MMSTL - Bowler Photos
The idea of 'computers for the home' hadn't quite reached its puberty years until the 1990s. But technology was just starting into a 'snowball' type roll during that era. Programming the machines was one of the uses for the home buyers, along with a door of opportunity being opened for those in the Word Processing/Typing business. But one of the other features that was a really fun option was in using the machines for desktop publishing. This additional function was a real breakthrough for home computers, as it allowed people to create their own flyers, posters, and even greeting cards. Desktop Publishing was a tremendous tool for producing the weekly sheet for the Travel League, when coupling it with the programmability of the PC.
Desktop Publishing allowed for controlling print sizes and headline styles, as well as providing an ability to mix in nifty clip art (cartoon) images onto the weekly bowling sheet. But it also had the capability of handling the display of photographs. Digital cameras were surfacing more and more during that era of the early 1990s, and although the images would seem crude by the standards of the 2020 time frame, it was an exciting time for in-house publishers.
1992 was a landmark year for the Mens Maryland Suburban Traveling, as that was the first year that bowler photos would make an appearance on the weekly standings sheet. Fittingly, the first bowler whose image appeared on our weekly sheet was the icon of modern day duckpins at the time, Jeff Pyles. The photo was a 'congratulatory' one, noting an appreciation of an outstanding effort by MMSTL member, Steve Francis. See image of that sheet.
For the most part, league members were initially shy about having their pictures taken, especially by the new secretary of the league. But, there were about 10% to 20% of the players who didn't mind being photographed. This wasn't a great basis for building a library of photographs in the early going. But, my brother Ray had a solution for this problem, which was to enlist the use of a camcorder (also a new technology in those days). A video camera could shoot short movies from a distance without a person knowing he was being filmed. Then, a special software program (the Atari-based "ComputerEyes") was used to play the videos at home, and capture 'still' images of the bowlers using a special device included with the software package. The quality of a camcorder images wasn't as good as a normal, single-shot camera, but it was more than acceptable, especially in that era. The use of the video camera increased the building of the library of decent photos up to around 60% to 70%.
The November 18, 1992 Christmas edition of the weekly sheet was the first edition that actually feautred one of the MMSTL members on the highlights page. For those interested in Travel League Trivia, it was George Garrett of the team, "Allstate Striping" to make the debut, in an amusing pose of which he wasn't aware. George was in Week 6 of what would be an 11-week run of consecutive sets rolling 'over average' (he was carrying a 136 at the time the streak finally ended). See images below.
After the bowlers became accustomed to seeing themselves on the highlights page from week to week, and how their photos were being used, they were a lot more receptive to having their pictures taken, and it became a common thing for a bowler to request having a new picture taken.
December 18, 1992 - Debut of images with MMSTL's George Garrett
January 29, 1993 - 'George Garrett's 11th Consecutive Set over Average' edition