THE DIRTY FILTHY TRUTH ON DEALING IN LAS VEGAS

The longer I'm in this business, the more I hate it. The rich keep getting richer, the poor STAY poor. They do everything they can to sucker people in and the more they try, the more it works.

Rooms aren't selling and yet come March there will be 12,000 new rooms. Rows of slots go unplayed and they're still making money and their only solution is ADD MORE SLOTS, MORE TABLES. (There's even a slot machine where you have to get King Kong to climb the Empire State Building by pumping quarters in against a time clock, I swear!) Next they will play recorded sounds of coins dropping in trays over the intercom because the usual noises are slowly drying up. Steve Wynn pumps the smell of flowers into the air to make you feel cozy and stay longer, like you're gambling in a forest.

It reminds me of the old Paul Newman-Jackie Gleason movie "The Hustler". In the beginning, Newman and his money man are in a bar "getting drunk" and start playing pool. They're missing every shot like they're not very good but Newman makes an "impossible" bank shot for a few bucks and then he says they're a couple of salesmen on their way to Pittsburg for a convention. When his buddy pays him for making the "luckiest shot I've ever seen", Newman staggers and says, "hell, I can make that shot again" so his buddy says: "I've got $100 that says you can't". So Newman sets up the shot and misses it by a yard; pays his buddy the $100 and says: "I'll bet you $200 I can make it", but his buddy says forget it, but the bartender (Vincent Gardina) jumps up pours him a drink and says I'll take that bet, so Newman staggers, drinks down the shot, takes $200 in crumpled up bills from his pocket, sets the "impossible" bank shot back up and of course nails the ball in the corner pocket for $200. All of a sudden he's not staggering anymore, he takes the sucker bartender's $200 and walks straight out of the bar, then meets his buddy in the car and gives him his share of the sucker's money. Of course, those of us watching the movie know how easy it was to hustle the bartender out of his $200, he just had to make the bartender really believe it was easy money and that he was just going to "rob" Newman, the poor drunk who never had a chance.

That's exactly what the casinos do, they make you believe that they really haven't much of a chance of beating you, but if you want to bet, you can just walk in the door and the "dream" will come true; they'll just hand you stacks of money. Don't waste all that time working for earned money, just come in and we'll GIVE you in minutes what it takes you months to earn honestly. Than when you lose, they buy you a drink, maybe a buffet if you lost enough, pat you on the back and say, "oh no, you lost! Here, have a drink and try again, I know you can win, NEXT TIME, just don't give up". We'll even "buy" you a room if you should lose. So you'll feel indebted to them to gamble a little. Now they've got you!

As a dealer for over a decade, I can't tell you how empty people feel after losing their money and then they come to the realization that the money has to come from somewhere and therefore they'll have to go without, or at least have to work so many hours, days, weeks, months to make up for what they just lost in literally minutes. And where's the owner? Living high off the hog with your "winnings" that never happened.

I'm certainly not perfect, but I haven't gambled (casino) or drank in years and years, but I see the excitement on their faces like children that are going to get away with a crime and be rich when they walk in, than the emptiness when they "get caught" and walk out broke and no one cares. It's sad and getting sadder.

Sorry to bend your ear.....but it's getting increasingly harder to be a part of the "hustle" anymore. Respect is leaving Las Vegas if you don't pay for it; you should get something to show for your hard-earned money, not just cheap food and booze just to be told "sorry, but you'll have to leave the table if you don't have anymore money, the seats are for players only and oh yes, you'll have to be out of the room by 11 am".

Happy New Year, be careful. Lose what you can afford. Go back & read up on Money Management & know when to quit & walk away for a show, or just a stroll down Las Vegas Blvd & stare at the lights (IT'S FREE). Please DO NOT GO BROKE for a free buffet. $3000 wagered will get get one, yet you can buy it for under $25. So learn Las Vegas, or any gaming area, and have the best time as a SMART PLAYER. You will thank us later!

---Kenny Pearlman