pimple ball

[Jerome Foster]

Next question: what is "halfball?"
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bob Haas" <highbob at MINDSPRING.COM>
To: <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Sent: Friday, July 20, 2001 9:14 PM
Subject: Re: pimple ball


> I found this at Streetplay.com:
>
> > Hot Story - The Return of the Pimple Ball
> >  Every couple of months, we get a note from someone asking if we have
any
> > information about where they might be able to get a Pimple Ball. Well it
> > looks like our friends in Philly have decided to get the ball rolling.
> > Marc Polish and his associates have just found the original molds, and
> > are having samples made.
> >
> > Marc and his crew can use your help. The original pimple balls were
white.
> >  They would like to know what people think about making the modern day
> > version in colors. Please let Marc know by contacting him at
> > sedonamax at aol.com
> >
> > Note to those who wonder what a pimple ball is:
> > Pimple Balls were used in Philly, Boston and some other Northeastern
> > cities for Wallball, Handball, Boxball, Points, Wireball, Stickball, Hit
> > the Penny and some other games. If they were severly exposed to the
> > elements (down a sewer or over the roof) they usually did not bounce as
> > well so they were cut into halfballs. And if you had the dough, you
might
> > even cut up a new pimpleball for a game of Halfball.
>
> Here's the URL:
>
> http://www.streetplay.com/stickball/teamsandequipment.htm
>
> Bob
>
> On Friday, July 20, 2001, at 06:35 PM, Philip E. Cleary wrote:
>
> > A "pimple ball" is a hollow, white, rubber ball, slightly smaller than a
> > golf ball. I would describe the surface of a pimple ball as the opposite
> > of
> > a golf ball's: A golf ball's surface has indentations; a pimple ball's
has
> > small bumps (whence, I assume, the name). When I used them (in Boston in
> > the
> > late 50's and early 60's), it was primarily for stickball.
> >
> > FYI, I asked two of my teenaged kids, both native, life-long Bostonians,
> > if
> > they knew what a "pimple ball" was. They didn't.
>
> "Wherever you go, there you are."
>
> Bob Haas
>