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Chronology of Billiards 400 B.C. The Sage Ancharsis writes about the predecessor of billiards. 108 A.D. Sir Re,inald Mortimer of England returns from [he Crusades with the game. ISOOs English lawn bowlers move the game out of the rain and set up wickets indoors. Later they raise it onto a table with pockets. The name billiards is coined from the French word for bent stick. 1565 Explorer Hernando De Soto brings billiazds to America. The French take it to Africa and the South Seas; the British to India and the Far East. 1600 Louis ;CIV of France challenges any man to beat him. A commoner named Camillart is the only one who does and he becomes minister of the crown. 1770s George Washington creates a billiards room in the White House. 1792 Mazie Antoinette and Louis XVI aze playing billiards when French revolutionaries come to arrest them. 1825 In Upper Bath, England, Jack Caz, an employee of Baztley's Billiard room, uses the first leather-tipped cue and chalk, allo~i•ing him to put "english" (see Pool Talk) on a ball, getting it to carve, reverse or stop. 1829 Marble tables begin to replace wooden ones. 1865 General Ulysses S. Grant says, "I believe I am even a poorer billiard player than I am a soldier." Rubber cushions are introduced, the rail is lowered and diamonds aze added to the sides of the table. 1870s The game splits into pocket billiards, where the object is to knock the balls into the holes, and carom billiards, where the object is to strike cushions and balls to score points. 1910s Mark Twain attends major tournament and incorporates colorful billiard players into his. stories. 1930s The billiards craze sweeps college campuses. 1961 "The Hustler," a movie based on famed pool hustler Minnesota Fats, is released. The dingy, pool-hall atmosphere of the film helps it vin an Oscar for cinematography. 1986 "The Color of Money" featuring Tom Cruise and Paul Newman premieres and gives a big boost to the game. 1993 The popularity of pool soars anions those with family incomes of more than 550.000. ** Source -Chicago Tribune Page 49