Biographicals

Bob Katt's Weblocation

Rudolph Wanderone (Minnesota Fats) was a friend

Came to hear my band play one time

8 Ball: League play for about 17 years

Snooker: Can't find a table anywhere anymore, but it's the game I loved more than any other of the billiard games. It takes a very good stroke, eye and attention to detail. The last table in Springfield was taken out in 2002.

3 cushion billiards: Can't find a table anywhere anymore either. I used to be fascinated with guys who really were good at it, like little Sam Elizer in Carbondale, IL. Sam was about 4'10" tall, smoked a cigar as big as himself and would hop up with his belly holding him up off the floor for some shots. He died in the late 80s at about the age of 90.

I actually knew Minnesota Fats. To read about that, go to "My Favorite Hobby" page and get the whole story. (it's pretty short).

Bicycling: Have 3 bikes, Mountain, Racing & Tandem. I used to be the driver on a tandem for a 92 year old blind man, Tom Hickey. He's over 102 now and still bicycling.

Art: Photoshop Photo Tricks and Art, plus I'm a world class calligrapher. (Example on "art" page).

Canoeing: Have two canoes and live on South Fork Sangamon River. We like to campout on sandbars and take about three days to go down the Jack's Fork or the Currant River. (not "current", it's named after the grape-like berries).

Racquetball: Although I still love the game, my back is too painful to play competitively anymore. I won many trophies in B Leagues back in the 80s. ALSO, the darn FIT CLUB, where I work out has all their old racquetball rooms filled with workout equipment and nobody is interested in playing anymore, I guess.

Astronomy I had a telescope when I was young, but it was a one inch refractor, which had a couple different eyepiece lens combinations, but it was insufficient for viewing anything except the moon. I still have that old telescope which is now about 50 years old.

In 2007 I bought a 14 1/4" Schmidt-Cassegrainian telescope through the internet. David Hoffman, from my 8-ball team had been an avid astronomer for years. In talking with him, it came to his knowledge that I'd always wanted a real good telescope and was considering buying one. In fact, I'd gone to St. Louis to a telescope store and bought one. It was a 5" scope with the brain that allegedly allows one to punch in a couple coordinates and then it will find any other heavenly body that's out there for you. Fortunately for me (although I didn't think so at the time) there was a problem with the scope, it got jammed up in the inner gear works the first time I tried it and I took it back. For a little more money, I was able to procure this fine USED scope from a guy in Indiana who got "two-footitis". It is still in perfect condition. I can't afford to get "two-footitis", because this one is almost too big for me to move around. At about 110 pounds, it's a strain on my back. I keep it in the studio, which has wide garage doors so I can "waddle" it out onto the driveway, resting it always on one leg. I love to look at Saturn. If there were nothing else in the sky, it would be enough.

Click for full size pic.