1 00:00:00,520 --> 00:00:03,480 Speaker 1: Ridiculous crime is a production of My Heart Radio. Hey 2 00:00:03,480 --> 00:00:07,480 Speaker 1: Elizabeth Dutton, Yes, Zaren Burnett, you know what's ridiculous. Yeah, 3 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:10,680 Speaker 1: I'll tell you what's ridiculous. The French word for dandelion 4 00:00:11,000 --> 00:00:15,040 Speaker 1: is peace only, and that translates to what the bed 5 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:19,160 Speaker 1: I literally thought you said on me. I said peace only, 6 00:00:19,920 --> 00:00:26,400 Speaker 1: same thing, and it's because dandelions the leaves have diuretic 7 00:00:26,440 --> 00:00:30,920 Speaker 1: properties make it which bed ah, what is what is 8 00:00:31,000 --> 00:00:34,879 Speaker 1: lee in French? L s? Bed Oh, that's what you 9 00:00:34,880 --> 00:00:41,240 Speaker 1: were saying. Over see, I read French, do not hear French. Okay, 10 00:00:41,479 --> 00:00:43,959 Speaker 1: so that's that's that's what I think is ridiculous. That's 11 00:00:43,960 --> 00:00:45,839 Speaker 1: a pretty good one. That that is darn goood. I 12 00:00:45,840 --> 00:00:48,000 Speaker 1: mean we could just stop the show. Well, I'm trying 13 00:00:48,000 --> 00:00:50,840 Speaker 1: to do ridiculous. I'm trying to tell you about stuff 14 00:00:50,880 --> 00:00:54,440 Speaker 1: that's like a ridiculous fact rather than my normal mini 15 00:00:54,560 --> 00:00:59,280 Speaker 1: Andy Rooney, what's irritating me today? You're taking my attack 16 00:00:59,320 --> 00:01:01,560 Speaker 1: of like you of the blue whales. A Orda is 17 00:01:01,760 --> 00:01:05,000 Speaker 1: big enough to drive a VW test driving that how 18 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:07,240 Speaker 1: it feels? It's fun, isn't it? It It is? Well, I've 19 00:01:07,240 --> 00:01:09,559 Speaker 1: got a story for you, So how about a story 20 00:01:09,920 --> 00:01:13,319 Speaker 1: that's about the real life inspiration for Marlon Brando's role 21 00:01:13,440 --> 00:01:18,440 Speaker 1: Skymasterson in the musical Guys and Dolls. And a friend 22 00:01:18,680 --> 00:01:22,360 Speaker 1: of that real life inspiration another man who himself inspired 23 00:01:22,400 --> 00:01:25,080 Speaker 1: the role of the big bank roll, the villain in 24 00:01:25,160 --> 00:01:28,240 Speaker 1: the first season of Boardwalk Empire. Oh, this has so 25 00:01:28,280 --> 00:01:31,080 Speaker 1: many good elements. I love it, all these references. Ready 26 00:01:31,080 --> 00:01:54,520 Speaker 1: to get ridiculous. Yes, this is Ridiculous Crime, a podcast 27 00:01:54,560 --> 00:01:59,080 Speaker 1: about absurd and outrageous capers, heists, and cons. It's always 28 00:02:00,160 --> 00:02:07,800 Speaker 1: murder free and one hundred ridiculous, Elizabeth. This story, it 29 00:02:07,840 --> 00:02:11,040 Speaker 1: takes place in the twentieth century, and we'll pretty much 30 00:02:11,040 --> 00:02:14,519 Speaker 1: be covering a lot of the architects, if you will, 31 00:02:14,560 --> 00:02:18,360 Speaker 1: of the underworld and organized crime of America. You're going 32 00:02:18,400 --> 00:02:20,520 Speaker 1: to hear some amazing names. It's like a Hall of 33 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:24,440 Speaker 1: Fame roster. Here we go. The two men were gonna 34 00:02:24,480 --> 00:02:28,040 Speaker 1: focus on today have great names. They were called Titanic 35 00:02:28,120 --> 00:02:33,120 Speaker 1: Thompson and Arnold the Brain Rothstein. I'm already loving your 36 00:02:33,600 --> 00:02:36,480 Speaker 1: ankles deep in the water waiting in right. Okay, So 37 00:02:36,560 --> 00:02:39,880 Speaker 1: the Brain was a gangster. He was a banker for criminals, 38 00:02:39,919 --> 00:02:43,440 Speaker 1: and he's known as the architect of American drug distribution. Yes, 39 00:02:43,520 --> 00:02:46,200 Speaker 1: he came up with the model for basically financing heroin. 40 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:48,720 Speaker 1: Caroline was like a new drug back then. He's like, 41 00:02:48,840 --> 00:02:52,200 Speaker 1: I've got a way to make this pay and was like, Brain, 42 00:02:52,960 --> 00:02:54,800 Speaker 1: But that's not the story we're gonna tell. We're gonna 43 00:02:54,840 --> 00:02:58,919 Speaker 1: talk about him as a gambler. Now there's also Titanic Thompson. 44 00:02:59,240 --> 00:03:02,440 Speaker 1: He was a con and a professional traveling gambler, a 45 00:03:02,560 --> 00:03:04,960 Speaker 1: road hustler, if you will. And he was a man 46 00:03:05,000 --> 00:03:08,080 Speaker 1: who could get one over on just about anyone, that is, 47 00:03:08,120 --> 00:03:12,000 Speaker 1: except Arnold the brain Rothstein, except for he also could 48 00:03:12,000 --> 00:03:17,040 Speaker 1: do that right. Yes, so the pool shark, Minnesota Fats. 49 00:03:17,400 --> 00:03:21,359 Speaker 1: These names are coming at me fast and curious. Buckle up, baby, 50 00:03:22,560 --> 00:03:26,359 Speaker 1: So Minnesota Fats one's called Titanic Thompson quote the greatest 51 00:03:26,440 --> 00:03:29,400 Speaker 1: action man of all time. Now, he didn't mean like, oh, he's, 52 00:03:29,639 --> 00:03:31,960 Speaker 1: you know, a fit guy and looks like Jean Claude 53 00:03:32,040 --> 00:03:34,560 Speaker 1: Van Damn. No. When he talked about action, he means 54 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:38,200 Speaker 1: money betting, big money bets. The action you find in 55 00:03:38,320 --> 00:03:42,600 Speaker 1: Vegas and Atlantic City. Right now. The legendary golfer Sam 56 00:03:42,720 --> 00:03:46,800 Speaker 1: Snead once called Titanic Thompson quote the greatest hustler of 57 00:03:46,800 --> 00:03:49,440 Speaker 1: all time. Right, I'm I'm telling you this is a 58 00:03:49,440 --> 00:03:52,320 Speaker 1: Hall of fame. This is just like, yeah, you pay 59 00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:55,320 Speaker 1: for this kind of admission to see this show. Now 60 00:03:55,520 --> 00:03:58,160 Speaker 1: you have to understand that this guy, Titanic Thompson was 61 00:03:58,640 --> 00:04:01,600 Speaker 1: a phenomenal laugh but he was also like you know, 62 00:04:01,720 --> 00:04:06,160 Speaker 1: just street level a great golfer. He was so great well, 63 00:04:06,200 --> 00:04:10,520 Speaker 1: I mean like ground level, you know, like pick up golf. 64 00:04:10,560 --> 00:04:12,760 Speaker 1: He was the kind of person that other golfers who 65 00:04:12,760 --> 00:04:14,880 Speaker 1: are really good like, why don't you turn pro? In fact, 66 00:04:15,240 --> 00:04:17,279 Speaker 1: pro golfers would be like, why don't you turn pro? 67 00:04:17,560 --> 00:04:20,159 Speaker 1: And when professional golfers like Sam Sneed, who he golfed with, 68 00:04:20,200 --> 00:04:22,600 Speaker 1: would be like, hey, Titanic man, you're pretty good, why 69 00:04:22,600 --> 00:04:25,839 Speaker 1: don't you consider going pro, he'd be like, you know, quote, 70 00:04:26,120 --> 00:04:31,200 Speaker 1: I could not afford that cut and pay. He was 71 00:04:31,200 --> 00:04:34,000 Speaker 1: making money, because you have to understand, as a professional 72 00:04:34,080 --> 00:04:36,599 Speaker 1: road gambler, he basically worked the country clubs of the 73 00:04:36,680 --> 00:04:40,599 Speaker 1: newly oil rich Texas cities and towns. Now, that's a 74 00:04:40,600 --> 00:04:42,560 Speaker 1: lot of loose and easy money to throw into your 75 00:04:42,560 --> 00:04:44,520 Speaker 1: pockets because it was new to them. This is when 76 00:04:44,560 --> 00:04:47,479 Speaker 1: the Texas oil industry was basically brand new and just 77 00:04:47,520 --> 00:04:49,320 Speaker 1: starting to boom, so he went down there was just 78 00:04:49,360 --> 00:04:53,159 Speaker 1: cleaning up on the suckers. Right, So all those fresh 79 00:04:53,200 --> 00:04:56,320 Speaker 1: marks in Texas they kind of like, you know, give 80 00:04:56,400 --> 00:04:58,880 Speaker 1: him his name if you will, Like you'll find if 81 00:04:58,880 --> 00:05:03,560 Speaker 1: you read golf magazine Golf Digest, which I know you 82 00:05:03,600 --> 00:05:05,920 Speaker 1: get them as a subscription, right yeah, I make sure 83 00:05:05,920 --> 00:05:08,359 Speaker 1: they send me the ones from the twenties and thirties. 84 00:05:09,160 --> 00:05:12,520 Speaker 1: They will. Those magazines often will run little profiles or 85 00:05:12,560 --> 00:05:15,880 Speaker 1: mention things about Titanic Thompson, like he is still talked 86 00:05:15,880 --> 00:05:18,400 Speaker 1: about figure in the golf world. What's is Titanic is 87 00:05:18,440 --> 00:05:23,000 Speaker 1: not his government name? What's who? Titanic Thompson is not 88 00:05:23,080 --> 00:05:24,880 Speaker 1: his government name? What are you talking? You don't think 89 00:05:24,880 --> 00:05:28,920 Speaker 1: somebody's mother would name them Titanic Thompson, Right, No mother 90 00:05:28,960 --> 00:05:31,880 Speaker 1: would name their child after a sunken ocean lighter. So 91 00:05:32,040 --> 00:05:34,200 Speaker 1: that is a nickname. And we'll get into how he 92 00:05:34,279 --> 00:05:36,719 Speaker 1: earned that first. Let me tell you a little bit 93 00:05:36,760 --> 00:05:39,920 Speaker 1: more about the shapes and contours of this man. One 94 00:05:39,920 --> 00:05:43,159 Speaker 1: of his favorite cons was to bet against a golfer 95 00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:45,920 Speaker 1: and he would go on and beat them. Now, and 96 00:05:45,960 --> 00:05:48,719 Speaker 1: typically a con artist is not going to do that. 97 00:05:48,760 --> 00:05:51,359 Speaker 1: They want to instill confidence in their mark. He's like, 98 00:05:51,360 --> 00:05:53,279 Speaker 1: I'm gonna go the opposite way because people might see 99 00:05:53,320 --> 00:05:55,200 Speaker 1: me coming if I like lose. So instead he would 100 00:05:55,200 --> 00:05:57,080 Speaker 1: beat them and then guy was like a good game, 101 00:05:57,720 --> 00:06:00,359 Speaker 1: Mr Thompson, and he was like, oh, tight handed if 102 00:06:00,360 --> 00:06:03,240 Speaker 1: you're nasty. But he's like, look, I know I just 103 00:06:03,279 --> 00:06:05,360 Speaker 1: beat you, but how about this, I'll give you a 104 00:06:05,440 --> 00:06:07,480 Speaker 1: chance to win back your money. And the person is like, 105 00:06:07,960 --> 00:06:09,719 Speaker 1: I don't know about that, man. You just you beat 106 00:06:09,720 --> 00:06:11,719 Speaker 1: me pretty handily. You know you're shooting in the eighties. 107 00:06:11,720 --> 00:06:13,200 Speaker 1: I was shooting in the nineties. I don't know about 108 00:06:13,200 --> 00:06:15,560 Speaker 1: the no, no, hear me out. I'll do the next 109 00:06:15,600 --> 00:06:18,080 Speaker 1: game left handed. They're like, oh, now you're making a 110 00:06:18,160 --> 00:06:22,159 Speaker 1: sporting Okay, okay, how about this double the bet double 111 00:06:22,200 --> 00:06:26,440 Speaker 1: your money double or nothing? And uh, I'll play left handed. 112 00:06:26,520 --> 00:06:30,599 Speaker 1: That's suspicious. You see, you're smart, you're skeptical. These people 113 00:06:30,600 --> 00:06:33,200 Speaker 1: down in Texas with their oil rich money. They're like okay. 114 00:06:33,320 --> 00:06:35,880 Speaker 1: So he would go out there and he'd play, and 115 00:06:35,880 --> 00:06:38,520 Speaker 1: in that second game he beat him too, and then 116 00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:40,160 Speaker 1: they'd be like, man, how did you do that? And 117 00:06:40,200 --> 00:06:42,719 Speaker 1: that's when they would learn his secret. He was left handed. 118 00:06:44,000 --> 00:06:45,760 Speaker 1: So he would beat him right handed, and then he 119 00:06:45,800 --> 00:06:47,480 Speaker 1: beat him left handed because he knew if he could 120 00:06:47,520 --> 00:06:49,880 Speaker 1: be him right handed, you know, done deal left handed. 121 00:06:50,640 --> 00:06:54,159 Speaker 1: This is my man. No like your brother, he's a lefty. 122 00:06:54,320 --> 00:06:58,799 Speaker 1: Right now, Trev, from what I recall, you were telling 123 00:06:58,839 --> 00:07:02,200 Speaker 1: me that he, as a baseball player, would throw lefty 124 00:07:02,240 --> 00:07:03,920 Speaker 1: and bat right or wait to get that back, he 125 00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:08,800 Speaker 1: through left, batted right, and what you hear from our 126 00:07:08,839 --> 00:07:12,520 Speaker 1: theme song, he plays the guitar right, but as a lefty. 127 00:07:12,560 --> 00:07:15,160 Speaker 1: But he doesn't he when he played baseball, he didn't 128 00:07:15,240 --> 00:07:18,360 Speaker 1: switch hit. Okay, okay, so he didn't switch it. It 129 00:07:18,440 --> 00:07:22,240 Speaker 1: was like Ricky Henderson throw left, bat right. I like that. Yeah, 130 00:07:22,400 --> 00:07:26,800 Speaker 1: anytime you're like Ricky Anderson, you're winning. So Oakland, Now, 131 00:07:27,880 --> 00:07:30,320 Speaker 1: can you imagine your brother doing any of this stuff 132 00:07:30,320 --> 00:07:32,080 Speaker 1: as a righty? You know, like, could you imagine him 133 00:07:32,120 --> 00:07:34,800 Speaker 1: being able to compete athletically at the level that you've 134 00:07:34,800 --> 00:07:37,200 Speaker 1: seen him by doing it as a righty? I don't 135 00:07:37,240 --> 00:07:38,880 Speaker 1: think so. And now I really want to see him 136 00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:40,920 Speaker 1: throw a baseball with his right hand, because that's always 137 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:42,520 Speaker 1: really funny. If I were to throw a ball with 138 00:07:42,560 --> 00:07:46,560 Speaker 1: my left hand, it's really funny. Yeah, you like, as 139 00:07:46,600 --> 00:07:49,200 Speaker 1: somebody who like I'm I tell people I am ambidexter's 140 00:07:49,200 --> 00:07:50,840 Speaker 1: because I started out using my left hand in my 141 00:07:50,920 --> 00:07:52,440 Speaker 1: right hand. I was a house painter, and I paint 142 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:53,960 Speaker 1: with my left hand, and I used my right hand 143 00:07:54,200 --> 00:07:56,160 Speaker 1: to do like strong stuff, my left hand to do 144 00:07:56,320 --> 00:07:59,520 Speaker 1: like delicate and like exact stuff. You know, they're basically 145 00:07:59,560 --> 00:08:02,160 Speaker 1: two different functions. But even if I go to throw 146 00:08:02,240 --> 00:08:04,240 Speaker 1: with my left hand, I have to basically work out 147 00:08:04,240 --> 00:08:06,320 Speaker 1: the mechanics before I do it, and then I can 148 00:08:06,320 --> 00:08:07,880 Speaker 1: throw and I can hit whatever I want. But if 149 00:08:07,880 --> 00:08:09,320 Speaker 1: you just throw me a ball and ask me to 150 00:08:09,320 --> 00:08:11,080 Speaker 1: throw my left hand, it's probably gonna come out like 151 00:08:11,080 --> 00:08:16,760 Speaker 1: a shot put you know, its awkward. So Titanic Thompson 152 00:08:16,960 --> 00:08:20,160 Speaker 1: did not do that. He could, basically, without being ambidextrous, 153 00:08:20,360 --> 00:08:23,960 Speaker 1: perform as an ambidexter with he's pretty much yeah, he's 154 00:08:23,960 --> 00:08:26,000 Speaker 1: a switch with golf with And also this is the 155 00:08:26,080 --> 00:08:29,680 Speaker 1: kind of guy. He's a switch swinger. I'm just gonna 156 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:32,000 Speaker 1: let that one go, which I don't even know where 157 00:08:32,000 --> 00:08:38,360 Speaker 1: to take that. He's a switch putter. Well he okay, 158 00:08:38,400 --> 00:08:42,920 Speaker 1: Well just um switch potter. You know that just sounds 159 00:08:42,960 --> 00:08:45,880 Speaker 1: like like butter, Yeah, like switch butter. You know it's 160 00:08:45,880 --> 00:08:48,920 Speaker 1: just anyway, So Titanic Thompson he really likes to pick 161 00:08:48,920 --> 00:08:51,600 Speaker 1: on golfers. Another one of his like big scams was 162 00:08:52,240 --> 00:08:54,360 Speaker 1: he wants bet a group of golfers that he could 163 00:08:54,960 --> 00:08:57,960 Speaker 1: basically drive a golf ball five yards, which is in 164 00:08:58,000 --> 00:09:00,840 Speaker 1: a phenomenal length of disc its right, it's just like 165 00:09:00,960 --> 00:09:04,360 Speaker 1: these days. Oh you know, you drive up a golf 166 00:09:04,360 --> 00:09:06,840 Speaker 1: ball five hundred yards, you put it in the passenger 167 00:09:07,000 --> 00:09:10,319 Speaker 1: city a car and you drive that. Literally is how 168 00:09:10,320 --> 00:09:12,640 Speaker 1: he wins bets. He once said he could throw a 169 00:09:12,640 --> 00:09:15,560 Speaker 1: ball up to the top floor of the Empire State 170 00:09:15,559 --> 00:09:17,679 Speaker 1: Building and he threw the ball into the elevator and 171 00:09:17,720 --> 00:09:20,400 Speaker 1: it just got sent up. So he's a big believer 172 00:09:20,480 --> 00:09:22,199 Speaker 1: in your way of winning a bet, and in this 173 00:09:22,240 --> 00:09:24,920 Speaker 1: case he did exactly that. Yes, he went out and 174 00:09:25,120 --> 00:09:26,680 Speaker 1: he bet these guys I hit it five into yards. 175 00:09:26,679 --> 00:09:28,520 Speaker 1: He's like, okay, now, guys, getting my car. And then 176 00:09:28,520 --> 00:09:30,800 Speaker 1: he drove about to a frozen lake. He put the 177 00:09:30,800 --> 00:09:33,000 Speaker 1: ball down on the edge of the lake, hit it 178 00:09:33,240 --> 00:09:35,560 Speaker 1: and in golf, if it keeps skipping, that counts. So 179 00:09:35,600 --> 00:09:41,240 Speaker 1: he skipped it across the lakes. Wow, that's smarter than mine. Well, 180 00:09:41,280 --> 00:09:44,200 Speaker 1: Thompson said at the time, I could outsmart out, cheat 181 00:09:44,280 --> 00:09:47,520 Speaker 1: out cannive and roll higher than than I'm all in 182 00:09:47,640 --> 00:09:51,040 Speaker 1: my day. And that's no lie, and it really wasn't. 183 00:09:51,120 --> 00:09:53,760 Speaker 1: So Titanic Thompson was a lie. That was not his 184 00:09:53,840 --> 00:09:57,760 Speaker 1: birth name. His government name was Alvin Clarence Thomas. Now, 185 00:09:57,800 --> 00:10:00,840 Speaker 1: if you're a traveling gambler, it's good not to have 186 00:10:01,080 --> 00:10:04,719 Speaker 1: the losers know your government name. So therefore I was 187 00:10:04,760 --> 00:10:07,360 Speaker 1: willing to turn Thomas into Thompson and keep it rolling. 188 00:10:07,480 --> 00:10:09,920 Speaker 1: That's close enough. And it's like, yeah exactly, and people 189 00:10:09,920 --> 00:10:11,840 Speaker 1: are like, oh, they must have misheard me. Yeah, if 190 00:10:11,880 --> 00:10:15,080 Speaker 1: you missed state Thomas and they know you didn't hear me, right, 191 00:10:15,080 --> 00:10:18,679 Speaker 1: I said Thompson exactly. It's that reasonable duck kind of situation. 192 00:10:19,240 --> 00:10:22,000 Speaker 1: So there are two primary stories as to how my 193 00:10:22,080 --> 00:10:26,040 Speaker 1: man Titanic Thompson got his name Titanic. Now, the first 194 00:10:26,080 --> 00:10:29,600 Speaker 1: goes he was actually on the Titanic. Yeah, right, So 195 00:10:29,640 --> 00:10:31,520 Speaker 1: that doomed ocean liners out there in the Atlantic. It 196 00:10:31,640 --> 00:10:34,320 Speaker 1: hits the iceberg and starts to go down. Thompson's like, oh, man, 197 00:10:34,360 --> 00:10:35,920 Speaker 1: I gotta get out of here. So it throws on 198 00:10:35,960 --> 00:10:39,280 Speaker 1: some women's clothes, hops in a life, just his voice, 199 00:10:39,320 --> 00:10:40,800 Speaker 1: and then he hops in a lifeboat and he's like, 200 00:10:41,040 --> 00:10:45,400 Speaker 1: take us to America whatever he said, and they're like 201 00:10:45,440 --> 00:10:48,120 Speaker 1: all right, ma'am. So that was one way. The other 202 00:10:48,280 --> 00:10:50,440 Speaker 1: way that he got his nickname. The story goes he 203 00:10:50,520 --> 00:10:53,599 Speaker 1: was in a pool hall in Joplin, Missouri. Now, interestingly 204 00:10:53,679 --> 00:10:57,320 Speaker 1: both stories take place in the second story has nothing 205 00:10:57,320 --> 00:10:59,360 Speaker 1: to do with that Titanic. He's just playing pool against 206 00:10:59,400 --> 00:11:02,640 Speaker 1: the guy. The guy, though, is a pool sharp. He 207 00:11:02,679 --> 00:11:04,840 Speaker 1: beats this other hustler, right, and it's just like pretty 208 00:11:04,920 --> 00:11:08,480 Speaker 1: much too, you know, gamblers basically, and he he beats 209 00:11:08,480 --> 00:11:10,760 Speaker 1: this guy and the guy's like, oh man, how was 210 00:11:10,760 --> 00:11:12,160 Speaker 1: a good game. And Thompson is like, you want a 211 00:11:12,160 --> 00:11:14,040 Speaker 1: little side bet? Guys like, what are you talking about? 212 00:11:14,120 --> 00:11:16,240 Speaker 1: I bet you I can jump over this pool table 213 00:11:16,240 --> 00:11:18,120 Speaker 1: without touching the table. And I was like, what are 214 00:11:18,120 --> 00:11:20,360 Speaker 1: you talking about? This is like a nine ft long table. 215 00:11:20,360 --> 00:11:22,480 Speaker 1: Was like, no, no, no, these sides you know, from 216 00:11:22,520 --> 00:11:24,680 Speaker 1: rail to rail. And he's like, I don't know even that. 217 00:11:24,720 --> 00:11:26,520 Speaker 1: I don't I couldn't imagine somebody being able to do. 218 00:11:28,040 --> 00:11:30,000 Speaker 1: I will jump over, I will not touch the table. 219 00:11:30,080 --> 00:11:32,800 Speaker 1: That felt nothing. So it's like, all right, I want 220 00:11:32,800 --> 00:11:35,240 Speaker 1: some of the money back. I'll take that but Thompson 221 00:11:35,280 --> 00:11:38,920 Speaker 1: then proceeds to jump over the pool table without touching. Felt. 222 00:11:40,640 --> 00:11:42,679 Speaker 1: I told you he's a phenomenal athlete. But he also, 223 00:11:43,000 --> 00:11:45,280 Speaker 1: like I told you, he kind of like you know, 224 00:11:45,440 --> 00:11:48,120 Speaker 1: arranges his bets. So he had put a mattress on 225 00:11:48,120 --> 00:11:50,320 Speaker 1: the other side of the pool table, and he just 226 00:11:50,400 --> 00:11:52,560 Speaker 1: jumped up as high as he could and basically fell 227 00:11:52,600 --> 00:11:54,920 Speaker 1: onto the mattress. So he cleared the table, but in 228 00:11:54,960 --> 00:11:58,040 Speaker 1: a way that most people would never think to do. Wow. 229 00:11:58,280 --> 00:12:01,680 Speaker 1: So wait, the up of having a mattress to eat? 230 00:12:01,880 --> 00:12:03,280 Speaker 1: He just had a broad in He's like, go get 231 00:12:03,280 --> 00:12:05,520 Speaker 1: me a mattress right then. It wasn't like they were 232 00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:09,400 Speaker 1: playing around a mattress. Just don't mind the mattress there. 233 00:12:09,640 --> 00:12:12,200 Speaker 1: And this is not like a Seeley postropedic with springs 234 00:12:12,200 --> 00:12:14,640 Speaker 1: and a pillow top. This is just basically a bag 235 00:12:14,679 --> 00:12:20,920 Speaker 1: of straw. Mattresses were back, so it was a pile 236 00:12:20,960 --> 00:12:24,960 Speaker 1: of bricks, just feathers and bricks. So this dude's like 237 00:12:25,040 --> 00:12:27,960 Speaker 1: the guy who loses. He's like, someone's like, hey man, 238 00:12:28,480 --> 00:12:30,440 Speaker 1: that guy who just beat you and then embarrassed you 239 00:12:30,480 --> 00:12:32,800 Speaker 1: by jumping over a pool table. What's his story? What's 240 00:12:32,840 --> 00:12:35,680 Speaker 1: his name? And the guy who lost his Like, I 241 00:12:35,720 --> 00:12:38,199 Speaker 1: don't rightly know, but he must be Titanic the way 242 00:12:38,200 --> 00:12:44,800 Speaker 1: he's sinking everybody world star. So this nickname is fits, 243 00:12:44,920 --> 00:12:48,320 Speaker 1: and of course it sticks because you know it fits. 244 00:12:48,800 --> 00:12:52,760 Speaker 1: So the story goes that Titanic was known to always 245 00:12:52,760 --> 00:12:55,079 Speaker 1: be ready for a bet. In his car, he carried 246 00:12:55,120 --> 00:12:57,800 Speaker 1: a bowling ball, he had golf clubs, he carried a 247 00:12:57,880 --> 00:13:00,480 Speaker 1: hunting rifle, a pool queue, and a throw throwing rock, 248 00:13:01,040 --> 00:13:06,280 Speaker 1: A throwing rocket, right exactly, I saw, I saw this, bro, 249 00:13:06,360 --> 00:13:08,120 Speaker 1: what you gotta throwing rock for? But it turns out 250 00:13:08,200 --> 00:13:09,920 Speaker 1: I just like the idea that it's not just we 251 00:13:10,000 --> 00:13:11,720 Speaker 1: had a rock with him. It was a throwing rock. 252 00:13:12,040 --> 00:13:15,080 Speaker 1: It was like it was gonna have him win some bets. 253 00:13:15,080 --> 00:13:17,160 Speaker 1: This was like something he would use to you know, 254 00:13:17,160 --> 00:13:19,040 Speaker 1: It's like, oh, I bet you I can hit that 255 00:13:19,080 --> 00:13:21,240 Speaker 1: blossom on that tree. And so he would go out 256 00:13:21,280 --> 00:13:23,560 Speaker 1: there and get his rock and he would basically side 257 00:13:23,640 --> 00:13:25,719 Speaker 1: arm it and hit whatever he wanted. But the thing is, 258 00:13:25,800 --> 00:13:28,120 Speaker 1: m I say, a throwing the rock, he had beveled 259 00:13:28,120 --> 00:13:30,080 Speaker 1: the edges so he could fit his finger in and 260 00:13:30,120 --> 00:13:34,200 Speaker 1: he basically would just like whip it around. Titanic Thompson 261 00:13:34,280 --> 00:13:36,720 Speaker 1: was committed to the bit right. Now. Of course, he 262 00:13:36,760 --> 00:13:39,240 Speaker 1: also kept dice on him because who doesn't want to 263 00:13:39,240 --> 00:13:43,000 Speaker 1: play craps with a gambler. Now, he had years of 264 00:13:43,000 --> 00:13:46,320 Speaker 1: practicing dice to the point that if you just set 265 00:13:46,400 --> 00:13:47,760 Speaker 1: him out in a hotel room and he had a 266 00:13:47,800 --> 00:13:50,800 Speaker 1: hotel bed, he could flip those dice in his hand 267 00:13:50,880 --> 00:13:55,560 Speaker 1: and get them to never almost never sit up a 268 00:13:55,679 --> 00:13:58,320 Speaker 1: six or a snake eyes. He wasn't gonna shoot craps, right, 269 00:13:58,320 --> 00:14:00,920 Speaker 1: he wasn't gonna get a seven. So he could pretty 270 00:14:01,000 --> 00:14:04,760 Speaker 1: much once every ten rolls uh six or a snake 271 00:14:04,760 --> 00:14:07,800 Speaker 1: eyes would come up. He could literally control the role 272 00:14:07,840 --> 00:14:10,439 Speaker 1: in the air of the dice. That's what I mean. 273 00:14:10,520 --> 00:14:13,800 Speaker 1: He loved the action. So this was the era of 274 00:14:13,800 --> 00:14:16,360 Speaker 1: the proposition bet. And this is when professional golfers and 275 00:14:16,400 --> 00:14:18,959 Speaker 1: gamblers and pool hustlers and card shops would challenge each 276 00:14:18,960 --> 00:14:21,160 Speaker 1: other to do these crazy feats of skill or luck. 277 00:14:21,240 --> 00:14:22,800 Speaker 1: And they would all do all of this for big 278 00:14:22,800 --> 00:14:25,600 Speaker 1: money like Titanic Thompson. And I'm not saying I'm talking 279 00:14:25,600 --> 00:14:27,880 Speaker 1: like thousands of dollars, not just like five dollars ten 280 00:14:27,920 --> 00:14:30,240 Speaker 1: dollar bets. They would bet like hundred thousand dollars on 281 00:14:30,320 --> 00:14:32,160 Speaker 1: these things. There was this one time he's sitting out 282 00:14:32,160 --> 00:14:35,840 Speaker 1: with his friends Hickory McCullough and Beanie Benson, and they're 283 00:14:35,840 --> 00:14:37,720 Speaker 1: outside of Yeah, I thought you'd like these names outside 284 00:14:37,720 --> 00:14:40,760 Speaker 1: of Joplin, Missouri and Titanic. Thompson tells the story this way. 285 00:14:40,760 --> 00:14:43,000 Speaker 1: He says, quote, that night, I dug up a sign 286 00:14:43,080 --> 00:14:46,000 Speaker 1: that said Joplin twenty miles, and I replanted it five 287 00:14:46,080 --> 00:14:48,520 Speaker 1: miles closer to Joplin. The next day, we were riding 288 00:14:48,520 --> 00:14:50,360 Speaker 1: along and I remarked to Hickory as we passed the 289 00:14:50,400 --> 00:14:53,360 Speaker 1: sign and said, those boys are crazy. It's not twenty 290 00:14:53,400 --> 00:14:56,640 Speaker 1: miles to Joplin. Hickory and Beanie they bet me five 291 00:14:56,720 --> 00:14:59,920 Speaker 1: hundred dollars each that the sign was right. This is 292 00:15:00,080 --> 00:15:02,800 Speaker 1: Hulls back then. That's a lot of a lot of 293 00:15:02,800 --> 00:15:05,040 Speaker 1: money on a sign, the placement of a sign. They're like, 294 00:15:05,160 --> 00:15:09,120 Speaker 1: I'll take So they're like okay, and so, continuing the 295 00:15:09,120 --> 00:15:11,880 Speaker 1: story with Thompson, he's like, of course I won that bet. 296 00:15:12,360 --> 00:15:14,040 Speaker 1: Now do you know how we won that bet? He 297 00:15:14,080 --> 00:15:16,800 Speaker 1: had moved the sign. So Hickory and Beaner were like, 298 00:15:16,800 --> 00:15:19,640 Speaker 1: oh man, Sandy. As Thompson tells it, Hickory and Beanie 299 00:15:19,720 --> 00:15:22,000 Speaker 1: used that same sign to win plenty of bets. Later, 300 00:15:22,040 --> 00:15:23,840 Speaker 1: they're like, it's a good idea. It's a good idea. 301 00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:29,040 Speaker 1: It's now these names you you you commented on them earlier. 302 00:15:29,360 --> 00:15:31,640 Speaker 1: Hickory and Beanie are some of my favorites. What about 303 00:15:31,680 --> 00:15:35,800 Speaker 1: the Southern nicknames? Oh, they they're the masters Southerners and 304 00:15:35,880 --> 00:15:38,200 Speaker 1: the masters of great nicknames. Yeah, you were in Carolina's. 305 00:15:38,240 --> 00:15:41,520 Speaker 1: I was in Georgia. I've traveled over the country. That 306 00:15:41,720 --> 00:15:44,760 Speaker 1: is possibly, I think the birthplace of some of the 307 00:15:44,760 --> 00:15:47,280 Speaker 1: best nicknames I've ever heard. I knew an old lady 308 00:15:47,360 --> 00:15:51,560 Speaker 1: named punk. See this is what I'm talking about. I 309 00:15:51,600 --> 00:15:54,960 Speaker 1: know someone who has a family member called Stumper Thumper. 310 00:15:55,000 --> 00:15:57,480 Speaker 1: Oh my god, are you kidding me? How old is Stumper? 311 00:15:57,760 --> 00:16:01,720 Speaker 1: He's a grandpa now apparently as grandkids all him thump Daddy, 312 00:16:02,920 --> 00:16:05,920 Speaker 1: like granddaddy thumb dad. And then I know a guy 313 00:16:06,040 --> 00:16:11,920 Speaker 1: named brother and uh yeah, nicknames and also just real names. 314 00:16:11,920 --> 00:16:14,520 Speaker 1: I mean like in the NFL, there used to be 315 00:16:14,720 --> 00:16:18,080 Speaker 1: a player named Peerless Price. Now you know his mom 316 00:16:18,200 --> 00:16:22,440 Speaker 1: is from the South when he named the baby Peerless Prices. Right, 317 00:16:22,480 --> 00:16:26,040 Speaker 1: That's what I'm saying, on par with none. So we're 318 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:27,920 Speaker 1: going to take a little quick break and then I 319 00:16:27,960 --> 00:16:29,880 Speaker 1: will be back with more of this story, and I'll 320 00:16:29,880 --> 00:16:32,440 Speaker 1: tell you about a man with another great nickname, Arnold 321 00:16:32,520 --> 00:16:55,840 Speaker 1: the Brain Rothstein. Elizabeth, Yes, are you ready to meet 322 00:16:55,920 --> 00:16:59,360 Speaker 1: Arnold the Brain Rothstein born Ready? I like that about 323 00:16:59,360 --> 00:17:02,360 Speaker 1: you now. At fifteen years old, Arnold the Brain Rothstein 324 00:17:02,480 --> 00:17:05,680 Speaker 1: realized that he had natural limitations, as you know, don't 325 00:17:05,720 --> 00:17:08,320 Speaker 1: we all. But according to him, ever since that day, 326 00:17:08,359 --> 00:17:10,720 Speaker 1: he's like, you know what, man, I'm never ever gonna 327 00:17:10,760 --> 00:17:13,520 Speaker 1: put a bet against a man that I am sure 328 00:17:13,720 --> 00:17:18,840 Speaker 1: can beat me the brain, right, I mean, you're smart 329 00:17:19,000 --> 00:17:21,879 Speaker 1: if you can realize and recognize your natural limitations and 330 00:17:21,920 --> 00:17:24,640 Speaker 1: then adjust in act accordingly. He's like, I ain't gonna 331 00:17:24,720 --> 00:17:26,960 Speaker 1: let me be the enemy. But don't you think everyone 332 00:17:27,040 --> 00:17:29,480 Speaker 1: should say I'm not going to place a bet against 333 00:17:29,520 --> 00:17:32,720 Speaker 1: someone that I'm sure I can't beat. Um. Speaking for 334 00:17:32,760 --> 00:17:35,480 Speaker 1: the con artists of the world, no, I mean come 335 00:17:35,520 --> 00:17:39,160 Speaker 1: on now, I mean, obviously, yes, it would be best 336 00:17:39,160 --> 00:17:41,040 Speaker 1: if people are like, oh, but that's the whole point 337 00:17:41,080 --> 00:17:43,199 Speaker 1: of the confidence of the con artists. They make you 338 00:17:43,240 --> 00:17:45,280 Speaker 1: think like, oh, I can do this, and then they 339 00:17:45,320 --> 00:17:48,560 Speaker 1: just take your pocket. Now, Rothstein. He also had this 340 00:17:48,640 --> 00:17:50,960 Speaker 1: nickname the Brain because he basically had a calculator for 341 00:17:51,080 --> 00:17:53,640 Speaker 1: a brain. He could calculate the odds that you could 342 00:17:53,680 --> 00:17:56,680 Speaker 1: count cards. He can memorize angles of any con he'd 343 00:17:56,680 --> 00:17:58,680 Speaker 1: been a part of. And in the world of the gambling, 344 00:17:58,720 --> 00:18:00,800 Speaker 1: having a brain that is basically a calculator is a 345 00:18:00,840 --> 00:18:03,639 Speaker 1: money making right. So by the age of twelve, he 346 00:18:03,680 --> 00:18:07,960 Speaker 1: was a professional gambler. Yeah, he's just imagining a twelve 347 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:10,320 Speaker 1: year old sitting at a card table is incredible. Oh, 348 00:18:10,359 --> 00:18:13,080 Speaker 1: it gets better. Right. The dude's born in two so 349 00:18:13,119 --> 00:18:14,840 Speaker 1: we're talking like turn of the century. He was born 350 00:18:14,880 --> 00:18:18,000 Speaker 1: to an Orthodox Jewish family. His dad has this nickname, 351 00:18:18,080 --> 00:18:20,959 Speaker 1: Abe the just like he's deep in the community. Now 352 00:18:20,960 --> 00:18:23,200 Speaker 1: Abe the Justice Beloved, and he's like, you know, he 353 00:18:23,720 --> 00:18:27,119 Speaker 1: becomes a small time businessman and his son is like, 354 00:18:27,480 --> 00:18:30,680 Speaker 1: all right, we're Orthodox Jewish, which means on the Sabbath 355 00:18:30,720 --> 00:18:33,679 Speaker 1: on Friday night, we're gonna pretty much shut down everything 356 00:18:33,680 --> 00:18:35,919 Speaker 1: in my family and the household no power. I mean, 357 00:18:36,400 --> 00:18:39,040 Speaker 1: you know, they had electricity, but like that we're not doing. 358 00:18:39,400 --> 00:18:41,320 Speaker 1: I'm saying, yeah, but at that time they actually had 359 00:18:41,359 --> 00:18:43,280 Speaker 1: it as an option, you know, because it's like but 360 00:18:43,359 --> 00:18:45,040 Speaker 1: he's he's like, my family is not going to use it. 361 00:18:45,240 --> 00:18:47,040 Speaker 1: We're always gonna be, you know, pretty much chilling for 362 00:18:47,080 --> 00:18:51,760 Speaker 1: the Sabbat, right, And meanwhile, he's like, I don't feel 363 00:18:51,800 --> 00:18:53,600 Speaker 1: that way, So I'm just going to go out and 364 00:18:53,600 --> 00:18:56,399 Speaker 1: gamble while nobody's looking. So he would go in steal 365 00:18:56,400 --> 00:18:58,480 Speaker 1: money out of his dad's wallet on Friday night. He 366 00:18:58,520 --> 00:19:00,399 Speaker 1: would go gamble all weekend, and as long as he 367 00:19:00,440 --> 00:19:02,480 Speaker 1: got the money back in his dad's wallet by Sunday, 368 00:19:02,520 --> 00:19:04,720 Speaker 1: his dad would never know. So he made his dad 369 00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:08,080 Speaker 1: his credit line. At age twelve, He's down there gambling 370 00:19:08,119 --> 00:19:11,560 Speaker 1: with his dad's cash. Like, I just love this guy. 371 00:19:11,680 --> 00:19:15,120 Speaker 1: So in nineteen fifteen, this is exactly three years after Titanic, 372 00:19:15,119 --> 00:19:17,800 Speaker 1: Thompson first earned his nickname. Either on an ocean line 373 00:19:17,920 --> 00:19:19,720 Speaker 1: or a pool hall in Joplin, Missouri, we don't know 374 00:19:20,280 --> 00:19:23,800 Speaker 1: Arnold Rothstein. Meanwhile, his living in New York, and he's 375 00:19:23,840 --> 00:19:26,840 Speaker 1: been super successful. He's been a professional gambler now for 376 00:19:26,920 --> 00:19:29,520 Speaker 1: five years. He opened his own gambling house in nineteen 377 00:19:30,400 --> 00:19:33,480 Speaker 1: After that, he becomes a millionaire. But he notices that 378 00:19:33,600 --> 00:19:36,399 Speaker 1: his rivals, these other gambling houses, keep getting robbed. Now, 379 00:19:36,440 --> 00:19:38,720 Speaker 1: hold on a second, he's been a professional gambler for 380 00:19:38,800 --> 00:19:42,479 Speaker 1: five years. He's seventeen at this point. No, No, he 381 00:19:42,560 --> 00:19:46,160 Speaker 1: was born in eighteen eighty two, so he would be 382 00:19:46,200 --> 00:19:50,440 Speaker 1: twenty eight years old. Yeah. So he's like a man 383 00:19:50,560 --> 00:19:53,240 Speaker 1: at this point, like a full on, like and respected 384 00:19:53,280 --> 00:19:57,920 Speaker 1: man of the community, right, but still a millionaire. Oh yeah, No, 385 00:19:58,000 --> 00:20:01,520 Speaker 1: he's doing stuff right according to the American valuations. You know, 386 00:20:02,240 --> 00:20:04,840 Speaker 1: this gambling out city opens. He's like, this is a target. 387 00:20:05,040 --> 00:20:07,560 Speaker 1: So you know what, I've seen everybody getting hit, and 388 00:20:07,760 --> 00:20:09,840 Speaker 1: I'm gonna come up with something nobody else has done. 389 00:20:10,080 --> 00:20:12,400 Speaker 1: I'm ditching the permanent gambling house. I'm just gonna invite 390 00:20:12,440 --> 00:20:15,040 Speaker 1: people to my floating craps game. So he just let 391 00:20:15,080 --> 00:20:16,560 Speaker 1: them know where the craps game was going to be 392 00:20:16,640 --> 00:20:20,240 Speaker 1: that that night or that weekend. He pretty much invented 393 00:20:20,240 --> 00:20:23,520 Speaker 1: pop up gambling. Everyone's like, this is genius. Now, if 394 00:20:23,560 --> 00:20:26,280 Speaker 1: you ever heard of floating craps game. That is basically 395 00:20:26,320 --> 00:20:29,280 Speaker 1: the major plot point of the musical Guys and Dolls, 396 00:20:29,720 --> 00:20:32,520 Speaker 1: and I had mentioned that earlier as they were inspirations. 397 00:20:33,040 --> 00:20:36,080 Speaker 1: Turns out, Arnold the brand Rostyn was a double inspiration, 398 00:20:36,080 --> 00:20:38,399 Speaker 1: not only the intration for Boardwalk Empire, but also for 399 00:20:38,480 --> 00:20:40,760 Speaker 1: Guys and Dolls. And then we'll get more into that 400 00:20:40,760 --> 00:20:42,840 Speaker 1: in a second. But first let's get back to Titanic. 401 00:20:42,880 --> 00:20:46,800 Speaker 1: Thompson Titanic was a Southern born world class athlete. You know, 402 00:20:46,920 --> 00:20:49,719 Speaker 1: he's like Amanda loves action, loves a good bet, and 403 00:20:49,800 --> 00:20:52,439 Speaker 1: Arnold the Brain Rossty and he's from the East Coast, 404 00:20:52,520 --> 00:20:55,760 Speaker 1: New York. You know, they're very different men, but at 405 00:20:55,760 --> 00:20:59,680 Speaker 1: the same time, they had very similar views about how 406 00:20:59,680 --> 00:21:02,880 Speaker 1: the word old is populated with suckers. Arnold the Brain 407 00:21:02,960 --> 00:21:05,320 Speaker 1: Rothstein once said, quote, the majority of the human race 408 00:21:05,560 --> 00:21:08,679 Speaker 1: are dubs and dumbbells. They have rotten judgment and no brains. 409 00:21:08,680 --> 00:21:10,280 Speaker 1: And when you have learned how to do things and 410 00:21:10,280 --> 00:21:13,000 Speaker 1: how to size people up and dope out methods for yourself, 411 00:21:13,480 --> 00:21:16,960 Speaker 1: they jump to the conclusion that you are crooked. It's 412 00:21:17,040 --> 00:21:19,679 Speaker 1: kind of a missing throap, right exactly. No, they if 413 00:21:19,680 --> 00:21:20,920 Speaker 1: you're gonna be a con man, I can just tell 414 00:21:20,920 --> 00:21:24,800 Speaker 1: you right now, you're a missing So if you can 415 00:21:24,800 --> 00:21:27,080 Speaker 1: believe it. These two men, these two very different men, 416 00:21:27,160 --> 00:21:29,680 Speaker 1: the irresistible for us and the immovable object if you will, 417 00:21:29,680 --> 00:21:36,120 Speaker 1: of crime, they become friends, right exactly. And now some 418 00:21:36,240 --> 00:21:38,919 Speaker 1: men are self made, like Arnold the Brand Rothstein. He 419 00:21:39,040 --> 00:21:41,320 Speaker 1: was a self made gangster and in fact, he was 420 00:21:41,359 --> 00:21:43,840 Speaker 1: so good at it he soon had enough money that 421 00:21:43,920 --> 00:21:48,760 Speaker 1: he could basically build himself up into a real legitimate businessman. 422 00:21:48,920 --> 00:21:51,480 Speaker 1: This is the traditional like, oh, I'm a legitimate businessman. 423 00:21:51,520 --> 00:21:54,199 Speaker 1: He was the o g of that. He goes and 424 00:21:54,200 --> 00:21:58,520 Speaker 1: gets himself involved in like Tammany Hall politics in New York. Now, 425 00:21:59,480 --> 00:22:01,119 Speaker 1: just to let you know when I said earlier, this 426 00:22:01,200 --> 00:22:05,280 Speaker 1: is a hall of fame of criminals. Arnold brand Rostin 427 00:22:05,400 --> 00:22:07,520 Speaker 1: is so successful early on in New York in the 428 00:22:07,600 --> 00:22:11,280 Speaker 1: crime he gets himself a meshed with power politics which 429 00:22:11,359 --> 00:22:14,119 Speaker 1: means the mayor and so forth, but then also with 430 00:22:14,200 --> 00:22:17,280 Speaker 1: the underworld, the real power that runs the city. This 431 00:22:17,359 --> 00:22:19,200 Speaker 1: is a list of some of the gangsters who once 432 00:22:19,240 --> 00:22:23,919 Speaker 1: worked for Arnald de Brain. Lucky Luciano. Yeah, he's considered 433 00:22:23,960 --> 00:22:28,560 Speaker 1: basically the godfather of organized crime. Then there was Meyer Lansky. 434 00:22:28,760 --> 00:22:31,639 Speaker 1: He was a Jewish gangster in a close associate of Luciano. 435 00:22:31,800 --> 00:22:33,920 Speaker 1: He basically became known as the mob's accountant. He was 436 00:22:33,960 --> 00:22:35,000 Speaker 1: the one who came up with a lot of the 437 00:22:35,040 --> 00:22:38,000 Speaker 1: schemes that they would use for decades. Then there was 438 00:22:38,080 --> 00:22:41,280 Speaker 1: Dutch Schultz. He was a friend and rival to Lucky Luciano. 439 00:22:41,359 --> 00:22:44,320 Speaker 1: There's movies about him. I think, um, what's his name? 440 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:47,720 Speaker 1: Dustin Hoffman plays him in a movie. Then there was 441 00:22:47,760 --> 00:22:51,119 Speaker 1: Bugsy Siegel. He gets played by Warren Beatty in a movie. 442 00:22:51,560 --> 00:22:53,280 Speaker 1: He would go on to found Las Vegas as a 443 00:22:53,320 --> 00:22:57,400 Speaker 1: getaway and dream destination for both middle class and mobsters. Now, 444 00:22:57,560 --> 00:22:59,919 Speaker 1: finally there were the Italian mobsters who also worked for 445 00:23:00,040 --> 00:23:04,640 Speaker 1: I'm Carlo Gambino who was Cambino crime family and Frank 446 00:23:04,720 --> 00:23:07,879 Speaker 1: Costello my my my father's favorite, the head of the 447 00:23:07,880 --> 00:23:10,119 Speaker 1: Commission and the head of the Luciano crime family and 448 00:23:10,160 --> 00:23:12,560 Speaker 1: basically created the the organization of the Five Families of 449 00:23:12,600 --> 00:23:16,160 Speaker 1: New York and New Jersey. All of these people get 450 00:23:16,160 --> 00:23:20,320 Speaker 1: their start working for the Brain right now, this hall 451 00:23:20,359 --> 00:23:24,679 Speaker 1: of fame of twenties century mobsters, and they, in a 452 00:23:24,760 --> 00:23:27,040 Speaker 1: sense not just learn from the Brain, but they follow 453 00:23:27,119 --> 00:23:29,119 Speaker 1: in the traditions. Remember I told you he invented the 454 00:23:29,160 --> 00:23:31,879 Speaker 1: heroin trade. It was all because of like how he 455 00:23:31,920 --> 00:23:34,480 Speaker 1: would loan money to mobsters. He basically took the model 456 00:23:34,520 --> 00:23:36,239 Speaker 1: of Hey, I'm gonna break into my dad's wallet, I'm 457 00:23:36,280 --> 00:23:38,200 Speaker 1: gonna go gamble, and then I'll put the money back. 458 00:23:38,240 --> 00:23:40,320 Speaker 1: He just kept doing that, but with other people's money. 459 00:23:40,320 --> 00:23:42,359 Speaker 1: And he's start gambling and he's like, oh, I'm gonna 460 00:23:42,359 --> 00:23:43,840 Speaker 1: buy heroin with your money, but I'll get it back 461 00:23:43,840 --> 00:23:46,840 Speaker 1: in your wallet on Sunday. Essentially, it was so successful 462 00:23:47,000 --> 00:23:49,560 Speaker 1: that was this thing. So he becomes known as a 463 00:23:49,600 --> 00:23:52,840 Speaker 1: money lender. He's also a fence because like somebody who 464 00:23:52,880 --> 00:23:55,360 Speaker 1: can move stolen goods because he knows all these legitimate 465 00:23:55,440 --> 00:23:58,000 Speaker 1: rich people. He's of course a drug kingpin because of 466 00:23:58,000 --> 00:24:01,080 Speaker 1: the heroin deals. He is also later a pioneer and 467 00:24:01,160 --> 00:24:04,240 Speaker 1: inventor of the bootleg get around. He basically comes up 468 00:24:04,240 --> 00:24:07,320 Speaker 1: a way to get you know, whiskey from Canada and 469 00:24:07,760 --> 00:24:10,960 Speaker 1: rum from Cuba and Puerto Rico and like the various 470 00:24:10,960 --> 00:24:14,600 Speaker 1: islands of the Indies. He's bringing over, you know, champagne 471 00:24:14,640 --> 00:24:16,720 Speaker 1: and brandy and stuff from Europe. He's like, we can 472 00:24:16,760 --> 00:24:19,600 Speaker 1: get this here, right. Everyone was like, I was making 473 00:24:19,640 --> 00:24:25,760 Speaker 1: bathtub gin. What do you got of champagne? He's like, man, 474 00:24:25,760 --> 00:24:27,280 Speaker 1: I don't want your grandma to go blind trying to 475 00:24:27,320 --> 00:24:30,160 Speaker 1: drink this stuff. Here for some of this brandy I got, 476 00:24:31,320 --> 00:24:33,760 Speaker 1: no I've kind of hinted at how much power he's 477 00:24:33,800 --> 00:24:37,560 Speaker 1: had and like how influential this was, how influential he 478 00:24:37,640 --> 00:24:41,160 Speaker 1: was with the power politics, and I quote, if politicians 479 00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:44,840 Speaker 1: wanted something from gamblers and vice lords, they approached Arnold Rothstein. 480 00:24:45,240 --> 00:24:48,360 Speaker 1: If the underworld sought protection from Tammany's judges and prosecutors 481 00:24:48,359 --> 00:24:52,600 Speaker 1: and pliant police officers, it too approached Rothstein. He made 482 00:24:52,640 --> 00:24:55,240 Speaker 1: things happen quietly and without fuss. More importantly, he left 483 00:24:55,240 --> 00:24:59,760 Speaker 1: no trails of evidence and everything ran smoothly and profitably. Right. 484 00:24:59,760 --> 00:25:01,639 Speaker 1: That's kind of like, I'm not trying to say we 485 00:25:01,680 --> 00:25:03,879 Speaker 1: need crime, but I'm just basically saying it's not going away, 486 00:25:04,200 --> 00:25:06,600 Speaker 1: and so kind of this is the kind of criminal 487 00:25:06,680 --> 00:25:07,879 Speaker 1: that I would like to see in the world if 488 00:25:07,920 --> 00:25:10,920 Speaker 1: we have to have crime. Right, not to Louis Cannon exactly. 489 00:25:10,960 --> 00:25:13,679 Speaker 1: It's just violent and exploitative anyway, these people. He's basically 490 00:25:13,880 --> 00:25:18,520 Speaker 1: people what they want, and he would do that at interest. Well, 491 00:25:18,560 --> 00:25:22,199 Speaker 1: he's a businessman. Gambling is what ends up making him wealthy, 492 00:25:22,280 --> 00:25:25,120 Speaker 1: and bootlegging makes him powerful and it turns into into 493 00:25:25,160 --> 00:25:27,920 Speaker 1: a gangster. Prohibition starts nineteen twenty. Just to go over 494 00:25:27,920 --> 00:25:29,440 Speaker 1: the particulars, I don't know if people know this stuff. 495 00:25:29,520 --> 00:25:32,520 Speaker 1: January nine, nineteen, it gets ratified by all the states, 496 00:25:32,720 --> 00:25:36,360 Speaker 1: and then one year later in January twenty, we get 497 00:25:36,400 --> 00:25:38,920 Speaker 1: the passage of the Volstadak and boom. Now you can't 498 00:25:38,960 --> 00:25:42,359 Speaker 1: drink unless you have very special dispensations, like you know, 499 00:25:43,080 --> 00:25:45,520 Speaker 1: a doctor's note. Oh I need this, it's my medical whiskey, 500 00:25:47,000 --> 00:25:50,800 Speaker 1: which people got. People ud like Churchill when he came over. 501 00:25:52,119 --> 00:25:54,240 Speaker 1: He had fdr arranged for him to have a little 502 00:25:54,240 --> 00:25:57,600 Speaker 1: like I need my nippets a medical So this was common. 503 00:25:58,040 --> 00:25:59,879 Speaker 1: Now the brain he was I told you he was 504 00:26:00,040 --> 00:26:02,000 Speaker 1: ringing over like Booze from Canada. He's doing this on 505 00:26:02,040 --> 00:26:04,840 Speaker 1: trucks and boats. He's got rum runners, which are fast boats. 506 00:26:04,840 --> 00:26:07,240 Speaker 1: He's also got boats coming into the New England ports, 507 00:26:07,240 --> 00:26:09,639 Speaker 1: so these fishing towns are also part of his rum running. 508 00:26:09,760 --> 00:26:16,040 Speaker 1: He just doesn't give a flying, flying flip, flying flip. 509 00:26:16,440 --> 00:26:20,520 Speaker 1: So this dude, he also is very resistant to press. 510 00:26:20,720 --> 00:26:23,560 Speaker 1: So the brain won't talk to anybody because he doesn't 511 00:26:23,600 --> 00:26:26,800 Speaker 1: know what what good is it to him? Eventually, Yeah, 512 00:26:26,840 --> 00:26:28,320 Speaker 1: what are they going to do for him? Yeah? How 513 00:26:28,320 --> 00:26:30,680 Speaker 1: would this be good for? His publicity? Is not good? 514 00:26:30,680 --> 00:26:33,040 Speaker 1: Everybody who needs to know and knows who he is, right, So, 515 00:26:33,119 --> 00:26:36,240 Speaker 1: but eventually this journalist Zoe Beckley, who is a rare 516 00:26:36,320 --> 00:26:38,800 Speaker 1: journalist who at the time as a woman is able 517 00:26:38,880 --> 00:26:41,280 Speaker 1: to score an interview with Arnold de Brain Rothstein. Yeah, 518 00:26:41,280 --> 00:26:43,480 Speaker 1: she's like Nelly Bligh, Like she's like a badass. Right. 519 00:26:43,520 --> 00:26:47,199 Speaker 1: So she writes the only portrayal that we have of 520 00:26:47,280 --> 00:26:51,080 Speaker 1: him that takes place in his lifetime. Yeah right. She 521 00:26:51,200 --> 00:26:54,080 Speaker 1: describes him as quote a promoter of big deals, a multimillionaire, 522 00:26:54,080 --> 00:26:57,000 Speaker 1: a sentimentalist, a hard boiled egg, a whale of a 523 00:26:57,000 --> 00:27:00,239 Speaker 1: good fellow, and a power to reckon with. Wow. Right, 524 00:27:00,359 --> 00:27:04,680 Speaker 1: she seemed to kind of like him, right, But meanwhile, 525 00:27:04,880 --> 00:27:08,000 Speaker 1: like while she's describing to us all these things about like, oh, 526 00:27:08,040 --> 00:27:11,280 Speaker 1: he's such a like, you know, a power broker, she 527 00:27:11,400 --> 00:27:13,199 Speaker 1: also would point out that there has not been a 528 00:27:13,240 --> 00:27:15,719 Speaker 1: big price fight, a gold rush, a Wall Street flurry, 529 00:27:15,760 --> 00:27:18,520 Speaker 1: a great horse race, or real estate boom in years 530 00:27:18,600 --> 00:27:21,480 Speaker 1: that Rostein hasn't had a hand in. Somehow, this is 531 00:27:21,520 --> 00:27:24,040 Speaker 1: what he gets known as if it happened Rostin, probably 532 00:27:24,200 --> 00:27:27,359 Speaker 1: it happened right now. He also is known for having, 533 00:27:28,000 --> 00:27:30,320 Speaker 1: as she writes, more friends than any other man in 534 00:27:30,359 --> 00:27:33,239 Speaker 1: the United States. The reason he has is that he 535 00:27:33,280 --> 00:27:35,679 Speaker 1: knows how to be a friend. It seems to be 536 00:27:35,800 --> 00:27:38,600 Speaker 1: his religion. But don't double cross him or he will 537 00:27:38,680 --> 00:27:40,800 Speaker 1: roll up the sleeves of his white silk shirt and 538 00:27:40,840 --> 00:27:43,560 Speaker 1: get right after you. And when he's finished, the ambulance 539 00:27:43,560 --> 00:27:46,720 Speaker 1: will be coming for you. Clang a Lang Lang. She 540 00:27:46,760 --> 00:27:49,200 Speaker 1: actually put that in the article Clang a lang Lang. 541 00:27:50,840 --> 00:27:53,160 Speaker 1: So anyway, she also basically includes a couple of quotes 542 00:27:53,200 --> 00:27:56,160 Speaker 1: from him. And so Beckley noticed that Rostein explains to her, 543 00:27:56,440 --> 00:27:59,119 Speaker 1: my code of life is absolutely simple. Help a friend, 544 00:27:59,320 --> 00:28:04,080 Speaker 1: be a friend. That's pretty good. Now, what's his definition 545 00:28:04,080 --> 00:28:07,200 Speaker 1: of happiness? He also provides her that Rostyn tells Backley 546 00:28:07,280 --> 00:28:11,760 Speaker 1: quote being a good scout, keeping busy and helping people. Right, 547 00:28:11,800 --> 00:28:14,960 Speaker 1: it's just all Pablo nonsense. He doesn't mean any of it. 548 00:28:14,960 --> 00:28:18,240 Speaker 1: It's like the worst responses to that cruised quiz in 549 00:28:18,280 --> 00:28:22,640 Speaker 1: the back of Vanity. What's your favorite cuss word? Yeah, 550 00:28:22,840 --> 00:28:27,680 Speaker 1: he's My favorite cuss word is gosh, it's a plucky. 551 00:28:28,200 --> 00:28:30,080 Speaker 1: So there was one other writer who got to know 552 00:28:30,240 --> 00:28:32,720 Speaker 1: Arnold Debran Rosty and pretty well and actually was also 553 00:28:32,760 --> 00:28:35,159 Speaker 1: friends with Titanic Thompson, and he would write about them. 554 00:28:35,200 --> 00:28:39,600 Speaker 1: And this writer's name was Damon Runying. Yes, yes, right now. 555 00:28:39,640 --> 00:28:43,760 Speaker 1: His writing style has its own adjective Runyon s exactly. 556 00:28:43,920 --> 00:28:45,840 Speaker 1: Now if you were to reach the level of a 557 00:28:45,840 --> 00:28:47,560 Speaker 1: writer where you had an esque at the end of 558 00:28:47,600 --> 00:28:50,000 Speaker 1: your last name, What could you imagine that something is 559 00:28:50,160 --> 00:28:56,800 Speaker 1: dutton esque? Makes absolutely no sense. Come on now, I 560 00:28:56,880 --> 00:28:58,560 Speaker 1: just think it would have things like, you know, dogs 561 00:28:58,560 --> 00:29:01,960 Speaker 1: with sunglasses, they would have with sunglasses and overuse of 562 00:29:02,000 --> 00:29:06,880 Speaker 1: the word perhaps and uh again, not make a whole 563 00:29:06,880 --> 00:29:09,000 Speaker 1: lot of sense. Okay, I'll take you. I'll take that 564 00:29:09,040 --> 00:29:11,000 Speaker 1: if you if you insist you know what's done in 565 00:29:11,000 --> 00:29:14,560 Speaker 1: Nesk better than anyone. So damon Runyan. He had a 566 00:29:14,600 --> 00:29:17,360 Speaker 1: newspaper column that covered all these colorful characters that he 567 00:29:17,440 --> 00:29:19,960 Speaker 1: was hanging out with in the old Broadway area of Manhattan, 568 00:29:20,240 --> 00:29:24,360 Speaker 1: and his stories were typically would focus on colorful language. 569 00:29:24,400 --> 00:29:26,600 Speaker 1: These bets is desired to like know, like wait, do 570 00:29:26,640 --> 00:29:28,800 Speaker 1: you have the race and forum? That whole lifestyle of 571 00:29:28,880 --> 00:29:31,480 Speaker 1: tracks and cards and pool halls. That was his thing. 572 00:29:31,760 --> 00:29:33,560 Speaker 1: So when he would meet a man like Arnold de 573 00:29:33,600 --> 00:29:36,800 Speaker 1: Brain Rothstein or Titanic Thompson, He's like, oh my god, 574 00:29:36,840 --> 00:29:40,160 Speaker 1: this is like literary gold. Right. So he ends up 575 00:29:40,160 --> 00:29:43,200 Speaker 1: basically taking them and turning them into the characters who 576 00:29:43,240 --> 00:29:47,400 Speaker 1: would then inspire the very famous musical that's based on 577 00:29:47,480 --> 00:29:50,960 Speaker 1: Runyan's world. It's called Guys and Dolls, okay, right, And 578 00:29:50,960 --> 00:29:53,360 Speaker 1: if you know anything about Guys and Dolls, it mostly 579 00:29:53,400 --> 00:29:57,400 Speaker 1: takes place in this one deli called Lindy's. Now Linda's 580 00:29:57,400 --> 00:29:59,920 Speaker 1: was a Manhattan deli made famous by this musical. It's 581 00:30:00,040 --> 00:30:02,600 Speaker 1: located or it was located on fiftieth and Broadway. And 582 00:30:02,680 --> 00:30:04,520 Speaker 1: while it was a deli, it was really more of 583 00:30:04,560 --> 00:30:07,720 Speaker 1: a restaurant. It had tables and chairs, waitresses and waiters, 584 00:30:07,920 --> 00:30:11,120 Speaker 1: and of course killer desserts. So the question of whether 585 00:30:11,280 --> 00:30:14,040 Speaker 1: Lyndy's sells more cheesecake or strudle ends up being a 586 00:30:14,080 --> 00:30:17,920 Speaker 1: central plot point in the musical Guys and Dolls. Now 587 00:30:18,080 --> 00:30:20,840 Speaker 1: Brando and Sinatra in the movie version of that, and 588 00:30:20,840 --> 00:30:23,200 Speaker 1: and Nathan Detroit is played by Sinatra, and he is 589 00:30:23,240 --> 00:30:26,240 Speaker 1: a stand in for Arnold the Brain Rothstein Sky Masterson, 590 00:30:26,320 --> 00:30:29,440 Speaker 1: played by Brando is a stand in for Titanic Thompson. 591 00:30:30,080 --> 00:30:33,880 Speaker 1: So these two, and they're larger than life personas, are 592 00:30:34,000 --> 00:30:36,320 Speaker 1: what Damon Runney us in Whole Cloth to create. These 593 00:30:36,400 --> 00:30:39,280 Speaker 1: characters have become so beloved. And after this break, I 594 00:30:39,320 --> 00:30:41,840 Speaker 1: will be right back with the stories of these larger 595 00:30:41,880 --> 00:30:44,320 Speaker 1: than life characters and what made them so large in 596 00:30:44,360 --> 00:30:47,600 Speaker 1: life because their rivalry. Oh boy, oh, I can't wait. 597 00:31:07,400 --> 00:31:11,440 Speaker 1: In the fall of nineteen fifty, the musical Guys and 598 00:31:11,520 --> 00:31:15,280 Speaker 1: Dolls has its premiere on Broadway. Now Arnold the brand Rostein, 599 00:31:15,360 --> 00:31:17,520 Speaker 1: if he had lived that long, would have likely never 600 00:31:17,560 --> 00:31:20,240 Speaker 1: seen the show. He also probably wouldn't have seen the movie. 601 00:31:20,960 --> 00:31:25,440 Speaker 1: Apparently he never saw a single movie in his life. Instead, 602 00:31:25,480 --> 00:31:27,240 Speaker 1: he would have just been at Linda's holding court the 603 00:31:27,240 --> 00:31:29,640 Speaker 1: way he did on any given day, because that was 604 00:31:29,760 --> 00:31:34,120 Speaker 1: his life. Now Running records that this guy Rothstein was 605 00:31:34,160 --> 00:31:36,680 Speaker 1: a man of habit, a creature of habit, if you will. 606 00:31:37,040 --> 00:31:39,880 Speaker 1: He would, according to Runyon quote, always sit facing the 607 00:31:39,880 --> 00:31:41,840 Speaker 1: door so that nobody can pop in on and without 608 00:31:41,880 --> 00:31:44,040 Speaker 1: seeing him. Now, this is just you know, my father 609 00:31:44,080 --> 00:31:45,800 Speaker 1: taught me the same thing and basically always did with 610 00:31:45,800 --> 00:31:47,240 Speaker 1: your back in the wall, be able to see the 611 00:31:47,280 --> 00:31:49,360 Speaker 1: front door. And that's just like some pretty much standard 612 00:31:49,400 --> 00:31:53,320 Speaker 1: gangster you know, reasoning, right. But he's kind of the 613 00:31:53,360 --> 00:31:55,880 Speaker 1: one who made that the thing this because before this 614 00:31:55,920 --> 00:31:58,520 Speaker 1: people weren't getting popped in public, you know what I mean. 615 00:31:58,520 --> 00:32:00,240 Speaker 1: He kind of like set the mold in in a 616 00:32:00,280 --> 00:32:02,400 Speaker 1: lot of ways. As I keep pointing out, the underworld 617 00:32:02,440 --> 00:32:04,560 Speaker 1: owes a big debt of gratitude for him going, Look, 618 00:32:04,560 --> 00:32:05,880 Speaker 1: if you want to do stuff right, this is how 619 00:32:05,880 --> 00:32:10,520 Speaker 1: you do it. So imagine him at Lyndy's and this 620 00:32:10,640 --> 00:32:14,200 Speaker 1: is the deli where these two men, Titanic Thompson and 621 00:32:14,320 --> 00:32:17,960 Speaker 1: Arnold the Brain Rostin would finally meet and become gambling friends. 622 00:32:18,120 --> 00:32:20,120 Speaker 1: You're ready, I'm ready, all right, I want you to 623 00:32:20,160 --> 00:32:29,600 Speaker 1: picture it. Yes, you're seated at a table in Lindy's. 624 00:32:29,720 --> 00:32:31,920 Speaker 1: You're enjoying a slice of cheesecake. Maybe it's a piece 625 00:32:31,920 --> 00:32:34,360 Speaker 1: of screw. I don't know how you live. Now you 626 00:32:34,400 --> 00:32:37,800 Speaker 1: see a Titanic Thompson stroll into Lindy's deli. He walks 627 00:32:37,920 --> 00:32:40,680 Speaker 1: right up to Arnold the Brain Rothstein, and he introduces 628 00:32:40,760 --> 00:32:43,920 Speaker 1: himself to this famous gangster and gambler. And Thompson says, 629 00:32:44,000 --> 00:32:48,360 Speaker 1: in his charming Missouri Twain, howdy, I'm album, but they 630 00:32:48,400 --> 00:32:51,480 Speaker 1: all call him a Titanic. Now, the Brain he didn't 631 00:32:51,480 --> 00:32:54,160 Speaker 1: like to be touched. Thompson gets the clue, so he's like, 632 00:32:54,280 --> 00:32:56,760 Speaker 1: let me, you know, not like press my flesh on 633 00:32:56,840 --> 00:32:58,800 Speaker 1: him now before he can spin on his heels and 634 00:32:58,840 --> 00:33:01,560 Speaker 1: walk away, though, the Brain takes this moment to invite 635 00:33:01,600 --> 00:33:04,000 Speaker 1: Titanic to sit down and share his table. He's like, tie, 636 00:33:04,240 --> 00:33:07,760 Speaker 1: sit down with me. Titanic is like all right, and 637 00:33:07,800 --> 00:33:09,760 Speaker 1: he starts to like pore on the charm and he's 638 00:33:09,760 --> 00:33:11,959 Speaker 1: basically trying to like, you know, like straight guy, woo 639 00:33:12,080 --> 00:33:17,600 Speaker 1: this gamble throw him down hard. So he's seated there 640 00:33:17,600 --> 00:33:20,240 Speaker 1: with him, Thompson using all of his most colorful southernisms, 641 00:33:20,240 --> 00:33:22,320 Speaker 1: and he's like, man, he's like bragging into the brain 642 00:33:22,360 --> 00:33:24,160 Speaker 1: about he's got this get up and go card that's 643 00:33:24,200 --> 00:33:26,400 Speaker 1: so fast that he's like, you know, man, quote it's 644 00:33:26,440 --> 00:33:29,320 Speaker 1: as fast as a minnow swimming as a dipper. What 645 00:33:29,600 --> 00:33:31,959 Speaker 1: fast as a minnow swims a dipper? What does that 646 00:33:32,040 --> 00:33:34,720 Speaker 1: even mean? Le Braan draw stems like, man, I'm from 647 00:33:34,720 --> 00:33:36,680 Speaker 1: New York. We talked in words that makes sense. I 648 00:33:36,720 --> 00:33:40,520 Speaker 1: ain't from Southern makeup up a stand. So this like 649 00:33:40,640 --> 00:33:43,320 Speaker 1: Thompson's like, when we back up and put a little 650 00:33:43,360 --> 00:33:45,680 Speaker 1: more charm on him, right, So now he's like, I'm 651 00:33:45,760 --> 00:33:49,440 Speaker 1: kind of reading Rothstein. And at the same time, there 652 00:33:49,480 --> 00:33:51,960 Speaker 1: was a third man at this table watching their exchange. 653 00:33:52,320 --> 00:33:56,920 Speaker 1: It's Damon Runyon. So Runyan's like, oh man, this is 654 00:33:56,960 --> 00:34:00,800 Speaker 1: like a star crossed moment. So he's just taking it 655 00:34:00,840 --> 00:34:03,600 Speaker 1: all in he starts basically making mental notes and comparing 656 00:34:03,600 --> 00:34:06,400 Speaker 1: how these two guys are alike and dislike. Right, and 657 00:34:06,440 --> 00:34:10,319 Speaker 1: he's like, well, this is very interesting. They both seem 658 00:34:10,360 --> 00:34:13,080 Speaker 1: to be very health conscious. Neither man smokes her drinks 659 00:34:13,080 --> 00:34:15,520 Speaker 1: at a time when pretty much every man smoked and 660 00:34:15,760 --> 00:34:19,360 Speaker 1: or drank, and in fact Titanic Thompson would use the 661 00:34:19,400 --> 00:34:21,839 Speaker 1: words health conscious like I'm thinking about my health right. 662 00:34:21,880 --> 00:34:23,640 Speaker 1: He tells the men, Look, I don't need any these 663 00:34:23,680 --> 00:34:26,160 Speaker 1: fried foods for a Southern man at that time, I 664 00:34:26,200 --> 00:34:29,239 Speaker 1: don't need foods like just like, wait, are you really 665 00:34:29,239 --> 00:34:32,960 Speaker 1: from the South? Bra So they're like oh. But luckily ARNOLDO. 666 00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:34,960 Speaker 1: Brand Ross Dean, being smart as he is, he's like, 667 00:34:35,320 --> 00:34:38,719 Speaker 1: I'm about that life too, son, fresh foods. Only they're like, yes, 668 00:34:38,840 --> 00:34:43,640 Speaker 1: you get me. So they we're both like pioneering the wellness. 669 00:34:43,640 --> 00:34:45,840 Speaker 1: So Damni Ronn is sitting there, he's like, this is 670 00:34:45,880 --> 00:34:50,160 Speaker 1: so bizarre to see. Meanwhile, you're in Lindy's watching this 671 00:34:50,200 --> 00:34:52,920 Speaker 1: all with them, right, and you notice that the brain 672 00:34:53,160 --> 00:34:56,120 Speaker 1: agrees about this value of fresh produce, and you're like, man, 673 00:34:56,160 --> 00:34:58,319 Speaker 1: this is like I was expecting fireworks. But these two 674 00:34:58,360 --> 00:35:00,880 Speaker 1: seem to really dig each other. I at the next table. 675 00:35:00,920 --> 00:35:03,120 Speaker 1: I'm sipping on a little cup of coffee and cut 676 00:35:03,160 --> 00:35:05,520 Speaker 1: the cheesecake and I'm leaning in and they can see 677 00:35:05,520 --> 00:35:07,640 Speaker 1: that I'm eaves dropping. Did you trying to act like 678 00:35:07,640 --> 00:35:09,719 Speaker 1: the cheesecakes so good? Yeah? They're like, why is she 679 00:35:09,840 --> 00:35:12,839 Speaker 1: leaning over to the side so much? But you know, 680 00:35:13,920 --> 00:35:17,040 Speaker 1: they ignore me. I'm not a threat. I've made that clear. 681 00:35:17,440 --> 00:35:19,880 Speaker 1: They know you're just possibly talking to me looking for 682 00:35:20,040 --> 00:35:23,120 Speaker 1: like horse tips. I've got my my lipstick is sort 683 00:35:23,120 --> 00:35:25,959 Speaker 1: of smeared all. They're just like, let that crazy lady, 684 00:35:25,960 --> 00:35:28,120 Speaker 1: you're just sending eating your cheesecake. I got the horse 685 00:35:28,239 --> 00:35:37,280 Speaker 1: right here. Man's yeah, that's exactly Sorry, I'll stop singing. 686 00:35:37,280 --> 00:35:40,319 Speaker 1: But anyway, then brain, He's like, man, you know I'm 687 00:35:40,360 --> 00:35:42,640 Speaker 1: about that fresh food life too. He pulls out his 688 00:35:42,680 --> 00:35:45,000 Speaker 1: bag of figs, which he keeps in his jacket pocket 689 00:35:45,000 --> 00:35:48,960 Speaker 1: and basically just eats on all the time whenever hunger strikes. Like, 690 00:35:49,040 --> 00:35:50,839 Speaker 1: oh man, that's that's dope. Man, you keep a bag 691 00:35:50,880 --> 00:35:52,200 Speaker 1: of figs on you. He's like, oh, I keep this 692 00:35:52,239 --> 00:35:55,120 Speaker 1: thing on me. So now ros Stein gets up and 693 00:35:55,160 --> 00:35:58,560 Speaker 1: you watch as he starts to leave the restaurant, and 694 00:35:58,560 --> 00:36:00,319 Speaker 1: you're like, oh, wait, where are they going? And Tammic 695 00:36:00,360 --> 00:36:02,239 Speaker 1: Thompson gets up and he walks out, and you're like, 696 00:36:02,320 --> 00:36:04,719 Speaker 1: so now you turn and you watch as they leave 697 00:36:04,760 --> 00:36:06,960 Speaker 1: the restaurant, and you look through the window and you 698 00:36:06,960 --> 00:36:09,719 Speaker 1: notice that they stopped just outside. They talk for a moment. 699 00:36:09,760 --> 00:36:12,000 Speaker 1: You're like, wait, what's going on? And I fog up 700 00:36:12,000 --> 00:36:18,239 Speaker 1: the windows, have to like wipe it down. I should 701 00:36:18,280 --> 00:36:21,080 Speaker 1: have used my other hand. So you're watching his Titanic 702 00:36:21,120 --> 00:36:24,799 Speaker 1: Thompson and the brain go over to this produce stand. Right, 703 00:36:24,840 --> 00:36:27,560 Speaker 1: there's a fruit vendor at an all night fruit vendors 704 00:36:27,560 --> 00:36:30,760 Speaker 1: shop or stand rather. Yeah, this is the big Manhattan 705 00:36:30,760 --> 00:36:35,240 Speaker 1: Baby Times Square, all night fruit vendors seven farmers market 706 00:36:35,640 --> 00:36:37,799 Speaker 1: to city and never sleeps, always has fruit for you. 707 00:36:38,360 --> 00:36:40,600 Speaker 1: So the Titanic Thompson, you notice the two of them 708 00:36:40,600 --> 00:36:42,600 Speaker 1: are using some strange body language. You're like, what is 709 00:36:42,600 --> 00:36:44,319 Speaker 1: he He's like looking like he's like like throwing his 710 00:36:44,440 --> 00:36:46,800 Speaker 1: arm around, and the brain seems to be like laughing. 711 00:36:47,000 --> 00:36:49,239 Speaker 1: And then all of a sudden, you can't quite hear it, 712 00:36:49,280 --> 00:36:51,640 Speaker 1: but you see that like ten bucks comes out of 713 00:36:51,640 --> 00:36:54,680 Speaker 1: Titanic Thompson's pocket. He slaps it on the fruit vendor stand, 714 00:36:54,880 --> 00:36:56,279 Speaker 1: and you're like, oh, they're making a bet and you 715 00:36:56,320 --> 00:36:58,759 Speaker 1: start paying attention. The fruit vendor pulls out a dollar bill. 716 00:37:00,040 --> 00:37:03,280 Speaker 1: He's like, I want some of this action. Tie. Meanwhile, 717 00:37:03,320 --> 00:37:05,120 Speaker 1: the brain is like, all right, well, let's see it. 718 00:37:05,480 --> 00:37:09,920 Speaker 1: Titanic Thompson basically takes a peanut in his hand. That 719 00:37:10,040 --> 00:37:12,640 Speaker 1: this peanut he is taken from the fruit vendor who 720 00:37:12,640 --> 00:37:14,799 Speaker 1: has a basically a barrel of peanuts, and he's like, 721 00:37:15,400 --> 00:37:18,840 Speaker 1: I bet you I can throw this peanut across Times Square. 722 00:37:19,239 --> 00:37:22,600 Speaker 1: The brains like, let me see it. You gotta bet Son, 723 00:37:22,719 --> 00:37:26,320 Speaker 1: So he's like cool. Now, Titanic Thompson balances that peanut 724 00:37:26,400 --> 00:37:31,000 Speaker 1: in his hand. He begins this tremendously exaggerated baseball picture 725 00:37:31,040 --> 00:37:34,000 Speaker 1: style wind up. You sitting in Lindy's. You're just impressed 726 00:37:34,000 --> 00:37:37,240 Speaker 1: as all heck. You're like, who the wand marishell is that? Now? 727 00:37:37,760 --> 00:37:40,799 Speaker 1: He leans back and fires that peanut and it goes 728 00:37:41,280 --> 00:37:44,839 Speaker 1: slinging across the air. Right, it goes and skips like 729 00:37:44,920 --> 00:37:47,040 Speaker 1: it's not touching the ground. I say skips, I mean 730 00:37:47,080 --> 00:37:49,239 Speaker 1: like it's just flying hovering in the air. You're like, 731 00:37:49,280 --> 00:37:51,920 Speaker 1: what is that peanut doing. It's moving kind of oddly, 732 00:37:52,200 --> 00:37:55,400 Speaker 1: just tumbling over something that's clearing the trolley tracks, it 733 00:37:55,520 --> 00:37:58,839 Speaker 1: clears five lanes of traffic, it clears all the way 734 00:37:58,880 --> 00:38:00,840 Speaker 1: over to the other side of time time Square, and 735 00:38:00,880 --> 00:38:03,680 Speaker 1: the Brain watching this, he just starts laughing. He knows 736 00:38:03,760 --> 00:38:06,000 Speaker 1: he's been taken. He knows he's been had. He's gonna 737 00:38:06,000 --> 00:38:08,440 Speaker 1: have to pay up on this bet, but you know 738 00:38:08,560 --> 00:38:10,760 Speaker 1: he's willing to do it. He pays up because he lost, 739 00:38:11,320 --> 00:38:14,319 Speaker 1: and he's like, man, I just have to know how 740 00:38:14,360 --> 00:38:16,680 Speaker 1: you did it. And Titanic Thompson collects his winning from 741 00:38:16,719 --> 00:38:19,319 Speaker 1: the Brain and he text his money from the fruit vendor, 742 00:38:19,320 --> 00:38:21,120 Speaker 1: who's like, you know, man, that cost me a dog, 743 00:38:21,160 --> 00:38:24,520 Speaker 1: but that was really impressive. Much later on, Damon Runyan 744 00:38:24,640 --> 00:38:27,160 Speaker 1: shares with people who were not there that day, and 745 00:38:27,200 --> 00:38:30,600 Speaker 1: for you sitting there watching from Lindy's unaware of how 746 00:38:30,600 --> 00:38:34,240 Speaker 1: could a man throw a peanut across Time Square? Impossible? 747 00:38:34,400 --> 00:38:37,880 Speaker 1: It does not seemn conceivable. So it turns out he 748 00:38:37,960 --> 00:38:41,200 Speaker 1: had doctor to peanut, but not only had he doctor 749 00:38:41,239 --> 00:38:43,640 Speaker 1: to peanut, he carried a doctor to peanut around with 750 00:38:43,719 --> 00:38:46,520 Speaker 1: him at all times. Note to self, I gotta start 751 00:38:46,520 --> 00:38:49,040 Speaker 1: doing that. Yeah, he'd casually forced to this bet when 752 00:38:49,080 --> 00:38:51,440 Speaker 1: he saw the dude, the fruit vendor had peanuts. He's like, perfect, 753 00:38:51,440 --> 00:38:53,600 Speaker 1: I'm gonna use my doctor peanut. So he pulled it 754 00:38:53,640 --> 00:38:55,279 Speaker 1: out of his pocket, and then he got brain to 755 00:38:55,280 --> 00:38:57,960 Speaker 1: go along with the bet, because who's ever like, hey man, 756 00:38:58,000 --> 00:39:01,040 Speaker 1: I bet I can throw a peanut across Times Square, Like, yeah, 757 00:39:00,880 --> 00:39:03,319 Speaker 1: you you've been drinking the bad whiskey. Let's take that bad. 758 00:39:03,400 --> 00:39:05,640 Speaker 1: So the brain did not see this one coming, but 759 00:39:05,680 --> 00:39:08,279 Speaker 1: it taught U a lesson about Titanic Thompson, which is 760 00:39:08,320 --> 00:39:12,040 Speaker 1: Titanic Thompson is always wanted to surprise you. So the 761 00:39:12,080 --> 00:39:16,120 Speaker 1: brains like that was worth ten dollars of education, right. No, 762 00:39:16,760 --> 00:39:18,520 Speaker 1: I used to do kind of like I've told you. 763 00:39:18,560 --> 00:39:22,120 Speaker 1: I like con artistry. I like criminals. I was raised 764 00:39:22,800 --> 00:39:25,960 Speaker 1: of loving the mafia. I learned more about murder inc 765 00:39:26,040 --> 00:39:28,800 Speaker 1: And albert Anastasia than I did about like snow White. 766 00:39:28,840 --> 00:39:30,879 Speaker 1: You know, my father would tell me bedtime stories about 767 00:39:30,880 --> 00:39:34,239 Speaker 1: black cowboys and gangsters pretty much, right, So I knew 768 00:39:34,280 --> 00:39:36,640 Speaker 1: all this stuff. But it also gave me this love 769 00:39:36,680 --> 00:39:40,000 Speaker 1: of things like con artistry. So later on, and I 770 00:39:40,040 --> 00:39:42,319 Speaker 1: was like older, I wanted to be a little con artist. 771 00:39:42,360 --> 00:39:43,759 Speaker 1: So like I would go like with my mother, we 772 00:39:43,800 --> 00:39:45,359 Speaker 1: went on a trip to Seattle, went to a Pike 773 00:39:45,400 --> 00:39:48,200 Speaker 1: Street marketplace. They had a magic shop there, and you're like, oh, 774 00:39:48,200 --> 00:39:50,319 Speaker 1: a little kid, They're gonna go, you know, power nerd 775 00:39:50,360 --> 00:39:52,440 Speaker 1: around this magic shop and find some stuff. What do 776 00:39:52,480 --> 00:39:55,040 Speaker 1: I go by a double sided nickels? I can con 777 00:39:55,120 --> 00:39:57,560 Speaker 1: my friends back home. I'm not like to a trick 778 00:39:57,600 --> 00:40:01,880 Speaker 1: and impressed on with my magic because he didn't want wanted. 779 00:40:02,320 --> 00:40:05,279 Speaker 1: So like, I know, I'm odd to make my mother 780 00:40:05,440 --> 00:40:07,560 Speaker 1: like take me on a family trip to a magic 781 00:40:07,600 --> 00:40:09,839 Speaker 1: store so I can con my friends. But like, did 782 00:40:09,880 --> 00:40:12,080 Speaker 1: you ever do anything like that? Am I alone in 783 00:40:12,160 --> 00:40:14,319 Speaker 1: this like that? You would like, I'm gonna go get 784 00:40:14,320 --> 00:40:16,279 Speaker 1: myself a double sided nickel on and I'm gonna get 785 00:40:16,320 --> 00:40:18,960 Speaker 1: these suckers. No, I did not have that impulse. Yeah 786 00:40:19,000 --> 00:40:22,240 Speaker 1: I didn't think, but I just thought maybe just teeny 787 00:40:22,280 --> 00:40:26,040 Speaker 1: a little bit. No, No, not really, Yeah, that was me. 788 00:40:27,200 --> 00:40:31,440 Speaker 1: So this Titanic Thompson was basically a hero to me, because, 789 00:40:31,520 --> 00:40:34,759 Speaker 1: like you know, he does this kind of stuff always. 790 00:40:34,960 --> 00:40:37,680 Speaker 1: Like one day Titanic walked into Lyndy's Man of course, 791 00:40:37,719 --> 00:40:39,680 Speaker 1: the brain is sitting in there at his private booth 792 00:40:39,719 --> 00:40:42,680 Speaker 1: per usual. He walks up to the table. He points 793 00:40:42,719 --> 00:40:45,560 Speaker 1: at the daffodil decoration on the table, and he offered 794 00:40:45,600 --> 00:40:47,799 Speaker 1: the brain a new wager. He's like, I'll cut it 795 00:40:47,840 --> 00:40:51,480 Speaker 1: down from ten paces. Titanic tells him. He's like, you 796 00:40:51,560 --> 00:40:53,839 Speaker 1: mean you mean the daffodil. Yeah, And he's like yeah. 797 00:40:53,960 --> 00:40:56,160 Speaker 1: So the brain gets interested. How are you How are 798 00:40:56,200 --> 00:40:59,520 Speaker 1: you gonna cut a daffodil down from ten paces? What 799 00:40:59,560 --> 00:41:01,560 Speaker 1: do you even talking about ten? I was like, don't 800 00:41:01,560 --> 00:41:03,640 Speaker 1: worry about that counts out ten paces. He's like, no, 801 00:41:03,880 --> 00:41:06,279 Speaker 1: that's not enough. I'll give you an extra five. So 802 00:41:06,320 --> 00:41:09,520 Speaker 1: he now steps back five more steps and he's like, okay, 803 00:41:10,080 --> 00:41:12,520 Speaker 1: that's the right distance. He reaches into his pocket and 804 00:41:12,560 --> 00:41:14,680 Speaker 1: he pulls out from the depths of his suit jacket 805 00:41:14,680 --> 00:41:18,160 Speaker 1: pocket a pack of playing cards and was like playing cards. 806 00:41:18,560 --> 00:41:20,959 Speaker 1: There was a sports writer who was there that day 807 00:41:21,080 --> 00:41:25,120 Speaker 1: at Lindy's who witnessed this, and they recorded it as 808 00:41:25,200 --> 00:41:29,200 Speaker 1: such quote he scaled cards so skillfully that each sharp 809 00:41:29,360 --> 00:41:32,719 Speaker 1: edge left its mark until the thirty five cards, it's 810 00:41:32,760 --> 00:41:35,879 Speaker 1: snapped the stem of the flower clean. So they sat 811 00:41:35,880 --> 00:41:39,560 Speaker 1: there while he threw five playing cards. I don't I 812 00:41:39,600 --> 00:41:42,959 Speaker 1: haven't had the deck basically right. I have a hard 813 00:41:42,960 --> 00:41:45,719 Speaker 1: time understanding the whole betting culture of that and that's 814 00:41:45,719 --> 00:41:47,359 Speaker 1: just me. That's what I'm trying to say is it's 815 00:41:47,400 --> 00:41:49,600 Speaker 1: like I grew up revering these people and I couldn't 816 00:41:49,600 --> 00:41:53,360 Speaker 1: get people into proposition bets because nobody wants like and 817 00:41:53,400 --> 00:41:56,040 Speaker 1: see you jump over nod to me. I can cut 818 00:41:56,040 --> 00:41:58,239 Speaker 1: that down from ten paces. I'd be like, well, good 819 00:41:58,280 --> 00:42:00,560 Speaker 1: for you, I said, I can do it. I'm like, 820 00:42:00,600 --> 00:42:04,200 Speaker 1: I'm sure you can. I'm no fun. You seem very talented. 821 00:42:05,760 --> 00:42:07,799 Speaker 1: People always want to make bets like I bet you, 822 00:42:07,840 --> 00:42:10,560 Speaker 1: I can, you know, do whatever? And I'm like, you 823 00:42:10,600 --> 00:42:13,240 Speaker 1: totally can. You seem like a goer. I love taking 824 00:42:13,239 --> 00:42:17,840 Speaker 1: this stage. Well, you have to understand that this is 825 00:42:17,880 --> 00:42:20,960 Speaker 1: what people did before we had smartphones. I did it 826 00:42:21,000 --> 00:42:23,000 Speaker 1: before I had a smart phone. Well, not you, I'm saying, 827 00:42:23,080 --> 00:42:25,279 Speaker 1: is I mean I have something fun to do it 828 00:42:25,360 --> 00:42:28,440 Speaker 1: because before we had radio and smartphones. What what are 829 00:42:28,440 --> 00:42:29,799 Speaker 1: you looking at? Well, I think it's just I think 830 00:42:29,840 --> 00:42:32,160 Speaker 1: it's a personality thing. And I think so also is 831 00:42:32,200 --> 00:42:35,759 Speaker 1: a cultural thing because up to the point of mass communication, 832 00:42:35,800 --> 00:42:37,840 Speaker 1: so basically radio is going to be new in the twenties, 833 00:42:37,920 --> 00:42:39,759 Speaker 1: you know, so they we're like at that point, so 834 00:42:39,840 --> 00:42:42,120 Speaker 1: people are into mass communication. But until then, you only 835 00:42:42,200 --> 00:42:44,920 Speaker 1: knew regionally, so you only knew what you knew. So 836 00:42:44,960 --> 00:42:46,320 Speaker 1: there was a lot of times people to take a 837 00:42:46,360 --> 00:42:47,839 Speaker 1: bet just to see if it works, just to see 838 00:42:47,840 --> 00:42:49,440 Speaker 1: if someone could do it, and that's often what you 839 00:42:49,440 --> 00:42:50,840 Speaker 1: see them doing. It is like all right, let me 840 00:42:50,920 --> 00:42:53,759 Speaker 1: see this. Yeah, but no one wants to raise the 841 00:42:54,360 --> 00:42:58,560 Speaker 1: public general education through mass communication. People like now, people 842 00:42:58,600 --> 00:43:00,759 Speaker 1: don't do that in racing or whatever. You're trying to 843 00:43:00,760 --> 00:43:02,840 Speaker 1: tell me, I've been too race scene, Like I don't know, 844 00:43:02,880 --> 00:43:05,920 Speaker 1: I've seen race scene on the TV. So with him, 845 00:43:06,000 --> 00:43:07,479 Speaker 1: it's a little bit more of an ego. And also 846 00:43:07,520 --> 00:43:09,200 Speaker 1: he's got the money to be entertained, so he's like, 847 00:43:09,239 --> 00:43:11,000 Speaker 1: for ten dollars, I want to see you do that, 848 00:43:11,040 --> 00:43:12,600 Speaker 1: and so tit ta mc thompson is kind of an 849 00:43:12,640 --> 00:43:15,799 Speaker 1: amusement to him in some ways. So I got one 850 00:43:15,840 --> 00:43:18,200 Speaker 1: more story between these two professional gamblers, and this one 851 00:43:18,280 --> 00:43:21,360 Speaker 1: is a favorite. You ready for it. One night, the 852 00:43:21,400 --> 00:43:24,359 Speaker 1: Brain and Titanic are standing outside of Lindy's outside the deli. 853 00:43:24,400 --> 00:43:28,120 Speaker 1: Damon run ins there too. I just apparently just never 854 00:43:28,160 --> 00:43:29,680 Speaker 1: had took time to write. I don't know when he 855 00:43:29,719 --> 00:43:31,440 Speaker 1: got his writing done, but anyway, the three of them 856 00:43:31,440 --> 00:43:35,360 Speaker 1: are sitting there passing time pretty smartphone style, and Titanic 857 00:43:35,400 --> 00:43:37,040 Speaker 1: comes up a little action. He's like, I gotta bet 858 00:43:37,080 --> 00:43:39,680 Speaker 1: for y'all, Like, what is it? Tie? Like you seeing 859 00:43:39,719 --> 00:43:41,719 Speaker 1: the passing cars? They're like, yeah, I see him. He's 860 00:43:41,719 --> 00:43:43,759 Speaker 1: like see how the license plates? Like yeah, how we're 861 00:43:43,800 --> 00:43:45,399 Speaker 1: not gonna see the licensees? Like you ever ever thought 862 00:43:45,440 --> 00:43:47,360 Speaker 1: about how they look? Like a like a hand of poker? 863 00:43:47,680 --> 00:43:48,799 Speaker 1: Like what do you means? Like you know, like the 864 00:43:48,840 --> 00:43:51,400 Speaker 1: numbers you can just say like, oh, I got two twos, 865 00:43:51,520 --> 00:43:54,680 Speaker 1: I gotta I gotta, I gotta five six seven. You're like, oh, yeah, 866 00:43:54,800 --> 00:43:57,160 Speaker 1: that's what you're saying that. Yeah, well, i'll bet you 867 00:43:57,600 --> 00:44:01,440 Speaker 1: that I using only New Jersey license plates and you 868 00:44:01,640 --> 00:44:03,719 Speaker 1: using New York license plates, I can beat you. Like 869 00:44:03,760 --> 00:44:05,319 Speaker 1: what do you mean? Like, next car that goes by 870 00:44:05,360 --> 00:44:07,640 Speaker 1: with the New York plates, that's your card. Next car 871 00:44:07,680 --> 00:44:09,600 Speaker 1: that goes by with the New Jersey plates, that'll be 872 00:44:09,719 --> 00:44:13,640 Speaker 1: my hand. Like oh now, all the Rascians like okay, 873 00:44:13,680 --> 00:44:15,359 Speaker 1: I can't quite see the angles on this. I can't 874 00:44:15,400 --> 00:44:17,239 Speaker 1: see what the advantage is, but I want to see 875 00:44:17,239 --> 00:44:19,719 Speaker 1: how this plays at So he takes the bet ti 876 00:44:19,800 --> 00:44:23,400 Speaker 1: tanks like I'll bet you a thousand dollars. But the 877 00:44:23,440 --> 00:44:25,560 Speaker 1: next New Jersey plate we see beats the next New 878 00:44:25,640 --> 00:44:27,959 Speaker 1: York plate. I'd be like, oh, you're right, it will. 879 00:44:28,040 --> 00:44:29,880 Speaker 1: I'm not going to bet you a thousand. Yeah, that's 880 00:44:29,880 --> 00:44:33,000 Speaker 1: why you don't have a nickname like Elizabeth. You know, 881 00:44:33,120 --> 00:44:37,360 Speaker 1: the brain. So the brain is like, man, I like 882 00:44:37,440 --> 00:44:39,239 Speaker 1: this action. You got a bet son. So the men 883 00:44:39,320 --> 00:44:42,319 Speaker 1: turn and they watched these approaching cars. Now there's a 884 00:44:42,360 --> 00:44:44,359 Speaker 1: car with a New York license plate that drives past. 885 00:44:44,400 --> 00:44:46,560 Speaker 1: It's because they're in New York City. So of course, 886 00:44:46,719 --> 00:44:48,960 Speaker 1: like the first car that goes past, and he's like, okay, 887 00:44:49,000 --> 00:44:51,320 Speaker 1: that's yours. Now, this license plate has a pair of 888 00:44:51,440 --> 00:44:53,839 Speaker 1: nine's on it. That's a pretty high pair to beat. 889 00:44:54,000 --> 00:44:56,000 Speaker 1: So it's looking like Titanic. Thom's gonna have a hard 890 00:44:56,000 --> 00:44:59,160 Speaker 1: time beating a pair of nine, but Titanic, he's ready 891 00:44:59,160 --> 00:45:03,200 Speaker 1: for it. He takes off his hat, wipes his brow. Now, 892 00:45:03,239 --> 00:45:05,040 Speaker 1: this was a signal to a man down the street 893 00:45:05,080 --> 00:45:07,200 Speaker 1: who was waiting down the block in an idoling car. 894 00:45:07,400 --> 00:45:09,879 Speaker 1: This man spots the signal, he pulls the car out 895 00:45:09,880 --> 00:45:12,480 Speaker 1: into traffic, and he drives past the three man standing 896 00:45:12,480 --> 00:45:15,200 Speaker 1: out front of Lindy's. He drives past really slow, like 897 00:45:15,360 --> 00:45:18,400 Speaker 1: so they can see the license plate all clearly, and 898 00:45:18,440 --> 00:45:21,200 Speaker 1: the three gamblers read the license plate in unison and 899 00:45:21,239 --> 00:45:24,399 Speaker 1: it has three threes on it. Get out of here. 900 00:45:24,520 --> 00:45:26,600 Speaker 1: He had, you know how it is three of a 901 00:45:26,640 --> 00:45:29,120 Speaker 1: kind of beats a pair. Titanic Thompson to beat the 902 00:45:29,120 --> 00:45:31,520 Speaker 1: brain yet again. What if it What if he had 903 00:45:31,560 --> 00:45:33,520 Speaker 1: asked me, do you want to bet that? I'd like no, no, 904 00:45:33,719 --> 00:45:36,680 Speaker 1: He's like, I just gave that money figs and walk around. 905 00:45:36,800 --> 00:45:39,080 Speaker 1: He's like, oh, he's got to somehow. Hold on. He 906 00:45:39,120 --> 00:45:44,040 Speaker 1: goes trotting down the street. He's save it for tomorrow. 907 00:45:44,120 --> 00:45:45,560 Speaker 1: Might give me get a new sucker. Come back to 908 00:45:45,640 --> 00:45:49,920 Speaker 1: you anything you're doing tomorrow. So anyway, basically Titanic Thompson. 909 00:45:49,920 --> 00:45:53,360 Speaker 1: He beats the brain yet again, and this time the 910 00:45:53,440 --> 00:45:55,960 Speaker 1: brain is like, man, I can't even mess with you anymore. 911 00:45:55,960 --> 00:45:57,840 Speaker 1: You're just like, oh, because he knew he had been rigged. 912 00:45:57,840 --> 00:46:00,560 Speaker 1: This is not like he just got lucky. One new 913 00:46:00,640 --> 00:46:03,000 Speaker 1: Jersey played happens to go by with three threes. He's like, man, 914 00:46:03,120 --> 00:46:06,719 Speaker 1: come on now, now there's one other big bed amongst 915 00:46:06,920 --> 00:46:09,560 Speaker 1: these fellows. But this is one of the Titanic Thompson 916 00:46:09,640 --> 00:46:11,360 Speaker 1: had nothing to do with, and it was one that 917 00:46:11,400 --> 00:46:14,919 Speaker 1: would later haunt Arnold the Brain Rothstein for the rest 918 00:46:14,920 --> 00:46:17,359 Speaker 1: of his life. In fact, past the rest of his life. 919 00:46:17,520 --> 00:46:20,880 Speaker 1: It is become his legacy. You see in nineteen nineteen, 920 00:46:21,000 --> 00:46:24,919 Speaker 1: Arnold the Brain Rostein rigged the World Series. Oh yeah, 921 00:46:25,000 --> 00:46:27,359 Speaker 1: now that is a ridiculous car. It's called the Black 922 00:46:27,400 --> 00:46:29,520 Speaker 1: Sox Scandal. What have you heard about or what do 923 00:46:29,560 --> 00:46:32,560 Speaker 1: you know about the Black Sox Scandal? There's the movie, right, 924 00:46:32,719 --> 00:46:35,560 Speaker 1: was it? Eight man? You have the John Sales movie? 925 00:46:36,640 --> 00:46:39,799 Speaker 1: So that's it. I was waiting for more. I thought 926 00:46:39,840 --> 00:46:42,080 Speaker 1: maybe you might mention Field of Dreams. I don't know 927 00:46:42,080 --> 00:46:45,239 Speaker 1: where you're gonna go with. I got two covered. In 928 00:46:45,320 --> 00:46:49,040 Speaker 1: nineteen nineteen, the World Series was interestingly a best of 929 00:46:49,120 --> 00:46:52,000 Speaker 1: nine series. Yeah, it was the first year they've done 930 00:46:52,000 --> 00:46:54,600 Speaker 1: it well. The reason they did that is because they 931 00:46:54,600 --> 00:46:58,200 Speaker 1: were experimenting with lengthening the series because there was it 932 00:46:58,320 --> 00:47:00,759 Speaker 1: was a young professional sport basically spault at that time. 933 00:47:00,800 --> 00:47:04,200 Speaker 1: They were they were young. They were experimenting exactly as 934 00:47:04,200 --> 00:47:06,799 Speaker 1: the college years. There was there was two leagues at 935 00:47:06,840 --> 00:47:08,799 Speaker 1: the time. There was the American League in the National League, 936 00:47:08,800 --> 00:47:11,160 Speaker 1: but there was also a third league that most people 937 00:47:11,239 --> 00:47:13,080 Speaker 1: do not know about these days, which is called the 938 00:47:13,120 --> 00:47:15,680 Speaker 1: Federal League. The Federal League only lasted for two days, 939 00:47:16,160 --> 00:47:18,600 Speaker 1: fourteen to nineteen fifteen, but that was enough to give 940 00:47:18,680 --> 00:47:21,479 Speaker 1: Major League Baseball a really good scare. And in fact, 941 00:47:21,560 --> 00:47:23,960 Speaker 1: the Federal League is why we have Wrigley Field. The 942 00:47:24,000 --> 00:47:26,560 Speaker 1: original team to play in Wrigley Field was a Federal 943 00:47:26,680 --> 00:47:29,800 Speaker 1: League team called the Chicago Will and back then it 944 00:47:29,840 --> 00:47:32,279 Speaker 1: was known as Wigman Park, and then later on a 945 00:47:32,520 --> 00:47:35,319 Speaker 1: family chewing gum Empire purchased it and named it after 946 00:47:35,360 --> 00:47:40,120 Speaker 1: a family which you now know as Juicy Fruit. So 947 00:47:40,239 --> 00:47:43,800 Speaker 1: back to back to the Cubs. They lost the series 948 00:47:43,840 --> 00:47:47,080 Speaker 1: in eighteen to the Boston Red Sox. Now, for deep 949 00:47:47,080 --> 00:47:48,680 Speaker 1: baseball fans, I don't have to tell you this, but 950 00:47:48,760 --> 00:47:51,239 Speaker 1: for anybody else, neither one of those teams would win 951 00:47:51,280 --> 00:47:54,400 Speaker 1: another World Series until the twenty first century. It began 952 00:47:54,480 --> 00:47:57,600 Speaker 1: a long curse. People lived and died and never saw 953 00:47:57,640 --> 00:48:00,000 Speaker 1: the man get close to a pennant. So the Red 954 00:48:00,040 --> 00:48:02,040 Speaker 1: Socks finally doing two thousand and four, the Cubs Doudent 955 00:48:04,840 --> 00:48:07,440 Speaker 1: Harry Carry. I once got a signature of his, and 956 00:48:07,480 --> 00:48:09,399 Speaker 1: it was like on a like a like. I saw 957 00:48:09,480 --> 00:48:11,160 Speaker 1: him at the really field at the Cubs game and 958 00:48:11,160 --> 00:48:12,600 Speaker 1: I was like, oh my god. Harry Carry went down 959 00:48:12,640 --> 00:48:14,000 Speaker 1: there and I was like, yeah, may would you sign this? 960 00:48:14,040 --> 00:48:16,000 Speaker 1: And I had the only thing I had on me 961 00:48:16,120 --> 00:48:19,440 Speaker 1: because I'm a basically a young punk is a sharpie 962 00:48:19,520 --> 00:48:21,759 Speaker 1: for like writing on busses and stuff. So I give 963 00:48:21,800 --> 00:48:23,440 Speaker 1: that to him and he writes on the front page 964 00:48:23,440 --> 00:48:26,719 Speaker 1: of the like the slick Chicago Cubs like whatever, like 965 00:48:26,960 --> 00:48:29,960 Speaker 1: you know, basically the gonna score the game. So he 966 00:48:30,120 --> 00:48:33,759 Speaker 1: writes on that, Well, they'd slipped right off. So I 967 00:48:33,800 --> 00:48:39,640 Speaker 1: have a Harry Carry like autograph in my imagination. Anyway, 968 00:48:39,680 --> 00:48:42,520 Speaker 1: So the White Sox, who Harry Carey was a broadcaster 969 00:48:42,680 --> 00:48:45,360 Speaker 1: announcer for it before the Cubs, they were the odds 970 00:48:45,400 --> 00:48:48,799 Speaker 1: on favorite for the World Series, except for there were 971 00:48:48,920 --> 00:48:52,120 Speaker 1: something called gamblers. Now there was a rumor that the 972 00:48:52,160 --> 00:48:55,160 Speaker 1: previous World Series had been fixed, and you know, some 973 00:48:55,160 --> 00:48:56,880 Speaker 1: gamblers are like, man, if that's true, I want in 974 00:48:56,960 --> 00:48:58,919 Speaker 1: on that. Actually, that's a lot of money. You got 975 00:48:58,920 --> 00:49:01,319 Speaker 1: fifty million Americans probably gonna be gambled on this, but 976 00:49:01,360 --> 00:49:02,960 Speaker 1: not all of them, but you know a lot of 977 00:49:02,960 --> 00:49:06,160 Speaker 1: fifty million Americans at that time, we were really into baseball. 978 00:49:06,640 --> 00:49:08,800 Speaker 1: So according to the story, there was a professional gambler 979 00:49:09,000 --> 00:49:13,160 Speaker 1: from Boston. His name was Joseph Sports Sulivan. It's like 980 00:49:13,200 --> 00:49:16,200 Speaker 1: the most generic. Yeah, it's like they ran out of names. 981 00:49:16,239 --> 00:49:18,960 Speaker 1: They're like, Okay, you're gonna be a sports sports Sullivan 982 00:49:19,000 --> 00:49:25,319 Speaker 1: that works fingers and here, Yeah, you're a letter here 983 00:49:25,760 --> 00:49:29,319 Speaker 1: gonna call you a bacon. Okay, So Sports Sullivan and 984 00:49:29,560 --> 00:49:32,400 Speaker 1: this gambler he's like, oh man, I need to do 985 00:49:32,480 --> 00:49:35,040 Speaker 1: something because I got a really crappy nickname. So he's like, oh, 986 00:49:35,080 --> 00:49:38,000 Speaker 1: I'm gonna approach the first baseman Chick Gandle and the 987 00:49:38,040 --> 00:49:40,200 Speaker 1: picture Eddie Sicktt of the White Sox and get them 988 00:49:40,239 --> 00:49:42,440 Speaker 1: to throw a World Series. And they're like, is it 989 00:49:42,520 --> 00:49:45,120 Speaker 1: the White Sox or the Black Sox. Well that's why 990 00:49:45,120 --> 00:49:48,719 Speaker 1: I get into that. But you want White Sox is 991 00:49:48,719 --> 00:49:51,319 Speaker 1: the team name. Black Sox became the nickname for the 992 00:49:51,400 --> 00:49:55,879 Speaker 1: players who were doing makes more sense, Ye, makes sense. 993 00:49:55,880 --> 00:49:58,479 Speaker 1: So this gambler Sports Sullivan, he offers the player ten 994 00:49:58,680 --> 00:50:01,600 Speaker 1: grand each if they tank the series. Uh, it's a 995 00:50:01,600 --> 00:50:03,799 Speaker 1: pretty good amount of money. I mean it's not like 996 00:50:03,840 --> 00:50:07,160 Speaker 1: you know, Titanic Thompson and Arnold the Brain betting kind 997 00:50:07,160 --> 00:50:09,160 Speaker 1: of money, but it's good money. Well, and I don't know, 998 00:50:09,200 --> 00:50:11,960 Speaker 1: how much were these ball players making. This is a 999 00:50:12,000 --> 00:50:13,600 Speaker 1: lot of money for them. This is like a good 1000 00:50:13,640 --> 00:50:16,480 Speaker 1: amount of money. Especially we're talking nineteen that is like, 1001 00:50:16,520 --> 00:50:20,040 Speaker 1: you know, a million whatever dollars. So the story always 1002 00:50:20,080 --> 00:50:23,960 Speaker 1: goes that Sports Sullivan contacted them, but as recent investigations 1003 00:50:23,960 --> 00:50:26,280 Speaker 1: have looked back, they discovered that is far more likely. 1004 00:50:26,320 --> 00:50:29,440 Speaker 1: The Chick Gandle and Eddie Sickett approached the Gamblers. They 1005 00:50:29,520 --> 00:50:31,480 Speaker 1: were like, look, last year some ball players and they 1006 00:50:31,640 --> 00:50:33,839 Speaker 1: rigged the World Series. We could do that for you. 1007 00:50:34,360 --> 00:50:36,239 Speaker 1: The Gamble was like, really, well, you know who we're 1008 00:50:36,239 --> 00:50:39,000 Speaker 1: going to need to get in on this. Everybody else. 1009 00:50:39,080 --> 00:50:40,759 Speaker 1: And the ball players are like, yeah, the rest of 1010 00:50:40,800 --> 00:50:43,640 Speaker 1: my team because I'm a picture. And he's like, we 1011 00:50:43,680 --> 00:50:45,640 Speaker 1: can't do this on our own. I mean so the 1012 00:50:45,640 --> 00:50:47,600 Speaker 1: first base in the picture. I mean, we're important, but 1013 00:50:47,680 --> 00:50:49,759 Speaker 1: not that important. And if we just constantly miss all 1014 00:50:49,760 --> 00:50:52,120 Speaker 1: of our throws, that will look suspicious. So like, okay, 1015 00:50:52,400 --> 00:50:54,399 Speaker 1: So Gamble and sick It are like, look, we can 1016 00:50:54,400 --> 00:50:56,040 Speaker 1: throw the World Series. We can get like, we don't 1017 00:50:56,040 --> 00:50:57,239 Speaker 1: need the whole team, but we need to get a 1018 00:50:57,239 --> 00:50:58,680 Speaker 1: couple more players. Again, it was like how many of 1019 00:50:58,719 --> 00:51:00,319 Speaker 1: you need? And he's like, well, let us talk to them. 1020 00:51:00,360 --> 00:51:02,040 Speaker 1: So they go on, they talk. They talked to h 1021 00:51:02,280 --> 00:51:06,440 Speaker 1: third basement, Buck Weaver, the shortstop, Swede Ristberg. There's a picture, 1022 00:51:06,480 --> 00:51:09,280 Speaker 1: Lefty Williams, the center fielder, Happy Felch, and third baseman 1023 00:51:09,280 --> 00:51:11,600 Speaker 1: Fred McMullin. So they're like, okay, hold on, we gotta 1024 00:51:11,600 --> 00:51:16,680 Speaker 1: talk to Buck, Swede, Lefty, Happy and Fred and Fred. 1025 00:51:17,520 --> 00:51:19,359 Speaker 1: And then also that you have to keep in mind 1026 00:51:19,719 --> 00:51:21,839 Speaker 1: the star of the team I've not mentioned yet, Joe 1027 00:51:21,920 --> 00:51:26,319 Speaker 1: Jackson with the best nickname Sulis Joe. Yeah that's right. Yeah, 1028 00:51:26,320 --> 00:51:27,960 Speaker 1: so Shelis Joe got a get in there too, with 1029 00:51:28,040 --> 00:51:30,920 Speaker 1: Lefty and Buck and Happy and Swede. So I love 1030 00:51:30,960 --> 00:51:34,760 Speaker 1: how I only know these like little bled in parts 1031 00:51:34,760 --> 00:51:37,560 Speaker 1: of it, Like yeah, right, I think I've learned. I 1032 00:51:37,640 --> 00:51:40,239 Speaker 1: knew this at one point, but you did, Yeah, you know, 1033 00:51:40,280 --> 00:51:47,280 Speaker 1: you breathe in enough solvent well to refresh your solvent 1034 00:51:47,360 --> 00:51:50,520 Speaker 1: stained memory. The White Sox decide, Okay, we got a 1035 00:51:50,600 --> 00:51:52,560 Speaker 1: eight of us. We're gonna be able to throw there. Okay, 1036 00:51:52,560 --> 00:51:55,720 Speaker 1: that's enough. But they go back to the gamblers, like, okay, 1037 00:51:56,080 --> 00:51:57,880 Speaker 1: we fixed the world series where it's gonna cost you 1038 00:51:57,920 --> 00:52:00,440 Speaker 1: eighty dollars for all of us dirty ballplayers, and the 1039 00:52:00,480 --> 00:52:03,640 Speaker 1: gamblers like, oh yeah, that's a little more than we 1040 00:52:03,680 --> 00:52:05,560 Speaker 1: expected to pay. We're gonna need to call in somebody. 1041 00:52:05,600 --> 00:52:07,759 Speaker 1: So they go to the man nicknamed the Big bank 1042 00:52:07,880 --> 00:52:10,880 Speaker 1: Roll a k a. The Brain. They're like, hey, Brain, 1043 00:52:11,920 --> 00:52:14,600 Speaker 1: what can we do about this? So the gamblers they 1044 00:52:14,680 --> 00:52:19,400 Speaker 1: get these other gamblers, Sleepy Bill Burns, and a retired 1045 00:52:19,400 --> 00:52:23,160 Speaker 1: prize fighter Billy Maharg and the gamblers because Sleepy bill 1046 00:52:23,200 --> 00:52:26,000 Speaker 1: Burns was actually like a kind of a surrogate underling 1047 00:52:26,160 --> 00:52:27,719 Speaker 1: of the brain, so they're like, hey, go go talk 1048 00:52:27,719 --> 00:52:31,120 Speaker 1: to your boss in the brain. So Sleepy hits the 1049 00:52:31,160 --> 00:52:33,200 Speaker 1: brain up. He's like, hey, man, I got this new, 1050 00:52:33,560 --> 00:52:36,480 Speaker 1: this new uh investment opportunity for you. And brains like, 1051 00:52:36,520 --> 00:52:38,520 Speaker 1: all right, tell me about it. So they set up 1052 00:52:38,520 --> 00:52:40,600 Speaker 1: a meeting. So the brain shows up to this meeting. 1053 00:52:40,640 --> 00:52:43,400 Speaker 1: It's the night before the opening game of the World Series. 1054 00:52:43,880 --> 00:52:46,480 Speaker 1: The brain meets with these professional gamblers. He sits down, 1055 00:52:46,520 --> 00:52:48,239 Speaker 1: they tell him about the fix. They're like, look, man, 1056 00:52:48,400 --> 00:52:50,440 Speaker 1: we got it all worked out, and they tell him 1057 00:52:50,520 --> 00:52:52,000 Speaker 1: this is how much it will be. It'll be about 1058 00:52:52,040 --> 00:52:54,640 Speaker 1: a hundred thousand dollars for you to pay for all 1059 00:52:54,680 --> 00:52:57,600 Speaker 1: of the ball players and the fixers and we got 1060 00:52:57,600 --> 00:52:59,359 Speaker 1: it covered and then you can bet whatever you want. 1061 00:52:59,520 --> 00:53:03,480 Speaker 1: But they're like twenty dollar finders fee and that good 1062 00:53:03,560 --> 00:53:05,520 Speaker 1: good math. Right, So the brain is like a hundred 1063 00:53:05,520 --> 00:53:07,640 Speaker 1: thousand dollars to fix the world series. It's not a 1064 00:53:07,719 --> 00:53:09,879 Speaker 1: bad and they're like, yeah, we got it all lined 1065 00:53:09,960 --> 00:53:12,479 Speaker 1: up already, and Sleepy Bill Burns is like yeah, tell him, Billy, 1066 00:53:12,480 --> 00:53:14,560 Speaker 1: and Billy's like yeah, hey, brain, we got it all 1067 00:53:14,600 --> 00:53:16,840 Speaker 1: lined up. It's like you got it all. All the 1068 00:53:16,840 --> 00:53:19,480 Speaker 1: players are down yep, and like you you paid them? No, 1069 00:53:19,520 --> 00:53:20,880 Speaker 1: we haven't paid them yet, but they're gonna do it. 1070 00:53:20,920 --> 00:53:22,600 Speaker 1: We just have to pay them after a couple of games. 1071 00:53:23,160 --> 00:53:26,200 Speaker 1: M No, I'm not doing it, but like, what do 1072 00:53:26,239 --> 00:53:28,640 Speaker 1: you mean you're not doing He's like why would I 1073 00:53:28,880 --> 00:53:31,800 Speaker 1: do it? And they're like because you're the brain, Rosty, 1074 00:53:31,840 --> 00:53:34,359 Speaker 1: and you were the financier. You were the Underworld's bank. 1075 00:53:34,400 --> 00:53:36,040 Speaker 1: And he's like, yeah, no, I'm not going to ruin 1076 00:53:36,080 --> 00:53:39,520 Speaker 1: my reputation. He walks out, But that wasn't the real thinking. 1077 00:53:39,520 --> 00:53:43,800 Speaker 1: He had ruined his reputation. Well, he can't get involved 1078 00:53:43,800 --> 00:53:49,520 Speaker 1: in some like Penny Anny. And also these two rather 1079 00:53:50,600 --> 00:53:53,799 Speaker 1: less professional gamblers, Sleepy Bill Burns and Billy mar Hark. 1080 00:53:54,200 --> 00:53:57,080 Speaker 1: They had told the brain everything he needed to know. 1081 00:53:57,239 --> 00:53:59,480 Speaker 1: He's basically, like, you told me the fixes in, you 1082 00:53:59,520 --> 00:54:01,560 Speaker 1: told me we team you paid off. Why would I 1083 00:54:01,560 --> 00:54:04,279 Speaker 1: give you money now? Yeah. He They essentially went to 1084 00:54:04,440 --> 00:54:08,200 Speaker 1: like the best bank robber in the world and laid 1085 00:54:08,280 --> 00:54:10,799 Speaker 1: out the blueprints to the bank they were going to rob. 1086 00:54:11,320 --> 00:54:13,919 Speaker 1: Told him they told him everything, So if you could 1087 00:54:13,960 --> 00:54:16,400 Speaker 1: just give us a little seed money, we can make 1088 00:54:16,440 --> 00:54:18,080 Speaker 1: this happen. And he said, He's like, I'll just pay 1089 00:54:18,120 --> 00:54:19,920 Speaker 1: someone else to rob that same bank. I'll just do 1090 00:54:19,920 --> 00:54:21,839 Speaker 1: it myself right at the same time, and then everyone 1091 00:54:21,840 --> 00:54:24,640 Speaker 1: will go after you guys like perfect. Oh, I can 1092 00:54:24,680 --> 00:54:26,920 Speaker 1: see where they call it. A brain's just going to 1093 00:54:27,000 --> 00:54:30,880 Speaker 1: say that. So regardless if he arranged it or if 1094 00:54:30,880 --> 00:54:33,160 Speaker 1: he had bankrolled it, the brain is such a presence 1095 00:54:33,200 --> 00:54:35,759 Speaker 1: in the underworld that everyone assumes that if the fix 1096 00:54:35,880 --> 00:54:38,600 Speaker 1: is in, he must have done it. Oh. Yeah. And 1097 00:54:38,760 --> 00:54:41,440 Speaker 1: when I say everyone, I mean like even f Scott 1098 00:54:41,440 --> 00:54:46,240 Speaker 1: Fitzgerald knew about it. Yeah, Scott Fitzgerald he heard wind 1099 00:54:46,239 --> 00:54:48,040 Speaker 1: of this rumor and he added it to his book 1100 00:54:48,040 --> 00:54:50,960 Speaker 1: that he was writing at the time, The Great Gats Right. Yeah, 1101 00:54:51,160 --> 00:54:53,160 Speaker 1: and like, but he didn't call him the brain because 1102 00:54:53,160 --> 00:54:55,080 Speaker 1: he was like worried that, like the gambler gangster would 1103 00:54:55,080 --> 00:54:57,040 Speaker 1: go and kill him. So he's like, I'm name him 1104 00:54:57,080 --> 00:55:00,880 Speaker 1: a something anti semitic, like meyer Wolf Shine. Right, So 1105 00:55:01,040 --> 00:55:03,080 Speaker 1: he comes at him and he has Nick Carraway meat 1106 00:55:03,120 --> 00:55:05,680 Speaker 1: at a luncheon and get introduced by Jay Gatsby and 1107 00:55:05,760 --> 00:55:09,359 Speaker 1: this gangster gambler anti semitic trope meyra Wolfsheim. He is 1108 00:55:09,800 --> 00:55:11,960 Speaker 1: looking sharp in a suit with cuff links made out 1109 00:55:12,000 --> 00:55:14,640 Speaker 1: of the muellers of a human being, right, remember that detail. 1110 00:55:16,120 --> 00:55:19,440 Speaker 1: So Scott Fitzgerald, not a fan of the juice, he 1111 00:55:19,640 --> 00:55:22,759 Speaker 1: goes through with this wildly anti semitic thing where he 1112 00:55:22,800 --> 00:55:28,400 Speaker 1: basically pins all of the evils of America on this guy. Yeah, exactly. 1113 00:55:28,520 --> 00:55:31,080 Speaker 1: Here's how a Scott Fitzgerald writes some great Gatsby quote. 1114 00:55:31,600 --> 00:55:34,080 Speaker 1: The idea staggered me. I remembered, of course, that the 1115 00:55:34,120 --> 00:55:37,560 Speaker 1: world series had been fixed in nineteen nineteen. But if 1116 00:55:37,600 --> 00:55:39,960 Speaker 1: I had thought of it at all, I would have 1117 00:55:40,000 --> 00:55:42,200 Speaker 1: thought of it as a thing that merely happened the 1118 00:55:42,320 --> 00:55:45,239 Speaker 1: end of some inevitable chain. It never occurred to me 1119 00:55:45,360 --> 00:55:48,680 Speaker 1: that one man could start to play with the faith 1120 00:55:49,040 --> 00:55:52,440 Speaker 1: of fifty million people. With the single mindedness of a 1121 00:55:52,520 --> 00:55:58,120 Speaker 1: burglar blowing a safe. Yeah, so that's his rendition of 1122 00:55:58,160 --> 00:56:01,600 Speaker 1: the power of American individualism. Well, let's blame this guy. 1123 00:56:02,000 --> 00:56:05,560 Speaker 1: So meanwhile, pull under bootsteps, kids, because f Scott Fitzgerald 1124 00:56:05,640 --> 00:56:08,120 Speaker 1: was wrong, Arnold the Brain Rosty and had not fixed 1125 00:56:08,120 --> 00:56:10,840 Speaker 1: the World Series. He was way too smart for that. Instead, 1126 00:56:10,880 --> 00:56:12,799 Speaker 1: he just profited off of it and allowed some people 1127 00:56:12,840 --> 00:56:15,680 Speaker 1: to gamble. But a year later, all these whispers about 1128 00:56:15,760 --> 00:56:17,799 Speaker 1: Arnold the Brain Rosty and fixed the World Series they 1129 00:56:17,800 --> 00:56:21,080 Speaker 1: bubble up into an investigation, a criminal investigation. They're in indictments. 1130 00:56:21,160 --> 00:56:23,879 Speaker 1: It's like a big deal. During the investigation, the Brain, 1131 00:56:24,160 --> 00:56:26,279 Speaker 1: the New York Times comes to him. They're like, hey, man, Brain, 1132 00:56:26,320 --> 00:56:28,440 Speaker 1: did you do this? And he's like, y'all no better 1133 00:56:28,480 --> 00:56:31,239 Speaker 1: than that, son, And he says, and I quote my 1134 00:56:31,360 --> 00:56:33,440 Speaker 1: friends know that I have never been connected with a 1135 00:56:33,480 --> 00:56:36,439 Speaker 1: crooked deal in my life. But I am heartily sick 1136 00:56:36,480 --> 00:56:38,640 Speaker 1: and tired of having my name dragged in on the 1137 00:56:38,719 --> 00:56:43,080 Speaker 1: slightest provocation whenever a scandal comes up. Yeah. Meanwhile, the 1138 00:56:43,080 --> 00:56:47,040 Speaker 1: Brain gets indicted, so he has to go into court, 1139 00:56:47,080 --> 00:56:49,800 Speaker 1: but the trial doesn't last a terribly long time and 1140 00:56:49,840 --> 00:56:52,319 Speaker 1: eventually gets cleared. Of all charges or any involvement in 1141 00:56:52,360 --> 00:56:55,360 Speaker 1: fixing the series, because as they interview people like Sleepy 1142 00:56:55,360 --> 00:56:57,759 Speaker 1: Bill Burns, they tell them he told us no, so 1143 00:56:57,920 --> 00:57:00,680 Speaker 1: there is no paper trail. Bryce, and he's like, I 1144 00:57:00,680 --> 00:57:03,520 Speaker 1: amin't gonna be dragged in with his nonsense. Meanwhile, the 1145 00:57:03,520 --> 00:57:05,760 Speaker 1: owners of Major League Baseball they create a new position 1146 00:57:05,760 --> 00:57:07,640 Speaker 1: because now they have a scandal on their hands. People 1147 00:57:07,640 --> 00:57:09,480 Speaker 1: are getting dragged into court because people are fixing the 1148 00:57:09,480 --> 00:57:12,200 Speaker 1: World Series and this is bad not just for sports, 1149 00:57:12,200 --> 00:57:14,560 Speaker 1: but for you know, the integrity of the game. So 1150 00:57:14,760 --> 00:57:17,760 Speaker 1: they hired this dude. Judge kennisaw mountain landis a retired 1151 00:57:17,880 --> 00:57:22,760 Speaker 1: judge who's brought in to clean up baseball. He stammed 1152 00:57:22,760 --> 00:57:26,280 Speaker 1: after a Civil War battle. Wow Kenna saw mountain So 1153 00:57:26,440 --> 00:57:28,560 Speaker 1: he banned the eight players who have taken money to 1154 00:57:28,560 --> 00:57:30,480 Speaker 1: throw the World Series. They're all kicked out of the 1155 00:57:30,480 --> 00:57:32,880 Speaker 1: game for life. Buck Weaver argued that he had never 1156 00:57:33,000 --> 00:57:36,280 Speaker 1: done this till his dying day. Sheeless Joe Jackson. He 1157 00:57:36,320 --> 00:57:39,120 Speaker 1: takes his punishment because he knew he didn't so, but 1158 00:57:39,240 --> 00:57:41,400 Speaker 1: that's the great loss of the sports. Basically, sheeless Joe 1159 00:57:41,480 --> 00:57:43,280 Speaker 1: Jackson and then the heart of Buck Weaver, and then 1160 00:57:43,280 --> 00:57:45,000 Speaker 1: the Eddie sick. Cutting up to Willams was pretty good 1161 00:57:45,000 --> 00:57:46,520 Speaker 1: pictures that he's sick. It was actually really good picture. 1162 00:57:46,760 --> 00:57:49,080 Speaker 1: But anyway, the other great loss is that this new 1163 00:57:49,120 --> 00:57:52,840 Speaker 1: commissioner was a virulent bigot. Yeah, can you believe it? 1164 00:57:53,040 --> 00:57:55,000 Speaker 1: So he decides, with his new power over baseball that 1165 00:57:55,040 --> 00:57:57,439 Speaker 1: he will rule to protect the integrity and the image 1166 00:57:57,440 --> 00:57:59,240 Speaker 1: of the game. So he decides that black players will 1167 00:57:59,240 --> 00:58:03,280 Speaker 1: also be banned the Major League Baseball. There were no 1168 00:58:03,360 --> 00:58:05,960 Speaker 1: black players involved in the Black Sox scandal. They were 1169 00:58:06,000 --> 00:58:08,320 Speaker 1: gonna play black players on that team. But Judge Ladd 1170 00:58:08,400 --> 00:58:10,280 Speaker 1: is like, well, I gotta protect the game, so he 1171 00:58:10,360 --> 00:58:12,320 Speaker 1: decided black people who cannot be a part of this. 1172 00:58:13,920 --> 00:58:16,120 Speaker 1: He makes it illegal for Babe Ruth's All Stars to 1173 00:58:16,200 --> 00:58:18,920 Speaker 1: play exhibition games against the grou League players. And this 1174 00:58:19,120 --> 00:58:22,520 Speaker 1: essentially becomes the color line band that you hear about 1175 00:58:22,560 --> 00:58:27,160 Speaker 1: in Baseball that Jackie Robinson had to break in. That 1176 00:58:27,240 --> 00:58:29,720 Speaker 1: all comes down to this black Socks scandal, and basically 1177 00:58:29,800 --> 00:58:33,800 Speaker 1: because they have these Jewish underworld figures and this idea 1178 00:58:33,880 --> 00:58:36,760 Speaker 1: that though black people are playing exhibition games, things are changing, 1179 00:58:36,800 --> 00:58:39,440 Speaker 1: they decided to throw it all together, like no black socks, 1180 00:58:39,720 --> 00:58:45,520 Speaker 1: no blacks, And so meanwhile everyone preferred to focus on 1181 00:58:45,600 --> 00:58:47,720 Speaker 1: the legend of all the Brain Rothstein, and they credited 1182 00:58:47,800 --> 00:58:50,800 Speaker 1: him with this fix that he'd never actually arranged. Of 1183 00:58:50,920 --> 00:58:53,720 Speaker 1: all the crazy things that this dude did, like inventing 1184 00:58:53,880 --> 00:58:57,640 Speaker 1: the heroin trade, pretty much revitalizing bootlegging, or actually, I 1185 00:58:57,680 --> 00:58:59,920 Speaker 1: guess kind of inventing all of the tropes of bootlegging. 1186 00:59:00,080 --> 00:59:02,960 Speaker 1: We think of his criminal ways to get paid, all 1187 00:59:03,040 --> 00:59:05,640 Speaker 1: this stuff, being the banker to the mob, helping the 1188 00:59:05,720 --> 00:59:09,320 Speaker 1: mafia create a commission and create like the various structures. 1189 00:59:09,520 --> 00:59:11,320 Speaker 1: None of that does he get credit for. Instead, everyone 1190 00:59:11,360 --> 00:59:13,160 Speaker 1: talks about this one thing that he did not do, 1191 00:59:13,280 --> 00:59:18,520 Speaker 1: which is fixed the World series. That's ridiculous. That is ridiculous. 1192 00:59:18,600 --> 00:59:20,200 Speaker 1: Not the good kind of ridiculous. It's more like the 1193 00:59:20,240 --> 00:59:23,480 Speaker 1: American history kind of ridiculous. But this is why I 1194 00:59:23,560 --> 00:59:25,360 Speaker 1: prefer to focus on the stories of the Brain and 1195 00:59:25,400 --> 00:59:28,200 Speaker 1: Titanic Thompson from their days as gamblers, as characters from 1196 00:59:28,200 --> 00:59:31,320 Speaker 1: that Damon Runyon story, and his inspirations for Nathan Detroit 1197 00:59:31,400 --> 00:59:34,000 Speaker 1: and Sky Matterson. That to me is the good kind 1198 00:59:34,040 --> 00:59:36,120 Speaker 1: of ridiculous. That is a great kind of ridiculous. So, 1199 00:59:36,240 --> 00:59:38,919 Speaker 1: Elizabeth Dutton, what is your ridiculous takeaway from this story. 1200 00:59:39,160 --> 00:59:44,480 Speaker 1: My ridiculous takeaway is that, um, you just gotta make 1201 00:59:44,520 --> 00:59:49,240 Speaker 1: sure you got a solid nickname and like and then 1202 00:59:49,360 --> 00:59:52,920 Speaker 1: after that, just go where the wind takes you and hello, 1203 00:59:53,280 --> 00:59:56,480 Speaker 1: carry around a weighted peanut. Yeah, that is that was 1204 00:59:56,600 --> 00:59:58,600 Speaker 1: you took mine. That was exactly what I was gonna say, 1205 00:59:58,680 --> 01:00:00,200 Speaker 1: because I was like, I need to get back into 1206 01:00:00,280 --> 01:00:04,000 Speaker 1: carrying around like sham goods and doctored things. It's a 1207 01:00:04,120 --> 01:00:07,360 Speaker 1: life hack. And I've learned to never accept a coin 1208 01:00:07,480 --> 01:00:12,040 Speaker 1: flip fet from you. Yes, my sister, we can tell 1209 01:00:12,040 --> 01:00:14,400 Speaker 1: you all the things about to trust about. I learned 1210 01:00:14,400 --> 01:00:16,919 Speaker 1: a lot today. Yeah, if we if we all learned 1211 01:00:16,960 --> 01:00:20,320 Speaker 1: some things and you learned important things. Well, thank you 1212 01:00:20,400 --> 01:00:24,080 Speaker 1: for joining us. I'm Elizabeth Dutton, I'm Zaren Burnett. You 1213 01:00:24,160 --> 01:00:27,040 Speaker 1: can find us online Ever Ridiculous Crime on both Twitter 1214 01:00:27,240 --> 01:00:30,160 Speaker 1: and Instagram. Thank you for joining us. No, thank you, 1215 01:00:30,760 --> 01:00:40,120 Speaker 1: thank you, Thank you everybody, and we thank you. Ridiculous 1216 01:00:40,160 --> 01:00:43,080 Speaker 1: Crime is hosted by Elizabeth Dutton and Zarin Burnett, produced 1217 01:00:43,120 --> 01:00:45,680 Speaker 1: and edited by the real Commissioner of Major League Badassory 1218 01:00:45,800 --> 01:00:48,760 Speaker 1: Dave Kusten. Research is by the ever Skeptical never Easily 1219 01:00:48,840 --> 01:00:51,880 Speaker 1: conn to Marissa Brown. Our theme song is by Sleepy 1220 01:00:51,960 --> 01:00:55,440 Speaker 1: Thomas Lee and Travis the love Boat Dutton. Executive producers 1221 01:00:55,440 --> 01:00:59,320 Speaker 1: are Ben Big Hickory Bowland and Noel the Spling Brown 1222 01:01:00,080 --> 01:01:09,920 Speaker 1: m das que say It one more Time, We Dequeous Crime. 1223 01:01:11,040 --> 01:01:13,680 Speaker 1: Ridiculous Crime is a production of I heart Radio. Four 1224 01:01:13,760 --> 01:01:15,920 Speaker 1: more podcasts to my heart Radio, visit the i heart 1225 01:01:15,960 --> 01:01:18,680 Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 1226 01:01:18,720 --> 01:01:19,440 Speaker 1: favorite shows.