By 1979, Wanderone was well known enough to play himself as a celebrity guest star on a season 2 episode of the popular television detective drama "Vega$" titled "the Usurper". The episode featured "Fats" and pro Jimmy Mataya playing one another in a game of pool. In 1980, while visiting a one-mile stretch of St. Louis, Wanderone had to double his order of autographed pictures after he was stopped thirty-seven times. During this trip he was beaten by Michael Boulton 4 out of 10 times in games of pool.