Lou Butera
| Lou Butera | |
|---|---|
Lou Butera, December 2005
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| Born |
May 15, 1937 Pittston, Pennsylvania |
| Died | June 26, 2015 (aged 78) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Parkinson's disease |
| Occupation | Professional pool player |
| Known for | BCA Hall of Fame |
Lou Butera (May 15, 1937 – June 26, 2015) was an American professional pool player (then retired and operated a pool hall) and an inductee into the Billiards Congress of America's Hall of Fame in 1986.
His nickname, "Machine Gun Lou", derives from his stunning the crowd and fellow competitors by running 150-and-out in straight pool in 21 minutes against Allen Hopkins in 1973.
He gained exposure to the masses in 1981 and 1982 when he appeared in network trick shot competitions on CBS and ABC.
When Butera was 14 years old, he saw BCA Hall of Famer Edwin Rudolph in an exhibition match. From that point on, Lou devoted his life to billiards.
Throughout his career, Butera won many tournaments. He was runner-up to Irving Crane in the 1972 World Championship in Los Angeles. In 1973, he defeated Crane in the finals of the same event to win his first World Championship. Lou earned his famous nickname that same year when, in an exhibition with Allen Hopkins, he ran 150 straight balls in just 21 minutes, the moniker “Machine Gun” for his fast-paced style. He also won the Pennsylvania State Championship twice. Butera knocked off top players regularly in the 1970s with his trademark fast-paced style, which seemed to make the game of pool more exciting for the spectators.
In 1974, Butera won the All Japan title against the world's best, and also triumphed over Richie Florence to win the Bud Lundahl's Midwest Open, a straight pool tournament he won by a score of 150-68 in the title match. In 1991, Butera served as coach of the World Billiard Federation World Team, whose members included such luminaries as Nick Varner, Mike Siegel and Ray Martin. In a profile that appeared in the May/June, 1995 issue of Snap Magazine, he was referred to as "...the man who may be the fastest pool player the game has ever known."
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