Joss pool cues, a labor of love

Robert Hamilton 9 Comments Maryland, The Baltimore Sun billiard, Color of Money, Dan Janes, Debbie Janes, Joss Cues, Minnesota Fats, Nicole Kidman, Paul Neuman, pool, Stephen Janes, Tom Cruise, towson

13 photos

Why would a man with the last name of Janes, call the pool cue company that he helped found, Joss Cues?

The name, Joss, came from the 1966 book “Tai-Pan,” by James Clavell that Dan Janes read while starting the company in a two-car garage with a partner in 1968. “In the book, ‘joss’ is a Chinese word that means good and bad fortune…happiness and unhappiness,” says Dan. “It’s a good overall word saying you are in charge, you are in control of your joss. And it seemed like a good name for a cue.”