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P. Becker and Co.
Coutesy of Tim Boggan Originally, William V. Schnur’s Becker Company started out in the luggage manufacturing business, but the hard times of the ending 1920’s and early ’30’s increasingly turned him to table tennis. And for a time his daughter too. Gertrude (“Trudie” or “Trude”) Schnur, played in the first (1933) American Ping-Pong Association (APPA)…
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The Nippon Takkyu Company
Courtesy of Tim Boggan The Nippon Takkyu Co., Ltd., established in 1920, is honored for its famous Nittaku ball that was first selected for the World Championships in 1971 and for many World’s thereafter. The first Topics ad for a Nittaku ball appeared from N.Y.’s Jaguar Products in the July-August, 1972 issue. However, in the…
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Joe Newgarden
Courtesy of Tim Boggan At Joe Newgarden’s induction into the USTTA Hall of Fame, Billy Neely introduces us to his admired friend’s beginnings. We hear that Joe was born in Westport, New York on Independence Day, 1929, and that “he was one of eight children born to hard-working parents of English descent.” When Joe was…
US Table Tennis Hall of Fame
Recognizing athletes and contributors in the sport of Table Tennis in the United States