LV Dinosaur Looking To Write Book About The Way Things Were

[BigRodney]

Am looking to write. (or more accurately, collaborate, as I am not a professional author), on a book about the way things were during the 80's and early 90's on the LV sports betting scene. Have many stories and anecdotes concerning that era that I think would be of interest.
If anyone is already involved in such a project, or would like to become involved, please respond and I will provide further details.
(No Freaks Please)

 

[packer2012]

I have no expertise that could be at all helpful. But I would probably buy the book. Isn't it amazing how much better things were "back in the day"?

 

[EverFresh]

What's the difference between late 80's Vegas and now?

I remember playing $5 BJ at Shamrocks on the strip and staying in the TravelLodge (tm)

 

[BigRodney]

packer2012 - Nice to know I have 1 sold already...lol. Yes, things were Great during that period! Obviously you were around back then and perhaps we even know each other, (more business-wise than personally however). I see you have many posts, so maybe you could check with some of your Old Time friends as well, as any help at all would be appreciated.

 

[BigRodney]

EverFresh - I haven´t been back to Vegas for many years, but I believe comparing LV with then & now would be Apples and Oranges. It was a time when Ten's of Thousands, (or even much more), could be bet on a single game...Roxy was King of the Line Makers...The Stardust was so swamped with Hi-Rolling Sports Bettors that they had to hold a daily lottery just to determine who got the 1st shot at the Opening Numbers, etc., etc.
The list is too long to write here, that is why I am interested in writing a book about it.
Also, I see you are in Escazu. I also worked in CR for a number of years, so we may also have acquaintances in common.
Thanx for your interest.

 

[Betallsports]

Arturo , judge and myself are writing a book .. Well guess it would amount to Books on the sports betting world.
from A to Z

 

[packer2012]

I agree with all you are saying Big. "It was a time when Ten's of Thousands, (or even much more), could be bet on a single game".... been there, done that...... even on regular season "meaningless" baseball games. The part about "holding a daily lottery" in the morning at the Stardust...... used to be very interesting to see the real hard core players or beards gear up. Again, even for baseball they had the lottery every morning just like you described "just to determine who got the 1st shot at the Opening Numbers".

First two big differences that come to my mind..... First.....obviously, you could bet serious money without running your butt all over town. And they did not automatically think of limiting or barring your ass if you were winning.

Second...... every Tom, Dick, and Henrietta were not horse-assing around on the slots and getting in the way with their "line passes" for the buffet.... and all the other crap that muddies the waters now.

 

[BigRodney]

Betallsports - please contact me at rodpel1981@gmail.com Have some details I don´t necessarily want posted here at the present time.

 

[VegasVic]

I go back that far, (and farther). Still remember when tickets at shops were hand written, hence the title "sports writers".

Check out Scotty Schettlers' book "We were wise guys and didn't know it", on Amazon. Great stories from a bookmaker's perspective.

 

[JudgeWapner]

What I wanted to do was get some of the old timers from Vegas to sit in a room and tell stories while they are filmed. Edit it in to some type of documentary. Gamblers as well as book makers.

 

[VIEJODINOSAUR]

After reading Dangerous Odds by a female that I knew, I am tempted to write a book myself to set some facts straight....

 

[Sugarbear]

See my thread in this fourm called, Sportsbook Stories from the 90's. From Degenerate to mature Degenerate. An excellent read.

 

[BigRodney]

What I wanted to do was get some of the old timers from Vegas to sit in a room and tell stories while they are filmed. Edit it in to some type of documentary. Gamblers as well as book makers.

Judge...I like your idea, but only to a certain degree. I propose that a better starting point would be recorded telephone conversations with concerned parties on an individual basis, and a conference call as a whole. If that flys, perhaps Then the possibility of TV might enter the picture. I, for one, believe that this approach would be more convenient for most of us that have any stories that are worth telling. This thought has crossed my mind in the past, as although I am not a Movie Star, nor any kind of celebrity for that matter, I feel that I have led a pretty interesting life (compared to most) and thought that I would like to somehow document it, even if only to please my own ego. I agree that professional help, such as a Journalist (or even a journalism student with a flair for adventure, that wanted to broaden his horizons by traveling to CR, or wherever, to document other conversations), may be all that is really need to kick-start the endeavor which I have recently proposed. Betallsports has already replied that he, you, and Viejo were already in the process of writing a series of books, The A To Z of Sports Wagering. Our combined input may well be the beginning of something that could really sell. Years ago, "Cigar Aficionado" ran several stories concerning the Sports Betting Industry. I believe the byline was attributed to a Michael Kaplan. At that time I was working in a CR book, in which a customer by that name opened a 10K account, just prior to the publication of one of the articles. There is no doubt in my mind that they were one and the same. My point here is that the possibilities of making such a project work, due to our similar thinking, may not be too far out of reach, if we could only find the right circumstances and backing. As I have already stated to betallsports in a previous post, please contact me at rodpel1981@gmail And I will be more than happy to discuss this, and other ideas I have in further detail.

 

[BigRodney]

What I wanted to do was get some of the old timers from Vegas to sit in a room and tell stories while they are filmed. Edit it in to some type of documentary. Gamblers as well as book makers.

Judge...I like your idea, but only to a certain degree. I propose that a better starting point would be recorded telephone conversations with concerned parties on an individual basis, and a conference call as a whole. If that flys, perhaps Then the possibility of TV might enter the picture. I, for one, believe that this approach would be more convenient for most of us that have any stories that are worth telling. This thought has crossed my mind in the past, as although I am not a Movie Star, nor any kind of celebrity for that matter, I feel that I have led a pretty interesting life (compared to most) and thought that I would like to somehow document it, even if only to please my own ego. I agree that professional help, such as a Journalist (or even a journalism student with a flair for adventure, that wanted to broaden his horizons by traveling to CR, or wherever, to document other conversations), may be all that is really need to kick-start the endeavor which I have recently proposed. Betallsports has already replied that he, you, and Viejo were already in the process of writing a series of books, The A To Z of Sports Wagering. Our combined input may well be the beginning of something that could really sell. Years ago, "Cigar Aficionado" ran several stories concerning the Sports Betting Industry. I believe the byline was attributed to a Michael Kaplan. At that time I was working in a CR book, in which a customer by that name opened a 10K account (and blew it), just prior to the publication of one of the articles. There is no doubt in my mind that they were one and the same. My point here is that the possibilities of making such a project work, due to our similar thinking, may not be too far out of reach, if we could only find the right circumstances and backing. As I have already stated to betallsports in a previous post, please contact me at rodpel1981@gmail And I will be more than happy to discuss this, and other ideas I have in further detail.

 

[BigRodney]

Viejo - I know you, and you know who I am, although under a different name. Please read my recent reply to the judge to save me some typing. Feel free to contact me also at rodpel1981@gmail for further info.

 

[BigRodney]

lol...Didn't mean to post the same reply twice. My Connection has been erratic, and I didn't know it already went through. Sorry.

 

[pocketrockets]

This sounds awesome. I'm not an old school guy by any means (28 yo, only worked in offshore), but I have done some journalism (mostly for musical outlets) and writing (currently writing my first sci-fi novel).

I would love to collaborate in any way on the publishing end for a very low royalty fee that you guys would decide. Let me know. And if I don't participate, I still want to read it