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N0KFQ > TODAY 04.11.14 17:02l 52 Lines 2336 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 39242_N0KFQ
Read: GUEST
Subj: Today in History - Nov 4
Path: IW8PGT<IZ3LSV<I0OJJ<N6RME<CX2SA<N0KFQ
Sent: 141104/1459Z 39242@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQK1.4.60
Nov 4, 1928:
One of New York's most notorious gamblers is shot to death
Arnold Rothstein, New York's most notorious gambler, is shot and
killed during a poker game at the Park Central Hotel in
Manhattan. After finding Rothstein bleeding profusely at the
service entrance of the hotel, police followed his trail of blood
back to a suite where a group of men were playing cards.
Reportedly, Rothstein had nothing good in his final hand.
From an early age, Rothstein had a talent for playing numbers. As
a teenager, he built a small fortune gambling in craps and poker
games, and by age 20 he owned and operated his own casino.
Rothstein became a legendary figure in New York because of his
unparalleled winning streak in bets and card games. However, it
is believed that he usually won by fixing the events. The most
famous instance of this was in 1919 when the World Series was
fixed. Abe Attell, a friend and employee of Rothstein, paid some
of the key players on the Chicago White Sox to throw the games.
When the scandal was uncovered, Rothstein fiercely denied any
involvement to a grand jury and escaped indictment. In private,
however, Rothstein never denied his role, preferring to enjoy the
outlaw image.
In the 1920's, Rothstein began purchasing nightclubs, racehorses,
and brothels. He had such a formidable presence in the criminal
underworld that he was reportedly once paid half a million
dollars to mediate a gang war. As Rothstein's fortune grew to an
estimated $50 million, he became a high-level loan shark,
liberally padding the pockets of police and judges to evade the
law. He is fabled to have carried around $200,000 in pocket money
at all times.
Rothstein's luck finally ran out in 1928 when he encountered an
unprecedented losing streak. At a poker game in September with
"Hump" McManus, "Nigger Nate" Raymond, and "Titanic" Thompson,
Rothstein lost a cool $320,000 and then refused to pay on the
grounds that the game had been rigged. Two months later, McManus
invited Rothstein to play what would be his final poker game.
Asked who had shot him before dying, Rothstein reportedly put his
finger to his lips, keeping the gangsters' code of silence.
McManus was later tried and acquitted of the crime.
73, K.O. n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
E-mail: kohiggs@gmail.com
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