when you love someone, you've gotta trust them. there's no other way. you've got to give them the key to everything that's yours. otherwise, what's the point? and, for a while.  i believed that's the kind of love i had.
before i ever ran a casino or got myself blown up, ace rothstein was a hell of a handicapper, i can tell you that. i was so good, that whenever i bet, i could change the odds for every bookmaker in the country. i'm serious. i had it down so cold that i was given paradise on earth. i was given one of the biggest casinos in las vegas to run, the tangiers.
by the only kind of guys that can actually get you that kind of money: sixty-two million, seven-hundred thousand dollars. i don't know all the details.
at that time, vegas was a place where millions of suckers flew in every year on their own nickel, and left behind about a billion dollars. but at night, you couldn't see the desert that surrounds las vegas.
but it's in the desert where lots of the town's problems are solved.
who could resist? anywhere else in the country, i was a bookie, a gambler, always lookin' over my shoulder, hassled by cops, day and night. but here, i'm 'mr sam rothstein'. i'm not only legitimate, but running a casino. and that's like selling dreams for cash.
i hired an old casino pal, billy sherbert, as my manager and i went to work.
for guys like me, las vegas washes away your sins. it's a morality car wash. it does for us what lourdes does for humpbacks and cripples. and, along with making us legit.
comes cash. tons of it. i mean, what do you think we're doing out here in the middle of the desert? it's all this money. this is the end result of all the bright lights and the comped trips, of all the champagne and free hotel suites, and all the broads and all the booze. it's all been arranged just for us to get your money. that's the truth about las vegas.
we're the only winners. the players don't stand a chance. and their cash flows from the tables to our boxes . through the cage and into the most sacred room in the casino . the place where they add up all the money . the holy of holies . the count room.
now this place was off limits.
even i couldn't get inside, but it was my job to keep it filled with cash. that's for sure.
as far as the world was concerned andy stone, the head of the teamsters' pension fund, was a legitimate guy.
a powerful man.
he even played golf with the president.
but andy also took orders. and when he was told to give a pension fund loan to philip green.
he did what he was told.
you know, i don't know if i could do this even if i wanted to. the gaming commission would never give me a license. i have at least two dozen gambling and bookmaking pinches on me.
but what happens when they do find out?
it's a tough proposition, andy. you, you know, if i did it, i'd have to run it my way.
i'm serious. no interference.
where the hell did you learn how to deal?
(to the chastised
i'll take columbia for twenty.
well, that's why they paid so well.
well, it's a little too early. i'd say thursday would be good. i'll know by then. is that all right?
i'll come by.
seven o'clock.
yeah, we made a great pair. i made book and nicky made sure we always collected. the old men loved us. and why not? they all made money with us.
how did nicky collect?
don't ask.
hi, melissa. heidi.
eight.
excuse me.
is this yours? your pen?
i ju- well, it's a nice pen. i just didn't know whose it was. i thought it was yours. i didn't want it to get lost.
well, i was just offering you the-
wait a sec, nicky, nicky, nicky. ta- take it easy.
while i was tryin' to figure out why the guy was sayin' what he was sayin', nicky just hit him. no matter how big a guy might be, nicky would take him on. you beat nicky with fists, he comes back with a bat. you beat him with a knife, he comes back with a gun. and you beat him with a gun, you better kill him, because he'll keep comin' back and back until one of you is dead.
in vegas, i had to keep a few juiced- in local cowboys working. they were close to the, you know, good old boys.
pay him six hundred a week, tell him to walk around and look smart.
i mean, without us, these guys, they'd still be shovellin' mule shit.
ward, you gotta keep a cleaner station. if you need 'mr clean', page him, all right?
mr rothstein.
is this guy just another dumb fuckin' white man, or what? what's his story?
we can't get rid of him?
i wouldn't give the bum a mop job.
these yokels ran the state.
they passed the laws, they owned the courts.
hello, senator.
good to see ya. william would you.
i had dozens of politicians and state officials comin' through that place every week.
help the senator, give him whatever he wants.
why not make them happy?
for politicians.
like our state senator up there, everything was on the house.
these guys won their comped life when they got elected. so, hey, why not take advantage of it? still, the politicians come cheap. we could handle them.
it's a whale like k. k. ichikawa, who plays thirty thousand dollars a hand in baccarat. that's the one you really gotta watch.
he plays fast and big and he has the cash and the credit to turn out your lights. about a year ago, he cleaned out a couple of casinos in the cayman islands.
downstairs, he takes us for two million.  and upstairs he takes free soap, shampoo and towels. another billionaire cheapskate who loves his free rooms.
free private jets, and two million of our money.
nice to see you again.
but we got him back. i had our pilot tell him the plane was on the fritz.
then he missed the commercial flights connecting with japan.
we got him back . with a whole floor of rooms for himself.
i'm sorry you missed the plane.
no, no, no. no gambling. no.
he bet one thousand a hand instead of his usual thirty thousand a hand.
but i knew, the trick with whales like ichikawa was that they can't bet small for long. he didn't think of it as winning ten thousand, he thought of it as losing ninety thousand.
so, he upped his bets.
until he dropped his winnings back and gave up a million of his own cash.
in the casino, the cardinal rule is to keep them playing.
and keep them coming back. the longer they play, the more they lose. in the end, we get it all.
in vegas, everybody's gotta watch everybody else.
since the players are looking to beat the casino.
the dealers are watching the players.
the box men are watching the dealers.
the floor men are watching the box men.
the pit bosses are watching the floor men.
the shift bosses are watching the pit bosses.
the casino manager is watching the shift bosses.
i'm watching the casino manager.
and the eye-in-the-sky is watching us all.
plus.
we had a dozen guys up there, most of them ex-cheats, who knew every trick in the house.
what a move. i fell in love right there.
but in vegas, for a girl like ginger, love costs money.
ginger's mission in life was money.
see you, ginger.
she was a queen around the casino. she brought in high rollers and helped them spread around a lot of money.
who didn't want ginger? she was one of the best-known, best-liked and most respected hustlers in town. smart hustlers like her could keep a guy awake for two or three days before sending him home broke to the little woman and his bank examiners.
any change?
that was all bullshit. she just pocketed the cash.
ginger had the hustler's code.
she knew how to take care of people. and that's what vegas was all about.
it's kickback city.
she took care of the dealers.
pit bosses, floor managers.
but mostly.
she took care of the valet parkers, the guys who could get you anything and take care of anything.
ginger took care of the parkers because they took care of the security guards, who took care of the metro cops, who let her operate.
the valet parking job was such a money-maker that they had to pay off the hotel manager just to get the concession.
but one thing i could never understand, was that she could have everything under control, except for her old pimp boyfriend, lester diamond.
the ginger i knew wouldn't even look at this creep.
he was a moocher, a card cheat, a country-club golf hustler. a scumbag.  chasing dentists for a few bucks.
i mean, the guy was always broke, he always had a story. and somehow, she could never turn him down. the way ginger saw it, i guess, was that lester was just an unlucky guy. somebody had to take care of him.
but nobody had to take care of nicky.
i mean, he took care of himself only too well. and that's why every badge back home wanted to nail him.
even after a little vacation, they hassled him at the airport.
i mean, frank marino was there to meet him, but so were the cops. this time they wanted to pinch him for some diamond burglary in antwerp.
they were ready to blame him for anything, no matter where it happened.
and they were usually right.
because nicky enjoyed being a gangster, and he didn't give a damn who knew it.
i mean, that's what worried me, 'cause it turns out nicky was about to be sent to vegas.
hey.
welcome to vegas.
somethin', huh?
ginger.
honey, come here.
this is jennifer and nick. they're dear friends of mine.
after we ate, we left jennifer and ginger alone and we took a ride to talk. and then.  he hit me with it.
no, of course not.
sure, you have my permission. but i - i just gotta tell you it's no joke out here. it's no joke, you know? you gotta keep a low profile. it's not like back home. right off the bat, they don't like guys like us. and this sheriff's a real cowboy. even the coppers aren't afraid to bury people out in the desert here.
nick, i gotta tell you, i got pinched twice for no reason. you really gotta be careful. i'm running a licensed place. everything's legit.
yeah, he had a fool-proof scheme, all right. it wasn't very scientific but it worked. when he won, he collected. when he lost, he told the bookies to go fuck themselves. what were they gonna do? muscle nicky? nicky was the muscle.
but still, it was nice and quiet for a while. ginger and i presented nicky and jennifer all over town, like regular ozzie and harriets.
and, nicky being nicky, he made his presence known.
especially at the casino, where he definitely did not work, people got the message.
out of respect, guys from other crews got away with a warning.
everybody else: watch out.
like these yokels here who never heard of nicky or the bosses back home, 'cause they're the morons who give you the most trouble. even after we'd catch 'em, they'd try sneakin' back with beards and wigs and fake noses.
you can spot these assholes by watching the way they bet. like this guy. he's bettin' lavender chips at five hundred each with only one little problem. he's always guessed right. if he wasn't so fuckin' greedy, he'd have been tougher to spot. but in the end, they're all greedy.
i saw that the dealer was weak, but he wasn't in on it.
he just wasn't protecting his hand. he was lifting his hole card way to high.
now, here's this guy.
reading the dealer's hole card.
and signaling his buddy at this table.
and that's just what these hustlers look for. they cruise from casino to casino, lookin' for weak dealers the way lions look for weak antelope.
operator?
this is mr r. get me armstrong and friday over at pit two right away.
bj nineteen, second base, the beard
operator.  i need mr happy, loud.
watch it now.
they never know what hit them. and if and when.
they do find out they just got zapped by a cattle prod.
they wish they really did have a heart attack.
turns out this guy and his fuckin' pals, they were knockin' this place dead for years.
we had to make an example of these pricks that the party was over.
i'm just curious. i saw you shuffling your checks with your right hand. can you do that with both hands?
can't do it with both hands?
can you do it with your left hand?
so, you're a righty?
now, you're gonna have to learn with your left hand.
(walks over to the
and don't forget to tell your friends what happens if they fuck around in here. you understand?
you're fuckin' right, you made a bad mistake. 'cause if you come back here - we catch either one of you - we're gonna break your fuckin' heads and you won't walk out of here. you see that fuckin' saw? we're gonna use it. you don't fuck around in this place. you got it?
get out of here.
(to the guards, referring to the
within no time, everything was set in place. we got rid of the freelance scamsters. the per was way up. the gods were happy, or as happy as the gods can ever be. and i, i decided to complicate my life. for a guy who likes sure things, i was about to bet the rest of my life on a real longshot.
we're not getting any younger. don't you think it's time? aren't you gettin' tired of all this shit? bangin' around, hustlin' around?
i'm gonna do you one better. i'm trying to marry you. you want to marry me? i'm serious. i mean, i - i want to settle down. i want a family.
i know i'd be a good father. i know you'd be a good mother.
i'm forty-three years old. i don't want to wait. i know you well enough to know that i really love you very much. and i can't think of anybody better to be with. and i don't feel like waiting anymore.
yeah, i know all that.
no, i - i.  mean.  that can grow as i - as long as there's a mutual respect.  that kind of thing can grow. i'm realistic. i can accept that. but, you know, what is.  what is love anyway? it's a.  it's a mutual respect. it's - it's a devotion. it's a.  it's a caring from one person to another. and if we could set up some kind of foundation.  based on that mutual respect.  i feel that eventually you would care enough about me.  that i could live with that.
you know i'm doin' well now. and i'm gonna do even better. and so, whatever happens, if it doesn't work out between us, i'm gonna make sure you're okay for the rest of your life. and if there are kids, especially, you know, i'll take care of you better than you'd ever imagine.
just what i said. you'll be set up for the rest of your life. that i can promise you. want to take a chance?
when i married ginger i knew all the stories, but i didn't give a fuck. 'i'm sam rothstein,' i said. 'i can change her.'
you all right?
why're you crying?
maybe you shouldn't drink so much.
it's all right. that part of your life is over with. right?
you're with me now.
right?
you sure?
want to go? let's go back in.
try it on. it's yours.
it's chinchilla.
it's nice isn't it?
you do whatever you want. do i keep my promises, or do i keep my promises?
the only thing is.  you shouldn't keep this in the house. we gotta put it in a bank.
now look, pay attention to me. what i'm gonna tell you is very important.
all this stuff doesn't mean anything. money, this, doesn't mean anything without trust. i have to be able to trust you with my life.
with over a million in cash and jewels tucked in a bank in vegas only for ginger, she was secure and happy.
she loved that shit. but a guy in my line of work has to have a lot of pay-off cash around.
crooked cops and kidnappers, they don't take checks.
so, i put two million in cash in a los angeles bank under the name of mr and mrs tom collins. this was strictly my shakedown and kidnapping money.
and, since i'd either be in jail or locked in a closet when i needed the money the most.
i gave ginger the only key to the cash that could get me back alive.
so, once she signs those papers, she'll be the only person to have total access to the box? no one else, including myself?
yeah, sure i do. why?
well.
with ginger and the money in place, i felt covered, and to play it safe i switched job titles again and made myself, um, food and beverage director. this way nobody would bother me about a license. i mean, vegas was like a dream for me. trouble was.
nicky was dreamin' his own kind of vegas.
it was so obvious. i mean, all of nicky's half-assed mechanics, they were real signal happy.
signaling back and forth.
nicky thought nobody was watching him. but he was wrong.
and i didn't want any of those agents near my place.
i mean, i wished to god nicky and his whole crew would just get lost.
what am i gonna do? go back home and start a war?
i mean, nicky's a made guy and i'm not. i can't do that.
be careful. gaming agents are all over the place.
you been lucky all week. they're lookin' to nail ya.
i don't give a shit who he's connected to. tell him to take his fuckin' feet off the table. what's he think this is, a goddamn sawdust joint?
call security.
how are you?
good. you want to do me a favor? you want to take your feet off the table and put your shoes back on?
i want you to exit this guy off the premises, and i want you to exit him off his feet and use his head to open the fuckin' door.
sure enough, an hour later, i get the call.
no, i didn't know that. but you know what he did?
he insulted billy. and then i walked over to him politely.
and he tells me to go fuck myself.
then he called me a faggot.
so what do you think i do? i threw that cocksucker out.
if he does it again, he's out for good. i don't care what it is, nick, i'm gonna ha- i'll - i'll never let him in the place again.
okay.
you're still eight pounds over. what's the reason for this?
never mind the 'sir'. never mind the 'sir'.
why is she eight pounds over?
'mr rothstein' is good enough.
she could at least lose half a pound or a quarter. listen.
all you do is give me answers. just - just give me the right answer.
that's right. she will get fired. in fact, i want you to send her back to paris.
no. just stop everything.
i don't care what she is. she's an institution, that's the problem. she's lazy.
between.
my innovations.
and nicky's dedication to his job.
i soon had the best operation on the strip.
you better watch yourself. there's a lot of heat on you already.
i'm - i'm hearin' things from security. they're all ex-cops. the sheriff's lookin' to bust your balls. they want to put you in the black book.
bullshit or no bullshit, they put you in that book, you're gonna be in a lot of trouble. you will not be able to walk into the casino. i'm tellin' you.
i'm just tellin' you. don't say i didn't warn you.
back home, they would have put me in jail for what i'm doing. but out here, they're givin' me awards.
it's with great pleasure that i accept this certificate of appreciation from the.
but my greatest pleasure was watchin' my wife, ginger, work the room.
they all loved her. how could you not live her?
she could be the most charming woman you ever saw. people loved to be around her.
she made everybody feel good.
oh, thanks.
thank you. thanks for that compliment.
he was a young kid from the casino.  nice kid.  bright boy. what balls on this fuckin' kid! the next day i fired him.
but as much as they loved her.
they didn't know what really moved her.
and with ginger happy, i was able to concentrate on what i knew best.
what are they doin' way back there? bring 'em up here where they belong. you can't even see 'em over there.
what about the progressives with the high jackpots? where are they? these machines are hidden.
these are our best machines. they bring all the action. no wonder the drop is off.
the action is in the front, not in the back. bring 'em up front.
listen to me very carefully. there are three ways of doing things around here. the right way, the wrong way, and the way i do it. you understand?
don't thank me, just do it. you're the slots manager. i shouldn't have to tell you this.
so, i ended up workin' what? eighteen- hour days? ginger was the one who wound up enjoying the best of vegas.
well, it wasn't long before what i was afraid was gonna happen, happened. nicky managed to get himself banned from every casino in las vegas, and from then on, i couldn't be seen talkin' to him anywhere in vegas, or even near it.
yeah, i believe it. you got banned.
nope, there's no way.
forget it. you can't even set foot in the parking lot. that's how serious it is.
in so many words, yes.
it just didn't sink into his head about the black book and what it meant. not being able to go into a casino is just one thing, but being in this book etched your name into the brains of every cop and fbi agent in the state. i mean, you're listed in there with al capone. but nicky didn't care.
he had tipsters.
all over town. bellmen.
valet parkers.
pit bosses.
secretaries.
and they all.
got a piece of the score.
they were always very careful. and they always bypassed the alarms, or else.  if not, they'd drill enough holes to knock through the walls with a sledgehammer.
nobody out there was expecting a guy like him.
for nicky, las vegas was the fuckin' wild west.
yeah, nicky loved restaurants. he was a real restaurant buff. and over the years, he always made money with them.
in vegas, he had the leaning tower. it was a very popular spot. he had politicians, showgirls and movies stars hangin' out all over the place.
but i gotta tell you, the thing nicky liked the most was the showgirls, naturally. i mean, to them, nicky was the movie star.
but around six-thirty in the morning when he finished his day -
- no matter where he was or what he was doing, he always went home to make breakfast for his son, nicky- boy.
the word got around that finally.
there was a real gangster in town. nicky was the new boss of las vegas.
four reels, sevens across, three fifteen-thousand-dollar jackpots? do you have any idea what the odds are?
three fuckin' jackpots in twenty minutes? why didn't you pull the machines? why didn't you call me?
you didn't see the scam? you didn't see what was goin' on?
yes, there is. an infallible way! they won!
hey.  ward, you're pissin' me off. now, you're insulting my intelligence. what do you think, i'm a fuckin' idiot? you know goddamn well somebody had to get into those machines and set those fuckin' reels.
the probability on one-four-reel machine is a million and a half to one. on three machines in a row, it's in the billions. it cannot happen.  would not happen, you fuckin' momo! what's the matter with you! didn't you see you were bein' set up on the second win?
you - wait! you didn't see that you were being set up on the second win?
listen, you fuckin' yokel, i've had it with you. i've been carryin' your ass in this place ever since i got here. get your ass and get your things and get out of here.
i'm firin' you? no, i'm not firin' i'm firin' you, you -
i'll regret it even more if i keep you on.
listen, if you didn't know you're bein' scammed, you're too fuckin' dumb to keep this job. if you did know, you were in on it. either way, you're out! get out! go on. let's go.
i mean, the guy is history as far as i'm concerned. history.
so what? everybody out here with cowboy boots is a fuckin' county commissioner or related to a county commissioner. i'm fuckin' sick of it.
phil, i can understand. you're in the finances, you're upstairs, but you are not on the floor. i got thousands of players. i got five hundred dealers. they're all lookin' to rob me blind, twenty-four hours a day. i have to let them know i'm watching all the details, all the time; that there is not one single thing i will not catch as i am over here.
look at yours.
look at that. look at this. there's nothin'.  look how many blueberries your muffin has and how many mine has. yours is falling apart. i have nothing.
it's like everything else in this place. you don't do it yourself, it never gets done.
from now on i want you to put an equal amount of blueberries in each muffin. an equal amount of blueberries in each muffin.
i don't care how long it takes. put an equal amount in each muffin.
come on, honey, just a little. that a girl, that a girl. oh, boy, look.
okay, want to go with mommy?
what do you need?
well, why don't you take it out of your account? there's a lot there.
twenty-five thousand? for yourself?
why do you need that much?
well, i mean.  you know, i gotta ask you. that's a lot of money. you're not asking for a box of popcorn, you know. i mean.
who's fighting? i mean, i'm, you know, tell me what it's for.
why can't you tell me what it's for?
huh? well, you know what? now, i want you to tell me. i mean, my wife comes to me and asks me for twenty-five thousand. i mean, what do you want? do you want a coat?
well, if you want a coat, you got it. you know that. it's not the money, it's just why do you want it? that's all i'm askin'. am i not entitled to that?
what are you talkin' a- ?
you're askin' me for twenty-five thousand. i'm not out to make you feel bad. i want to just be able to trust you. you now, it's about trust. i have to be able to trust you with my life. do you understand? can i trust you? can i trust you?.  can i trust you?.  answer me. can i trust you?
good, so then you could tell me what the money is for.
how you doin', les? it's lester, right? sam.
from my recollection, aren't you the card shark.  the golf hustler.  the pimp from beverly hills?
if i'm wrong, please correct me, 'cause i never knew you to be a heist man. but if you are, you know what.  here, take mine too.
go ahead, take it. 'cause you already have hers.
she's my wife. look at me. you did know that, didn't you? you knew that she's my wife? huh? hey, look at me.
you do? yeah? well, if you ever come back again.  ever.  to take her money.  next time bring a pistol. that way you got a chance. be a man, don't be a fuckin' pimp. now, you want to do me a favor? get out of here. i want to be alone with my wife. get the fuck up and get out of here.
you fuckin' piece of shit.
you remember when you called him that night? when you said goodbye to him? he didn't say, 'don't get married, i'll be right down, we'll get married.' he didn't say that to you, did he?
didn't. no, instead, what did he say? 'fuck him. take him for everything he's got.'
come here, i want to show you somethin'.
okay.
give me a minute.
okay, send him in and call me four minutes after.
how do you do?
yeah, i heard a lot about you.
no, that's quite all right.
why don't you have a seat?
i'm sorry, but he knew about our gettin' hit on three big machines in a row and he did nothing about it. that means either he was in on it or, forgive me for saying this, he was too dumb to see what was going on. either way, i cannot have a man like that workin' here.
believe me, if i could prove it, he would be under arrest.
i think you're way out of line talkin' to me like that. what you're sayin' is libelous, and you're in no position to challenge my expertise. i went way out of my way to be very helpful and courteous to that kid. he's weak, he's incompetent. he jeopardizes the whole place. there's not much more i can do for him.
i can't do that. and i appreciate the fact that he's your brother-in- law, and i do want to help you and i like to do favors, and i know who you are, but i cannot do that.
i'm sorry, i can't do anything. he's too incompetent. and the bottom line is, he cannot be trusted.
okay, thanks. um.  you know, that's it. i'm sorry.
no problem. sorry.
what happened to my pills?
isn't it bad enough you're drinkin' too much, you're takin' all my pills too?
look - for my ulcer, i take a half a one of these, a half a one of these. and that's when i have extreme pain. i had a three-month supply. what'd you do with 'em?
what?
yeah, how do i know?
what? what?!
listen. ginger. i'm tryin' to make the best of everything here, you know? i mean, you're my wife, for chrissakes. uh, i mean.  people look up to you in this town. i don't know what to think -
it's okay. look.  . you gotta get a hold of yourself.
if not for me, at least for amy.
you understand? your drinking's gettin' way out of hand. i'm gonna get you into a program. they got plenty of good ones.
yes, you do. it's very discreet. there's no names in the papers. you don't have to worry about any of that stuff.
yes, i - yes, i do.
how could you say that? you're a beautiful woman. you're destroying yourself. you don't need that stuff. you don't need that fuckin' leech livin' off you. i know you better than you know yourself. you're a tiger, you're stronger than i am. and when you set your mind on doing something, you do it better than anybody. you can do it. you can do it.
no matter how many novenas you could make, nothin'.
was gonna stop what came up next at the casino.
it turned out phil green, mr integrity, had a partner nobody knew about.  and when she showed up and started demanding some money from the tangiers.
green tried to stonewall her.
so.
she sued him in court.
now, instead of the cops only lookin' at nicky, they started looking at green too. and he was supposed to be our squeaky.
clean front man. so, i had to start giving interviews to make sure everybody knew the casino was on the up and up.
i serve at the pleasure of the chairman of the board and.  my, uh, responsibilities are to run the day- to-day operations.
well, in a sense, you could say that.  i am the boss, when mr green is away. you could say that.
hello.
no, you, you can't. you gotta make a reservation.
it's all booked up.
it's impossible. it's booked up, and you gotta make a reservation. it's.
very difficult to get in.
uh.
all right.
why don't you take it easy with that stuff? huh? come on. let me help you. come on. we're talkin' about some stuff.
just go downstairs. just.  go downst-
hey.
want something to drink? charlie you want a refill?
what're you doin'? he's a square guy, for chrissakes. you can't treat him like that. he's gonna run to the
i'm not tryin' to tell you what to do. but you were way out of line, nick. what're you doin'? where's your head?
listen, nick, you gotta understand my situation. i'm responsible for thousands of people. i got a hundred million a year goin' through the place. it's all over, i'm gonna tell you, it's all over, if i don't get that license. and believe me, if it goes bad for me, it's gonna go bad for a lot of people, you understand?
no, i don't wanna come -
i don't wanna come along with you.
i'll be honest with you.
i don't wanna be involved in anything you're talkin' about.
okay? i just wanna run a square joint. that's it. i just want my license. i want everything nice and quiet. that's it.
that's all taken out of context. okay.
i have no control over that. ronnie and billy were right there. they'll tell you exactly what happened.
looks bad? i'm gonna tell you what looks bad.
every time you're on television i get mentioned. that looks bad. that looks bad.
what happened to me? what happened to you?
you lost your control.
yes, you lost your control.
all right.
all right.
yeah.
my wife?
now, what does she have to do with all this?
all of a sudden, you're the shoulder to cry on? did you at least tell her about your little role in that whole situation?
listen, i would -
i - i would appreciate it if you'd stay out of my personal life, okay? you wouldn't like it if i did it to you.
please.
don't do it to me.
okay?
ju-just stay away from her. it's none of your business, okay? there are certain things you don't do, and you know that.
that's right, yeah.
yeah, that's right, the way you need me to vouch for you as a citizen and get you out of one of your jams. i'm gonna have to straighten out what you just did with this guy.
this guy is gonna run to the fbi.
i knew what he wanted, and i didn't want any part of it.
nicky wanted to take over. he wanted to go after gaggi, go after the skim, go after everything and everybody.
plus, he had stopped askin' permission from back home for every little thing.
a casino boss and his wife were killed. the bulls questioned nicky.
a dealer from the sirocco.  they questioned nicky.
a bunch of stool pigeons wound in the trunks of their cars.  they questioned nicky.
a lawyer.  they questioned nicky.
and when some guys who didn't pay their shylocks began disappearing, nicky's name was in every one of those newspapers.
nicky was questioned in two dozen murders, but they always had to let him go. there were never any witnesses.
the problem was, nicky was not only bringin' heat on himself, but on me too. the fbi watched every move he made. but he didn't care. he just didn't care.
i got my job.
on the line and this guy's out havin' the time of his life. he has every cop in the state watchin' him, and he's out playin' golf.
and at the.
worst possible time for me.
i had my license hearing coming up and i didn't wanna leave anything to chance.
that was nineteen years ago, and they were simple gambling pinches.
i mean, if i can't work in vegas, where am i gonna go?
well, that's all i ask, gentlemen, a fair hearing.
good.
the feds were watchin' nicky play golf for so long, they ran out of gas. just what i needed. right in front on the control board.
and, as if things weren't bad enough.
in comes piscano, the kansas city underboss. he ran that little grocery store in kansas city where they brought the suitcases.
he ran it with his brother-in-law, but mostly what he did was complain, complain about his trips to vegas, to his brother-in-law and to his mother, all the time.
and what happens next?
you can't believe it. i mean, who the hell would believe that the fbi had a wire in the place lookin' for some information about some old homicide about some guy who was whacked-out, god knows when, over god knows what?
and the damn.
thing is, they go and hear all this stuff about las vegas and the casinos and the suitcases, and that's it.
would you believe that such a thing could happen?
every fbi man across the country had their ears open now.
i mean.
piscano, this guy basically.
sunk the whole world.
and when the day finally came, i was ready. i felt so confident that all i had to do was present my case.
you guys have to be kidding.
adjourned! what do you mean, adjourned?
mr. chairman.
senator, you promised me a hearing.
you won't allow me a hearing? you didn't even look at the fbi reports.
when you were my guest, mr. chairman, senator, at the tangiers hotel, did you not promise me that i would have a fair hearing -
you were never my guest?!
i never comped you?! i don't comp you at least two or three times a month at the tangiers?!
liar.
he's lying.
was i at that dinner? just tell me -
was i at that dinner?
was i at that dinner?
was i at that dinner?
i was in the building!
you know damn well i was at that dinner, and you swore to me that i would have a fair hearing at that dinner! did you not?! did you not?! (pause, ace looks at
yeah, thanks for not callin' me a liar. you son-of-a-bitch. you son-of- a
what are you running for, bob? what are you running for?
don't you remember? you promised me a fair hearing when you were gettin' comped at my hotel and you were asking me for copies of your bills so -
- you could put 'em on your expense account?
bullshit! bullshit!
we all have a past. you have a past, i have a past. and my past is no worse than yours. but you guys think you have the right to pass judgement on me.
twenty years in order to find nothin' on me -
- unsubstantiated truths on me. and if you look at your own lives you'd all be in jail.
fuckin' hypocrites!
welcome to the sam rothstein show. we're very happy to have you here this evening. the young lady to my left is trudy, who is a lead new dancer in our fabulous show from paris.
our first guest this evening.  is frankie avalon.
how many kids do you have?
eight children!
that's amazing.
let's not take county commissioner pat webb too seriously.
i recently challenged him to a debate on this program and he declined. what are you worried about, pat? you don't have to send me any questions. you can ask me anything you want.
it's a pity in this.
state that we have such hypocrisy. some people can do whatever they want. other people have to pay through the nose.
but such is life.
first of all, what they did was totally unconstitutional. we're already on the list to be heard before the supreme court of the united states later this year.
walk away? andy, you can't be serious. how can i walk away? don't you see what's goin' on here? don't you see what's at stake?
know what my problem is? every time they mention my name in the papers, these cocksuckers, they mention nicky, too. how the fuck does that help? i mean, the heat he brought down is murder! we had a police department who was cooperative. he's pissed them off so much now that nobody can make a move anymore. i mean, what do you do about that?
i don't know, he doesn't listen to me. maybe he should.  get lost for a while. take a vacation. would that be so bad?
all right, look, if he took a break, it would just give everybody some time to maneuver. that's all i'm saying. it's all that i'm saying.
i can't do that.
of course.
as soon as andy got back home, nicky heard about our talk in the car.
next morning bright and early, i get the call.
but just getting a call from nicky wasn't easy anymore. even the codes didn't work. so, we figured out another act.
you see, if a phone's tapped, the feds can only listen in.
on the stuff involving crimes. so on.
routine calls, they have to click off after a few minutes.
yeah.
what - what, caesar's?
why?
nicky started out before me because it wasn't that easy.
for him to get around anymore.
nicky couldn't even go for a ride without changing.
cars at least six times before he could shake all his tails.
and because of all the planes, he had to use underground garages.
meeting in the middle of the desert always made me nervous.
normally, my prospects of comin' back alive from a meeting with nicky were ninety-nine out of a hundred. but this time, when i heard him say, 'a couple a hundred yards down the road', i gave myself fifty-fifty.
what people?
i don't even know what you're talkin' about, nick.
i didn't do anything. i mean, i didn't order you or anybody.  i only told andy stone that you had a lot of heat on you, and that was a problem.
yeah, i said i - let the bullshit blow over for a while so i can run the casino. anything goes wrong with the casino, it's my ass. it's not yours, it's my ass.
what are you -
i'm only on tv because i gotta be able to hang around the casino. you understand that. you know that. come on.
yeah, i did want to go on tv. that way i have a forum. i can fight back. i'm known. people see me. they know they can't fuck around with me like they could if i was an unknown. that's right.
me?! i wouldn't even be in this situation if it wasn't for you. you brought down so much fuckin' heat on me. i mean, every time i meet somebody here, the big question is do i know you.
no, it - it - nicky, when you asked me if you could come out here, what did i tell you? i mean, you asked me, and i knew you were going to come out no matter what i said, but what did i tell you? do you remember what i told.
you? do you remember what i told you?
you never - ?
l'chaim.
yeah?
what is it?
oh, no.
no, just - just give him, give him ten. that's it. ten. i'll be right down.
what are you doin'? you gotta get out of here!
nicky, nicky, you're not listenin' to me. i'm here to help you. what's the matter with you? you're gonna bury us both.
i'm gonna okay you ten and get you even, and that's it. then you got to get out of here before the cops and the newspapers are all over you.
ten and that's it.
i mean she's only sober about two hours a day. it's usually from eleven in the morning until one in the afternoon. and if i gave her her money and her jewels now, you know what she's gonna do? she's gonna piss it all away in about a year, and then where will she be? where would you be then? comin' right back to me, right back to me. or finding some other excuse to come and i - i -
look in my eyes. look in my eyes.
you know me. do you see anything in these eyes that makes you think i would ever let someone in your condition take my child away from me? do you? you know that won't happen.
and after all this time.  and as hard as i tried, as much as i wanted.
i could never reach her. i could never make her love me. i always felt she should have gone for all that money.  being somebody for the first time in her life, a home and a kid. but that's not what happened. it just didn't work out that way.
everything all right?
i mean, what could we do? after a while, we'd just take breathers from each other. you know, little separations. at that time, i remember ginger took amy and went to beverly hills. she was gonna spend a week or so shopping.
operator, the beverly hotel in beverly hills, please.
mrs. sam rothstein, please.
m- uh, mr. and mrs. rothstein?
thank you.
hello.
uh, my wife is w-with an old friend of her i-in la.
some low-life. a guy named lester diamond.
my daughter's with 'em too and i think they're gonna try and kidnap her. is there anybody you can send?
hello.
yeah, is this lester? this is sam.
rothstein. i want to talk to ginger. put her on the phone.
lester.
listen to me very carefully. i want to talk to ginger. i want my kid back. i want her put on a plane immediately.
i know she's there. don't fuck around with me.
you understand? put her on the fuckin' phone.
right away.
right back.
yeah.
and what'd she want?
yeah, she's with that cocksucker again.  and they got amy.
yeah, they're gonna kidnap my kid. what do you want?
i don't know. what am i gonna do with this woman? i don't know.  she's drivin' me fuckin' crazy.
she's driving me fuckin' crazy.
hello.
listen.
uh-uh-uh - i'm not gonna ask you where you are, just please, put amy on a plane. just put her on right away, any plane to get her here right away.
please. that's all i'm askin' you.
what do you mean?
uh, i don't know. i gotta tell you, i don't know.
what about the money? uh, where's the box?
what's it.
under?
how serious?
it's under.
twenty-five thousand?
and.
the rest of the two million is still there?
okay, no big deal. that's okay. yeah. he got his twenty-five. that i'll live with. any more i couldn't.
all right.
all right. where are you? i'll send a plane for you right away.
so, what'd ya do with it?
with the money.
twenty-five thousand for clothes.
twenty-five thousand for clothes and a watch.
mm-hm.
the good part was, i had amy back. so, we went home, had the housekeeper stay over, put the kid to bed, i calmed myself down and we went to dinner. i tried to keep things nice and civil, you know. but.  hey, twenty-five thousand for three suits? that doesn't make much sense.
first of all, he's not gonna wear f- thousand-dollar suits. but let's say he did, which he won't. how you gonna get fitted for twenty-five suits in three days? i, um, i mean, how could you get fitted that fast? i can't get fitted that fast, and i pay twice as much.
yeah.
but even if you bought him a watch, a really nice watch, one that he thought was nice - and he doesn't know what the fuck a good watch is - so, you go, five, ten, twelve grand?
at the most, which is impossible for him.
plus, at the most, three suits, a thousand apiece. that still leaves what? around ten thousand?
i'm just tryin' to figure it out.
yeah, but i've been told that before, 'we're workin' it out.' you think that you're home.  after what you just put me through with amy, is a favor to me?
so, counting the watch, let's say another four thousand for expenses over the weekend.  of which you must have had a good time. i know he did. that's for sure. i know that.  fuckin' piece of shit had a good fuckin' time. on my money. you might as well have fucked him, which you probably did anyway.
you're lookin' at me a certain way. you - you're teary-eyed, huh? you're upset. you're a good actress, you know that? good fuckin' actress. you can fuckin' get that pity out of people. i'm not a john, you understand? you always thought i was, but i'm not. and i'm not a sucker. that fuckin' pimp cocksucker. he's lucky i didn't kill him last time. lucky he's fuckin' livin'. and if you would've stayed with amy.  and you would've ran away.  you would've been fuckin' dead.
both of you. dead. dead.
you want to get rid of me? here i am. go ahead, get rid of me hello.
you hate my guts? i want you to come with me now.
come with me now! come with me now. come with me now. i want you out of here.
i want you out of here! i want you out of here!
take your fuckin' bag and get out of here!
you'll get your money! don't worry.
no kidding. no kidding!
i'll get your cash. you haven't been straight with me ever since i met you! you never loved me in the first place! i need eyes in the back of my fuckin' head with you, you fuckin' bitch!
you're lower than a dog!
here. here. is this enough money?! huh? will it last you two fuckin' days? take it, greedy bitch. take the fuckin' money you fuckin' want.
yeah, no kidding. good! it opens at 9 a.m. be there!
i guarantee you, i will not stop you.
you'll come back tomorrow and get the rest. just get out of here.
you're not takin' amy.
you're stoned. you're a junkie. get out of here.
get out of here!
send my lawyers a letter. god-fuckin'-damn you!
the funny thing was, that after all that.  i didn't want her to go. she was the mother of my kid. i loved her. and later.  i realized i didn't want to give her the money, because if i did.  i knew i'd never see her again.
oh. have a good day at school.
okay? okay, angel.
from now on, i have to know where you and amy are at all times.
now, here's a beeper. i want you to keep it on you. it's very light. so i can call you whenever i have to.
okay?
hi. you didn't answer your beeper.
you threw it away?
i put her to bed.
so, who'd you go to lunch with?
and where'd you go?
what'd you have?
what did jennifer have?
okay. i want you to call jennifer and i want you to tell her to tell you what she had for lunch, and i'm gonna listen in on the other line.
you know why i want to do it. just do it.
mm.
hello, jennifer, it's sam -
who were you with?
i know you were with somebody. who was it? i just hope it's not someone who i think it might be. i just hope it's not them.
i knew she fucked around. you know.
she did what she did and i did what i had to do. but, jesus, nicky was the worst thing she could've done.
what if he won't stop?
i mean, it could get us both killed.
she was very convincing.
when she wanted to be.
and.  this.  this is how she backed him off.
by this.
time, nicky had things so fucked up on the streets, that every time marino went back home, the.
packages got smaller and smaller. it got.
to the point when he walked into the place.  he didn't know whether he was gonna be kissed or killed.
by now, nicky and his crew had already hit rock bottom. i mean, vegas really got to him.
the booze, the coke, the broads.  i mean, he got sloppy. he just wasn't the same nicky anymore.
i heard one night he had to belt a guy three times before he finally went down.
in the old days, nicky would've decked him with one shot.
you add this into the mix.
to all of us. and his crew followed him right over the edge.
they were all tuned up half the time on coke. i mean, they started doin'.
stupid things.
the worst was blue.
he never knew when to keep his fuckin' mouth shut.
the cops shot him. they shot blue.
because they thought his hero sandwich was a gun!
you know, they could have.
been right, but who knows?
and to make matters worse, to get even, nicky's crew got stoned one night and they started shootin' up the cops' houses.
i mean, it got to the point where they couldn't even talk in the gold rush anymore because the feds put a wire in the wall.
and even when they talked outside, they had to cover their mouths because.
the feds brought in lip-readers.
nicky found out about it from a teller who owed him money. this guy worked.
be right back. i'll be right back.
rudy, any calls for me, just give 'em to mr sherbert. i'll be right back.
i'm going home for a few seconds. i'll be right back.
hello? hello! ginger.
amy! amy, open the door!
wh-wh -
what happened? what happened? who did this to you?
i'm gonna get a knife and cut you loose, honey, i'll -
okay, i'll be right back.
when did this happen, honey?
you don't know? what time did your mother do this? when did she leave?
ohhh.
hello.
yeah, uh, who's this?
nick?
no, i'm not okay.
how'd you know i was here?
well.
ginger's missing and she tied amy up and she locked her in her room. i gotta find her. i don't know where the hell she is.
she's there with you? she's there with you?
i'll be right there.
i want to just talk. i want to talk to that irish bitch.
yeah? nicky, i want to talk to that fuckin' bitch.
i mean, you tie up our kid and you lock the fuckin' door? are.
you out of your mind? that's our child. are you out of your fuckin' mind?
i ought to fuckin' have you committed. you fuckin' do that again, i'll f-, i'll f-
i should have -
listen to me, listen to me, listen to me. listen, you fuckin' cunt.
listen to me.
let me tell you something. listen to me.
you listen carefully! you ever fuckin' touch her again, you ever do anything like that again, i'll fuckin' kill you. pure and simple. do you hear me? pure and fuckin' simple, i'll fuckin' kill you, you bitch.
you fuckin' whore!
you understand? what? let you go?
you want your jewelry?
and what? and let you disgrace me, you fuckin' pig? and let you disgrace me? get up. get up and be a mother. get in the car and go to the house.
right now. get up and -
get - get up! get up!
get - get up!
get up! get going! get up!
get the fu- you threatening me? i'll fuckin' kill you in this place! get up and go home right now.
now you need approval from him to go home?
you make me sick, you fuck. once a fuckin' hooker, always a hooker.
yeah, billy sherbert, please. put him on.
yeah, bill, listen, i'll explain to you later. just - you - you got a gun at home? yeah. bring it over here right away.
right away. okay?
okay.
i already left the kid with neighbors and i had about a million in cash and jewels that i gave to sherbert to lock up in the hotel.
put this in the.
hotel safe, then i want you to come right back.
she, she's alone. just go. take the gun and go into amy's.
just wait there for me!
will you stop it? you're drunk, you're on drugs. you're gonna -
you're gonna be sorry if you don't stop that.
you'll wake the whole neighborhood!
i'm not -
i won't let her in. i'm sorry, randy, i'm not gonna let her in. she - well, i'm not gonna let her in, the way she's behaving. i'm - i'm -
who knows what you're gonna do in there? i don't want you -
i'm afraid to let her in the house.
i'm afraid she's gonna destroy stuff.
should i let her in like - ?
if she calms down, i will let her in the house.
if she calms down.
i will let her in the house for five minutes if you gentlemen will escort her out if she happens not to want to leave. because i don't - i -
yeah, i don't want her in there more than a few more minutes.
fine, fine. how's your family?
oh, good.
congratulations.
okay, randy. thank you.
charlie, you've gotta - you've gotta stop her!
you've got to stop her.
she's a fuckin' junkie. she's out of her fucking mind. do you unders-
legally, she can't take that stuff. legally, she can't take the stuff.
half of everything is mine.
half - i'm comin' down.
stop -
hey!
look, look. you can't stop her for speeding? i mean, look what the hell she's doing.
after all the threats and all the bullshit, it turned out ginger didn't tell 'em anything. but by then, the feds didn't need her, anyway.
they had all the pieces they needed.
and everybody.
began to tumble.
one after the other.  just like dominoes. between piscano complaining on a wire.
between nicky, ginger, me and my license.  paradise.  we managed to really fuck it all up.
green?
don't even ask.
poor artie. he got so upset he had a heart attack and dropped dead right there in front of his wife.
and at the end of the day, they finally came to see me with the pictures.
but i didn't want to look at 'em. i didn't want to look at the guys who brought 'em either.
after ginger took off, she wasn't much help to anybody. she found some pimps, low-lifes, druggies and bikers in la. and in a few months, they went through all the money and all the jewels.
after they found her body.  i had a private doctor do another autopsy. he said they gave her.  a hot dose. in the end.  all she had left was thirty-six hundred in mint-condition coins.
no matter what the feds or the papers might have said about my car bombing.
it was amateur night, and you could tell. whoever it was, they put the dynamite under the passenger side. but what they didn't know, what nobody outside the factory knew, was that that model car was made with a metal plate under the driver's seat. it's the only thing that saved my life.
the bombing was never authorized, but i suspect i know who lit the fuse.
and so did the power that be.
the word was out. the bosses had had enough of nicky. they had enough. how much were they gonna take? so, they made an example of him and his brother. they buried them while they were still breathing.
yeah.
they had other ideas for me.
the town will never be the same. after the.
tangiers, the big corporations took it all over. today it looks like.
disneyland.
and while the kids play cardboard pirates, mommy and daddy drop the house payments and junior's college money.
on the poker slots.
in the old days, dealers knew your name, what you drank, what you played. today, it's like checkin' into an airport. and if you order room service, you're lucky if you get it by thursday.
today, it's all gone. you get a whale show up with four million in a.
suitcase, and some twenty-five- year-old hotel school kid is gonna want his social security number.
after the teamsters got.
knocked out of the box, the corporations tore down practically every one of the old casinos. and where did the money come from.
to rebuild the pyramids?.  junk bonds.
still not sure?
probable, but may be questionable. all right. well, let me know as soon as you can find out.
but in the end, i wound up right back where i started. i could still pick winners, and i could still make money for all kinds of people back home. and why mess up a good thing? and that's that.