Bowlers Journal International - March 2008 - (Page 78)

REMEMBRANCE THE LITTLE THINGS COUNT BIG BY JIM GOODWIN AT 6-FOOT-2 AND 220 POUNDS, KEITH LITTLE INTIMIDATED the doorstep of DFW International Airport in Euless. Modeled many an opponent on the baseball diamond and on the lanes after the casino business, Showplace Lanes was another in his professional careers as a baseball home run for the man who was now a giant player and bowler. But his biggest legacy in the field of new bowling center design will be his vision that took the bowling busiand construction. Expansion soon followed. ness to a new level. A second Showplace center was opened When he died on January 6, Little was 78, in Austin, and a site was chosen for a third with the heart of a young man who dreamt near the original Carter center in Garland, big. So was the money he made in the bowlTexas. ing business. Unfortunately, he was unable Then misfortune struck again. Little's to hang on to much of it. However, he left a majority partner turned out to be one of positive mark in the industry. He was known the major players in the huge Savings and as a tough competitor for those who owned Loan scandal of the late 1980s. And when centers in the same markets, so much so partner Ed McBirney was removed as head that he forced his competition to update their of the failed Sunbelt Savings and Loan, he centers to keep up with him. demanded money from the bowling operaAfter a decade as a baseball player in the tion to pay his debts. Little refused to give it Tigers system in the 1950s, Little entered to him, which led to another ouster. bowling. His first job was at Irving Lanes, Little’s enigmatic life came full circle when a 16-lane center near where the Dallas Keith Little's winning personality was a he pulled another rabbit out of his hat to Cowboys' Texas Stadium is now located. He huge asset in the bowling business. rescue the once incredible Bronco Bowl. In also employed his natural athletic ability to 1994, he convinced Tony and Danny Gibbs, become a tough competitor on the lanes, finishing second to owners of a small commercial construction company, to Don Carter in the ABC-televised 1962 Houston PBA event. invest several million dollars in purchasing and renovating Always looking for new challenges, Little became a restauthe bowling center and arena that had closed three years ranteur In the late 1960s. A bit short on the details of food and earlier. beverage management, his restaurants didn't last. Bronco was a big building in bad shape in a poor neighborIn 1975, broke and discouraged, he hood; that didn’t stop Little from workfound the bravado to talk Don Carter ing his magic. He sold the city on the and his partners into building a new idea of bringing life and jobs back to state-of-the-art center in Dallas. Don an older neighborhood, and even conWINNING PRINCIPLES Carter All Star Lanes opened in 1976. vinced the conservative Dallas Morning FOR KEITH LITTLE, once you got past the ideal location for your operation, and took a first-class It was wildly successful. The 52-lane News to run a story atop page one to approach to the building and its surroundings, it was the little things that counted the most in establishing a center set standards way ahead of their announce the project. That September successful business. Here are the business principles 21, 1994 article is probably the only time time for design and amenities with wide that helped him the most, according to his son, Randy Little: bowling ever got a front-page story in a concourses, carpeted walls and fancy * Hire good people with a winning personality, and major Texas daily. furniture. It had the first indoor beer have the "chops" to be able to bring them on board. The grand opening party a year later cart traveling behind the lanes to serve * Pay wages and benefits better than the industry standard to those who most help you succeed. was lavish, reminiscent of the original league bowlers and parties, and a glitzy * Customer service is critical, and it is the owner's responsibility to set the bar for that service, including Bronco opening in 1961 when Curtis upstairs nightclub attracted a whole training, education and rewards. * Treat customers like valued house guests by welcomSanford cut the ribbon with Hollywood new generation of customers. ing them — personally, if possible — and acknowlactress Jayne Mansfield on his arm. Little again was on top of the world as edging their importance to your business. * Take the time to get to know customers and employBut the magic didn't last. The city one of the highest paid bowling propriees on a personal basis. didn’t back the project; the talent acts etors in the land. The Carter chain grew for the arena didn’t develop, and Little rapidly to encompass a half-dozen new lost the battle to his biggest business large centers, and the money rolled in. foe: a poor location. It was strike three for the former home In 1987, Little staged yet another comeback when he built run hitter — the mighty Keith had struck out. the most elaborate bowling center anyone had ever seen, on 78 bowlers journal international MARCH 2008

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Bowlers Journal International - March 2008 Contents Leading Off Letters Bowlitically Incorrect Par Bowling The Coach Calendar Inside Line Tournaments The Truth Be Bowled Pro Bowling Back On Track Weber Tales Spares Do Matter Cover Story Up Close USBC Women's Time Capsule Flashback Strategy Session Guest Column Regional Roundup Team USA Trials Military Salute Global Guide No Holes Barred Marketplace Bowling Summit Museum Update Hall Marks Advertisers' Index Rememberance Classified Advertising Intelligencer Business Calendar Business People Strikes Me

Bowlers Journal International - March 2008

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