Jean Balukas puts on a special exhibition at Grand Central Station in 1966.

Jean Balukas is the Brooklyn-born pool prodigy who was wowing spectators from the time she was tiny. In this photograph. six-year-old Jean puts on a display of her cue work at Grand Central Station. And her amazing talents didn’t dry up in youth: Balukas had one of the greatest careers in the game’s history. She was also known as a strong-willed individual who rebelled against the accepted dress codes for the sport’s women and eventually burned out on the game because of too much self-imposed pressure to win each match. She retired to manage her family’s pool hall in Bay Ridge.

In the video below, Balukas shares her talents (and great Brooklyn accent) with Steve Allen on I’ve Got a Secret.