Life Changer

Frank Legato , Editor | flegato @ ggbmagazine . com twitter : @ FranklySpeakn

Jess Marquez , Managing Editor jmarquez @ ggbmagazine . com

It was a turning point in my life when I got accepted to dealers school at Caesars Atlantic City back in 1978 , although it put on the back burner my goal of becoming a professional musician . That was , after all , kind of a pipe dream , to be honest . I couldn ’ t read or write music , my band only played varieties of rock or pop songs , but mostly we played original music .

Imagine , if you will , a casino lounge act that in the late ’ 70s could only play a few Beatles , Stones and CSNY tunes , and the rest would be songs you never heard of before . Yeah , you get the idea .

At the same time , my partner and I had our second son , and supporting them moved to the top of my priority list . Up until then , I used the typical Atlantic City hustle of working your rear-ends off during the summer running a gas dock and collecting unemployment for the winter . It wasn ’ t a bad life , but it turns out I had some ambition .

Last month , I read a report out of Chicago announcing that Chicago City Colleges would get involved in dealer training for the new Bally ’ s hotel casino that will rise there over the next several years . That ’ s what happened with Atlantic Community College . My advice , if you ’ re at loose ends — take full advantage of it .

Even if you never rise above the level of a dealer , where else could you go to school for free and come out the other end with a $ 50K-a-year position at least ? Chicago seems to be just as interesting as the Philadelphia / South Jersey area is , and I can attest that I met some very interesting people amid some very unique circumstantances .

And that starts with the instructors . Caesars , back in the ’ 70s , didn ’ t draft some egghead professors to teach you the games . They employed the people who knew the games the best . And yes , while there were some former dealers from Caesars Palace , most of the teachers came from the illegal gambling towns across the Northeast , South and Midwest .

Take Ramon , for example . He had worked in the Cuban gaming halls of Union City after emigrating from Havana , while his archnemesis Ray came from the Puerto Rican gambling houses on Long Island . Or Big Steve from Stuebenville , Ohio , who loved the phrase “ dummy up and deal .” Then there was Mark , a low-key former Caesars dealer , who came to Atlantic City on the promise he ’ d be promoted to deal in the corral at Caesars Palace where the tips were the best — and the Rainman played . Took him five years to get back to Vegas .

When I went to dealers school , all dealers had to take blackjack as a first game . I remember asking the casino manager , Jess Lenz , whether I should take a second game , something other than blackjack , that would make me more valuable to the managers . He told me that it wasn ’ t necessary , that there would be plenty of work for everyone .

He was right . I worked six-day weeks , 10 hours a day , but I was buried in the $ 2 and $ 5 blackjack pits every hour of every day . Later when I took baccarat , my life changed again , because I got noticed , because I was needed . And it turned out I was a pretty good dealer , after all .

So it wasn ’ t only the art of dealing you were learning . You heard all the tall tales and all the horror stories that these vastly experienced instructors could pass out , giving you at least that secondhand knowledge . And you also learned how to groom yourself . Some of us were just out of high school , so the idea of dressing to the nines often came down to the latest fashion in disco or a miniskirt . But since those fashions didn ’ t cut it in those day with the greatest generation , it was important that non-uniformed executives cut a sharp figure .

For those of us who had that extra ambition , Caesars offered management courses , and to say those classes weren ’ t much more valuable would be a lie . I never took advantage of those courses in the casino . It seems my big mouth disqualified me from getting promoted , while some of my more reasonable colleagues broke through that ceiling . But what I learned during those years benefited me greatly as I began to write about the industry .

My instructors were excellent . Little did I know that Jess Hinkle was one of the first Native Americans to attain an important role in the business even prior to IGRA . Or that Bill Downey Sr . would pass on to his sons Bill Jr ., now a top gaming attorney , and Chris , one of the top slot executives in the country , his expertise . Maybe I would have paid closer attention .

So anyone who thinks that dealer training or free management courses are useless should think again . For those of us who couldn ’ t afford a bachelor ’ s or a master ’ s degree , it might just be the ticket .

Monica Cooley , Art Director mcooley @ ggbmagazine . com

Terri Brady , Sales & Marketing Director tbrady @ ggbmagazine . com

Becky Kingman-Gros , Chief Operating Officer bkingros @ ggbmagazine . com

Lisa Johnson , Communications Advisor lisa @ lisajohnsoncommunications . com twitter : @ LisaJohnsonPR

Columnists Frank Fantini | Dave Forman

Contributing Editors Rae Berkley | Dave Bontempo twitter : @ bontempomedia John Brennan | Alan Campbell | Keli Elkins David Rittvo | Ryan Sawyer Bill Sokolic twitter : @ downbeachfilm Thomas Zitt ________________

EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Rino Armeni , President , Armeni Enterprises

• Mark A . Birtha , Senior Vice President & General Manager , Hard Rock International

• Julie Brinkerhoff-Jacobs , President , Lifescapes International

• Nicholas Casiello Jr ., Shareholder , Fox Rothschild

• Jeffrey Compton , Publisher , CDC E-Reports twitter : @ CDCNewswire

• Dean Macomber , President , Macomber International , Inc .

• Stephen Martino , Vice President & Chief Compliance Officer , MGM Resorts International , twitter : @ stephenmartino

• Jim Rafferty , President , Rafferty & Associates

• Thomas Reilly , Vice President Systems Sales , Scientific Games

• Michael Soll , President , The Innovation Group

• Katherine Spilde , Executive Director , Sycuan Gaming Institute , San Diego State University , twitter : @ kspilde

• Ernie Stevens , Jr ., Chairman , National Indian Gaming Association twitter : @ NIGA1985

• Roy Student , President , Applied Management Strategies

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David D . Waddell , Partner Regulatory Management Counselors PC

Casino Connection International LLC . 1000 Nevada Way • Suite 204 • Boulder City , NV 89005 702-248-1565 • 702-248-1567 ( fax ) www . ggbmagazine . com

The views and opinions expressed by the writers and columnists of GLOBAL GAMING BUSINESS are not necessarily the views of the publisher or editor .

GLOBAL GAMING BUSINESS is published monthly by Casino Connection International , LLC . Printed in Nevada , USA . Postmaster : Send Change of Address forms to : 1000 Nevada Way , Suite 204 , Boulder City , NV 89005

GGB

Official Publication

4 Global Gaming Business APRIL 2023

GGB Magazine April 2023 | Page 4

THE AGENDA

Life Changer

GGB