BILLIARDS: Past Times Humour and Caricatures.

  • Postcard "Les Humoristes de jadis" illustrator Honoré Daumier (1808-1879). Collection Solution Pautauberge (around 1882).
    Caption:
    - Do you catch what I say?
    - By Jove! Sir, I smell it only too well (French play on words based on the word ’sentir’ meaning here both ‘to catch’ and ‘to smell’).




Below, two other works by Daumier, taken from the 'Petit journal pour rire'.

  • Original lithography "Les joueurs de billard. La première leçon".



  • Postcard "Les joueurs de billard. Une partie de queues de billard".



The game is much more turbulent than the previous one! For more caricatures 'billard' by Daumier, see [1].

  • Drawing: caricature "Les joueurs de billard" (= the billiard players) by C. Huard in 'Le Rire' N° 181 (1898).

Legend: '- Non , Môssieur, ce n'est pas parce que j'ai un gros ventre que je ne joue pas au billard; c'est parce que je trouve que ce jeu n'est pas intellectuel !' (= '- No, man, I don't play billiards, not because I've got a protruding belly, but because I think this game is not intellectual!'.

The successful printmaking firm Currier & Ives (New York, 1835-1907) produced several photos in 1874. Here are two of them depicting billiards in America, played with four balls at the time.

  • "A Kiss" representing an American billiard game on a four-pocket table, finished : a player is lighting a cigar while a lady is giving his opponent a kiss.


  • "Froze together ", which features a carom billiard game, played on a pocketless table. The game is interrupted as the two white balls are together, side by side (such contact is called 'kiss'). The lady and a player take advantage of the situation to do the same.




Note that the game continues with its first shot (= 'break' or 'break shot') and that 'break' also means 'interruption' in both French and English!

Below two "BILLIARD TERMS" postcards signed P.V.B. (= Percy Bradshaw, English) dating from the early 1900's. They illustrate terms used by English-speaking billiard players and which have several meanings (see above).

  • "A KISS!"

Note the "Kiss" on the billiard table.

  • "A KISS. In for a big BREAK!"

No comment! Broken objects and marriage?

  • Embossed postcard (= design in relief) by Paul Finkenrath, Berlin (P.F.B.), around 1900, without caption.


Disagreement. The players, head to head, are checking the winning point of the game. Do the balls stick together (touch each other) ?

Two other postcards "BILLIARD TERMS".

  • "Tucked up !", term used in snooker.

A woman is taking care of a sick man. On the wall, a picture representing a billiard game.




The note ‘Roger feels better’ might have been added by hand.

  • "Trying for the pocket !".


Here, the ‘pocket’ is that of the man’s trousers ; the billiard term refers to one of the openings in a table.


See another English double-meaning term, illustrated below.

  • "REST".




The woman holds a "cue stick REST", here provided with a cross (at its end) on which a billiard cue can REST when the player's ball is far away.

  • The postcard "A Trying Shot" by artist Til (ca1910) shows a woman holding a rest in one hand and her cue in the other one.

  • Suggestive drawing by Georges Meunier, artist signed, in 'Le Rire' N° 250 "Jeu de billard" (1899).
    Some nice billiard balls!

  • Postcard "Billiard Humour" illustrated by Gil.
    Legend:
    Servi à point (= Right on cue).

......

  • Drawing "Au café" (= At the Pub) by A. Sorel in the 'La Caricature' Journal (1889).
    Legend, rather mysterious :
    '- Waiter, a footbath... the same as for you !
    .- Never have one, Sir !'

  • Drawing "La partie Sérieuse" (= The serious – Billiard – Game) by L. Tybalt in the newspaper 'L'épatant' (= The Dandy) (1933).
    Legend:
    Hey, Man, you think I’m pretty good, don’t you ?
  • "Outdoor Game", another drawing by the same author, also on the front page, in 'L'épatant' (1927).
    Two men are playing billiards on a table in the street and a man is watching the game when a policeman appears.
    Legend : '- Ça, mon poteau (= pote), fit Polyte, c'est une idée maousse (= grande)!...' (= That's a great idea, my friend !...)


 ...



Below two 'ART NOUVEAU' postcards.

  • "Jeu de Billard - Femme" (= Billiard Game - Woman) A.S.O. (end 1800's): she is wearing accessories.

  • "Jeu de Billard" (= Billiard Game): the man is taking a ball from the painting frame (trompe l'oeil technique)!

.....

 

  • A press cutting from a Nodot almanac (1906). In a 100-point billiard game, a wife, being the better half of her husband, would like to play only 50!

  • "Le Billard" postcard, phototyped around 1900 by famous printer Albert Bergeret. A lady, wearing a diadem with on top a decoration probably representing three billiard balls, is looking for a partner to play a 20-point game.

...

Five scenes featuring a man and woman couple during, before and after a billiard game. They appear in postcards dating from the early 1900s.

  • Photographic print, hand-coloured at the time, provided with initials M.A. inserted in a lozange (stamp postmarked 1905).
    Legend: 'IV -- Marquons les points ...... la série continue ! (= Let's score points ...... the series goes on!).

  • Picture without name (stamp postmarked 1904).

...

  • "The Rivals" (1917), signature difficult to decipher.

  • "A Lost Game!", signed Ruad Gnischaf.

...

 

  • A Billiards Match". A game of English billiards at home by Lance Thackeray, an Englishman known for his illustrations on billiards and other subjects.





  • "Billiards" card N165 from the trading card series "Games and Sports" (1889).



A man and a woman playing, and a female referee ?

Four postcards by the very popular English artist Tom Browne (1870-1910):

  • "Hotel Full. Pa Sleeps in the Billiard Room" (in the Series "Seaside Comforts").


  • "Overworked Clerk." After Lunch.



  • "A Little Mixed" (in the Series "Billiards Made Easy").




  • "A Massé Shot" (also in the Series mentioned above. Sherz).



  • Gilded postcard, advertising the ‘Iris Pastel’ green billiard chalk (early 1900’s). Some copies bear, at the bottom, another seller’s name, such as Hénin Aîné, France.





    The caption informs that the player had no chalk!


  • Embossed postcard by Paul Finkenrath (around 1903). Caption: "Das durfte nicht kommen!" (= That could not happen!), different from the English version "Um! That shot will cost more than the game!"


 

In connection with the billiard cloth tear in the three cards above, note that the 1956 Vermot Almanach contains

  • the black and white humorous signed drawing entitled "Billard", shown coloured below.


+



It is original as it represents a player watching a surgeon (between an assistant and a nurse) stitching up the billiard cloth. In reality it should normally be replaced by a new one.

  • A drawing by Ydel. In French, 'billard' also means 'operating table' in surgery when used in the phrase 'passer sur le billard' (= going under the knife).



  • Chromo (around 1900) advertising French chocolate. Legend: "Un bel effet" (= a nice impact).


  • Artist signed postcard "Männer spielen Billard" by Arthur Thiele (1860-1936).




  • "OUCH !", a Bamforth comic postcard signed Taylor.


The seven pictures above feature the scene of an accident caused by a billiard queue, common subject, as shown below.

  • "LAUREL and HARDY Playing Pool" hilarious short film by Brats (1930). Oliver Hardy and Stan Laurel are playing billiards. The former tears up the billiard cloth and the latter breaks the cabinet window behind him.

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  • Postcard "Les Sports XX - Le Billard" Imp Moullot - Marseille. Signed Ch. Beauvais.


C

A stressful moment!

  • Advertising chromolithograph (1896) by silkworm rearer Félix Chauvet, "LE BILLARD - N° 2 UN PIED PAR TERRE" (= BILLIARDS - No.2 ONE FOOT ON THE FLOOR) which reminds of a billiard rule that has been implemented since 1674, maybe even earlier.



     

  • An unamed postcard (1906) of Tom Browne's Series "Billiards Made Easy".



    Legend:

    - The man with the pipe says - 'Have the rest old chap.'
    - The player, who forgot the rule cited above, answers him - 'No thanks I can reach'.

  • Funny advertisement published in 'The Game of Billiards and How to Play it' by John Roberts, C. Arthur Pearson Ltd., London 1913 announcing that "Bonzoline is Better than Ivory" in a drawing featuring elephants playing billiards.

The elephants certainly agree.

  • A press advertisement (1914) signed Rett (be sure to read the caption on top!




Note that Bataille was then a talented and appreciated billiard teacher [3], author of a book [4].

Two advertisements dating from the 1910's promoting the quality of the 'Compagnie Brunswick Française'.They show difficult shots made in an elegant way by women:

  • A "massé".

  • A "behind-the-back".


  • Another advertisement for Brunswick (1910), with skulls looking like billliard balls.

  • A postcard "SPIROU et FANTASIO jouent au billard" (= Spirou and Fantasio play billiards), characters created by Belgian cartoonist André Franquin (1924-1997).


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  • TINTIN and HADDOCK also play billiards in a drawing « Tintin au pub » (= Tintin at the pub) signed ‘Yves Rodier d’après Hergé’ (= Yves Rodier after Hergé) where Snowy, Thomson and Thompson, Calculus, the Castafiore… can be found as well..

  • Caricatures (1930's) of French champions

  • ....................

    Roger CONTI, Edmond DERBIER and Félix GRANGE.
  • A postcard, illustrated by A. Reiner in 1938, intended for BILLARDS HÉNIN AÎNÉ fans.

......

To my dear friends, fans of HÉNIN AINÉ BILLIARD TABLES

 To the left, a verse poem (with alternate rhymes in French): "Genteel virtuoso Ivory balls magician Ranson (*) the fancy shot artist Plays on HENIN Billiard Tables, it’s well-known!" To the right,"To my friend Mr André Hénin Yours sincerely, A. Reiner ?/38".

Below, two other HÉNIN AINÉ advertisements :

1. Balls and Chalks.

The signatures are : A. Hénin, Fujiwara and Luc Ranson.

2.File.


  • A German postcard "Eleganter Zieher" (= elegant shot).


  • Postcards Series "Bambins et Bambines" "Kids and Kiddies", publ. SID, Paris. Captions: "Hello! A real billiard table!..." and "Ah ! chouette ! un billard !..."(= Great ! A billiard table !...), Signed Mich.


Heads are seen as billiard balls.
  • Postcard MICKEY MOUSE WALT DISNEY (**) "Partie de billard - Souris" (= Billiard game – Mice). Caption: "Ne perdons pas la boule !" (= French play on words meaning here ‘don’t let’s go bonkers!’). Another caption can be found: "Une partie de billard passionnante !" (= An exciting billiard game!).

......(***)

The mice can enjoy themselves as long as "Le Chat" is not there, i.e. until 1983, when it was created by Philippe Geluck.

  • An American cartoon TOM & JERRY 'Cue Ball Cat ' (1950) where the cat starts training on a pocket billiard table. This wakes up the mouse who was sleeping quietly in one of these holes and who will then climb on the billiard table giving rise to an incredibly hilarious battle.

....


Below, other cats also play billiards.

  • Postcard "Chats humanisés : billard" (= humanised cats : billiards).



Caption: "Voilà ce qu'il arrive quand on cherche à faire... de l'effet !"(= French play on words meaning here ‘This is what happens when we try to apply side' (US = English), i.e; to spin or twist the ball!’. Variant: "Un coup d'éclat !" (= A glorious strike).

  • Postcard "Honni soit qui mal y pense!" (= Anglo-Saxon motto meaning 'shame on anyone who thinks evil of it').



Caption : "Conseils au Billard. -- Attention : Haut la queue, bande avant, fort ! et laisse l'effet se faire !..." (= 'Advice during the Billiard Game. -- Mind :' ... followed by a French play on words referring to sex, impossible to translate into English!).

  • Untitled (signature difficult to decipher) postcard dating from the early 1900's. Its legend, in French slang, induces that the gentlemen are not interested in billiards only.



Below, a different version.


  • Postcard Bililard Illustrator "I love your kisses" (= billiard term meaning 'caroms'),
    (" you've got such a nice cue shot!").




  • Postcard representing a satyr playing billiards with a pretty woman in a long dress. Its designer is Basilio CASCELLA (1860-1950), famous Italian painter and poster artist.

  • Drawing "A horse playing billiards" by Edwin Ellis (1848-1916) (see OBI OLD BOOK Illustrations).


  • Postcard "Human Evolution Pool Player Billiards" by losttribe. It represents the human evolution of the billiard player humorously.



[1] MARTY Jean, Billards, Ed. du Garde-Temps, Paris, France, 2002.

[2] SHAMOS Michaël, The New Illustrated Encyclopedia of Billiards. Ed. The Lyons Press, New York, United States, 1999.

[3] ARNOUS DE RIVIERE Jules (Berger’ pupil), Traité populaire du jeu de billard. Ed. Marpon & Flammarion, Paris, France, 1891.

[4] BATAILLE, Le billard par le professeur Bataille. Ed. La maison Bataille, Paris, France, 1910.

[5] BRUNSWICK-BALKE-COLLENDER Co., Modern Billiards. Ed. Brunswick-Balke-Collender Co., New York, United States ,1908.

 

 

(*) The artist is probably Luc Ranson, who participated in the Final of the World Professional three-cushion Championship Paris (1938) won by Roger Conti (see Section 2. BOOKS B. 1953).

(**) Mickey Mouse was born in 1928.

(***) Cover of the ‘Agenda Le Chat 2000’ ‘L'année du millénaire’, signed Philippe Geluk.



 

This Website is celebrating its 20th anniversary. It was born in 2001, appearing as below:


Succinct in the beginning, it grew out of collections of billiard books (x), cues, balls and humorous illustrations, started respectively in 1990, 1996, 2018 and 2020.This site, already recorded in the 2008 edition of the 'Billiard Encyclopedia. An Illustrated History of the Sport' by V. Stein and P. Rubino, is now linked to six others. It has been honoured to receive many visits, in particular from collectors Jack B-N. (GB), Patrick C. (F), Olivier C. (B), Jesus G. (MEX), Dieter H. (D), Pascal H. (F), Jørgen J. (DK), Bob J. (USA), Roger L. (GB), Claude M. (B), Jean M. (F), Jean-Marie S. (F), Harry S. (GB), Cees S. (NL), Piet S. (NL), Victor S. (USA), Mark S. (USA) and Filip S. (B). I thank them for their interest. Many thanks also to my wife, Micheline, for her careful revision of the English version of the texts and her support.


Billiards is a passion that I enjoy sharing with people!


Guy Huybrechts, 2001.




(x) These books are listed in a bibliography 'Billard, Billiards, Biljart, Biliardo Biblio' by Guy Huybrechts in 1996, updated and republished in 1997 and 2001. From then on, all the books of the collection have been recorded in this site. It should be noted that the bibliography 'Das Billardspiel - The Game of Billiards' by Dieter Haase (2016) includes them until earlier than its publication date.

 

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