart teenager what the game was all about, said, Look,
youre a nice kid, but I dont want any more of your money, I just wanted to make a point.
And so saying he picked up his belongings and left. Left Reisman looking after him in such
shock that, as the guy walked away, young Marty blurted out plaintively, Come back, Im the
National Junior Champion! I am, I really am!
Chicagos Much Hyped Mid-Western Novice Tournament
Thanks to Chicago advertising man George Koehnke
who created the idea and sold it to the Chicago Sun-Times,
the Apr. 12 First Mid-Western Novice Championships were
held at Lane High School in the Windy City. Reportedly, more
than 12,000 players from 25 cities and five states participated
in District Meets to see who would qualify for the Chicago
Finals in seven different Singles events: Boys under 15, girls
under 15, junior boys under 18, junior girls under 18, [and]
men, women, and senior men over 35. In addition to District
medal and Final trophy awards, a Team trophy (1st in an event
is worth 40 points4th 10 points) was given, as it turned out,
TTT, Dec., 1939, 19
to the Chicago delegation who triumphed with 310 points to
George Koehnke
runner-up St. Louiss 230. The preliminary Chicago District
meet was handled by the School Bureau of Recreation through 67 Chicago playgrounds. St.
Louis, with a similar plan, raised about $2,000.00 to send 12 contestants and 2 officials to
the Chicago finals. A Novice was defined as any amateur player who has not won a state,
district or national ranking.
Meeting the letter but hardly the spirit of the law was Boys Under 15 winner, 14year-old St. Louis Beaumont High freshman Don Robinson. A protg of Bill Prices, Don
may have been playing only a yearbut in Jan. he won the Ozark Open Under 18s; in Feb. at
the Westerns he came 2nd to Barclay in the Under 18s; also that same month he beat last
years #7 U.S. Junior Tom Klutho to win the St. Louis County Open Under 18s; and finally in
the Boys Under 15 at the Nationals he got to the semis before being eliminated by the
213

winner Eddie Hancock. Some novice, this seasons U.S. #3 Boy. Counterpart winner, if you
can call her that, was unknown 13-year-old Olga Parchutz, a Chicagoan whod won awards
at checkers, track, and quoits.
Junior Boys Under 18 winner was 16-year-old Paul Stormdorfer of St. Louiss Soldan
High; he liked to collect stamps. His counterpart winner was Joan Gummels, another Price
protg who couldnt be the U.S. Open U-18 Champion only because there wasnt any such
event for Girls. This novice had earlier won the Feb. St. Louis County Open from two of
the seasons nationally-ranked women playersU.S. #14 Betty Schaefer and U.S. #18 Shirley
Nelson, and just recently at the Nationals had upset U.S. #13 Barbara Cannon.
The Mens was won by 18-year-old Bradley University student Walter Shur, whom
neither the Chicago Organizing Committee nor Topics knew anything more aboutthat, for
example, hed played in the Nov., 1945 New York Open or had been ranked U.S. #10 in the
Juniors in 1946. This novice beat another, Kenoshas Keith Porter, the 1947 U.S. Open
Mens Consolation runner-up, and Wisconsin #7 for the season. In the Womens, in the most
evenly matched final of the tournament, Shirley Youngberg, a bookkeeper whod won medals
in skating and volleyball, defeated fellow Chicagoan Lucille Gorka, 19 in the 3rd.
Mike Grassi, a father of two, who lived in the famous Hill Section of St. Louis,
which boasts of such athletes as Joe Garagiola of the St. Louis Cards, and Yogi Berra of the
N.Y. Yankees, took the Veterans from Louisvilles Lionel Armstrong.
Quite a mixture, these Novices.
Moreover, from the play this Tournament received in Topics* much more than the
Easterns or Westerns, and as much if not more than the Nationalsyoud think there wasnt
a tournament more important in the country.
Underneath a posed photo of nine boysall holding their rackets over their hearts as
if pledging allegiance to the USTTAone reads the ever predictable article of our Association as it boxes-in its HOPES ON THE NOVICE PLAYER:
TO ALL NOVICE PLAYERS
Topics is very much interested in your particular activity. We will continue to
do everything we can to print articles about your club, tournaments, etc. [Indeed, in
the Apr., 47 Topics, Koehnke had an How To Start A T.T. Club article in which he
stressed the importance of building up the games of 10 to 15 year olds.] YOU are
the players who will be our future champions. YOU are the fans who will control our
organization in the years to come. YOU are the developers of GOOD SPORTSMANSHIP and CLEAN LIVING. We need your supportyou also need ours. Lets work
together in the best interests of the game we all love. Our first step in unitizing [sic] is
to secure U.S.T.T.A. membership. We look forward to welcoming many new members (Mar., 1947, 6).
Perhaps Topics will become more of a novice-oriented publication? Will intrigue uslike
that Reverse Tournament I mentioned earlierto follow the progress of all those players who
dont win, and who therefore arent interested in USTTA tournament circuit play?
SELECTED NOTES.
* For the write-up of this Novice tournament, Im indebted to the following issues
of TTTFeb., 1947, 14; Mar., 1947, 7; May, 1947, 6; and Oct., 1947, 5.
214

Chapter

Twenty-One

1947: General MacArthur Cup Matches. 1947-48: USTTA Administrative Changes/

Preoccupations. 1947: Summer Happenings/CNE Play Resumes. 1947: Fall Tournaments.
1947: Womens East-West Matches. 1947: New York Wins Intercities. 1947: U.S. World Team
to London Worlds Selected.
After the devastation wrought by the War, a Japanese man by the name of Masazo
Ikeda (see his long article in TTT, Mar.-Apr., 1980, 6;18) tells us of a hope he had:
I was convinced that the formation of a civilized country based on peace
and culture was the only goal for the future of postwar Japan. I hoped to give brightnessthe dawn of hopeto Japan and the sports world at a time when it was economically and spiritually depressed. So, gradually, I came to have a dream that if we
had the General MacArthur Cup for sports events, through the kindness of General
MacArthur, it would make a deep emotional difference to all Japanese and would raise
the national spirit.
Ikeda saw
MacArthur as one
whod arrested
the Soviet forces
whod been marching into Hokkaido
and whod supplied
the badly-in-need
Japanese with
foodstuffs and
economic help.
Since he also
recognized
MacArthur as the
leader of the
American team at
the 9th Olympics,
choosing him as his
ideal honoree made Traveling Trophies being returned at Opening Ceremony of the July 23, 1948
General MacArthur Cup Matches
sense. Question
was: Would the
General agree to have the Cup named after him?
Ikeda knew a man from pre-War days named Merrel Vories who was intimate with
General MacArthur and so through Vories gained entry to him. To Ikedas great pleasure,
MacArthur agreed to lend his name to Ikedas sports project, and on Apr. 2, 1947 the two
men met and the General put his signature to the silver cup Ikeda had brought with him.
It was agreed that, with the cooperation of the Japan Amateur Athletic Association
and a contribution of $1,000,000 yen from Ikeda, there would be competition in three
215

sportsHard Tennis, Soft Tennis, and Table Tennis. The first Primary Central Tournament
there would be 30 in all, annually through 1976was held Aug. 29-31, 1947 in Nishinomiya
with much opening fanfare, including a 60-piece Army band. Players singing The Song of
General MacArthur had portrait medals of the General.
Apparently Ikeda was a man of his times and prepared for MacArthurs acceptance,
for Dana Young says in her Jan., 1947 Topics column, The Japanese have long had the
custom of painting pictures of their glamour girls, wrestlers and what have you on their t.t.
bats as a sales promotion stunt. Now theyre cashing in on MacArthurs popularity and all
paddles carry a picture of the general. (MacArthurs reaction is unknown.) (7).
The Nov., 1948 English magazine, Table Tennis, indicated that Japan sent a 1948
application for affiliation to the ITTF. It also made reference to the recently held three-sport
MacArthur Cup tournament rather as if the writer thought it (the 1948 one?) was the first of
the annual tournaments. Kyoto, the magazine said, was the table tennis winnerbut so it was
for the first three years primarily because of the unrivaled skill of their girls and women.
The 16-team Zonal format for the final knock-out ties was remarkable for the unusual variety
of matches; each meeting involved best-of-nine events, made up as follows: 2 Mens Singles, 1
Womens Singles, 1 Boys Singles, 1 Girls Singles, 1 Veterans Singles, 1 Mens Doubles, 1
Womens Doubles, 1 Mixed Doubles (9).
USTTA President Cinnater, who after the 49 Worlds (and though he was not present
there) had been elected ITTF Vice-President for North America, was to say later:
Mr. Ikeda wrote me, in 1950 I think, and asked me if I would sponsor
Japans return into the International Table Tennis Federation. He told me about the
General McArthur Cup Matches that had been going on for several years since the war
ended. [Actually, in 1949, Cinnater and USTTA Historian Peter Roberts had received
souvenir medals of the 47 and 48 Cup matches.] He also stated that inasmuch as
General MacArthur sponsored these matches back in 1947 that the World would be
ready to accept Japan back into international competition. I agreed and told him I
would have my representative at the World Championships (I believe it was Jimmy
McClure) sponsor their return (TTT, Mar.-Apr., 1980, 6).
To clarify Cinnaters response I have to continue to jump ahead for a moment. It
seems that the year Elmer receives Mr. Ikedas letter is not 1950 but 1949. No U.S. player or
representative would be able to attend the 1950 Budapest Worlds for reasons well see
shortly. But McClure was the U.S. Team Captain and Delegate to the ITTF Meeting at the
Stockholm Worlds in 1949, and while there he says he did speak in support of bringing the
Japanese TTA into the ITTF. I dont think any country has suffered more at the hands of the
Japanese than the U.S. has, he said, so if we dont object, why should anyone else? He told
me that, after hed shown this support, a little block of member-country representatives had
left the Meeting Room in protest. And then, since they were wanted back and wanted to come
back, he spoke to ITTF President Montagu and others and agreed that hed withdraw his
motion if they promised to allow Japan in the following year. That would be 1950 when, as it
turned out, neither Jimmy nor any USTTA representative could be present at the Budapest
ITTF Meeting.
The ITTF Handbook Supplement, 1949-50 has the following relevant comments:
Players of the Japan Table Tennis Association, c/o Japan Athletic Association [its listed
216

President, Saburo Kiyose, had cooperated with Ikeda in 1947]are authorized to compete
with players in membership with the I.T.T.F.: the application of this body for affiliation to be
reviewed next year (5). And sure enough, come the 50-51 season Japan was accepted as an
ITTF member. The very next year, in Bombay, its World Champion Satoh changed the face of
the table tennis world.
Both Ikeda and McClure were later feted. In 1977, Ikeda and his wife were honored
with a banquet in Tokyo, then later met Mrs. MacArthur in New York, and went on to present
the MacArthur Cup to the General MacArthur Memorial Library in Norfolk, Virginia. In 1998
(see Y.C. Lees article in TTT, July-Aug., 1998, 34), McClure was the Japan Table Tennis
Associations guest of honor and received a hand-carved silver serving trey and the
sightseeing privileges of royalty around Osaka, Nara, Kyoto, and Tokyo.
USTTA Administrative Changes/Preoccupations
With the coming of the 1947-48 season, USTTA President Elmer Cinnater, VicePresident Ted Chapman, and Treasurer Bob Metcalf all remained in office. Vice-Presidents
Ed Kuhns and George Schein, brought in last year for interim duty when Berne Abelew and
Graham Steenhoven resigned, were replaced by George Koehnke and John Kauderer, formerly the Associations Recording Secretary, a position now assumed by Iowas Rees Hoy.
Its a good thing Skipper Cinnater could say that Organization work was always my first
love, for he was certainly about to get enough of it. General Secretary Bob Berna would
resignwould be forced to resign because, with a June 1st, 1947 bank balance of $90 and a
net worth of $350, the Association had no money to keep the Philadelphia office open.
USTTA Headquarters would be relocatedto the Pocahontas Ave., St. Louis home of the
Cinnaters, where Elmers wife Helene would increasingly be doing much of the secretarial
work.
When Pennsylvanian Topics Editor Mel Evans, Jr. resigned (an RCA Plant Layout
Engineer, he was said to have averaged better than seventy-five letters a week on table
tennis), Bill Haid of St. Louis was appointed the new Editor (30 years later hed be the
Colorado Springs-based USTTA Executive Director). Bills wife Sarah (theyd just married),
in a newly created position, became the Topics Secretary. Haid, a man in his mid-twenties with
a background in graphics, designed an attractive, new but for a time unvarying cover for
Topics featuring the photo of a player in a racket face. The first such good egg to be shown,
so to speak, was ex-Editor Evans, who said he hopes to see Topics develop into a first class
publication of about sixty-four pages.
(Think it will?) Bill Price would
remain as Art Director, and would
take over more writing duties (hed
contribute, for example, a series of
monthly articles on How to Play
and Teach a Sound Game of Table
Tennis and even dramatize these
on local TV). Associate Editor Mrs.
Dana Young also
resignedbecause of home duties
(translation: she was pregnant
with her second child). In place of
Danas Side-Lines column,
Helene Cinnater would offer the comparable This n That. Taking
Youngs place as Associate Editor was
Ed Dick Dickinson who seemed to
enjoy writing Polonius-like platitudes to
novicesto wit:
The U.S.T.T.A. has always been a highly respected organization, so it looks
to the younger generation to perpetuate and protect its good name.
217

Like many of us, you may never reach the heights of stardom, but there are
many ways in which you can help.
From time to time we need new officials and new leadership. Many of you will,
perhaps, be called upon in the future to carry the banner and keep it aloft.
Heres our first request:Always refer to our game as Table Tennisnever
(sh) P.P. Keep that in mindTABLE TENNIS.
Never bemoan your bad luck nor boast of your accomplishments. If you are
good, others will tell you. If you are not so good, keep trying to solve your mistakes.
Practice diligently and always lose graciously. Refrain from profanity and rowdiness. It
will not help you, but will lower the prestige of your organization and you will lose the
respect of everyone. Always control your temper if you would be a good competitor.
At tournaments lend a helping hand.
Get yourself a set of the well defined rules and study these carefully.
In conclusion, let me add that the U.S.T.T.A. needs members, but they want
good members who will be loyal and renew their membership promptly, in order that
they might make the game and Topics bigger and better for all of us. Your cooperation will gladden the hearts of all the officials and give them a feeling of gratification
for all their hard work. In this age of perplexity and bewilderment, your good efforts
will give them an inner glow for the future. (TTT, Dec., 1947, 11).
It was that 1947-48 time of perplexity and bewilderment that produced such stuff
for the readership? But of course this well-meaning drivel did not result in any more USTTA
members. By seasons end, Membership Chair Bill Feldt, who, with Ted Chapmans resignation, had also become both the USTTA Vice-President and Tournament Chair, would say,
This year we have had the strange situation of getting lots of new memberships and failing to
get the renewals, this all resulting in about the same membership instead of a goodly increase
(TTT, May, 1948, 8).
On June 14th at the Coronado Hotel in St. Louis, President Cinnater, with just
Chapman and Koehnke of his Executive Committee, just the one Regent Nidy, Governor/
President Don Wilson of Indiana, Ranking Chair Varga, Lighting Chair Jim Michaels, and
local player Melba McClain as Acting Secretary, met for the first, Saturday afternoon session
of the Annual USTTA Summer Meeting. I dont think any of them had that inner glow
though, for, as I can see from a copy of the Minutes, with this poor turnout, they didnt have
much to talk about.
In case youre wondering about that Lighting Chair, I hasten to say he couldnt be
more serious. The USTTA will later publish in more than three full pages in Topics (Mar.,
1952, 5-8) a condensed Report by Michaels on a study of table tennis lighting he did and
would present as a paper at the National Technical Conference of the Illumination Engineering Society, Sept. 15-19, 1947, New Orleans, La. He went to the lighting institute at
Nela Park in Cleveland as the guest of General Electric and, with the help of well-known
Cleveland playersMr. and Mrs. Richard Stone, Mr. and Mrs. Walter Everling, Courtney
Bock, and Sam Shannonhe conducted innumerable tests. Using a ball projector
(todays robot) to send out 40 m.p.h. smashes to defenders, he concluded that homes
needed at least 20 footcandles, clubs 30 footcandles, and tournaments 50 footcandles of
illumination. To summarize his conclusions in the most simplistic fashion: good returns
depend on good light.
218

Last year, Cinnater, post-War hopeful about the growth of the Sport and anticipating
a large sale of equipment approval seals and TOPICS advertisements, had embarked on a
premature expansion program that had resulted in a large financial loss to the Associationspecifically $3,500! Now he hoped for cooperation and understanding between the
Association and the Manufacturerschief of whom were Chicagos P. Becker & Co., Detroit
Wood Products Co., Bostons Harvard Table Tennis Co., Indianapoliss Jimmy McClure T.T.
Co., Utica, N.Y.s Munro Athletics Products Co., Clifton, N.J.s Table Tennis Corp. of
America (TATCO), and (the relatively new) Chicagos Champion Plastic Products Co., maker
of the plastic Champla ball, and Los Angeless Wood Products Co., maker of the Californian
table. In fact, this Summer Meeting had been advertised as a Manufacturer & Executive
Meetingbut only Mr. Filing of the Akron Filing Company attended, and nothing said about
him or by him, including his recommendation that the USTTA should sell approval seals for
approved bats, was deemed important enough to be in the condensed Minutes printed in
Topics. The afternoon suggestion was that the absent USTTA Equipment Chairman Berna and
Mr. Filing pursue the formation of a National Table Tennis Equipment Manufacturers Association with which the USTTA could work in harmony.
At the remaining Saturday/Sunday sessionswhich also saw the attendance of Haid,
Membership Chair Bill Feldt (who made a successful bid for St. Louis to host the Westerns),
Intercollegiate Chair Dr. B.B. Gummels (Joans father), and George Hendrytournaments
were the E.C.s preoccupation. There was now a 5-star tournamentthe World Championshipsto accompany the one 4-star tournament, the Nationals. The Central Open was
awarded the same [3-star] category status as the Eastern and Western Tournaments, and the
sanction fee for that would be 20% (of the entry fees). Two-star tournaments, which included
State Opens, would now pay not a 10% but a 15% sanction fee.
Tournament Chair Ted Chapman indicated that the country had been divided into seven
playing zones. At the moment, he said, only the Eastern, Central, and Western are considered
important (that leaves quite a bit of work to be done in the Rocky Mountain, Pacific, Southwestern,
and Southeastern states). He also felt obliged in Topics to remind everyone that Race Discrimination is strictly contrary to the constitution of the U.S.T.T.A. and the I.T.T.F.
Since the USTTA again specified that no help be given the U.S. Team from its
regular funds, another Fighting Fund had to be established. This time the plan was to
sell 10,000 donation tickets at $1.00 per ticket. Buy a ticket and youd be eligible to
participate in a drawing for a $1,000 expense trip to Europe or $1,000 cash. Affiliates
could keep 20% of the money from tickets they sold. If an affiliate officer sold 500 tickets
hed get a $100 commission credited to his affiliate. Subsequently, however, this ticket
plan was not really pursued, for the Swedish TTA would invite the U.S. Team, Captained
by Bill Price, to give a series of exhibitions in Sweden. The money coming to the USTTA
from these exhibitions, via an agreement with the Swedish Association, would, it was
hoped, defray most of the expenses.
The recommendation that U.S. exhibition players pay the Association not a $2 but a
$25 fee and thus be recognized as professional exhibitionists was rejected. (At the
USTTA General Meeting at the close of the season, it was agreed that such professional
exhibitionists, money playersfor example, Glancz-Betzpromoted the Sport and so
shouldnt be charged a higher exhibition fee.) The suggestion that the U.S. Junior Champion (both last year and this year, Reisman) be automatically put on the U.S. World Team
was also rejected.
219

Spurred by a letter from Clarence Sage, President of the Western Massachusetts TTA,
that proposed six recommendations against any gambling going on at tournaments, the E.C.
adopted strict punishments against violatorsautomatic disqualification and the confiscation
of his (her) membership card prior to action by the disciplinary chairman.
The remaining resolutions the E.C. dealt with had to do with the U.S. Open. Henceforth, the USTTA was to be given full charge of the Nationals and sponsor all future National
Tournaments. To encourage an optimum number of players to attend the U.S. Open, there
would be no open tournament two weeks prior to the Nationals. In order that matches at
the Nationals might proceed more smoothly, no player could enter more than three events of
which one must be a Singles and one a Doubles Event. It had been proposed that the 35-year
age limit for the Veterans event, now generally called (as I from now on will call it) the
Seniors event, gradually be raised a year, each year, until it became 40. This idea was rejected
(and 40 would not become the minimum age for Seniors until 1954). However, the E.C. did
pass dress regulations for the Nationalswith regard to colors, pocket-size emblems, and the
elimination of player numbers on shirt-backs in favor of a two inch felt lettering of the name
of the player and city he represents.
Lou Pagliaro, in a letter, said he believed that the Gimbel Trophy won by the U.S.
Open Mens Champion was not a perpetual trophy but was to go permanently to a three-time
winner. Since he, not Miles, was first to win the Nationals three times, the Gimbel Trophy
should be his permanent possession. The E.C.s Solomonic decision was that from now on
all trophies belonging to the USTTA be perpetual traveling trophies and that both Pagliaro
and Miles be presented with a symbolic trophy, stating that they won the National Championship three times. In years to come, this would be one of those trophies Paggys three daughters would argue over (Its my turn to dust them today! No, its mine!No, you had
your turn two days ago!)

TTT, Dec. 1947, 8

(Columbia Movie Short)
Concord Hotel Resort,
Kiamesha Lake, NY

220

Summer Happenings/CNE Resumes

This summer Pagliaro and Sandor Glancz would star in a short for Columbia pictureswith popular sports announcer Bill Stern as commentator. A photo in the Dec., 47
Topics showed where the filming took place. Players in casual clothes and swimsuits were
enjoying themselves on half a dozen or more outdoor tables at the picturesque Concord
Hotel in Kiamesha Lake, N.Y. Although one had to imagine what Paggy and Glancz might be
doing in this as yet unnamed film (it was to be released in the spring), fans were invited to
send their suggestions for a name for this short to Sandor, and if that name were selected, the
one who suggested it would receive a Sandor Glancz Table Tennis Set!
Players wanted to make a living doing what they did best, so, while Glancz toured with
Pagliaro, and later did Sportsmens Shows with Pauline Betz, Bellak found a new and better partner
in Peggy McLean and for a time they played exhibitions in Sweden and Norway. No wonder the
1949 Worlds would be in Stockholmthe Swedish Association had 13,000 members playing
regularly in a network of leagues, and were taking international play very seriously.
Bill Price had been named Playing Captain of the U.S. Team that would resume International play at the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) tournament, Sept. 4-6 in Toronto.
Serving as a preparatory tournament for the CNEat least for Reisman and Cartland, though
neither had been named to the U.S. Team therewas the Aug. 6-7 Provincetown Summer
Open, held at the Town Hall in memory of William Gilfillan, the very competent Chair of the
1941 N.Y. Nationals Committee who lost his life in the War. Though the small draw suggested the tournament might not be able to renew its pre-War vacation charm for the players,
the Mens retained its distinctive Quiniela formatand Reisman was supreme. In the
Womens, Defending Champ Mae Clouther defeated Ruthe Brewer Crist.
For their Toronto tournament the Canadians wanted to please. Theyd advertised that
all out of town players would receive a meal ticket good for two meals a day, and later
Ontario TTA Vice-President A. M. McTaggart made sure Topics got the results and some
photos. In the U.S. vs. Canada International Team Matches (players received Bulova
watches), McTaggart Captained the CanadiansMontreals J. J. Desjardins, Canadas Closed
Champion, runner-up Red Spector, and Torontos Ed Porterbut this was a somewhat
thankless task, for they were blitzed 6-0 by the U.S. team of Price, Pinner, McClure, and Schiff.

Courtesy of Sandor Glancz

Lou Pagliaro (left) and Sandor

Glancz making a Columbia
movie short at the Concord
Hotel, Kiamesha Lake, NY

221

1947 CNE Open Championship Winners

TTT, Nov., 1947, 10

Marty Reisman
Mens Winner

Peggy McLean
Womens Winner

J.J. Desjardins
Canadian Champ

McClure, Price, Schiff, Pinner

U.S. Team Winners

As an experiment, participants were asked to wear whiteas if this would dress up

the Sport, played here at the Exhibition (Fair) in the Small Judging Ring adjacent to the strawfilled animal stalls. But Reisman, making his debut here in white with Cartland, was not
prettified by the experiencein fact, he was soon bloodied. I was subject to nose bleeds in
those days, he told me later. Since I couldnt stop the bleeding, I took a cab to a hospital
where they packed my nose with cotton. But then I had to sneak out of there; they wanted to
keep me over night, and I had matches to play. The bleeding started up again, so Marty went
to another hospital, and though they tried to help him, maybe did everything short of giving
him a transfusion, when he was on court again, against Schiff, he said he kept swallowing
blood. But Dr. Harry Sage [hed won the last CNE, in 41] came out of the stands, helped
me, gave me something that maybe shrunk the blood vessels, and finally the bleeding
stopped.
So Reisman, you might say, even more than those U.S. Team members who in that 6-0
slaughter of Canada didnt give up a game, looked out for blood. He won the Under 18
Juniors, but, far more importantly, he won the Menshis first Major. In the quarters, he
beat U.S. #7 Pinner, 16 and 19. In the semis, U.S. #2 Schiff, 18 in the 5th. And in the final,
U.S. #5 Cartland, also in the 5th, after being down 2-0. At 17, he had arrivedwas now ready
for any covering reporters expected question, To what do you attribute your success?
With a vision beyond his years, yet without sounding like W.C. Fields, he could answer, and would, again and again, Talent, my friend, talent. I never took a lesson in my life. I
was a natural at the Game.
It wasnt Reisman, though, who got the local publicity. Joe Perlove of the Toronto
Star interviewed that hoary old codger, Schiff, now 30, and came up with this:
While others fly off at terrific speeds to make a get, or scramble frenziedly
here and there, Schiff just stands and hits. He hits the hell out of every possible
ball.Schiff doesnt grimace, doesnt tear his hair, doesnt throw his hat in the air, or
smash it to the ground. He just stands there and wallops. I keep hitting, he says,
and when Im on Im winning. When Im off Im losing, and tomorrow is another
day (Sept. 9, 1947, 10).
McLean won the Womens from the Thall sistersbeating, first, Tybie, then Defending Champ Leah in a 19 in the 4th final. However, adding to her Singles and Mixed Champion222

ships in 41, Leah took the Womens Doubles here with Tybie, and these three varied titles would
start her conquest of Canada. Eventually she would claim 41 such titles. And just as shed worked
diligently at being a good bookkeeper, so she later prided herself on the accuracy of her records. In
this she was like her long-time friend and National Table Tennis Historian counterpart in Canada
(the Ontario Womens Champion in 38, 39, and 40), Marge Walden.
Fall Tournaments
As were about to see, California will begin to reassert its importance in U.S. table
tennis. On Oct. 11-12, at the Los Angeles Swimming Stadium, two tournaments were held.
Winning the Mens in the L.A. Countys Masters Invitational was ex-Princeton star Abbott
Nelsonover Frank Nemes who in the semis had defeated former California Champion, the
serial actor Don Terry. In the Olympic Club Championships, which those playing in the
Masters were ineligible for, Beryl Shapiro, having gotten by penholder Bill Bower in 5,
defeated Bill Nelson for the Mens title. In the quarters, Nelson had 19-in-the-4th downed
Helios Farrell (Fuh-RELL), destined to be both President of the Federacion Mexicana de
Tenis de Mesa and ITTF Vice-President for South America. Ex-Easterner Mary Reilly, 1947
National Polka Dot Queen, won the Womens from Jean Nelson.
At the Nov. 8-9 Long Beach Championships, the Mens Champion was Nemesover
John Hanna whod eliminated Abbott Nelson in the semis. In the Womens, Jane Little, a topranked tennis star in Long Beach, got the better of Reilly, 19 in the 5th. The Mixed was won by
Hanna/Littleover Nelson/Reilly. Mary, a Camel Cigarette Cover Girl, could be seen in
advertisements in such popular magazines as Look and Life, and with Hanna, made a Camels
TV commercial.

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The 1947 California Open, played before a capacity crowd of 1000, was impressive.
It set new recordsoffered 10 events with a combined 255 entries. In the Mens, Nemess
driving and countering allowed him to win in 5 over Nelsons superlative defensive play.
Tiny Moss, so precocious before moving from Minnesota to California, reclaimed some
fame by taking the Womens title in 5 from Reilly. Jane Little won the Womens Doubles, with
Reilly, and, though pressured some by Jacques and Diane Helfer, the Mixed, with Hanna.
At the Nov. 15-16 St. Louis District tournament, Garrett Nash banged balls through
Don Lasater and runner-up George Hendry to win the Mens. In the Womens, Leah, as she
had two weeks earlier in the Michigan Open, again got the better of Tybie, but again was
forced into the 5th . Semifinalist Peggy Ichkoff, eking out the 27-25 4th game, fought well
against Tybie. Junior winner John Stewarts early 23, 19 two up lead was just enough to allow
him to hold off a stubborn Wally Gundlach in 5. Willard Sher was best in Boys; Price protg
Alphonse Holtman came 2nd. Holtman, only 11, in addition to having an outdoorsman for a
father who would take him on hunting and fishing trips, was already an all-around athlete
good at tennis, swimming and baseball. Frank Wetzel, interviewing him, said that Al was
completely ambidextrous and couldnt make up his mind which hand to throw [the baseball]
with. Finally chose to throw lefty, although he plays Table Tennis with his right (TTT, Dec.,
1948, 3).
Womens East-West Matches
What drew the Thalls to St. Louis of course was the first, qualifying stage of the
Womens East-West Matches that would determine the U.S. Team to the 1948 London
Worlds. And the sisters were not disappointedespecially Tybie, for she not only beat Leah,
but the rest of the field as well. The 3rd and last qualifying place for the West went to Betty
Schaefer (4-2) for her wins over Ichkoff (3-3), Specht (2-4), Joan Gummels, whod broke her
wrist this past summer (1-5), and Kerns (0-6). Question: Where was hometown heroine
Delores Kuenz? Answer: About ready to give birth to her fourth child, second boy.
At the Womens East Tryouts, held at the Nov. 5-7 New York City Open, Bernice
Chotras and a seriously ill Davida Hawthorn were absent. N.J.s Jean Gere survived her
Preliminariesdefeated Bernice Ettlinger, 19 in the deciding 3rd; then, after dropping the 1st
game to Mrs. Helen Fowler, won the next two and so became the 5th player eligible for the
concluding round robin. Representing the East against the West then were the three top
finishers among the following final five: Peggy McLean (4-0, but with a near 19, 20, 13 loss
to Mildred Shahian); Mae Clouther (3-1); Mildred Shahian (2-2); Reba Monness (1-3); and
Jean Gere (0-4).
On Sunday, Nov. 30, the Womens Team to the Worlds was decided on before a
pitifully small New York City audience at Lawrences. Clouther beat all three West playersLeah, 23, -19, 17; Tybie, 16, 14; and Betty Jane Schaefer, 16, 14. Leah (nerves?) continued to struggle, but got the better of both Shahian, 19, 16, and McLean, -20, 17, 17. Tybie
also was resoluteprevailed over Shahian, -17, 19, 16, and McLean, 17, -17, 14. When
Schaefer, showing spunk, upset McLean, and Leah paired with both Tybie and Betty Jane to
defeat Clouther and her teammates in Doubles, the West overcame the East, 7-4. In a oneparagraph article on the Matches, Topics said that Peggy was a disappointment. She looked
tired and never got into the game. The others were sharp by comparison. This year, since the
USTTA will finance three women to the Worlds, our Corbillon Cup team consists of Clouther
and the Thall sisters wholl play Doubles together.
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Mens Intercities
New Yorks Intercity Team had been decided on at the Nov. 5-7 New York City Open.
The 61 Mens entries were whittled down to the quarterfinalists who then competed in an 8man round robin that would decide the (five maximum, three minimum) players who would be
selected to represent New York in Milwaukee. Here are the results. First, Dick Miles (6-1
with a surprise loss to Brooklyn College Freshman Morris Chait, U.S. #5-ranked Junior.
Second/third (tie), Chait (5-2with contested losses to Pinner and Reisman, whom he would
beat in the Juniors at this Open); and Pinner (5-2struggling with everyone, but with losses
only to Miles and Reisman). Fourth/fifth (tie), Reisman (4-3with losses to Miles, Schiff, and
a particularly nasty one to Somael, deuce in the 3rd); and Schiff (4-3with losses to Miles,
Chait in 3, and Pinner, 19, 21). Sixth/seventh (tie), Somael (2-5); and Sussman (2-5). Eighth,
Fetbrod (0-7).
How it happened that only the threesome of Miles, Chait, and Reisman traveled to
Milwaukee is not clear to me. But, as Pinner didnt go to the Chicago Nationals, so perhaps
for the same reason (his job didnt permit it?) he didnt exercise his right to go to Milwaukee.
As for Schiff, it may be that he and Somael had already started on an extensive Tour together.
New York won the 7-team Milwaukee Intercitiesand much was made of the fact
that it was the youngest team ever to do so. Miles (12-0) was 22, and both Reisman (12-1
with a loss only to Holzrichter) and Chait (9-2) were just 17. The St. Louis team, headed by
Price (10-3) who won the Sportsmanship Award, and Garrett Nash (8-3), came second.
Detroit, led by Hersh (9-3), finished third.
So who would make up our Swaythling Cup Team? J. P. Allen in a Dec.9, 1947 New
York Sun article (for which he was almost certainly briefed by John Kauderer, new President
of the Metro TTA) said that USTTA President Cinnater had delayed an expected announcement of the make-up of the Team because Western officials clamored so vigorously for their
playersPrice and Nashand of course how could their Skipper let his fellow St. Louis
players and officials down? Stillcould Cinnater justify choosing these Midwest players
(neither had played much; each had won a tournament) over, say, Holzrichter? And who were
the unpublicized people who helped Cinnater make what must have been a tough decision?
Some grudgingly allow, wrote Allen, that Miles may be included [sic] as he made the trip
abroad last year, and Chait named as an alternate. Finally, however, some people with decision-making power must have spoken up for Reisman, whether they liked him or not, for he,
along with Miles, Price, and Nash were named to the Team.
Holzrichter had done well at the 47 Worlds, then on his return had gotten to the semis of
the Nationals before being beaten in 5 by Schiff, then had won the only fall tournament hed
played in the month before the Intercities, then had beaten Reisman at Milwaukee. Understandably, at the April 4, 1948 USTTAs general meeting at the Nationals (33 members
attended), he would request that a committee be set up to set rules and regulations for
choosing a US team player, among which would be playing ability, conduct, sportsmanship,
and character.

225

Chapter

Twenty-Two

1947-48: Dec./Jan.Tournaments. 1948: U.S. Mens and Womens Warm-up Matches

for London Worlds. 1948: U.S. Mens Swaythling Cup Play. 1948: U.S. Mens Worlds
Singles and Doubles Play.
Before U.S. Team members left for the World Championships, the Eastern Zone
offered just one tournament they might play inthe New England States, held Dec. 13-14
in Springfield, Massachusetts. Only Mae Clouther showed, thoughand she was beaten
3-0 in the semis by Peggy McLean. Which, combined with Peggys CNE victories over
the Thalls, made one wonder the more what had happened to her that day of the East-West
finals, and if a case couldnt have been made for her to be on the U.S. Team to the Worlds.
But then, in the final, up 2-1, she lost to Mildred Shahian, 19 in the 5th. Paired with Cal
Skinner, it wasnt Peggys lot to win a close one in the Mixed either. Up 2-1 against
Shahian and Les Lowry, they lost 22-20 in the 5th. In the Mens, Lowry downed Skinner in
4, but the best match of the tournament was colorful Cals 13, 16, -20, 21, 20 semis win
over Dwelly.
The Illinois TTA that made up 7.8% of the total USTTA membership (matched by
Michigan and exceeded only by Pennsylvanias 11.5% and Ohios 8.2%) continued to run
monthly tournaments. At the Lake States Open, held Dec. 13-14 in Chicago, Billy Holzrichter,
on learning hed not been selected for the U.S. World Team, had to be downand though
he won the Mens, his 27-25 in the 4th semis struggle with Wayne Stille, and his 5-game final
with Jimmy Shrout probably reflected the difficulty he had motivating himself. Shrout was
fortunate to reach the final, for, before beating Norm Schless, 19 in the 4th in the semis,
Jimmy had been 10, 22, 22, -14, 23 outscored, but not outfought, by Russ Niesen, recently
elected President of the Illinois TTA. The prize for sheer tenacity, however, had to go to
Mens Doubles winners Stille and Sterling Mitchell: in the quarters they knocked out Dick
Ichkoff/Al Gross, -20, 24, 23, 21; in the semis, Niesen/Bast, -19, -10, 16, 20, 17; and in the
final, Holzrichter/Al Nordhem, -15, -16, 19, 17, 18.
Illinois TTA Treasurer Peggy Ichkoff won the Womens Singles over Shipmanbut
was pressed 23-21 in three of four games with Carolyn Wilson. Bob Johnson
took the Boys from a 7-entry field that included Chicagos Marvin
Marty Prager who would go on to enjoy lifetime recognition as a
player/coach.
A Christmas present of sorts was given to Oskosh, Wisconsin players with the opening of their new Club. Current members, who did all the work and painting necessary to remodel
rooms in an old warehouse, followed up with their first
Fox Valley tournament. In the Mens (no Womens
matches were reported), Russ Sorensen rallied twice to
win the titlefrom down 2-1 against Dick Peregrine, then
in the final from down 2-0 against Bill Holton.
Winters Western Zone saw the Dec. 13-14
Harry Lund
10,000 Lakes Open in Minneapolis and, as surely as Lake
Minnetonka would ice, so would Harry Lund win the
Mens over the Twin City EdsLitman and Sirmai.
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Marilyn Jensen again prevailed in the Womensthis time over Shirley Lund 23-21 in the 4th,
then Mabel Smith in 5. Sirmai/Jensen took the Mixed despite the 14, -11, 28, 26, -14
Thermopylaen stand by the Lunds.
Back East, before the U.S. Team left on the Queen Elizabeth for the Feb. 4-11
Wembley Worlds, a Newsweek reporter interviewed Miles for its Jan. 19 issue:
Even though Dick Miles has been the top American for the last three years in
a sport that claims 15,000,000 players in this country table tennis hasnt given him
much of a payoff so far. [This decades-long equation of the many who play the game
of ping-pong with those who seriously play the sportthat is, play in tournaments, is
just silly.] He has about 100 trophies, but his jaded eye lately cherishes only the ones
he can use as ash trays for his own daily two cigarettes and his girls one pack or so.
For his expert knowledge of the game, he has received free piano lessons in a teaching
deal with a musician. Out of the five weeks of practice matches he plays before a
tournament, he may pick up $10-a-set bets here and there. [Dick always said it was
unthinkable to play a match without a wager.] A scrawny schedule of exhibitions is
believed to have grossed less than $1,000 a year.
But things could be better, and Miles blames only himself and his behavior in
the 1947 world championships in Paris. I was pretty cocky beforehand, he confesses,
but I got the arm. My own teammates told me theyd never seen such a case. I was
up against John Leach of England, a chiselerand I got a nervous cramp in my neck.
Then it worked down my arm. Then my hand froze.
Afterward, Miles promised himself that he would forget it. Instead, he finally
wrote an article based on it. The title: This Time I Wont Choke. Nobody bought it.
U.S. Teams Warm-Ups for London Worlds
Thelma Tybie Thall said her mother had misgivings about her 23year-old daughter, whod never been on a ship before, taking the long
voyage. Was it really worth it? Who was she apt to beat? What was she
apt to win? Well, maybe quite a few Hostess cupcakes. Hostess had
sponsored a radio audience-participation show, and Tybie, before sailing,
had participated in it and had unabashedly said, Im on my way to London to win a world title. Really? Well, if you win, said Hostess, come
Another cupcake? back and see us and well give you plenty of cupcakes. (Tybie, who to my
surprise once confided that from birth she had a slightly misplaced jaw and
never in her life had a proper bite, and who was then at Miless weight119 poundslater
confessed that it was these cupcakes that started her on the way to gaining 40 pounds.)
It was a blustery trip over to London. Talk about having an excuse for missing a
shot, said Tybie, try playing table tennis on a ship crossing the Atlantic in winter. And yet,
she said, Reisman kept doing his cigarette trick [this Ill explain shortly]never missed it.
Uncannythat was the word she might have used to describe, no, not Reismans hand/eye
coordination, but the (He never smiled) dour look of Garrett Nash.
On arriving in London, the Team didnt stay there, for they had obligations to play
friendly matches in Sweden. The Programme for the 48 Worlds cited 500 clubs and
11,323 players in Sweden, and said that the Swedish T.T.A. is extremely enterprising and
deserves success for its many youth-training schemes (13). In Varberg, on Jan. 20, our U.S.
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women played the Swedish women, who at the 1947 Paris Worlds had come dead last, losing
all 6 ties and winning but 1 match out of 19. Of course we beat themMaya Halling,
Margareta Winqvist, and Eina Eriksson5-0 easily. In two accompanying matches, Capt. Bill
Price and Leah Thall defeated Swedens first great male star, Tage Flisberg, and Swedish
Womens Champion Halling in a close match, then Flisberg took Price, 18 in the 4th. Flisberg
would be World runner-up in 1954, and Miles, struck by his big, open strokes, would later
compare him to Erwin Klein, the 4-time U.S. Open Champion.
At the Kings Club in Stockholm, three days later, the
U.S. men beat the Swedish menFlisberg, Bengt Grive,
Weine Fredriksson5-1 (Flisberg downing Nash, 2-1). In
two accompanying matches, Leah defeated Tybie, and Mae
Clouther defeated Winqvist. Along with a report on these
matches in the Swedish Bordtennis magazine, a passport-size
photo showed Maes face smiling out from between U.S. and
Swedish flags crossed at her neck (Nr 2, 1948, 14).
Mae and everyone else (even Nash?) must have smiled
when they heard about Tybies misadventure. Seems that in
connection with one of the exhibitions she was giving shed
found a room she thought she might change in, had set down
her shoes and a rolled-up poster shed been given, only to be
shocked to find others therefive Swedish male athletes, all
Svensk Bordtennis, Nr 2, 1948, 14
naked. Taking up her shoes and poster, she blurted out, on
Mae Clouther
leaving, the only line of Swedish she knewThank you very
much.
Nothing like a compliment, eh?
Certainly Capt. Price was ready to be gracious, for by the time our men played other
Swedish InternationalsKolmodin, Neidenmark, Larson, and Almpinst
the competition had been challenging enough, the venues packed, the
autograph seekers everywhere, and the food marvelous.
Sam Kirkwood, London Correspondent for Sporting World Limited,
whod on occasion keep Topics readers
aware of table tennis abroad, spoke of
seeing Price and his Swaythling Cup
Team at Kirkwoods London
Bishopgate Institute Club having a
knock-aroundand complaining
that the ball wasnt rising sharply
enough off the bounce, hadnt the uplift
they were used to back home. Sam was
particularly impressed by Reisman. As for
Marty at his first Worlds, it was an
inspiration to him there at Londons 770room Royal Hotel to watch the best
players on the Continent arrive, carrying
their egos with the same care as they
would their favorite rackets. Martys play
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at Lawrences was lineage enough: though he

lacked world-class experience, he had the requisite
confidence and sense of self to be accepted into
such rough-hewn royalty. Their values were his,
andwhatever the country, whatever the court
he would share with them the action he lived for.
U.S. Teams Swaythling Cup Play
In the 21-team Swaythling Cup play, by
defeating Sweden (5-1), Hungary (5-2), Jersey (50), and England (5-2), the U.S. men advanced out
of their round robin groupprobably the most
challenging oneto the semis. Miles was 10-0
undefeated (didnt even lose a game)with notable wins over the Swedes Flisberg and Grive, the
whole English Team of Victor Barna, Johnny
Leach, and this years about-to-be Singles Champion Richard Bergmann, as well as the whole
Hungarian Team of Josef Koczian, Ferenc Sido,
Zdenko Uzorinacs
Od London 1926 Do Sarajeva 1973, 101
and Ferenc Soos, all of whom were already or
about to be World Singles or Doubles Champions.
A very impressive performanceMiles was surely one of the worlds very best players.
Reisman posted a 4-3 recordlosing to Bergmann, Sido, and Flisberg, but scoring 3-game
victories over Koczian and Fredriksson, and a gutsy (20, 23) win over Leach (after being
down 20-14 in the 2nd). Nash, 5-2, lost to Barna and Soos (though Swedish Womens Champ
Inga Brehmer said Nash had bested Soos in a curtained money match); but he beat Grive,
Fredriksson, Sido, and, often catching him on drop-shots, Bergmann (as he had in his celebrated match during the War years). Price made a token appearance to down the very weak
Jersey players.
Against Defending Champion Czechoslovakia in the semis (thus far 5-0 victors
throughout), we lost 5-2, for, though Frantisek Farko Tokar dropped matches to Miles and
Nash, Ivan Andreadis (the best stroke player of the day, and winner over Vana at the Jan.
31st Netherlands Open), by moderately but relentlessly topspinning, beat both Miles and
Reisman. English Coach Jack Carrington (see the June, 1948 issue of Table Tennis) praised
Andreadis for his grace and rhythm, as well as his touch, stressing his drop-shots, his famous
sliding-sidespin backhand push, and his sidespin curving-away shots. What he didnt have,
though he could so easily maneuver openings for it, was a flat kill(8)but apparently he
didnt need that, at least for the moment, to beat Dick and Marty. Equally disastrous to the
U.S. hopes was the fact that none of our players could stop Defending World Champion Bo
Vanathough Miles made a very good try (losing 18 in the 3rd after having led 17-14) and
Reisman an even better one (losing 15, -19, -19). Czechoslovakia then went on to defeat
France 5-2 to retain their Swaythling Cup title.
Marty, though not Dick, would always talk about the gambling matches going on in
some practice room at this or that Worldshere he was giving Soos 5, was he? Sandor
Glancz had supplied Reisman with hundreds of ball-point pens, and these, along with cooking
fat, salami, Hershey bars, cigarettes, and nylonsall much wanted items after the Warwere
229

sometimes the currency of choice (the Czechs brought Czech crystal). Marty of course always
talked a good gamethen and later. When our 1971 U.S. World Team Captain Jack Howard
asked Reisman what he thought of Vana, Marty said, Aah, he had a creepy little forehand.
But on another occasion he confessed that unlike other teenagers who went to the movies
and thought of Chaplin, or Bogart, or Tracy, I thought of Barna, and Bergmann, and Vana.
Table Tennis had this to say about Vanas key wins in the U.S.-Czech tie:
Vana was very lucky to overcome young Reisman, although he showed
supreme champions spirit when he realized that a faint chance remained. He pulled the
3rd game out from a losing spot of 9-14, and the last 5 points of one-hundred-percent
attack against inspired youth made him a firm favorite with the crowd, and probably
restored his own confidence for the whole tournament.
Vana seemed to remember this spasm when playing Miles, and almost exactly
repeated himself in the 3rd game. Here Miless nerve became suspect in that he never varied
from this heavy backhand chop stroke during the critical 5 points, notwithstanding that
Vana was obviously gaining on the rate of exchange (February-March, 1948, 19).
There are two mysteries about U.S. Table Tennis, the Programme for the Wembley
Worlds had said. One is why in so great a country, where the game is played so much and so
well, the Association remains so small [60 Clubs, 3,000 players as opposed, say, to Wales,
350 clubs, 20,000 players]; and the other is how, of so few organised players, so many turn
out so brilliant and strong (13). After watching play at Wembley, one London correspondent
was of the opinion that when 22-year-old Miles and 18-year-old Reisman are on form they
are unbeatable; no one can stand up to their terrific hitting to both wings at sharp angles.
Indeed, many Europeans thought the ITTF should raise the net, for, echoing what had
been said about McClure, Blattner, and Schiff the decade before, they felt the attacking style
favored by the Americans gave them a big advantage.
U.S. Team Captain Price spoke of how the forehands of Miles and Reisman were
admired by the Europeans. He then went on to contrast them:
Miles starts his stroke about head high and describes a rather large loop
which gives him a terrific snap, while Reisman starts his stroke at a point only slightly
behind contact which means he doesnt have nearly as much of a backswing as Miles.
However, he generates considerable racket head speedin that short space (TTT,
Mar., 1948, 2).
In the 49 English Open Programme, Jack Carrington, Englands famous coach, spoke of
Martys weapons: a deadly forehand drive that was produced by a sharp upper-cut action, a
better backhand counter-drive than Milessand [an] astonishing eye for short defence.
About Dicks game, and particularly his forehand, Carrington said:
The Miles Forehand threatens to become as famous as the Barna Backhand. It is produced by an unbelievably fast circular whip of the forearm and
wrist.[If you] try to follow the bat with your eye, you will find it almost impossible.
The effect is a fast bounding ball imbued with twice as much topspin as most players
use. Miles can take the ball so early he can keep most opponents scouting the
230

deep.As for defence, the speed with which he falls back and the controlled returns
from either wing are beautiful to watch (21).
Mens Singles/Doubles Play
In the 212-entry Mens Singles, I might note the advance of three Qualifiers: Englands
Brian Kennedy, a lefty Junior about to graduate to Swaythling Cup status; Swedens Nils
(Nicke) Bergstrom, destined decades later to be ITTF Vice-President for Europe; and
Yugoslavias Zdenko Uzorinac, the Sports future Historian who was already tucking away
observations, like Mileshed never seen anyone do it beforetrying to groove his stroke
(or should I say trying to warm up?) by continually hitting the ball against a wall of the venue.
Some exciting early-round matches were: Englands Sweetland over ex-Yugoslav National
Max Marinko, 19 in the 4th; Leach over Koczian, deuce in the 4th (some unseeded 1 st-round match
this was! and of course no surprise that Koczian would go on to win the Consolation); and
Hungarys Soos over Swedens Flisberg, also in 5. It would have been nice if the Programme had
some snapshots of the players like the April, 48 issue of Table Tennis skimpily offered. For
example, heres one on Zarko Dolinar, whom well hear more of in the future:
large young Yugoslav, wielding an enormous lop-sided wooden-clacker bat
with deadly affect, attacking with penholder grip and chopping with orthodox grip!
Incongruously clad in tiny shorts and a green celluloid cap, he looked good for the
quarter-final and in fact beat [Austrias] quarter-finalist Just in the team matches. But
an attack of nerves lost him a 5-set tussle with Frances Manchiska (19).
The U.S. players? Ah, Reisman, Nash, and, as Ill note in a moment, Miles all lost
yearned for, what-might-have-been matchesinstant replays for a lifetime. On getting by
Swedens Sven Cedarholm (with a dazzling two-winged attack in the 5th) then Frances
Croix de Guerre Resistance fighter, Alex Agapoff (19, 19, 22), Reisman, dropping a pivotal
4th game, went down in 5 (20, -18, 14, -19, -12) to the eventual Champion, Bergmann, who
said in Twenty-One Up that it was his block defence that beat Marty.
Nash finally succumbed 25-23 in the 5th (after being down 12-3
and up 17-13) to 5-time
World Singles
Champion
Barna, now near
retirement. Price
lost docilely to
Tokar whod be
beaten by Amouretti,
5-game conqueror of
Leach in the eighths. An
Ba
rn
at
unsigned Overseas News
hin
kin
article
in Topics was critical
g
of both Barna and Leach.
Barna should give up competitive play and do exhibitions and stage work.He showed his age at
Wembley and washorrible thingthe object of pity.
Barna leaping
231

Leach will never win a world title. He doesnt use his brain sufficiently and lacks real
sting.[Hes] too much in love with pretty-pretty play and against a class attacker shows
little initiative (April, 1948, 6). Harsh wordsfrom a big ego.
Quarterfinalist Tokar, I might add, would later play for Slovakia in the final of the
European Cup. There he would down both Vana and Andreadis, and partnered by Marinko
would upset Vana/Ladislav Laci Stipek, the new World Doubles Champions here at Wembley.
The writer of that anonymous Overseas News article (he was said to be a Top 20
playerBergmann?), who claimed so definitively Leach would never be a World Champion,
also had his post-Worlds opinion of Miles. He has a wonderful and efficient forehand and a
deadly chop on both wings, but he has no stamina, no match temperament and no backhand
attack.
Dick, after eliminating Vilim Harangozoat the 39 Worlds this Yugoslav had been
match point up on Defending Champion Vanadowned Sido, 19 in the 4th, then met Vana,
again the Defending Champion, in the quarters and, though leading in the 5th was suddenly
the victim of a dramatic reversal. As one observer commented, Dick blindly hit himself out
of the match; up 17-14 (or 18-15?), he overhit four balls in succession. Thus in effect just
reversing the losing defensive strategy hed employed against Vana in the Teamsonly to
lose again.
Fifty years later, musing on this match, which he considered his best playing effort
ever, Miles felt that, had he gotten by Vana, he probably would have been World Champion
with wins over Frances Guy Amouretti, whom Pagliaro had beaten in 47, and Bergmann,
who hadnt averaged 15 points against Dick in their earlier-played Swaythling Cup match
(Richard didnt like Dicks down-the-middle shot). Up 2-1 against Vana, and having won
the 2nd and 3rd games at 17 and 14, Miles had taken a 5-minute rest. Should he have done that?
Carrington thought him foolish for doing soDick was stroking the ball so well. The Europeans never took 2-1 breaks. Indeed, watching them on tape, one is struck by how continuous
their play is; the serves are non-stop. Miles, however, always took a 2-1 break, so why
shouldnt he now? Vana couldnt believe it, thoughwas left on court mumbling to himself.
The Europeans thought it strange, too, that Dick would rather have, as he put it, the
correct side of the table rather than the serve (though of course he usually did nothing more
with the serve than put it into play). But, said Dick, often the tables in those days were
slightly warped or on a slight slant. If the opponents end of the table was on a rise and you
were hitting up the incline youd have the advantage. Theres a point on my thigh, he said,
positioning his finger there by way of dramatizing it, which is exactly 30 inches up. Its as if I
still feel pressure there, still have a bruise.
Naturally, Dicks mind, like anyone elses, sometimes likes to play tricks on itselfit
seemed to him, albeit without much reflection, that he was down in that 5th game with Vana,
then leading 18-15*.At any event, on returning to the locker room dejected, disgusted with
himself, he bet Andreadis $100 that he would never come to a Worlds again.
Bergmann, who attacked with the European elbow-out forehand so different from the
American style of Miles and Reisman, was a popular Champion. Born in Vienna, the son of a
Polish father and Italian mother, he was a naturalized Briton whod served in the Royal Air
Force during the War. His come-from-behind win over Andreadis in the semis was something
to behold. He was down 2-1 and 9-4 (when, inexplicablya case of nerves?with a 20minute time-limit on the game, the Czech began to force his attack). Later in the 4th, Bergmann
was down 3 match points, then behind 9-4 in the 5th, yet was able to advance to the final.
232

Having watched the ensuing

Bergmann-Vana Championship encounter,
Miles later wrote how hed been struck by
Bergmanns strategy when he was up 2-1,
but had gotten off to a very poor start in
the fourth game and was down something
like 10-2. Dick said that instead of trying
to catch up, he threw the next seven
points. Then, with the score something
like 17-4 against him, he began tenaciously
returning everything Vana hit. Dick felt
this mind-game (Im giving upno, Im not
giving up) affected Vana psychologically,
for, though he finally won the 4th at 14, he
lost the 5th badly at 10 (TTT, July-Aug.,
1970, 11).
For the sold-out audience ecstatiRichard Bergmann wins 3rd World Singles title
cally cheering, Bergmanns victory was as
popular as an RAF one. Local reporter John
Macadam wrote that, Even the ball boys squatting round the small green table in the center
of the vast arena cheered and clapped madly as it became apparent that Bergmann had
dropped his defensive style and was attacking viciously all out to win.
Miles said Bergmann was the most determined player he ever saw, and ITTF Presidents Ivor Montagu and Roy Evans spoke of his gamesmanship. Writing an In Memoriam
of Richard (see the English Table Tennis News, April, 1970), Montagu said, much like Miles
might have after watching that 1948 Wembley final: [Bergmann] used defence to break the
heart of his opponent. What enabled him to win was his physical fitness, his quick intelligence,
his games-players intuition, his powerful will, his character perpetually testing out and striving to dominate his challenger.
In adding to the World titles hed won in 37 and 39, Richard had reason to be a
proud man, and one who believed he was not getting his just due. At last years Paris Worlds,
hed deigned not to defend his Championship and instead had proclaimed himself a professional and had tried ineffectually to promote a Challenge Match with anyone willing to accept
his wager of so many pounds. Now, after his win here, he was echoing to London covering
reporter W.J. Hicks the sentiments hed expressed in Paris:
In future I shall concentrate my activities on coaching and exhibitions, and I
shall only reappear in competitive table tennis if an all professional association is
formed. My decision is based on the fact that it is possible to reach the top in world
table tennis and still be a poor man. I have played here tonight before more than 8,000
spectators, and for my performance I shall receive no reward.
Indisputably Bergmann had a great belief in himself, and no doubt he was a powerful
influence on 18-year-old Reisman who, 50 years later as the U.S. Hard Bat Champion, would
still have that faith in self, that Bergmann-like self-esteem that would allow him to believe his
past could be resurrected, become again his present. Even today, as I write, when (less often
233

now) Marty does his trademark cigarette trickthat is, near the side edge on the far half of
the table he stands a cigarette on its tip, then comes back behind the net, positions himself
tableside, takes deliberate, dramatic aim with bat and ball, andcrack!theres a reverberative echo of self assurance as the cigarette splits in two. When Reismans friend, the late Bill
Marlens, asked him how he had the nerve to do this trick before an expectant audience time
and again, Marty said, Well, Bill, I throw the ball upI take my racketand I just believe.
Thats itI just believe.
Our men lost in the Doubles to teams that made the semis: Nash and Price falling to
Barna/Bergmann in 4; Miles and Reisman (perhaps over-confident and slacking off after
leading 2-0) to the Austrians Bednar/Wunsch. However, its not difficult for us to believe that,
according to one knowledgeable observer at these 48 Worlds, Miles and Reisman should be
ranked among the Top 5 players in the world, and Nash, whose picture was on the cover of
the Sept., 1948 English TTA magazine, close behind them.
SELECTED NOTES.
*Its not clear to me, or perhaps to Dick, what exactly Miless 5th game lead in the
Singles over Vana was. Former U.S. Historian Leah Neuberger and future ITTF Historian
Zdenko Uzorinac both say (though one may be echoing the other) he was up 16-9. This is not
corroborated by Topics London Correspondent, Sam Kirkwood, who says only that Dick was
up 17-14, and then lost four points in a rowwhich would make the score 18-17, favor of
Vana. An eye-witness to the match, Al Miller, told me that Miles was up 17-14 and Vana
exhausted when their ball went through an opening in a floor panel to the Wembley ice-rink
just below. Want a new ball? No, said Miles. It took time to find and bring up the original ball,
so Vana got to rest. Miller thinks that if Miles had opted for the new ball he might have been a
winner.
Uzorinac says Dick was up 18-15which, if true, means that, since the final-game
score was 21-18, Dick lost the last 6 points. Go figuresomethings wrong somewhere,
though all four observers were at the tournament. Adding to the discrepancy, Uzorinac says
that Miless lead over Vana in the 3rd and deciding game of the Teams, one that Dick also lost
at 18, was 17-14. Easy, after all these years, even for Miles, to mix up what actually happened
in two 21-18 last-game matches against the same opponent.

234

Chapter

Twenty-Three

1948: U.S.
Womens Corbillon Cup
Play. 1948: U.S. Womens
Worlds Singles and
Doubles Play. 1948:
Miles/Tybie Thall Win
World Mixed Doubles.
1948: U.S. Players Star
in Irelands Leinster
Open. 1948: Feb.-Mar.
Keystone Press
Pre-Sectional TournaAgency, London
mentsAppearance of
Leah (left) and
Tybie practicing Pauline Robinson;
on 1st table in
Historic New Albany,
foreground at 1948 Indiana Club; ResurWorlds
gence of Play in California.
Although Tybie Thall would tell Peggy Allen that she couldnt understand why, when
having a shampoo [in London], the assistant made you lean forward, thereby wetting your
face, when in America they do it the sensible way and lean back, she had nothing but praise
for this Feb. 4-11, 1948 Wembley Worlds, the cost of which was perhaps $50,000. It was
worth coming to England, she said, just to see this wonderful show, so wonderfully organized.
U.S. Corbillon Cup Results
In 16-team Corbillon Cup play, the U.S. women with a 5-2 record finished 3rd in their
group. We blanked Belgium (4-3), Jersey (0-7), and Scotland (3-4), beat Wales (1-6), 3-1
(when Clouther lost 23-21 in the 3rd to Audrey Bates), and just got by Austria (2-5), 3-2 when
former World Champion Trude Pritzi could score only in singles (beating Clouther 16-7 in the
3rd after the 20-minute time-limit rule had been imposed). In neither of our losses could we
win more than just one match. However, we did have a good opportunity against Rumania.
Granted Angelica Rozeanu who, beginning in 1950 would win six straight World Singles
Championships, was too strong for us (though Clouther did take a deuce game from her), the
Rumanian #2, Sari Kolosvary was not (Leah beat her 8 in the 3rd). Had the Thall sisters not
lost the close doubles (19, -19, -18), Mae might well have gotten the better of Kolosvary.
But of course we also lost 3-1 to the favored English team, and against them we
couldnt indulge ourselves in wishful thinking. Though the Thall sisters were clear winners in
the Doubles over Peggy Franks/Vera Dace Thomas, neither Leah nor Mae in the Singles could
put any pressure on the naturalized Beregi and the veteran lefthander Thomas.
In the final against Hungary, the heroine, ironically, was the former Hungarian star
Dora Beregired-haired, plump, cheerful, imperturbablewho not only beat both Rose
Karpati and Defending World Singles Champion Gizi Farkas, but in the doubles was said to
have practically carried the badly off-form Thomas to a 3-game win.
235

Womens Singles/Doubles Play

In the 73-entry Womens Singles, there were only three 5-game matches prior to the
th
8 s, and two of these involved U.S. players. In a match that I just speculated might have
occurred in the Teams, we again lost to Rumania when Kolosvary outlasted Clouther, 19 in
the 5th. That brings us to ready Tybie?Englands Pinkie Barnes. (See her on the cover of
the July/August, 1948 issue of Table Tennis.)
Pinkie (nicknamed so because of her complexion) believed that what a girl wears and
how she looks is important. Her advice: Take to heart all that the beauty experts say about
hair, and brush it till it gleams. As it is apt to get unruly when you play, wear a ribbon round it
to match your outfit.By all means use some make-up, but dont plaster it on. A player looks
better with it than without it. Her motto: The better I look, the better I play (Table Tennis
Review, September, 1946, 9).
In their 4-game match, Tybie lookedwell, better than Pinkie. But in her next match,
against Irelands Minshull, she lost the first two games. Then, as if with the abandon of the
little kid she used to be playing tackle football, she 6, 10, 10 rushed right in and crunched her
opponent. Next up: the Hungarian Karpati, whod had plenty of 20, -19, 15 trouble with
Swedens Halling in the Teams. Since Minshull, whod averaged only 9 points a game against
Tybie in that lopsided finish, had destroyed Halling, wouldnt that make Tybie the favorite
against Karpati? Except again she lost the first two games, and though she fought back,
winning the 4th at deuce, this time she couldnt recover. Barnes, meanwhile, prettied herself
upand won the Womens Consolation.
And Tybies sister, the vivacious Leahhowd she do?
Alas, win or lose, nothing could be more uninteresting than Leahs four straight 3game matchesthe last her 14, -16, -10 quarters with Farkas who, after losing to Beregi in
the Teams, had drawn her in the 1st round of Singles and taken swift revenge, then had eliminated the promising Czech, Elisak Fuerstova.
The remaining quarters were dull too: Thomas over Pritzi; Pokorna (nee
Depetrisova), whod been pressed into the 5th by Franks, over Karpati; and Rozeanu over
Scotlands Helen Elliot.
The one semisThomas over Pokornawas likewise boring; but the other.
Rozeanu, nee Adelstein, Id mentioned in Vol. I when as a youngster in 1937 shed
played defensive star Pritzi a 16, -20, -20, -17 match that ran over the 1 hour and 45
minute time limit but which officials had allowed, saying that they didnt need the table.
Now I see from the 48 Wembley Programme that the then fascist-minded government of
Rumania forbade her to come to London [for the 38 Worlds], and eventually suspended
her altogether when in an international match she beat all her opposition in the then [1939]
Corbillon Cup-holding German womens team (13). She was thus perhaps even more
motivated than other Europeans who because of the War had been denied many of their
best years in the Sport. Moreover, in the semis she was playing Farkas whod beaten her
in the semis in Paris.
It appeared Rozeanu had victory in hand after winning the first two games easily,
but Farkas, steadying into determined push-play, made a dramatic comeback that sent the
match into the 5th. Here stonewalling on the part of both players prevailed, points were
ground out, and after 18 minutes of play, the Umpire warned, two minutes more. After
20 minutes, the Umpire thought the score was 25-24, but (indicating a strange, not to say
incredible discrepancy) the Table Manager thought it was 22-all. (Had it not been, who236

ever was ahead should have been declared

the winner). If the score were 22-all, which
apparently was the understanding, disputed
or not, that play proceeded from, the players
should have been told, but were not, that the
next point would decide the match.
Rozeanu, apparently, got that point.
So she was the winner? Nope. The
Referee, the esteemed Morris Rose, had made
up his mind not to impose the time-limit rule
and to controversially allow the match to go
on. Later, he said that he remembered a time
in the past when the rule was imposed at
deuce (todays Expedite Rule cannot be
introduced at such a critical stage in the
match) and that Montagu, ITTF President and
Chair of the Advisory and Rules Committee,
had expressed his disapproval. He took this
remembrance as his guide (which Montagu
then went on record as saying was not a good
reason for the mistaken instruction). The
continuation of this match brought on ensuing
Table Tennis, April, 1948, cover
complications, the more so when Farkas
Angelica Rozeanu
eventually won it, 29-27. After the Hungarian girl was so exhausted she had to be helped off court, the battle appeared to be over, but
not the haze of battle. Rozeanu and her fellow Rumanians protested, and the Jury members,
with the involved countries representatives abstaining, decided that the match should be
played over. This time Farkas won in straight games.*
Since Thomas had beaten Rozeanu in the Teams, albeit 25 and 19, perhaps the
English would have preferred that she play her rather than Farkas. But against the Hungarian girl, Thomas, up 2-1, was doing just
fine, covering her weak backhand by
running around to hit in her vaunted
forehand.Only then Farkas 16, 12
found a way to exploit that vulnerability
and prevent her from following through to
the longed-for end.

Vera Dace Thomas

However, Thomas, partnered by

Peggy Franks, was able to bring home to
England for the first time the Womens
Doubles Championship. In the final they
beat Beregi/Elliot who in the quarters had
sent into risked-rumpledom that most
photo-oppable of pairsour Mae and her
pick-me-up partner Barnes. Meanwhile,
237

Peggy Franks

needing a careful attack against the solid defense of Rozeanu/Pritzi, the Thall sisters, after
losing the 1st, got back into the match by winning the 2nd , also at deuce, and finally won in 5.
But though in the Teams the Thalls had beaten with 13, 14 ease the pair they now faced in the
semis, Thomas/Franks, and so seemed to have a great chance for the Championship, they
14, -14, -17 couldnt contest at all.
Dick/Tybie World Champions
U.S. pairs in the Mixed found themselves, on paper at least, with an outside chance of
playing one another in an early-round match. But while Reisman/Clouther advanced rather
easily with a walkover and a win over a Welsh team, Nash/Leah Thall, on eliminating an
English pair, met Bergmann/Beregi. Though strong, these new British subjects might be
beatable, for Carrington/Barnes had extended them to 23-21 in the 4th. But Garrett and Leah
couldnt challenge them, and, after losing an opening 26-24 game, neither could Marty and Mae.
Miles reluctantly agreed to play his opening Mixed match with Tybiebut only because Captain Bill Price insisted, under threat of suspension, he do so. The World Singles was
of course what mattered to Dick, and with that gone hed just as soon head for home. (Of
course, if he never appeared at a World Championship again how was he going to see
Andreadis to collect that $100 from him?) Tybie and Dick hadnt played together before
Dick wouldnt even partner her in practice. She said he deliberately came half an hour late for
the opening match, was smiling because he thought theyd been defaulted, and was irritated to
learn theyd been given a walkover against no-show Belgium. The wooden Wembley playing
floor lay over an ice rink, and, the venue, though not as cold as the Paris one, was cold
enough. I dont want to be out here, Dick, who might have been in overcoat and gloves,
told Tybie, his breath as frosty as his demeanor.
They were in the 64th position in the Draw and, after that opening walkover, they
proceeded past a French pair who for whatever reason had received a walkover from Price
and his arranged English partner, and who, according to Tybie, were upset when (You make
fools with us?) Miles at the end of the match didnt bother to shake hands with anybody.
Years afterward Dick would say, Yeah, I acted like a real shit. The turning point for the U.S.
came in the quarters against the strong English team of Leach and Thomas when, behind 2-1,
they managed to win the last two games, 24 and 19 (after being down 17-14).
In a 1949 English Open interview with Peggy Allen, Tybie would recall how for years
as a young child she was on a Sunday morning radio program, reciting poems shed learned,
and had grown up taking large audiences so much for granted that nerves were never a
problem for her. To keep focused here in her matches she just kept repeating to herself,
mantra-like, Hit this ballas if to say: Its the only ball Im going to hit all day. And Ive
got to hit it in better than I ever hit one in before. This techniqueand/or Tybies sunbursting enthusiasm that thawed Dicks cold pride at even trying in this for him unworthy and
meaningless eventproduced a gutsy winner. Then their momentum, and Dicks meticulous
footworkIt was phenomenal, said Tybie, especially considering we were strangers to one
anothers movements, how he was always in positioncarried them 18, 20, -18, 16 on
through the formidable pair of Sido/Rozeanu.
But off to a very bad 13, -14 start in the 11:30 p.m. final against Vana and Vlasha
Depetrisova Pokorna, a pre-War World Womens Singles and Doubles Champion, Dick, by
now thinking to himself that Tybie was a crazy hitter, told her, Listen, this is embarrassing.
Just push the ball backyou dont hit a ball until I tell you to. And nowwith Miles
238

Czech TTA Secretary Zdenek Heydusek presents his World

Championship Cup to USAs 1948 World Mixed Doubles
Champions, Dick Miles and Thelma Tybie Thall.

driving fiercely and Tybie taking Vanas sneaky service with coolness (I tried to return the
balls deep, she said)they weathered 18 and 19 games, then, with Tybie in a zone, hitting in
forehands, they couldnt have played a better 5th.
Carrington said in Table Tennis that Tybie treated us to
a display of mixed doubles play which few women could
ever equal. She inspired her partner to fight back. She
chopped Vanas drives and services safely back [the
open-palm serve rule, new to Europeans, helped her to
do that?], pushed his difficult chops, and drove with
ferocity whenever possible (February-March, 1948, 13).
On winningas in a fairy tale, the clock
had just struck midnightTybie threw her
racket in the air and came over for a hug, Dick
said. But I pushed her away. Uh, perhaps. But
Tybie remembers Miles, later jubilant, pulling her
by the hair, then saying later, I wasnt excited.
Svensk Bordtennis,
Afterwards, said Dick, good players conNr 8, 1948, cover
gratulated me, fussed over meit was sickenHair-brained with
ing. The photos dont lie, thoughDick did
excitement
allow a smile when he and Tybie were presented
with the Heydusek Cup.
239

U.S. Players Do Well In Ireland

Before coming back to the U.S., our Team
(minus Price and Nash whod left for home or gone
elsewhere?) went to Dublin, birthplace of the great
Irish writer James Joyce, whose Ulysses Miles used
to carry around with him almost as a talisman. Id
not read of anyone on our Team complaining, but
Bellak told me that the sea-trip from England to Ireland was one of the worst
anyone could take. Everything had to be fastened down. Of course he remembered that particular crossing when Barna, Szabados, and he were playing cards, and
Victor wouldnt let them quit, not even when Mike and he were vomiting right there at the
table.
In the Mens final at the Leinster Open, held Feb. 13-14 in the Abbey Lecture Hall,
Dick beat Marty in 5, after Martys magnificent retrieving had taken out Barna in 5 in the
semis. Want to come to Ireland and coach? someone would later proposition Marty. Well
give you $50 a week. Bergmann, who in March would marry an Irish girl, was forced to
withdraw from the Singles, supposedly on doctors orders; however, he did team with
Barna to take the Mens Doubles over the Irish pair of Martin and OPrey. Although Miles
didnt play Doubles, Reisman paired with Leah to win the Mixed over Barna/Clouther whod
eliminated Bergmann/Tybie in the semis. In the Womens Doubles, which Tybie sat out, Leah
and Mae were much too good for the opposition. Completing the more or less U.S. title
sweep, Tybie had an unusual victory in the Womens Singlesshe beat her sister Leah in the
final, -15, 16, 18.
Feb./Mar. Pre-Sectional Tournaments
Back home, John Kauderer was telling J. P. Allen of the N.Y. Sun that the fine showing of the U.S. Team is a heap of vitamins for the game in this country.It has started
things humming. So much so that[there will be] a series of sectional championships for the
second week of March. Kauderer of course knows these sectional tournaments have been on
the USTTA calendar for months, but, with a U.S. pair having just won a World Championship,
who could blame him (or Allen) for seizing the opportunity to stroke the Sport, put a positive
spin on it?
In the Eastern Zone, at the Feb. 7 Pennsylvania Open in Bethlehem, Morris Chait,
who in Nov. with Miles and Reisman had given New York another Intercity title, won the
Mens over Tibor Hazi with embarrassing ease. Peggy McLean was the Womens winnerover Millie Shahian 22, 16, 20. This tournament marks future U.S. World Team
member and Hall of Famer Pauline Robinson (later Somael)s first appearance in Topics.
Shed immigrated to the U.S. from England, for her family had lived in Wembley until
the early 40s. Grandfather was Manager and Secretary of Wrexham Football team; Father
was a Bisley crack. So it was in Paulines genes to be sports-competitive. Here of course
she lost decisively to Millington.
The USTTAs Southeastern Zone had only sporadic play, and seldom was notice given
of it in Topics. In April, the newly formed New Orleans affiliate would hold an early spring
Closed tournament in which George Foerster would win the Mens over the two top-seeded
players, Saul Schneider and NOTTA President Beryl Laufer, both of whom would be giving
table tennis clinics at various rec centers in the City.
240

In the Central Zone, at the Southern States Open, held Feb. 15 in Louisville, KY, Dorothy
Balke proved too 4-game strong in the Womens for both Martha Kiefer and in the final Norma
Felton. In the Mens final against Bob Green, Cal Fuhrman was up 1-0 and at 15-all in the 2nd when
the Chief Referee called the Expedite Rule. Cal, at a big disadvantage because he hadnt much of
an offense, protested, and when the Referee insisted, Cal defaulted. As a result, the USTTA suspended him for a year. After that he said to hell with the Sport and called it quits.
When I met Cal in the early 1950s, hed been in Dayton for some years, had moved
there from Hamilton, Ohio, and had a rather nondescript job as an impeccably-dressed clothing salesman, then became manager of an upscale mens shop. A Nationally-ranked defensive
star, hed been the last of the early pioneer 1930 players to maintain an unbroken attendance
at U.S. Opens. That such an on-the-move aficionado could eventually become pretty much a stayat-home recluse amidst clutter and some 30,000 record albums led him in his old age to a sad end.
Dayton columnist Dale Huffman, in an In Memoriam tribute to Fuhrman, tells us that
when Cal was 76 years old burglars broke into his home three days in one week and stole
his stereo. Because he lived only on his Social Security check, and sometimes would go
without food to buy records, the fact that he could no longer play music was devastating to
him. He was so shaky and distraught, so fragile anywayhe weighed only 100 pounds
that police took him to a hospital for treatment.
After Huffman wrote about Cals plight, people sent money, and others donated a
stereo. Neighbors watched his home and when the thugs came back to rob him a fourth time
they were caught. Then in 1992 Cal was arrested for not painting his home as ordered,
andthrown into jail. This outraged his neighbors, who again befriended him, and offered to
paint his home themselves. Cal spent his last days in a nursing home, and died Mar. 20, 1997,
at the age of 82, in a local hospital. As Huffman regretfully put it, He died broke, and he died
sad, and he didnt even have any music in his room.
Historic New Albany, Indiana Club
Among the players with Fuhrman in this
Southern States tournament were Bernie Hock,
Jack Pangborn, Benny Helm, and Grayson
Hanks, and since all of them were or soon would
be playing regularly at the Ekin Ave. Club in
New Albany, IN, just across the Ohio River from
Louisville, I think its as good a time as any to
give you some background on this historic Club.
First and foremost, know that from 1935 on into
Courtesy of John Riley
the new millennium it has been housed in the
New Albany, INs Ekin Ave. building
same buildingthat is, for 67 years now.
Thanks to diligent research by John Riley, a felt force for quarter-of-a-century in New
Albany table tennisresearch that brought forth both an article by Les Reynolds for the local
Tribune, and an account by half-century Club habitu Herman Hoffmanreaders can compare
and contrast the beginnings of this Southern Indiana Club with the evolution of their own.
Beginning in 1935, according to legendary bat-maker Hock and his lifelong Indiana
Hall of Fame friend Eugene Bricker, table tennis play there was initially for a short time in the
basement (on only one table), then on the first floor, and finally by 1949, according to
Hoffman, on the second.
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Riley tells us about the last move upward to the Clubs thereafter permanent location
on the top floor:
[Players] cleaned up one side of the second floor and installed lighting.
They had a local sheet metal shop make funnel-looking hoods; when you screwed the
light bulbs in, the light bulbs held the hoods up. Those hoods were still there when I
got there in the mid 70s. Fluorescent lighting came in the mid 80s, also air conditioning. The wooden floor on top of the wooden framework is made of 2 and 1/2-wide
boards like in the older homes in the area. The floor has no type of protective finish on
it but is smooth from many years of play.You dont feel the floor move but there is
some cushion there.
Hoffman recalls (and his experience is much like 50s contemporary Connie Warrens)
that he was 12 years old when his dad read an article in the New Albany Tribune that said
Bernie Hock was available to coach ping-pong to kids 10 years and older. So since the Ekin
Ave. Rec Center was within walking distance, his dad took him there and bought him a racket
($2.50, says Herman, was big bucks in 1946). There he was coached not only by Hock
but by Bricker, and Jack and Toby Pangborn, Benny Price, Joe Peers, Benny Helm, and
Grayson Hanks.
Hoffman has clear memories of his teenage years at this Ekin Ave. Club:
By early winter 1948-49, we began working on the present upstairs
room.I was allowed to help with the clean-up, paint up, and the hanging of our
state-of-the-art lights. Were we ever proud of them. The shades were made (by us)
from a special pattern, conical. The sheet metal was green outside and white inside. I
remember there was a different pitch to the cone for the light at the table center, and
the lights just off the corners of the table. Even our occasional guests remarked on the
ease of seeing the ball from anywhere!
We had free (gratis) and almost unlimited use of the room, as that was considered to be a service of the City. We voted to charge individual players one dollar per
session (school kids a quarter), and before too long we began to replace the old,
homemade tables with new Detroiters. Two of our original tables were made of inchand-a-half plywood with the grain of the wood running crosswise, and a twelve-inch
filler strip under the net!
Ball technology was unbelievably bad. If you bought a half-dozen balls, four
of them would be egg-shaped from lying in the carton, and had to be hit for a game or
two before they returned to their proper shape. Breakage of balls was a constant
problem, and because of the roundness problem, there was, and probably still is, a rule
that there must be a warm-up period whenever a new ball was put into play.
California Resurgence
After San Diego and Long Beach had led the way, Table Tennis was beginning to be
more and more re-organized in California. On Wed., Feb. 25, 1948, the Los Angeles TTC had
its first meetingat Lee Korfs Table Tennis Emporium. The following officers were elected:
President: Phil Hurst; Vice-President: Bill Nelson; Secretary: Bills wife, Jean; and Treasurer
Christian Seil. Nelson offered a tongue-in-cheek Profile of Emporium owner Korf whod be
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his doubles partner next month in Hollywood. Heres what he said in part:
Lee, at first meeting, would give a person the impression that he is either an artist
or a musician, hardly a table tennis player; a musician because only a piano or violin could
do his coiffure, etc. justice; and an artist because he strokes his shots as would a Salvador
Dali with a brush in attempting to illustrate a battle scene of mud pies.
LATTC Members paid an annual fee of $1, and had to be USTTA members who didnt
belong to any other club. Some who attended at least one of the monthly meetings that spring
of 48 were Sam Silberman who 14 years earlier had won the Parker Brothers American
Ping-Pong Associations National Mixed Doubles with Ruth Aarons, and whose coaching
later helped Emily Fuller to become the 1938 and 39 U.S. Womens Champion; future Mexican Federation President Helios Farrell on his studious way to becoming a nationally-known
eye doctor; and Austin Finkenbinder who, before coming to L.A., had played in Chicago, and
who, as his friend Si Wasserman explained, due to a congenital defect (Austin couldnt walk at
all until he was almost six), found his mobility severely limited.
At the Feb. 29, Mar. 6-7 Hollywood Championships, Don Terry was the real-life serial
star who kept the audience breathless with his adventures. In the Mens, in the quarters, he
was forced into the 5th by Bill Wells. In the semis, he upset Abbott Nelson in 5. And in the
final, against the # 1 seed Frank Nemes, he was at 23-all in the 5th before finally dying a
heros death in the last reel.
But, o.k.theres a new serial at the local theater: Mens Doubles. Wasnt that
Nemes/Terry in a gun battle with Lee Korf/Bill Nelson? What was happening? Nemes and
Terry were hopelessly pinned downwere match-point down, 20-11, in the 5th . Had to be a
situation from which they couldnt escape. And yetamazing, there was still popcorn-stuffing
hope, the spectators were enrapt.Indeed, this may have been one of those times that Nelson
in his Profile of Korf had warned us aboutwhen, on missing some shots, the supremely
confident Korfturns into a howling, raving lunatic, gibbering and screaming wildly as if
possessed. For, unbelievably, or rather believably, while the crowd was also losing control,
Nemes and Terry had tied it up! Only to be killed off after all.
Never mind, other kin-characters were there to take their place. While Korf/Nelson
were gunning it out through another five serial-chapters with Wells/Gene Roseman, Hanna/
Nelson atop the mountain pass kept up an exchange of shots with Lee Freeman/Chris Seil: 2523-all in the 5th they wereuntil Freeman/Seil fell, and the #1 seeds went on to give ending
come-uppance to Korf/Nelson. Wow!
Whoever did the short write-up for Topics tried to capture the tournaments Hollywood flavor: Perhaps the biggest upset of all came when State Womens ruler Tiny Moss
suffered her second singles defeat in five years in California in the semi-finals, bowing to Jane
Little of Long Beach, whod also handed her her other loss. But Little did not win the
Womens SinglesMary Reilly beat her in the final. And in the Mixed, there was another
cliffhanger ending: Nemes/Jean Nelson defeated Abbott Nelson/Moss, after being down 2-0.
Final added attraction: the Juniors, won by Art Cohen over Lewis Levick, heralded the
arrival of Bob Ashley, whose later picaresque travels would eventually mirror many a
Globetrotters.
At the Mar. 27-28 Burbank, CA Championships, Nemes was again the Mens winnerin 5 over Abbott Nelson. Semifinalist John Hanna had a challenging 23-21 in the 4th
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quarters match with Phil Hurst. Since Hurst was the LATTC President he was fair game for
some friendly funespecially by the areas best teenage player, Art Cohen, who again won
the Juniors from Lew Levick. Wrote Cohen cutely, One of the reasons that Mr. Hursts
game is so colorful is because of his famous flop shot. It is called a flop shot because he hits
the ball as he is taking his famous swan dive to the floor. For a big fellow Mr. Hurst is extremely
fast. He has a tremendously hard forehand that can only be returned by the average player.
In another burst of exuberance Cohen turned his attention to the LATTC Treasurer.
When you first approach Mr. Seil you get the impression that he is a cocky little fellow with
glasses. The reason you get this impression is because it is true.As Mr. Seil is famous for
throwing his bat across the room, Mr. Freeman is famous for throwing his bat out the window. No occasion for them to have a bat-throwing contest at the moment, though, for in the
Mens Doubles they beat both Nemes-Terry and then Hanna-Nelson in 5. In the Womens,
Jane Little avenged her Hollywood loss to Mary Reillybut again Little didnt win. This time
Tiny Moss beat her easily.
The early May Southern California Open in Long
ht
g
i
r
Beach
would
further ignite player enthusiasm. Why? BeW
ietta
He n r
cause 3-time U.S. Champion Lou Pagliaro would win it. He
was doing Sports Shows round the country with Henrietta
Wright (hed be in Duluth, while Schiff and Somael on
another Tour would be in Flint). Wright was remembered by
Pagliaros daughters because she had a pet parakeet that
liked to drink beer. At the time, Louie later told me, I
didnt drive, and one time in the winter Henrietta hit the
brakes as we were going down a snowy, icy incline and she
lost control and our car turned over twice. People came
running out of houses to help us, but luckily we werent hurt.
After that I didnt want to ride with her anymore and began
going on exhibitions with Ham Canning.
Louie had been with Canning at the Southwest
Sports and Vacation Show in Dallas, and the two of them
had then come West, where Canning, having toured with
Coleman Clark, presumably had connections. Understandably they turned up at Long Beach where Canning was the
Defending Champion, and where this year Paggy beat Frank
Nemes, then Lee Freeman for the Singles title. Louie also
teamed with Canning and his USO overseas exhibition
partner Mary Reilly to take the two Doubles.
All of which meant we wouldnt be seeing Lou either at
the upcoming Easterns, or, two weeks later, at the
Nationals.
SELECTED NOTES.
*For details on this match, read, first, the article in the
Apr., 1948 issue of Table Tennis, Was Farkas A Lucky
Champion?, sub-titled an Official Statement (18), then, in
the May issue, Referee J. M. Roses rebuttal (16).
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Chapter

Tweny-Four

1948: Hyped All-American Novice Championships. 1948: Reisman/Monness Take

Easterns; Schiff/Leah Thall the Westerns. 1948: Central Open to Holzrichter/Leah Thall.
1948: Miles/McLean U.S. Open Champs.
Prior to its premier tournamentsthe 3-star Easterns, Westerns, and Central Opens,
and the 4-star Nationalsthe USTTA, as it did last year, hyped what was now being called
not the First Mid-Western Novice Championships but the All-American Novice Championships. Invitations and publicity on the tournament, said an article as far back as the Dec.,
1947 Topics, will go to 200 cities, a few in Mexico and Canada.
Perhaps this year, since the tournament site is again in Chicago, the Metropolitan
Chicago Novice Table Tennis Rules1947 will prevail, so that the Novice will no longer be
defined as any amateur player who has not won a state, district or national ranking, but one
who has not won a First, Second, Third or Fourth place in an Open or Ranking Tournament. In Jan., the count had risen to 387 cities, and inquiries had come in from Oregon,
California, Georgia, Kentucky and South Carolina as well as many more states. All America,
including Mexico, was interested? Or, in this rash of beginning publicity, is that a rash statement? Meanwhile, poor Editor Haid, from mid-Dec. through mid-Feb., is putting out Topics
despite being in a veterans hospital in Kirkwood, Missouri trying to recover from a skin rash
he contracted while serving with the U.S. Navy in the Pacific.
The Feb. Topics , and by now it was listing the USTTAs first-ever Novice Committee,
devoted half a page to the tournament with both a promotional article and photo. Pictured are
Marvin Thomas of the Chicago Tribune[sic: slight error: he represents the tourney sponsor,
the Chicago Sun-Times] and Betty Koehnke, wife of George Koehnke who, as USTTA Expansion Chair, was the initiating Director of this greater [sic: for greatest] post-war plan ever
conceived in the interest of table tennis (9). The two of them are admiring the 48 Betty
Koehnke Trophy the winning team will receive. (Thatll be the Chicago team.) All thats
required is that entrants get civic-minded groups to sponsor a [District] meet, from which
there are proceeds. Then two to seven of the best players will be sent to the April Final in
Chicagotheir expenses paid from the proceeds of the local meet.
In the Mar. issue (2/3 of a page), Dick Dickinson goes through his last years
Polonius speech to anyone who might be sitting in the dark theater listening. He speaks of
table tennisof fine gentlemen such as USTTA President Cinnater; of the post-war crop
of players who will be better than any that has gone before; of the promoters of the Sport
who have the courage and faith that built America; of the youngsters who know real
character is to know how to lose; of juvenile delinquency and how no worthwhile organization would deny a sponsorship if properly approached. He finally closes withand it looks
like hes made a connection Train now leaving on track No. 1 for Chicago and the AllAmerican Table Tennis Championships. All Aboard! (6).
In the Apr. issue (almost a full page), theres a photo of the Chicago playing venue,
and paragraphs of good news. There will be a Grand Prize of a Free Trip to the Worlds
Championships in Sweden. An All-American name will be drawn out of a hat and the
winner will go with the team in 1949 (trips worth $500chaperones costs not included). A
large headline reads, ALREADY DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIPS ARE UNDER WAY IN 23
STATES (among them: Louisiana, South Carolina, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Maine,
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All-American Novice Championships

(Note: No Worlds will be held in Dublin. The 1949 Worlds will be in Stockholm;
the 1950 Worlds will be in Budpest.)

Tennessee, Colorado, Montana, Oregon, and California). A small headline wants to make sure we
know that the Rec. Dept. in Salisbury, Maryland has already completed their District Championships and now are busy raising the money to send the team to Chicago. At the Chicago Final,
every participant, in all white clothing,will be given a beautiful red, white, and blue championship badge to be worn on his jacket. And there will be a parade of champions and music in honor
of each state, and news reels, television, radio and coverage by Life magazine (3).
In the May issue, after the Apr. 24 tournament is over, theresnothing, not a Stop the
Press article, not an All-American word. In the next, October issue, theresno story, just the
results. Despite the shameless hype, a mere 7 states sent players, just 5 states if you count contending youngstersMassachusetts (Springfields Newton Frost won the Over 35s), Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, and Texas (Houstons John Patterson came 2nd in the 35s).
What in the All-American world happened? If this tournament, as President Cinnaters
wife said, was bigger, better and finer than the Mid-West [Novice] held the year before,
of what significance is that?
The Intermediate Boys Novice Champion was Morris Johnson who three weeks
earlier had just become the U.S. Boys Champion. A Novice? Ridiculous. At the Nationals,
in the quarters, Johnson had beaten Jim Sanders, winner of the 169-entry Junior Boys at the
Mar. 4th four-state Mid-west Chicagoland Junior Tournament. Back in Jan., Sanders had been
outscored at the South Bend St. Joe Valley Open by Jim Tancill from St. Louis. Tancill won
the Novice Junior Boys here at the All-American over last months Chicago District Open
Boys winner Marvin Marty Prager whod also come 2nd to Sanders at Chicagoland. Fourth
place in this 14 and Under event went to Fred Ek of the Chicago suburb of Glen Ellyn. Freds
the son of Otto Ek, later, after the family had moved to Cleveland, the Ohio TTA President,
and still later the USTTA President. The lucky All-American Prize Winner (want to bet $500
hed go to the 1949 Stockholm Worlds?) was Wisconsins #1 Boy, Jerry Rotter, who wasnt
good enough here to win a Novice prize. The 18 and Over Novice Champion was Bob
Katzemeyer whod bested Wisconsins #1-ranked Junior for the last two seasons, Richard
Metten, and who, playing for Washington University in the May U.S. Intercollegiates, tied
with Dave Cowley for runner-up behind U.S. #18 Don Lasater.
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Against circuit-going players like these, real Novices were a mite disadvantaged.
Since the USTTA still hadnt offered any Junior Miss event in any of its tournaments,
the young female ringers were a bit harder to identify. The Intermediate Girls was won by
Olga Parchutz. Olga was only 14, but since shed won the Junior Girls last year she had to
move up. No problem. Finishing 2nd was Sharon Koehnke (the expansive-minded Directors
daughter), 3rd Carol Van De Houton. This years 14 and Under Champ was Chicagos
Marlene Mall whod won the 84-entry Junior Girls at the Chicagoland Tournament (that
tournament being a run-through, as it were, designed to give winning participants the feel of
what the real thing would be like?). Runner-up to Marlene, as she had been at Chicagoland,
was Glen Ellyns Karen Lanza. Joan Van De Houton who, with her identical twin Carol and
Harriet Nickles had won the 3-Girl Teams at Chicagoland, was the 18 and Over winner. It
puzzles me, though, how one identical twin plays in the 15 and Over division and the other in
the 18 and Over. (No ones more scrupulous than Joan? Shes had some kind of unpublicized
win or ranking somewhere, so, unlike the Boys, feels she has to move up?)
Also hyped by the USTTAnot that anybody much caredwas National Table
Tennis Week, designated for Mar. 8-14. Both the Easterns and Westerns would be played
the Mar. 13-14 weekend. Earlier it was announced that the Central and Pacific Coast tournaments would be too, but the Central was delayed a week, and no Pacific Coast Open was
held. Every player, Topics declared with its usual Rhetoric For Dummies, would have the
opportunity to celebrate the observance of National Table Tennis Week, andtaking advantage of that opportunitywas being urged to sign up a new [USTTA] member.
Eastern Open to Reisman/Monness
Despite the hype for the Eastern Open, held at the Armory in Hempstead, Long Island,
there was no article on the tournament in Topics, just the results. In the 66-entry Mens, in
which all seeded players got to the quarters, Marty Reisman took top honors when in the
final (and for the first time in a Topics-reported tournament) he defeated Defending Champion
Dick Miles whod won this tournament three years in a row. Before losing to Reisman in the
semis, Eddie Pinner, though dropping a 27-25 4th game, beat 1943 and 44 Champion Tibor
Hazi. In the Mens Doubles final, however, Tibor, playing with the doggedly determined
Arnold Fetbrod, retaliated to 19, -20, 20, -16, 12 upset Pinner and the not very active Cy
Sussman. Reisman didnt play doubles with Miles, but he did reach the semis with Optometrist Mitch Silbert who was writing a series of articles for Topics emphasizing, for example,
how playing table tennis was good for your eyes (it provided orthoptic exercises for proper
tonicity), and why contact lenses were preferable to glasses. First in Boys wasand let me
introduce the future U.S. World Team memberHarry Hirschkowitz over Sheldon Faske in 5.
By playing steady, and not making errors, and with her occasional attack able to
penetrate Mae Clouthers up to the table block and push play, Reba Monness advanced (22-20
in the 4th) to the final. There, taking advantage of Davida Hawthorns by then not so stubborn
defense, she won her first and only Easterns.
Western Open to Schiff/Leah Thall
Despite the hype for the Western Open, held at the St. Louis University Gym, there
was no article on this tournament in Topics either, just the results. However, Schiff, who won
this Open while on Tour with Johnny Somael, told me that on a blackboard in the back of a
cigar and pipe shop a guy named Ben Fixler (not Fixer) was booking odds on the players
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and that interested parties could phone in their bets. Sol, U.S. #2, must have given his backers
some uneasy moments, for in both the semis and the final he went 5first with Bill Price,
then with Garrett Nash. Topics columnist Helen Cinnater reported that Nash, playing a match
near the Operations Desk and hearing his name mentioned by a nearby spectator, said, Either
speak louder so I can hear what youre saying, or shut up. Against Schiff, though, Helene
said Garrett was unusually serious.
George Hendry continually drew an audience, for in the 16ths he had to go 5 to
squelch Cecil Woodworths try for an upset; then was down 2-0 to Allan Levy; then finally fell
in the quarters, 25-23 in the 5th, to Somael who afterwards was beaten by Nash. In Mens
Doubles, Schiff/Somael came out a struggling winnerover Hendry/Levy. John Varga, having
recovered from the serious damage done his shoulder in a motorcycle accident, took the
Seniors from George Wicker. Ramon Williams/Lynel Overton eked out the Senior Doubles,
19 in the 5th, from Wicker/Carl Nidy whod eliminated Varga and USTTA President Elmer
Cinnater, -21, 23, 23, 17.
Leah Thall, though 19-in-the-4th pressed by Mary Specht in the semis, and forced into
a 25-23 1st game in the final with Betty Jane Schaefer, won the Womens as expected. The
best match in the event was Schaefers deuce-in-the-5th quarters win over Mildred Shipman.
Central Open to Holzrichter/Leah Thall
The other 3-star premium tournament, the Central Open, the Entry Blank for which
shared equal space with the Easterns and Westerns in a full- page promotion in Topics, was held
Mar. 20-21 at Northwestern High School in Detroit. But not even the results were printed.
However, since former USTTA Historian Leah Thall was at this Central Open, and
kept track of this and every other tournament she ever played in, here are some results. Mens
final: Billy Holzrichter over the soon-to-be Nationals Consolation winner V. Lee Webb
(semis: Holzrichter over Max Hersh; Webb over Chuck Burnsboth losers subsequently to
vow that after the Nationals they were packing it in). Womens final: Leah Thall, down 2-1,
over Tybie Thall. Seniors: Perc Secord over Graham Steenhoven. Juniors: Robert Short over
Clevelands Joey Russell. Boys: Al Ring over Bill Evans. Mixed Doubles: Webb/Leah Thall
over Bob Harlow/Dana Young (semis winners in a startling upset over Tybie/ArnoldBrown
the more surprising since Dana didnt seem to be playing well, was beaten in the 1st round by
Peg Wheeler, wife of the new Michigan TTA President, J. Del Wheeler, and herself Secretary
of that Association).
Strange to make so much of these supposedly unique 3-star attractions, and then, as if
they didnt matter after all, give them such short shrift. Of course Editor Bill Haid is an unpaid
volunteer, he has a real world job, so hes not looking to do more work. He says he puts in
at least two hours every other night on TOPICS. Given the circumstances, including directives from on high, and especially the pressure of a limited number of pages per issue, he tries
to please, he does what he canhe labors, responsibly, but not out of love. Hes not a table
tennis aficionado. He takes what he gets, doesnt want and/or doesnt know how to actively
solicit needed material (I have no idea, he writes, what the reader likes to read, see and
discuss). He also expects the writer to be the editor. From anyone whod care to report on a
tournament (any tournament?) he wants one paragraph of no more than 80 words with high
lights. Try writing, even in a staccato style, a shaped 80-word paragraph on how many
highlights of how many events of an important two-day tournament. Its an absurd, unthinking directive, and cant be honored.
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The result of all this, issue after issue, is a somewhat skewed selection as to whats
important, whats readablewhat ought to be in the magazine. No wonder by April, Due to
reduction of ads causing financial difficulties the Editor of Topics has been forced to cut this
publication from a 16 to 12 page edition. In fairness to the volunteer Editor though, one has
to say that someone sure needs to speak for him, convince USTTA executives to raise membership dues in order to properly fund the magazine, and so, hopefully, make its contents more
valuable.
Miles/McLean National Champs
The huge Marching Building at the Fort Hayes Army Post in Columbus, Ohio (Columbus: third in the United States as a convention city) was
the site of the Apr. 2-4, 1948 U.S. Open, sponsored by the
National Guard and directed by Bob Green. The
tournaments Headquarters Hotel was the 1,000-room
Deshler-Wallick, just a 5-minute drive from the venue. Play
would be on a wooden floor; thered be, as first announced, 10 tournament tables and 4 practice ones (later it
was said the matches had been played on 16 tables, double
the number used previously); above, Bob would call on his
electrical engineering background to string five extra lights

Top: 1948 U.S. Open Tournament Chair Bob Green

Middle: 1948 U.S. Open action at Fort Hayes venue
Bottom: Columbus, Ohio (TTT, Nov., 1950, 4)

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over each table. Though this weekend Columbus also, very inconveniently for table tennis
players, hosted the State Basketball Championship, if you could get in to eat at the Mills
Cafeteria, you could see displayed the $1,000 worth of table tennis trophies, as well as some
photos of the stars, in this 250-entry Open. Perhaps one of Miles in actionthumb extended
up in front of the blade, the top of his racket weighted with tape.
Photos of course were fun to look at, but would there have been videos of this
Nationalsthe record 136-entry Mens matches particularly. Some early-round 5-game
advancers were: Charleston, WVs Herman Whitey Lykins over Indianapoliss Dale
McColley whod been down 2-0 to Stratford, CTs Emil LaReau; N.Y.s Chait whod been
down 2-0 to Akrons George Haddad; Wally Gundlach of St. Louis over Tournament Referee
C. Nelson Black (you might see Nelson sweeping the court before an important match), and
Reisman, who I presume didnt have to go into the 5th with St. Louiss Don Schuessler, but
did.
So apt were the seedings that, with the exception of Chicagos Dan Kreer who didnt
make it to Columbus (where for a time hed lived), all advanced to the last 16with Lowry in
Kreers bracket getting there by eliminating Indys momentary back-from-retirement Earl
Coulson.* Only Miles and Reisman, polarized in the Draw, moved to the quarters in straight
games. Doug Cartland downed Lowry, deuce in the 4th; and Holzrichter finished Somael, also
in 4. The other four eighths were all 5 gamesPinner after dropping the first two, rallied
against Chait; Burns outsteadied Nash; Schiff stopped Hendry; and Hazi, down 2-1, overcame
Price. Three of the four quarters were very one-sided: Miles over Pinner, Cartland over
Burns, and Schiff over Hazi. But Holzrichter, whod given Reisman his only loss at the last
Intercities, looked like he might beat him again, but, up 2-1, couldnt hold his lead. Marty
had a terrific forehand, said Billy. At the last second he broke his wrist, snapped the ball,
and it really came at you hard. He hadnt a killer backhand, but it was good enoughwhich
reminds me of the line Bellak always liked: Bergmann hadnt much of a backhand, but I
never saw him miss one. Reisman (later given the appellation The Needle by a sportswriter) had muscles? Billy remembers when for some reason a waitress was feeling Martys
flexed arm, and Marty, even then quick to quip, said with a grin, And thats not my best
muscle.
In the semis, Reisman defeated Schiff in 4, and Miles defeated Cartland inwell 4,
but it seemed longer. For with Dick up 2-1 at the break, Doug extended the 5-minute rest
period and began testing balls. (That Sunday morning at the USTTA General Meeting, criticism had been made of the Wembley ball used at this tournament.) According to Helene
Cinnater, Doug went through maybe a dozen balls, and Green, after losing patience, walked
out to the table with 8 dozen more. Years later, Bob said, My wrist still twitches from
spinning them. Cartland, by the way, had better put a new spin on the need for his exhibition
partner Harry Cook to be cooperative with the USTTA, for just hours before Dougs semis
the E.C. had insisted (on a motion from Graham Steenhoven) that Harry be a USTTA member
and pay his token Exhibition Fee; otherwise Doug for playing with him would be subject to
disciplinary action.
The Miles-Reisman final that continued beyond midnight couldnt have been more
climactic. Heres the Topics account that tries impartially to praise both players:
2000 people screamed and cheered as Miles defeated Reisman in a deucethriller, fifth-game final [12, -16, 20, -18, 20].Every heart pounded and blood
250

vessels were strained as Reisman deuced it up in the fifth from 20-18. The next two
points were some of the greatest exhibition of driving and defending ever seen in the
history of United States Table Tennis. Reisman drove his heart out against the mighty
Miles backhand chop defense.Driving ball after ball for minutes on end against the
countrys steadiest defense.[The] playing was so superb that one player or the other
had to be forced into an error, neither making any of his own volition. Keeping the ball
away from Miless murdering forehand drive Reisman forced him to play defense
throughout the match, giving him only an occasional shot on the forehand side. Garnering all his points by forcing Miles into error or hitting through his backhand defense, Reisman played a remarkable match and a smart one that was anybodys guess
as to the outcome (May, 1948, 2).

U.S. Open winner Dick Miles receiving the

Open Traveling Trophy from USTTA President Elmer Cinnater
251

And heres a local reporters subjective

assessment of that final between, as he says,
the fidgety and none too popular Miles
(Mr. Prima Donna) and the ever popular
Reisman (its as if Marty wrote this reporters
copy?):
Miles was so worried over winning this one that while Reisman joked
around and was having a good time in the
match, Miles stopped play 58 times to wipe
his sweaty brow, five times to use his handkerchief on his moist paddle, four other times
to tie his shoe laces, twice to let the crowd
know they were making too much noise. All
that after asking the referee to ask the photographers to please refrain from flashing
bulbs while The Great One was playing.
Its left to Helene Cinnater to speak of
Reisman clowning one second and so
1949 U.S. Open Program
serious the next, to praise Miles for his
1948 U.S. Open runner-up Marty Reisman
intestinal fortitude, and to remark on the
loud whistle blowing during the last crucial point of that 5th and deuce game, when silence was
conspicuous. Whistle blowing? As is the case so often with Marty, whos usually interested in
being more entertaining than exact, there are different versions as to what actually happened. I
heard, for example, that the phone rang at deuce in the 5th, and that Marty quipped midstroke, Tell them I havent won yet. But never mind if that phone anecdotes apocryphal, it
has the ring of truthan instance where fiction is truer to Marty than fact.**
The Mens Doubles winners were Hazi/Somaelover Lowry/Reisman, 18 in the 5th.
Both teams had been in trouble. Hazi/Somael won their semis, deuce in the 5th , from Defending Champions Cartland/Fetbrod. In the eighths, Lowry/Reisman were down 2-1 to the
Columbus pair of Guy Blair/Jim Irwin, then went 4 with Miles/Freddie Borges (whod come
from 2-0 down and deuce in the 3rd to beat Hersh/Burns), then went another 4 with Pinner/
Schiff (whod outlasted Holzrichter/Anderson 28-26 in the 4th ).
Hazi didnt play Senior Doubles, perhaps would have been embarrassed to do so, so
the winners were USTTA Regent Ted Chapman and John Varga over Perc Secord/Paul Collis
in three very spirited deuce games, the 1st at 28-26.
We know who won the Senior Singles though, right? After getting past Daytons
surprising Howard Thomas in 5, then easily besting Varga in the final to add that title to his
Doubles Championship, the 36-year-old Hazi would return home and later complain to Washington News reporter Dave Reque that there were only about 50 paying customers at the
Heurich Gym for the Apr. 25th District of Columbia Championships and only some three
dozen people watching when he won the Mens final from Jimmy Shea, the Mens Doubles
with Shea, and the Mixed with Womens Champ Jane Stauffer. Not like the old days in preWar Europe, said Tibor sadly.
252

Topics had this to say of the Junior final between

Morris Chait and Gordon Barclay:
Chait won the first game from an overly
cautious and nervous Barclay, after which Barclay
threw caution to the winds and getting that old do or
die spirit that is so familiar to Barclay fans, by which
the kid slaughters giants, he drove, defended,
counterdrove, and made impossible shots like a
madman, and won the next two games hands down.
He really stole the show and infected the crowd with
his fighting spirit.[But then Chaits] extreme
steadiness and brilliant shotswere too much for
Barclay. In the fifth,Chait was able to win easily
through Gordys errors and slower pace (May, 1948,
2; 5).
In the 15-entry Boys, the two quarters matches of
consequencein which New Yorkers lost to Midwesternerswere Al Ring over Shelly Faske, 24-22 in the 5th, and
Ron Liechty over Harry Hirschkowitz, also in 5. Ring went
on to challengebut lost in the semis in 5 to Morris
Johnson, the winner after an anticlimactic match with Larry
Sher.
Quite an unusual round of 32 in the Womens: every
match went three-zip, except that Millie Shahian dropped
1948 U.S. Junior Champion
Morris Chait
one game, the 1st , to the first of the U.S. Open Womens
Consolation winners, Mona Buell. Monas final opponent
was Pauline Robinson who credited Herwald Lawrence (he could be the nicest person
around, or he could be impossible) for teaching her to play correctly. Pauline later wrote in
Topics (Mar.-Apr., 1975, 4B):
I had been playing in Central Park in a playground with my friends and one of
them said, Hey, theres a club up on Broadway with a lot of tables. So we went and
we were hooked, especially me. Lawrence watched us, and for one reason or another,
decided I had talent and offered me a free lesson every day.
After six months, Pauline was able to win her first trophyat this Nationals.
There was a near wipe-out in the round of 16 too. The 8th seed, Millie Shahian, was
upset by Rita Kerns, though shed been 2-1 up and in the end had outscored Rita 88-79. The
7th seed, David Hawthorn, was also upsetlost 23, 16, -19, -16 to Peggy Ichkoff who then
fell in 4 to Tybie Thall. Joining Tybie in the one semis was Peggy McLean; in the other semis,
Tybies sister, Leah, faced #4 seed Reba Monness. After dropping the 1st game to Tybie,
Peggy won easily. But Leah, whod come 19, 17, 12 close to winning three straight and
seemed to be getting better as the match progressed, abruptly went south and failed to defend
her Championship. Three years ago, Peggy had been in the final of the U.S. Open, only to lose
253

deuce in the 5th to

Hawthorn. This
time there was no
such excitement,
and for Peggy no
such disappointment. This final she
won easily in 4
games, for Rebas
defense wasnt
strong enough to
contain Peggys
all-around game.
Five-time National
Champion Sally
Green Prouty
didnt enter the
Singles, but she
came to play. And
looked the part
had, as Helene
Cinnater said, such
1948 U.S. Open Womens Champion Peggy McLean with her father, Vincent
cute outfits. Reba
Monness once
commented on the sameness of Sallys playing attirethat was when Sally was young.
Now, match after match, she wore something differentclothes made by her mother? In
Womens Doubles, before losing in the semis to Clouther/Shahian, Sally and Millie Shipman
eliminated Hawthorn/Monness. In the other semis, the Thall sisters were 23, 17, 20, 17
pressed by Ichkoff/Specht. But then in the final they were dominant, free of the tension theyd
experienced playing the New Englanders for the title last year.
Some of the best matches of the tournament were in the top half
of the Mixed. Nash-Specht beat George Ferris/Shahian in 5, then lost in
the quarters to Cartland/Clouther in 5. Price/Betty Jane Schaefer,
unseeded, got by Bob Anderson/Shipman in 5, then, down 2-1, upset
1947 runner-ups Reisman/Monness, then 3-0 eased into the final. In the
bottom half of the Draw, the #2 seeded team of Pinner/Leah Thall were
fortunate to advance to the semisthey struggled 19 in the 5th to oust
the #7-seeded pair, George Hendry/Rita Kerns. But then quickly lost to
the other unseeded team in the final, Schiff/Prouty.
Sol and Sally won, 19 in the 4th, but Topics praised all concerned, including that great little player, U.S. #6, Betty Schaefer, a
girl to really bear watching in the next season. But a much higherpaying job will take her to Guam; shell marry John McCloskeyand
there wont be any next season for her (or any thereafter?). Just when
I was getting good, she said, I fell in love. Price earned a lot of
applause as he dove for many of Schiffs smash shots, of which he was
Betty Jane Schaefer
254

able to return
many. But Sally
displayed the
same form that
made her National
Champion for five
years, and Schiff
seemed to be
inspired by Sallys
driving. Actually,
Sol told me many
years later that
Sally was his
favorite Mixed
Doubles partner,
for she was so
alive, so peppy.
And you might
say he was inSports World, May, 1949
spired by her
1948 U.S. Open Mixed Doubles Champions Sally Green Prouty and Sol Schiff
form, for he
confided he liked to see Sallys ass wiggle as she prepared to swing.
After running these exhausting NationalsCompliments go to Bob Green & Co. for
a well run tournament both from spectators and players angles, wrote Helene Cinnater
Green, U.S. #20, would take a rest from table tennis. For the only time in a 9-year span, for
the 48-49 season, he would receive Insufficient Data rather than a National Ranking. But he
would return.
Missing this year from the Mens National Rankings were Pagliaro, Kreer, McClure,
and Sussman, and, from the Womens, last years runner-up, the 1946 Champion, Bernice
Chotras whod given birth to a daughter, Louise (one day to become a player in her own
right). Meanwhile, Miles, Reisman, Cartland, and Pinner were again among the very
best.And yet, next season, they and this years Champion, Peggy McLean, wouldnt be on
the Ranking list at all.
SELECTED NOTES.
* Coulson, a Charter Member of the Indiana Hall of Fame, died in 1986 at the age of
68. As he was stricken with cancer and destitute, he called Jimmy McClure, said, Im dying,
Jimmy. And Jimmy saw to it that he had a proper burial.
**Englands Jack Carrington heard this telephone ring tooin his Imagination. He
mentions it in an article News, Notes and Gossip in Table Tennis, September, 1950, 5).

255

Chapter

Twenty-Five

1948: USTTA E.C. Preoccupations. 1948: Bergmann/Miles U.S. Tour Aborted. 1948:
Tournaments Preceding U.S. World Team Selection. 1948-49: Topics Editors Material
Suspect. 1948: California Association Growing. 1948: St. Louis District/Intercities/East-West
Matches. 1948-49: Winter Midwest Tournaments. 1948-49: Winter East Tournaments.
The USTTAs annual Summer Meeting was held June 12-13, 1948 not at the
Coronado Hotel in St. Louis as last year but at President Cinnaters home in the St. Louis
suburb of Rock Hill Village. Treasurer Bob Metcalf reported that on June 1, 1948 the USTTA
had a balance of $617.93. The Associations Financial Statement did not include the $3600
dollars earned through Exhibitions by the U.S. Team in Sweden. Due to the currency situation
in Sweden this revenue was exchanged for transportation, lodging and other team expenses
abroad.
Metcalf would continue as an E.C. member, but as a Vice-President. Bill Feldt would
switch places with himgive up his Vice-Presidency to become the Treasurer. Since Metcalf
lived in Pennsylvania and Feldt conveniently in St. Louis, Cinnater probably encouraged this
switch, figuring it allowed for quicker, easier communication regarding finances (always an
Association bugaboo); moreover, in real life, Bill was an Auditor for the St. Louis branch of
the American Car & Foundry Co., and so was well-qualified for the position. Feldt retained
his Tournament Chair, but relinquished his Membership Chair to Helene Cinnater.
Present at the Meeting in addition to these officials were Al Scott, President of the St.
Louis District TTA (St. Louis wanted to hold, and would, the 1948 Team Championships and
Womens East/West Matches), and John Varga who, with Bob Bernas resignation, was named
USTTA Executive Secretary. John kept his Ranking Chair, but players eager to see the National Rankings for the 47-48 season (they used to be rushed out right after the Nationals)
had to wait half a year before they appeared in the Jan., 1949 Topics.
The persistent topic of raising the USTTA dues was discussedwith the result that
finally, after 10 years, come Jan. 1, 1949, a USTTA membership would cost not $1 but $2, $1
of which would go towards a Topics subscription. Non-members could get Topics for $1.50 a
year (8 issues). Some manufacturers were complaining about a rise in ad rates, but Editor Bill
Haid said that the magazine had lost an average of $1,500 a year. Following Haids resignation after the Feb., 1949 issue, Bill Price would take over as Editor. At the start of the new
season, the Topics circulation was 3,300though it wasnt clear how many of those copies
actually went to paid members. Or, in fact, if they always received them. Membership Chair
Helene Cinnater complained, You people who do not receive your Topics [or, as in at least
two cases, only the back cover of it], if you are a member, and you are sure that Hdq. has
your correct address, I wish youd squawk to your post office. Helene is praised for her
courtesy and efficiency in correspondence by Stanley H. Borak, once out of favor with N.Y.
table tennis officials, but now Acting Secretary of the NYTTA.*
Funds for the U.S. Team to the Stockholm Worlds would be raised not only by the
Teams exhibitions in Europe, but, as in the past, by USTTA Affiliates assigned a Quota.
Another significant and somewhat controversial change this season would be the
compulsory wearing of all white (to be worn clean and in a dignified mannersport shirts,
no dress shirts) at the sanctioned Eastern, Central, Western and Pacific Coast and National
Tournaments. Varga said he favored commercial advertising (a current no-no with the
256

USTTA) so that more commercial concerns would sponsor table tennis teams and players in
leagues and tournaments. This thought, the E.C. concluded, needed more study.
Aborted Bergmann/Miles Tour
In closing my account of this E.C. Meeting, Ill confirm that the USTTA sanctioned
the upcoming Miles-Bergmann U.S. Tour, and Ill go on now to Dick Dickinsons write-up
of what happened at the one Tour stop covered in Topics. It was quite sensational, said
Dickinson, beginning with the fact that, at the filled to capacity Royal Oak High School
gym, Hundreds of disappointed fans stormed the entrance unable to gain admittance.
It wasnt the superlative display of smashes and drops and 30-foot returns, the practiced ins and outs of the artfully traced steps of Exhibition management so entertainingly
employed by both Champions, that would be detailed in this Oct., 1948 write-up. But there
was enough in Dickinsons rhetoric to brighten the readers eye:
The gym was beautifully decorated with ribbons and banners of two allied
nations. It was the work of Post 1669, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Royal Oak, Mich.,
sponsors of this great event.
The drum and bugle corps made a complete circle around the playing area
before Bergmann and Miles put in their appearance.[As they came in,] they were
perched atop a Detroiter table especially designed with wheels for the occasion by
the Detroit Wood Products. Locomotion of the table was obtained by a bevy of local
beauties harnessed to a silken rope and stepping out with military cadence as they
proudly displayed the two champions. As they passed the speakers stand with the
Stars and Stripes on one side and the Union Jack on the other the applause was tumultuous; the very foundations shook as if an earthquake had struck this little Michigan
town (6).
Miles had told reporter Martin Abramson that he thought this Tour with Bergmann
would net the pair maybe $20,000. But Richards Irish wife, whom hed married in March,
would become critically ill, and hed have to quickly return home.**

Ty and Leah Neuberger

Tournaments Preceding U.S. World Team Selection/Topics Editors Material Suspect

Also apparently returning home for a visit, and
to play in the Sept. 4-5 Columbus, Ohio Open
enroute to the Canadian CNE tournament, was
Leah Thall Neuberger. Married this June to New
Yorker Albert Ty Neuberger, she was ever at the
ready to show off her unique diamond wedding
ring, its two crossed-handle rackets asparkle to all
her admirers at Lawrences and anywhere else in
the world. In the Womens final here in Columbus,
Leah easily beat sister Tybie. Two local sisters
battled it out in the Womens Consolationwith
Joanne Kaylor prevailing in 5 over Mary Landfair.
Don Lasater won the Mens over Garrett Nash
257

whod earlier had to go 5 with Harry Sage. (One up close to the

action might have heard Garrett in mild irritation say, Balls! Or
perhaps it was Ball!as in Concentrate! Watch the damn ball!)
In Toronto a few days later, neither Leah nor Tybie could win
the 16-entry Womensboth were beaten in 4 by Defending Champion Peggy McLean. However, the sisters did have a no-contest win
in the Womens Doubles from McLean and the CTTAs CNE Publicity Chair cum Tournament Hostess, Marge Walden. McLean/Sol
Schiff took the Mixedover Miles/Pauline Robinson, who, surprise,
knocked out Reisman/Leah in the semis, deuce in the 4th.
In the Mens, Miles reached the final, dropping a game to
Arnold Brown. Defending Champ Reisman got there too, but in the
semis was 23-21 in the 4th hard-pressed by Schiff. English Coach
Jack Carrington viewed Sol as a world-class hitter from a late
position (smacks the ball just before it begins to drop), as opposed
Harry Sage
to Reisman who took the ball on the rise. Marty beat Dick, but
though it was obviously a very exciting 17, 16, 19, -24, 15 match, no one commented on it in
print. In the February, 1949 issue (!), Editors Haid and Dickinson finally found space amid all
the official must articles, as Bill called them, for Dick Dickinsons Impressions of this
Sept. 9-11 tournament. About Peggy McLeans matches he had nothing to say; and with
regard to the Miles-Reisman final, he commented only that it was a dilly.
In an Editorial in the Jan., 1949 Topics, Haid says that hes heard that New Yorkers
do not especially like to read TOPICS.Im sorry to hear this he says, as I think that New
York more or less dominates the magazine as is [sic]. (Imagine, he says mindlessly, if every
city [sic] got such coverage, Topics would have to be not a 12-page but a 24-page publication [sic].) In a Letter to the Editor in that same Topics, Dickinson will write that quite a
few of our top-ranking players are a selfish lot. A little more consideration for the novice and
mediocre playerwho are the gun fodder for the big boyswould encourage more people to
participate in tournaments and create a more harmonious atmosphere (7).
Consciously or unconsciously, the 58-year-old Dickinson, who as well see in a moment has worthily fostered awareness of the Game in the little town of Royal Oak, Michigan,
seems to be saying, Why cant Miles, Reisman, and Cartland be more like me? Perhaps
because the Michigan TTA is in the process of reorganizingwith Graham Steenhoven as
President and Dickinson as Vice-PresidentIm reminded of Steenhovens comment to Miles
as he handed Dick his first U.S. Open trophy, I hope you behave like a Champion; and
Miless acid thought as expressed to me, These guys in the Midwest were the real Americans. We were the New Yorkers, the wise guys, the Jews.
On its Jan. cover, Topics would have 4-time World finalist Bo Vana (but no story on
him); on its Feb. cover it would have Associate Topics Editor Ed Dick Dickinson (who
would be the magazines Personality of the Month). Haid and Dickinson worked well
together, mutually admired one another. But, though they tried to be inclusive, they just had
no real rapport or feeling for the better players, didnt make an effort to interview them,
didnt allow the Membership to understand where they were coming from. Issue after issue, in
its selected material, so different from what the English magazines with a savvy writer like
Jack Carrington so familiar with world-class play would offer, showed a gulf between the
professional player and the amateur-minded official. Their different contributions reflected
258

different values and made for different identities. These

defined them, gave them some recognition, and allowed
them a place in the Sport.
Haids last issue is this February, 1949 one. He
cites work and home duties as reasons for resigning.
But surely, because hes done his best, hes been discouraged (I have been trying to find out just what is wrong
with TOPICS). For example, hed initiated a contest:
players were to write a 900-word essay, and the best one
would get a free three-year USTTA membership. But the
players (very bad cooperation and enthusiasm)
wouldnt send in the expected essays. No wonder, then,
TTT, Feb., 1949, cover
we get from Bill himself, reflecting what he wishes were
Ed Dick Dickinson
the traits of every Topics reader, but which are so obviously not, a Personality piece on the amiable, unselfish
Dickinson he sees (who in turn will have nice things to say about Bill following his abrupt
resignation):
Why dont we have more fellows like Ed Dickinson in Table Tennis? Just one
guy like that in each town and I bet our membership would reach the million mark.
Think of it, in a small community like Royal Oak, Michigan, this man has built up a
membership of more than 100 people.
And how has he done it? Merely by sheer work, although it isnt work to
Dickfor he loves the game so.Dick started promoting the game in his basement
having evening sessions with the neighborhood kids. Well, Dicks enthusiasm was
contagious and pretty soon there were so many addicts in the neighborhood[that
Dick] needed to find a larger center where several tables could be set up.Just two
months ago [at this 6-table center] the V.F.W.started a teenage league.[Then
Dick] managed to interest the Sports Editor of the Tribune.
The Royal Oak table tennis club hasnt produced any national champions as
yet, but with such tremendous enthusiasm and so much play, were sure the time is not
far off when we can look to Royal Oak for some of our best players. Not only that, but
in every player out of Royal Oak, well not only see a polished player, but a polished
lady or gentlemen as well. For we know that any young person who comes in contact
with Ed Dickinson is sure to acquire that same sense of sportsmanship and fair play,
the same love of people, the same zest for life that Ed has. For Dick has that magic
trick of giving everyone something of his own personality (3).
Come October, 1949, Editor Bill Price will feature Associate Editor Dick and his
kids in their V.F.W. shirts on the cover of Topics with the caption: Arent they a swell looking
group of kids? And isnt Ed a swell guy? (Dicks teenagers are gonna be into VFWsponsored baseball and bowling leagues too?) But if Haid really believes that Dickinson and
his Royal Oak family will produce some of our best players, I rest my casehe hasnt a
clue what it takes to be a professional.
Now back to New York for the Oct. 2nd, 1948 Bronx Championships. In the Mens, it
appeared that since Reisman had beaten Cartland in 5 in the semis, and was leading Miles 2-0
259

in the final, he would win. Thus Dick couldnt possibly have any excuse as to why hed lost to
Marty in Toronto in that great final (Marty, who prided himself on having played spectacularly
there, said that Dick said, I never want to go through that again). Of course there was that
degrading judging-ring venue, the sights, sounds, and smells of the adjacent fairground animals, to which Miles would never return. But, just as Dick had dropped the first two games to
Morris Chait in the semis and rallied, so he did here in the final against Marty, and so took the
Bronx title in 5.
In the Mens Doubles, Miles/Cartland advanced to the final, as did Reisman and the
visiting German player Arnold Ring, a team that in the semis had 28-26-in-the-3rd barely
escaped Ben Dattel/Cal Skinner. (Ring, I heard, while practicing at the Broadway Courts
wore loose short shortsand no underwear. Which prompted Lawrence to ring out, Good
God, manget a jock!) Leah Neuberger won the Womens from fast-improving Lona Flam
in 4. Simeon Sabre took the Seniors as hed done at the CNE; Sam Salzman finished runnerup. The Junior winner was Irwin Millerover Charlie Post.
For the top Eastern players the Nov. 11-12 N.Y. City Open was the most important
tournament of the fall, for its round-robins would determine who went not only to the
Mens Intercities and the Womens East/West Team Matches but who might go to the
Stockholm Worlds, since very likely our U.S. Teams would be chosen from play there in
St. Louis.
In the Mens round robin, it was almost a foregone conclusion that Miles and
Reisman would have the best recordsand they 6-1 did. Dick beat Marty, but lost to Morris
Chait whod defeated him in the N.Y. Team Tryouts last year. Technically, 5 men were eligible
for the N.Y. Team roster, but perhaps only 3 (whose way was paid?) would go to St. Louis.
Next in line were Cartland and Schiff (4-3). Sols record could have been better, for he lost
deuce in the 3rd to Laci Bellak, and after dropping the 1st to Reisman at deuce forced him into
the 3rd. Cartland was handily beaten by Schiff, but went 3 with Miles and Reisman. Finishing in
a tie for 5th-6th (3-4) were Chait and Cy Sussman whod strongly challenged everyone he
played. Bellak finished 7th (2-5) and Arnold Ring 8th (0-7). An article in a N.Y. paper said
thered be a play-off for the Teamwhich meant that either Schiff or Cartland would go to
St. Louis but not both. However, I have a copy of the Program-leaflet put out by the St.
Louis organizers of the Championships that (perhaps because of the play-off delay) lists Miles,
Reisman, Cartland and Schiff as representing the N.Y. Team.
In the Womens round robin, National Champion Peggy McLean (7-0) had the best
record, but she had only one easy matchwith Bernice Chotras who was back playing this
season. Mildred Shahian (5-2) was down 1-0 and at 24-all in the 2nd to Ruthe Brewer Crist
before winning in 3. Chotras (4-3) split close matches with the New England contenders: she
22-20 in the 3rd survived Mae Clouther, but on losing the 1st 23-21 fell in the 3rd to Shahian.
Clouther, Crist, Reba Monness, and Leah Neuberger (3-4) were all tied. Mae, down 1-0 and
at 23-all in the 2nd, rallied to beat Shahian. Crist played -19, -20 games against McLean. Thus
McLean, Shahian, and Chotras would represent the East.
Really disappointed with their showing had to be last years U.S. World Team members Monness and Neuberger, as well as 47 U.S. World Team member Clouther, all of whom
wouldnt be going to St. Louisthe biggest shock here coming with Crists 19-in-the-3rd win
over Leah. Had Leah won this match shed have been 4-3 tied with Chotras whom she beat
head to head. Had Clouther not lost deuce in the 3rd to Chotras, she, not Bernice, would have
had the 4-3 record and the 3rd Team spot.
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However, undaunted, Neuberger, Monness, and Clouther all played in the Nov. 20
New England Open at the Bridgeport Y. Reba, in advancing to the final, avenged her loss to
Mae at the just-played Tryouts, and Leah, in winning the title, settled last-week accounts with
Reba. In a quarters match with Leah, who should reappearwed last seen her at the 1942
St. Joe Valleybut Mary Baumbach, now Mary Cornwall, whose husband, Richard, had
become President of the 40-member Montclair, N.J. affiliate. In another quarters, I note the
first appearance of future U.S. World Team member Patty McLinn, loser here to Pauline
Robinson whod later be one of those females indirectly criticized for playing in the Juniors,
where, no, she didnt beat the winner, Charlie Post.
In the Mens, in his opening match, Reisman
playeddid it matter? Well, yes, because 36 years later, in a
June 4, 1984 Sports Illustrated article called Reminiscence,
that opponent, one Parton Keese, a Dartmouth fraternity
champ, wrote about his experience. The starting time of the
match was supposed to be 10:30 a.m. but Reisman hadnt
arrived yet and because of the snowstorm and delays it was
announced that first-round matches would be two of three
games instead of three of five.
When Marty finally arrived some time after 11 oclock,
the two went out to play and of course Marty, playing to the
gallery he always had, allowed Keese to win a game that sent
TTT, Nov. 1947, 10
the match into the end-game 3rdwhere quite amazingly, says
Its best of three, Marty!
Keese, Marty totally oblivious to how close he was to
defeatcontinued to make acrobatic returns, taking the ball
between his legs, behind his back or switching his bat from right to left hand in midpoint.
Then, at 19-all, Keese says, he, Keese, got an irretrievable net and was at match point. Alas,
however, someone spoke up to tell Marty he was not playing the customary three out of five,
but two out of three. Reismans protests were to no availhe had to playand his awestruck opponent had to lose. Keese closes his reminiscence by saying that Reisman then
went on to win the rest of his matches easily. In the final, yes, against Frank Dwelly whod
gotten by George Ferris in 5. In the semis,
however, Marty could not have been so
comfortable in the 5th with 1944 U.S. Open
finalist Les Lowry, whod earlier eliminated
Izzy Bellis in straight games.
California Association Growing
Over on the opposite side of the U.S.,
since there was no interaction between
Pacific Coast players with those in other
parts of our vast, then not easily traversable
country, it was impossible to consider anyone
for the U.S. Team, seemingly impossible even
to rank anyone past Omaha (John Hanna and
Don Terry were included in Insufficient
Data). Consequently, though California was a

1950 Pacific Coast Open Program cover

Jane Little and John Hanna

261

USTTA affiliate, it could be no surprise that its players bonded together to have their own
Association. Officers of the California TTA for the 1948-49 season were: John Hanna, President; Abbott Nelson, Vice-President; Chris Seil, Recording Secretary; Beryl Shapiro, Corresponding Secretary; Carl Bartlett, Executive Secretary; Paul Christensen, Treasurer. Other
Executive Committee members were: Frank Nemes, Player Classification and Ranking Chairman; Bob Lupo, Tournament Sanction and Schedule Chairman; and Ed Barnes, Nominations
Chairman.
The Greater Los Angeles Open, held June 12-13
at the Dorsey High School Gym with Hymen Rosenfeld
as Official Referee, saw Tournament Chair and #2 seed
Abbott Nelson win the 68-entry Mens over Bernie
Kleiner whod upset #1 seed Lee Freeman and #3 seed
John Hanna, both in 5. In the Womens, Jane Little had
little difficulty with Mary Reilly.
The L.A. Open had been run at a loss of roughly
$25, but the Golden State Open at L.A.s City College,
Aug. 28-29, was, as Bob Lupo put it in his Topics writeup, the most outstanding tournament ever held on the
West Coast. It had 311 entries, largely because of a
TTT, Oct., 1948, 3
months publicity campaign that included several
Frank Nemes, 1948 California
pictures, cartoons, features and complete coverage in all
Mens Champion
five of Los Angeles leading metropolitan newspapers,
plus complete radio coverage along with interviews on six leading sports programs capped
with a broadcast of Sunday evenings final matches. Movie star Joan Leslie, who enjoyed the
Game and graced the cover of the Oct., 48 Topics, not only presented the prizes, donated by
various civic organizations, including Helms Athletic Foundation, but even refereed some
matches. Lupo praised the eventual Mens winner, Frank Nemes, as the greatest of all California players. In the Womens, Tiny Moss was, as she had been in May, head and shoulders
above runner-up Jane Little.
St. Louis District Tournament
Odd that the results of the Oct. 30-31 St. Louis District tournament, in the Editors
back yard, never found print in Topics. We know it was held though
because Helene Cinnater tells us in her column that Betty Jane
Schaefer won the Womens over Gummels. Helene also shared
a Nash quip with us. During the 5-game semis between Bill
Price and George Hendry, Bill, seeing sweat on the table,
stopped play and hollered for a towel. Nash hollered back,
Why? Do you want to throw it in? Bill might as well
have if he was bent on winning the tournament, for Nash,
using what some errantly call a backhand flick but is
really, Price says, a backhand drive, beat him in the final.
We also learn from Frank Wetzels piece on 12year-old Alphonse Holtman (one of the two Personality
essays Haid was able to print in Topics) that at this District
TTT, Dec. 1948, cover
Open in between a month-long bout of strep throat that
Alphonse Holtman
262

had hospitalized him for two weeks before the tournament and a tonsillectomy that would
hospitalize him immediately afterwardsAl upset #2-ranked U.S. boy Willard Sher. Howd
he do it? On top of every ball, said Wetzel, Alphonse never took a backward step, forcing
always with backhand and forehand drives, and finally out-countering Willard in the closing
points of the fifth game (Dec., 1948, 3).
St. Louis Intercities/East-West Matches
Its just amazing to me: the Intercities and the Womens East-West Matches that will
decide the U.S. Team to the Stockholm Worlds, a Team that every Affiliate is asked to
support monetarily, is played Nov. 27-28 at the DeSoto Hotel in Topics Editor Haids home
town, and when the coverage of it finally comes in the Jan. issue, there is no indication of who
played for the Mens Teams or what their records were. Instead Haidor did he leave the
tournament write-up to Dickinson?gives not equal space but twice that space to vague
talk of Our Gang groups of Michigan kids who want to learn to play table tennis, as well
as a detailed listing of who beat who and by what score in a Royal Oak Membership tournament. Such an incredible lack of perspective, of whats important and whats not, makes it
clear that heor Dickinsonjust has little feel for the Sport. And probably really doesnt
like New Yorkers.
His heading reads, New York Defeats St. Louis in Five Thrilling Matches and
below we see that New Yorks game record for the entire tournament was a thrilling 30-0.
Then he says, the New York representatives: Dick Miles [Outstanding Player], Martin
Reisman and Sol Schiff had earned the right to be on the Team. What about Cartland? Did he
show? If so, he, too, had to be undefeated. The final positions of the remaining teams with
snippets of information from Helene Cinnaters column) were as follows: (2) St. Louis (with
Al Holtman as mascot), 5-1; (3) Chicago, 4-2 (barely beating Detroit and crowd-pleasing
exhibitionist Webb 5-4); (4) Detroit, 3-3; (5) Columbus, 2-4; (6) Indianapolis (without
McClurehed torn ligaments in his shoulder? in his elbow?), 1-5; and (7) Bridgeport, 0-6.
(The Milwaukee team listed in the leaflet didnt show?)
The Womens East-West Matches got 1 and 1/2 inches of space. There was never any
coverage as to how the Westerners qualified, who they beat. But in the final, the East annihilated the West 10-1. Both Peggy McLean [Outstanding Player] and Bernice Chotras defeated
all three Western womenBetty Schaefer, Tybie Thall, and Peggy Ichkoff (Ichkoff was
leading McLean 18-14 in the 3rd, but couldnt get another point). Mildred Shahian defeated
Schaefer and Ichkoff, but lost to Thall. In the two doubles matches, McLean/Shahian defeated
Schaefer/Ichkoff, and McLean/Chotras defeated Schaefer/Thall.
Midwest Winter Tournaments
By mistake Topics sent the St. Joe Valley Open results to Los Angeles. Ill not follow
them there, but go instead to the Dec. 4-5 Chicago Lake States Open. In the Mens,
Holzrichter, who with his brother Gus had just opened, in addition to their store on Devon, a
Pro Sports Shop on Grand, was down 2-1 to Barclay in the semis, but came back to win
easily; then beat Nash in the final in 4. I dont know if Billy was being considered for the U.S.
Team to the Stockholm Worlds, but Nash was. Apparently hed made a big hit with the
English, for he was on the Sept., 48 cover of Table Tennis. Said the identifying caption:
With shaggy-dog haircut and shaggy-dog voice, he sometimes succeeds in making people
think he is not what he certainly isa kindly, intelligent sportsman. Varga took the Seniors
263

(When John served, someone said, hed curl up his

lip and scowl), but his aging protg, Barclay, who in
the Mens had been precariously close to losing to Russ
Niesen before downing Gundlach, dropped the Junior
final to Wally.
In the Womens, Ichkoff beat Shipman after
Millie had upset the #2 seed Specht in 5 in the semis.
But Mary did just fine in Doublestook the Womens
with Ichkoff, and the Mixed with Nash, deuce in the 5th
over Bast/Wilson, a disappointing ending that wasnt
gonna stop them from announcing their engagement
come Christmas.
Perhaps (though the Mens winner received a
17-jewel gold watch) the Jan. 29-30 Central Open in
Milwaukee wasnt considered important enough to be
held during National Table Tennis Week with the other
Zonal tournamentsthe Easterns, Westerns, and
Ralph Bast and Carolyn Wilson
Pacific Coast Opens. Holzrichter won the Mens, beating Barclay in the final. In the Womens, Carolyn Wilson, upset both Specht and in the final
Ichkoff whod downed #3 seed Carlyn Zimmerman (a name you might still draw a Blank on?).
In the Womens Doubles, Ichkoff/Specht won, but not as expected, for Wilson and one
of the Van De Houton twins (Topics couldnt tell which) forced them to 28-26 in the 4th. The
Mixed went to Holzrichter/Spechtover Bast/Wilson. (Best match in this event? Shrout/
Ichkoffs 24-22-in-the-5th snatch from Barclay/Carrol Jaeger (another name to draw a Blank on?).
In the Wisconsin Open at Milwaukee, Holzrichter, as was his habit, gained the final
but then played as if he didnt need another watch. He lost in 4 to V. Lee Webb, whod earlier
crossed off MacCrossen from anyones possible winners list. Dons dad, maker of the famous
MacCrossen bats, still had a Circular he was passing out, and doubtless had acquired quite a
following over the years. He said hed been running his ad in Topics since 1937 (at a cost then
of $12, at a cost now of $40; but that increase was alright, he added, because my bats went
up from $1.30 in 1937 to $6 and $7 today). Ichkoff more or less blanked Jaeger (4, 8, 4!),
then finished off Zimmerman 3-0 to win the Womens.
The Feb. 5-6 Missouri State Open saw 15-year-old Jim Tancill, showing great poise
and confidence, upset #1 seed Nash in the Mens in 5really upset him, for in hushed tones
it was passed round that Garrett broke his bat. Price, down 18-14 in the 5th in the semis to
Lasater, might have been tempted to do the same, but rallied to winthen won the tournament from Gundlach.
Iowas last tournament of the year distributed upsets that, to the winners at the Des
Mones venue, must have seemed as satisfying as unexpected presents at an office Christmas
party. Bill Guilfoil beat Duane Maule and Marland Cutler to win both the Mens and (with
Harry Benson) the Mens Doublesover the current Intercollegiate Champions Oliver
Leighton and Frank Bayless. Helen Baldwin Spann was the hat-trick Champ.
Eastern Winter Tournaments
For the first time in seven years, New Jersey held a State Closed. In the 59-entry
Mens, the host Montclair Y Club crowned John Kilpatrick the Champ for his down 2-1-and264

at-deuce-in-the-4th comeback win over George Ebbe whod upset #1 seed Bill Cross. Mary
Cornwall won the Womens over Jean Gere.
Some highly unusually sightings in Bethlehem at the Feb. 19 Pennsylvania Open. First
off, as player after player goes out to his/her match-table, whos there waiting for them but a
Number Girl. Shell ask you for the player-number youve been given but dont want to
wear, and will pin it on your back and give you a little patfor encouragement. Later,
shell remove the number, congratulate you on your victory or spur you on to try again.
Lucky you if you win a trophy, for reports are theyre unusualfrom Zimpfers Ceramic
Studio, Specialists in Pennsylvania Dutch Pottery. But even if you lose immediately, youll
have something to take homea consolation souvenir.
Such a strange awarddo you suppose 1947 U.S. Champion Leah Neuberger could
find a prominent place for it on her trophy shelves? For,
yes, in the Womens, Leah, the #1 seed, was a 1st-round
loser to unseeded Mary Baumbach Cornwall. Though
only recently returning to competitive play, Mary was
well known to Leah, for it was with her that Leah won
her first National Championshipthe 1941 Womens
Doubles. That was it for Cornwall thoughshe lost in
the next round to unseeded Pauline Robinson, who in
turn lost in the semis to the unseeded winner, Ruth
Millington, back in the mid-to-late 30s the Pennsylvania
State Champion. Runner-up to Ruth was the #3 seed, the
young Harrisburg star, Patty McLinn, whod ousted
N.Y.s hard hitter, the #2 seed, Lona Flam.
In the Mens, #8 seed Izzy Bellis, who back in 1939
had been seeded #1 in the U.S. Open, rallied from two
1949 Pennsylvania Open Womens
games down to eliminate the Defending Champion Morris
Champion Ruth Millington
Chait, then beat Cy Sussman in the final.
Bethlehem TTA President Lillian Caretta, after
being reluctant to face again the pressure she felt at last years past-midnight-ending tournament that landed her in the hospital, has to be commended, along with her Treasurer and
Playing Facilities Chair, Ernest Voros, and Pennsylvania TTA Vice-President Ed Harris, for
persevering to again bring the players to this Christmas City.
SELECTED NOTES.
*See Boraks letters (particular favorites of mine) in my Vol. I, Chap. Eleven, 126-136.
**Id heard that Bergmanns wife died around this time, but a 1970 obituary of Richard said that hed married in 1948 and divorced just over two years later. Ivor Montagu in
his 1970 In Memoriam to Bergmann said Richards marriage was a mistake. It may well
be that though his wife was critically ill she recovered. Or it may possibly be that the Tour
hadnt enough bookings to satisfy Richard and so, with this save-face excuse, he returned to
England. In a July 15, 1948 letter to USTTA Exhibition Chair Phil Kenner, Carl Nidy said his
Des Moines affiliate wouldnt be interested in booking Miles/Bergmann. Our people here,
he explained, are peculiar and it seems they are not appreciative of serious matches but go
more for clowning such as Bellak and Coleman Clark would offer.

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Chapter

Twenty-Six

1949: U.S. Teams Warm-Up Play In

Sweden. 1949: Swaythling Cup Matches. 1949:
U.S. Women Win Corbillon Cup. 1949: World
Singles/Doubles Play: U.S. Competes Well. 1949:
Reisman, McLean Win English Open. 1949: Miles/
Reisman/Cartland Face Disciplinary Action.
As it would turn out, both Schiff (U.S. #3)
and Nash (U.S. # 6) had the opportunity to join
Miles and Reisman as part of the Mens Team to
the Stockholm Worlds, but both begged off the
two-month trip on account of work. The third
man on the Team was therefore Cartland (U.S. # 4)
who, whether hed come to St. Louis for the
Intercities or not, was in line from the East Tryouts
and from the challenging matches hed played
against Miles and Reisman. Also as it would turn
1949 Stockholm Worlds Program cover
out, Chotras declined to make the overseas trip
because she had a 6-month-old daughter, Louise, to
take care of. That left the way open for Tybie Thall, whod defeated Shahian in St. Louis, and
was of course the Defending World Mixed Doubles Champion with Miles.
In a January 24, 1949 Letter to members of U.S.T.T.A. affiliates who have
not[contributed] the full amount of their Fighting Fund quotaincluding those who have
advised me they are not financially able to contribute their quota and others [who] have not
even bothered to advise [me]President Cinnater makes a direct appeal for funds, urges
the affiliates to solicit their individual members. He makes it clear hes arranged a series of
exhibitions with the English T.T.A. and the Swedish T.T.A., in return for which each will
guarantee the USTTA $1,000. Which is one half the money the Team needs.
Of course some individual members have already contributedanything from $.25
(Pennsylvania President Mel Evans, Jr.) to $100 (violinist Jascha Heifetz). A $10 contributor
was Carl Zeisberg, former USTTA President, who had the unhappy duty in the Jan., 1949
Topics of writing the obituary of his friend Tom Bradley, whom he called the Father of
American Table Tennis for his pioneer role in helping to organize the USTTA.
Though the Fighting Fund quota had not been met, Cinnater had authorized the
Teams departure, knowing full well, he said, on what the future fate of our continued representation at these Championships depended. The affiliates had to come through.
Topics said that in Sweden the U.S. Team split into two nearby units. Captain Jimmy
McClure, Reisman, and Tybie Thall played matches in the little fishing town of Gravarne,
where they were presented with beautiful leather-fitted cases. Miles, Cartland, McLean, and
Shahian went to Ljungskile where for their friendly efforts they received gifts of glass vases.
Perhaps Topics has the composition of the units wrong, but, if not, the units had to have been
rearranged and exhibitions carried on elsewhere, for Topics also lists results of matches in
Tibro and Halmstad where only the unit of McClure, Miles, McLean, and Shahian played.
Also, only Miles and McClure are mentioned in the snippet about the tournament at
266

Source: Svensk Bordtennis, Nr. 4, 1950

Swedens best: (left) Tage Flisberg;

(right) Bengt Grive

Norrkoping, won by Swedens

Tage Flisberg, that drew 900
spectators. Further, Reisman has
a convincing story of being on
tour in Sweden with Cartland,
which Ill take up later.
For certain, the Jan. 19 International Match in Gothenburg between Sweden and the
U.S. men (Miles, Reisman, Cartland), played Swaythling Cup style, drew the largest attendance by far. Since match after match in the tie had a 19 or deuce game, the show must have
generated quite a home-crowd response. The U.S. was down 4-1 but rallied to win 5-4 when
Miles beat Bengt Grive, 27-25 in the deciding 3rd game of the 9th and last match. The U.S.
Team later returned to Gothenburg on Jan. 31 for a warm-up tournamentwhich Miles won
over Hungarys Ferenc Sido, 19 in the 4th.
Swaythling Cup Play
Eventually it was on to Stockholm for the Feb. 4-10 Worlds. Favorites to capture the
Swaythling Cup were not only the Czechs, winners the last two years, but the Americans
whod twice lost to them, and perhaps the Hungarians, for, according to Barna, Josef
Koczian, twice a winner over Andreadis this season, was the most improved of all the Continental players. France, Sweden, and England were capable of upsets. Bergmann, the worlds
#1 professional, had decided to represent England both in the Teams and the Individuals
perhaps because some were saying, what to others was absurd, that, since he was out of
practice, he was afraid to play. Of course, having something to prove, he proceeded to win the
pre-Worlds Netherlands Open over Johnny Leach, though at one point being down 18-10 in
the 5th to Frances Michel Haguenauer.
The Swaythling Cup schedule didnt allow the U.S. men much of a gradual toughening-up process. They opened at 9:30 a.m. against Norway, the weakest team in their Group;
then in the afternoon they were given a walkover when Poland didnt show. So how did our
players warm up? They began playing the Hungarians for dollars in the practice room
something McClure didnt think was too smart and eventually stopped, since the U.S. was
scheduled to play Hungary at 7 oclock that evening.
Before this crucial tie with Hungary, Miles jokingly offered to bet that his side would
win. Joke or not, this (and likely another thing or two) so incensed a Hungarian broadcaster
covering the tournament that he aired his wrath publicly by calling the Americans a bunch of
dollar imperialist puppets, reactionaries and betting braggarts. Faced with the threat of being
barred from using Swedish radio if he persisted in using such slander and propaganda, the
broadcaster remained unrepentant, said he would do it again anytime if given an opportunity.
In Cup play last year, Miles had disposed of Sido, 2-0, but then had had 19 in the 4th
trouble with him in the Singles. Here in Stockholm, in the opening match of this key tie, he
lost to him 15 and 13. Cartland (-11, 20, -16) tried to come back against Koczian but
267

couldnt. And when Reisman lost in straight games to Soos, the U.S. was down 3-0. However, Miles took care of Koczian as expected, so if Reisman could win his match with Sido,
we still had a chance. The massive Hungarians heavy racket repeatedly sent the ball thudding
into Martys much lighter one, but Marty had just enough feel to pull out a win, 23-21 in the
3rd. That was all for the U.S. thoughCartland, losing the 1st at deuce, fell to Soos, and
Reisman to Koczian, both two straight. Since Hungary advanced to the final undefeated, it
made no difference that we survived a 5-4 struggle with France and won the rest of the ties
with ease.
Czechoslovakia wasnt tested in its Group, but in the final with Hungary it was far
different. Vana, on outlasting Sido deuce in the 3rd, claimed his needed three matches. And
Ivan Andreadis, though losing to Sido, downed Soos for a Czech fourth. But Koczian,
proving that Barna knew what he was talking about, again outplayed Andreadis, and when
it most counted the veteran Soos deliveredfinished off Vanas Defending World Champion Doubles partner Ladislav Laci Stipek, who earlier, leading Sido 18-12 in the 3rd,
had lost the match that would have made all the difference. Play had been interspersed
with Hungarian war-cries, and after Hungary had won 5-4, a beaming Sido carried
Soos from the table shoulder-high. Small consolationwas it?for Stipek that he
would go on to win the Consolations.
Corbillon Cup Play
In Corbillon Cup play, in Group A, England reached the finalwith Peggy Franks and
Pinkie Barnes winning the big 3-2 ties against France (5-1) and Austria (4-2).
In Group B, U.S. Capt. McClure played McLean and Shahian in the Singles and
McLean/Thall in the Doubles.
Most of the ties were 3-0 easy. We defeated Scotland (4-3), 3-1, when Helen Elliot
could beat Shahian but not McLean. And downed the Czechs (5-2), 3-1, when McLean
won both her matches against Eliska Fuerstova and Kveta Hruskova, and Peggy and Tybie
came through with a cramped but all-important deuce-in-the-3rd doubles win. Then against
Hungary, when Shahian succumbed as expected to Defending Singles Champion Gizi
Farkas, and we dropped the only doubles in the Cup, lost, it would seem, the
lucky dice to our game play, Chance handed us another pair, and, lo, Peggy
rolled, hurled through Farkas to send the tie into the 5th. Which meant
Shahian vs. Rose Karpati.
My arm was petrified, Millie later wrote me. I was scared to death
because I would have been a real goat if I lost after the magnificent effort of
Peggy. But Karpati played with tears streaming down her face because
Farkas had lost to McLean. And to be honest, Millie admitted, Karpati
was not too good, so when I managed to win the first game at deuce, the
second was easy. (Karpati wasnt too bad either. In the 51 Worlds, she
and Koczian would lose in the semis of the Mixed in 5 to the eventual
n
ahia
h
S
e
winners, Vana/Rozeanu.)
Milli
In the final, against England, after Shahian had lost two close games to
Franks, Peggy overpowered Barnes, then with Tybies crucial help gave us a deuce-in-the3rd doubles win. After which, up 1-0 on Franks and at deuce in the 2nd , Peggy again held
on, as she had against Farkas, to win for the U.S., for the second and last time, the
Corbillon Cup.
268

1949 Hungarian World Mens Swaythling Cup Champions, L-R:

Ferenc Sido, Ferenc Soos, and Josef Koczian.
1949 U.S. World Womens Corbillon Cup Champions, L-R:
Thelma Tybie Thall, Millie Shahian, and Peggy McLean.

269

Mens Singles
In the Mens Singles
(before Soos, taking
advantage of the time-limit
rule, eliminated Defending
Champ Bergmann in the
quarters), both McClure
and Cartland lost tough
2nd-round matchesJimmy
to Swedens Arne Anderson, deuce in the 5th, and
Doug, -20, -20, 5, -15 to
his friend Alex Ehrlich,
Polands wily 3-time preWorld War II finalist, and
afterwards even wilier concentration
camp survivor. Miles, described as
being frail, monk-like, was defeated in the quarters, as he had
been in 48this time by Barnas
dark horse for the title, Leach,
26-24 in the 5th (after having had
two match points). Of psychological
interest is the fact that in the Feb.,
49 English Open Souvenir
Programme in an article (written
before Dicks match with Johnny at
the Worlds) entitled The Lonely
Men In The Middle, Leach described Miles as a little drawn, as if something inside was
getting tied up in knots (7).
Miles must have broken a leg if he lost to Leach, Eddie Pinner, a future USTTA Hall
of Famer himself, said when New Yorkers heard the news. But it wasnt Dicks leg that did
him in, it was his armdown match point he missed a hangar. Of course I ought to add that
English International Stanley Proffitt did write that Leach, whod eliminated Sido in the 8ths,
retrieved shots in a manner that amazed not only the crowd but Miles himself.
After Dick was beaten, Cartland gave him 5-1 odds that Leach wouldnt win the
tournament, and Dick accepted. Johnny then went on, by way of two more grueling matches,
to take the title. He had a 5-game semis win over Soossomething more for Miles to muse
over, since Dick told me, I could give Soos 3 or 4 in the practice room, Reisman could give
him 5 [Maybe, but Marty lost to him in the Teams]. Then Johnny beat Vana, a finalist at four
of the last five Worlds, whod been down 2-1 in the quarters to Frances Guy Amouretti.
So it was left to Reisman on these (slow? slippery?) tables to distinguish himself, and
he did, up to a pointhad wins over Yugoslavias Darko Zolinar, destined to be a World
finalist in both Singles and Doubles in the mid-1950s, and Max Marinko, who 9 years later
hed beat in the final of the U.S. Open. In the quarters, Marty met Barnas pre-tournament
pick as Champion, Andreadis, whom he had lost to in the Teams last year. So what happened
Table Tennis, February, 1949, cover

Englands 1949 World Mens

Champion Johnny Leach

Dick Miles

270

this year? Reisman won three zip, 18, 13, 17. Then, in the semisif only Marty had won that
first 23-21 game against Vanabut he didnt, and that ended his great run. Still, no American
man to this day has ever gotten further in the Singles.
Leach, having survived Miles and Soos in 5, also proved durable against Vana, beat
him 17 in the 5th. Thus he became at 25 the new World Champion, the first native-born Englishman in 20 yearssince Fred Perry did it in 29to win the title.
Womens Singles
A 1st-round surprise in the Womens Singles: McLean departed docilely, scored only
44 points, against Hruskova whom shed beaten 2-0 in the Teams. Oh, well, the loss did
allow Peggy to win another World Championshipthe Consolations over Waless Audrey
Bates. Hruskova went on to play like, well, a world-beatershe defeated Elliot with ease in
the quarters, then, ohh, 18-in-the-5th eliminated our Tybie, whod advanced to the semis with
a 5-game victory over Frances Jeanne Delay. Millie, meanwhile, met in the 8ths the Czech
Fuerstova and lost a heartbreaker, 20, 18, -12, -18, -21. In the next round, former World
Champion Trude Pritzi would be too steady for Fuerstova. And almost too much for Farkas,
until Gizi, having scored 12 points in each of the first two games, wised upand, to jeers
and cat-calls, won the next three games with a total of 15 points: 8-1, 4-3, and, again after
20 minutes, 3-0. McClure said that while Pritzi and Farkas played one point, Reisman and
Vana played their whole match. In the final against Hruskova, Farkas again lost the 1st two
games, then won the next three under 10. She was very talented of course, but impulsive,
needed to be reigned in, coached? By 1951, according to Ron Craydon of the English
Swaythling Cup Team, Gizi would be the brainiest player in the game. By 1951, that is.
No sooner had 22-year-old Farkas won the Singles Championship for the 3rd straight
year than she burst into tears. Tears of happiness? Alas, not, rather just the oppositeshe was
arrested! As Time magazine put it:
As with her other compatriots, Gizis excursion this side of the Iron Curtain
was an occasion for stocking up on nylons, watches, lightersall the paraphernalia of
the bourgeois West [Reisman in The Money Player says he was interested in stocking
up on such things too]. She was so awe-struck at the sight of Swedish abundance that
she had bagged a handsome wool jacket without paying for it. Ive never seen such a
beautiful thing before, she admitted. I just couldnt resist it.
Gizi, previously hailed by Szepesi (the anti-American broadcaster) for her moral
superiority over her fellow contestants, was quickly and ignominiously packed off to Hungary by plane (February 21, 1949, 29).
Doubles Play
In Mens Doubles, Reisman partnered McClure, and after rallying to beat the English
team of Aubrey Simons/Ron Sharman, they fell in 4 to the Harangozo brothers, Vilim and
Tibor. Dick paired with super-steady Cartland (whom he ranked among the top 8 players in
the world), and, winning deuce games against Sido/Soos, Ehrlich/Adolph Slar, and Amouretti/
Haguenauer, they reached the semis, where they went down, -13, -22, 14, -8, to the winners
Andreadis and Frantisek Tokar. Miles tells the story of how at one point (in the second
game?) Tokar serves a net ball, which Dick deliberately lofts up to indicate a let, only to see
271

Andreadis come in over the table and kill it. Dick says to the umpire, The serve hit the top of
the net. When the umpire ignores him, Dick addresses Andreadis, Ivan, he says, the ball
hit the top of the net. This is true, says Andreadis, but we need the point.
In case youre wondering, Dick did pay Andreadis that $100 bet hed made that the
48 Worlds would be his last. Losses rankle winners, but they always return for more of them.
In Womens Doubles, it didnt seem possible but Peggy and Tybie, seeded #2, met
disaster in the 1st roundwere upset by the Welsh pair of Audrey Bates and Nancy Evans,
wife of future ITTF President Roy Evans. At least Millie, with Trude Pritzi as her partner,
won a match. And no disgrace losing in the 2nd round to Farkas/Elliot, for there was no team
in the field, including Englands finalists Barnes/Joan Crosbie, remotely comparable.
In 1st-round action in the Mixed, Leach/ Franks knocked out Defending Champs Miles/
Thall in 5. Four rounds later this English pair would be beaten in the semis by the eventual
winners, Sido/Farkas, whod started with a win over Cartland/Shahian. Reisman/McLean,
after besting Soos/Karpati in the quarters, were stopped in the semis by the Czech runnerups Vana/ Hruskova.
English Open
On then immediately to the English
Open where, as in the
Worlds just completed,
the ITTF had finally
decided to seed players
on a merit basis (before,
theyd merely separated
competitors from the
same country, and if the
two best players in the
world met in the first
round, so be it.)
Miles, Reisman,
Cartlandall on Schiffs
World Top 10 list. Did
they think of themselves
as amateurs or professionals? Easy to judge that, huh?
Dick, continually unhappy with his accommodations, voiced his objections to the
London Press: Well never win the mens singles title the way we go at it. We dont have
enough money to do the job right. Elaborating, he speaks, first, of the exhibitions the Team
put on in Sweden: Our association sold us to the sponsoring association for $1000 to help
pay our expenses there by ship and the Swedes collected $6,000 out of our exhibition tours.
Even though we drew full houses nearly every night, we stayed in the cheapest hotels. Then
he speaks of the hospitality arrangements here in London: Players had meal tickets at a
restaurant, but I could only go [sic: apparently the English reporters interpolation for the
American idiom stand] one meal. Last night Marty Reisman collapsed in his hotel and the
doctor said he needed more sugar. So Miles and Reisman took it upon themselves to leave
272

the hotel the English had billeted them in and move to a better one, and, regardless of the
repercussions that might follow, bill the English TTA. And since the Americans were of
course among the top drawing cards, what could the English dodefault them? Hardly.
You have put a gun to our heads, said C. Corti Woodcock of the Championships Committee.
This 49 English Open was sweet for Reisman. In a 5-game quarters he upset 3-time
World semifinalist Ehrlich (described as ferociouslike an
animal). Then (in a match where spectators clapped at the
removal of an umpire after the first game) he beat Miles in
the semis, also in 5. Englands Table Tennis Review, the rival
publication to the official ETTA one, Table Tennis, said,
The younger American stood practically flat-footed hitting
from both wings with amazing accuracy, whilst Miles
chopped viciously, only occasionally cracking a forehand
(Mar.-Apr., 1949, 20). This win would prompt Lawrenceshabitue Dave Hartman back home in N.Y. to circulate his
parody of William Blakes famous poem The Tiger. Dave
dedicated it to his friend Reisman, and one can see why:
Miles, Miles, always tight
Choking every Friday night.
What boy fire red knocked
Thee in Wembley dead?
When Reismans bat bangs
Down the ball and plasters
You against the wall, do
Your backers smile to see,
Did he who made the
Hawk make thee?

1950 English Open Programme, 7

3-time World Mens runner-up

Alex Ehrlich

Coming out to meet Marty in the final was the ageless Barna, victor over Michel
Lanskoy, a Frenchman who couldnt have heard the few lone voices cheering for him there at
Wembley because he was stone deaf.* As may be seen in Bobby Gusikoffs Legends tape,
Marty, pirouetting returns, outlasted the 38-year-old Barna in 5 (after losing, to tumultuous
applause, the 3rd from 20-15 up). Said a writer for Table Tennis:
At present he [Reisman] seems to ignore his opponent, playing a private little
game all his own with the ball. [Being up] 20-15 to Marty is a chance to hit 5 off the
tableunless it is the fifth game, when he seems to concentrate for the first time in the
match.
His outward appearance of judicial calm is belied by frequent ear-shattering
yells, discussions with the spectators, and self-exhortations. Whether these are spontaneous, to release tension, or just part of the act we cannot say.
Until we know the impish young man with the interesting new technique better,
we shall have to ask, in his own language, Who are you kidding, Marty?
(reprinted in TTT, May, 1949, 9).
273

Winning the Mens

Singles at this prestigious
tournament, something no other
American has ever done, was
perhaps Martys greatest accomplishment. Back home it
earned him two sentences in the
unsigned Overseas News
column on page 9 of the April
Topics.
The Mens Doubles was
an all-England finalwith
Barna/Bergman besting Leach/
Jack Carrington. The Womens
Doubles went to McLean/Thall
over Englands Franks and
animated Junior Girls Champ
Adele Wood, whom Millie had
found smashing as aboard
ship coming from the Worlds to
England she went cavorting
about the deck singing and
dancing.
Small stuff, Im sure to
Miles, but he and Tybie did win
the Mixedvia the semis over
Leach/Franks, whod beaten
1950 English Open Programme, 7
them off the bat at the Worlds,
1949 English Open Champion Marty Reisman
and in the final, 23-21 in the 5th,
over teammates Reisman/
McLean whod advanced by beating Barna/Elliot.
The U.S. womens appearance in London prompted Peggy Allen, an Englishwoman, to write an article, Those American Girls! in the Mar.-Apr., 1949 issue of Table
Tennis Review, which would introduce them to her readers. Tybie had fancied that in
contrast to Reismans pretty boy appearance, Dougs hair when it came forward and
down made him look like the devil (a comparison unconsciously prompted by some
other aspect of Dougs person or personality?). Now we learn, what we already knew, that
this Thelma Thall, who works as a typist and bookkeeper for a firm of real estate agents,
has the nickname Tybie, and learn what we didnt know, that the name is a combination
of two Hebrew words meaning dove and devil. Says Allen, nothing could be more
apt (24).
Allen describes Boston secretary Shahian as having very dark eyes with wonderful
thick, black lashes, a pale skin and the loveliest shade of blue-black hair which falls in thick
natural waves on her shoulders. Never in her wildest dreams had Millie visualized such a
wonderful venue as Wembley, and whereafter her play in Stockholm she was World #10
there were boys and girls who wanted her autograph.
274

Allens take on World #2 McLean? As follows:

She has a dry sense of humour, an insatiable curiosity regarding English
ideas and methods and in order to acquire the correct slant on English life perused
the London Times with great interest during her stay in London.
She is twenty-two but looks sixteen, has a loveable, elfin face and the most
beautiful teeth you ever sawI cant help feeling that a certain firm of toothpaste
manufacturers, well known for their pun adverts, missed a wonderful opportunity
thereespecially in view of her surname! [English aficionado Ron Crayden will
actually write her name as McClean.]

1954 U.S. Open Program

1949 English Open Womens Champion Peggy McLean

Hitherto she wore her hair almost straight and shoulder length, but having seen
Suzy Barnas [Victors wifes] new short haircut and having a great desire to look her
age, we made a special trip to Suzys own hair-dresser at Pinner where her locks were
shorn, shampooed and set in the new gamin hairstyle. When she emerged from the
dryer we were enchanted with the result, it really did suit her beautifully, but as for
looking olderwell, she had only succeeded in making herself look younger and more
cuddlesome than ever! (23).
275

In the Womens quarters, Thall, down 2-1 and

at 22-all in the 4th, had a gutsy win over Pinkie Barnes
whod amused our three girls by reading one or more
of their palms. But then in the semis, suffering from a
strained foot muscle, Tybie was no match for McLean.
Millie also had a good quarters win, took out Franks,
whom the Americans likedat least when she was
smiling or laughingbut then she couldnt beat Elliot
in the semis. McLean won the Womensrouted
world quarterfinalist Elliot in the final. But Helen was
in no mood to play. Only hours earlier, shed been
informed that Peter Coia, the Scottish TTA President
1948 Wembley World Championships
whod helped advance her career, had died in a plane
Programme, 14
crashthis after hed said regretfully that business
1949 World Womens Doubles Champion
demands had to take precedence over Helens urgings
Helen Elliot
that he remain in London to watch her final.
One last exhibition for the U.S. Team remainedin Southampton on Feb. 25. For a
moment or two, though, the players must have thought that, Exhibition or no Exhibition, they
had a higher prioritynot to miss their steamer. Apparently they were asked to cut it very
close, for according to the ETTAs Table Tennis they were scheduled to be on court in
Southampton until an hour before their S.S. America set sail for New York! (Feb., 1949, 7).
Miles, Reisman, Cartland Face Disciplinary Action
En route home, Miles, Reisman (advertised in Southampton as a young man who
doesnt mean a ball to come back when he hits it), and Cartland (for some reason, according
to the Southampton Program-leaflet, he and Shahian hadnt been scheduled to play there)
received word that disciplinary action was going to be taken against them. Doug had remained
in the London hotel originally assigned him, and so couldnt be faulted with Dick and Marty
on that, but both the Swedish and English Associations were protesting that all three players
hadnt honored all their exhibition commitments and ought to be punished. Reisman, for one,
swore that he didnt renege on a single exhibition. Cartland, Im sure, swore too. He probably
felt hed already been punished enough in Sweden having to give all those exhibitions, and
word was that he was trying to get out of doing any more of themhad, in fact, made sure
hed received a telegram saying that his mother was sick.
The Sept.-Oct., 1949 issue of the Table Tennis Review said that the Swedish Association had made it clear to the USTTA that their representatives had acted deplorably. McClure
said that when the U.S. Team arrived in Sweden, 20-25 people came down to the docks to
welcome them, and that when they left only Corti Woodcock of the English Association bid
them farewell. Also, in some peoples eyes, the fact that Miles and Reisman had been quite
openly betting at the English Open under the noses of officials made them a ruddy nuisance
who spoiled the atmosphere of the tournament. It did not seem likely that theyd be treated
in world-class fashion at home either.
SELECTED NOTES.
*Lanskoys advice to hard-of-hearing players is, Dont Let It Worry You. See his
article in Table Tennis, Dec., 1949. 9.
276

Chapter

Twenty-Seven

1949: Miles, McLean Win Easterns, 1949:/ Appearance of Bobby Gusikoff. 1949:
Price/Gummels Best In Westerns. 1949: Abbott Nelson/Jean Rose Conquer Pacific Coast.
1949: Miles/Neuberger National Champions. 1949: USTTA Expansion? 1949: 3rd All-American Novice Championships. 1949: Miles, Reisman, Cartland Suspended.
No sooner had the S.S. America carrying the U.S. Team members home from Europe
docked in New York than some of them were whisked off to the Springfield, Massachusetts Y
for the Mar. 5-6 Easterns. In the Mens, Cartland, on advancing to the semis, defaulted to
Reismananother action USTTA officials would deem detrimental to table tennis and hold
him accountable for. Miles of course also advanced through the semis, with a straight-game
win over Frank Dwelly whod earlier almost been upset by Western Massachusetts Champ
Charles Forant.
For the first three games of the final, Dick and Marty put on a spectacular match
with defending Champ Reisman (-17, 19, 20) taking a 2-1 lead. But then, strange, Marty was
anything but fire-red (that is, hot), as hed been at Wembley; he just (-6, -9) collapsed. So
who was the wimp now?Im reminded of the question I believe Freddie Borges asked Dick,
Whats your definition of an extraordinarily talented player? (Freddie was probably thinking
of Marty.) Dick replied, One who, when he gets out of position, can still always make the
shot. Can you do that? Freddie asked. Im never out of position, said Dick.
Ironically, Marty played Doubles with his friend, the parodist Hartman, while Miles
playedand wonwith his friend Eugene Fately. Gene was someone whod make such an
impression on Miles that, beginning four decades later, Dick would spend 10 years building a
novel around him.
In the Womens, McLean, high after her Corbillon Cup and English Open successes,
but perhaps more than a little fatigued by her sea-crossing home, found just enough will to
win a 23-21-in-the-5th final from Neuberger.
The Juniors went to the Bronxs Abbott Glasser who struggled by Dave Dreifus in 5
in the semis and Angelo Gutierrez in 4 in the final. It was the Boys runner-up at this, his first,
tournament, however, who among the young players of the day History would most remember. Bobby Gusikoff, born Mar. 28, 1936, was brought up in a very musical family. His
mothers father, Bohumil Kryl, had played the cornet for John Philip Sousa; his mother was a
very accomplished pianist, and his father a noted violinist and symphony orchestra conductor.
But there would be no performance-concerts in Bobbys futurenot after his father had taken
him to Lawrences that fateful night; from then on you could trace his footsteps, here, there,
to a different kind of playing hall. Not quite 13, Gusikoff lost to Springfields George
LaPierre, U.S. #2 in the Boys this season. Bobby remembers coming home on a New York
subway that evening, holding in his lap the little 4-inch trophy hed received. Half a century
later, on receiving the USATT Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement Award, he told us from his
wheelchair he still had it, though by then it didnt look as it used tothe handle on one side
was missing.
Price/Gummels Best in Westerns
St. Louis players dominated the Mar. 5-6 Western Open at Des Moines. Bill Price
won the Mens with relative ease. He defeated, from the quarters on, Bill Early, Don
277

Lasater, and
Garrett Nash.
Joan
Gummels,
whom Price
coached at
tennis as well
as table
tennis, won
the
Womens
over #1 seed
Peggy Ichkoff
whod been
down 2-1 to
L.A.s Tiny
Moss. Tiny,
who I presume had
come back to
Minnesota to
visit family
and friends,
probably was
given a ride
down from St.
Paul by her
Photo by Jack Gould,
mentor
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Feb. 16, 1947
Litman who
1949 Western Mens Winner
had a car
Bill Price
dealership
there. Topics
reported that Max Godden, Chair of the
Directors of the Omaha Table Tennis Club,
and at least 10 other Omaha players, including Jerry Kaufman, President of the Club,
didnt play in the tournament because they
didnt want to wear the mandatory white
outfits:

TTT, May, 1947, cover

1949 Western Womens Winner Joan Gummels

We play table tennis for fun in

Nebraska, declared Godden. White uniforms would make the sport too expensive.
We also feel that the sport should be conducted for participants and not spectators
(Apr., 1949, 7).
278

Abbott Nelson/ Jean Rose Conquer Pacific Coast

At the Pacific Coast Open,
held in Long Beach, Abbott
Nelson won the Mensupset
Frank Nemes in 5 in the semis,
then followed through, 15 in the
5th, to down Oaklands Paul
Capelle. In the Seniors, San
Franciscos Lee Butler sent
Hollywoods Milt Forest, credited
with initiating the 4-cent airmail
postcard, on his way, then endgame snatched away the title from
local star Bill Bower. Vancouvers
Jean Rose, the Womens winner,
found each late-round match a
little harder: first, she beat Pat
Crowley in 3; then Mary Reilly in
4 (earlier Mary had given t.t. a
boost by appearing on Groucho
Marxs Elgin Program); and finally
San Franciscos Terry Allen in 5.

1949 Pacific Coast

Mens Champion Abbott Nelson

Miles/Neuberger National
Champions
It was April Fools Day at
the 1949 New York Nationals
the more so for Omahas Corporal
Bob Ferguson, coming all the way
from Fort Crook, Nebraska, who thought the Thurs.-Fri.-Sat. tournament started on Friday
and who, alas, was defaulted. Such a mix-up reminds me of a couple of lines in one of Helene
Cinnaters This N That Topics columns from which Im always pilfering.
Yknow how names are listed in phone books, last names first. The Army
supply dept had the following listed: Pong balls, ping (Apr., 1949, 12).
Better Ferguson had hooked up with Don Hassler whod chartered a bus for
25 mid-westerners direct from Indianapolis to the N.Y. Arena and back ($21
round-trip)no joke, some real savings there.
Focused at St. Nicks, amid the 190 or so players, many of them
come to socialize, was of course Miles, trying for an unprecedented 5th
straight Singles title. Dick advanced to the final with easegiving up only
40 points to #8 seed Somael in the quarters (Johnny having shakily gone 5
earlier with Milwaukees Dick Peregrine), and only 32 to #4 seed Pinner in
the semis (after Eddie ran to the point of exhaustion against Bellak in a 5game quarters). Biggest upset in this half? N.Y.s Bob Wilkenfeld over #9
seed Izzy Bellis.
Bob Ferguson
279

On the other side of the draw, Reisman, perhaps playfully (rule was: only 1 minute warmup prior to a match), dropped a game to chiseler Arnold Fetbrod in the 8ths. It was for both
Fetbrod and Ty Neuberger, even more than for Reisman or anyone else, that Topics prior to these
Nationals had not only implored, PLEASE DO NOT GAMBLE, but had threatened,
Gambling is prohibited by the laws of the City of New York and by the National ruling of the U.S. Table Tennis Association. Not only will you open yourselves
to penalty by the Association, but also to arrest by any of the legal city authorities who
will be represented at the Tournament (Mar., 1949, 10).
Fetbrod and Neuberger were not impressed. At a June 11 E.C. Meeting, the USTTA would
suspend both of them indefinitely.
Of course St. Nicks was not Lawrences where, despite Herwalds sense of decorum,
disruptions in the heat of a wager could occur. New Yorks Mitch Silbert remembered seeing
a fuming Cartland thrust his foot through the closest table-side barrier, while Pagliaro, not to
be outdone, soon slashed out just as furiously with his racketprompting from the proprietor
an I say old chaps, you must stop this nonsense. Yeah, yeah, came the response mid
continuous play, well pay for it. For more than an unusual show of rowdiness at
Lawrences though, for real lowdown vulgarity, youd have had to see Ty Neuberger in a
nasty fit of pique overturn table after table until an astonished George Ferris collected himself
and threatened Ty with bodily harm if he didnt Pick up that table!
Neuberger, some said, was not a nice fellow. But, ah, Reismanthe St. Nicholas
Arena Open Program described him as a charming and likeable personality, with a keen sense
of humor, that he gives rein to even in his tournament play. However, that view of him, as
well see in a moment, would be challenged. Reisman had eliminated McClure in straight
games in the quarters. (Earlier, Jimmywith the Expedite Rule coming in when he was down
16-14 in the 5thhad 26-24 squeaked by Ferris.) But Martys semis opponent, #3 seed Schiff,
had been having his 5-game troublesfirst with Barclay, then with #6 seed Nash.
According to former U.S. Team Captain Price, Miles, Reisman, Schiff, Nash all used
rackets ranging from slow to very slowto give them added control. Marty at this time used
a 4 and -ounce batNobody used a bat that light, he told meand of course he had the
reputation of having perhaps the hardest-hit forehand in the world. The ball came off my
racket with a tremendous explosion was the way he put it, but I found out too late that if
Id have used a 5 and ounce racket, which I later switched to, Id have hit the ball even
harder and the ball would have carried its speed a few more feet. Which, he reminisced,
might have allowed him to beat Bergmann.
Since Nashs rankinghed be #3 this seasonwould scarcely have changed from
the #2 ranking hed held 10 years earlier, maybe Garretts play hadnt been so wild after all,
maybe it had been stronger and steadier than many thought? And maybe now Reisman had
inherited Garretts bad boy image? For it seemed to some that Reisman, in his 8,
12, 16, 17 semis match with Schiff, was playing a private little game all his
own, and that ones query to him should have been, Who are you kidding,
Marty?
Heres Topics Editor Price complaining about what he saw as
Reismans almost unbelievable bit of chicanery against one of the
nicest guys to ever swing a paddle:
280

 Schiff had a very hot first game and ran through Reisman very easily, 21-8.
Now Reisman knows that a hot Schiff remains hot for only so long and that a half hour
wait is almost sure to cool him off. So he made Schiff wait for a half hour. How did he
get away with it?We all know that a five minute rest period is permitted players
between the third and fourth games but none is allowed at any other time. Reisman
had an excuse of sorts, the rubber was allegedly peeling off his paddle and he had to
have it repaired! Why he didnt take care of this before the match is controversial,
perhaps he was prepared for such an emergency as a Schiff playing his top game, or
perhaps he planned to lose the first game and then stall for quite a while, while his
colleagues went about the crowd making more bets at better odds. One thing we do
know, Marty has been playing with his racket in that shape ever since he left for
Europe, for luck.
In any case, it was a beautiful sight watching the officials looking benignly
down from their boxes at Reismans shenanigans and doing absolutely nothing about
it. They also could not have helped watching the unusually heavy betting going on.
Why this was permitted is another mystery, and made their no betting rule pretty
laughable. I dont know, from where I sit it looks as though this game is controlled by
a very few, very shady characters, and if something isnt done about it some of us are
going to take our leave (May, 1949, 7).
I myself find some of Prices comments suspectparticularly his claim that the
game is controlled not in good measure by his fellow St. Louis officials but by a very few,
very shady characters. Thats ridiculous. Also, if, as Price says, Reisman, ever since going
off to Europe, had been playing with a peeling-rubber racket, likely he hoped he could
continue to play well with it? Until Schiff beat him badly that first game. Then he didnt
think he could play well enough with it, and, as Schiff was having a good day, he needed
to play well, and so felt the need to glue down his rubber? And perhaps he did have the
thought to cool Schiff off?
Reisman should have had a back-up racket, but didnt? So what now were the New
York officials to do? Tell Marty he had to playwith that peeling-rubber racket or a borrowed one if necessary? Otherwise hed be defaultedwhen obviously all New York was
looking forward to him playing not only Schiff, but hopefully Miles in the final? Was New
Yorker Schiff, Reismans Doubles partner, acquiescent to the delay, or did he protest? How
long was the expected wait? How long the actual wait before Martys newly-glued racket was
ready? Had Price just cause, from past experience, to assume that Marty (whom for whatever
reason he didnt like?) deliberately used what Price called a ruse?
One spectator, call him X, obviously an uninitiate, wrote to Topics that he was soured
on the tournament because the top stars did not wear a number on their back like Joe Doaks
did, and also because a few of the top stars were allowed to practice while the tournament
was in progress, so it was even tougher to tell what was going on all the time. (Starsthis
fellow makes the further distinction top stars, those players X and everyone else have come
to seeought not to be distinguished (and therefore given any extra consideration) from Joe
Doakes except by a number who tells X who these top stars are, or at least what their names
are?) The fellow was even more put out, and justly so, when apparently the delay of the
Schiff/Reisman afternoon match forced him to wait almost an hour to get in to see the
[separate session, evening] finals (TTT, May, 1949, 6).
281

Talk to Marty more than half a century later about this racket controversy,
and hed tell you that such a supposed ruse was bullshit, was beneath him
hed never stall, always wanted to get to the table and prove himself. It was just
too awkward trying to hold his forefinger over the peeling rubber, so he asked
the blind umpire, Chuck Medick (Chuck said he could now see shadows), to
allow him time to glue the racket. Reismans friend Hartman then went out to
get rubber cement, but couldnt find it at the nearby five-and-dime store, so the
gluing took more time than expected. Schiff certainly objected to the delay, but Marty
didnt have a back-up racket, wouldnt think of having one, for it would be like having mismatched gloves.
Miles felt the same way. With the old hardbat rackets, he said, you used your
rubber for years. Then, occasionally, you took a big chance and changed it. By this time the
center spot on your racket consisted of all black pips, and likely these pips had started to go.
The worst thing, though, was to see ball marks around the perimeter of your racket. Then
youd say, My god, look how Im playing!
This supposed ruse incident reminds me of two earlier matches, both involving
Schiff. In the first, Sol and McClure, down 15-10 in the 5th, in their 1938 World Doubles final
against Barna and Bellak (see Vol. I, Chap. 27), deliberately stalled for time, feigned a possible ankle injury to Schiffand turned the game, match, and historic title in their favor.
In the second, 1943 U.S. Open Champion Billy Holzrichter was leading Sol 17-13 in
th
the 5 in the 47 Nationals when Billy, on catching the edge of the table with his racket,
sheared the rubber loose from his blade, and had to stop the match. Here at St. Nick Arena
Reisman sent out for glue, but in 47 Holzrichter was helped by another player who had some
glue conveniently at hand. Still, its as if Billy proved the truth of what esteemed bat-maker
Bernie Hock in a June, 1985 letter to Houstons Buddy Melamed would saythat players
who claim they can change bats or even pick up more or less anything and play their best with
it, without several months practice, are 2 to 5 points off of their game without realizing it.
Billy said that when he continued, it was as if he had a different paddle, and he lost his lead
and the match. Surely its questionable that Reisman deliberately planned ahead of time to
stall if necessary and play with a newly glued racket. Even Marty ought to be deemed innocent until proven guilty.
Clearly, in this Schiff-Reisman match, and in the two Im reminded of as well, psychological factors were introduced. And maybe in the Miles-Reisman final too, for when Marty
played and lost to Dick, 3-0, it appeared to most observers that Marty erred in
allowing[Dick] to take the offense too often. At any event, Reisman, perhaps a little
distracted by some of the bad vibes his unwarranted delay had generated, was not at his best
when he needed to be, his altered racket now unable to retain its luck (for only in the 2nd
game, from 12-18 down to 20-19 up, did he threaten to swing the match in his favor).
One of the most exciting matches of the tournament was the final of the Mens Consolation, won by Irving Whitey Sheraga (a late entrythough supposedly late entries werent
acceptedwhose name doesnt appear in the Program draw) over Marv Shaffer, 26-24 in the 5th.
In Mens Doubles, three-time Champions, Eddie Pinner and Cy Sussman, almost won
again, for in the semis they stopped Miles/Bellak in the 5th before falling to Schiff/Reisman
(obviously getting along together) in the final in 5a final, incidentally, where one of the ball
boys in the court was caught off guard, being more interested in reading the funnies than
catching any bounding ball.
282

Id mentioned the noted

artist/illustrator Gus Rehberger
before, but now, because he was
acknowledged in the 49 Open
Program as having designed
the cover, we learn a little bit
more about him. Turns out he
was a sergeant in the U.S.
Air Force, and that in 1944
his war paintings were
exhibited in Londons NaTTT, Feb., 1942, 14
tional Gallery. His work,
Gus Rehberger
which he enjoys doing while
addictively listening to Beethoven, had been featured in
such prominent magazines as Colliers, Coronet,
and Esquire (the July, 1949 issue would call him
the Hemingway of Painters). And just recently
hed won the first prize for the Most Creative
Painting in the national Audubon Artists Exhibit held
Drawing by Gus Rehberger
in New York (3).
Miss Table Tennis
This Seniors was something of an historic event.
Former USTTA President/Editor Carl Zeisberg showed up, rolling his own cigarettes, and
regretting, as he watched the matches, what a mistake hed made back in the 30s urging that
the net be lowered to 6 inches:
the low net forces players to remain close to the table and deprives spectators of seeing one player driving off both corners of the table[and the other] ranging
perhaps 20 feet back of the table to return the drives. Such deep defense, which makes
spectators gasp and cheer, is to my mind the ONLY thing which table tennis can offer
the spectator (TTT, Dec., 1949, 8).
Also, this Seniors brought together in both Singles and Doubles four famous pioneers of the Sport. The 1931 APPA U.S. Open and 1932 NYTTA U.S. Open Champion
Marcus Schussheim, now Mark Matthews, listed in the Open Program as again playing out of
New York, was paired in Doubles, as he had been when they were runner-ups in the 1933 and
34 U.S. Opens, with 1933 NYTTA Singles Champion Sidney Heitner. And Ralph Langsam,
winner of the first (1933) USTTA U.S. Open Doubles Championship (with Lloyd Waterson),
had as his partner Seymour Solomon, 1933 U.S. Open Singles runner-up to Heitner.
In Singles, they all triumphed in their 1st round match, then were eliminated. Matthews
beat Paul Jackson who in 51 would win the first U.S. Open Esquire (Over 50) event, then
lost to bat-maker Hock. Heitner, who came up-deuce-in-the-4th short in the Mens to
Rochesters Ben Morgan, downed U.S. Intercollegiate Chair, Dr. B.B. Gummels, Joans
father. Langsam stopped former Long Island TTA President Frank Davison, whose baby
daughter, Grace Elizabeth, for no conceivable reason graced, er, make that disgraced, the
cover of the April, 49 Topics. And Solomon, after being down 2-0, persisted to a 23-21-inthe-5th win over Connecticuts Newton Frost. Bellak/Gunn won the Senior Doubles over
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Varga/Lynel Overton (also coming to be known, by choice or

accident, as Lionel Ovelton). Gunn, it was said, was the picture
of sartorial splendor as he umpired one important match after
another.
Wally Gundlach who, up 2-0, had been beaten in the
Mens by Fran Delaney, the last two games at deuce, went all the
way in the Juniors without losing a game. McClure describes
Wallys effective forehand: He crowds the table from the backhand side and attempts to force the players out of position by
hitting the ball farther and farther out on their backhand side and
then coming through with a hard shot straight down the line to
their forehand side (TTT, Nov., 1949, 6). Runner-up Barclay
European Command Special Serscored a 5-game win over Harry Hirschkowitz whod had to 22,
vices Spotlight, Feb. 3, 1950, 5
21, -23, -26, 11 work hard before outdistancing stubborn Al
U.S. World Team Member
Holtman. Semifinalist Abbott Glasser of N.Y. had to go deuce in
Wally Gundlach
the 5th to get by Norman Barken of St. Louis whod defeated
young Bobby Gusikoff in 5. In the Boys, against Detroits
Jimmy Calcaterra, Bobby, down 12-1 in the 5th, made a remarkable comeback to win 2321, then lost to Defending Boys Champion Morris Johnson. Morris again reached the
final, but was beaten by Montreals Bernie Silcoff.
Credit Pauline Robinson, who was attending New York Citys Professional Childrens
School, with persuading Control Desk Director Herwald Lawrence to have the first U.S.
Open Junior Miss (Under 18) event. This drew 4 round-robin entries and was won by Joan
Gummels, said to be very attractive in her CBS Television broadcast. Lona Flam was 2nd,
Robinson 3rd, and Helen Marcus 4th. Lawrence was praised by many for his running of the
tournament, but NYTTA President John Kauderer said Herwald took a licking because the
NYC Fire Department insisted he contribute to the ODwyer [the NYC Mayors] slush
fund. If he didnt pay there [at the Arena], Lawrence told John, they would get him at his
place of business (TTT, Mar.-Apr., 1975, 4B).
Why Peggy McLeanwhat with her protective father Vincent advertised on the entry
blank as a member of the Tournament Committee, her picture prominently in the Program,
and her role as favorite established in pre-tournament publicitydidnt defend her Womens
Championship, especially since just three weeks earlier shed won the Easterns, didnt seem
important to anyone writing for Topics. But Peggys careerjust when the ITTF was judging
her to be the #2 seed for the next Worldswas abruptly stopped. She married a Swede, Elis
Folke, whom shed met at the 49 Worlds while he was covering the matches for the Christian Science Monitor, and players missing her here couldnt be sure theyd ever see her at a
tournament again.
USTTA Vice-President John Kauderer of N.Y. had been asked recently by USTTA
Nominations Chair Carl Nidy if he couldnt recommend someone from the East to be on the
upcoming USTTA Executive Committee slate. Kauderer suggested among others Vincent
McLean. He has an unusual amount of common sense and business judgment which could be
put to good use, said John. Furthermore Vincent is able to get around a great deal. He
frequently makes business trips [for the Western Electric Co.] that take him through the
principal table tennis playing cities. Not surprisingly, Vincent had no further involvement in
table tennis.
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The best of the early-round matches in the Womens were: Denvers Rita Kernss 2624 in the 4th win over N.Y.s Eugenia Koukly, later runner-up in the Womens Consolation to
Mona Buell; Tiny Mosss 4-game defeat of # 8 seed Ruth Millington; and Joan Gummelss
16, 17, 19, 21 struggle with Ruthe Crist.
In quarters play, #7 Gummels steady defensive play upset #2 seed Shahian. And #3
seed Reba Monness beat #6 seed Tybie Thall who, like McLean, would marry (Norman
Sommer from Scranton, Pennsylvania), but, unlike Peggy, would return in middle age to play
competitively.
In the one semis, Monness and Gummels were put to the Expedite test and, in case
you hadnt heard Reba cuss like a man (What a mouth said one whod overheard her),
believe that she had a huge ego and was 19, 20, 20, 11 intensely proud and determined. In
the other semis, Leahs win in 4 over an equally aggressive Bernice Chotras was much like
the one in their 47 final, with Bernice again winning just the 27-25 game. In last years
semis, Reba had rallied from 2-1 down to defeat Leah, but this year, Leah, again up 2-1, held
on to win the title in 5.
For 7 straight years, Neuberger had
gotten to the semis or beyond. By now, you
could imagine her saying, Table Tennis was not
only a way of life but life itself for me. Shed
had no trouble acclimating to New York. From
the time shed married Ty, and through several
more decades, scarcely a day would go by that
she didnt play at a club that was as famous as
she was.
Shed play anybody, said Doug
Cartlandbut of course, in the N.Y. tradition,
always for money. Even to a junior whod
come looking for a game, shed say, Well,
sonny, Ill play you, but you know we have to
gamble. The good-humored irony, not immediately apparent, was intentional. Since she obviously was a denizen of the place, of the often
early-afternoon, still dark courts, some young
innocent, accustomed to the USTTAs
uptightness about gambling, might momentarily
be thrown into a panic. But with or without a
spot, her stakes in this or that dreaded New
York club of iniquity were always the samea
penny a point.
Reisman tells the story that, after shed
met and of course soon began playing Ty day
after day, he owed her so much money that she
figured the only way to collect would be to
marry him. Both Reisman and Schiff emphasize
1949 U.S. Open Womens
Leahs friendliness and upbeat personality. She
Champion Leah Neuberger
could hardly be accused of hustling, says Sol,
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because player after player, regardless of ability, wanted to be on court with her. Marty
makes the point, though, that8 cents here, 12 cents thereno penny ever got away from
her, even if she had to change a $10 bill. For Leah, says Marty, the small wager provided the
necessary tension for her to play well, and, he adds, he wouldnt be surprised if all those
pennies she won didnt add up to help her finance her trips as first a player and then a spectator to all those World Championships.
Leah and Tybie, in a straight-game replay of the Eastern final, won the Womens
Doubles over Clouther/Shahian. In the Mixed, Defending Champions Schiff and Prouty (Sally
didnt play Singles) retained their title, defeated Nash/Gummels deuce in the 4th.
Spectator Zeisberg complained that matches on finals night continued until long after
midnight, too late for the morning newspapers to report the results. But, with Bill Gunn on
the mike at whatever hour, trophies were handed outby Emily Fuller. The former 1938/39
U.S. Open Womens Champion was said to devote several days a week to teaching
paraplegics in NYC to play TT in wheelchairs. She brought some invalids to see the Open
finalsone young lady, Helene Cinnater tells us, hadnt been out of the hospital for 3
years; and an elderly gent had never seen T.T., didnt know what it was.
Schiff made the most of his two new titles and continuing celebrity status by appearing
daily for a while at Gimbels 6th floor Sporting Goods Dept., and by seeing his 1939 Table
Tennis Comes of Age instructional book re-published in England and edited into five articles
that appeared in the Table Tennis Review (Sept.-Oct., 1949 through June-July, 1950). Since
Sol told me the copper plates for the book were destroyedthe copper needed for the War
effortthe book was re-done? Jack Carrington, giving it a rather favorable review in the
Dec., 1949 Table Tennis, says he was disappointed that Sol dismisses in a few lines the
meteoric rise of his young successors, Miles and Reisman. (Marty of course wasnt playing
when the book first came out.)
USTTA Expansion?
In the Open Program, President Cinnater had written this about table tennis:
Everyone expected that because of its popularity in the service, its growth
immediately following the war would be stupendous. We failed, however, to allow for
the period of re-adjustment which always follows such conflagrations. In my opinion,
that adjustment period is almost over, for present indications point to greater table
tennis activity (5).
Uh-huh. Well, anyway, this year the USTTA wont have another $3,500 failure.
On April Fools Day, Cinnater called a Meeting of USTTA Affiliates at Lawrences.
He begins by saying that its embarrassing to all of us when somebody wants to know, How
many members in the USTTA?, and we say, Oh, about 3,000. Speaking for himself,
Cinnater says that if the USTTA is doomed to such a select membership, Im no longer
interested in sacrificing my time. So he and his E.C. propose to take their cue for expansion
from the English TTA where membership is through local affiliates only. Effective June 1,
1949 (later extended to July 1, 1949), Cinnater says, the USTTA Dues will not be $2.00 as
they are at present, theyll be $.25, but accepted on a league, club, or association basis only.
The minimum amount that will be accepted from any new affiliate is $6.25, for 25 members,
but a Temporary Affiliate can be formed with just 5 members. No individual memberships
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will be accepted at USTTA headquarters. If sent there, theyll be forwarded to the nearest
affiliate where the applicant resides, and hell join through that affiliate. Of course if youre
not a USTTA member you cant play in a USTTA Affiliate event. The magazine (8 issues) will
cost separately$1.
Heres Topics rhetoric on the new Membership proposal:
Dont you think that these plans are a big improvement and will increase
our membership many fold? This way, we can form a lot of new clubs and get the kids
playing, for they like to join clubs and the $.25 membership wont be too much of a
problem. And then, too, you older folks can go ahead and form clubs and put the game
on a little more social basis. You can form clubs at your churches for instance, or
lodges, or VFW organizations, or almost anyplace that will hold a group of people,
and a table. And you officers of present affiliates; it must be true that if your affiliate
can enroll 500 members at $.25 instead of 100 members at $2.00 you will have more
entrants at your tournaments and consequently the increased interest will mean more
spectators too (May, 1949, 5).
Ping-pong players want to be joiners? Ergo, theyll join the U. S. Table Tennis Association? As this Membership plan will be formally approved, a Directive will go out to all
USTTA Governors and Officials: Affiliates are requested to contact all Y.M.C.A.s, Schools,
Industrial Clubs, Recreational Directors, Churches, Playground Directors, Courts and Clubs in their
territory and advise them of the new membership plan. Maybe hundreds, thousands will respond?
On April 2, Cinnater called the Annual General Meeting at the St. Nick Arena. As of
this date the USTTA Treasury had swelled to $647.90thats $29.97 more than on June 1,
1948. However, the Fighting Fund was still short several hundred dollars. Particularly at
fault was the NYTTA whose officers had promised to raise their quota ($275), but to date
no money has been received. So much for U.S. World Team members Miles, Reisman,
Cartland, and McLean. So much for NYTTA President/USTTA Vice-President Kauderer.
Due to the lack of cooperation from the colleges there would be no Intercollegiates
this year. So much for Intercollegiate Chair Dr. B. B. Gummels.
Regarding Membership, had Stanley Borak been at this Meeting he would have made
the following two points in person that he made in Topics:
Many older players, who would enjoy attending a tournament, have no
knowledge of the tournament. [Presumably they no longer get Topics and, even if they
do, many upcoming tournaments are not listed in the Schedule there.] If by diligent
effort, lists of former active players can be compiled [with their current addresses], so
that they will receive notice of tournaments, then attendance at tournaments will be
increased, and the organization will be strengthened. One more suggestiontournaments run at out-of-the-way places, while they may keep down the initial expense, will
keep away the spectators. This is not an easy problem to solve today in the large cities
where rentals of public places have skyrocketed; it is a problem which must be
grappled with (Feb., 1949, 7).
And will still be a problem in the stretched-out decades to come.
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3rd All-American Novice Championships

The USTTAs only major expansion program had been the All-American Novice
Championships. This year, held May 7th at Chicagos Uptown Bowl, it was called, more
sensibly, just the All-American Championships. Again the sponsor was the Chicago SunTimes. And again a lucky Door Prize winner would have his/her choice of a months vacation trip
to the Worldsthat kind of learning experienceor a $250 college scholarship.
Unbelievably to me, a guy writes in to Topics complaining that the previous Novice
tournaments were great, but that, Now its merely another tournament for good players to
cut up among themselves. From my point of view, as Ive tried to make clear, this Novice
tournament for the most part has always been a vehicle for players who are not novices. At
least this time they have new age groups (which paradoxically the complainer doesnt like
either), beginning with Midgets (11 and under) who surely havent had the opportunity yet to
do much in the way of winning or placing. Here are the results:
Girls 11 & Under: 1. Sandra Johnson, Chicago. 2. Diana Hobbett, Glen Ellyn.
Girls 12-13: 1. Josephine Brady, Chicago. 2. Betty Gross, Oak Park.
Girls 14-15: 1. Sharon Koehnke, Glen Ellyn. 2. Caryl Nydam, Oak Park.
Girls 16-17: 1. Marlene Mall, Chicago. 2. Carol Van De Houton, LaGrange.
All these winners and runner-ups are from the Chicago area (this is Malls third agedivision Championship, and next year shell graduate into winning the Womens), so the
original hope of appealing to all-America just hasnt worked out. Indeed, much to George
Koehnkes disgust, Topics didnt hype the tournament at all this year. But the efforts of
Koehnke and those encouraging playground competition round the Chicago area will continue
to produce some serious USTTA playersand all involved deserve credit for that. Most
satisfying to George of course is the progress of his daughter Sharon.
Boys 11 & Under: Steve Isaacson, Chicago. 2. Tom Meyer, St. Louis.
Boys 12-13: 1. Stanley Goldstein, St. Louis. 2. Stan Rubin, Chicago.
Boys 14-15: 1. Ron Liechty, South Bend. 2. Jim Calcaterra, Detroit.
Boys 16-17: Marshal Conrad, Goshen, Indiana. 2. Don Calcaterra, Detroit.
This is future Hall of Famer Isaacsons first appearance in Topicshed been playing
six months. Like the Girls Midget winner, Sandra Johnson, Steve was a product of the Swift
Playground on Chicagos North Side. The Coach there, whom Steve says changed his life,
and later 1955 U.S. Open Boys Champ Norbert Van de Walles too, was Lewis Krandel. As
for Boys 14-15 winner Liechty, his game was formed at the South Bend Y under Coach
Varga. For the season just ended, he was ranked #10 among (Under 18) U.S. Juniors. For the
upcoming season hed be #3.
Womens: 1. Mildred Shipman, Glen Ellyn. 2. Ruth Salzman, Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
Ten years earlier, Mildred Wilkinson Shipman won her first two National titles.
Mens: 1. Don Vandenberg, South Bend. 2. Eddie Hancock, Indianapolis.
Two years ago, Hancock was the U.S. Boys Champ.
The Door Prize winner was Jerry Cripe of Goshen, Indiana who reportedly didnt
win a game in the tournament.
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Miles, Reisman, Cartland Suspended

From USTTA talk of Novices and Expansion, I end this Chapter with the latest on
USTTA talk of Professionals and Contraction. Reisman, the sword over his head, played
May Day at the Stratford, CT Legion Hall and defeated George Ferris in the Mens final in 5.
Local reporter Sy Knepler, who lost the Seniors to trophy presenter Simeon Sabre, praised
U.S. Olympic Team member, Marty:
During intermission, Reisman put on a show for the audience with many of
his almost fantastic shots. He also gave many of the younger players a treat as he
accepted all challenges and gave every boy a chance to test his wares. It is rare that a
player of Reismans caliber will take so much time with the inexperienced players, and
the Sterling House Table Tennis Club really appreciated the time and play of Reisman
during his appearance in Stratford.
With that final flourish, then, our beloved folk hero would be off the tournament
courts for a while.
In a May 9th newspaper article out of St. Louis, President Cinnater was said to have
made these charges against Miles, Reisman, and Cartland, all of whom were suspended for
one year:
Cinnater said Miles and
Reisman often failed to appear when
called for matches during the recent
world championships in Sweden. He
said Cartland was suspended for
alleged arguing with officials during
the tournament at Stockholm and for
failure to participate in the 1949
national table tennis championships
at New York.
Can this really be what Cinnater
thought, said? That Miles and Reisman
would repeatedly risk default by not appearing when their World Championship matches
were called.That Cartland didnt have a
right to argue his disagreements?And that
Doug was, as it were, contractually obligated to play in the Nationals?
Reisman, years later, offered some
clarification. It turns out that he and Doug
(who the woman Team member with them
wasit must be Tybiehe didnt remember) had indeed gone on a separate unit
exhibition tour from the others, into northern Sweden, before the Stockholm Worlds,

1949 Stockholm Worlds Program, 5

1949 U.S. Team Members:

Marty Reisman (left); Dick Miles (above);
Doug Cartland (right)
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and Doug particularly wasnt happy about two things: one, at meal after meal, he was being
served reindeer meat until he was just sick of it (the Swedish word for this reindeer meat
sounded to Dougs ears like shit), and, two, repeatedly he and the others were being asked
to take very early morning trains as they barnstormed about, usually playing in school gyms.
Eventually at a tournament Doug just lost control. The prize was a pair of ski poles
that Marty wanted, so he and Doug were playing for real. When the umpire made a call that
Doug thought a bad one, he became upsetand argued nastily. Then, oh, oh, when that same
umpire made another bad call, Doug really lost it (Goddamn bastard), went berserk,
Marty said. The audience started to stamp their feet, and say in unison, Nay, nay. Whereupon Doug raised his hand, waved at them as if to wipe them all away, and said loudly, Go to
hell! Marty was embarrassedthe more so when almost all the spectators got up and left.
Later, likely at another stop, the three U.S. players were guests at a dinner and were expected
to say a few polite words. When it came time for Doug to speak, he said only, I hate Sweden! I hate Swedes! Some tried to see that as wittyas ironic American humor. But, said
Marty, he couldnt believe what he was hearing, for Doug couldnt have been more serious.
Thus, I assume it was Cartlands appallingly argumentative tone on tour before the Worlds, as
well as anything he did in Stockholm, that brought objections from the Swedish Association
regarding him.
Prior to the USTTAs Annual Summer Meeting, President Cinnater sent out a Special
June 4, 1949 Bulletin to his E.C. and all other Officials, which stated simply:
Richard Miles, Martin Reisman and Douglas Cartland of the N.Y.T.T.A. have
been suspended from the U.S.T.T.A. for conduct detrimental to the game of table
tennis and the U.S.T.T.A. These players are ineligible to play in any tournaments
conducted by U.S.T.T.A. affiliates until they are reinstated by the Executive Committee of the U.S.T.T.A.
A somewhat humorous follow-up to this suspension would occur the week after when
Cinnaters E.C. would take up Cartlands claim:
Resolved: that due to the fact Douglas Cartland did not fulfill his original contract
with the USTTA, to play exhibitions in England or complete his Eastern Open matches or
participate in the 1949 Nationals, the U.S.T.T.A. is under no obligations to refund the
money Mr. Cartland claims is due him for additional return expenses from England and his
passport fee. (Mr. Cartland received $145.00 for return trip.)
The Oct. Topics would feature photos of the three stars and add that their indefinite
suspensions were made on the recommendation of officials of the two countries [Sweden and
England] visited by the team.The respected foreign officials based their protests on the fact
that the suspended players allegedly failed to appear in exhibitions which were arranged to
provide expenses for the players; that the suspended players had agreed to take part in said
exhibitions; and that the players in question had violated the orders of their captain in refusing
to play in the exhibitions (5).
Therethat would teach these stars that though they might shine in the wee small
hours of the night at Lawrences, by daylight elsewhere theyd be unsung, or at least unseen.
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Chapter

Twenty-Eight

1949: E.C. Plans Coming Season. 1949: Pinner/Sussman Score in Stockholm Invitational. 1949: Tournaments Prior to NTCs/East-West Matches. 1949: U.S. Team Selected.
Well, a new season, and its June, 1949 Executive Committee Meeting time at the
Sheraton (formerly Coronado) Hotel in St. Louis. The USTTA has not only lost Miles,
Reisman, and Cartland, theyve lost Kauderer and Koehnke as Vice Presidents. Koehnke
didnt even finish out his term. He said in an Apr. 22 letter of resignation he had so many
differences with USTTA policy that it was best he didnt continue. Mostly, he was pissed
because he thought his amateur All-American tournament wasnt getting the attention it
ought to, and he took umbrage that the USTTA published that letter that said good players,
not novices, were winning the events at his All-American. He found the letter writers notion
that his tournament was turning into a psuedo National Open insulting. Of course, many of
the winners were, and would continue to be, little professionals.
Koehnke thought [weekend?] tournaments should be run in one day, during the day,
to meet the needs of the younger players. He thought the USTTA should be strictly amateur, considered E.C. members slaves for the better players, and said the Association
should have immediately suspended Miles, Reisman, and Cartland on their return from the
Worlds. Nidy had to point out in reply that the USTTA Constitution required a Captains
Report, a reasonable 10 days for the accused to respond, and time for the E.C. to deliver a
mail vote. To suspend them before the Nationals was impossible.
Koehnke, however, did hit the mark when he insistedrightly, as it would turn out
that Lowering the price of the membership will give you less income, not many more members.
Taking Kauderer and Koehnkes place, in another Association musical chairs shift, are
Varga, formerly Executive Secretary, and Hoy, formerly Recording Secretary. Newcomers are
Wisconsin TTA President Virgil Carson, the Executive Secretary, and Clarence Sage of
Springfield, MA, the Recording Secretary, who asks each affiliate to appoint their own muchneeded Publicity Chairman.
One of those present at the Meeting was Jimmy McClure, whod taken over the
Expansion Committee from Koehnke. In an effort to encourage workers at industrial plants
and students at schools and colleges to have USTTA-sanctioned tournaments and leagues,
Jimmy proposed that for each block of 32 new USTTA memberships acquired for a league or
tournament (membership fee: $.25) the USTTA would
supply the 32 U.S.T.T.A. membership cards, 2 beautiful U.S.T.T.A. Sanctioned Event medals, one stamped winner and the other runner-up on the backs, a
copy of the laws of table tennis, one years free subscription to Table Tennis Topics to
the person sending in the 32 memberships for his or her group, and instructions on
running a league and tournament.
President Cinnater reported that after the $2 USTTA Membership fee (it included
Topics) had come into effect Jan. 1, 1949, the total membership had fallen off about 20
percent. (Just what exactly the USTTAs membership happened to be at any one time was
not being publicized.) Apparently some of this decline was due to the fact that members were
291

waiting until after July 1st to renew [when they could do so for $.25; Topics would cost $1
extra]. Hope of course, if not always seen, sprang eternal: every affiliate is expected to at
least double or triple their former [membership] total.
As for Topics, it could stay within its budget, providing the number of subscribers
didnt drop below the 2,000 mark and advertising maintained the same level. It was resolved
that the Editor of Topics be paid. How much? $25 per issueas well as 50% of the net profit
of said publication for the 1949-50 season [recently thered always been a big deficit].
Certainly Editor Bill Price deserved to be paid, for he would no sooner start the new season
than hed be faced with a lithographers strikewhich meant that, as he said, in order to get
the issues out, Im doing most of the work myself, art work, camera work in making half
tones, etc., and even the plate-making.
As usual, bids were received for the major tournaments, including the 1950 Nationals,
which, it was decided, would be held in St. Louis, again over April Fools weekend. The St.
Louis District would receive 20% of the first $500.00 net profit and 10% of any additional
profit. Bids needed to be taken on Traveling trophies for Singles winners, and matched sets
of trophies for all winners and runner-ups. The all-white dress would be mandatory in all
majors, and requested in all 2star tournaments. On the back of
their white shirt, players could
have their name and commercial
advertising that did not exceed
3 inches.
The all-white clothing
had been championed by Reba
Monness who dismissed the
argument that white ball against
a white background would
make it difficult to see the
ballshe, she said, was very
sensitive (including eyes) and
never had any trouble. She also
said that despite each players
wearing white, the individuality
of each player would be more
pronounced, and that the
over-all white, clean look of
tournament playerswould
give the sport more dignity and
refinement!!!
However, her point of
view was not shared by former
USTTA President Carl Zeisberg
1947 Paris Worlds
Program, 11
who, after attending the 49
Miles in white
Nationals, lamented in Topics
looks good?
the loss of a once colorful
spectacle:
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White clothing worn by lawn tennis players is appropriate, for it reflects the
heat of the sun and helps keep contestants cool. It also looks well, shimmering in the
bright summer sunshine and contrasting with the healthy outdoor tan of the wearer.
But white summer clothing for an indoor cold-weather sport is incongruous. Whether
the players white shirts and trousers were actually dirty or whether it was the effect of
shadows cast by the overhead lighting, the contestants in New York appeared to be
unclean; and the pallor of their winter complexions heightened the illusion of a hospital, or even a morgue (Dec., 1949, 8).
Pale Miles, or no pale Miles, Cinnater said he didnt want to send a U.S. Team to the
Worlds if they had to depend solely on earning money through exhibitions with other nations. But he supported Team Captain McClures hopes that a deal could be made with U.S.
Services to play a few exhibitions for transportation to Europe and back. If so, about
$1,500 would still be needed, and again the USTTA would depend on help from the manufacturers, individuals, and a Fighting Fund Quota System, with the proviso that NO PLAYER
WILL BE SELECTED ON THE TEAM OFFICIALLY UNTIL THEIR AFFILIATE CONTRIBUTES THEIR FULL QUOTA OF THE FUND. The Team will be picked after the
Intercities and East-West Matches by National Ranking Chairman John Varga and National
Tournament Chairman Rees Hoy (so long as they witness play at these matches), in conjunction with USTTA President Cinnater.
The Team was to be selected on the basis of the following:
1. Integrity and Character to properly represent the U.S.A. in international
competition.
2. On ability as a competitive player based on ranking and current seasons
record.
Since English TTA Chairman Ivor Montagu offered to pay Peggy McLeans expenses
to defend her English Open title, it was agreed that whether she made the World Team or not,
she should be permitted to play. It was pointed out, however, that, because the World Championships in Budapest were scheduled to begin the end of January and the English Open not
until March, it was doubtful that the U.S. Team could stay in Europe long enough to play in
both tournaments.
Indeed, as well see shortly, the U.S. Team will not play in both, but for an unforeseen
reason.
Pinner/Sussman Score in Stockholm Invitational
Meanwhile, the Oct. Topics announces that Eddie Pinner (without a current ranking
because of Insufficient Data, but a semifinalist at the 49 Nationals) and Cy Sussman
(U.S. #7)3-time U.S. Mens Doubles Champions and, though 49 U.S. Open runner-ups
to Schiff/Reisman, currently ranked #1 because of Reismans suspensionhave been
invited to Sweden. In late Oct. theyll represent the U.S. in a huge international tournament being sponsored by the Maccabi Club of Stockholm. The doggedly determined
Pinner, its noted, has a beautiful deep defense that is sure to please the Europeans, and
his forehand can be devastating, while Sussman has one of the best backhand drives in
the world (7).
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TTT, Oct., 1949, 7

Eddie Pinner
Drawing by Jack McLarty

So howd they do? Might as well

jump ahead for a moment, tell you now. In
the Team Matches, they lost to runner-up
France (England defeated France, 3-2 in
the final), and in the process Pinner fell
over a short barrier and hurt his backan
injury that prevented him from putting his
full weight on his right foot for a few
days. In Singles, Frances great veteran
Michel Haguenauer beat 25-year-old Eddie
in the quarters, and Swedens Sven
Cedarholm, who forced Reisman to 5 at
the 48 Worlds, beat 27-year-old Cy.
However, in Doubles, our guys swept away
all oppositionnot only won the International, but never lost an Exhibition Doubles
Match before or after that tournament,
including their play before a large audience
in Helsinki, Finland (TTT, Dec., 1949, 19).

TTT, Oct., 1949, 7

Cy Sussman
Drawing by Jack McLarty

Tournaments Prior to NTCs/East-West

Matches
The late-August international play at
the CNE in Toronto that started the 194950 U.S. season was missing its 1947 and
48 Mens Champion, Reisman, nor could
Marty defend in the Doubles, but his last
years partner, Sol Schiff, did just fine. In
the Singles, Sol defeated Johnny Somael in
the semis and Bill Price in the final. He also won the Doubles with McClure, whod just
started accumulating his 49-50-51 string of Indianapolis City Tennis Championships.
Tennis Anyone?Jimmy McClure
at his Pla-Good Sports Shop

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And who was back again in the final of the

Womens? Why, the reappearing Defending Champ
Peggy McLean. Except this year Leah Neuberger beat
her, and in straight games. Peggy would now absent
herself from play for a while and begin teaching?
At the Oct. Bridgeport Open, Hal Green, banging
in balls from both sides, had amazed everybody by
eliminating John Somael, then in the semis had knocked
out George Ferris. This brought him to the final where he
zonked New Yorker Hy Dolinski. In the Womens,
Neuberger was topsover Clouther.
The Chicago-area Novice tournaments began in
September and would continue monthly through to the
climactic All-American Championships in May. Four of
these tournaments through February were reported in
Topicsthen nothing, not even the results of the final
May Championships.
George Koehnke had, at
least for the moment,
strikingly curtailed his
USTTA involvement, but
all his kids were playing
Don (though more into
speed skating or tennis?),
Sharon (consistent Adult
Novice winner), and now,
in the Midgets, younger
sister Jackie. Besides Marty
Prager and Steve Isaacson,
other relative newcomers
whod long be on the
tournament scene were
Marv Leff (whom Prager
had recruited at Columbus
Park) and Norm Brown,
both playing for the Uptown Edgewater Teen-Age
Center.
Topics also advertised an All-American High
School Championships to
be played in April at the
new Chicago Table Tennis
Center operated by Billy
and Gus Holzrichter. This
8-table venue, hyped as
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Above:
Tiny Moss,
L.A. Open
Champ
Left:
Magda Rurac,
Runner-up

the finest club ever opened in this country, was at the back of the Holzrichter store on
Devon. Nothing was ever mentioned in Topics about this High School Championship, and
perhaps it wasnt held, for Gus in disgust would close this Club because, as Billy told me, it
wasnt supported by the playerstheir cheapness extending to not buying a soda in the place
because they could save 5 cents by going elsewhere.
Former National Champion Holzrichter opened his 1949-50 seasona memorable one
for him (in 1950 he was to meet his future wife Toni at a YMCA roof-garden dance)with an
expected Mens win over Bill Price in the Oct. 22-23 Chicago Lake States Open. Holzrichter,
partnered by Al Nordhem, lost their Doubles semis match to Levy/Bob Anderson after being
up 2-0 and at 22-all in the 3rd. Norm Schless/Prager were runner-ups. In the Mens, Gundlach,
up 2-0, had fallen to Levy, now playing out of Chicago. In the Juniors, Wally lost, 3-zip, to
Barclay. In the Boys, Price protg Al Holtman defeated Marv Leff who in the semis had
16, -36 (sic), 18, 16, 18 rallied to defeat South Bends Bill Parker. Holtman in his semis beat
Arnold Forde whod won the Sept. Suburban Novice for 12-14-year-olds over Isaacson. Sally
Prouty was back playing Singles, but she lost the Womens final to Peggy Ichkoff.
By now St. Louis was getting excited over the prospect of visiting foreigners coming
to their Nationals. Englands current World Champion Johnny Leach and his mentor Jack
Carrington would combine their U.S. Open play with a two-to-three week Exhibition Tour of
U.S. cities. South Koreas top men, Keun-Hang Choi and Sang-Hoon Kim, were said to be
coming. And Japan was supposed to be sending both its best male players, Norikazu Fujii and
Shigetoshi Saichi, and its best female players, Kiyoko Matsumoto and Mutsuko Watanabe
with friendly U.S.-Japan competition to take place in Los Angeles, St. Louis, New York,
Chicago, and San Francisco. Clearly it would be wrong to think that Japan would come out of
nowhere to dominate the table tennis world in 1952, for here was the word on them two years
before:
we [officials in the USTTA] do receive copies of the Japanese table tennis
magazine and are amazed at their organization. The tournaments are tremendous in
size and spectators turn out by the thousands; their clubs are large and well kept, and
judging from the pictures, playing conditions are excellent (TTT, Mar., 1950, 3).
As it happened, and there was no word of explanation to be found in Topics (the
Japanese just didnt have the money to come?), the only Asian player who would make it to
our Nationals, even as skirmishes were increasing along the 38th Parallel, the dividing line
between North and South Korea, was the South Korean Choi who, with the coming of the
Korean War, would find himself stranded in the Los Angeles area experiencing the nightmare
loss of his mother, father, brother, and two-year-old child.
About this time, California TTA President Milt Forest, Si Wasserman, his friend Austin
Finkenbinder, and some other L.A. players wanted to play some intercity matches. Nothing
new in that. They even had a name for their team. Nothing new in that. They called themselves the Flyers. Know why? Because literally they planned to fly anywhere within a radius of
100 miles to meet their opposition. And in fact they didmade the 70-mile trip east of L.A.
to San Bernardino, where they apparently needed to be propped up, at least for a while, for
they won only 2 matches, lost 7.
The Greater Los Angeles tournament, held Nov. 26-27 at Chuck Feldmans California
T.T. Center on North Highland (showers in the mens lockersthe whole club from one end
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to the other so nice and clean), was given recognition in Topics not only with the printed
results but with a write-up by LATTA President Abbott Nelson. Abbotts article was historically unique in that almost an entire page of the magazine was devoted to just the one match
he described in detailthe Womens final between Magda Rurac and Tiny Moss. Rurac, said
Nelson, was a rather well-known international figure: a Rumanian who in tennis had beaten
the likes of Pauline Betz and Gussie Moran, and who had been Rumanias champion in
cycling, swimming, fencing, andTable Tennis (having once beaten Pritzi). Faced with such
an opponent, Mosss credentials in comparison were, well, tiny?
Nelson points out that originally the players had come out looking very cute and
pretty with their hair perfectly combed, and neat white shorts and short white skirt. Now
perspiration was rolling down their faces and their hair was in disarray. For once, however, we
didnt think they cared and certainly no one else did.
At 19-all in he 5th, Magda hit a whole barrage of forehand drives and finally ended
up with a smash that brought the house down. Down match point, and with the spectators
giving her a very tense, quiet moment, Tiny received the next service, got in with a couple of
offensive shots, was forced back again on defense, brought up to the table with a drop shot,
leaped back to return a beautiful hard drive, and watched Magdas next drive go off the
tabledeuce. Then ad to Tiny. The final point saw Magda again driving. Then she put a
drop shot slightly too deep and Tiny came in fast to hit a backhand. She followed this with a
forehand smash that appeared to end the match, and the applause started to rise. Magda,
however, had dashed back, made a tremendous stab at the ball and somehow it came back
very high on the table. Tiny was amazed, and if you play much you know how easy it is to
miss a high deep ball with no chop that you didnt expect to see coming. However, Tiny was
very cool, saw Magda was completely out of position, did not swing wildly, but firmly hit the
ball on an angle that was impossible for Magda to reach. As Tiny, almost completely exhausted, ran over to shake Magdas hand, the clamour was terrific, and continued for 5 full
minutes (Jan., 1990, 4).
In the tournaments anticlimactic last-match Mens final, Lee Freemans biting chops
and sharp forehand proved too straight-game strong for John Hanna.
Mens NTCs
That same Nov. 26-27 weekend of the L.A. Open, fellow players a couple of thousand
miles away would be fighting to make the U.S. Team. The USTTA, seeking to have more
teams at the Indianapolis Intercitiesor, call it by its new name, the National Team Championshipsdecided that, should there be more than the usual seven teams, limitations on time
and space available would make it necessary to split the teams into two round robins, A and
Bwith the winners of each group playing off for the Championship. This change in format
proved unsatisfying to many participants, for, of the 10 teams invited (guaranteed hospitality:
$30 per team), only 8 showed.
Bridgeport, Connecticut, as promised, sent players, but a hoped for Atlantic team,
an amalgam of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Washington D.C. players, didnt materialize.
Nor, despite the innovative invitation to the Defending Champions to send a second team, did
New York II come.
This two-group, 4 teams in each, format meant that, as one disgruntled but not
wanting to offend writer in Topics put it, teams would have only three matches to play
instead of six as heretofore, making the tournament just half as enjoyable as before. Actually,
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it was Editor Bill Price, now also President of the St. Louis District TTA, who wrote this
unsigned National Team Championships or EMPTY TABLE OPEN article and added the
Note: These are just my opinions and could easily be wrong.
Price continued with his opinions, pointing out that
all the team captains got together and voted unanimously to change the draw
to a full round robin, giving everyone an equal chance to win [well, theoretically], and
giving the weaker players a chance to get in some matches. So the officials, acting on
the assumption that mere players dont know what is good for them, or in fact not
knowing much at all, refused to do so, citing lack of tables, time, etc. as the reason. I
must admit that said officialsdid concede one point though, allowing the teams to
play the full nine individual matches even after one team had won the required five, but
who cares much about meaningless matches?
Anyhow, during the first afternoons playfor about twenty minutes, only one
of the five tables was being used, and when I suggested to one of the lady officials that
the players were a little unhappy about the delay, her comment was, Thats too bad
about them, a most brilliant statement. This waste of tables went on throughout the
tourney (Dec., 1949, 5).
[In the following issue of Topics, Price or Dickinson, or someone, in an unsigned article, added that, after a team tie had been completed but not all nine matches
played out, player substitutions could be made. Further, at a special session Sunday
morning, the second, third, and fourth place teams in each group would play each
other in matches that wouldnt count for the Championship but would count for
player rankings. This concession caused each Sunday session to run more than an
hour past the allotted time (Jan., 1950, 10).]
USTTA President Cinnaters wife, Helene, was the woman official Price had alluded
to, and in her next Topics ThisN That column issued a defiant reply:
Regardless of what anyone says (that includes you Price) the Team Champs.
were run very smoothly, under wonderful conditions. Everyone should tip their hat to
Varga [who came from a sick bed], McClure (& also mama McClure and family). Its a
must to mention Barney Arnold & [Indiana TTA President] Rudy Stumpp & their
company of umpires who did a good job.I just cant resist giving my better half,
EFC, and myself a pat on the back for being at the operating table for every bit of the
champs.PU! the ridiculous squawking from several players and captains because it
wasnt going to be a round robin, but a 2-way tie. Price says, the players sure dont
like it. I sez too bad about em& Ill stick to it. Such a stink, a lot of headaches for
nothing. Phooey!!! (Jan., 1950, 11).
Hooray! Chicago finally won an Intercitieser, NTCs. New Yorkwith Miles,
Reisman and Cartland suspendedfielded an uncharacteristically weak Team (Sol Schiff, Bob
Wilkenfeld, George Weinberg) that, in beating Milwaukee but losing to Detroit and Indiana,
was never a factor. Detroit reached the final with a 5-4 win over Indianabecause, although
McClure won his three, Detroits Glenn Whitcroft rallied from down triple-match point to
298

beat Barclay who had the consolation of showing everyone how to be a gentleman and a
great guy after such a disappointing struggle. Chicago (Holzrichter, Levy, Ralph Bast)
advanced to the final with a 5-4 win over St. Louis. Holzrichter, recipient of the Outstanding
Player Award, beat Price, Hendry, and Gundlachbut if Levy, former St. Louis star turned
turncoat, down 1-0 and 20-19 to Gundlach, hadnt rallied to win, St. Louis would have been
1st in their group. In the final, Chicago put down a 5-3 challenge by the Chuck Burns-led
Detroit Team. Chuck, whom Reba Monness called the funniest and cleverest person, socially, told Helene Cinnater that he for one liked the new limited-play format cause he could
relax, and watch some matches and enjoy the tourney.
Picked for the U.S. Mens Team were Holzrichter and the Juniors, Gundlach and
Barclay, along with Captain McClure who would probably be called on to play quite a
number of matches himself.
Womens East-West Matches
The Women also had increased participation for their Matches this yearwith four
players instead of three representing each of the two (East and West) teams. East Team
member Monness, thankful that there was no sign of argument among the female players, and
delighted to see the Western girls in pleasingly white uniformstee shirts, shorts and royal
blue letters of WEST on their backswas ecstatic in her praise of the tournament:
Ipalco Hall [thats the Indianapolis Power & Light Club Company Club
venue] was a superb playing site!!! The tt. tables were wonderful, each table giving the
same bounce of the balland the balls were nigh perfect. [Both were provided by
McClures Pla-Good Sports Shop?] I have never experienced such spacious and
comfortable ladies dressing rooms which contained showers, sufficient hanging space,
decent mirrors, places to sit down, impeccable lavatories!!! (TTT, Jan., 1950, 5).
The East women were overwhelmingly superior. In Singles, Leah Neuberger and Reba
Monness were both 4-0. Mildred Shahian and Mae Clouther, 3-1. Peggy Ichkoff (who beat
Shahian) and Mildred Shipman (who beat Clouther), 1-3. Jean Van De Houton and Carolyn
Wilson Bast, 0-4. In Doubles, Clouther/Shahian defeated Ichkoff/Bast, and Neuberger/
Monness defeated Shipman/Van De Houton.
Note that since Shahian and Clouther were tied, it might be difficult to pick the 3rd
woman for the U.S. Team. When the Selectors decided on Shahian, Maes husband Jim, as the
Selectors must have foreseen, for hed gone to bat for his wife in the past, fired off a Nov. 29
letter to the Executive Committee arguing that Maes record warranted her inclusion:
The Eastern and Western try-outs plus the East-West matches have always
had an important bearing on selecting a team, and the players competing placed the
greatest importance on them, as more than any other yardstick, they gave a better
picture of each players ability. Mae won the Eastern try-outs at Stratford, Conn. the
week before the Indianapolis matches. Mae [7-1] lost only one match to Shahian.
She defeated Leah Neuberger [ranked U.S. #] (1), Monness (2), [Bernice] Chotras
(3), [Ruthe] Brewer [sic: for Crist] (10), [Lona] Flam (16), [Pauline] Robinson (14),
and one other girl [Phyllis Oransky, 0-8]. Shahian [6-2] lost to Monness and Leah.
Monness [5-3] lost to Leah, Mae, and Flam. Leah [6-2] lost to Mae and
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Brewer.Both Mae and Leah competed in the Bridgeport Open some weeks before
with Mae taking Leah to five games in the finals before losing. Monness and Shahian
did not competewith Shahian it was a case of not competing for fear of hurting her
record as she publicly admitted.
The Eastern try-outs was the stiffest competition of all and coupled with the
East-West matches the wins and losses were as follows:
Mae Clouther
Won 10
Lost 2
Leah Neuberger
Won 10
Lost 2
[Mildred] Shahian
Won 9
Lost 3
[Reba] Monness
Won 9
Lost 3
Mae had the most impressive record with victories over the 1,2,3,7 ranking
players [#7 was Ichkoff at Indianapolis].Ranked number 8th, she is below Shahian
and Ichkoff who are 6th and 7th. However, I feel that too much emphasis has been
placed on last seasons rankings and not enough on current competition. Elmer asked
Mae to play off for the third position against Shahian as he figured it was a tie. Mae
refused as the records do not indicate such a premise. Shahian knew that Mae had won
the spot [sure?] and from the response that I have received from others present they
were stunned when Mae was not announced as a team member. A rank injustice has
been done to a player who has contributed much to the game, as you know. This is no
sour grapes letter but a detailed review of a poor selection job by a committee that
evidently had their ears in another direction.
Jim has a strong case. Leah as current U.S. Champion,
and having split matches with Mae, has to be on the Team. But
both Reba and Millie are questionable. Reba was last seasons
U.S. Open runner-up (which likely won her points with the
Selectors), and beat Shahian in the try-outs, but had losses to
Clouther and the dangerous attacker Flam. Shahian lost only
to U.S. #1 and #2 in the try-outs, but then had the loss to
Ichkoff. Clouther beat U.S. #1 and #2 and Ichkoff, but had the
bad loss to Shipman and lost head-to-head with Shahian.
When it would turn out that Leah, who indeed was
picked for the Womens Team, couldnt go abroad for personal reasons, Monness, Shahian, and Clouther, taking
Neubergers place, would represent us. Price had good words
to say about Maehow her forehand ranks up with the best,
and how her close to the table, fast game is a real problem to
Mae Clouther
anyone who has not faced her before. So, he says, shell be
an especially fine team member. But not at the Budapest Worlds. For on Nov. 18, 1949,
one, Robert A. Vogeler, was arrested and later convicted of espionageof spying for the U.S.
Governmentby a Peoples Court in Budapest and sentenced to 15 years in prison. Shortly
after his arrest the U.S. State Department banned Americans from traveling to Hungary.
However, our players would of course again be welcome at the 1950 English Open, and
McClure would arrange for our Team to give exhibitions at U.S. Army bases in exchange for
all our necessary transportation.
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Chapter

Twenty-Nine

1949-50: Winter Tournaments. 1950: U.S. Players Star in Austrian Open. 1950:
Budapest Worlds. 1950: Shahian Wins English Open 1950: Capelle/Rurac Top Pacific
Coast. 1950: Price/Ichkoff Western Winners. 1950: Pinner/Neuberger Take Easterns.
For years Topics hadnt been printing any results from the Pacific Northwest, and with
good reason, for tournaments had been few and far between there. However, Portlands Bob
Viducich, looking back in his Dec. 6-7, 1980 Pacific Northwest Program (see 7-8 and 23-24),
orients us to the resurgence of play. This happened primarily because in late 1949 Portland
finally had a clubthe Circle Theatre site that, with good lighting and space for seven
tables, would endure for almost 15 years. Officers of the Club were namedE.J. Coffey,
whod found the affordable Circle Theater site, was named President, Viducich Vice President.
The Circle Theater held its debut tournamentthe Portland Metro Openin late fall
of 49. Betty Fisher was the Womens winnerover E.J.s wife Ella. Hal Philan with his
bullet fast, flat drives on both forehand and backhand, and his sharply-angled serves and drop
shots, took the Mens at this Metro, beating, first, Bob Hagenbach, 19 in the 5th, then in the
final Bob Hage who, as a teenager brandishing what Viducich called a looping backhand
was known as the Jumping Jitterbug. In the spring of 48, Hage had been the winner of the
city tournament at Montavilla Park over former Coast Guardsman Jim Robinson, and together
the two had won the Doubles from Viducich and Ed Charles.
No Womens matches reported in the Dec. Texas Open, held not at the U.S. Public
Service Hospital in Fort Worth (where reportedly they had 42 TT tables), but at the YMCA
there. The Mens winner was Louie Scharlackover Richard Puls who in the early 50s
would be one of the first players in the country to use the new sponge racket.
Bob Green, who in a couple of years would transfer his Olentangy Columbus Club to
Guy Blair and his friend Jim Irwin, was back ready to run tournaments again. In Feb. he put
on the Ohio State Open at Columbus where reportedly he sold 155 USTTA memberships.
Whats more, he almost won the 91-entry Menslost the final in the 5th to Hersh. Joanne
Kaylor took the Womensover the promising Joanne Gardner. A local senior with straight
As, Gardner was the president of the Girls Athletic Association at Grandview Heights High
School and played solo cornet in the school band. Want to guess how
many high achievers like this, of either sex, on graduating, continue
tournament play?
Lillian Caretta, 1st Vice-President of the Pennsylvania TTA,
and President and General Tournament Chair of the Bethlehem
TTA, worked hard to make the Saturday, Feb. 11 Pennsylvania Open
successful. Since it was a one-day tournament, the Organizing
Committee was determined to limit entries so that play wouldnt
extend until after midnight. All was exceptionally
organizedas one could see from both the detailed
Umpires and Operations charts listed in the TournaLillian Caretta:
ment Program. This year, said Lillian in an Open
her last
Letter, instead of player numbers, put on by Number
Bethlehem
Girls, there would be
tournament?
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Identification Badges for both the players and members of the Tournament
Committee. As for the spectators, there is to be an Announcer on the amplifying
system all day, who when he calls a player, he will announce who he is, and on what
table he is to play his match, so that the spectators can then look him up in WHOS
WHO and find out all there is to know about him.[WHOS WHO was a section of the
Program listing the players and, in some cases, a title they held.] We thought this
badge-set-up would lend a more friendly note. Your opponent is now John Smith
instead of number 88. Your umpire is Robert Jones instead of the guy with the blue
shirt. [On court, arent opponents on meeting inclined to be friendly enough to say,
Hi, Im John? And how would a spectator who hadnt heard the players names
announced look at a player out there on court and be able to read the name on his/her
badge?]
Ironically, though Caretta was urging a friendly tournament, her Report to Topics
closed as follows:
Although I doubt if Bethlehem is very popular after this tournament, in which
rejections were almost as many as participants in some other tournaments, but [sic] I
believe that the game as a whole has profited by our rigid decisions, and I doubt if
many will again send in applications without entry fees, or wait until after the eleventh
hour and after to send in entries.
Rejections? Rigid decisions? An historic occurrence in this regard, Id say. Lillian
elaborates:
First of all, we had a total of 52 rejections among which were nationally
ranked players such as Cy Sussman, Bill Cross, Francis Delaney and Isadore Bellis,
the latter being the Pennsylvania Open Mens Singles Defending Champion, and Cy
Sussman and Bill Cross were the defending champions in Mens Doubles.
As soon as I saw that the entries were coming in hot and heavy I started to
reject all entries that were not accompanied by entry fees. As fast as I rejected them,
they would come back accompanied with the entry fee.
Many of the players just indicated MS [Mens Singles] on their entry blank,
assuming that they could submit their entries for doubles at registration. The mens
Doubles draw of 32 was reached long before registration and then what a weeping and
wailing that occurred on Saturday when they couldnt enter the MD event.
The local Western Union office claimed they never had such a load of incoming
and outgoing wires on any sporting event. As late as Friday night, I got calls from as
far as Buffalo, N.Y. pleading for acceptance. I emphatically told them DONT
COME. They drove all night and a car full arrived at 9:00 A.M., not believing that
such a thing could be possible. This was repeated from New York, Baltimore, and
points in New Jersey.
We had depended on [USTTA Referees and Umpires Chair] George Schein
coming in to help us out, but he had intended to ride in with Cross (so he says) and
since we had rejected Cross, he didnt show up (Mar., 1950, 5). [A local paper ran a
photo of blind umpire Chuck Medickso he at least was working the courts.]
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As Lillian aptly says, [Players] never heard of such a thing! and, though she herself
got pleas, threats, and everything imaginable thrown at me, the tournament proceeded, with
none of the tables ever idle, and, despite a couple of impossible to foresee delays, was finished
at 11:10 P.M. Which was good. I wonder why, though, given their efficiency, the Bethlehem
Association couldnt have held a two-day Penn Open, accommodated more, added a Boys
event, a Junior Doubles, a Womens Doubles, and Consolation events? (First-round losers
were invited to go to the Consolation Award Desk where they would receive, in appreciation
for their entry, a ceramic bat-ball pin.)
The 97-entry Mens was won by Johnny Somael over Sol Schiff, deuce in the 4th.
Schiff and Somael won the Mens Doubles over Jules Toff/Bob Wilkenfeld. Phillys unranked
Matt Schonberger took the Juniors, upsetting U.S. #4 Abbott Glasser who I trust after hed
broken his right wrist this summer was no longer trying to play left-handed. In the Womens,
National Champ Leah Neuberger (seeded #2) defeated Defending Champion Ruth Millington
(seeded #1) in straight games.
This years National Intercollegiateswith the Control-Desk help of Pennsylvania
TTA President Ed Harriswere held Jan. 6-7 at Temple University in Philadelphia. Upsala A
won the 19-entry Teamsbeating, first, Syracuse, then Temple, both in 3-2 ties. No wonder
Nate Sussman of Temple in a letter to Topics (his photo was on the Feb., 1950 cover) wanted
to know where he could get as many table tennis books as possible (ah, the college students
enthusiasm for study). Nate was awarded the individual championship, winning all his 18
matches, and in addition was one of those commended for his sportsmanship. The Temple
team of Sussman and Tommy Seabourne, chief promoter of this very successful tournament,
took the Doubles from the Queens team of Carson and Marv Shaffer, the Singles runner-up,
who was also praised for his sportsmanship.
On Jan. 15, only a few days before the U.S. Team was to leave for Europe from
Springfield, Massachusetts, Newton Corners Colonial Club held the Greater Boston Open.
Les Lowry won the Mensover Frank Dwelly. In the events best match, Bill Corcoran
upset U.S. #15 Emil LaRue, operator of the Town Hall Barber Shop in Stratford, CT (must
talk a lot of table tennis, huh?). Though there wasnt a Womans event, perhaps Mae Clouther
got to sneak in some practice with the best of the men players. Poor Mae and husband Jim:
soon after this tournament their Colonial Club caught on fire, and the damage was estimated
at $250,000.
Sommervilles Benny Hull, who partnered Dwelly to a Doubles win here, was the
gimpy-legged fellow who, when he was 18, after a bout of polio, had taken up table tennis as
a form of therapy. He would be Dwellys friend and Doubles partner for more than half a
century. Its in 1950, as reporter Jerry Spar would tell us 20 years later, that Benny opened
up the Waltham Table Tennis Club on the third floor of the Curtin Building on Main
Streetlocated across from the town common and three doors down from the Garber Auto
Driving School, which Hull ran for 40 years. Benny told Spar that Anything I do is long
term, so it figured that his Waltham, MA Club would be legendary into the next millennium
for its longevity.
U.S. Players Star in 1950 Austrian Open
The U.S. Teams sojourn abroad would be relatively lengthy too. Their first obligation,
on flying, courtesy of U.S. Services, to Munich, was to take a train to Vienna and play in a
pre-Worlds tournament there. Then, while the Budapest Worlds was going on (Jan. 29-Feb.
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5), and for some time after, they were expected to go round to U.S. Army Camps giving
exhibitions. Theyd climax their trip by playing in the March 9-11 English Open, then come
home in time for the Mar. 31-Apr. 2 U.S. Open.
On the flight over, Reba, always a free spirit, was dressed for comfort. Gundlach
remembers she was wearing her long red underwear, bottom covered by leopard-skin pants,
top uncovered by any outer wrap. In Jan. 25th exhibition play before 2,000 spectators at the
Vienna Concert House, Austria defeated the U.S. 5-2. Holzrichter, though, had a fine win
over 3-time World Champion Richard Bergmann (Austrian by birth). Billy said he won most
of his points because he was able to control the playhed repeatedly draw Richard in close
where he liked to block, then attack his backhand. Bergmann, Billy said, had the kind of
game I loved to play against. (I wonder how many other good players have said that.)
In the Mens final there at the Austrian Open,
Bergmann defeated Austrias Heribert Just who in the semis
beat Holzrichter, 24-22, 25-23. McClure lost in the 3rd round
to Austrias Otto Eckl. Both Barclay and Gundlach lost in the
1st round, Wally 19 in the 3rd. However, the U.S. did win the
Mens Doubles: in the final, Holzrichter/McClure beat Just/
Heinrich Bednar whod knocked out Gundlach/Barclay, 2-0 in
the semis. Another first for the U.S. when Gundlach won the
Juniors. The Womens winner was the veteran Trude Pritzi,
too exasperatingly steady for Englands Vera Dace Thomas.
Our women couldnt take a game from either of these favoritesPritzi beat Shahian; Thomas stopped Clouther, then
Monness in the semis. But in the Womens Doubles, Reba,
whom back home Price had praised for her defenseher
chop is just as severe as most of the men defensive stars
paired with Pritzi, the former World Champion renowned for
never hitting a ball, and they almost won. Up 2-1, they lost 19
in the 5th to Thomas and Irelands Egan. Price also said Reba
had a fine forehand drive, and only her timidity prevents
her from using it more often and to better effect. Reba timid!
Thomas/Bergmann (they beat Clouther/Gundlach) won the
Mixedover Pritzi/Bednar (they beat Shahian/Holzrichter).
After their play in Vienna, the U.S. Team traveled
about Germany giving exhibitions at European Command
Wally Gundlach
(EUCOM) Service Clubs. One of the helpful escort officers
1950 Austrian Open Jr. Winner
who made the whole Army Tour with the Team, and who
praised their conduct as above reproach, was Lt. Michael Ellis, Assistant Chief of Special
Services from Fort Belvoir. Back in 1948 at the Richmond Elks Club hed beaten Defending
Champion Lee Searcy to win the Virginia State Championship. Among others thanked was
Mr. Vernon Ascher of the Herff-Jones Co.; he presented to each member of the Team a
lighter with their initials and the USTTA Emblem in Gold and also a Gold USTTA pin.
1950 Budapest Worlds
I dont know whether in their travels our Team heard detailed results of the 1950
World Championships, in which they were all entered and their opponents given walkovers,
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but Ill fill you in. Bergmann won his 4th and last Singles Championshiponly it wasnt easy.
In his opening match, he was forced into the 5th (where he was reportedly down 11-4) by the
Czech Turnovsky; then in the quarters, against 1948 and 49 runner-up Vana, he was down 21 before rallying to win the 4th and 5th games at 19 (in the 5th he was down 18-14); then in the
semis he beat 47 runner-up Sido, 25-23 in the 4th; and in the final against Hungarys Soos, he
lost the first two games, but won the next three under the time-limit rule. Bergmanns comebacks were the talk of players the world over. Bergmann himself said in Twenty-One Up that
tedious monotonous practice and singleness of purpose is the real clue to my success (15).
Sooss success was very much dependent on his racket. Ferency Gyorgy quotes the
47 World Mixed and 50 World Mens Doubles Champion as saying:
This is an old Hungarian bat from legendary times of the Hungarian pingpong. I am attached to it until its last minutes. I mend it by filing its edges, it does not
worry me if its size wears down to the size of a hand mirror. By replacing the rotten
parts, I have glued on it so many rubber patches that it resembles already the map of
Europe (Table Tennis, Apr., 1951, 11).
In Mens matches of more than routine interest, Andreadis, down 2-0 and at deuce in
the 3 in the semis against Soos, fought back, only to lose in 5. Frances Haguenauer took
down Defending Champion Leach in 5, so that on arriving in the U.S. in late March Johnny
wouldnt have the World title. And before losing to Soos, the Czech Vhynanovsky won in 5
over Hungarys Emery Lippai who in 10 years well see win the U.S. Open Doubles with
Danny Vegh.
Since the Czechs, once down 4-1 to England, had beaten the Hungarian titleholders in
the Swaythling Cup final (Hungarys Koczian had badly blistered feet), the Mens Doubles
provided a very popular win in Budapest: Hungarys Sido/Soos won the title from Defending
Champions Andreadis/Tokar.
In Womens Singles, Rumanias Angelica Rozeanu began her historic 6-year reign as
World Champion by defeating arch-rival Gizi Farkas, forced to try to be content, after three
straight years as World Champion, with being runner-up for the next four. Hungarys Rose
Karpati, whom Shahian beat last year to allow the U.S. to win the Corbillon Cup, lost a key
match this year to Sari Kolosvary in the Corbillon Cup final, won by Rumania, 3-2. But in the
Singles, Rose blossomed, reached the semis, made a good showing by defeating this Worlds
Womens Doubles Champions, Englands Dora Beregi and Scotlands Helen Elliot, as well as
the Czech Hruskova. Farkas teamed with Sido in the Mixed for another popular win
overVana/Hruskova.
rd

Shahian Wins 1950 English Open

The Americans arrived in London a week ahead of time for the Mar. 9-11 English
Openbut without their Defending Champions Reisman and McLean, and without
Holzrichter, for hed received word that his brother Gus was in the hospital and that regarding their Sports Shop business there was lease trouble, so of course he had to quickly
leave the Team and come home. Which means he wasnt part of the March 4th USA vs.
England Match, played before a 1,000 spectators at the spacious Vauxhall Motors Recreation Club in Luton, East Midlandswhich, as Ivor Montagu himself watched approvingly, the English won 9-0!
305

Here are the results as reported by Peter Vigorand no wonder our people back
home werent seeing them. Molly Jones fought with dour determination to beat Mae
Clouther 23-21 in the 3rd; young Michael Thornhill, in his first international, gave us a most
impressive display of tactics blending with accurate hitting on both hands that provided him
with an easy 6, 11 win over Gordon Barclay; the occasionally ferocious McClure was no
match tonight for Johnny Leach; the quiet, energy-saving, clever play of Aubrey Simons
frequently had the U.S. Junior Champion, Wally Gundlach, completely nonplussed; Simons/
Thornhill, in the fiercest match of the evening, just got by Gundlach/Barclay, 24-22 in the
3rd; Peggy Franks showed stylish play (I presume against Shahian); the Rowe twins were
dazzling; and Dora Beregi used her vigorous, unorthodox, but extremely effective attack to
eclipse Reba Monness (Table Tennis, April, 1950, 20).
Fortunately for the U.S. players, they quite redeemed
themselves at the English Open. McClure, before losing to Frances
Michel Haguenauer, punched holes in Leachs defence and reportedly was heckled in the process. Barclay beat the 1946 English Junior
Champion Dennis Miller (then lost to the Yugoslav Dolinar).
Gundlach took a game from Bergmann (winner in the final over
Haguenauer). In her quarters match, Mae Clouthers half-volley
placing had Englands Peggy Franks-Wood flummoxed.

1950 English Open Program, 27

Gordon Barclay

Millie Shahian, with her

control, defensive skill and neat
counter-hitting, won the
Womens over Englands Diane
Rowe in the semis and teammate
Reba Monness in the finalthat
same Reba, of the leopard skin
slacks and tartan breeks [ornamented knee-length trousers], who
braided her raven-black hair into
two plaits which often seemed in
danger of being chopped off by her
bat as the pace quickened (Table
Tennis, April, 1950, 9, 11).

Millie Shahian,
1950 English Open Champion
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Table Tennis Review columnist Sam Kirkwood didnt like the court appearance of
many of the women:
Too many of them wore grey flannel slacks which clung to their persons
closer than a skin does to a sausage, revealing in unsightly detail portions of their
anatomy and giving clear outlines of underwear.
I award black marks in particular to the American girls, who were positively
disreputable in attire. Out of respect to their hosts, if for no other reason, they should
have made some attempt at sartorial neatness (June-July, 1950, 6).
Oh well, never mind what Reba wore, or didnt wear, she thought there were more topnotch female players in America than England or any other country. (Including Japan, Reba?)
Capelle/Rurac Top Pacific Coast
While the U.S. Team was abroad, major tournaments, synchronized for Mar. 5-11
Table Tennis Week, took place. At the Pacific Coast Championships, held Mar. 5-6 in the
Municipal Auditorium in Long Beach, 5th-seed Paul Capelle from Oakland won the 54-entry
Mens by defeating in the late rounds the Tournament Manager and #1 seed John Hanna, then
Beryl Shapiro whod upset Defending Champion Abbott Nelson, and finally (shh, 8, 11, 7)
Frank Nemes, California state champion for the past three years.
In Mens Doubles, Defending Champs Nelson/Lee Freeman prevailed in 5 over
Roseman/Bob Edwards. Louie Scharlack came up from San Antonio and, game leg balanced
with a shoesole maybe six inches thick, had little trouble winning the Seniors from Bill
Bower. Lew Levick took the Junior Boys from George Katz; Pat Crowley the Junior Girls
from Nancy Richardson. In the Womens, the
Magda Rurac-Tiny Moss rivalry continued
with Magda losing the close games but
winning the match. Hollywoods Reilly
continued to publicize the Game by doing a
series of TV exhibitions with different California players on the Wheeler and Rourke
Show.

Louie Scharlack

Price/Ichkoff Western Winners

The Westerns were held Mar. 4-5 in
Kansas Citys World War II Memorial Building (formerly the Scottish Rite Temple) under
the direction of Dr. Herman Mercer. Topics
Editor Bill Price followed Abbott Nelsons
cue that exciting tournament matches ought
to be written up in some detailthe more so
perhaps when one had necessarily to write
about himself and his #1 protg. Yes, Bill
successfully defended his Mens title and
gave his final opponent V. Lee Webb quite a
bit of copy:
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The usually funny Webb became deadly serious in lecturing the crowd on
sportsmanship during his semi-final match with [Jim] Tancill, and carried on in the
same vein during the final match. Seems that the crowd were [sic] applauding at
inopportune times, destroying the Webb concentration. This was really a switch, for
consensus of opinion agreed that Webbs strong point is usually getting his opponents
goat to destroy said opponents concentration. Consensus also agreed that Webb is
hardly the person to lecture any group on sportsmanship, to say nothing of general
decorum during a table tennis match.
In describing the 5th game of his final with Webb, Price had this to say:
Webbs forehand became unusually potent when the score reached ten-all
and he banged a bundle of shots past Price so quickly that Bill must have thought he
was being shot at. Although Bill kept the crowd in an uproar with his remarkable
returns, he found himself on the short end of a 19-14 score with the end clearly in
sight. At this point Webb saw fit to take a few chances that didnt quite pan out, and
the audience was in a fever of excitement as Price crept up, point by point, til the
score reached 19-18. Here Webb played a fine, heady point, taking his time to force
Price into finally setting the ball up, high and in mid court, and with Price on the ropes,
twenty feet back, whanged the ball with all he had. In the net! That was the match, for
Webbs cry, Nuts to the net, indicated that he was quite upset, to put it mildly, and he
quickly missed on the next two points to give the game and Western title to Price, 2119.
Prices protg, Al Holtman, paired with him to win the Mens Doubles. Bill devoted
much of his space to the Junior final between Tancill and Holtman who in the semis had
viciously hit through Omahas John Jones after Jones, with his remarkably steady and sticky
defense[had] outfought [Marty] Prager in the 5th. Here, in large part, is what Price said
about the Tancill-Holtman match:

Jim Tancill, 1950 U.S. Open

Junior Champion

Thirteen-year-old
Holtmann stuck to
the table like a coat
of paint, forcing on
every point, both
forehand and
backhand, with a
style reminiscent of
the great Vana
when he was world
champion. [Except
of course
Bergmanns fun line
about Vana
[Bohu] kicks his
308

Alphonse Holtman, 1950 U.S. Open

Boys Champion

right foot out like a horse with every attacking shot in order to keep his balance
isnt analogously applicable.] He quickly reeled off the first game[but in the second]
Tancill fought back with a series of cobra-like counter-drives to even the match[In
the third, Holtman] ran the game out with several neat back-hand counters right down
the line. [But though down 17-13 in the fourth, Tancill managed to take the offense and force the game into the fifth.] The fifth game was a humdinger for sure,
with both boys scrapping bitterly for the offense.[Down 12-8, Tancill] decided to
stay up at the table and block any shot he couldnt counter.[At 19-all, with the
crowd gasping and hyper-tense] Jim made five or six great saves to get to match
point[and] finally won when Holtmans bid for a winner missed by no more than a
whisker (Apr., 1950, 5, 10).
Pinner/Neuberger Take Easterns
At the Easterns, held Mar. 4-5 at the Bridgeport, CT YMCA, Eddie Pinner won the
45-entry Mens from Izzy Bellis. In Mens Doubles, Sussman/Pinner continued their dominancedowned Schiff/Somael in the final. Senior winner was Hazi over Simeon Sabre who
on a recent trip to Havana had reportedly split games with Cuban Champ Roberto Gomez and
beaten all others. Womens winner was Neuberger, unchallenged by 16-year-old Hunter
College student Lona Flam, or in the final by Leahs winning Womens Doubles partner Ruthe
Crist. Schiff/Neuberger took the Mixed, but had to go 5 in the final with Pinner/Flam.
The New York State Open, held Mar. 10 at Volkerts Hall in Long Island City, ended
Table Tennis Week. The Womens and the Mixed were a replay of the Easterns. But the
surprise Mens winner was the #3 seed, Cy Sussman, who knocked off Pinner, 20, 19, -18, 20
in the semis and then Schiff 18, -19, 17, 19 in the final. Mens Doubles winners? Take a
guess.Yep, just like last week: Pinner/Sussman over Schiff/Somael. Senior winner Larry
Wexler earned a National Ranking by beating Simeon Sabre whod eliminated Gus Rehberger,
deuce in the deciding 3rd. Hirschkowitz downed Matt Schonberger to lay claim to being the
best Junior in the East. But since he cant afford to go to the upcoming Nationals in St. Louis
to play the best of the Mid-westerners, do you think he can ever expect to be as good as they
are?

309

Chapter Thirty
1950: Leach/Carrington Arrive in U.S. 1950: Leach/Monness New U.S. Open Champions. 1950: California Play Flourishes (Appearance of Keun-Hang Kenny Choi and
Erwin Klein). 1950: Oregon Circle Theater Tournaments. 1950: Schiff/Neuberger Take
Montreal Canadian Open. 1950: Reisman/Cartland Reinstated.
Englands Johnny Leach, 1949 World Singles Champion, and his equally renowned
mentor, friend, and doubles partner, Jack Carrington, sailing from London to New York on
the Queen Mary, arrived in the U.S. on March 22, two days late after weathering the most
severe storms at sea. Preparatory to a series of exhibitions, both before and after playing in
our Mar. 31-Apr. 1-2 U.S. Open, they were welcomed by Ross D. Ackerman at his own
Midston House hotel-residence in Manhattan, then immediately whisked off to Springfield,
Massachusetts by train where they were able to keep their first engagement. They scored even
more points when that evening after the matches, on hearing one of the boys couldnt attend
because of bad marks in school, they went to the boys home late at nite, autographed a ball,
and had a good chat.
Perhaps if we too had a talk with these visitors wed learn, as I did from Englands
Peggy Allen, that Johnny, 26, had begun playing table tennis at age 12; that while a
lithographers apprentice hed met his future wife, also employed at this same printing firm;
that hed joined the RAF; and that, having married Daisy in 1943, the two have a son, John,
now about 4. Though sometimes Johnnys away night after night, Daisy has always supported
him in his ever serious tournament travels that have enabled him to be World Champion (Table
Tennis Review, Sept.-Oct., 1949, 8-9). Said his coach Carrington, Send your lads and lassies
to compete outside their own town, then outside their own county, and, he might have
added, outside their own country; thats the way to improve.
Carrington, 38, originally wanted to be a chess champion, but, applying at St. Brides
Club in London, he was kept waiting and wandered off into the table tennis roomwith the
result that thereafter hed applied his wiles to our no less challenging board game. A 1947
World quarterfinalist, a well-known coach and author, hes also been the Editor of the official
English magazine Table Tennis, as well as a BBC commentator and London Daily Mirror
correspondent on the Game (TTT, Mar., 1950, 3).
Johnny and Jacks itinerary called for only one exhibition in New York. That, on completion of their Springfield engagement, was the very next night at Midston House where theyd be
playing Singles and Doubles against Pinner and Sussman (admission $2.40). Ackerman tells us that
on the morning of the 23rd, a kind friend who was driving to New York [from Springfield]
suggested they not return by train but accompany himwhich they did. Alas, having gotten over
their sea-sickness, they were now faced with a bout of land-sickness:
His [the friends] car was not a new one, and when it ran properly he could
make about thirty miles per hour. However, it broke down four or five times and took
some time to repair, with the result that the boys arrived here at the Midston at five
[p.m.]without having eaten since they left Springfield.
Ah well, alls well that ends well. Ackerman said hed been running tournaments and
exhibitions here at Midston House for sixteen years, and tonights matches before a capacity
310

crowd, and an enthusiastic one, were the most thrilling we have seen. The close scores of
some of the following matches suggest exhibition play. Match #1: Leach/Pat Hunter over
Carrington/Nelly Scott, 21-19. Match #2: Carrington/Hunter over Leach/Scott, 21-17.
(Ackerman had promised that the two top girls on our [Midston] Monday night ladder
tournament could pair with the English visitors.) Match #3: Carrington over Sussman, 14,
14. Match #4: Pinner over Leach: -13, 20, 17. (Reba Monness calls Eddie a joy to watch.
He has courage, nice strokes, fight, and [the] clean movement of an intelligent athlete. Its
too bad, she says, work prevents his greater participation.) Match #5: Pinner/Sussman over
Leach/Carrington, 26, -18, -15, 9, 21. The table tennis celebrities in the audience included:
Emily Fuller, Laszlo Bellak, Sol Schiff, and former American Ping-Pong Association President
Sidney Lenz (TTT, Apr., 1950, 8).
Two-time U.S. Womens Champion Fuller tells us that she brought two of her best
pupils to watch these Midston matches. For the last two years, Emily, as a volunteer for the
New York Junior League, has been teaching table tennis at Bellevue Hospital to the Rehabilitation Group under Dr. Rusk. In so doing she herself needs all the patience and determination
she asks of her students:
The principal disabilities in my group are men and women who are paraplegics (paralysed from the waist down), hemiplegics (paralysed in one side of the body);
arthritis; amputees; alcoholics; and polio cases.
I learned from experience that patients could play from stretchers and wheel
chairs. To get away from the hospital atmosphere of a nurses white uniform I wear
dark slacks and a bright red blazer to lend colour and a touch of informality. A basket
is used as a container for two-dozen balls. One of the patients tosses out the balls to
the players as they are needed and when the basket is empty I go round the room to
collect them.
One young girl who has cerebral palsy, has very little control of her arms. I am
trying to help her through the proper timing of her strokes to overcome this handicap.
For weeks when I did not guide her hand, she would go under or over the ball and
could not touch it. Today, I am happy to say, she can hit it without my help, and in a
few months should be able to play the game (Table Tennis, October, 1950, 8-9).
After their Midston exhibition, while en route to St. Louis, and for several days after
the Nationals, Leach and Carrington had ample time to adjust to the slower U.S. tables.
(Miles had said, I was very sure there was no one in the world I couldnt beat if we played on
our U.S. Detroiter tables. But of course no World Championships were ever played on
them.) The visiting Englishmen were scheduled to play at Cincinnati, Detroit, Chicago, South
Bend, and, the last stop, Dayton, from which theyd be driven by Leah Neuberger the 580
miles back to New York (average on-the-road speed 48 mph) where theyd vacation for a
couple of days before embarking for home on the Queen Elizabeth. Back then, what was
driving like in New York? Traffic jams, said Carrington to the London Daily Mirror, provide
a real tingleKeeping up with the Joneses is a matter of survival. He who hesitates is
squashed.
In the Detroit area, the VFW and Royal Oak TTA went 50-50 on expenses to send
50 kids in a chartered bus to see the Leach-Carrington exhibition. On being welcomed, the
visitors were presented with a huge poster paddle, and thereafter, before the British Vice311

Consul and other notables, Leach beat Michigan Closed Champ Glenn Whitcroft, 2-0. (At that
Closed, in which Glenn beat Max Hersh in the final, its nice to note that a benefit was raised
for Bill Swinyar of Detroit, father of four, who on suffering a stroke was paralyzed on the
entire left side and had been in the hospital for nearly a month. Thanks to Graham
Steenhoven, and the kids from Detroits Parkside Club and from Royal Oak, entry fees and
table and ball raffles helped out the Swinyar family.)
Leach, Monness New
U.S. Open Champions
In addition to
Leach and Carrington,
this 1950 U.S. Open
(to date, the most
international and
probably the most
interesting in the
history of the game)
was graced by penholder Keun-Hang
Kenny Choi who,
according to one
source was reportedly
six-time South Korean
Champion, according
to another, four-time
South Korean finalist.
Also entered was the
1943 South American
TTT, April, 1950, 9
Johnny (left) and Jack welcomed by young Roger Break
Champion from Chile,
at the Royal Oak Michigan YMCA
Raul Riveros Araya.
And coming from
California, a car-load, driven by Rumanian-born sportswoman Magda Ruroc, that included
Austin Finkenbinder, Bob Ashley, and George Katz.
Carrington later was quick to point out how distances in the U.S. were a handicap to
rapid development:
A good provincial team in England may have to travel 20 miles to find worthy
opposition. The equivalent journey in U.S.A. would probably be 200 miles. In England, a good report of table tennis on the radio reaches some 20 million listeners. To
get equal coverage in U.S.A. you would have to sell the table tennis idea to probably
40 small radio stations.
Carrington also said that since USATT President Elmer Cinnater lives 700 miles from
New York, which is like trying to coordinate Birmingham table tennis activity from Switzerland, its not so surprising to find that differences of opinion between New York and the
Middle West centers of the game take rather a long time to heal (Table Tennis, May, 1950, 6).
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My, how true. Consider this unsigned editorial in Topics, surely written by Associate
Editor Ed Dick Dickinson, and extremely bitter in its denunciation of Eastern players who
didnt make the trip to St. Louis:
I cant figure this one out. These guys can find time to get away from
work, school, etc. to go to Europe on funds provided by the USTTA, but they just
cant seem to find time to support the national tournament. In some cases lack of
funds was described as the reason for not attending this tourney. Hmm. Do you eastern prima donnas recall the number of Westerners who attended the Nationals in New
York last year? Do you remember how many of them were Junior players? [There
were 14. This years Nationals? No entries from New York, 3 from Pennsylvania.] Do
you know how they got the money to make the trip? They started working and saving
several months ahead of time; of course this may have caused them to practice less,
preventing them from bringing their games up to your standard, but their interest in the
game so far surpasses yours that we wont even discuss it, but let me say that if the
USTTA ever learns that the masses and not the classes control most decent sports,
then you guys will be out in the cold, and youll be shivering all by yourselves. Ive
maintained for years that we should not send teams to Europe, partly because most of
the sendees have been jerks who should not be allowed to represent this country or
this sport, or any sport. Ive always advocated using that money to build up our
affiliates where people might think of more than just themselves (Apr., 1950, 3).
Such venom. Is it really called for? And what does he mean that now the classes
control table tennis? Whats he talking about? And because Easterners didnt come to St.
Louis their interest in the Sport isnt as strong as the Midwesterners? Of course, History has
proven Dickinson wrong about not sending teams abroad. For almost all the USTTA has got
to show for 70 years of Table Tennis in the U.S. is notwhat administrations are always
talking aboutthe build-up of affiliates, of memberships. Its our brief successes on the world
stage. As Ive pointed out, Topics, with its parochial Midwest editorship, often doesnt like
New Yorkers (though Dick does think the new NYTTA President Mal Russell is a nice
guy). And naturally New Yorkers dont much like Topics.
Bellak, I must say, had an excuse for not coming to St. Louisplaying in the
Nationals was no longer a high priority with him. Making a good living for himself and
his wife Lilly was. Now approaching 40, hed been an indispensable help to his brother-inlaws photography business in New York. So naturally when Paul Moss wanted to go into
offset four-color printing, he asked Bellak (whose father and grandfather were printers) if
he could figure out how to do it. Inventively, Laci made the color separationyellow, red,
blue, blackeven better than Eastman. This led him, after he was called in as a working
consultant for a Florida firm (Miami hotel brochures!and the worst color printing I ever
saw!), to eventually form his own color-printing company. In 1950 he and Lilly moved to
Miami.
Ferris also had an excuse. As he makes clear in a Letter to Topics, he wishes he could
have attended the Nationals, but he and Ted Bourne have been giving exhibitions between
the halves of the Harlem Globtrotters Basketball Teams games. We picked them up at midseason in Portland, Ore. And have just finished a 3 day stand in Havana, Cuba at El Polacio de
Deportes [where reportedly more than 15,000 attended].
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TTT, Apr., 1982, 8

Ted Bourne (left) and George Ferris during 1952 Harlem Globetrotters show
at the Palacio de Deportes (Sports Palace) in Havana, Cuba

A word about Ted Bourne. From April to November, he made a living as a golf pro.
From November to April he toured with the Trotters, up until 1958 anyway when on the last
day of touring his regular partner, Chicagos Bob Anderson, died. After hed retired, Ted
gave a Feb. 28, 1981 interview to Daniel Ross of the Vero Beach, FL Press Journal in which
he described a trick that mystified the Globetrotters fans:
He would kneel with his back to the playing table and suspend the ball in mid
air by blowing on it. Then he would hit the ball with his paddle over his shoulder to his
partner at the far end of the table. Bourne would catch his partners return shot in his
mouth. Again turning his back to the table, he would spit the ball against his stationary
paddle hard enough to bounce back over his head to his partner. His partners return
shot would rocket into Bournes chest and, as if the wind were knocked from him, he
would cough up two more Ping-Pong balls.
Nothing with less of a cavernous mouth than a hippopotamus can hold three
balls, so the crowd was baffled.
After Bourne spit the ball against his paddle and it bounced to his partner, he would
pull a sleight-of-mouth and gobble the two balls without the crowds ever seeing.
No magic tricks before the fans in St. Louisthough the uninitiate might have done a
double take at 6 2 blind umpire Chuck Medick (he works in an X-ray darkroom in a Cleveland hospital) being escorted to the umpires chair, then calling the match, then being escorted back to the scorers table. They would have been further surprised to learn that
314

At Ohio State School for the

Blind in Columbus [Ohio], he was a
member of the track team, running the
440-yard dash in competition with other
blind students. A good swimmer since
early boyhood, he finished second in the
100-yeard free-style event at the state
Y.M.C.A. meet. Medick has been an
official scorer for one of the citys
softball leagues and can mark down hits
and errors (Coronet, Nov., 1951, 41).
In the best of the early-round
Mens matches, Kentuckys Gerald
Cohee surprised Milwaukees Phil
Blind Umpire Chuck Medick (on being escorted to the table)
Sgarlata, 19 in the 5th; Ron Liechty
downed Russ Niesen in 5; Dale
McColley, up 2-0 but into the 5th after losing the 4th 25-23, won out over Louie Scharlack;
Santiago police lieutenant Raul Riveros beat Jimmy Shrout in 5 before losing to Daytons
Mark Neff whod earlier ousted L.A.s Bob Ashley deuce in the 4th; Buffalos Morris Meyers
(his entry the first received) outlasted St. Louiss Fred McAvoy in the 5th; and Topekas Cecil
Woodworth eliminated St. Louiss Stan Robens, who decades later, even into the new millennium, would continue to voice his strong interest in the Game.
Through the 16ths, there were only two really striking upsetsBob Harlows 18-inthe-4th win over Carrington, and Ralph Basts straight-game elimination of Keun-Hang
Kenny Choi, the hard-luck Korean lefty, bereft of family, whose penhold-lift driving game
most everyone liked, though Carrington said he looked a little panicky when boldly counterattacked. Eighths matches of note were: McClure over Webb, who apparently broke his bat
some time before hed begun to lose that last game from 20-14 up); Somael over Lasater, 19
in the 4th (said one reporter, railbirds thought it might be 5th-seed Dons year); Price over
Hazi; Hendry over Harlow; and the piece de resistance of the day that stopped six of the
seven tables in play, Basts 20, -15, 20, -16, 27 win over play boy Garrett Nash. L.A.s
Finkenbinder, beathless, had watched as Bast had rallied from 20-18 down in the 5th with
forehand counter-drives and well-placed chops to Nashs potent backhand. Finally, with the
score 27-all, Nash flicked a backhand into the net and then was drawn out of position by a
fadeaway angle shot. That brought Bedlam in St. Louis (CAL Table Tennis, May, 1950).
It also brought about future Hall of Famer Nashs retirement. He would begin playing
tournament bridge in earnestand in 1962 his team would win the famed Vanderbilt Cup,
quite an accomplishment, especially for a bad boy some erroneously judged undisciplined.
Carrington thought these U.S. Detroiter tables too slow, which meant, he said, for the
players less defensive footwork, and that in turn meant less spectacular play for the
public. His advice to the table manufacturers was to produce a trial batch of 1 inch top
laminated Finnish birch, with malt cellulose finish (TTT, May, 1950, 5).
The one semisHolzrichter over Price in 4was not close, but not exactly routine
eitherfor as Price pointed out in Topics, down 1-0 and at 17-all in the 2nd, he got a couple
bad breaks, once when he ran into the umpire and once on a edge ball by Holzrichter. Also,
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in the 4th, when Holzrichter,

down 6-2 and finding it
difficult now to hit through
Price, began the first push
point of the match, the
officials, perhaps prematurely and with no warning, as provided by the
rules, put in the Expedite
Rule, which worked to
Holzrichters advantage.
The other semis
Leach (playing in shorts for
the first time) vs. the aging
but agile McClure (also in
shorts)rivaled the earlier
Bast/Nash match and was
itself worth the price of
admission (spectators, by
the way, had to pay at every
session, even the opening
one). As hed done at the
English Open, Jimmy began
by banging ball after ball at
Johnny and won the first
two games, 18 and 20.
Then, wrote Price
Jimmy McClure (Warming up for Leach?)

Jimmy made a
fatal error, he left the floor for three or four minutes to quench his thirst and mop his
sweating brow. That was all the time that Leach needed. He walked to the edge of the
playing area, which is all perfectly legal and honorable, and conversed with his coach,
Jack Carrington. And Carringtons advice was good, he told Johnny to keep his
defense a little shorter (according to our informant) and this[Leach] did, winning the
third game 21-17. However, it was the Englishmans fight that pulled out that fiercely
fought [23-21] fourth game [in which Johnny had been match-point down], that plus
the fact that he had simply tired out McClures good right arm, which had done a
tremendous amount of flailing trying to get that ball past plucky Leach. McClure said
afterward that his arm felt like a damp rag after the third game, and well it should what
with the number of kills he hit. Leach led all the way in the fifth game, keeping the ball
away from McClures forehand as much as possible.
Price also wrote-up the straight-game Leach-Holzrichter final:
Englands Johnny Leach was just too steady for Billy Holzrichter. Billy
tried everything he knew to get the ball past Leach but it was just no go. This Johnny
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Leach would be a fine model for all young players to copy when it comes to moving.
His feet seem to be going all the time, and his reflexes appear amazingly fast, at times
he would return edge balls as though they were normal shots! In the very first point of
the final match, Leach gave an indication of what was to come, for after returning
three or four of Holzrichters hardest smashes, Johnny was so far from the table that
he seemed to be out of the building; however he was able to come in for a perfectly
executed Holzrichter drop shot and handle it cleanly. This appeared to cause some
thought on Billys part and he never really got in the hitting groove those first two
games. In the third game Holzrichter played much more conservatively, allowing
Leach to take the offensive. This was the best tactic on Billys part, for he was able to
handle any offensive shot that Leach sent his way. In this game Holzrichter led all the
way and had game point at 20-18, when he tried a couple of drives that barely ticked
the net and went out.
If Holzrichter had played Leach as carefully as
he did Price in the semis he might have done much better,
even if it came down to the point of invoking the expedite
pushing rule (May, 1950, 3). Price, for one, thought
highly of Holzrichters tricky defense: First a heavily
chopped ball will come over the net, then when it is driven
back to Billy his return will look almost the same as his last
one. However, this ball may have little or no spin on it, and
it its not watched closely can cause your next drive to go up
into the balcony. Billy, however, reminiscing years later,
didnt think he
should have gotten
into an Expedite
match with Leach,
for Johnnys ball
was always
Svensk
hittable. I just
Bordtennis,
Nr 5, 1949
didnt play my best
Englands
against Leach, he
Johnny
said. And added,
Leach, 1950
Of all the matches
U.S. ChamIve played, this
pion
was the most
TTT, Nov., 1947, 3
disappointing.
Billy Holzrichter, 1950 U.S. Open runner-up
Leach, with Carrington (whose new book, Modern Table Tennis, was being touted),
also won the Mens Doublesover Holzrichter/Levy. Johnny completed the hat trickwon
the Mixed with Sally Prouty from Price/Monness, but only after surviving a 7, -19, 23, -23, 20
thriller against Levy/Ichkoff. Carrington said of Prouty, a fragile high-stepping beauty, that
her clean, wide hitting was a revelation to him, for she could slash balls by 6 2 Johnnys
angular reach. As if she might deserve something extra then, voila, the USTTA Ranking
Committee decided not to penalize U.S. players who in Doubles pair with foreign players.
Hence Sally, who won last year with Schiff, retains with Leach her #1 U.S. Mixed Doubles ranking.
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The 36-entry
Womens Singles, minus 1948
Champ, Peggy McLean Folke
who was expecting this April,
had very few contested
matches. In one of the most
significant, Magda Rurac,
identified in the press as a
U.S. citizen and National Clay
Courts Champion (shed won
in 48 and 49 but would lose
in 50), beat #4 seed Clouther
from down 2-1 and 21-all in
the 4th (Rurac drove consistently, but Finkenbinder said
that Maes steady blocking
practically wore Magda
out). Rurac then rallied
againfrom down 2-1 to
eliminate Ichkoff. In the
semis, she fell three straight
to Neuberger, but the last two
games went to deuce.
Monness, meanwhile, cut off
Shahians chances by winning
the 2nd 22-20. Millie, up 2014, thought Rebas return out,
but the ump thought otherwise, andhow does it
happen?Monness won the
next 7 points and advanced to
the final in straight games
(thereby avenging her loss to
Millie in the English Open).
Price wrote that, in playing
for the title, Reba appeared a
more calm, confident competitor than ever before, and
her concentration throughout
the entire tournament was
Reba Monness, 1950 U.S. Open Womens Champion
tremendous. Since Rebas
chop carried the authority of any mans, it was simply a story of a disheart[ing]ly strong
stone-wall defense against a sharp hitter, and this time, for a change, the stone-wall won.
But, said Price, Neuberger again demonstrated that she is one of the finest sportswomen to
ever touch a racket, and made a host of new friends (to go with the host of old ones) in her
gallant but losing fight (TTT, May, 1950, 3).
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Reba later wrote that shed played as a member of the 1950 U.S. Team in Europe
with a broken racquet, then had a most welcome change:
The day before we left England for the U.S. Barna invited me to tea. He
asked to see my racquet. Upon looking at it, he exclaimed, Reba, how can you play
with this awful, broken racquet? The next morning as we left for America, Barna was
at the airport with 4 brand new Barna racquets for me!
On the trip back, members of the U.S. Team kept telling me that those racquets
were for left-handed players (I am righthanded.) I paid no attention to my teammates, though, and played in the Nationals in St. Louis a few days later with the
lightest new Barna racquet, sans any practice with it, and easily won the U.S. Championships (TTT, Sept.-Oct., 1972, 10).
Carrington added that, Glamorous Reba sprang several feet into the air when that
last winning point came her way and consoled the gallant Leah with a big kiss. No kiss for
Carrington, though, since Reba had championed the all white clothing, and Jack didnt like it.
At first glance, he said, the all-white spectacle was refreshing [though shouldnt all be
wearing white shoes?], but it quickly became the reverse. The spectating eye became tired,
and one missed the sense of personality and easy identification which the traditional colours
bring to our game (Table Tennis, May, 1950, 6-7).
Perhaps, however, thered be no argument regarding another wish or two of Rebas:
I wish that all Americans could see the English Open in progress at
Wembley!!! If only the U.S.T.T.A. would become sufficiently powerful as to be able to
invite teams from all of the countries affiliated with the I.T.T.F. to participate in International matches and to be host to the World Championships!!! This would help t.t. to
be more recognized and respected in the USA (Table Tennis, May, 1950, 13).
In Womens Doubles, Rurac/Shahian won rather easily over Ichkoff/Joan Van De
Houton whod upset the #1 seeds, Neuberger/Prouty. Local reporter Bud Thies wrote that
Sally had been ill and was far below her former weight, and Helene Cinnater said that
after the tournament Prouty would be having surgery. So Sally had sat out the Singles on
doctors orders. And speaking of doctors orders in 1950, Helene couldnt help but point out
that The Tobacco Cos ought to give dividends to the USTTA during these Natls. Everyone
smokes so much (cigarettes, I mean) they almost eat them!
Van De Houton was expected to win the 8-entry Junior Miss, but was beaten in 4 in
the final by Joanne Gardner. Joanne had zipped Chicagos Sharon Koehnke who at the
upcoming Chicago All-American Championships would again win her teen division over
Oak Parks Carol Nydam. According to Carrington, Sharons 8-year-old sister, Jackie, was
wandering around, complaining to her father, George, because he hadnt entered her in the
Juniors. Dressed in cowboy kit, she pulled her guns on all and sundry, while obliging 6foot American males fell groaning to the floor. In the Mixed Doubles, Gardner had paired
with Barclay (her boyfriend?) and lost to the strong Levy/Ichkoff team, 24-22 in the 4th.
This summer, shed do a TV exhibition with Gordywhere, in an effort to retrieve one of
her drives, he went back and almost fell 37 floors out the window directly in back of
him.
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Barclay, after winning the U.S. Open Boys in 1945 and 46, had been runner-up
in the Juniors for the last 3 years, and now was no longer eligible. This years National
Junior Champion was the #1 seed, Jim Tancill from St. Louis, who was about to be the
Missouri State High School Tennis Champion. Tancill had three good late-round wins. In
the quarters he beat Carl Dentice, who down 2-1 and at 21-all in the 4th had escaped
Eddie Brennan; then in the semis Jim downed Ron Liechty (whose sister Carolee finished
4th in the 12-14 division of the All-American); and in the final he beat former U.S. Open
Boys Champ Eddie Hancock, after Indys Eddie, leading Louisvilles Bob Armstrong,
had 24, 21, -24, -19, 19 almost crashed; then, back on track again, had steadied to 22, 20,
-10, 13 defeat #2 seed Marty Prager. Al Holtman beat L.A.s George Katz to win the
Boys.
In the Seniors, the Defending Champion and consequently the #1 seed John Varga
fell, in a more challenging replay of their 47 final, to Tibor Hazi, losing in 4 from 1-1 and 22all in the 3rd. In Senior Doubles, Carrington partnered Bernie Hock to his first National title
over Varga/Fred McAvoy. Toughest team for Carrington and Hock was Riveros and Gunn,
the latter praised by Price for making the slightly long presentation of trophies interesting
with his wit and aplomb at the mike.
California Play Flourishes
Post-Nationals spring/summer tournament play in the L.A./Long Beach pocket of
California could not have been matched by any other area in the country. (Si Wasserman,
downtown L.A. YMCA Champ and CATTA Membership Chair, said there were now almost
200 USTTA members in the state.) Three weeks after the U.S. Open, the Southern California
Open was played at the Burbank Rec Center with Bernie Boomer as Director. Paul Capelle
(now a momentary resident of L.A. before again taking up residency in Pennsylvania) won the
Mensover Abbott Nelson in the semis (a realty appraiser, how was Abbott appraising his
own play recently?), then hard-hitting Lenny Abrams in the final.
In Mens Doubles, Nelson and CATTA Treasurer Chuck Feldman defeated John
Hanna and the CAL Table Tennis Newsletter Editor Beryl Shapiro. But perhaps the losers
minds were sometimes elsewhere? John was debating whether to take an attractive job offer at
the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyards in Hawaii (he would, and on practically setting foot in
Honolulu came second in the Hawaiian T.T. Open); and Beryl, not long after Johns May
departure, would marry Arlyn Manning.
Since Magda Rurac didnt enter the Womens, Tiny Moss, who this summer would
marry Jay Eller, had an easy time with Jane Little, an aeronautical engineer for Douglas
Aircraft in Long Beachah, if then, or now, the little white ball could be so skillfully playercontrolled as one of those new millennium ornithopter robots, darting, hopping, curving with
zip-around maneuverability. Work on it, Jane. Rurac, however, did partner CA #10 Bob
Ashley to a victory in the Mixed over Abbott Nelson and Jean Feldman, Treasurer of the L.A.
Club.
Following this Burbank tournament , as the June, 1950 CAL Table Tennis makes clear,
the California State Championships (a.k.a. Golden State Open) were held May 26-28 in the
ballroom of the Kaiser-Kabat Institute (formerly the Ambassador Hotel) under the direction of
Austin Finkenbinder. Tape recordings of the Golden State finals and interviews featuring
Tourney Queen [United Artists star] Vanessa Brown and top players were made by the
Armed Forces Radio Service, arranged by Russ Thompson.
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Seouls Keun Hang

Kenny Choi, using, it may be, a
non-rubber composition bat of
doubtful vintage, and driving
terrifically with his acrobatic penholder forehand, penetrated the
classic defense of Abbot Nelson to
win the Mens. Strangely, Nelson
had no sooner been elected CATTA
President this Spring than a new
election was called in June and
(Fireworks at the Board of Governors Meeting) Bob Lupo was elected
President. Californias former #1
Frank Nemes, whod been prepping
to open his own accounting office,
was upset 19 in the 4th in the
Photo by Bob Lynds
quarters, by Louie Scharlack. In the
South Korean Champion Keung-Hang Kenny Choi
Womens, Ruracs almost benign
attack was thwarted by Mosss counters, but then Magdas aggressive top-spins and smashes overpower[ed] Tinys tight defense.
At the Aug. 26-27 Santa Monica Open, played in the Ocean Park AuditoriumKantar,
who was about to move back to Minnesota, won the Mens over Chuck Feldman. Boys winner
was Erwin Klein. Erwin, a future USTTA Hall of Fame great, had been discovered by Bob Lupo
playing at Poinsettia Playground in Los Angeles. Bob then recommended that funds be appropriated for the 11-year-old redhead to play at the California Table Tennis Center.
Portland, Oregon Circle Theater Tournaments
Portlands preserver of Northwest table tennis lore, Bob Viducich, tells us that the 1st
Oregon Open at the Circle Theater site, played Mar. 17-18, was a sort of present to the newly
wed Van Vlecks of Seattle. Lowell won the Mens over current Portland Metro Champ Hal
Philan. And Lowells wife Betty (nee Fisher), also current Portland Metro Champ, was runner-up in the Womens to Marian Ursic.
Schiff/Neuberger Take Canadian Open
Back East, Bill Gunn was named Captain of the U.S. Team that would play the Canadians not, as usual, at the Toronto CNE in early September (that tournament wouldnt be held
this year), but, with the cooperation of CTTA President Lou Beedle, at the Canadian Open,
held Apr. 28-29 in Montreals Palestre Nationale Gym. Attending this tournament rather than
the Nationals (Some stuff, huh? Phooey! Topics columnist Helene Cinnater had written)
were Sol Schiff, Eddie Pinner, Pauline Robinson, Lona Flam, Marianne Bessinger, Harry
Hirschkowitz, Angelo Gutierrez, and Bobby Gusikoff. Surely it wasnt that big a defection,
considering that aside from the U.S. Team members picked to play the CanadiansSomael,
Bast, Hendry (all of whom were at the Nationals)the others were just about the only U.S.
players in Montreal to support and enjoy the two-country interchange that had been reestablished after the War in 47.
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The U.S. was again too 6-0 strong for Canada (led by President/Manager of the
Quebec TTA, Alide M. Racine, and his Association players, Lionel Cloutier, J.J. Desjardins,
and Henri Rochon). As it turned out, however, neither the Open or Closed finalists played in
this International Match.
Early in the Mens Open, Hendry was beaten by Defending Canadian Closed Champion Paul Belanger who then not only fell to Bast in the quarters, but apparently proved that
the Quebec Selection Committee was right to leave him off the International Team, for he
didnt make even the semis of the Closed. This years Canadian Champion was Maurice
DeSerres (he beat Clouthier) over Guy Desormeaux (he beat Rochen).
In one Open semis, Schiff eliminated Bast, 3-0, for, said Price in his Topics write-up
(Oct., 1950, 10), though Ralph needs ball control, his offensive strokes are extremely
vicious when under control, and his defense, while not yet steady enough, produces some
amazingly spectacular returns. In the other semis, Gundlach did to Somael what hed done
in the quarters to Pinner, came from 2-1 behind on the strength of powerful drives and artful
drops. The final was a slugfest with Sol winning 16, 28, 19but had Wally won that 2nd game
after deucing it from 18-12 down, his momentum might have made him Champion.
In the Womens, the only Canadians to make the quarters had to play one another
thus assuring that Huguette Parents win over Helene Boyer would allow her to lose in the
semis to Leah. For the first time, the Canadian Closed had a Womens event. Torontos
Audrey Perkins (whod earlier defeated Parent) became the Champion over runner-up,
Torontos Joan Jessop (whod earlier defeated Boyer). Before losing to Millie Shahian in the
other Open semis, Pauline Robinson came from 2 games behind to beat Lona Flam, 19 in the
5th. The final was equally excitingwith Leah 16, 20, 21, -18, 18 winning the deuce games
from Millie that made the difference.
Reisman/Cartland Reinstated
Talk at these Canadian Championships had to be about Reisman, CNE winner the last
two years, but this year unable to defend. Carrington back home had written, Saddest
memory was the sight of Marty Reisman, held by many to be the greatest celluloid genius yet
known, listlessly knocking balls around at a New York salon, and getting beat into the
bargain. Whereas Miles professes a couldnt-care-less attitude toward his suspension,
Reisman seemed genuinely upset to be excluded from the game. Did it make us feel better
to hear from Reba Monness that Miles likes classical music, is frequently seen at concerts or
reading a book, and that Reisman is increasing his vocabulary and loves to use multisyllabled words? (Table Tennis, May, 1950, 13).
Ah, but on Apr. 3, the USATT Executive Committee had relented, and resolved that
Martin Reisman, New York City, be reinstated effective May 1st, 1950, provided he pays the $200.00 fine which was assessed against him at the time of his
suspension. Also, that he be placed on probation for a period of one year. (Reisman
was the only suspended player applying for reinstatement.)
Flyers and letters would now go out advertising a World Championship Professional
Tour, promoted by Champion Sport Tours of Springfield, Massachusetts under Directors
Morton D. Catok and John Pierce Lynch. One of these was sent to the Director of Recreation
for the city of Royal Oak, Michigan and was shown to an outraged Ed Dickinson, still the
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Associate Editor of Topics. In the May issue, which readers would receive 6 weeks after
Reismans suspension had been lifted, this is what, in a Letter to the Editor, Dickinson wrote:
[Regarding] Champion Sports Tours wanting to make arrangements for a
couple [of] USTTA outcasts, and two well known women stars to give an exhibition
in Royal Oak, sometime in June or July.
I would like to tell you [Editor Price], and all Topics readers that we in Royal
Oak turned it down.
Until these players redeem themselves for their unbecoming conduct in Europe, last year, and until they have complied with the USTTA requirements for reinstatement, we absolutely refuse to have anything to do with them regardless of how
good they are as players.
Yours for keeping the sport clean
Edward J. Dickinson
Pres. Royal Oak TTA (12)
The USTTA outcasts (and really they always would be in Dickinsons eyes?) were of
course Reisman and Cartland. I gather, though, that by this time Doug had also been reinstated, for the two well know women stars were Peggy McLean and Millie Shahian, both in
good standing with the USTTA. On May 22, the New York Times ran a short article which
said that Doug Cartland, the worlds second ranking table tennis professional, upset the
world champion, Marty Reisman, last night in the feature of the world championship table
tennis exhibitions before a small crowd at the Arena. McLean, world champion, defeated
Shahian, second ranking professional.
Although this Professional Tour would come to naught, the hype leads me to the
real World Champion, Richard Bergmannthe more so because on June 10 the English
TTA suspended him! What did he do? Went to South Africa on a Tour, and, because he played
for pay, he was required to, but did not, receive the necessary prior permission to do so from
the E.T.T.A.which happened, he says, because of extenuating circumstances involving,
under apartheid, the two South African table tennis associations that made him a scapegoat
for the Association. (For both sides of the argument see Table Tennis Review, Oct., 1950, 2829, and, for Bergmanns defense, November/December, 1950, 26-28.)
As for the other World Champion, Reisman, he too was on the movemade a little
summer Tour, sans Cartland, of South America. At the International Championships, held July
12-15 in Rio de Janeiro, Marty beat Brazils Batista Boderone in the final, and at the San
Paulo Open he had 3-2 wins over D. Miranda in the semis and W. Ventriglia in the final.
When Helene Cinnater heard from her friend Fernando Ferdy Olazarri, whod represented
Chile in those South American International Championships, that he not only was thrilled to
meet and play with Marty but gave glowing accounts of his good conduct (a great guy, a
gentleman), she offered Congrats and Double Congrats.
An unsigned Topics article (surely written not by Dickinson but by Price) went Helene
one better, for after acknowledging that Reisman on his Tour had received terrific press
write-ups about his sportsmanlike behavior and general demeanor, the article provided this
stunner: Weve always maintained that Marty was a nice fellow at heart but misunderstood
[sic]. Of course it was his own fault he was misunderstood, and were glad to see that hes
taking steps to make people like him (TTT, Oct., 1950, 9).
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Chapter

Thirty-One

1950: E.C. Resolutions. 1950: In MemoriamHarry Cook, Carl Zeisberg, Ed Cannon, Dick Baase. 1950: Strange Disappearance of Sidney Heitner. 1950: Fall Tournaments.
1950: U.S. World Team Selected. 1950: Reisman in England. 1950-51: Winter Tournaments.
1951: Table Tennis WeekSouthern California Championships, Westerns, Easterns.
Making people like you is usually the way officials get into office and stay there. A
new procedure for electing USTTA Executive Committee members gave President Cinnater a
fifth term, but this time not just for one year, the 1950-51 season, but for two. The election
consisted of 12 Yes or No votes for a single slate cast by the majority in each of the 12
USTTA affiliates, embracing in all 1367 memberswith the majority vote of 25 Long Islanders (possibly as few as 13 votes) equal to the majority vote of 355 Pennsylvanians (possibly as
many as 355 votes). (Later the USTTA will allow every members vote to count equally.)
Some affiliates were very lax in returning copies of USTTA memberships sold, and at tournaments some entrants seemed indignant when they were asked to show their membership card.
So its difficult for the Association to know at any one time just how many members it has.
But, with all interested parties ordering 2744 membership cards for possible use and returning
only 1170 (TTT, Feb., 1951, 4), the Sport is clearly not catching on.
Elected for two years with Cinnater were incumbents Robert Metcalf, Vice-President;
and William Feldt, Treasurer. Elected for one year were incumbents John Varga, Vice-President; Rees Hoy, Vice-President; and Clarence Sage, Recording Secretary. Thereafter, beginning with the 51-52 season, these latter three positions would also be for two seasonsthus
ensuring, with the alternating years, that in any one election the entire body of officers
couldnt be replaced. Virgil Carson continued on as appointed Executive Secretary. The new
Tournament Chairman (replacing Rees Hoy) was Detroits James Carey. The new Topics
Editor (replacing Bill Price) was Jack Goymerac of St. Louis.
I presume the Nationals had a lack of umpires, for each contestant would now be
required to umpire one match at a tourney, after elimination, provided their services are
required. Mens and Womens Consolation Singles were restored. For some reason (though
Mens had been held since38, Womens since 48), theyd not been offered at the 50 U.S.
Open. A new event, the Over 50s, was to be added at the 1951 St. Louis Nationals. Also,
though who could much care, the registration fee for exhibition players had been dropped.
In MemoriamHarry Cook, Carl Zeisberg, Ed Cannon, Dick Baase
Suspended last season Doug Cartland had been, but USTTA niceties aside, registration
fee or no registration fee, hed continued touring with the very experienced Harry Cook.
Doug told me he could have had great bookings for the two of them in England, but that
Cook was fearful of flying. Harry had other fears too. For example, on the road, hed bring his
own utensils to restaurantswhich, in every small town in America, he seemed to have a
book on. (Dont you remember? Last year I got liver and onions here.)
This spring of 50, on finishing their Exhibition at the Dallas Sports Show, Cook and
Cartlands next engagement was at Cleveland. Originally Harry had planned to ride not with
Doug and his driver but with another fellow. However, on the night before they were to leave,
Harry, as usual, had trouble sleepingperhaps he feared nightmares too? So when his driver
arrived to wake him at 10:30 a.m., he told him, Im not going with you, Ill ride with Doug.
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A fateful change of plans. For somewhere in Tennessee a big

truck bolted out of a side road and smashed into their car. Their
driver, Doug said, knew exactly what to do. He turned off the
ignition, told his passengers to brace themselves as the car went
rolling over. But Harry might have been asleep in the back seat,
might even have had his sleeping mask on, fordid he see? did he
hear?he was catapulted out. Later, on being taken to a hospital he
was diagnosed with a broken pelvis. Hed be alright, the doctor said.
So Cartland went on to Cleveland. Harry, however, never joined
himdied in the hospital, though Doug never knew why. (Coleman
Clarkwho in the last year had appeared both at the Palace Theater
in New York with Ham Canning and on the Arthur Godfrey Show
took over the Cleveland booking.)
Cooks death was fortuitous for Reismanit would change
TTT, Mar. 1940, 10
his life. Since Cartland would need a new partner, it wouldnt be
Harry Cook
long before Martys globetrotting would begin in earnest.
Meanwhile, in the same Oct., 1950 issue of Topics there was
another obiton Carl Zeisberg, former USTTA President and Editor of Topics, and the most
felt force in officialdom in the 1930s. Cinnater described him as the real father of table tennis
in this country . Carl, age 58, had died June 7th of a heart attack in his office at the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin. Hed been doing the table tennis article for the Encyclopaedia
Brittanica for years, but, as New York columnist Leonard Lyons wrote, Carl, on submitting
his last copy to Editor Walter Yust of the Britannica, added the names of several possible
alternate contributors [Elmer Cinnater, Ivor Montagu, Peter Roberts], in case anything
happens to me.
The June 8th Bulletin spoke of Carls interest in horticulture and how hed developed a
little garden at his home. There he had been building a low, ornamental wall, composed of stones
contributed by friends. Each stone was associated in his mind with the donor, and as he cemented it
in place, it was numbered and charted on a permanent recordhis friendship roll.
At least Carl was remembered.* Former USTTA Vice-President, Tournament Chair,
and co-Editor of Topics, Ed Cannon, whose daughter Barbara was once #3 in the country, had
died the previous yearand there was no notice of his death in Topics other than a one-liner
7-8 months later in Helene Cinnaters column. Cannons son-in-law, Dick Baase, whod
married Eds daughter, June, would get a six-paragraph obit in Topics. Hed staged exhibitions
with Jimmy McClure in Indiana for wounded servicemen, and with fellow Indy Don Wilson
had won the Senior Doubles at the 1947 U.S. Open. His was the first loss of a U.S. National
Champion since the USTTA was formed (TTT, Apr., 1951, 5).
Strange Disappearance of Sidney Heitner
Former National Mens Champion Sidney Heitners mysterious Apr. 29, 1950 disappearance certainly had to be upsetting to family and friends. After an absence of almost 15
years, Sid had suddenly turned up to play in the Seniors at the 49 New York Nationals
and now he was just as surprisingly the subject of a Missing Persons article in a local paper.
What had happened to him?
Sidneys brother, Max Heitner, said Sid had no reason for leaving his Glen Cove, Long
Island home, his wife and two children, and emphasized as far as he knew Sid had no en325

emies. Indeed, he had every reason to stay, said his brother: He had a $25,000,000 group
life insurance policy for a national organization lined up andwould have been on easy street
for life.
A fourteen-state alarm was broadcast by the Nassau County police May 11 for the
six-foot, 200-pound broker, after his wife, the former [Maplewood, N.J. society girl] Iris
Littlereported his absence to the Glen Cove police. Iris was the 1934 USTTA National
Womens Champion, sister of the well-known Long Beach player, Jane Little.
Max Heitner said he saw his brother for the last time on the night of April 28 after he
had dropped him and a beautiful tall woman at the 69th Regiment Armory, Lexington Avenue
and Twenty-third Street.**
Fall Tournaments
The Nov. 4-5 Chicago Central Open was more significant for the women than the
men, for the West Womens Team Trials were held here. In the Womens final, Peggy Ichkoff
(who beat Mildred Shipman in the semis) defeated Sally Prouty (who beat Thelma Tybie
Sommer in the semis). However, because these four women were to represent the West team,
its not clear to me if a complete round robin was played among the invited entries, as was
clearly the case in the Eastern Tryouts at Bridgeport, CT.
As it happened, one no sooner got over the surprise
that Prouty was back playing Singles again than again her
doctor told her to rest, and so shed withdraw from the Final
Matches that in late Nov. would lead to the make-up of the
U.S. Team to the 1951 Vienna Worlds. Nor could Shipman
play on the West Team, for her youngest child was rushed to
the hospital for an emergency appendectomy operation.
Substituting for them would be Columbus girls Joanne
Gardner and Joanne Kaylor.
The Mens winner at this Central Open was
Holzrichterin three 19 games over the touring Cartland.
Ichkoff/Levy won the Mixed over Harlow/Prouty in a 24-22 in
the 5th heart-stopper that would have given Sallys doctor
TTT, Nov., 1952, 12
Peggy Ichkoff and Allan Levy, chest pains. Seniors winner was Sallys husband Carlton
over Paul Buell. Juniors went to Marty Prager, now a senior
1951 Central Open Mixed
Doubles Winners
at Chicagos Tilton High and a professional singer. He beat
Jack Davis whod escaped South Bends Ron Liechty deuce in
the 5th. Liechty, who plays the drums for his Riley High School band and orchestra, defeated
Winnipeg-born Carl Dentice, a junior at Milwaukees Boys Technical High School whom
Topics Editor Goymerac in his Teen Toppers column describes as having eyes like [movie
actor] Charles Boyer and black curly hair that Boyer wishes he had.
Over in Bridgeports Y, at the Oct. 28 Connecticut Open, the Womens event, played
before the East Womens Team Trials, was won by Leah Neuberger over Lona Flam. Surprisingly, though, in the Trials held the next day at Stratfords Redman Hall, Lona (with a 3-4
record) finished 5th (a 24-22-in-the-3rd loss to Ruthe Crist couldnt be overcome), so she didnt
make the East Team. Conspicuously absent here was National Champion Reba Monness
World #9 had a TV show to do, and perhaps some similar commitment had prevented her
from playing in the late-Sept. World Maccabiah Games in Israel as shed planned. Also absent
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were Rebas U.S. teammates, Mae Clouther and

World #7 Millie Shahian (whod moved to St.
Louis). Thus the successful finishers, in order,
were NYTTA Treasurer Leah, Patty McLinn,
Ruthe Crist, and NYTTA Vice-President Pauline
Robinson.
McLinn, a June graduate of John Harris
High School in Harrisburg, PA, averages about 14
hours a week practicing. And where does she
practice? At home, in her familys large double
garage where her father, 1938 Pennsylvania Senior
Champ, has installed a table. Her brother, Sam, is
also a serious player. And of course she does get
good competition in tournament and league play.
Last year, when Harrisburg played Philadelphia,
she beat Intercollegiate Champ Nate Sussman, and
Pennsylvania Open Junior Champ Matt
Schonberger (TTT, Jan., 1951, 4).
The 52-entry Mens Singles here at the
Connecticut Open was won by Eddie Pinnerfirst,
in the semis over Marty Reisman, deuce in the 5th,
TTT, Jan., 1951, 3
then, in the final, over Johnny Somael in straight
1951
U.
S.
Team
member Patty McLinn
games. In an early crowd-pleaser, Bridgeports
Ferris 18, 23, -17 beat Adolph Herscovic (later
Allan Herskovich), who played in the 38 and 39 Worlds for Yugoslavia, then the 48, 49,
and 50 Worlds for Italy, and would now settle in the U.S.
At the Nov. 18-19 St. Louis County Open, Bill Price won the Mens, having first
shakily survived a 23-21-in-the-5th semis with a soon-to-be-back-in-the-Army Mel Nichols,
then easing by George Hendry, newly married to Marilyn Schuessler (sister of Don, Georges
regular doubles partner). Bill also won the Mens Doubles with National Boys Champion Al
Holtman in 5 over Nichols/John Stewart. Holtman took the Juniors, 23-21 in the deciding 3rd,
from Tancill (after Jim in the Mens had knocked out Park College student George
Ghahramanian, reportedly the former Champion of Iran). The Womens winner was Millie
Shahian who with Sam Monica also won the Mixedover the Hendrys.
U.S. Team to the 51 Worlds Selected
Bob Green, whod run the 1948 Nationals, had taken on the job of handling the Nov.
25-26, 1950 National Team Championship. And again he wanted to do it in a big way. A
most-ever 12 teams were invited, including for the first time players from California. The
entry fee was $30 a team, and all entrants were required to wear white, with the name of the
player and his team on the back of their shirts.
As it turned out this was a very unusual tournament weekend, for Columbus was hit
with its worst blizzard in 37 years. Reisman was again suspended in that, on coming from
New York by car with N.Y. Team Captain Bill Gunn, he was stranded in snow just outside
Pittsburgh and so couldnt play. Which left Somael and Cartland, forced to spot all their
opposing teams Reismans forfeited matches, to try to win the five matches necessary. This
327

they almost didlosing only in the final to Chicago, and 5-4 at that. Undefeated Cartland (in
Prices view, Probably the most compact of all the good hitters) annihilated the whole Chicago
teamDan Kreer, Levy, and U.S. #1 Holzrichter. Though Billy had won the Central Open from
Doug just three weeks before, he had to confess that Doug was one of the few players to keep me
in the hole. Usually I couldnt take the offense from him. Meanwhile, Somael, always tenacious,
though outlasting Kreer, 20, -21, 20 (after being upshades of Les Lowry!20-14), likely felt the
strain of 15 matches, and lost to Levy, 19 in the 3rd, and to Holzrichter, 17 in the 3rd.
Bizarrely, the California teamKenny Choi, Bob Ashley, Bob Edwards, and Eddie
Kantarwere stopped cold by the snow in Richmond, Indiana not far from the Ohio border
and didnt arrive until the fifth match of the final tieat 10:15 Sunday evening. However,
during their 18-day round trip, financed half by the USTTA, half by CalTTA, they played
exhibitions and met teams in Kansas City, St. Louis, South Bend, and Indianapolis, and faced
the best local players in Omaha and Chicagowith the result that Choi didnt lose a match,
had wins over Holzrichter, Price, and Cartland.
Chuck Burns was another whod hoped to play in the Teams, but didnt. When on
arriving at Union Station in Columbus he saw he couldnt get to the Knights of Columbus
playing hall because of the snow, he just resignedly took the next train back to Detroit. With
this move savvy Chuck certainly one-upped the St. Louis players, for they couldnt leave for
home until the Wednesday after the tournament.
In the Womens East-West Singles Matches, the East beat the West 11-5with the
following individual results: (East) Leah Neuberger, 4-0; Patty McLinn, 3-1 (with an unexpected 9, 22 victory over Peggy Ichkoff and a 24-22-in-the-3rd loss to Thelma Tybie
Sommer); Ruthe Crist, 2-2; Pauline Robinson (2-2); and (West) Sommer, 3-1; Ichkoff, 2-2,
Joanne Gardner, 0-4, Joanne Kaylor, 0-4. Ichkoff was fortunate that Sommer was unable to
make the trip, else her loss to Patty might have been disastrous.
Thus the members of the U.S. Team that will represent us at the Vienna Worlds, Mar.
4-11, 1951 are: Capt. Jimmy McClure; Bill Gunn, whod assist McClure with the Womens
Team and act as U.S. Delegate to the ITTF Congress; Men players: Cartland (Outstanding
Player Award at the NTC with an 11-0 record), Holzrichter (9-1), and Somael (13-2); and
Women players: Neuberger (Outstanding Player Award for her too), Ichkoff, and McLinn.
However, Holzrichter became unavailable, so Tibor Hazi (7-2) was named in his stead.
Then, considering that in November, 1950 a United Nations Command counter-offensive,
involving U.S. forces, brought the Chinese into the Korean War on the side of the North
Koreans, Tibor, citing pressing business due to the national emergency, begged off the
anticipated two-month trip. Two months because, again, in return for transportation, the U.S.
Team would be obligated to give exhibitions at U.S. Army camps before and after the
Worlds. So who would take Hazis place?
Who else but that now grand guy Reisman.
Reisman in England
After his snowbound-attempt to play in the National Team Championship, Marty
given the largess of an all-expenses-paid invitation from Ivor Montagu and the ETTAflew
to London for the English Open. He was of course a celebrity. Table Tennis Review columnist
Sam Kirkwood picked him to win the tournament: The almost certain non-appearance of the
Hungarians and Czechs will make the need for a colourful star imperativeand Marty is
nothing if not colourful, as well as being a truly great player (October, 1950, 24).
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In the Souvenir Programme for this Dec. 1-2 Wembley tournament, Jack Carrington
wrote
Marty Reisman showed us something two years ago. The explosive
muscular effort in the forehand drive, as contrasted with the orthodox rhythmical
actionthat was Martys contribution. That, and a devil-may-care philosophy that
drove full tilt into the attack with very little concern for the state of the poll.Lets
hope the young genius doesnt start being careful! (9).
Careful or not, it would be well for any entrant to understand the ITTFs newly modified Time Limit Rule being applied here:
Briefly, this Rule provides that, if a game is unfinished twenty minutes after
its commencement, the player (or pair, in doubles), who is then leading is awarded the
game. Once any game in a match has been stopped in this way, the remaining games in
that match are limited to ten minutes and, if unfinished after that period, are awarded
to the player or pair then leading.
If, after the prescribed period, the players have equal scores, one further point
is played to decide the game; if that point is unfinished after five minutes, then that
game is declared void and the match proceeds with the next gameif one is due to be
played. Should neither player have a lead of games
at the end of the match, as a result of application of
this rule, then both players are disqualified.
At any time after a game has been stopped at
the time limit, the Referee may exercise certain
powers, including the right to transfer the remainder
of the match to another table (Programme, 10).
In Mens Singles, this Rule was applied only once
and in a match played by the man who beat Reisman, the
three-time 1930s World runner-up, and the winner of the
1936 as well as this 1950 English Open, Alojszy Alex
Ehrlich. After Alex was down 2-1 to Marty in the 3rd round,
then rallied to win easily, he had only one more 5-game test
before beating Englands Brian Kennedy in straight games
in the final. This was his crafty 14-21, 18, -17, 9-7, 10-5
win over Frances Rene Roothoft in the semis.
Monty Reisman (sic) was a changed person? So
an Englishman writing in Table Tennis Review thought:
When he was last over here, he was a
brash youth. He is now a quiet and thoughtful young
man. His suspension has chastened him no end. He
told me before his opening match, that he did not
expect to do too well, being out of touch due to
Press-Bild, Vasteras, Sweden
lack of practice. He also missed the companionship A chasten, humbled Marty Reisman?
329

of his American friends and felt lonely. He was, however, full of praise for the kindness
shown to him by the E.T.T.A. officials (Mar.-Apr., 1951, 10).
Table Tennis Review columnist Sam Kirkwood said Reisman was far from being on
form, and that he had lost in America his old and trusty racket and was using a bat in which
he had little confidence. No, said Kirkwood, though Marty gave Ehrlich a hard game he was
certainly not the Reisman we know. He was erratic and lethargic (Mar.-Apr., 1951, 18).
In Mens Doubles, Reisman paired with Englands #3 Aubrey Simons, a defender with
an up-close-to-the-table short chop stroke ala George Hendry, who in the Singles might have
been the winner, for hed dropped an unforgettable semis to Kennedy, 26-24 in the 5th. He
and Reisman reached the final, but there they lost in 4 to Leach/Carrington. In the Mixed,
Marty, with another very capable partner, Englands #5 Diane Rowe, got to the semis where
they were beaten by the English team of Bernard Crouch/Vera Dace Thomas.
Reisman also played in a strong tournament in Manchester. Leach, Simons, and
Lanskoy were among those eliminatedbut not Marty. In the final he beat Frances heavy
chopper Guy Amouretti. So, yes, of course, he was a winner. How high he must have been.
Time yet for many an Amouretti, amour, amaretto.And yet he was still humble, wasnt he?
As the half century came to a close, there appeared in the December, 1950 English
Table Tennis Review by a writer identified only as Gossima these wistful lines:
You cannot watch any American tennis or table tennis player without noticing
his self-confidence, which invariably takes the form of cockiness. This generates
from his conviction that he belongs to the greatest race and country on earth, and that
he can beat anybody else. Many years ago it was the English who thought this. Now
we are more modest and less successful (2-3).
Winter Tournaments
At the Nov. 11-12 Long Beach Championships, Kenny Choi beat Bob Ashley in the
Mens, and paired with Bob and Tiny Moss Eller to take both Doubles. A month later, the
3rd annual Greater Los Angeles Championships were held under Tournament Chair Si
Wasserman, who because of the War will soon be called back into the Air Force. Choi of
course won the Mens. But his final opponent was a new arrivalMendel Milstein, now
of San Francisco. The Jan., 1951 issue of CAL Table Tennis, the Newsletter currently coedited by Beryl Shapiro and Milt Forrest, gives a little background on Milstein. Born in
Poland, he was captured by the Russians in 1939 and spent several years in Siberian prison
camps! After a short interval in Austria, he made his way with his family to the American
zone of Berlin where he took up TT again (2). Reportedly, he was the 1949 Champion of
Berlin.
In the semis, Milstein beat another returnee to the tournament worldManny
Moskowitz, now also from the San Francisco area, who with his brothers had learned the
game in New Jersey and with Sol Schiff had won the 1934 U.S. Open Doubles. Former
California #1, Frank Nemes, was back, but not his former gamehe lost to the other semifinalist, Chuck Feldman, 3-0. Missing was Abbott Nelson, whod left L.A. to take a job in
Waukegan, IL (where, yes, they played table tennisan 8-team Industrial League was going
strong).
330

At the Jan. 27-28 L.A. Invitational at Feldmans T.T. Center, Choi won the Mens
from Feldmanbut it had to have been hard for him to take pleasure in anything. The U.S.
Government was threatening him with deportation. That is, unless he raised $400 by Apr.
30th to pay his passage back to South Korea, hed be deported and by law would henceforth be barred from ever returning to the U.S. Choi, 31, was an educated man, graduate of a Japanese law school. (In addition to having been the South Korean Champion,
Kenny was reported to have twice been Champion of Japan, a report I instinctively find
suspect.) But he spoke limited English, and had little means of making ends meet other
than through his table tennis expertise. An appeal would therefore go outnot only from
the CAL TTA but from the USTTAboth for funds for Kenny and a renewal of his
visitors visa.
Meanwhile, theres renewed interest in the Sport in Salt Lake City. On the 9th anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, a 60-entry, two-event tournament was held at the University of Utah, Latter Day Saints Institute of Religion Building. In Mens Singles, Monty
Robison battled through 5 games to defeat Bill Johnson who, paired with Con Marsden, was
also runner-up in Mens Doubles to David Burton/E. L. Bud Parkin. In perhaps the best
match of the tournament, SLTTA President Parkin had been ousted in Singles by SLTTA
Secretary-Treasurer Ned Chamberlain. Thanks primarily to Chamberlain, the Feb. 9-10 Utah
State Closed, won by Bryan Westover over Bob Muir, brought in 43 new USTTA members.
At Colorado Springs, where 30 years later, as part of the Olympic family, the USTTA
would have its Headquarters, a Dec. 2-3 tournament was held at the Y. Mary McCall, who in
six weeks or so would become Mrs. Mary White, won the Womens from Joan Berry. ExDetroiter Arnold Brown, soon to be the Colorado TTA President, took everything else. As if
not having enough t.t. competition, Brown decided to learn how to ski, and quickly broke a
finger.
After Price had won the Jan. Ozark Open in St. Louis, he scored again in the Feb. 3-4
Kansas City Missouri Openprevailed in 4 over the 18-year-old Iranian, Jerry Ghahramanian,
Georges brother, newly arrived in the U.S., whod been down 2-0 to Holtman in the semis.
Mens Doubles went to the Ghahramanian brothers over Price/Monicaa win that Kansas
Citys former USTTA President Stan Morest, who presented the trophies, said was the first in
16 years not to go to a St. Louis pair. Lawrences Caroline Crosier won the Womens; Jane
Allison was 2nd.
On Feb. 11 in St. Louis, a special Memorial tournament was held for Don Hendry,
who, traveling home after the holidays with his wife and two children, was fatally injured,
along with his children (his wife was expected to survive), when a trailer truck skidded and
turned over on their car. The top St. Louis players paid homageincluding Dons brother,
George, whose In Memoriam bid was stopped by young Jim Tancill. Don Lasater, absent for a
while from competitive play, came back to win the Mens Singlesin the semis over Price,
deuce in the 4th , and in the final over Wally Gundlach whod taken out Tancill in 5. In the
Womens, Dorothy Nash played, but not Garrett, gone from the Game. In the final, Millie
Shahian defeated the returning Delores Kuenz.
Some very competitive play in Chicago at the Jan. 27-28 Illinois Open. Billy
Holzrichter was down 2-0 and at 22-all in the 3rd before turning around his semis match with
Ralph Bast. In the final Billy easily beat Dan Kreer whod knocked out Jimmy Shrout in 5.
(Want a Holzrichter racket? You can buy one at Billys Grand Ave. store for $3. A Pagliaro is
cheaper, sells for $2.50.)
331

In the Doubles, Don MacCrossen and Wisconsin TTA Executive Secretary Harry
Dickel, Senior winner over Mort Laden, had Holzrichter/Allan Levy down 2-1. However, Bill
and Allan went on to take the Doubles from Bast/Marty Prager. Carl Dentice, after downing
#2 seed Ron Liechty in 5, won the Juniors over #1 seed Prager, whod eliminated Marv Leff.
Pigeon-toed Dave Krizman, urged by a doctor to get into a sport where he had to move his
feet quickly, had found the South Bend Y and Coach Varga. He took the Boys, though forced
into the 5th by Michigans Dick Darke.
In the Womens final, Peggy Ichkoff defeated Sally Prouty, continuing now to be in
and out of Singles play. Surprisingly, while Sally was eliminating Mildred Shipman in 4, Peggy
in her semis had to go 5 with U.S. #17 Mona Buell. Mona, whom Topics will tell us thinks
(A,B,C) Class Divisions would help the Game, had to have added a special touch to her
play here, much as shed enjoy doing in her other hobbythat of helping to contract,
paint, lay tile and decorate houses (Jan., 1953, 9). In the final of the 14-entry Junior Girls,
Sharon Sherry Koehnke, as expected, beat Carol Nydam. Credit the All-American tournaments, and the availability of Chicago-area clubs where top players play and youths can find
camaraderie in wanting to emulate them, for that large Girls entry.
Mens winner at the Dec. 2-3 Detroit Presidents Trophy Tournamentthats the
Michigan Closedwas Glenn Whitcroft over Max Hersh, deuce in the 4th. Fifteen-year-old
Eddie Brennan and 14-year-old Jimmy Calcaterra took the Mens Doubles from Whitcroft/Bill
Byrnesand for their efforts would enjoy eight action photos of the match in a follow-up
graphic section of the Detroit Free Press (the photos illustrating the caption Table Tennis
Pupils Win From Teachers). No Womens, no Mixed, thoughbecause of insufficient entries.
Why? Wheres Dick Dickinson and his Royal Oak kids? Twenty-five of them are said to be
girls, all good looking. These teenagers have the use of a high school gym one night a week
(on a separate night adults play). There they can bring their homework and get some help with
it from an elder. All of which reminds me of Bill Haids Feb., 1949 line, The Royal Oak table
tennis club hasnt produced any national champions as yet, but with such tremendous enthusiasm and so much play, were sure the time is not far off when we can look to Royal Oak for
some of our best players. Drivel to be niceis still drivel.
The Jan., 1951 Topics has another Royal Oak article submitted by Associate Editor
Dickinson. A teenager at the Club there, Allen Diehr, has worked out a Handicap formula
based on play at five tables where each week the best players occupy Table 1, the next best
Table 2, and so onwith one player from each table moving up, and one player from each
table moving down. All niceand helpful. Of course Royal Oak hosted its 2nd annual 8-man
invitational tournamentwith Hersh defeating Whitcroft, 19, 22, 12 in the final, and Glenn
playing contested matches with Brennan and Chuck Burns. Dickinson said that many of the
spectators had never before been exposed to the brand of table tennis as witnessed that
evening. Including some of the Clubs regular players? At any event, the name of Max
Hersh of Detroit will be engraved on the Acorn Post No. 1669 V.F.W. annual trophy, emblematic of table tennis supremacy in Michigan. So much for the Michigan Closedand so much
for supporting it in Detroit?
Wayne State won the Thomas C. Bradley Team Trophy at the U.S. Intercollegiates,
held Jan. 5-6 at Syracuse University under Tournament Chair Jack Gardner and his assistant
Alan Brickman. This was Waynes first Intercollegiate, and, with Bobby Short, winner of the
Oustanding Player Award, and teammate Al Ring not losing a match, they overwhelmed the
oppositionRutgers in the semis and Syracuse A in the final. Since players from the same
332

team couldnt win the two Individual Awards, Ring had to defer to Phil Hadland of the Syracuse AA team. Hadland would later be runner-up to Brickman in the Syracuse Closed.
At the Jan. 6-7 Capitol Open in Washington, D.C., Cartland turned up to win the
Mens Singles and the EduardoYap Memorial Trophy. His straight-game victims included
Moniek Buki, Sol Schiff, and Johnny Somael whod eliminated Stan Fields and Defending
Champion Tibor Hazi. The old Ice Palace Sports Center where Fields managed the 14-table
Club was no more. Jimmy Verta, who next season would succeed Dick Murray as the D.C.
TTA President, told me that the Red Cross had commandeered it during the War, so that t.t.
had to be played out in a hallway, and that the building was afterwards sold to a radio station.
So at present there was no Club in Washington until Jimmy, later in the year, would establish a
15-member, 4-table one in a building at 11th & Pennsylvania.
In the Womens, all was routinewith the exception of New Jerseys Jean Geres
upset of #3 seed Ruthe Crist. Leah Neuberger defeated fellow National Team member Patty
McLinn, 3-0, in the final.The proceeds of this tournament went to the D.C. Boys Club. PingPong was of course very popular at the then 325 Boys Clubs of Americasome clubs were
said to have as many as 10 tables. New York City held a 1950 tournament for its 12 clubs that
represented 25,000 boysbut of course very few of them would ever play serious Table
Tennis, join the USTTA. So its been every decade since.
The Jan. 20-21 Atlantic States Open was held, courtesy of the Philadelphia Recreation
Commission in that citys Memorial Hall under the direction of Pennsylvania TTA official Jack
Schugardt, the man responsible for opening the new Philly T.T. Center on Kensington Ave.
Cartland again won the Mensthis time after being down 2-0 to Schiff in the final. Harry
Hirschkowitz scored a big upset in beating Somael in 5. Harry also came 1st in the Juniors, 19
in the 4th , over an improving Bobby Gusikoff who with a 5-game win reversed his recent
losses to Matt Schoenberger. Harry won the Junior Doubles too, with John Grinnel, from
Bobby and Leroy Jason. Boys went to Gusikoff in 4 over Bethlehems Lowell Latshaw.
Altoonas Jerry Campbell won the Seniors from Phillys Jim Cavanaugh. Neuberger again
defeated McLinn, 3-0, to take the Womens.
Table Tennis Week
This brings us to the Feb. 17-18th trio of tournaments that the USTTA synchronizes
under Table Tennis Weekthe Southern California Championships, the Westerns, and the
Easterns. YOU out there are urged to
contact your newspapers and radio
stations and to talk to your local
sporting goods dealer, help him with
his table tennis display, furnish photos
and other materials he can use. In
celebration of this special Week,
Bandleader Bob Crosby (Bings
brother) and singer Jo Stafford of the
radio music program Club 15 were
selected King and Queen of the sport
by the USTTA, and Walter OKeefe
TTT, March, 1951, 7
[Quizmaster] of Double or Nothing
Bandleader
Bob
Crosby
(King) and Singer Jo Stafford
was named Honorary Chairman. The
(Queen) of National Table Tennis Week

333

USTTA presented these entertainers with special scrolls. Harvard (the Table Tennis company not the University) gave them, and maybe their Campbell Soup sponsors too, t.t. sets.
And in two separate issues Topics showed their willingness to provide a photo-op (Feb., 1951,
3). I cant tell you how many USTTA members this publicity brought in.
Entries in the Des Moines Western Open were curtailed by sleet, storms and icy
roads (K.C.s Bill Guilfoil, enroute to the tournament, didnt make it, was involved in an
accident). With many strong players missing, U.S. #26 Wayne Losh, urged on by his hometown crowd, won the Mens Singles from Chicagos Bill Meszaros, outlasting him, 19 in the
5th, in a battle of defenses, neither player driving until he had an excellent shot (TTT, Apr.,
1951, 10). No warm-up for Vienna-bound Peggy Ichkoff, not in this weather. Den-mother
Mildred Shipman was the Womens winnerover Glen Ellyns Sharon Koehnke who won the
15-entry Junior Girls from Des Moines Mary Jestor. Omahas John Jones came 1st in the 12entry Junior Boys, Omahas Dick Hamlin 2nd.
The U.S. Team to the 1951 Worlds was originally scheduled to leave Jan. 28, but
due to complicated circumstances the departure date was set back [to Feb. 25]which
means that at the Easterns in the Pawtucket, Rhode Island Y well see the New York contingent in action. In the Mens, the ubiquitous Cartland again beat all comersMoniek Buki,
Frank Dwelly, Somael, and in the final Reisman in the 5th.
In the Mens Doubles, Reisman/Cartland defeated Schiff/Somael. Ask Rhode Islands
best-known player Tony Fionte if he knew anything about sure bets. Would he have wagered
hed beat Bill Gunn 3-0 in the Seniors?
In the 20-entry Juniors, Gusikoff, up 2-0 on Schoenberger in the semis, lost the 3rd at
19 and went south. But in the final Matt in turn couldnt hold a 2-1 lead against Harry
Hirschkowitz. Gusikoff, however, did win his first Majorthe Boys in 4 over John Bunszell.
Bobby, now a freshman at New York Citys Professional Childrens School, on being interviewed by Topics Editor Goymerac, said hed played bit parts in several movies, and had
spent one year on Broadway inMiss Liberty. Hed also been chosen as the Star of
Tomorrow on the Tex and Jinx Falkenburg television show for his imitation of Al Jolson.
Bobby told Goymerac he likes table tennis because its a fast moving game in which he can
release all his excessive energy (TTT, Feb., 1951, 8). And energy he certainly had. His unflagging attendance at every weekly Club tournament had invariably been accompanied by the
emotionally-powered plea, Mr. Lawrence, please let me play Mileswho, I might add, was
about to be reinstated by the USTTA.
The Womensonly 6 entries in this Majorwas of course won, easily, by
Neubergerover Mae Clouther. This tournament was pretty much Maes last hurrahno
more Worlds for her, no more Nationals. Perhaps the fire that gutted her Colonial Club last
spring took its toll on her. However, few good players had been so durable. For 14 straight
yearsfrom the 1936-37 season through the 1949-50 seasonshe was never out of the Top 10.
SELECTED NOTES.
*For more background on Zeisberg and a photo of him, see Vol. I, p. 137.
**As Im preparing this book for publication, I get a surprise call from a Howard Smith,
who turns out to be Sidney Heitners nephew. He tells me that 10 years after his disappearance,
Sidney and his brother Max met by chance in Florida, and Sid then reappearedonly to disappear
againworking not in the insurance business but as a chef. However, Howard Smiths mother,
Sids sister, knows his whereabouts, for hes still alive... but reclusive.
334

Chapter

Thirty-Two

1951: U.S. Team in

Germany. 1951: First Appearance
and Background of Bernie Bukiet.
U.S. Womens Play/Mens Play at
WorldsNeuberger, World #3;
Cartland, World #14.
To begin this section on
the 1951 Vienna Worlds, Ill
reproduce in large measure Leah
Neubergers diary-like record of
the U.S. Teams 5-week itinerary, or, more precisely, her
itinerary, then come back and
cover the Championships. Youll
see the players were often on the
move, especially after the
Worlds:
Feb. 25: Left
Westover Air Force Base,
Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts at 10:15 a.m.
Feb. 26: Arrived
at the Azores 10:30 a.m.
Ate lunch. Arrived in
Frankfurt at 2:00 a.m.
Stayed at Baseler-Hof
Hotel.
Feb. 27:
Colonels car drove us to
Palmgartern where we
Mar. 18, 1951 Drawing of Leah Neuberger
by Straubing, Germany artist
practiced. Saw movie
Toast of Orleans.
Feb. 28: Went to Munichchanged en route to the U.S. Military Train,
Mozart.
Mar. 1: Arrived in Vienna at 7:00 p.m. Practiced at Pritzis club. Stayed at
DeFrance Hotel.
Mar. 2: Went on short tour. Practiced. Rathaus reception.
Mar. 3-6: World Corbillon Cup matches. [Leah details the order in which these
matches were playedbut that doesnt match the Program schedule. I assume that
schedule was later changed and Leahs order is correct.]
Mar. 7: Went on tour.
Mar. 8-12: Played/watched Worlds singles/doubles matches.
335

Mar. 13: Left Vienna at 9:15 p.m. on the Mozart train. [Leahs pleased that
the coffee man on the train recognized her from earlier trip.] Arrived Munich 7:00 a.m.
Left Munich 10:55 a.m. Arrived Nurnberg 2:00 p.m. [this of course is Nuremberg, site
of the international trial of Nazis accused of World War II crimes]. Met at station by
Capt. Hall. Pictures taken. Went to Palace of Justice. Played before 16th Infantry
colored band. Beat Patty. [Leah will detail after every exhibition whether she beat a
fellow teammate or notshe lost only once in 15 sessions, to Patty. This suggests that
the women, or at least Leah, always played for real.] Stayed at Grand Hotel.
Mar. 14: Played at 10th Evacuation Hospital in afternoon. Played at Americana
Club in the evening.
Mar. 15: At Bamberg. Played exhibition at Whispering Pines.
Mar. 16: Left Nurnberg for Munich. Visited Nymphenburg Castle and toured
Munich. Played Burger Brau Club. Stayed at Excelsior Hotel.
Mar. 17: Played for Red Cross at 98th General Hospital. Drove to Bad-Tolz.
Drove to Dachau.
Mar. 18: Saw Glockenspiel at 11:00 a.m. Drove to Landshut Special Service
Club (where Patty beat Peggy). Ate at Officers Club. Then drove to Straubing Special
Service Club [where, wrote Leah, Peggy had me 8-1 but I won].
Mar. 19: Went to Augsberg. Saw Kaiserhof. Baclarian Crossroads.
Mar. 20. Drove 162 KM to Stuttgart. Vaihingen Exhibition cancelled in field
house. At 7th Army Post Headquarters saw Roscoe Ates Show. Stayed at Golf Hotel.
Mar. 21: Played at Crossroads Service Club. [Reportedly the Exhibition would
last an hour and a half, during which trick shots would be demonstrated.]
Mar. 22: Drove to Heidelberg. Played two shows7:30 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.
before a good crowd. Women stayed at Darmster Hotel, Men at Europa Karlsruhe.
Mar. 23: Took cable car. Ate at Red Ox Restaurant. Played at Special Service
Club in Heidelberg 5 blocks from the hotel. Small crowd: Patty beat Peg.
Mar. 24: Arrived Frankfurt. Played at 97th Hospital in afternoon. Played for the
Darmstast 1st Infantry in evening. Ate at Carlton Hotel. Stayed at Excelsior Hotel [sic:
earlier Leah said she stayed at the Excelsior Hotel in Munich; perhaps there are Excelsior Hotels in both cities].
Mar. 25: Visited Kronberg Castle. Saw The Outlaw [thought then a very
risqu movie starring Jane Russell]. Played Palmgarten. Went to Kunstlerkraus nite
club with Bernie Bukiet and friends [more on Bukiet shortly].
Mar. 26: Went sightseeing. Had lunch with Evelyn Byrd at Casino [Byrd
unknown to me].
Mar. 27: Team was supposed to leavebut plane cancelled. Went shopping,
saw movie Two Weeks of Love.
Mar: 28: Went to cold gymsaw Somael beat Bukiet.
Mar. 29: Went so far as to have luggage in bus, but again the plane was cancelled.
Mar. 30: Still waiting for a flight. Called Ty [Leahs husband].
Mar. 31: Saw movie Last of the Buccaneers. [Diary-itinerary ends here.]

336

U.S. Team Meets Bukiet

Leah doesnt mention it, but its in Frankfurt that the U.S. Players meet Bernard
Bukiet, who the following year will emigrate to the U.S. and, at a time when many players
have retired, will just begin to become a legendary, multi-time U.S. Champion and (from age
35 to age 54) an 8-time member of the U.S. Team to the Worlds. His background is worth
relating.
Sosnowiec, in southwest Poland, not far from the German borderthats where
Bernie tells me his table tennis life begins. The year is 1934, and Bernie, like most of the boys
hes growing up with, has his mind on footballthat is, soccer. His fathers dead (he died
when Bernie was four weeks old) and he lives with his mother, brother, and sister. One day a
friend introduces him to table tennisa dining room table, a taut towel for a net, and two
wooden rackets. Bernie tries it, says, I become interesting in it.
Interested he certainly was, so much so that he begins spending afternoons after school
at his friends house. And then he graduates, discovers a bona fide club. And now, day after
day, sometimes accompanied by another boy, Sigmund Novarski, he doesnt come home until
late at night, does nothing but play table tennis.
What does Bernies mother think about her son not going to school, not working like
most everyone else? She no like it that I dont learn a profession, you understand?
Bernies mother would go to the market and people would say, Oh, your son, I saw
he won a tournament. But she is not impressed. In fact, seeing his racket always sticking out
of his pocket, she might be exasperated enough to say, Again with the piece of wood! Why
dont you go learn to be a barber? Bernies mother of course wants to know where the
money for the family is going to come from. If her son brings home another clock, or a coffee
service, or a traveling liquor case, its like something out of a Clumsy Hans fairy talewhat in
the world is anyone to do with it?
Still, progress of a kind is being made. By the time Bernie is 19 hes paid his dues and
is ready to take his rightful place on the Team that will represent Poland at the World Championships in London. But thenit was the first of the deprivations to comehe is not allowed
to go. Hes too young, said the Polish Team Captain who was worried that, if any opposition team members offered Bernie chocolate, he would dump matches to them.
Bukiet, then, in the late 1930s, lays claim to being
the #2 player in Poland behind Alex Ehrlich, the famous 3time World finalist. Like many another strong competitor,
Bernie had developed his own fingerspin serves, and in the
beginning was fooling Ehrlich and another high-ranking
Polish player, Milek Schiff (the only player to beat our Sol
Schiff in 1937 Swaythling Cup matches), to the point where
his thumb had become all swollen from using them.
So how long could the Polish Captain, or anyone
else, keep Bernie from taking his place among the best
players in the world?
As it turns out, quite a while. In the fall of 39 the
War stops everything. Germany takes Bernies half of PoPhoto courtey of Henry Wiener
land, Russia the other.
18-year-old Bernie Bukiet (center)
When the Germans came, Bernie would later tell
and his 1937 Makkabi teammates
an
interviewer,
I was hiding in the basement. I hear rifles
(left: Henry Wiener)
337

pounding and I walk out. The Gestapo beat me because I wasnt throwing flowers at the
German soldiers. Simple system: no flowers, get beaten.
Achtung! All young men, ages 16-21, are required to register. They are needed for
seven days to clean up bombed-out Warsaw. A piece of soap, some socks, and the equivalent
of $5 cashthese are the incentives. Ten black-covered trucks roll in. Thirty men to a
trucklets go!
Go of course to a concentration camp in Germany. From where you would be put on a
cattle train, 30-35 to a car, to be greeted at this or that stop by the Gestapo who, on opening
the doors, would pick out You!You!You! Whereupon You would be taken to
another train and, all too likely, eventually to Auschwitz.
But it was Bernies good fortune to fall in with companions who resisted authority. He listened to them, and lived. When I started to leave Sosnowiec, he said,
was sneaking away, my mother followed me yelling, Stay here, Bernie! Stay here!
People always say, Listen to your folks, but if I listen to my mother then I would have
been killed.
It was 200 kilometers to the Russian borderabout a 125-mile walkbut that was
the only escape route for Bernie and his comrades, and they took it. At, of all places, Ehrlichs
hometown, they set out quickly in their little boat to cross the border river at night. I was
praying to God to get to the other side, and trying not to think about how many might have
died in this river.
But bad luck. Near the shore two Russians on horseback spot them, begin shooting.
The bullets go into the air. Go back! Go back! the Russians shout.
But Bernie and the other young men persist. One of my friends spoke a little Russian,
and we were all crying and yelling. We run from the Germans! Were Communists! Were
workers from poor families! We like the Russians! So, o.k., the Russians allow them to
cross. Keep them in a place where cattle are kept. Give them tea and bread and soup. After a
few weeks an order comes through: Bernie is free to go wherever he wants. Maybe he can get
a good meal someplace if he can find work?
He chooses a town where he once played a table tennis matchhell be no stranger
there. Its the winter of 1939 and people are cold and hungry. Bernie goes to a club and they
let him stay there, sleep there. He gets along well with a champion, a swimming champ, whose
father owns a grocery. The owner gives Bernie a room in his house and its like Heaven. For
six months he is very happyhas food, shelter, table tennis, and can go dancing with the girls.
Then, suddenly, the Russians order all those who have come from the German section of
Poland to register. Bernie remembers what happened to those 16-21-year-old boys before.
But what choice does he have? If he stays in Russia, hell be sent at least 500 miles away and
thats no good for him, so he thinks maybe hell go back home to Sosnowieche would like
to see his mother and brother and sister again.
Three weeks later hes still in town when, at 3 a.m., theres a knock on his door.
Whats your name?Gather up your belongings, youre coming with us.
For six weeks or so Bernies in prison, waiting for others who do not want to be
Russian citizens to be rounded up. Then all of themmaybe 3,500 peopleare put onto a
train and sent to a concentration camp inside Russia.
From seven in the morning to seven at night, in the presence of guards with dogs,
rifles, and machine guns, Bernies job is to chop down trees. And for 29 months he works on
his strokeso that hundreds, thousands of trees are axed and fall.
338

If you worked hard you survivedyou got bread and fish and soup. If you didnt
work hard, you died. If I wouldnt be young and play soccer and table tennis I wouldnt
survive. Doctors, lawyers, educated peoplethey died like flies.
Bread meant the difference between living and dying. When you get bread one time a
day to live on, he once told a reporter, you got to make a lot of decisions. Like do you eat
the soft part first or the hard? Do you save some for the night? Sometimes its hard to make
up your mind. Bread was like honey. If you were caught stealing someone elses bread you
would be killed while everyone watched.
Saltfish I always got. I needed foodbut fish every single day? Out working 10 miles
from the camp I could smell they were cooking that saltfish, and I hated it. You could survive
on fish and bread. But there was never a vegetable, never butter, milk, or sugar.
Then one day comes this parade of prisoners before some Polish politician and
again Bernie is given a choice. Does he want to stay in the concentration camp or fight at
the front?
Fight. I want to be one time in my life with food and clothes before I die.
So now hes free to take a physicaland, yes, the Russian-held wing of the Polish
Army will take him. After 12 weeks of training he advances, rifle in hand, to Smolensk
where he promptly gets a bullet through his thumb. And now, Bernie says with a smile, he gets
sent to the hospital.
You didnt shoot yourself, did you? I ask him.
Here in the hospital he has an easy time of it. He gets to talk to people, walks around
the corridors, goes into rooms. Arm all crooked up, what will this do to his table tennis? But,
no, the hand hes shot in is not his playing handand, besides he may never play again.
I was chasing right away the nurses, he says.
Did you catch any? I ask.
Plenty I catch, he says and grins. But after sex weeks they send me back to different division.
And now he gets a job coachingbecomes a corporal, a model for new recruits.
Together they learn how to follow his commands.
Then, leaving their training behind them, they fight the Germans in Warsaw. Were you
brave? someone asked him. Me? I was a coward. What you think I ama schmuck?
By 1945 Bernie is in East Berlin. And afterwards his division returns to Polandso
again Bernie is free to go back to Sosnowiec.
He returns to where he lived, looks around, sees only the woman janitor of the place
trying to clean things up. Ohhh! Bernard! she says. You still live!
But Bernies mother has gotten sick and died. Bernies brother is not to come back
from the War. And Bernies sister has had a baby and when shes tried to take care of it has
been sent to a concentration camp as useless. The woman thinks she has burned to death.
Maybe he still has relatives in Munich? He has to go somewhere.
At a train station, he by chance meets a man hes never seen before who says, Hey,
arent you the table tennis player from before the War? He takes Bernie home, gives him a
room, and fixes him up with a job coaching at a club in Furstenfeldbruckthats about as far
from Munich, 25 kilometers, as Dachau. Theres a U.S. Air force base nearbyand, perhaps
helped by someone there, in 1949 Bernie, now 30, decides to go to the American Embassy
and ask if he can come to the United States. The answer is not very satisfying. Perhaps he
canbut not right away. These things take time.
339

From 1947-1951 Bernie

was the best player in Germany,
or thought he wasbut not
being a German citizen he
couldnt enter any of the National Championships.
In 1951, at Frankfurt,
the German Team members,
who of course by this time know
Bernie well, arrange for him to
compete as one with them in a
practice match against the
visiting Americans. Naturally
Bernie has a story to tell of his
Bernie Bukiet (3rd from left, in hair-cap) in an undated European photo
first encounter with Reisman.
Boyishly optimistic as ever, or at least wanting to capitalize on that persona, Marty offers to
spot Bernie five points a game. O.K., but what will they play the set for? Bernie will put up
100 marks, and Marty will bet, well, what Bernie most wantsMartys official USA Team
jacket. Who do you think wins?

Womens Play At Worlds

In the Vienna Corbillon Cup matches, the U.S. opened with a 3-0 win against Switzerlandwith Leah and Peggy winning their singles, and Leah/Patty taking the doubles. (Peggys
photo caption in the Program read Pauline Ichkoffwhich, Im surprised to learn, is correct, her birth name.) Next morning another easy match: U.S. over Italy, 3-0. However, that
afternoon our Team lost a 3-2 tie to the formidable 17-year-old Rowe twins of England: Leah
got the better of both Diane and Rosalind, but Peggy couldnt beat either, and Leah/Patty fell
in the doubles. Still another tie that eveningagainst Austriaquickly finished us: Leah did
well to defeat former World Champion pusher Trude Pritzi, but Patty lost to both Pritzi and
340

16-year-old Linda Wertl (who next year at the Bombay Worlds would be a Singles semifinalist), and Leah/Peggy were beaten in the doubles.
Two more days of Cup matches brought the following results. First, a 3-0 loss to
powerful Hungary: 3-time World Champion Gizi Farkas was too strong for Leah; likewise
1950 World semifinalist Rose Karpati for Peggy; and the Ungarn combination 2-1 too much
for Leah/Patty. Following a default win over Brazil, however, we did just fine. Got by Yugoslavia 3-2: though Patty lost her matches to Margita Covic and Marica Vrzic-Temunovic,
Leah didnt, and teamed with Patty to win the doubles. Then, in an upbeat ending, we beat
Germany, 3-0: Patty come through with a great 16, 21 win over Hilde Bussmann, German
Womens Champion in 1936, 37, and, after the War, from 1947 through 1951; Leah 21, 19
defeated Berti Capellmann, whod be runner-up to Bussmann in the 51 German Nationals;
and Leah/Patty took the doubles to complete the blitz. We thus finished 4th out of 8 teams in
Group A with a 4-3 record.
Hungary, the only team we didnt score against, lost two key 3-2 tiesto the Group A
winner, Austria (7-0) and, with Wertl defeating both Rowes, the runner-up, England (6-1).
In Group B, there was a problem when Egypt refused to play Israel. The Egyptians
were still smoldering over their defeat in the Israeli-Arab War of 1948-49 and wouldnt allow
Israeli shipping through the Suez Canal. When the ITTF heard the Egyptian positionEgypt
is at war with Israelit issued the following statement:
This refusal is a grave offense against every member association of the International Federation. When, at the present time, the desires of all are directed toward a
lessening of international tension and mistrusts, any action to increase them is strongly
to be deplored.
Entries from Egypt will be allowed in future world championships only when the
Egyptian Table Tennis Federation is prepared to give assurance of readiness to allow its
nominated entries to meet with all competition (Associated Press, Vienna, Mar. 8, 1951).
Of course in the decades to come, countries refusals to play other countries and the
ITTFs futile complaints will become commonplace. Politics will not be kept out of Sports.
From Group B, Rumania, with 31-year-old World Champion Angelica Rozeanu,
advanced as expected to the final (8-0), but the runner-up Wales (6-2, with a win over Scotland, also 6-2), had to be a surprise, for all four of its players were eligible for the Singles
Consolation, with Audrey Bates losing in the final of that event to the Czech Eliska (nee
Fuerstova) Krejcova. In the final, Rumania successfully defended its Cup titleover Austria
3-1, as last years semifinalist Sari Szasz again defeated Pritzi under the Time Limit Rule, and the
amazing Rozeanu 7, 2 made her look hopeless. (Ironically, the English Table Tennis Review in its
May-June, 1951 Worlds Souvenir issue showed a photo of Trude following through on a vicious
forehand, something many readers had good reason to believe she was incapable of.)
Howd our women do in the Individuals? Well, Peggy would have liked a better
Worlds. She lost in the 1st round to Indias Champion, the 13-year-old sensation, Sayeed
Sultana. In the Consolations, Peggy met two Welsh playersbeat Audrey Coombs, lost to
Betty Gray. Patty 7, 5, 13 annihilated Englands famous Vera Dace Thomas (whod withdrawn
from Englands Cup team when her doctor had refused her permission to make the trip),
then, 3-2, got by walkover-winner Franske Beck of the Netherlands, before having the lifetime-fun of being able to tell everyone shed played Farkas.
341

In her first three matches, Leahs

only challenging opponent was Consolation winner Krejcova, formerly World #10,
whom she beat 20, 12, 21. In the
quarters, down 2-0 to Rosalind Rowe,
she suddenly realized, as it were, that
shed had little trouble with Ros in the
Teams, and so proceeded with a new
mind-set to comfortably win the next
three. Against Farkas (who was carried
into the 5th by Wertl), Leah made a -14, 19, -24 semis of it, but the title remained
elusive. Still, her fine play earned her a
World #3 ranking. No native-born American, other than Ruth Aarons, has ever
done better. In the final, Rozeanu, never
threatened in any of her matches, easily
defended her title. Ron Craydon, writing
in Table Tennis Review, said of the Champion, She is to table tennis what Sugar
(Ray) Robinson is to boxing. Lethal in
attack, superb in defence, and possessing
destructive counter shots from both
wings (May-June, 1951, 26).
In the Teams, Peggy hadnt won a Angelica Rozeanu, 1950-55 Womens World Champion
doubles match, but now in Womens
Doubles, paired with Leah, she did herself proud. First opponents to go, in 4, were Belgiums
Mary Detournay and Josee Wouters (whod beaten Diane Rowe in Singles). Then, in 5, down,
down, down fell the formidable opposition of Englands Peggy Franks (whod won Womens
Doubles at the 48 Worlds with Thomas) and Helen Elliot (whod won with Farkas in 49 and
Hungarian-born Dora Beregi in 50). Leah must have felt almost as good with this victory as
when her later all-a-glitter entrance at the Womens final prompted Helen to think, A mass of
costume jewelry, and to say, Leah, you look like a million dollars! This made Helen, as she
said, Leahs friend for life. Leah/Peggy were stopped in the semis, 19 in the 4th, by
Rozeanu/Szasz, losers in the final to the exuberant Rowe twins, darlings of one and all.
McLinn, in Anglo-American friendship, was paired with English Womens Team Captain
Margaret Knott, and you were not to ask how they did.
That leaves the Mixed. Anything to speak of there? In the 1st round, against Leach/
Diane Rowe, McClure/Neuberger couldnt win the 26-24 opener, and lost in 3. Cartland/
McLinn fell in 4 to Somael/Pritzi who then lost to Leach/Rowe, who lost to Vilim Harangozo/
Linda Wertl. Reisman/Ichkoff were beaten in the round of 16 by Stipek/Cedlova. This Czech
pair, down 2-0, were really down on losing 27-25 in the 5th to Josef Koczian/Rose Karpati.
But the Hungarians in turn were stopped in 5 by Bo Vana/Rozeanu, the straight-game Champions over finalists Harangozo/Wertl. This was Vanas 3rd and last World Mixed Doubles
Championship.

342

Mens Play at Worlds

In 24-team Swaythling Cup play, the U.S. was in Group C with Czechoslovakia,
Champions 4 of the last 5 years who were defending (though one of their Team members,
Max Marinko, due to his democratic views was in a Czech jail). The Czechs lost only one
match of 36when Cartland, deuce in the deciding 3rd, beat Vana, World Champion in 38
and 47 and runner-up in 48 and 49, but now not quite the player he was. Indeed, in the
Singles, Vana would lose in the 3rd round (from 1-0 and deuce in the 2nd) to Frances Rene
Roothoftthus reminding me of these lines from Ivan Andreadiss obit of him in the May,
1990 Swaythling Club News: After he had lost he used to say, Look in the newspapers
tomorrowmy name will be in the headlines. If I had won you would only see a few
words. And then he would smile.
Bo, who as well see didnt have to hang his head in shame at this Worlds, hoped that
the net would be raised to its former 6 and heightand at the ITTF Congress here in
Vienna, when the English TTA actually proposed that, as an experiment, the net be raised
(though to no specific height), the proposal was only marginally defeated, 15 member countries voting against, 13 for.
Aside from the Czech tie, the
U.S. men dropped only three scattered
matches, one to 8th-place Greece when
Reisman reportedly suffered leg cramps.
Englands famous coach Jack Carrington
felt that Marty, after his suspension,
would have a hard and long struggle to
put himself on terms again with the top
men. He has the skill and the touch of a
champion but has no idea how to get the
most out of them. Marty needswhat
hell never havea world-class coach.
TTT, Jan., 1949, 3
Carrington then goes on to comment on
Doug
Cartlandhe
beat Vana
the Cartland-Vana match:
What a contrast is the other American, DOUG CARTLAND.
He has neither the skill, the touch, nor the speed of a great champion,
Coach Carrington
but he knows how to get every ounce of value out of what Cartland
hasand what the opponent has not.
His defeat of Vana in the Swaythling Cup match was a classic. Possessing
neither a drive which could pierce Vana, nor a chop which could worry him, the lefthanded Yankee so rung the changes in the play that he won out in the third game of
what must have been one of Vanas longest sets ever.
Cartland chopped Vana round to his backhand, then pushed the second drive
wide to Vanas forehand, and kept this up several times each point until the Czech was
losing his speed. Then out would come a last-minute backhand drive to force Vana on
to defence. Using short balls near the net, high loose topspins to the baselines,
counterhits to the body, and his disguised backhand slow drives, and fighting, fighting
every second, Cartland won the match against the master when his own side were
being swamped.
343

It gave us an idea of what a strong American combination might achieve with a

few months hardening experience in Europe before the world series (Table Tennis,
May, 1951, 6).
Hungary (7-0) advanced in Group B, challenged (5-3) only by 5th-place Austria.
France, tested 5-3by 7th-place Portugalcame 2nd, South Vietnamwith a 5-4 win over
Portugal3rd.
In Group C, Yugoslavia, coming from 4-3 down, bested 2nd-place England in a 5-4
swing tie.
In a 3-way Play-off to decide the finalists, Czechoslovakia and Hungary prevailed over
Yugoslaviawith the Czechs going on to win the Cup, though it was Andreadis, not Vana ,
who won all three.
In Mens Singles, of the U.S. players, Johnny Somael did best, taking advantage of a
1st-round walkover over English Open winner Alex Ehrlich (who, though earlier hed been
coaching in Austria, now couldnt obtain a visa to Vienna from France where he was living).
In succession Johnny beat Irans Ehteshamzadeh, Indias Kalyan Jayant, 19 in the 4th, and
Englands English Open runner-up Brian Kennedy, before losing in the eighths in 4 to 1947
World runner-up Ferenc Sido. The Hungarian would then reach the semis with an easy win
over Austrias Waldemar Fritsch who in the Cup, playing with a soundless sponge bat that
antedated the coming of the 52 Japanese, had suckered this same Sido, along with Sidos
teammate Koczian, and the Frenchmen Roothoft and Michel Haguenauer. In getting to the
eighths of the Singles, Fritsch also beat Vilim Harangozo whod sent Frances Guy Amouretti
into the Consolations where hed lose in the final to the Czech Ferko Tokar. U.S. Team
Capt. McClure eliminated an Egyptian, then went down to Frances Michel Lanskoywhod
lose to Koczian, whod lose to 50 Czech quarterfinalist Vaclav Tereba, whod lose to Leach.
In the other half of the draw, Cartlandhed be World #14 for the 50-51 season
downed Swedens Sven Cedarholm, then Englands Aubrey Simons, before falling in 4 to
World #11 Haguenauer who in the quarters would lose to Andreadis. Reisman swept through
Egyptian and Austrian players, then rallied from two games down to knock out Hungarys
Kalman Szepesi, 19 in the 5th. Ferenc Gyorgy tells us that the 21-year-old left-handed
Szepesis right hand has been paralysed since he was two, so he is the only top-ranked player
who is fully authorized to propel the ball into service with two fingers (the only way possible
for him) (Table Tennis, Oct., 1951). Englands Swaythling Cup player Ron Craydon said, To
Reisman, I unhesitantly award the crown as champion entertainer. He lacks, however, the
essentials to be the champion player. Well, this year anyway, for Marty just wasnt in the
match with Leach. Johnny went on to barely escape Roothoft in 5 (was up 20-16, won it at
19), then struggled in the semis with Tereba (at 1-1 and down 20-15 in the 3rd, the Czech
deuced it, only to lose that key game, 26-24). In the final, Johnny, the 1949 Champion, beat
Andreadis in 4 for his second World Singles title.
In Mens Doubles, oldtimers Cartland/McClure lost in the 2nd round to even older
oldtimers, Englands Victor Barna/Adrian Haydon, afterwards quick losers to VanaAndreadis, 5-game semis victors over Stipek/Tokar. Reisman/Somael advanced to the 3rd
round over weak teams, then could put up no resistance against Leach/Carrington who fell in
the other semis to Sido/Koczian. In the final, the Czechs beat the Hungarians in straight
gamesthus giving Vana his 3rd and last World Mens Doubles Championship.
Maybe there wouldnt be much coverage on him after all.
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Chapter

Thirty-Three

1951: Tournaments Preceding the Nationals. 1951: Miles/Neuberger U.S. Open

Winners. 1951: All-American Championships/All-American Girl Sharon Koehnke. 1951:
Coast to Coast, Season Ends.
With Reisman and Cartland at the Worlds, one guess as to who must be getting a little
envious. Dick Miles had proudly taken his time in seeking to reinstate himself. However, he
hadnt been inactive during his suspension, had gone out on Tour with Pagliaro and Schiff. Of
course he was an old hand at giving exhibitions. In the future, it would, at least for a time, be
a way of life for him.
Bobby Gusikoff much later, when hed become National Mens Champion and N.Y.
Broadway Club owner and table tennis raconteur, said that, When Miles lost his nose, he lost
his forehand. But Dick, though he would have cosmetic surgery, said that it was giving these
exhibitions with Paggy and Sol that took something away from his vaunted windmill attack.
Had anyone noticed? Did anyone know what powered his whipped-up stylish stroke? Bill
Price said he did:
Miles, if you watch closely, has a very compact swing. The fact that he
takes a sort of loop on the backswing of his forehand causes people to think that he
has a real long stroke. But watch his elbow, notice how close to his side he keeps it all
through his forehand drive.[That gives] a feeling of compactness (TTT, Dec., 1950,
5).
Attacker more than defender Miles wasat least he thought so. Though Reisman
had a spectacular hard hit, I had the better forehand, he said. How hard did he hit the ball?
As hard as I had to.
Which brings to mind one of Dicks favorite stories about Marty. They were playing
doubles together at some tournament when, determined to end the point, Marty swatted the
ball as hard as he could, then almost simultaneously put his left
hand over his chest and cried out, Oh, Ive got such a pain in my
heart!
To which Miles sensibly replied, Well, dont hit the ball so
hard.
Dont hit the ball so hard? said Reisman. Id rather die.
After Dick had settled his differences with the USTTA, he
promptly took up where hed left offwon the Mar. 4 New York
City Open from Lou Pagliaro. In a contested quarters match,
Buki beat the visiting Miami-based Laci Bellak (at 1-1 Moniek
won the pivotal 3rd 25-23). In his semi, Paggy, down 2-1, eliminated the former Yugoslav/Italian international Adolph Herscovic
whod ousted Tibor Hazi in 4, winning the 3rd at deuce.
Herscovic, someone said, brought the tomahawk serve to New
York. Peggy McLean Folke surfaced againdefeated Pauline
Robinson in the final and New Jerseys Jean Gere in the semis.
(Jean was pleasant, even cheerful, said a 1951 contemporary,
Adolph Herscovic
345

but she couldnt groove a strokewas just a skilled novice. Perhaps. But five years later
she was U.S. #7.).
Billy Holzrichter hadnt been able to make it to the Worlds, but the very weekend the
U.S. Team left, he was at the Feb. 24-25th Ohio Open in Clevelandalong with players from
Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, and South Bend, all showing support for Sanford Gross who was
holding this tournament as a trial run for his next years Nationals. Holzrichter took the 102entry Mensthough in the quarters he was down 2-0 to Ralph Bast before squeaking out a
19 in the 5th win. In the final, Billy beat Allan Levy, winner over Bill Price and Al Holtman
after Al had 26-24-in-the-5th survived Defending Champion Max Hersh.
At the Mar. 10-11th Wisconsin Open who should turn up, after correspondence with
Seymour Lefco and/or Harry Dickel, but Dick Miles. And what brought him to this tournament where in the Open event you had to be at least 18 (beer-drinking age?) to play? War
bonds, trophies and merchandisea $1,000 eventwith awards donated by the Miller
Brewing Company of Milwaukee. (In a Mar. 14th follow-up letter to Miles, Lefco said that,
alas, the organizers received more publicity after the tournament than before, so that Schlitz
beer now contacted Seymour wondering why Schlitz rather than Miller hadnt been asked to
be the sponsor.) Miles figured that the $200 prize hed win here would even out that English
hotel bill hed been forced to pay as the price for reinstatement. And, sure enough, Dick did
beat Holzrichter to win the Mens, teamed with Levy to down Holzrichter/Gundlach in the
Mens Doubles, and paired with Mildred Shipman to take the Mixed from Levy/Marion
Mueller.
At the Feb. 25th 10,000 Lakes Closed, Alan
Goldstein had to be smiling. He beat all three Minneapolis top seeds, Harry Lund, Ed Sirmai, and in the
final Eddie Kantar in 5. He also paired with Kantar to
win the Mens Doubles over Lund/Sirmai.
Up in Portland, OR at Circle Theater play,
Vancouvers Art Barron had continued his winning
ways. In Jan. hed won both the Oregon State Open
(over Bill Rohrer) and the Pacific Northwest Open
(over defensive star Jim Robinson). Vancouver women
also had been dominant: Jean Rose had taken the
TTT, May, 1953, 8
Oregon Open from Jeanne Robinson; and Nancy Craig
Eddie Kantar
the Northwest Championship from Betty Reed.
Seniors winner at both was Al Belfils.
In California, the Long Beach TTA ran the Mar. 17-18 Golden State
TTT, May, 1953, 8 Championships, and of course Kenny Choi had no trouble winning the Mens
Alan Goldstein from CAL TTA Junior Development Chair Bob Edwards. Contributions
continued to come in for Kenny in hopes hed not be deported, and Milt
Forrest, Chair for CAL TTAs Committee for Korea, reported that food and clothing had been
sent to war-stricken Korea. Tiny Eller, after a shaky 23, -17 start, won the Womens comfortably from Defending Champion Magda Rurac. Clevelands Carl Heyl was back in California as
an engineer at Lockheed Aircraft Corp., and playing in the Golden State. But Eric Teltscher,
CAL TTA #14 for the 49-50 season, whod joined the Service, was now in Fort Jackson,
S.C. In the Mar. 3rd Columbia, South Carolina State Championships, Eric was runner-up to
Defending Champion, Sumters Oliver Stubbs.
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In addition to Teltscher, California players making the trip to the Apr. 6-8, 1951 St.
Louis U.S. Open included Choi, the Northern California Open at Sacramento Mens winner
Ashley, Bob, Beryl and Arlyn Manning Shapiro, Bob Green, and Austin Finkenbinder, Editor
of L.A.s Society for the Preservation of Barbershop Quartet Singing of America.
Miles/Neuberger U.S. Open Winners
Having slept en route back to the States in sleeping bags on the floor of an Army
transport plane that had no seats, the U.S. Team arrived in New York the day before the 8table, 210-entry U.S. Open was to get underway, and so made it to St. Louis for their opening
matches. The local Post-Dispatch and Globe-Democrat from the beginning had coverage of
the tournament, but though attendance would be poor all three days, USTTA Treasurer Bill
Feldt said the loss was not great.
Blind umpire Chuck Medick was shown in a photo in the Globe-Democrat, for he of
course was something of a celebrity. Indeed, the March, 1951 issue of Topics reprinted an
article on him by Edgar Williams that had appeared in the Jan. 14th Philadelphia Inquirer in
which hes playfully defined as a Sound Referee. Very secure, very competent, Chuck
usually seems to be. In fact, he used to hitchhike to tournaments (until his family said, Forget
that!). As Williams points out, Clevelanders are accustomed to seeing him walk alone in that
citys streets, using neither cane nor seeing-eye dog. As for Medick making bad calls amid
the closely-spaced tournament tables, well, it sometimes happens. But the players deal with
itWrong court, Chuck, they say, and play continues.
The Mens was without Defending Champion Johnny Leach, unable to come because
of business commitmentsthus, as one local reporter put it, maybe saving himself some
embarrassment. All the seeded men made the quarterswith the exception of McClure (#3),
the only Team member who didnt play in the tournament (because of a serious operation in
his family). Gundlach advanced in Jimmys steadbeating in straight games the Californians
Teltscher and Beryl Shapiro, as well as South Bends Ron Liechty, before losing, 3-0, to
Reisman (#6). In the 8ths, Marty had played Choi a 22, 20, 22 talked-about crowd-pleaser.
Ask Marty about that match 50 years later, and what does he say? Sure I remember Choi. I
was a total lock over him. I had the impression he was overrated. Lefties, penholders, I never
had trouble with. Why should I? Id played hundreds of money matches against all kinds of
opposition.
Cartland (#2), on his way to a semis meeting with Marty, had a surprisingly 19, 21, 10, 12 difficult time with Varga, then easily eliminated Levy and Price (#7) whod struggled,
18 in the 5th, with Wisconsin Closed Champion Carl Dentice.
Miles (#5) went ho-hum through Harlow and Somael (#4), which brought him in the
semis to Hazi (#8) whod had a 5-game battle with Jim Tancill and certainly no 4-game
breather with Holzrichter (#1). Dicks semis with the aging Tibor was uneventful. But Marty,
down 2-1 to Doug, then showed the English Carrington, or would have had he returned this
year, how he, Marty, had regained the skill and the touch of a champion. The CAL TTA
Newsletter said, Theyre still talking about the out-of-this-world point between Reisman and
Cartland: the crowd stood and applauded for five minutes. Harold Flachsbart, in an Apr.
9th article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, elaborated:
In this battle of flashing drives, there was one terrific rally which several
veteran officials called the greatest point they ever saw. Sensational returns by
347

Reisman brought loud cheers, and just as Cartland netted a seemingly impossible shot
by Reisman, the C.C.N.Y. student admitted he momentarily blacked out [Marty also
admitted, not to Flachsbart but to me and others, that, like Bobby Fischer, he was a
high school dropout].
The final between Miles and Reisman was another that contributed to their legendary
rivalry. With Marty up 2-0, Dick rallied and won the next two games easily. But then Marty
came back, led 16-9 in the 5th. Marvin Marty Prager, increasingly a Reisman look-alike (he
was never called Marv), was in St. Louis to play in the Juniors, and of course saw this MilesReisman match. He told me almost 50 years later that a reporter in the background, apparently thinking Reisman would win, started a lead for his story, and Reisman, hearing him,
upset, whirled around and, though ahead, yelled, You cost me this match! After which,
Prager said, Marty got only two more points. Reisman did get only two more pointsit
was 16-14, 17-all, then 18-17 Marty, then 21-18 Dick). Topics said that Miles was a machine
that just couldnt or wouldnt miss, and that after hed won he received a tremendous ovation. Dicks win gave him his 6th U.S. Open Singles Championship and marked the 3rd time
hed beaten Marty in the final.
In Mens Doubles, however, Reisman, partnered by Holzrichter, came from 2-1 down
to defeat Miles/Cartland for the title*. Billy had no problem playing with MartyI always
got along well with the New York players, hed say later. I didnt have any financial dealings
with them. Umpire Medick said this doubles final was his 2,440 matchbut of course it was
easy for him to keep count. Barclay/Hirschkowitz did well to reach the semis before losing to
the Champions: they beat in succession the Minneapolis team of Harry Lund and young Alex
Hayday (Mens Consolation winner in 5 over hometown hopeful Bill Palmer); Price/Holtman
in 4; and Hazi/Somael in 5.
Hazi won the Seniors without dropping a game. Runner-up
Price, however, on his way to downing Varga, had a grueling deuce
in the 5th match with Chicagos Frank Tharaldson who said he didnt
start playing seriously until he was almost 30. Senior Doubles went
to Hazi/Bill Gunn over hard-hitting Tharaldson/Carlton Prouty, 3-2,
in the semis, and Cecil Woodworth/Jack Sanders, 3-0 in the final.
Paul Jackson, hitting his forehand all the way from Providence, R.I.,
won the initial (6-entry) Esquires from Harry Hotze.
The 28-entry Womens saw all four seeds playing true to form.
Patty McLinn, in coming out to meet Leah Neuberger, had only to play
one match. Why was that? Because, as Helene Cinnater tells us, Some
stinker called Millie Shipman at the Hotel, pretending it was a wire from
Western Union, saying there had been an accident, to hurry home. So
Millie defaulted her Singles and Mixed Doubles, took the first plane
outonly to find that shed been the victim of a hoax.
Peggy Ichkoff quickly reached the semisgently finished
off Marion Mueller who, in her opener, had been 2-0 down to 17year-old Lona Flam, a New Yorker living for the moment in Miami
Beach. Marion had fought back into the 5th, thenend of match,
Lona took a bad tumble, injuring ligaments and cartilege in her
TTT, Nov., 1952, p. 12
right knee. I learned from Helene Cinnaters column, a mine I
Frank Tharaldson
348

constantly extract nuggets from, that the injury

happened Friday night. When on Saturday
afternoon Lona came to watch on crutches, she
was taken to City Hospital to have the knee put
in a cast. Millie Shahian also no-nonsense advanced, defeating Pauline Robinson whod
knocked out Sharon Koehnke after Sherry had
been forced into the 5th by Arlyn Shapiro
(Womens Consolation winner over Hotze).
In the one semis, Patty put up mild onegame resistance to Leah. But in the other,
Lona Flaminjured
Ichkoff, down 2-0 to Shahian, fought furiously
won the 3rd at 19, the 4th, and finally the 5th at
deuce. The final was quite anticlimactic; Leah
was much too good for Peggy.
Neuberger/Shahian won the Womens
Doublesover Ichkoff/Prouty. Neuberger/
Cartland took the Mixedin a 5-game final
from Miles/Prouty. Sally, runner-up in both
doubles, was described in Topics as her
same nervous, fidgety, brilliant-playing self. Both finalists were extended along the
waythe winners with the Lunds into the 5th, and the runner-ups with McLinn/Hazi,
31-29 in the 4th.
In the Juniors, Ron Liechty kept losing gamesbut kept winning matches, right on
through his 19-in-the-5th final over Harry Hirschkowitz, U.S. Mens #9 this season. So, outside of the fact that Ron might one day take over the
chicken hatchery that his father runs, there was nothing, well, chicken about him.
The Boys ran true to form: Holtman (#1)
defeated Tommy Breunig (#2), 3-0 for the title. Of
most interest to the spectators perhaps was semifinalist Dave Krizmans early 19 in the 4th match that
pitted Daves defense against Harley Bradfords
forehands.
With her knee in a cast, Lona Flam, seeded #1
in the Junior Miss, couldnt contest against #2 seed
Sharon Koehnke or anyone else. In the final, Sherry
beat her longtime Chicago rival Carol Nydam whod
been down 2-1 to Racines Dorothy Danek. Mr. and
Mrs. Koehnke, always promotional-minded, would
make the most of Sherrys title, would try hard to
establish their daughter as a teenage glamour girl. And
as she was still only 16, she might, unlike her predecessors, Joan Gummels and Joanne Gardner who was
about to marry the head football coach at Granville,
TTT, May, 1951, 4
Ohio High School, stay in the Sport for a while?
Ron Liechty, 1951 U.S. Junior Champion
349

All-American Championships/All
American Girl
Of course Sherry herself,
voted by her classmates as the
top teen-ager at Glen Ellyns
Glenbard High, had the right stuff:
she was athletic and ambitious. At
this point in her life, as she tells
Topics Editor Goymerac (Apr.,
1951, 5), she has four goals. (1)
To go to the Worlds. Come fall,
her posed picture (demurely
tastefulbut short shorts, long
legs) will be on the cover of the
Sept.-Oct., 1951 English Table
Tennis Review, and by winter,
though no U.S. Team will be
going to the Bombay Worlds,
Sherry will accept an invitation to
play in the English Open. (2) To be
a model. Shes 56 and 130
pounds. At the English Open shell
wear some eye-opening outfits ala
tennis star Gussie (lace pants)
Moran. (3) To be an interior
decorator. Besides having an
interest in that direction as expressed in the playing costumes
she helps design, she operates a
small business selling personalized
bags. She designs the initialed
hand bags, which may be used for
the beach, knitting or carrying TT
Sharon Sherry Koehnke, All-American Girl
equipment, and calls her company
Sharon Kay. (4) To be emcee of
her own TV show. In addition to having played table tennis on TV, Sherry and her brother Don
have performed many a novelty Table Tennis act for hospitals, schools and orphanages
(TTT, Jan., 1952, 5).
This year, at the May 5 Chicago All-American Championships, the 1951 All-American Girl will be chosen, and this most charming and most talented young lady, on being
crowned by Coleman Clark, will be interviewed on radio, television and [for the] newspapers (TTT, Apr., 1951). Can anyone guess who this will be? (Hint: shes the U.S. Junior
Champion and her greatest interests in school are in arts and dramatics.)
In addition to winning an Elgin American Compact, Arthur Murray Dance Course,
Scholarship to the Little Theatre, tickets to the Blackhawk, and Photos by Bloom, Sherry
also won the Womens event over Oak Parks Betty Gross. Tops in the Mens was the South
350

Carolina State Champion Oliver Stubbs over Leonard Schatke, Chicago-area Novice winner
and popular piano soloist whod entertain for the 200 or so attendees at the All-American
Awards Banquet held at the Hotel Sheridan Plaza.
The Midget Girls 11 and Under winner was South Bends Sharlene Sherri Krizman,
Daves sister, a future USTTA Hall of Famer making her first appearance in Topics. She beat
Jackie Koehnke, certainly an attention-getter, who, 9 years old and 46, had played in the
Mixed at the Nationals with her 18-year-old brother Don, 6 2.
Reportedly 100 qualifiers participated, P. Becker & Co donated tables, balls and
nets, and the Illinois TTA furnished officials and referees. So it was a very successful
tournament. But, despite the hyped articles in Topics about All-American preliminary play
New Haven, CT had an entry of 1,325 boys and 628 girlsOxford, Mississippi had 900
boys and girlsPhiladelphia had 1440 boys & girls, prompting such comments as a
wonderful report[TT] might become real popularwhat, with respect to our Association,
did such ping-pong participation mean? Each year, the top finishers in Chicago were invariably
from a few nearby mid-western states and had access to in-group clubs organized for serious
competitive playwithout which those thousands and thousands of kids who simply enjoyed
batting the ball around couldnt possibly have any real understanding of the Sport, the focus
needed to improve, or reason for joining the USTTA.
Coast to Coast, Season Ends
Far from the All-Americans in Chicago, at
the May Pacific Coast Championships, held in one
of those stronghold-clubs I just spoke of, the
California Table Tennis Center, a pre-teen natural was fast developing. There were no boys his
age to beat in this tournament, but that was o.k.,
he, Erwin Chubby Klein, would play against
men. And win. Both Class A Singles, over Tom
Mertens in 5, and Class A Doubles (with Jerry
Glaser who he beat in the quarters in 5 and who
come August would be going to school and
playing t.t. in New York). Seniors winner was Bill
Bowerin the final over Lee Butler in 5, and in
the semis over Fred Grobee, about to run an
innovative Harbor Area tourney with wife Carol
as Queen.
Kenny Choi of course won the Mens,
buoyed no doubt by the generosity of both the
Indiana TTA (theyd held a Closed fund-raising
tourney for him in South Bend) and the players
who passed the hat for him during the USTTA
General Meeting at the Nationals. By now Kenny
had the requisite $400 and would not be deported.
Whether his stay could be extended remained to
be seen. In the semis, he had a strange win over
Frank Nemes, 19, 3, 2. And in the final he beat
351

Jerry Glaser (left)

and Erwin Klein

Mendel Milstein, 3-0, after Milstein, down 2-1 and 20-12 match point, had made an incredible
comeback against Bob Ashley.
In the two remaining May tournamentsseason-closers hundreds of miles apart
New Yorker Harry Hirschkowitz won the Mens Singles. At the Toledo Invitational he blitzed
in succession Hersh, Harlow, and Barclay. Oddly, though, in the 1st round hed had to go 5
with Cryin Jim Miller of Toledo. Cryin Jim who, as a sort of Consolation Award for this
and other losses which he did not take stoically, would at a later tournament, to much applause, be given an embroidered Crying Towel. In Mens Doubles, Barclay teamed with
Hirschkowitz to defeat his usual partner, Dale McColley, paired here with Herskovic. Mens
Consolation went to Daytons Cy Fess who squashed John Potts of Columbus. Neuberger
was the Womens winner over Ichkoff, 3-0, but earlier a returning Mary Specht had extended
Leah to deuce in the 4th. Neuberger and Herskovic (many years later he told me hed never
been in Toledo in his life) won the Mixed from Ichkoff/Barclay.
There was no Womens event at the May Massachusetts Open in Boston (and I wonder if Clouther played sociably in the Mens, or if she even came to watch). The Tournament
Committee in its brief write-up wanted Topics readers to note the ending of the Mens 8ths
match between Frank Dwelly and Paul Belanger:
in the third and deciding game, the score was 20-19 in Dwellys
favor. On the next service, Belanger failed to return the point and called the service
illegal, after making a try for it. The referee said it was a legal service and awarded the
point and match to Mr. Dwelly. His opponent kept insisting the service was illegal and
Dwelly did not want the player to think he had been cheated and asked the point be
played over. He lost the point and the match. Dwelly took his loss in a fine sportsmanship manner (Oct., 1951, 5).
And you thought for all these fiercely competitive players Winning Was Everything?
SELECTED NOTES.
*Dean Norman, writing to me on Dec. 11, 2002, recalls playing Doubles against Miles
and Cartland in this 1951 Nationals. He and his partner, John Wall, were youthful, enthusiastic Cedar Rapids, Iowa City Doubles Champions at the time, and it was quite a thrill for them
to be playing such celebritiesespecially since in the 1st game they were as close as 19-20.
But Ill let Dean take over the story:
[up] 20-19 Dick smashed a set up for a winner. But somehow my partner John
made a return that was a high lob and another set up. Doug smashed this one for a winner,
and I remember thinking, If John could get that last one, I can get this one, and I stumbled
and fell as I hit the ball and sent it almost straight up toward the ceiling of the gym above the
lights. Doug and Dick were shaking hands [ironically?] to congratulate themselves for winning
the game... when the ball came down through the light apparatus and bounced on the table in
front of Dick Miless face. It was another set up for him to put away. He had shifted his
paddle to his left hand because he was shaking hands with Doug. Dick threw his paddle into
the air and laughed, making no attempt to hit the ball, and gave us the point which made it a
deuce game. After that Doug and Dick won almost every point.I wonder if Doug would
have laughed and given us the point if it had been his turn to make the return?
352

Chapter

Thirty-Four

1951: Cinnater Retires, Shrout Takes Over As USTTA President. USTTA, Its Net
Worth $54.04, Is Reorganizing. 1951: Pre Intercity Tournaments. 1951: U.S. International
TeamA Team In Name Only. 1951: Miles in Brazil and the West Indies.
Our Skipper, Cinnater, after five years as USTTA President, decided to skip the last
year of his two-year term. Privately he said, hed had management up to here and waved his
hand over his head. Publicly he said, the volume of business has become too large for the
amount of time he could afford to give the important job of directing the USTTA and [with
his wife Helenes help] operating headquarters [headquarters of course being his and Helenes
home]. Helene Cinnater would sign off her last This n That Topics column not with her
usual Cest Tout (meaning Thats all for this issue) but with a parting Adieu Mes Amies
(May, 1951, 5).
Read Topics for quite a few years following Cinnaters retirement and you might not
find any mention of him, even in connection with the Sportsmanship Award that was to be
presented at the Nationals in his name. In 1955 he moved to California to take a position with
the California Credit Union League, and for two decades managed the Union Oil Center
Federal Credit Union in Los Angeles. California would eventually honor Skipper as one of
their Hall of Famers, for he did try as President to bring the rather isolated western section of
the country into non-factional harmony with the rest of the Association. In 1979 at an Awards
Banquet at Caesars Palace in Las Vegasin recognition for his 20 years of service to the
SportCinnater, in the dressed-up company of some of the most recognized of his peers, was
inducted into the USTTA Hall of Fame.
Elected to replace the spent President for the 51-52 season was not Bob Green, who
told me he declined the offer, but 34-year-old Jimmy Shrout, a nationally-ranked player,
whose wife, Raeanna, would not be writing any columns for Topics, nor would his four-yearold son, Gary, be mentioned in any, as Helenes son Ricky occasionally had been. Shrout had
his own advertising business in Chicago with a staff of five that included his Secretary, Peggy
Ichkoff, the Peggy Ichkoff. She
was named the Presidents
Executive Assistant.
Shrout was joined on the
E.C. by two officers elected last
year for a two-year termVice
President Robert Metcalf and
Treasurer Bill Feldt. Elected this
year for the 1951-53 seasons
were Vice-Presidents John Varga
and Clarence Sage (the past
Recording Secretary who was
now taking the retired Rees
Hoys place as V-P), and the
new Recording Secretary, James
Carey, whod remain the TournaTTT, Oct., 1951, 3
ment Chair. Virgil Carson continUSTTA President Jimmy Shrout
353

ued as Executive Secretary. Topics Editor Jack Goymerac resigned and was replaced by Bob
Green whod left California and was back in Columbus. The Associate Editor was no longer
Ed Dickinson but Sanford Grossand now it was as if Dickinson and the kids hed represented, Royal Oaks life for him, had been cut away, leveled, for he and they would never
again come into table tennis view. Greens Sidelines column was informative, but too often,
instead of just putting in a tournaments event scores, he would transcribe them into spacewasting sentencesmaking the thin content of the magazine (unenhanced by the repetitious
photos) even thinner.
Since Helene Cinnater had bid the Membership goodbye, and USTTA Headquarters
was now at President Shrouts Chicago ad agency, best to have Chicagoan Bert Lee handle
that Committee. There was need for a Disciplinary Committee? O.k., Tibor Hazi could Chair
that. Carey would replace Varga as Ranking Chair; Varga would become Rules Chair, replacing Referee and Umpires Chair George Schein. George, however, thanks to new NYTTA
President Herwald Lawrence and his Executive Board, would be honored for his long and
unceasing services to the Sport with a lifetime membership in the New York Association.
In other appointments, Dale McColley would head a
Dale
Players Activity Committee. And perhaps because Shrout had
McColley
been a Captain in the U.S. Air Force, had written two books
on operational pilot safety and had been the editor of all
the technical flying manuals, he set up a Library Committee
headed by Bob Meyer who, while getting his Masters Degree
in Librarianship at the University of Chicago was working at
the Math and Physics Library there. In addition to table tennis
books and magazines, photos of top players and biographical
data on them were to be collected. Bobs wife, Nellie Weier
Meyer, would Chair Womens Activity. Both had been very
active in Ohio Table Tennis and both had taught underprivileged kids the game in an effort to
keep them off the streets and out of trouble.
Shrout took his Presidency seriously. He realized that the transfer of USTTA Headquarters would take some time, but on August 3rd he asked for Reports from all his Committee headswhat theyd done, what they planned to do. On September 29-30 he held an E.C.
Meeting in Chicago, and on October 29th he sent to all those with any USTTA authority, and
also to the Manufacturers, a comprehensive summary of Association activities since hed
taken office June 1.
Here, summarized, is what he had to say about policy.
The basic policy of the USTTA will be to strengthen all local affiliates for the
simple reason that no program, no matter how well designed, will be successful without
strong support on a local level. He emphasized that constant Administrative pressure must be
brought to bear on affiliates to strengthen them.
Committee details will not be handled at Headquarters but by Committee heads
and, Chairs, take note, under penalty of replacement, there will be no more one-man
Committees. Table Tennis needs many more people constantly at work on various
projects. As soon as all Committees are functioning smoothly, important Promotion and
Publicity Committees will be added. [Shrout surely knows that effective volunteers for
these two Committees are the most difficult to find. Knows too that Cinnater was discouraged by the poor spectator turnout at the 51 Nationals in his own St. Louis area, always a
354

table tennis town (though now without the entertaining Garrett Nash). But for decades,
and even as I write, the Association has been unable to generate much publicity about the
sport, been unable to promote it.]
Our Association will have both short-term and long-term goals. Plans will be staged
on levels of accomplishment. Were more apt to achieve growth if we concentrate on a few
basic objectives in each period of effort rather than adopt shotgun activities.
Table Tennis needs to be established in the school systemsthis may take 3-5 years.
In due course, the USTTA will have to hire an Executive Director.
Topics has to be commercially profitable. [Beginning with the Oct., 1951 Topics, the
issues will be cut from 12 pages to 8, except that the March and May, 1952 issues will have
16 pages.]
[Topics continues to have fewer and fewer advertisers.] At the Navy Pier Sports Show
in Chicago, Jan., 1952, USTTA officers will have a chance to discuss with the manufacturers
how we might develop a program thats acceptable to them. [Did such a discussion ever
take place? A program agreed on? Apparently not. Topics continues to be woefully weak on
advertisers.]
The USTTA needs more active playing members. A network of Regional Directors
could facilitate Inter-club and Inter-city matches. More Novice and Consolation play would
bring in more members. Social activities would too. [From now on, the USTTA affiliate
handling the Saturday night Party at the Nationals (free to USTTA members) will be
awarded a sum to be either 50% of the sanction fee or $200.00, whichever was the lesser
amount.]
Decisions were made regarding specific items of business, as follows:
Due to the very limited financial strength of the USTTA [strength is hardly the
word], it was decided it would be impractical to send a team to India. [We have some of the
worlds best men and women playersbut the fund-raising task to send them to the 52
Bombay Worlds is just too daunting? No one even wants to attempt it? The more so because
the Team is likely to be made up mostly of New Yorkers?]
With regard to our International Team, play will determine the possible qualifiers, and
from these a final selection will be made by the USTTA Executive Committee. The duties and
responsibilities of the Team Captain are:
One, that the team captain must have complete authority to supervise the
actions of the team up to and including the right to suspend any member of the team,
subject only to review by the Disciplinary Committee and the USTTA Executive
Committee.Two, that if the team captain should fail to exercise his authority, he
would automatically become subject to suspension. Three, that insofar as possible, no
USTTA team should leave the confines of the United States owing financial obligations to any other International affiliate. [Another imbroglio of the Miles/Reisman/
Cartland sort must be avoided in the interests of all concerned.]
Chicagos Jack Dale will Chair an Inter-City Committee. In conjunction with the
Players Activity Committee, he will discuss how teams might qualify for inclusion in the
tournament, how many teams might be accommodated in one or two round robins, and
whether an extra session or even an extra day might be allotted for the tournament. A Canadian team will be invited to the 51 Philadelphia NTCs and a hospitality award of $100 will be
355

given them in return for the many similar invitations we have received from them and in an
effort to develop inter-country cooperation that will result in the improvement of both
countrys players. [No Canadian team came to Philadelphia.]
The Womens East-West Matches will become the Womens International Team TryOuts. There will be a complete round robin among the womenand only this Singles play, no
Doubles.
Perhaps selected Exhibition players could be made available to go to schools, boys
clubs, YMCAs, etc. for a limited fee to the USTTA. This money would then be put into a
pool which said exhibition players could draw on, in direct ratio to their activities, for
expenses to tournaments.
For whatever reason, California tournaments werent being covered in Topics. The
USTTA was having problems with the California affiliate? Problems that would be solved if its
members fulfilled their citizenship requirements the same as all others? [The difficulties
arent clear to me. What citizenship requirements? Whos not fulfilling them? The CAL TTA
is defending those causing the USTTA problems?]
Various New York affiliates, wanting to be independent, were not binding into a State
affiliateit was hoped they would do so.
Lastly [but you couldnt say the new President had saved the best for last] Shrout
emphasized that, since the USTTA had a net worth of $54.04 at the end of its last fiscal
year, and that since more than $500 of the $646.95 now in accounts receivable was not
readily available, a new Membership fee had to be imposed immediately. Turns out of course
that the $.25 USTTA Membership plan Cinnater unveiled to affiliates on April Fools Day,
1949 was not the big improvement it was touted to be. Now the following new fee structure
had to be put in place:
Senior Membership, 1 year, White Card
$1.50
Senior Membership, 4 years, Blue Card
$5.00
Junior Membership, 1 Year, Green Card
$0.25
League membership Card
$0.25
[Good only for Closed tourneys]
Club Memberships
$10.00
[Good for Schools, Ys, etc.]
Shrouts been around long enough to know a dj vu situation when he sees it
knows that many a ping-pong player is willing to settle for the competition at a Y or some
other place where, though the conditions arent good, he can play free. So, in trying to justify
the raise from $.25 to $1.50 he sees the need for rhetoric. USTTA President Zeisberg, faced
with the same problem in the mid-1930s, said, in effect, in his typically outspoken way, The
cheapskate doesnt want to be a USTTA member? Dont coax him. Dont waste any time with
him. Youre better off without him. Even if he joins, hell be negative, a hindrance rather than
a help. Heres Shrouts milder pitch:
I think that if it is presented to them [prospective members] that their years
membership cost would be approximately the price of one movie ticket, one meal, or a
round of beer at the local pub, that they will have a pretty sheepish time of trying to
justify any complaint against the $1.50 charge.
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Pre-Intercity Tournaments
Although Shrout and his E.C., with the Association in financial straits, didnt want to
take on the additional burden of sending a New Yorer, U.S. Team to Bombay, they did want
to continue selecting U.S. Internationals, as it were, and would hold the 1951 Mens
Intercities and Womens Tryouts in Philadelphia. These would be run by Jack Shugardt who
was already getting a jump on the 1951-52 season with his Summer Open at Phillys
Kensington Ave. TT Center.
The round robin Mens final at this Open was won by Dick Milesover runner-up
Johnny Somael. Penn State student Sharad Deodhar from Bombay surprised Freddie Borges.
Deodhars practice partner, Lt. Jack Carr, a Navy man who was an ROTC instructor in gunnery at the College, tells us that Sharad hasnt been playing more than a year, but that hes a
wonderful tennis player, a weightlifter, and
one of Indias best cricket players (TTT,
Feb., 1952, 7). Carr would later be one of the
longest serving USTTA officials.
Leah Neuberger had a perfect 7-0
record in the round robin Womens. Pauline
Robinson was 2nd, Jean Gere 3rd, and Julia
Rutelionis, a native Lithuanian living in D.C.,
4th. Neuberger, paired with Hazi, did not win
the Mixed as expectedthe upset winners
were Somael/Robinson. In Mens Doubles,
Ferris/Delaney knocked off Miles/Borges, 14,
-18, 20, 20, then
downed Somael/
Hirschkowitz
whod eliminated
Hazi/Buki. Id
heard that Buki
Photo by Mal Anderson
fancied himself
Moniek Buki
quite a player and
had this habit after hitting a good shot of turning and looking at the
audience. On one occasion only Miles and Somael happened to be
watching his match, and every time he hit in a shot, they quickly
turned to one another and pretended to be engrossed in conversation,
otherwise when he missed theyd always be looking at him.
At a June tournament at the White Plains County Center,
Hirschkowitz stunned onlookersand Miles, Schiff, Somael, and
Pagliaro as wellby winning all his matches in the round robin
Mens. Neuberger won the Womensover Ruthe Crist whod
escaped Robinson in 5.
Harry Hirshkowitz
Appropriately at this tournament Im going to introduce
Stunning Summer
White Plains resident Marianne Bessinger to you and give you a
little of her background. Out of the darkness that was World War
II Germany, she tripped the light fantastic to England where she
received a dance scholarship. Her exuberance for table tennis
357

could first be seen from afar when in the spectator stands at the 1948 Wembley Worlds she
caught sight of Vana and other greats. Thenhow else for a 26-year-old or anyone else to
learn?she began playing the Sportat Londons Regent Polytechnic Institute.
Now a little fancy footwork, this way, that, to complete the balance of her step by step
immigration: she was the shipboard Ile de Grasse Champion, and on settling in White Plains
had openedit would be her lifetime occupationa dance school for children. Although she
would win the first of her numerous Westchester Closed Championships as early as 1950
(later she would become President of the Association), this season would be her first on the
USTTA Womens Ranking list.
At the N.Y. Summer Open, held Aug. 17-18 at the Broadway Courts, Hirschkowitz
was again dominant. He came 1st in the Mens round robin, again beating Somael, and won
both Doublesthe Mens with Johnny (from Laci Bellak/Buki) and the Mixed with Leah
(from Johnny and Pauline).
In the round robin Womens, Robinson
scored her first big success. Though she almost
lost to Jean Gere, and did lose to Lona Flam,
she beat Leah, 19 in the 3rd. Since Leah got the
better of Lona, all three had 5-1 records. In the
play-off, Pauline distinguished herself, not only
by 19-in-the-3rd avenging her earlier loss to
Flam, but by defeating Leah again. Some day,
huh!
At the Toronto CNE, Neuberger
was all confidence. She took the
Womens easily when her expected final
with Robinson didnt materialize, for
Pauline was upstaged in the semis by
Junior Miss winner Sharon Koehnke,
24-22 in the 4th. The Mens final tested
Reisman, the 47 and 48 winner, against
Schiff, the 49 and 50 winner. Marty up
2-0, on losing the 4th 24-22, had to go
into the 5th to win it. This match with
Schiff was an illustration of what Marty
meant when he said seasoning helped.
One had to have experience in playing
Pauline RobinsonN.Y. Summer Open winner
Sol, said Marty. Had to know that if Sol
could hit three great shots in, win a cluster of points, he could also miss hitting in five
shots, lose a cluster of points. It was important you stayed steady, played within yourself,
and not get into a crap-game with him.
Reisman also won the Mens Doublessurprisingly with Dr. Mitchell Silbert, a former
nationally-ranked player who, busy with his optometry practice, for years now had played only
sparingly in tournaments. With Mitch stretching his 6, 4, 155-pound collapsible frame into a
double-wing retrieving defense, and smacking in even low balls with his sweeping followthrough forehand, they beat two strong teamsHerscovic/Hirschkowitz, -19, 13, 21, -14, 15,
and in the final Hazi/Schiff, 13, -14, -16, 19, 21.
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The Juniors was

1952 U.S. Open Program
won by Bobby
Bobby Gusikoff
Gusikoffin the semis
over Krizman, in the final
over Jimmy Calcaterra
whod had a ferocious
18, -21, -23, 20, 19
match with Canadas
Yvon Barrette. Krizman
took the Boysover
Canadas Olgert Pukitis.
Hazi was the Seniors
winner, balancing March
accounts with Herskovic,
18 in the 4th.
The Intercities
were coming up, but this
year California wouldnt
be sending a team. On Nov. 11-12 there was a well-attended tournament directed by Gene Roseman at the Washington Junior High Gym in
Long Beach, where, as anticipated, Tiny Eller easily defeated CAL TTA
Bobby Gusikoff
Secretary Diane Livingston Abrams. As for Kenny Choiwell, never
mind who he beat, one opponent actually got 42 points. Oh, alrightit
was Long Beach TTC President Bill Wells. The Jan., 1952 CAL TT Newsletter said that
Kenny continued to give TV exhibitions and had enrolled at Pepperdine College while
awaiting disposition of his case by the Immigration Department. Newsletter Editor Beryl
Shapiros wife, Arlyn, received a Christmas greeting from Si
Ja Choi, Kennys wife in Pusan, thanking one and all (I want
to you are happy, and you help my husband for ever).
Naturally the best Mens matches to watch were not
Kennys. Drawing spectator attention were: runner-up Chuck
Feldmans 5-game semis with Bob Ferguson after Bob needed
a two-up spot to stop Allan Keys; Bob Leachs 18 in the 5th
win over former CAL TTA
President John Hanna, just
returned from an 18-month
stint at Pearl Harbor; and
semifinalist Bob Edwardss
early 17, -18, 19, 20, 19
marathon win over the
Arlyn Manning Shapiro
Newsletters ace reporter,
young Erwin Klein.
Minnesota had never sent a team to the Intercities, and
wouldnt this year, though their players were plenty good
enough. Topics Editor Bob Green praised Kantar, said he hits
Bob Edwards
well on both backhand and forehand, defends passably well
359

and has a terrific counter drive, both backhand and forehand, with the necessary quick reflexes
to go with it.
Illinois of course would not only send a team to the Nov. 24-25 Philadelphia
Intercities, it would hold the Western Womens Tryoutsthis in conjunction with the Nov.
10-11 Chicago 10,000 Lakes Open that would serve as a warm-up for the men. Of the 26
women invited to the Tryouts, 10 accepted and they played a complete round robin to determine the 4 Western Qualifiers who would compete for the U.S. International Team spots in
Philadelphia the Nov. 24-25 Thanksgiving weekend. The order of finish was as follows: (1)
Peggy Ichkoff (8-1a loss to Mary Specht). (2) Carolyn Bast (7-2losses to Peggy and
Sharon Koehnke). (3) Mildred Shahian, (4) Sharon Koehnke, (5) Mary Specht, 1st alternate,
and (6) Mildred Shipman, 2nd alternatethese last four places via a play-off. In the Mens
final, Allan Levy beat Ralph Bast, 3-0but neither would go to the Intercities, nor would Bill
Holzrichter. In the Womens final, Shahian, up 2-1, lost deuce in the 5th to Ichkoff.
The Eastern women had their Tryouts Nov. 3-4 at the Broadway Courts with the
following results: (1) Neuberger (10-0, never lost a game), (2) Lona Flam, (3) Patty McLinn,
and (4) Pauline Robinson. These four will meet the West women in Philadelphia.
I dont know whether the Western men had Tryouts, but the Eastern men did. There
was a tie for 1st and 2nd between Sol Schiff (9-1a loss to Somael) and Lou Pagliaro (9-1a
loss to Schiff). Third place went to Miles (8-2losses to Schiff and Pagliaro) with these
reservations, as expressed by Marv Shaffer, Executive Secretary of the NYTTA:
Dick Miles does not play the game he has been playing during the past seven
years or so. The mainstay of his game is now defense, which is almost as impenetrable
as his offense was un-stoppablebut not quite, which is the difference at this stage of
his game. He can still hit, but not as unerringly as in the past when he could coolly
drive through anyone he pleased at any time he pleased. He has to work much harder
now to achieve what he easily attained before. But dont be lulled into complacency
he is still the hardest player to beat nine-tenths of the time (TTT, Nov., 1951).
Fourth was Hirschkowitz (7-3losses to the top 3). All his losses were two straight,
while four of his five wins went three gameswhich only goes to show that he was not up to
snuff. Shaffer adds that Harry is the one player who will always bear watching, mainly
because he never looks nearly as goodor as badas he is at the time. Perhaps not looking
as good as he is had something to do with those (Wanna bet my guy can beat your guy?)
mysterious trips hed taken to other states? Fifth was Somael, whom Shaffer said had to
work hardest for his wins because of his doggedly determined defensive style which he never
abandons.
U.S. International TeamA Team In Name Only
The National Team Championship Program put out by the Philadelphia Center owners, Shugardt and the energetic septuagenarian player Frank Krupp, says that the individual
results of these matches will determine who will represent the United States at the World
Championships in Bombay, India. Presumably they know better, but want to make the
matches seem more important than they are to uninitiate spectators.
The 12 teamssome of them from the same geographical area (New York, Manhattan, and Long Island; Ohio and Cleveland), and with former powerhouse Chicago weak
360

without their best, and St. Louis conspicuously missingwere divided into two round robinswith the winners playing for the Championship, and the 2nd place finishers playing for 3rd
and 4th.
In Bracket A, New York was the winner. Miles and Pagliaro were undefeated, but
Hirschkowitz, whod been so strong in the summer, looked like he was ready to work a hustle
here, for he lost to Milwaukees Carl Dentice and Tommy Breunig, to Illinois Holly Haworth,
and to Detroits Chuck Burns (10-3) and Bob Short (9-4). Detroit (helped by Max Hershs 85 record) came 2nd.
In Bracket B, Manhattanwith Cy Sussman undefeated, Somael with only a loss to
Hazi (though hed gone deuce in the 3rd with Laci Bellak), and Moniek Bukicame 1st.
Barely placing 2nd, with a 5-4 victory over Chicago, was Long IslandHal Green, Mitch
Silbert, Angelo Gutierrez, and Bellak (Florida-based Laci had some extended business with
Paul Moss in New York City, and was temporarily living with relatives on Long Island?).
Bellak lost to Webb (10-3), who was playing for Chicago, not Detroit, but beat Meszaros and
Shrout; and Green (8-5) rose to the occasion by defeating all three Chicago players, most
notably Webb in the 3rd game of the 9th match.
In the final, Miles and Pagliaro continued their dominance, and Hirschkowitz struggled
by Buki for a 5-0 win over Manhattan. In the apparently meaningless tie for 3rd, Detroit,
though having to default Burnss matches, beat Long Island 5-3 with Marv Shaffer playing his
only tie and Bellak positioned to play the unnecessary 9th match.
The round-robin Womens International matches were dominated by Leah Neuberger
who, in playing 7 opponents, didnt give up so much as a gameindeed, no one scored more
than 14 points against her. Peggy Ichkoff (5-2) placed 2nd. Though she lost a 25-23 toughie to
Pauline Robinson, she 26, -19, 18 won one she might have lost to Patty McLinn. Three
players tied for 3rd, 4th, and 5th. Sharon Koehnke (4-3), with a loss to Flam, had to keep pressing hard but she finally notched a 19-in-the-3rd winner against McLinn. Patty (4-3), who
might have come 2nd, gave Lona (4-3) her 3rd lossa 21-2 2nd game drubbing in which Lona
must have said, To hell with it. Robinson (3-4) was a close 6th, June Allison (1-7) 7th, and
Reggie Greenstein (0-8), 8th.
Thus the U.S. International Womens Team members were New Yorkers Neuberger
and Flam, Harrisburg, PAs McLinn, and Chicagos Ichkoff and Koehnke. The U.S. International Mens Teamminus New Yorkers Reisman and Cartlandwere those with the best
record at the NTC, New Yorkers Miles, Pagliaro, Sussman, and Somael.
But of course being named to such an amorphous U.S. Team meant nothing. There
was no funding, no trips, no international competition for the players.
Miles in Brazil and the West Indies
I must add, however, that late this past summer Miles, though of course through no
USTTA sponsorship, could be found in both Brazil and the West Indies. At a tournament in
Sao Paulo Dick was beaten 3-0 by the South American Champion, Hugo Severo, a penhold
defender. There was no coverage in Topics, but Table Tennis had this comment:
Severo played an excellent game, sometimes retrieving impossible balls. He
continually pushed the ball to Miles backhand corner and this appeared to tie up the
[USA] champion who was too eager to employ his mighty, flat forehand hitting. The
general view in Brazil is that the Miles forehand attack and defence is terrific but he
361

sadly needs a backhand so that he might counter the style of play adopted by Severo
(Dec., 1951, 8).
Oh? In the final of the Rio de Janeiro International Invitation tournament that followed, Miles beat Severo 3-0though again theres the suggestion that Miless forehand isnt
what it used to be, for he could not really let himself go to hit through Severo (which is
what he tried to do in Sao Paulo?).
Following his play in Brazil, Miles went to Trinidadthe first world-class American
player to do so. There he played two nights of exhibitions, one in the North at Port-of-Spain
where the Governor, Sir Hubert Rance, was pleased that Dick did not try to make his opponents look foolish, and the other in the South at San Fernando. Jack Thompson, formerly an
English TTA player who met Dick at the airport, said in Table Tennis that, because of the
maybe 90 degree temperature and the high humidity, all doors and windows to the halls where
Dick played his 8 matches each night were of course wide open. The tables, said Thompson,
were very poor, all locally made of boards and dead as a doornail (Feb., 1952, 9).
The Table Tennis Review also covered Miless short stay in Trinidad. Clearly Dick had
been well received and was anything but arrogant (as he was sometimes accused of being):
Long after the [Port-of-Spain] crowd had left, Miles stayed on talking to
the local players, giving them advice. He told them how they could have done better
against him. He impressed on them that the strongest point is footwork. This, he said,
was the thing which made Ralph Legal their best local player. He also pointed out the
benefits of spin, wrist play and of a compact game. He mentioned that Hubert Griffith,
the West Indies Champion, was a good player, but his game was too loose.The next
day he visited a shirt-making factory where the proprietor, himself a table tennis
enthusiast, presented Richard with a box of the factorys best products (Dec., 1951,
8).
Come what may, and well continue to see this, aficionados Miles, Reisman, and
Cartland, with or without the USTTAs help, and with or without a commensurate reward for
their great talents, will insist on being Internationalists.

362

Chapter

Thirty-Five

1951-52: Winter Tournaments. 1952: California Progress. 1952: Price/Will Win

Westerns. 1952: Schiff/Neuberger Best At Easterns. 1952: Pre-Nationals Play.
At the Dec. 8-9 Pennsylvania Open, Dick Miles won the Mens final from Johnny
Somael, 3-0. But, despite the misleading Topics headline, Dick Miles Ho-Hums Pennsylvania Open, maybe his game was somehow in decline, for D.C.s Dick Stakes beat Dick 21-7
the 1st game, then lost the 2nd, 20-22, then the 3rd, 22-24, before routinely succumbing in the
4th. What was going on? How hot could Stakes get? (U.S. #42 for the 49-50 season,
Insufficient Data for the next, and, as hed play sparingly, not even that for this season). In
another surprise, Phillys Matt Schoenberger, before losing to Somael, upset Tibor Hazi, 19 in
the 5th. In the Juniors, Lowell Latshaw had big wins over #1 seed Bobby Gusikoff in the
semis and #2 seed Jerry Glaser in the final.
Miles won again at the N.Y. Metro Open, but again with an efforthe beat Hal
Green in the final after Hal had ousted Schiff in 5. A local reporter said Sol was visibly
disturbed by an unfortunate referees ruling against him. (Hopefully the referee was not
made to be more unfortunate than the ruling?) The Topics write-up says that, after games
were tied at 1-1, Miles decided to take no further chances and forced Green into errorwhich suggests that Dicks hitting wasnt consistent and that he (as increasingly he
had been doing?) fell back into a defensive mode. Miles might also have been in a precarious struggle with Lou Pagliaro in the semis except that with games 1-1, Paggy was
seized with a leg cramp from which he could not recover and was forced to default
(Feb., 1952, 4).
Neuberger won a 10-player Womens round robinsans Peggy McLean who reportedly was giving exhibitions with Pagliaro, and Reba Monness who reportedly was giving
exhibitions with Schiff. Marv Shaffer was the Consolation winner over Al Ayer. Ayer, who
frequented Lawrences, was barely 5 feet tall, if that. A New York player, Alfred Gill, remembers the first time he came to Lawrences having only heard of the famous pint-sized Pagliaro,
never having seen him in person. When he saw Ayer play, he jumped to a hasty conclusion,
said in astonishment, I didnt know Pagliaro was a black man. A remark which certainly
flattered Ayers game.
In the Feb., 1952 Topics, Lt. Jack Carr asked, Why was Leah Neuberger better than all
the rest of the U.S. Women? In the following issue Pauline Robinson respondedsaid that
Leah was one of the best players in the world, and that Robinson, Flam, and McLinn hadnt
been playing long enough, on the average only 5 years, to be sufficiently seasoned. She also
said that if Chotras, Monness, Clouther, and McLean were playing, they would win tournaments.
Monness would never play competitively again, but 20 years later she would surface as
a writer for Topics, lamenting that not once in all the years she was away from the Game did
she receive a notice to renew her USTTA membership. It was as if no one remembered or
cared about her. I knew Reba in the 1970s and found her both verbally attacking and psychically very vulnerable. She was given to self-aggrandisement, but I thought her a good-hearted,
vigorous person whom it was impossible to predict or ignore. But, here, see for yourself.
Read the brunt (minus the cluttered repetitions) of a Dec. 27, 1951 letter she wrote to USTTA
Historian Peter Roberts:
363

Dear Mr. Roberts:

Indeed I was very glad to hear from you again, but sad and unhappy to learn of
your wifes illness. Please accept my heartfelt compassion.Surely I believe in
miracles and truly hope Mrs. Roberts will recover quickly. Fate or whatever it really is
plays its parts strongly in our lives and sometimes we meet with very tough situations
wondering whether we shall ever be able to withstand same.You are two darling
people. I remember you both so distinctly as such sweet folk, and only wished I lived
near you so that we could strike up a genuine acquaintance.
I wonder if you have given me the proper credits for what I have done for
t.t. You knew that I was president of NYTTA for four years (or five) during war years,
and did not have time to lift a racquet to play even though I was 2nd in the United
States at the time.(I call that real sacrifice, dont you?) Also it was I who after
several years prevailed upon the USTTA to adopt all-white wearing apparel.Yes, it
was I. Also I am the first and only t.t. player in world whose name was on Broadway
in big neon lights on the marquee of Broadways famous PALACE Theatrewith

TTT, July-August, 1980, 19

Reba Monness playing the Palace Theater in New York with Bobby Riggs

pictures featured all over front entrance of theatre, too. In fact, tonight my picture and
article about me is in New York Post newspaper, [by] one of famous columnists.In
fact, I have received more publicity than all other t.t. people. You really should see the
big write-ups of me. They also call me the most glamorous of all girl athletes, the
prettiest and one of most versatile people in world of sport, etc. I have never sent you
any articles or pictures of me from various publications. By the way, SPORT magazine
will have a feature on me in February issue which comes out early in JanuaryThere
are a lot of things about me which the t.t. people do not knowfor I am very active in
all fields of the arts, too, always have been.
Dearest Peter Roberts, yes, I should like a list of the [U.S.? World?] champions. Also I should like a history, your history of t.t.It is very imperative that I
receive the following information as soon as possible:
In all of t.t. history, will you please give me [type, she says] the names of
famous people (celebrities) who have been affiliated with t.t. in anyway and will you
also tell me how they were affiliated, in playing, or whatever.Of course you have the
list of all the Honorary members of USTTA.Also [give me] any amusing anecdotes
or incidents with any well-known people in re to t.t. Please help me out on this, Mr.
Roberts, dear, because this is all for the good of the game for which I am ALWAYS
plugging.
364

Also what was the name of the very nice man from Chicago originally who
now lives in Canada. He was very fond of me, but alack and alas his name slips my
mind at the moment. He has gold mines up there. Surely you know him? [This was the
well known USTTA official Dougall Kittermaster].Do you have any things about
Hollywood actors and actresses, etc.?
I wish we lived in the same town, because I only met you two nice people for a
short while, but truly loved you both and if I were nearby would try to give you some
respect and happiness and fun.Please, please kiss Mrs. Roberts for me and keep
your chin up and try to keep well and eat well and get plenty of rest.
Can you possibly procure Coleman Clarks book for me?Will you do me a
favor and ask him if he received my letterand will he please answer me as soon as
possible, at once if possible. Please do.
I am awaiting a long reply from you in full details.Please do not fail me, yes,
as it is very important.
Please fulfill my requests, Mr. Roberts, dear, this is all for the sake of t.t.
My deepest feelings for you both, and all of my very best regards.
Whew! Surely Peter Roberts, a man in his 70s, must be overwhelmed by these requests. WHY all this information is so immediately important to Reba, she doesnt saynor
do I have any further correspondence between the two. One day, though, Reba will be found
in her bed surrounded by all her photos and clippings, the trappings of a forgotten celebrity.
At the Jan. 5 Westchester Open in White Plains, Milesmoving left, right, returning
ball after ball to sidestep difficultywon his third straight tournament, beat Pagliaro decisively in the final. According to Topics (the unnamed writer is Editor Green, but I assume
Greens N.Y. conduit is either Leah Neuberger or Pauline Robinson), It seems like Miles
enjoys playing those deuce games, as he seems to drift into them as if he didnt care, and then
suddenly settles down and decides not to miss anything, and he
usually doesnt. It is very discouraging for his opponents to get
to deuce without too much trouble and then find they are faced
with a stone wall (Feb., 1952, 5). Paggy reached the final after a
tumultuous 20, 20, 20, 20 semis match with Schiff who reportedly also went four deuce games with Montreals Paul Belanger.
(So can it be said Sol enjoyed playing deuce games too?)
In the Womens, #4 seed Lona Flam defeated Defending
Champion Pauline Robinson in the semis, then gave Leah
Neuberger her only loss of the season to date. Cal Skinner won
the Westchester Closed for the 7th straight year.
Over in South Bend at the Jan. 5-6 St. Joe Valley, Billy
Holzrichterhe and Brother Gus were now trying to keep four
Pro Sport Shops goingmade a rare appearanceand won the
Mens over Bill Meszaros. In the Womens, Ichkoff was an easy
winner over Specht. Since it was understood Ichkoff/Specht
would win the Womens Doubles, Coach Varga whod been
trying to keep the Game fun for his young Y charges, making
them laugh by playing the clown or Big Daddy Bear, had to
have been proud to see how seriously they could compete.
Billy Holzrichter
365

Sharlene Sherri Krizman (just 11 last Sept.) who, on reminiscing, said

Varga semed less adamant with the girls, and Carolee Liechty (Rons sister
who, at 15, still had four U.S. Open Junior Miss years to play) upset
Torontos Perkins and Chicagos Irene Webb (Lees wife?) to reach the
Doubles final. Womens Novice Winner: Elaine Mitchell over developing flathitter Krizman in 3 (via two deuce games). Womens Consolation Winner:
Eleanor Potts over Webb.
Holzrichter must have found a pocket of time, for two weeks after
his South Bend win, he breezed through the Illinois Open, defeating Bill
Price in the final. Price, who would soon be ending his tenure as tennis pro
at the Westwood Club in St. Louis, had a new pupil at his North Side T.T.
Club in 10-year-old Chuck McKinley who seemed now to prefer the table
game to the sissy game of tennis in which he would later become a U.S.
Champion. In the Womens, Carolyn Bast scored a startling win over
Ichkoff.

Bob Ashley

California Progress
The Californians werent running
USATT sanctioned tournaments. Apparently
they didnt see the point, didnt feel cooperative. Why? One reason, perhaps, is that it
TTT, Nov., 1952, 13
was too difficult for their players to acquire
Sharlene
the 12 participation points required for a
Sherri
USATT ranking without the expense of
Krizman
attending the 8-point Nationals. Further, in
the cut-down Topics, how much space could be devoted to
their tournaments, their players? So, they must have thought,
why pay sanction fees? Theyd have their own Ranking, their
own Newsletter. Naturally, then, the CAL TTA didnt synchronize their Feb. 2-3 Southern California Open, played at
the Olive Ave. Rec Building in Burbank, with the Feb. 16-17
Majors being put on in other sections of the country. Californians considered the Golden State Open their Major and
theyd scheduled that in April.
Though Topics wasnt receiving the West Coast
results, the Burbank tournament was significant in view of
13-year-old Erwin Kleins win in Mens Singles and
Doubles. The little carrot-top beat Gene Roseman, 3-0,
and in the Doubles teamed with Chuck Feldman to down
Roseman/Bob Edwards in 4. Little Red also won the
Juniorsover Bob Ashley who wasnt too young for the
Service and had been stationed at Camp Pendleton. The
Junior Novice winner wasAshley. (Ashley a Novice? A
Junior Novice!). In the Womens final, with Magda Rurac
playing tennis tournaments in the South, Tiny Eller was the
undisputed Champion.
366

As the CAL TTA Newsletter would attest, the Sport was flourishing in not only
Southern California but now in the North. At the Feb. 8-10 Hayward Open (103 players),
Terry Schall, Ranking Chair for the newly formed Northern California TTA, won the Mens,
19 in the 4th, over Mike Fiedler, NCTTA Tournament Chair. Fiedler, paired with Roseman, took the
Mens Doubles from Schall/Don Bertucci. As expected, Diane Helfer came 1st in the Womens.
Western Open
While California play was flourishing, the Feb. 16-17 Western Open at Kansas City,
Missouri was missing all the Chicago stars, and began signaling the departure from the tournament scene of George Hendry, Jim Tancill, and Wally Gundlach. For George, who did not
come to the tournament (he would play now only in the upcoming Missouri Open), it was
time to quit, to make a comfortable living, raise a family. How could he possibly believe
dreamhed one day, far away, be a World Champion? As for Tancill, he lost in the 2nd round
of the Mens to Maurice Smith of Manhattannot Manhattan, N.Y., Manhattan, Kansas
who then was zipped 3-0 by local affiliate President Dr. Herman Mercer. Gundlach fell in the
quarters to fellow St. Louisan John Stewart. Defending Mens Champ Wayne Losh of Des
Moines was also beaten in the quartersby Al Holtman. Before downing his young protg in the
final in 4, Price had to rally to win his quarters in 5 from the Iranian Park College student, Jerry
Ghahramanian. In Mens Doubles, however, Jerry and his older brother George beat Price/Holtman
in the final. The Womens winner was Nancy Will, 24-22 in the 4th, over Jane Allison.
Eastern Open
At the Washington, D.C. Capitol Open, two weeks before the Feb. Easterns, Tibor
Hazi had won the Mens over Sol Schiff, 23-21 in the 4th. But in Philadelphia, at the Memorial
Hall Rec Center in Fairmount Park, Schiff was the old Sol of ten years ago. He ousted Tibor
with ease in the quarters. Then, with blistering forehand drives, he upset Miles, 18 in the
5th. In the final, it seemed that Harry Hirschkowitz, whod advanced by coming from 2-1
down to beat Buki, was not even in the game except as a ball boy, such were Sols passing
shots (TTT, Mar., 1952, 3). But that, as you can see, was the Topics point of view. George
Sempeles, the Maryland TTA President, had another take:
Although no official complaints were made players expressed privately their
disapproval of the tournament being played in a hall with a marble floor. Not only was
the footing slippery (wet towels and resin had to be used) but the marble floor gave a
quick bounce to all balls, resulting in a chop not taking on the table surface. In other
words the ball would hit the table top and bounce right off, not biting in and not
allowing the heavy chop to take effect. Consequently the defensive players (including
Dick Miles) did not have a fair chance.
In his semi-final match against Schiff, Miles slid all over the floor. Throughout
the whole tournament the slam-bang players smashed their way through better
players simply because they were more adept at keeping up the offensive. Schiffs
policy was to hit at all costs.
At the Capitol Open, Neubergers final with Jean Gere had been anything but stimulating. But here at the Easterns, Leahs climactic match with Lona Flam was capital. It didnt
start off that way, with Leah winning the first two games 14 and 9, but then Lona got her
367

forehand smash grooved and blasted away, winning the 3rd, and then the 4th at deuce. The 5th
seesawedwith Lona up 15-11Leah up 16-15Lona up 19-17Leah up 20-19. At which
point, Leah hit a hard smash which [though it dribbled off the net] Lona managed to get to
and send back. The high return looked like it was going outbut it hit an edge. So, no, the
match wasnt over yet. Then Lona had match-pointbut couldnt finish for a win. New
Yorker John Read, praising Flam, said this was the greatest womens match I have ever
seen.
In this Chapters flurry of tournaments involving New Yorkers, have you noticed
anyone missing? Ah, Reisman and Cartlandyes, where were they? Globe-trotting aboutso
much so that it was difficult to keep up with them. (I did note a squib in one of the English t.t.
magazines that Reisman was seriously thinking of settling in England. More scope for his
talents there, more chance for a comfortable livingor so Marty at the moment reportedly
thought.) Harlem Globetrotters owner Abe Saperstein always liked a halftime table tennis
act. One of his favorite performers had been the late Harry Cook whod worked into his
repertoire a shot that arced into the netthat is, the hoop above. Now Reisman was
Cartlands partner, and it was the very experienced Dougs job to hone Martys exhibition
skills as they played in Europe and Asia, and, as one wit put it, while Marty unloaded ball
point pens in 17 languages.
For both, according to Marty, there were many publicized and not so publicized
moments. Ill give you an example of each. In Germany, Reisman and Cartland put on a show
at Olympic Stadium in Berlin before the biggest crowd (free admission) that not only table
tennis players but this world-renowned black basketball team ever performed for75,000
strong. Saperstein brought in, dramatically by helicopter, the 1936 Berlin Olympic Champion
Jessie Owens, a black man whom Hitler had refused to shake hands with. Of course Jessie was
greeted with honors and hand-warming applause. In Tokyo, where the Japanese didnt like
blacks, Cartland busied himself off-court with currency manipulations, and Reisman, as a joke,
fixed up Trotters star Goose Tatum with a transvestite named Billy Boy. The joke, though,
was on Marty, for Goose said he had a good time.
Im going to delay picking up Doug and Marty until after they leave the Trotters and
prepare to begin play at the Bradbourne Stadium in Bombay for the Feb., 1952 Worlds. This
event that introduces the Japanese into ITTF competitive play marks the beginning of the end
of the hardbat era and so will serve to close this Volume. Meantime, since the new sponge
influence will only gradually be felt around the world, well continue with whats happening in
the U.S.
Pre-Nationals Play
Though Reisman and Cartland wont be participating in the Mar. 28-30 Philadelphia Nationals, the following Californians will: Bob Ashley (transferred to, and on
leave from, his San Antonio Army posthell be driving up to Cleveland with Louie
Scharlack); Austin Finkenbinder (managing now a folk song trio whove recorded one
of his novelty songs); Erwin Klein (for whom over $110 was raised by the CAL TTAs
Klein-to-the-Nationals campaign), and Jerry Glaser, Mary Reilly, Paul Schaeffer,
and Si Wasserman.
The Nationals warm-up tournament for these Californians was the Mar. 8-9 Greater
LA Open played at the Westchester High School. The Mens, or, rather, the Openwhich
women, not having their own event, were eligible forwas won of course by Kenny Choi.
368

But Wassermans 19-in-the-5th win over the

Feb. Southern California Champion Klein was
a surprise. Si, however, then lost in the
quarters to runner-up Alan Keys, Pruneface
on the Dick Tracy TV show, who in the semis
might well have hammed it up in taking out
Bob Ferguson and his hard-to-control temper. Klein was also beaten in the final of the
Juniors, 18 in the 5th, by Glaser who teamed
with Choi to take the Open Doubles from
Hanna/Arnold. A California Champion from
the past, movie director Don Siegel, was one of
the spectators.
Former Texas State Champ Carter
Richardson would play in the Nationals, but not
Julius Engel who defeated Richardson for the
Houston City title.
The Feb. 16-17 Ohio Closed at Columbus marked the first appearance in Topics
ofme, Tim Bogganand my first t.t. trauma,
for, after knocking out the #2 seed Ralph
Ramsey, I lost the final of the Mens, -12, 25, 12, 21, -19 to Bill Palmer whod earlier upset the
Si Wasserman
#1 seed Bob Harlow. Defending Champ Joanne
st
Kaylor was surprised in her 1 match by Mayo Barrett whom apparently the Tournament
Committee didnt recognize as the former Mayo Rae Rolph, a 15-year veteran who was a
member of the 1940 U.S. Team that visited Japan. Mayo, as weve seen, had been in the
Chicago area getting an advanced degree and teaching for some years, but since then had
accompanied her husband, Roger, to Athens, Ohio where he had a teaching position at Ohio
University and/or, reportedly, a drive-in restaurant.
Mayo, who defeated Elaine Mitchell, 3-0, to win the Singles, also got to the final of
the Mixed Doubles with an Ohio University sophomore, Tom Smith, before losing to Dr.
Harry Sage/Mary Landfair. It was really Smith whod encouraged Mayo to play again after a
4-year layoffto practice a bit, then for the fun of it enter the tournament. In fact, according
to local Athens reporter, Lizabeth Keating, Mayo had plans to go to Akron for the Ohio Open
the following week, but a fire in the Barrett apartment prevented that. Nor would she go to
the U.S. Open in Cleveland. Soon, just as her artist friend, Jack McLarty, had returned to
Portland to become a teacher at the Museum of Art School there, so will Mayo return to
teach. Who knows, maybe in another Volume well find her playing again. Once you get the
urge, why fight it?
This season Columbus players were trying out a new type of League developed by
Bob Snouffer that would give a city ranking committee a very complete and accurate
basis for ranking. It was working so well that President Shrout asked Snouffer to be the
USTTA Leagues Chairand, on accepting, Bob made a request in Topics that all affiliates
send him the particulars of whatever League or regularly scheduled play was in operation
at their clubs.
369

At the Feb. 23-24 Ohio Open, held in Akrons

beautiful Firestone Gym, Hersh retired the Mens
Traveling Trophy by defeating Bill Palmer in the final.
Palmers defense and counterdriving attempts were
no match for Maxs sharp and well placed drives.
Morris Meyers might be said to have pulled off the
big upset of the tournamentover #2 seed Bill
Meszaros in 4. Bill was off with his hitting, and
Morris, playing very steadily and hitting a telling forehand smash occasionally, slowly wore Meszaros down.
It was Palmers heroics, though, that stirred the crowd. In
the quarters, against Hamiltons Ralph Ramsey, Bill was
TTT, Apr., 1952, 6
down 20-16 in the 5th
Max Hersh
and scored 6 straight. In
the semis against Meyers, he won 19 in the 5th.
Joanne Kaylor successfully defended her Ohio Open
Womens title by defeating her sister Mary Landfair whod
advanced by avenging her last weeks Closed loss to Elaine
Mitchell. Mens Doubles winners were Hersh/Sanford Gross
deuce in the 5th over Barclay/Palmer. In the Juniors, a determined Dave Krizman won out over, first, Harley Bradford,
deuce in the 5th, then, after being down 2-0, over Fred Ek, 19
in the 5th (earlier, Ek himself had been down 2-0 to Harold
Gifford).
Whenas he went about socializing here at Firestone
TTT, Apr., 1952, 6
half a century agoU.S. Open Chair Sandy Gross was
Joanne Kaylor
asked about his upcoming tournament, he said again and
again, It will be a National no one can forget.

370

Chapter

Thirty-Six

1952: Pagliaro/Neuberger U.S. Open Champions. 1952: English Open (Sharon

Koehnke Represents U.S.). 1952: Canadian Tournaments. 1952: Post-National U.S. Tournaments. 1952: Chicago All-American Tournament. 1952: Chicagos Net and Paddle Cluba
Prototype USTTA Club.
The Program for the 22nd U.S. Open listed 312 entriesa tribute to Sanford Grosss
reputation for putting on an enjoyable tournament. Downtown Clevelands Masonic Temple
was the venue, and USTTA Lighting Chair Jim Williams would surely approve, for over each
playing area in the Grand Ballroom there would be nine lights with special Westinghousedesigned shades on each. Players didnt have to wear all whitejust from the waist down (a
strange rule, and surely a harbinger of the end for the all-white wear). The matches were
called promptly and the 12 (Detroiter A) tables were kept busy at all times (including the 4
practice tables that Gross insisted be kept available for those with upcoming matches).
One participant, Henry Rodney, from Lockport, N.Y., wrote to Topics suggesting that
standard brackets be devised so that names of the players, scores, etc. can be posted by the
umpire following each game. In that way, spectators could understand what the event was
and who was beating whom. He also suggested that at the one-table finals spectators ought to
be entertained if and when there was a five-minute 2-1 break in games:
[The] audience does not have time to go out for a smoke as they do at the
theatre, etc. Nevertheless it is important that interest be sustained even during that
five-minute interval. It would be fairly easy to rig up a small size table and bring on
some six-year-old players for a few moments. Children always captivate a crowd
whether they perform or not. At any rate the public is paying to see a show on the
night of the finals and the pace must be sustained in one form or another. An ingenious
committee could easily think of something which would keep the crowds attention
focused on table tennis. Perhaps it would be more feasible to darken the hall and let
two players compete with a luminous ball, etc. (May, 1952, 12). [Maybe those two
players could be Sandor Glancz and Pauline Betz? Theyd be on the Garry Moore
Show about this time. Think theyd charge for a five-minute act? Maybe just expenses? Actually, Rodneys suggestions would one day be incorporated; half a century
later at the U.S. Open and Closed, spirited music would be played, blaringly loud,
which some felt wounded the spirit.]
Throughout play at this U.S. Open Herwald Lawrence was deemed very efficient at
the Control Desk. Sandys friend Bill Palmer of the Cleveland TTA gave up his chance of
winning the Consolation to help run the tournament. And Wray Hertzline, Entertainment
Committee Chair, did a good job of handling the officiating assignments.
Perhaps the officials themselves provided entertainment? Certainly the eyes of out-oftowners were on Chuck Medick, the blind umpire. Bethlehems Lillian Caretta, now the
married Lillian Guyer, tells us whats been happening with Chuck:
[He] recently chose a wife from his home town [Cleveland]. Unable to
walk without the aid from heavy braces and required to do all her housework in a
371

wheel chair, she has been a great inspiration to her blind husband. Until a short time
ago, Chuck was employed by a Cleveland Hospital as a dark room technician. A new
method was adopted by the hospital which no longer required the services of a worker
such as Chuck. Limited to the types of work he was able to perform, Chuck took a job
with the Fuller Brush Co.[In a letter to Lillian, Chuck said,] After canvassing for
one day, I found it very tiring and, more important, unprofitable, but I suppose you
have to stick at it for a while (Program for 1951 National Team Championships, 4, in
which Lillian urged the hat be passed for Chuck).
Although Saturday matches would be going on till midnight, the Tournament Party in
the Ballroom would start at 10:30 p.m. with an orchestra and dancing until 2:30 a.m., the fun
enhanced by vaudeville acts and a buffet served at midnight. And the Sunday evening presentationswow! An absolutely lavish display ($3500 worth) of McClure-provided trophies, and
prizes galoreWatches, Radios, Typewriters, BicyclesLuggage; awards even for 1stround losers in the Mens Singles.
In the 165-entry Mens, in the upper half of the Draw, 26-year-old New York University student Dick Miles (seeded #1), seemingly confident (Who is there to beat me? I heard
him say to those gathered round him before play started), advanced to the semis without
losing a game. Before being eliminated by Miles in the quarters, Bill Price (#8) downed
George Ferris who in 4 close games had stopped Munich, Germanys Bernie Bukiet.
Bernie on arriving in this country was trying to orient himself. As perhaps a first step,
hed taken to wearing that USA jacket hed won from Reisman last year. Ty Neuberger,
whod probably encouraged Bukiet to come to N.Y.C. for the action hed bring, on occasion
tried to bully and humiliate him (Hey Bernie, you got a nickel for dinner?)make him
initially even more the displaced person. Bobby Gusikoff remembers that when Bernie first
came to the Broadway Courts, Miles was giving him 8, but that not too long after they were
playing even. In Germany Bernie had been an
Photo by Jack Gould,
important table tennis figure; here in the U.S. he
St. Louis Postwas nearly anonymous. Before, he had too many
Dispatch, Apr. 9, 1950
friends; now he had no one. But though he had
Johnny Somael
thought of going back to Germany, an opportunity
to try life somewhere else in the States arose and
hed take it. A Chicago family would sponsor this
Ping-Pong Champion for six weeks. And, as
well see in Volume III, quite the Champion Bernie
was.
Billy Holzrichter (#4) advanced to meet
Johnny Somael (#5). Pauline Robinson, later to
marry Somael, had emphasized in a Topics article
that Johnny was never a purely defensive player,
and though his backhand flick wasnt as good as
it used to be (itd been eight years since he was
U.S. Champion), he could still mount an attack.
With a 2-0 lead against Billy, Johnny looked to
be a winner, but then couldnt find the clincher
and the match slipped away.
372

In the lower half of the Draw, Californians Si Wasserman and Erwin Klein made their
presence feltSi was up 2-1 on Max Hersh before succumbing, but Klein rallied on being
down 2-1 to 1945 U.S. Junior Champ Bill Early. Hazi (#7), however, was too strong for
Klein, then Hersh, then Schiff. Sol (#2) had been made to 16, 20, 19 work a little by Jimmy
McClure whod twice escaped perilous situationsin the round of 64, -18, 22, 28, 26, over
Jerry Ghahramanian; in the round of 32, -16, -19, 19, 19, 12, over Wally Gundlach. Soon,
though, Jimmy just wouldnt have the incentive, the energy, to maintain his game at a level
where it was fun to compete. He had a business to runand, besides, didnt he have enough
trophies?
In the one semi,
Miles, down 2-0
against Holzrichter,
decided that, o.k., let
umpire Guy Blair put
in the Expedite
rulehe, Dick, was
playing to win
whether the crowd
liked it or not (some
felt it incumbent
upon Miles as Champion to take the
offense). And he did
win. For Billy, whod
said that his most
disappointing career
loss was in the 1950
U.S. Open final
against Johnny
Leach, this match
against Dick had to
rank a close second.
Winning the first two
games easily at 13
and 15, he chose to
hit Dicks stiffest
chop, for paradoxically it was that ball
he could best keep
on the table. But then
Jimmy McClures TrophiesTheyre for sale?
Miles started taking
off the heavy spin
and Billy became tenuous, thinking that if he got the Expedite Rule in, hed have an even
better chance of winning, for he could hit better than Miles. A bad mistakefor the Rule
did get in, but Dick won the next three games, 17, 16, 11. I beat myself, Billy admitted
years later.
373

In the other semi, Pagliaro came out to meet Hazi having

given up only one game thus far (to Ohios John Shoemaker, recent
graduate of Mexico City College, the high altitude of which he was
used to as nothing compared to the high he was feeling when before
going out to play Paggy his proposal of marriage to Gloria Navarro
had been accepted). Lou won the 1st from Hazi at 19, but lost the
2nd, 23-21. Since from the scores, Tibor had no chance in the 3rd and
4th games, it was apparently in one of these that he got a cramp,
whereupon Louie, sympathetic from his own cramping experiences
on court, sportingly kneaded the afflicted area.
Topics reported that the 5-game final between Miles, looking for his 6th straight U.S. Open victory (he couldnt play in 1950
because of his suspension), and Pagliaro,
John Shoemaker
whod been a great
influence on Dick during his own 1940-41-42 reign
as U.S. Champion, was in part disappointing:

1947 Paris Worlds Program,11

Dick Miles

Miles was off with his hitting and couldnt

seem to control the ball with his usual lightning
forehand smashes, and fell back on his stonewall
defense. Pagliaro was having trouble hitting
through Miless defense and was forced to play
cautiously. The result was a drawn-out match, with
Miles waiting on Pagliaro to hit and Paggy taking
his time about picking his shots. The expedite rule
was finally brought into playand the play livened
up and some remarkable shots were made, which
brought loud cheers from the gallery (May, 1952, 8).

When Paggy won, 16 in the 5th, his successful

return brought him more of an enthusiastic ovation than
when hed won the Championship 10 years earlier.
Miles, to his credit, took his defeat gracefully, like a
true champion. Dick had said that when Reisman lost,
he got angry, which was understandable and o.k., but
that when he, Dick, lost, he used to get very sad.
Though afterwards Paggy was Grosss
houseguest, he had a gripe. Originally, Sandy had
offered the prize of a car to the Mens Champion, but
when he found out Miles had been reinstated he
changed his mind, for he didnt want Dick to win it.
More than half a century later, this late move by Gross
still rankled Louie. I was a good sport about it, he
said, but it wasnt right. Besides, what made Gross
think I couldnt beat Dick?
374

1952 U.S. Open Tournament Chairman

Sanford Gross

Maybe others thought that Paggy could beat Dick tooand circulated about VERY
quietly suggesting it? In an Oct., 52 Sidelines column, Bob Green says:
It wasnt too well known, but the Cleveland police (Vice Squad) were
present at our Nationals after repeated warnings by the tournament manager failed to
stop gambling. USTTA officials requested their assistanceand a few well-known
characters were apprehended. They were released at the request of these USTTA
officials after good behavior promises were made. There were some pretty scared
characters, I tell you (4-5).
Miles didnt go home without a title: he won the Mens Doubles with Schiffover
Pagliaro/Somael in 5. Schiff also took the Mixeduncontestedly with Neuberger.
As expected, Leah won her 4th U.S. Open Singleswith only one glitch:
unable to hold a 2-0 lead shed had to go 5 against Pauline Robinson in
the semis. (In one of her USTTA volumes of records, something of a
winners scrapbook, Leah includes a restaurant check: The Champ
was awarded a steak dinner, Compliments of the Hickory House.)
Earlier Robinson had been faced with two demanding matches. First,
shed been forced into the 5th by Womens Activity Committee
member Joanne Kaylor who was about to marry former Ohio Junior
Champ Glenn Wilcox and disappear from tournament activity
forever. Then shed 19, 26, 19 prevented Millie Shahian from
getting back into the match. Runner-up Lona Flam in beating
h
a
Mona Buell, Bast, and Ichkoff didnt give up a game.
e
L
er
g
r
e
b
Mary Landfair, before losing to Neuberger, had a good
Neu
5-game win over Consolation Champ Jean Gere, and then
another testing 8, 16, 20, 19 match with Mildred Shipman.
Clevelanders got a thrill not only when one of their own, Joey
Russell, won the Mens Consolation, but when Cleveland
Womens Champion, Elaine Mitchell, rallied from down 2-0, to stop Junior
Miss runner-up Dorothy Danek. Womens Doubles winners Neuberger/Shahian routed
Robinson/Flam in Millies 7th straight final in
this event.
Bill Price took the Seniors from Tibor
Hazi, winner in 50 and 51. Senior Doubles
went to Defending Champions Hazi/Bill Gunn
over Price/Fred McAvoy. Louis Scharlack,
having recovered from a back injury, had an
easy win in the Esquiresover Simeon Sabre.
The Junior winner was Carl Dentice
who, in the semis easily subdued freckle-faced
1952 U.S. Open Program
California phenom Klein, and followed up by
1952 U.S. Junior
downing Alphonse Holtman in 4 in the final.
Champion Carl Dentice
Gusikoff was good enough to beat Fred Ek but
not Holtmanthough Bobby was improving.
Years later, he told me that around this time
375

Miles used to call him up for practice, and that hed repeatedly play Somael $2 a set, even,
just to get better.
South Bends Carolee Liechty took the Junior Miss, though hard-pressed to do so.
She defeated Elm Park, Illinoiss Phyllis Wiltsey in the quarters deuce in the 4th, then
Chicagos Josephine Brady, 23-21 in the 5th (after Brady herself had won deuce in the 5th over
Nebraskas Susan Diamond), then Racines Danek, 19, 17, 21, 18.
The Boys Champion
was Dave Krizman after a
great 5-game final with Klein
whod played 25-23, 24-22
games with Bethlehems
Lowell Latshaw. Fifty years
later, Steve Isaacson still
ruefully regretted Latshaw
going off with that Schwinn
bicycle even semifinalists were
awarded. Steve was all set to
play Lowell in the quarters,
or, rather, since Latshaw was a
Steve Isaacson ...
Seventh Day Adventist and
Didnt
get that bike
Steve assured that Lowell
couldnt compete on a
Saturday, was all set for
a walkover and a whiz
on that new bike. But,
alas, Lowell arrivedto
1952 Boys Champion
religiously go about
Dave Krizman
beating Steve, 3-zip.
For the unprecedented prizes, the excellent
playing conditions, and the consideration shown the
players, Gross received the Jimmy McClure Trophy as
Outstanding Official of the Year.
English Open (with USA entry Sharon Koehnke)
George Koehnke ought to get some prize too
for the way he was promoting not only his older daughter Sherry but his younger one, Jackie, who, not to be
outdone by her sister, would have her own cheesecake photo on the cover of the English Table Tennis
Review (Sept.-Oct., 1952)this before she was even a
teenager. Sharon didnt play in our Nationals because
shed been invited to play in the English Open, where
immediately she made quite a stir not because of her
play but because of her scanty costumes. In fact, after
seeing Koehnke practice, Table Tennis writer Peggy
376

Jackie
Koehnke

Allen said she would be very surprised if Sharon became the English Junior Miss Champion.
Her assessment of Sherry (as if she thought her young for her age, and that she was being
exploited) is rather harsh:
Surely no-ones arrival has been so eagerly awaited since Gizi Farkas first
graced our shores in 1947. It is a pity that all this preliminary ballyhoo and sensationalist journalism caused so many of us to expect too much, for Sharon is really only a
girl, a very pretty little girl [my god, shes 17] with a charming figure and sweet
personality, but, as she soon discovered, the average standard of table tennis in this
country is so high that any one of 15 or 16 girls in London could probably beat her
without too much difficulty.
She has a good defence in addition to her short, push strokes but her footwork
is slow and her attack too unsteady to be useful on difficult occasions (Apr., 1952,
11).
After what one Englishman considered a surprise semis win over Englands Doreen
Spooner (13 Junior titles, 2 of which were National titles), Sherry lost in the final of the Junior
Miss Singles to Englands 15-year-old Jill Rook (16, 20), lost in the final of the Junior Miss
Doubles with her, lost with Swedens Bo Malmquist in the semis of the Junior Mixed
(Malmquist was the beaten Defending Junior Champion), lost in the Womens Singles to one
of Englands best, Peggy Franks (3-0), and, paired with Englands young internationalist
Michael Thornhill in the Mixed, lost to the strong English team of Victor Barna/Rosalind
Rowe. But so what? No disgraceespecially since Sherry played Jill in respectable attire: a
silk green sweater and navy blue slacks and the Mixed in a green T-shirt with shorts to
match. As David Condon, a Chicago Tribune writer interviewing Sherry, observed:
Sharon reserved the frilly
ensembles for non-tournament
matches and the only suggestion she
was daring came when she was
asked not to wear lipstick while she
was playing an exhibition at a sedate
girls school.
There were whistles, naturally, from appreciative young men in
the audience, but whistling at a
pretty young lady is not strictly a
British pastime. It also is done in
Glen Ellyn, Ill (reprinted in Table
Tennis Review, Summer, 1952, 6).
True, Sherry posed in a brief fishnet, rhinestone-studded creation, practiced
in that strapless, form-fitting suit of
firehouse red (showing considerable leg and
shoulder) that so many Britons hoped to see

Table Tennis Review,

Summer, 1952
Sherry Koehnke on
the Paul Whiteman
Show

377

her wear for the matches. But no big deal. In the suburban apartment where she was staying
with her mother, shed pack away such costumes, having gotten only a kidding from an
English TTA member who knew I wouldnt wear such a thing in actual play (N.Y. WorldTelegram and Sun, Mar. 14, 1952). Shed appear in one of her skimpy outfits later in the U.S.,
on the Paul Whiteman Showmore appropriate there, more return there, Im sure her dad
would agree.
As for the English Open winners, first the Mens: Richard Bergmann, his suspension
lifted, beat Johnny Leach, 18 in the 4th. It was his 5th English Open Singles win. Table Tennis
Review writer Sam Kirkwood talked about a new phase in the champions career:
He was aggressive and not at all hesitant in using his attack. Gone was the
defender content to stand back and let the other man make the runningand the
mistakes. I think that the older he becomes, the more Bergmann will resort to hitting.
Off-the-table play requires great stamina and speed. At 34, Richard realizes that he is
not a youth with endless reserves of strength. Thus his new policy of hit, counter-hit
and half-volley (Summer, 1952, 17).
The Womens was won, as Kirkwood put it, by Austrias attractive, curvaceous,
copper-haired Linde Wertl, an 18-year-old ferocious hitter, over Rosalind Rowe, 3-0.
Englands Franks showed great patience in ousting Austrias Defending Champion Trude
Pritzi in a 15, -9, -8, 9/8, 5/2 time-limit quarters match that, had it been televised, said
Kirkwood, would have set the game back in
public opinion by 50 years.
Other winners: Mens Doubles:
Yugoslavias hard-hitting 1950 winners, Vilim
Harangozo/Zarko Dolinar in a rout over
Frances Michel Lanskoy/Rene Roothooft.
Womens Doubles: the floss-footed Rowe
twins, Diane and Rosalind (for an unprecedented third straight year)this time over
Franks/Joyce Roberts in 4. Mixed Doubles:
Leach/Diane Rowe, exercising superior
strategy over Vilim Harangozo/Wertl. Mens
Veterans: Alec Brooks, 19 in the deciding 3rd,
over Anglo-American Gilbert Marshall (who
played Swaythling Cup for the U.S. in 1935
and 36). Boys: Germanys Konrad
Freundorfer (beginning in 53 hell win 9
straight German National Championships) over
Englands Bryan Merrett (Table Tennis Review,
Summer, 1952, 27-31)
Canadian Tournaments
Two tournaments fostering international play between the U.S. and Canada were
held simultaneously in Montreal and Niagara
378

1956 Tokyo Worlds Program, 47

The floss-footed Rowe twins
Diane (left) and Rosalind

Falls the Apr. 11-13 Easter weekend. Lamented Pauline Robinson, Since we [New Yorkers]
all like to go to Canada, wont you get together and space your tournaments (and not too
close together) so it wont strain our pocketbooks too much? Reporting on the Quebec
tournament, Pauline said that much goodwill was evidenced, for the Canadian officials were
consistently charming and helpful to the Americans. Umpires, with a balancing nod to the
visitors, called the scores alternately in English and French. The marble floors and a single
400 watt bulb over each table [bounce a bit different from U.S. tables] favored offenses. Deep
defenses were at some disadvantage. However, the one-table set-up for the finals (watched by
about 500 spectators) offered better lighting. After play was over, all the New Yorkers attended the tournament party and enjoyed a buffet supper and dancing (TTT, Oct., 1952, 7).
Dick Miles was in top form and never in danger of losing a game. In the semis he
beat Quebec Champ Lionel Cloutier whod outlasted Harry Hirschkowitz 25-23 in the 5th, and
in the final Sol Schiff. Sol was in trouble from the get-go. In the Pre-lims, he 11, 19, 19
(from down 19-16) barely beat Davis cup star Henri Rochon. In the quarters, he had to go 5
to advance over Maurice DeSerres, the 1950 Canadian Champion. And in the semis, he
prevailed 20, -14, -21, 18, 23 in a tense coin-toss of a match with Johnny Somael whod
eliminated current Canadian Closed Champ Paul Belanger. In a show of international camaraderie, Miles/Rochon took the Doubles from Somael/Hirschkowitz, 19 in the 5th. Bill Gunn
easily won the Seniors; Bernie Silcoff, 1949 U.S. Open Boys Champ, the Juniors.
Neuberger was the Womens winnerover Lona Flam. For the first two games Leahs
prospects appeared dark because Lona whacked her into the doldrums. Then, however, Leah
found a way to reach that Italian marble lamp of a prize, and when her game clicked on, her
psyche shone.
Over at the Central Canadian Open, played in the Niagara Falls Badminton Club (how
cold they keep it!), Steve Kraus, a Hungarian immigrant to Toronto, won the Mens Singles
after being down 2-0 in the final to Torontos Pranas Gvildys. In the semis, Steve took out
Rochesters Ben Morgan in 5, while Pranas got by Buffalos Morris Meyers in 4. Canadian
Closed Champ Audrey Perkins, whod been upset at our U.S. Open by Mary Reilly, came out
of her slump to down Mildred Shipman in the Womens final. Millie, hitting hard from both
forehand and backhand, was unable to get through Audreys defense, and Audrey, essentially a
defensive player, came through with some remarkable drives. Other winners: Ladies
Doubles: Perkins/Joyce Spring over Adminis/Jenny Kapostins in 5; Mixed Doubles:
Hamiltons Modris Zulps/Torontos Velta Adminis. Mens Consolation: Zulps. Ladies Consolation: Jean Smith. Womens Consolation Novice: Diane Wiseman. Mens Consolation Novice: Howie Grossman (who, on later moving to the U.S., will play into the new millennium
and beyond).
Post-Nationals Tournaments
Portland, Oregons Circle Theatre Building was the site of the Jan., 1952 Oregon State
Open. Bob Hage took the Mens Championship, Vancouvers Jean Rose the Womens. Al
Belfils won another Seniors, and Carl Cole, who within two years would become the states
best player, debuted as the Junior Champ.
The California State Championships, also known as the Golden State Open, was held
Apr. 19-20 at the George Washington Junior High School Gym in Long Beach. Topspinning
constantly, falling back on an unexpectedly stout defense when needed, Kenny Choi won
another Mens titleover the former International, Herscovic, whod made his way west to
379

settle permanently in the San Francisco area. In the Womens, perennial Champion Tiny Eller
was an easy winner over Oaklands Diane Helfer. Also, as expected, that irrepressible imp
Erwin Klein bested Jerry Glaser to came 1st in the Juniors. The Cal Table Tennis Newsletter
pointed out what Topics didntthat at the Nationals Erwin won the Elmer Cinnater
Sportsmanship Award, as well as a bicycle, a wrist watch and three trophies.
California crowds were then turned away from [Cliff] Thebauts Sporting Goods
Store in TT-mad Berkeley when in an Apr. 27 final there Choi defeated Herscovic.
All-American Tournament
This years Chicago All-American Tournament was seemingly more successful than
ever. There were more than 150 district meetswith as high as 2,300 players in one meet
alone. Of course it really doesnt mean much to the USTTA that kids like to play pingpongthe Association is for tournament players. Does each of these 150 districts finance
even a single qualifier to come to Chicago? And how do such qualifiers fare against seasoned
competition? I must say, though, that this Koehnke-initiated tournament does encourage
players to become serious, and it does have some class. This years final, played May 3rd at the
Net and Paddle Club, was again followed by an Awards Banquet at the Sheridan Plaza Hotel
(conveniently located just around the corner from the Wilson Ave. Club).
Chicagos Prototype USTTA Club
Spanning the end of the 1951-52 season and the beginning of the 1952-53 season,
USTTA President Jimmy Shrout has a three-part series in Topics on HOW TO MAKE A
DREAM CLUB COME TRUEhis story of how the Chicago Net and Paddle Club, with
Carlton Prouty as its first President, was formed. First came the conception. The basic
requirements were these:
1. It must be a family club with equal interests and opportunities for both
sexes and their children.
2. It must have ideal conditions for near championship play.
3. It must be financially stable with no worries about the bills, and no problem
of slow summer months.
4. It must be well managed for the benefit of all membersthere would be no
catering to the stars!
5. It must be conveniently located.
6. It must be very attractive physically so that it would be appealing as a social
gathering spot, and where we could bring influential friends to help us in the promotion of table tennis.
Next came the search for a suitable place. This was found, said Jimmy, but with two
minor drawbacksa third floor location and a parking problem. However, there was 6,000
feet of usable space. This allowed for a 6-table playing area with canvas and steel-rail backstops, one restroom and room adjoining for the addition of another, two large rooms for
lounge space and laterour dream of dreamslocker rooms and showers. In the beginning, the original charter members made cash gifts to the club to provide capital and pitched
in to do the necessary cleaning, repairing, painting. Since the rent was $150 a month for the
first year and $175 for the next two years of the three-year lease, the initiation fee for mem380

bers was $35, and dues $10 a month. For some, the cost was steep, but reserve financial
strength was essential. Within three months 40 members had joined.
Open seven days a week, the club was designed to be a home away from home. In
addition to casual play, there would be Ladder Challenges, Handicap Tournaments, local and
USTTA sanctioned Opens, Coaching Clinics, and Saturday, Sunday, and Monday social
activities. We bought our own television set long before we could afford it, said Jimmy,
because we could not afford to let our members stay at home instead of coming to the club.
There would be I Love Lucyand duplicate bridge games, parties, dances.
How enduringly successful this Club would be, time would tell. However, USTTA
President Shrout, whod warn that, if in the months ahead his administration couldnt make
Topics profitable, it would be mimeographed, knew the state of the Sport here in the U.S. as
well as anyone, knew the importance of his Net and Paddle Club. Table Tennis, said the
World War II veteran, needs a net-work of clubs as badly as a wounded soldier needs a
blood transfusion.*
SELECTED NOTES
*Shrouts three-part series on the Net and Paddle Club can be found in three issues of
the 1952 TopicsMar., 11-12; Oct., 3-4, Nov., 8-9.

381

Chapter

Thirty-Seven

1952: Reisman/Cartland at
the Bombay Worlds; Japanese
Debut and Win Championships with
Hard Rubber and Controversial
Sponge Rackets.
U.S. Table Tennis had survived the violent disruptions of the
1940sobserved most notably, on
court, and off, in the Associations
falling membership. Now as the
1950s got underway, the USTTA
was again going along its predictable, and therefore, except for some
prestigious International Championships, its uneventful way. Which
meant it was hurtingand waiting,
as it were, for the next blow.
It would not have to wait
long. Controversy, confusion seemed
imbedded in our Sport. Whatever
came, we absorbedit tested our
resilience. The Japanese, whod been
playing in more or less isolation for
Program cover for 1952 Bombay Worlds
decades, and playing well, decided,
with the Feb. 1-10 World Championships at Bombay, to make their first appearance in world-class competition. And their debut
was quite strikingfor they would produce, with the introduction of the Yoshinori Harada
crepe/sponge rubber bat used by the new World Champion Hiroji Satoh, historic, far-reaching
results. Never mind that American players would be slow to hear the new sound and furyit
would come.
The U.S. Team that might have been was not at the Brabourne Stadium to see the
drama unfold, but Marty Reisman and Doug Cartland were. Theyd temporarily left the
Harlem Globetrotters, and had played in the Jan. 5-8 French Open in Paris (Ive no Singles
results, but neither of them got as far as the semis, and together they lost in the Doubles to
Victor Barna/Michel Haguenauer). That their Polish-born friend Alex Ehrlich, a concentration-camp victim in World War II, was also competing in Paris, reminds me of a story Marty
had told me.
Ehrlich spoke eight languages, was a great raconteur, and, though something of a
gambling cheat, was fun to tour with, for he was a popular fellow and knew how to get
around (You wont make much money, hed warned Reisman, but youll eat the best
food). Once Alex had occasion to show Marty where in Paris he lived. It was in a tenement
building, a 7-story walk-up. In his room, said Marty, There was a little cot, a metal locker, a
window. Said Alex, It is very nice, no? Then he went to his locker. And here I keep my
382

nourishmentand took out a piece of cheese.

Marty realized thenit really hit himwhat it
meant to be an 80-pound survivor of Auschwitz
and Dachau.
Reisman and Cartland were to begin here
in Bombay a little Far East tour of their own,
which I intend to describe in some detail in Vol.
III. Of course there was just the two of them
entered from the U.S., so I presume though they
must have wanted to play in the Swaythling Cup
they werent allowed to. But surely both
watched England beat Japan 5-2, so they would
have seen the last two World Champions, Richard Bergmann and Johnny Leach, lose to the
bespectacled, 28-year-old penholder Satoh
which must have given them pause for thought.
Englands Aubrey Simons beat the 1950-51
Japanese Champion Tadaaki Hayashi, as did
Leach; and all three English players defeated the
independent-minded, subject-to-suspension,
Japanese #1 Norikazu Fujii. Against Fujii,
Japans 1952 World Mens Doubles Champion
Bergmann, down 16-20 in the 3rd and seemingly
Norikazu Fujii
gone, made the gutsy comeback that no hyperbole-minded reporter from the Bombay Evening News could resist:
Steadily and surely Bergmann drew up to level the score at 20. Bergmann could
not believe his eyes nor could the spectators. Fujii got to another match point but
Bergmanns nerves [were] of steel.
Bergmann beat the Japanese No. 1 at 23-21 and brought the stands down with
the greatest display of doggedness and determination that
Bombay has ever witnessed at the Green Table.
Not since Pearl Harbour have the Japanese created
such a stir and England in their hour of glory will always
recall how Bergmann stuck it out against the Fujii fury.

Photo-Prints...
from Bombay Worlds

Hong Kongs Sih Sui-Cho

England also had 5-3 problems with France when,

though Bergmann took his three, Leach lost to both Rene
Roothoft and Guy Amouretti. Johnny did beat Michel
Haguenauer, though, as did Simons in a 19-in-the-3rd swing
match.
Coming out to meet Group A winner England in the
Cup final was Group B winner Hungary whod trailed Hong
Kong 2-0 (when Sih Sui-Cho beat Kalman Szepesi, and
Cheng Chin-Sing beat Ferenc Sido), But then quickly, decisively the Hungarians righted that rough start. Simons, after
losing the first game in his opening match against Josef
383

Koczian, suffered a freak

accident in the second: he
pulled a calf muscle when
one of his shoes came off and
he stumbled. Bad luck for
Simons and for England.
Hoping for time to recuperate
after putting up what little
resistance he could in finishing
that Koczian match, he then
defaulted to Sido. Bergmann
came through with three wins,
but Leach lost to both
Koczian and Sido, and though
in the 9th match Simons
gamely tried his best against
Szepesi, playing a good part
of the time standing on one
leg, he lost in 3 (from 19-16
Feb. 11, 1952 Evening News of India
up to 21-23 down in the 1st,
Japans 1952 Corbillon Cup and Womens Doubles winners:
and from 15-all in the 3rd).
Tomie Nishimura (left) and Shizuka Narahara
The Hungarians thus supplanted the Czechs, who didnt attend these Worlds, as Mens Team Champions (Table Tennis
Review, World Championship Souvenir Issue, Bombay, 1952, 7).
In 7-team round-robin Corbillon Cup play, Japan debuted as a history-making winner,
but was 3-2 challenged by both Hungary and Rumania. Former World Champion Gizi Farkas
downed both Tomie Nishimura and Shizuka Narahara (who had survived the Hiroshima atom
bomb blast); but Edit Sagi couldnt win either of her singles or the doubles against these
righty-lefty penholders with the unusual square-shaped rackets. Similarly, though current
World Champion Angelica Rozeanu won her singles matches, her teammate Sari Szasz didnt;
and with the doubles as the decider, the Rumanians too were beaten. England, blitzed by
Japan, and with a 3-1 loss to Austria when the Rowe sisters couldnt win a singles match, tied
for 2nd with Rumania, for against Di and Ros only Rozeanu in singles was able to score. So,
first World title ever to the Asians. How many more would there be?
In Womens Singles, in the top half of the draw, the 23-year-old Japanese #1
Narahara, with her slowish, high topspin, and scorching drives on both flanks was beaten
in 4 by Scotlands Helen Elliot. Years later, Helen told me how shed grown up in Edinburgh
playing against penholders, Scottish Servicemen, and how, varying her spin, giving them
heavy chop and disguised nothing balls, and picking her backhand, she was very effective
against them. Before losing to Rozeanu, Helen also had a fine 5-game win over Hungarys
Sagi. Ros Rowe, before being stopped by Rozeanu in the semis, was patience personified in
eliminating Trude Pritzi (whod beaten Narahara in the Teams).
In the bottom half of the draw, the current Japanese Champion, Nishimura, still a
teenager and described as a dour defender, though up 2-0 and at 24-all in the 3rd had to go 5
before ousting Di Rowe. But then, after winning the 1st game from Farkas, she couldnt win
another. Indias #1 Sayeed Sultana, teetering on the 20-16-in-the-5th brink to Szasz, was
384

nudged to defeat by the umpire who toppled her with the time-limit rule. Sultana, however,
did bob up to win the Consolation over Hong Kongs Wong Bik Yiu. Wertl scored 23
points23 points totalagainst Farkas, who once again, with powerful forehand drives and
equally deadly backhand flicks, tried mightily in a 5-game final, but couldnt dethrone
Rozeanu.
Not surprisingly, given their undefeated record in the Teams, the Japanese won the
Womens Doublesthough in the quarters Rumania tried to make up for their Corbillon Cup
loss by winning the first two games, then wilted. Elliott/Wertl, down 2-0 and at deuce in the
3rd, stubbornly insisted on their chances until losing the 4th at 19. The Rowes advanced with a
semis win over Farkas/Sagi. In the final, Englands vaunted twins were helpless until the 3rd
game, which they lost at deuce. Second World title to the Asians.
In the Mixed, Leach and Di Rowe must have felt a little shaky going out to meet
Satoh/Nishimura in their opening match, but they prevailed in 4, as they did later against
Haguenauer/Wertl whod won in 5 over the Hong Kong pair of Sih Sui-Cho/Wong Bik Yiu.
Advancing to lose to Leach/Rowe in the semis was the team of Koczian/Farkas. Theyd
eliminated Roothoft/Pritzi, whod immediately taken out Reisman/Elliot, 19 in the 4th. The
Japanese team of Fujii/Narahara were also beaten in their first matchby Barna/Ros Rowe.
The English pair then went down to Sido/Rozeanu who had a straight-game win over Leach/
Di Rowe in the final.
Perhaps the Japanese didnt feel comfortable playing in the Mixed? Im reminded that
during our U.S. Teams 1940 trip to Japan Captain Bill Gunn was told that in many Japanese
cities it was illegal to play Mixed Doubles, presumably because the men might no longer be
thought superior to the women, their equals as playing partners. (Cartland wasnt entered in
the Mixedit probably wouldnt be enjoyable for him to play with a mediocre pick-up partner, for he felt he could give Rozeanu 7; there was that much difference between the men and
women players.)
But in the Mens Doubles Fujii/Hayashi went sampaning along in tandem, scull at the
easy ready, until they reached the finalwaving, in passing, a (we play with hard rubber too)
semis hello and goodbye to Reisman/Cartland. Barna would beat English Team Captain
Adrian Haydon in the final of the first ever Jubilee Cup (for those who took part in World
Championships 21 years ago), but in the Doubles they teamed up, and did pretty well
losing in the semis, 24-22 in the 4th, to Bergmann/Leach. Richard and Johnny, though up 2-0
in the final, couldnt stop the hard-hitting onslaught of penholders Fujii/Hayashi. However, in
my next volume Ill follow the English pair on their Summer Tour of Japan and show you how
successful they were against these players and Satoh. But for the moment, a third World title
to the Asians.
Table Tennis Review commentator Sam Kirkwood agreed of course with what was
obviousthat the penholder grip could be extremely effective. But the Japanese, he said,
were so devastating because of their quickness of eye, small and lithe bodies, fleetness of
foot, and trigger-quick coordination between mind, eye, and arm (World Championship
issue, 26).
In the Mens Singles, Cartland was in the upper half of the draw, and after knocking
out Kalyanpur Jayant, Indias #2, dropped the first two games to South Vietnams Mai Van
Hoa, then, fighting, fighting, won the next three, which moved him into the quarters. There
he met not Leach but Leachs conqueror, Frances Guy Amouretti, whom Simons lauded for
his magnificent ball control. The Table Tennis Review, while praising Amourettis intelligent
385

play, coupled with judicious

smashes and drop shots, was
hard on Johnny, said hed hit
a new low this year, as
witness his half-hearted
attempts to take up the
offensive (8). Against the
Frenchman, a traveling flower
salesman, Doug contested the
1st at 19, caught for a moment
the scent of a possible win,
but it quickly came and went,
and thereafter he wasnt in the
match. Amouretti lost in the
semis, 3-0, to Koczian who
in the 8ths had been extended
to 5 by the holder of the first
Asian Championships, Hong
Kongs Sih Sui-Cho.
Reisman, just turned
22 on the opening day of the
tournament, was in the
bottom half of the draw, and
met Satoh in the 2nd round
(oddly, Satoh, too, was
celebrating his birthday at the
tournament). Marty won the
1st at 18, then was powerless.
He said that when he drove
the ball and Satoh blocked or
Feb. 11, 1952 Evening News of India
Japans 1952 World Champion, Hiroji Satoh
pushed, the return came back
so fast, and sometimes even
skidded on the Indian Sunder tables, that he couldnt adjust, couldnt play his game; hence
Satoh could maneuver the ball around until he could silently explode a winner.
Word was that Satoh, by trade a watchmaker, had been playing with this racket for
only six months. The bat-maker Harada said the wood was Japanese Hinoki (Cypress) not
plywood. He had gotten the idea to use sponge rubber because, although he didnt play table
tennis himself, he thought this rubber had more powerful repulsive power and friction against
the ball than the rubber everyone was used to. Of course hed patented it in Japan and
wanted to patent it elsewhere. But, as even our May, 1952 Topics would be current enough to
tell us, it wouldnt be long before he had a problem:
There are more than five kinds of the sponge-rubbers according to the repulsive
power and friction. I am naturally supplying many players with the best quality rubber, but
now-a-days because of its popularity after the World Championships, an imitation sponge
has appeared and is being sold in the markets here [in Japan](15).
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1950 English Open Program, 3

Englands 1952 World

Consolation semifinalist
Harry Vennerhe lost to
Reisman

1954 Wembley Worlds Program, 37

Indias 1952 World Consolation

runner-up Yatin Vyashe lost
to Reisman

Martythere was
Photo-Prints ... from Bombay Worlds
no imitation of him. For
1952 World Consolation Champion
decades on into the new millennium youd read in local N.Y.
Marty Reisman
papers and popular magazines this refrain, Reisman undoubtedly would have won the world championship in 1952
had not a Japanese player, Hirojih Sato, [sic] appeared with a new kind of paddle.Reisman has
spent his life explaining that he is the greatest player in the world with the old style paddle (N.Y.
Westsider, Sept. 26, 1974). Marty was never the greatest player in the world, and certainly traveling
about with the Trotters was no way to get the tournament toughness he needed to beat the best
hardbat Europeans at Bombay. But he might have been a World Champion. He needed seasoning,
needed to play repeatedly the great world-class players of his day. His 1949-50 suspension stopped
his momentum, was a blow to his ego, took away some of his confidence. There couldnt have
been a worse time in his career to have a totally wasted year.
Defeated here in the Mens, he wasnt too proud to stay out of the Consolation (as I
think Ehrlich was after leading 2-0 in losing to Hong Kongs Keung). Marty not only played in
the Consolationhe won it, downing in the semis Englands Harry Venner and in the final
Indias Yatin Vyas. Vyas, some say, was the first looperthats the type of player well see
later who, by taking advantage of the new rubber technology, will have an accelerated topspin.
After disposing of Reisman, Satoh went out to playwell, not the man who some
British players thought might have beaten him, Englands hobbled Aubrey Simons, but South
Vietnams Tran Van Lieu. Although he was originally drawn to meet Satoh in the 3rd round,
Simons, after his Swaythling Cup injury, had to withdraw from the Singles. These Simons
supporters, according to South African aficionado Denis George, pointed to the fact that in
Cup play Simons had wins over Hayashi and Fujii, and that one of his regular practice partners [in England]used a sponge covered racket. Aubrey, George wrote, had the very hard
close-to-the-table chop defence and sudden smash game which always caused problems for
the pengrip player (Swaythling Club Bulletin, Oct., 1985, 2-3).
An early loss also befell Bergmann who, up 2-0 against Fujii, appeared to be a winner.
But, as Reisman watched in slow shock, Fujii began battering the lion-hearted about, raised
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Richards body temperature so in this cooked Indian venue that, seeking relief, hed brought
a pail of ice water out to thrust his hand, perhaps both hands into. Finally, after one more
Fujii drop shot, Marty said he was stunned to see Richard just glued to the floor. This match,
then and there, was finished. And Richard would win no more World Championships.
Satoh spun through his remaining four matchesbeating Lieu, Hungarys Sido,
Frances Rene Roothoft (Rene had been 1-1 and game point down in the 3rd when Fujii twice
misserved), and in the final Hungarys Koczian, losing only one game in the process.
Satoh thus became the World Singles Champion, the first Asian to hold that
honor.but not the last, for the ITTF had begun now to open wide its delegate doors. New
members were Nigeria and a good many Asian territories (the T.T. Federation of Asia had
just been formed), including Burma, Cambodia, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and of course
Japanall countries well follow Reisman and Cartland to at the beginning of Vol. III.
Meantime, how account for Satohs controversial win in
Bombay? Here, as I close these pages and prepare for Volume
III, is what at the moment History might consider the authoritative viewITTF President Ivor Montagus reading that
would appear in the May, 1952 issue of Table Tennis:
1 The decisive victory of H. Satoh in the World
Championship Mens Singles using a soft rubber racket has led
to an agitated propaganda against this type of play.
Most of this situation derives from panic or sensationalism on the part of the ill-informed. A review of the facts
should be helpful.
Satohs racket is made of soft, spongy aerated rubber
about 5/16 [of an] inch in thickness. For half its thickness it is
embedded into the surface of its square wood blade, as a
picture in a frame. The rubber, like soft india rubber, is very
1952 Bombay Worlds Program
easily abraded or broken, and to prevent its abrasion by
ITTF President Ivor Montagu shaking during carriage, Satoh keeps it in a soft-lined box, as
the ordinary racket is kept in a canvas cover.
The effect of the soft rubber is:
(a) To impart an unfamiliar degree of spin (i.e. the degree cannot be foreseen
by the opponent on the basis of the arm movement he sees, interpreted in the light of
his experience of the ordinary racket).
(b) To impart an unfamiliar speed (i.e. the margin of speed between a floater
returned with a stop-motion of the hand, and a springy plain hit or half-volley return of
the opponents hit, is surprising to those not familiar with the style).
(c) To heighten the surprise in speed and direction of hit by the lack of sound in
the stroke.
2 [Montagu points out the fact, and defends it, that the ITTF allows Satohs
or anyones racket to be of any material, size, shape or weight. Then he continues
with another fact:]
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3 Soft rubber of the Satoh type, and the Satoh-type game, are no novelties.
Sponge rubber [has been used in the past and] is used by contemporary players
in France as well as Austria and England. [The Japanese Womens Doubles winner]
Nishimura used it in Bombay for continuous hitting. In this type of game, it seemed to
give her no noticeable advantage in comparison with her team-mate Narahara (ordinary hard pimple-rubber). Neither of these two was good enough to trouble the firstclass chop defences of Rozeanu, Farkas, Pritzi, Elliotthough either, by a heavy topspin attack Haydon-style, could throw the [Rowe] twins off attack onto defence (just
as Wertl does, with [an] orthodox racket), making them vulnerable.
4 Some people say that, because Satoh is not the top player in his own
country[he is ranked #5 in Japan] he is a lucky winner and not a worthy
champion.The Champion is better on the day. More cannot be asked of him.
5 It is suggested that the way in which Satoh won his matches spoiled the
game for the spectators. This is silly.[Consider] the obvious excitement of the
spectators and delight in his [Satohs] matches.
[Denigrators consider Satohs play a mere novelty. Also, they argue that his
racket] gave anunfair advantage which spoiled the game and must therefore be
barred, as finger-spin service was barred. The analogy is false. [A] player who perfected finger-spin could win the majority of services by a wide margin, and so the
match without necessarily possessing any special skill.A player cannot be outstanding with a soft racket unless he is outstandingly intelligent and skilful as an all-round
executant.
They argued that Satohs method of blanketting his opponentswathing him,
as it were, in a large, soft pillow-caseis unbeautiful and unspectacular.
It is true that two hitters came to grief against SatohSido and Reisman. The
former in particular after he seemed to have solved the puzzle and had the game wellwon. But Reisman has lost this year to Ehrlich, Roothoft, Amouretti and even
Freundorfer. And how many times have we not seen Sido collapse similarly against
orthodox defendersand for the same reason, an attack of nerves and retreat into his
shell (a half and half game, neither defence nor attack)?
But the main exclamations were evoked by Satohs thoroughness in dealing
with world-renowned players who tried to push himBergmann, Leach, Amouretti
and Roothoft.These are all players with attacks too weak to overcome each others
defences.
Satoh very competently floated back their efforts at attack, and when they tried
to play steady, lulled them to sleep with ultra-gentleness and then suddenly punched
them as full of holes as a cheese. How anybody unbiased (or indeed anyone except the
victims) could honestly say this was not fascinating, skilful, and about ten times as
exciting as any of the said victims wrestling matches with each other has me beat.

If Satoh is to be thought of as in any sense lucky, it is that he did not have to

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meet anyone who knew his game before Bombay or anyone twice at Bombay.He
[Satoh] can be hustled, and a weakness of soft rubber is that it does not return hits so
low and fizzing and unputawayably as hard rubber.
It was extremely significant that he had no answer whatever to Koczians
steady play, interspersed with sudden accurate forehands on his own account, until
Koczian lost his head and his grip and, to all intents and purposes, threw the match
away.
That, indeed, was the way most players lost to him. Unable to anticipate by the
usual signs (arm movement, sound, etc.) the only way they could cope was by watching each ball separately with super-concentration onto their own rackets. Winning this
way a big lead, or even the first game, they would relax an instant, either from overconfidence or by exhaustion reaction. In what seemed a terrifying short space of time
their hard won lead would have disappeared, either from themselves sliding unwatched
balls into the net or off the table, or from Satoh hitting past them balls they had slid
too high. Then they panicked and the game was over.
Note, please, all the world, how much difficulty Satoh had in beating De and
Ramos, by no means class Indian and Portuguese players, before these knew he was
any goodcompared to the surrenders of the champions in mortal panic after
Bergmann and Leach had shown the way to ruin (Mar. 15, 1952).
Here are undefeated Satohs winning scores from some of the matches Montagu,
making his point, noted: Satoh over Koczian, 19 (after being down 12-19), 17, 14; over Sido,
-19, 20, 4, 13; over Bergmann, -10, 13, 15; over Leach, -18, 10, 13; over Amouretti, 5, 8;
over Reisman, -18, 12, 15, 12; over Lanskoy, 12, 10; over De, -20, 13, 17; over Ramos, -16,
15, 23.
Montagu also had this to say:
It is possible that his [Satohs] method embodies a mastery of the steady
defensive players who have reigned so long in the west. If so, and if this produces in
other countries a new cycle of hard and enterprising hitters with guts (like his own
compatriots) with the ambition to beat him and his likewheres the harm?
Perhaps in the decades to comeyears after Mr. Hamadas trademark New Arms (a
new weapon) will be outdatedthat question wheres the harm? will be answered literally,
not rhetorically?
We shall see.
Meanwhile, if ever a photo was deceptive in its suggested serenityfor Pagliaro, for
U.S. Table Tennisits this one I end with. Whether the world knows it or not, the Sport has
begun, almost unimaginably, to change, and the change is irrevocable.

390

End of an Era for 4-time U. S. Champion Lou Pagliaros Game.

391

History of U.S.
Table Tennis
Vol. I: 1900-1939

1949 U.S. World Womens Team Champions

1949 U.S. Corbillon Cup Champions

Peggy McLean, Mildred Shahian,
Capt. Jimmy McClure, and Thelma Tybie Thall

Photo by Pressens Bild, Stockholm