The Gambling Legend That Was Nick the Greek

The Gambling Legend That Was Nick the Greek. Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain

“Nick the Greek” volition everlastingly beryllium remembered arsenic 1 of the astir celebrated legends of gambling successful the United States.

On Christmas Eve 1966, “Nick the Greek” took his past breath, leaving down an almost-mythical beingness spent arsenic the high-stakes “Gentleman of gambling.”

Many Greeks person made past successful the United States, but Nick Dandolos is 1 of fewer who is remembered the most. Frank Sinatra and Aristotle Onassis were 2 of his biggest fans.

The communicative of Nick the Greek is the worldly that aged Hollywood movies were made of. He went from rags to riches 75 times, and it is estimated that during his illustrious gambling vocation helium won and mislaid much than 500 cardinal dollars.

But arsenic destiny would person it successful the end, the legendary gambler died penniless, without immoderate spot astatine all.

The beingness of gambling fable Nick the Greek

Nicholaos Andreas Dandolos was calved connected April 27, 1883 successful Rethymnon, Crete. His household came from Smyrna and they were well-off. His begetter sold carpets and his godfather was a shipbuilder.

As a young man, Nick studied doctrine astatine the Evangelical School of Greece. At the property of 18, his gramps gave him an allowance of $150 a week, a monolithic sum astatine the time, to spell to the United States.

His first halt was Chicago, but aft an unsuccessful narration with a young woman, Nick the Greek pulled up stakes and moved to Montreal, Canada.

It was determination that helium began gambling erstwhile helium met a equine racer who taught him the secrets of that athletics of champions.

In conscionable six months, the young Greek managed to triumph $500,000, which helium mislaid arsenic easy and rapidly arsenic helium had won.

It was erstwhile helium returned to Chicago that helium decided to go a gambler. He soon became a connoisseur of paper playing and dice and started winning astatine paper clubs.

The Greek gambling wiz became the maestro of the bluff. Card nine owners tried to enlistee him arsenic they believed that it would beryllium amended to person him connected their broadside of the array than arsenic a player.

Nick the Greek was known to wager unthinkable sums

Nick the Greek soon became a fable astatine Chicago clubs due to the fact that of the ample sums helium was gambling.

It was not antithetic for him to triumph oregon suffer $100,000 (some $6.5 cardinal successful worth today) per day. On a rotation of the dice oregon a crippled of poker, helium would stake thousands. Soon the fable was born.

His wins were arsenic gigantic arsenic his losses. One clip in New York, Nick the Greek mislaid $1.6 cardinal connected a dice tourney that lasted 12 days.

In different event, helium near a seven-hour poker crippled with $500,000 successful his pocket.

When gambling became ineligible successful the authorities of Nevada successful 1931, Dandolos moved permanently to Las Vegas.

The casinos successful “Sin City” became his eventual playground and helium was 1 of its top attractions.

Despite generous offers by casino owners specified arsenic Benny Binion, arsenic good arsenic mafia bosses, Nick the Greek stayed autarkic and ne'er worked for anyone.

Five-month-long poker crippled paved mode for World Series of Poker

At immoderate point, Binion invited Johnny Moss, the lone different gambler who could lucifer Nick the Greek, to play against him.

Binion took vantage of the concern to assistance beforehand his casino, the Horseshoe, by advertizing the 2 poker giants’ contention astatine his place.

The full satellite was watching and Binion would beryllium the eventual winner, due to the fact that nary substance which of the 2 players won, the crowds flocked to his casino.

The conflict of the 2 poker giants lasted 5 months. At the clip Dandolos was 57 and Moss 42. The crippled was exhausting and the 2 players lone took breaks to devour and sleep.

In bid to support the audience’s interest, the 2 gamblers were confronted with a fig of variations of the poker game.

Day aft day, immense amounts of hands were changing, and thousands of radical watched with bated breath.

And truthful 1 afternoon, arsenic Nick was penniless, having mislaid $4 million, helium stood up and said to his opponent: “Mr. Moss, I volition person to fto you go.”

Then helium walked away, and, according to friends, recovered consolation successful the writings of Plato.

Years later, that memorable conflict would springiness commencement to a existent fable of gambling the World Series of Poker.

Nick the Greek astatine the halfway of galore fashionable stories

Stories and anecdotes astir the gambling fable person been wide told passim the years.

In a historical poker crippled successful New York, with VIP viewers similar the King of Egypt, Farouk I, Nick was confronted connected the array with the “godfather” of the New York Mafia, Frank Costello.

After Dandolos near the Italian mobster without a cent and made to leave, the mafia brag declared to him: “Greek, you permission the array due to the fact that you are a coward!”

Nick past wisely asked King Farouk to shuffle the deck, portion saying to Costello: “And now, amico, propulsion a card. The biggest 1 wins $500,000.” All the mafia brag did was airy a cigar, prime up his overgarment and leave, accompanied by his goons.

The adjacent time the New York Times praised the Greek gambler arsenic the undisputed poker king who had humiliated Costello. This is erstwhile Frank Sinatra, Telly Savalas and Aristotle Onassis became his friends.

But the Greek immigrant had galore different celebrated friends already, adjacent Albert Einstein.

As hard arsenic it whitethorn beryllium to judge today, Nick the Greek would so often spell connected a nighttime retired with the large physicist, but fearing that his patrons would not respect his superb friend, helium would often present him arsenic “Little Al from Princeton.” (Einstein was a subordinate of the Institute of Applied Studies astatine Princeton University).

Einstein, however, reportedly enjoyed himself a large woody connected these outings.

In different memorable incidental of his adventurous life, Nick mislaid $300,000 connected a New Year’s Eve game.

A fewer minutes earlier the New Year, helium moaned: “I anticipation the alteration of the twelvemonth volition alteration my luck arsenic well.” At dawn helium won $1.25 million, which helium past mislaid to roulette and equine races.

The decease of the large gambler

Near the extremity of his life, broke erstwhile again, Nick the Greek was recovered playing small-stakes poker games successful California.

When an admirer asked him however helium could play for pennies erstwhile a fewer years backmost helium was playing for millions, Dandolos replied: “It’s inactive poker, isn’t it?”

The large Greek gambling fable was mostly playing for the game, not the money.

Over his career, helium gave astir $20 cardinal to charity, which would contiguous beryllium equivalent to $400 million.

Dandolos continued to play successful California until his decease astatine the property of eighty-three.

At the clip of his death, immoderate affluent and influential friends got unneurotic and decided to springiness him the astir elaborate ceremonial they could ideate with a aureate casket, and helium was buried with each the respect and honors helium deserved.

Everyone attended his funeral, including each his celebrated and affluent friends from the aged days, from the biggest stars to royalty and from the astir almighty mob bosses to the biggest gamblers.

Everyone from the heyday of gambling and amusement concern was there.

The archetypal 1 astatine the funeral, unsurprisingly, was Frank Sinatra. Crying similar a baby, Sinatra said successful his eulogy, “Nick, you were truthful axenic and honorable that the lone properties that you ever claimed were your charities.”