Salty - the reason I bring up the Time Share guys is that I was their private bookie. As strange as it sounds with Legal Sports Books all over the place, they liked being able to call in bets. Natrually in those days it was all credit. The beauty was we were all captive audiences for each other. I lved in the JC. the salemen worked there. I had Centel install a private line to avoid the switch board, even had a little Panasonic tape recorder hooked up to it to record bets had to use it a few times, worked like a charm. I had a guy call me with line moves from Mayday's every 30 minutes on weekends. To say these guy were square, would be to insult squares, in all seriousness I never had a losing week . During football I booked about 15 to 20 guys, and like yourself I would never share some of my better times with the wonderful wife I have today. This is true story, one New Years day the GM of the time Share, whose name I will not mention, bet me the entire card, side and total, 2 team parlays, and 2 team teasers to boot. He did not win a bet, lost more than 20K, which he paid me the next day. Yeah, those were the days. I was dating a girl who lived in the JC herself, she was a greeter and slot hostess at a major strip hotel, stone knockout. I used to hang at the JC bar on Tuesday afternoon waiting for the boys to stop buy to settle up. My bar tab was more than my rent every month. Speaking of restaurants back then I used to have lunch about 3 times a week at the bar in the Port Tack on W. Sahara, same regulars every day, good food back then also. Another spot that may be gone was a little restaurant called "Play It Again Sam's" on Spring Mtn. Decent burgers, they called them Ingrid Burgermans, lol.
wil.
wil.
Wilheim...you sure weren't the only guy taking action from locals who chose not to bet where it was legal. Sometimes I wonder if a pretty well known guy with radio initials (and not AM, but well, guess you can guess from there) wasn't getting more business than the legal books!
Also remember Port Tack, used to stumble in there about 3-4 AM for late night fare. It's got a shabby recent history as Hurricane Harry's. Evidently a drug and gang hangout, though I cannot personally attest to this.
Play it Again Sam's is now a topless bar. Went that route about five years ago. Too bad, as they had some decent jazz combos that played in there in the mid-90's, but guess they weren't doing enough business.
Also remember Port Tack, used to stumble in there about 3-4 AM for late night fare. It's got a shabby recent history as Hurricane Harry's. Evidently a drug and gang hangout, though I cannot personally attest to this.
Play it Again Sam's is now a topless bar. Went that route about five years ago. Too bad, as they had some decent jazz combos that played in there in the mid-90's, but guess they weren't doing enough business.
Scot,
Jimmy owns the Tap House not Skinny Dugans, he also owns one of the best italian restaurants in town called Felinis. His partner is Bob Harry who used to own the OZ and I think he had a piece of Slyman's joint too.
Wil.
The Port Tack is now a bar named Hurricane Harry's and get this, Play it again Sam's is now a titty bar. Keifer still owns it but found a loophole that that area was zoned adult and converted the all you can eat crab legs on Monday night to all the crabs you want 7 days a week.
Rio,
thats the Silver Slipper you are referring to. Howard Hughes bought it because the sign (shaped like a slipper) used to keep him awake when he stayed at the top floor of the DI. He bought it and turned off the lights to the sign at night.
Jimmy owns the Tap House not Skinny Dugans, he also owns one of the best italian restaurants in town called Felinis. His partner is Bob Harry who used to own the OZ and I think he had a piece of Slyman's joint too.
Wil.
The Port Tack is now a bar named Hurricane Harry's and get this, Play it again Sam's is now a titty bar. Keifer still owns it but found a loophole that that area was zoned adult and converted the all you can eat crab legs on Monday night to all the crabs you want 7 days a week.
Rio,
thats the Silver Slipper you are referring to. Howard Hughes bought it because the sign (shaped like a slipper) used to keep him awake when he stayed at the top floor of the DI. He bought it and turned off the lights to the sign at night.
Bob K. owend the Port tack when I was a regular there. I played golf with him a few times. He kicked my butt, he is a San Diego product, and has golf in his blood. I remember the Tap house, great little operation. Is the Golden Steer still operating, great but a little expensive prime Rib.
wil.
wil.
Someone mentioned the Silver Slipper, I remember the Thurday night (I think thurday) fights upstairs at the Slipper. We would go in groups and bet the red or blue corner in 4 round bouts. No one knew much about the fighters, you just picked a corner color and bet. Ten or more guys, delaers, bartenders, floormen all George guys, always had a great time. Naturally the Slipper got most of the money at the tables on the way out.
wil.
wil.
The Silverbird (former Thunderbird) was owned by Major Riddill and yes it was ac**** from The Stardust. He was the biggest poker loser in LV history. He sat in the back row of Churchill along with other casino owners like Sid Wyman (Dunes) and Sam Diamond (Alladin). Red and Joe Leo, Sherriff Dept dectives spent most of their shifts in the back row, off the clock of course. Anyone remember The Bonanza which was where Ballys is now? Had a wooden floor......ScottyS
More book:
.....Two small areas played a big part in the Churchill sports saga. The larger, main restroom was in the horse side. In the sports side was a small restroom housing only a toilet. More money changed hands in this restroom than at most banks in town. Tuesdays was settle up day and only cash flowed in there and nothing else on Tuesdays.
The other small area was the sports office. Bob Martin had a UPI machine in there that printed sports stories, game write ups, finals and an occasional fresh injury would come ac****. The finals and injuries were preceded by a bell. That bell drove grown men to act like groupies. The bell would bring half the room to the counter asking why the bell rang. When Ray and I became frustrated we would sneak in the office and ring the bell. Just like trained fighters they were out of their seats to answer the bell. The office had the mandatory desk and coat hangers but after that it was a little different from most offices. There was a floor safe under the tile and the inside office door had a well disguised trap door for a special bank roll. That’s the bankroll that the Feds and the Gaming Control Board never got to count.
Churchill Downs was more than brick and mortar, horse & sports boards, tickers and seats and hidden bankrolls in doors. Much more. More than a made for Hollywood movie set. Churchill Downs was the people who passed through, the dreamers and schemers, layers and players. The synergy created can NEVER be duplicated. That school is forever closed except in the minds of us who remember.
The bankroll concealed in the door was perhaps the most defining symptom of Churchill Downs. We as clerks had two bankrolls to keep care of. The government counted once and we counted it again and got a different total.
At the time, up until 1976***, the Feds had a 10% tax on the g**** write. No problem. For the customers we knew and trusted we had a system to beat the abusive 10% tax. All work was done by hand, writing, grading and paying out. That left a lot of room for creative bookkeeping. Clerks wrote their tickets by hand, but for special customers only 10% of the real value was recorded. This trickery was noted by writing an R on the bottom of the ticket. If a trusted customer, aka an “R” customer, bet $1000 the clerk would write the ticket for $100 and put the “R” on the bottom. The clerks drawer would have $1000 in it but only $100 in tickets written. Hence the previously mentioned two different counts of the same bankroll. When an “R” ticket was graded and cashed it was worth ten times the amount stated on the ticket.
This system caused some very anxious moments and disputes. The clerk forgets the “R” and the customer wins, goes to cash a ticket worth $1000 and the cashier hands him a cecil, a $100 bill. Those disputes were always settled. This “humanitarian system” also attracted some very creative schemers. Mostly small timers who could spend a week scamming you out of $20. Their creative genius was wasted on petty schemes like simply copying an “R” on their ticket. A %100 turnaround if you got it on which just didn’t happen. But in the end the lesson learned was even if a scam was successful the money usually didn’t go for rent or even a meal. It almost always was put back in action, right through the windows, back in our cash drawers. It was a lesson I.....
.....Two small areas played a big part in the Churchill sports saga. The larger, main restroom was in the horse side. In the sports side was a small restroom housing only a toilet. More money changed hands in this restroom than at most banks in town. Tuesdays was settle up day and only cash flowed in there and nothing else on Tuesdays.
The other small area was the sports office. Bob Martin had a UPI machine in there that printed sports stories, game write ups, finals and an occasional fresh injury would come ac****. The finals and injuries were preceded by a bell. That bell drove grown men to act like groupies. The bell would bring half the room to the counter asking why the bell rang. When Ray and I became frustrated we would sneak in the office and ring the bell. Just like trained fighters they were out of their seats to answer the bell. The office had the mandatory desk and coat hangers but after that it was a little different from most offices. There was a floor safe under the tile and the inside office door had a well disguised trap door for a special bank roll. That’s the bankroll that the Feds and the Gaming Control Board never got to count.
Churchill Downs was more than brick and mortar, horse & sports boards, tickers and seats and hidden bankrolls in doors. Much more. More than a made for Hollywood movie set. Churchill Downs was the people who passed through, the dreamers and schemers, layers and players. The synergy created can NEVER be duplicated. That school is forever closed except in the minds of us who remember.
The bankroll concealed in the door was perhaps the most defining symptom of Churchill Downs. We as clerks had two bankrolls to keep care of. The government counted once and we counted it again and got a different total.
At the time, up until 1976***, the Feds had a 10% tax on the g**** write. No problem. For the customers we knew and trusted we had a system to beat the abusive 10% tax. All work was done by hand, writing, grading and paying out. That left a lot of room for creative bookkeeping. Clerks wrote their tickets by hand, but for special customers only 10% of the real value was recorded. This trickery was noted by writing an R on the bottom of the ticket. If a trusted customer, aka an “R” customer, bet $1000 the clerk would write the ticket for $100 and put the “R” on the bottom. The clerks drawer would have $1000 in it but only $100 in tickets written. Hence the previously mentioned two different counts of the same bankroll. When an “R” ticket was graded and cashed it was worth ten times the amount stated on the ticket.
This system caused some very anxious moments and disputes. The clerk forgets the “R” and the customer wins, goes to cash a ticket worth $1000 and the cashier hands him a cecil, a $100 bill. Those disputes were always settled. This “humanitarian system” also attracted some very creative schemers. Mostly small timers who could spend a week scamming you out of $20. Their creative genius was wasted on petty schemes like simply copying an “R” on their ticket. A %100 turnaround if you got it on which just didn’t happen. But in the end the lesson learned was even if a scam was successful the money usually didn’t go for rent or even a meal. It almost always was put back in action, right through the windows, back in our cash drawers. It was a lesson I.....
