The Official Stardust Memorial Thread. Post your favorite stories here.

The Stardust is closing on Nov 1st. It is a hotel with a deep rich history that all have stories they can tell about it.

After attending the rememberance event last night and hearing many wonderful, but long forgotten stories, I decided to start a thread to try and capture the essence of it all, before it is all forgotten and it fades away.

This is a very emotional event for me and I have been dreading this time coming as well as many others. She is the last one last standing and when they implode it a brand new era will begin.


Please post your favorite stories here and lets leave a legacy that future bettors yet to be can look in on and have an idea of how things were back in the day.

Just the same old type of stories that most people have. I spent some time there this summer knowing it was going to close down plus I always liked the place over the years.

Anyway in the sportsbooks the Yankees are playing the Rangers. The Yankees are up 2 runs going into the bottom of the 8th and Joe Torre brings in T.J Beam with a 10 ERA and this guy behind me is screaming and swearing at Torre knowing he was going to get let up. He kept saying I can't believe Torre is letting T.J muther fucking Beam pitch in the 8th. As you would know the first 6 base runners get on base and the Yankees are done 1. Shawn Chacon in his last apperance for the Yankees stops the damage getting out of a bases loaded no out jam. In the top of the 9th Giambi hits a 2 run home run to win it.

The sportsbook was great for people watching.

I wish I could tell my stories, but they "hit" too close to home.

:machinegu

WOW y first trip to VEGAS we found the Stardust. We had a female dealer that liked us, we were pretty green guys just legal by a few days. she dealed and with an Ace or Face card had to check her hole card (no machine doing it) , she would "help us out" with a roll of the eyes if we were in trouble and that helped us get a little edge and win a bit each ($150 each for a few times she moved to our table.) That became our hang out each late night and the next year we went as well. Then we found the sports book there and WOW that was so amazing first time I saw a HORSE book. WOW!

trytrytry said:

she would "help us out" with a roll of the eyes

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Never forget "helping myself out". In the days when double deck had mid-deck entry I was just wandering through early morning, as my wife wanted to play slots, when I happened across a $25 table with a guy playing 2 hands and a count of 10 off the top. So I pulled out $200 played two hands for $50 to begin and walked away after a couple of shuffles ahead over $600.

Stardust Story

I posted the below story about a year and a half ago. I don't know if it qualifies as a favorite story but I think it's interesting (for those who haven't read it before):

<TABLE class=tborder id=post1863289 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=6 width="100%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD class=alt1 id=td_post_1863289>I was playing mini-baccarat at the Stardust in Vegas (Mid to late 1980s) with about $40.00 in front of me (big deal).

Anyway, the guy next to me (his name was Tony) had about $12,000 in front of him, all in black ($100) chips. They asked him if he wanted to color up to larger denomination chips. He said ok and they hand him 12 chips. Only problem was the chips were $500 chips, not $1000 chips.

I'm looking at him and the chips and am thinking perhaps he bought back a marker with the other $6,000. I asked the pit boss if that was the case and he said, no, it was a straight change in. Nobody looked like there was a problem with this deal.

Anyway, Tony goes across the aisle to another table and I'm curious so I play a couple of more hands and then go over and ask him if he had redeemed a marker or anything before. He said no and I told him he had only received $6000 for his $12,000 in chips. He said he knew something wasn't right and called over the pit boss. Pit Boss says "oh, we checked that already and he got the right amount". I said "No way, that's a bunch of bullsh-t". I had been a poker dealer and knew what a stack of 24 ($500) chips should have looked like and obviously his stack looked about half that.

Tony knew some people with the State Gaming Commission and they sent someone over. They reviewed the tapes and lo and behold, I was right (duh).

Also, the jerk pitboss wanted to see my driver's license and go in the backroom. I said you can see my license but I'm not going in the backroom.

After the tapes were reviewed and I was proven right, instead of apologizing to me all the jerkoff pit boss can say to me is that: "You said that Tony got right up out of his seat after the check change in but he really played a couple of more hands before getting up and moving" (like that was in any way relevant). I didn't get any reward or anything (not that I wanted one) but I got the satisfaction of saving the guy $6,000.

Weirdest thing was that it didn't look like the Stardust was shortchanging him on purpose. Everyone was acting like it was perfectly normal (dealer, player and pitboss who was watching the transaction - not the same guy I had my run in with).

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My first trip to Vegas ---friends wanted to stop at the Stardust first. We were there for ncaa tourney. Anyway, imagine my eyes when I saw that race and sports book. We went and ate at Ralph's Diner which used to overlook the pool. I looked out at the beautiful pool and wondered why anyone ever left this paradise.... I still wonder that....

As fate would have it.

The very first time I went to the Stardust sportsbook, I laughed my ass off.
WTF kinda boards were those. Talk about way, way, way behind the times.

I went from hanging at the Mirage to that. Note, I had no idea at the time just how famous all that was or how attached people were to it, but still come on, my friend I were beside ourselves on it. In any event we decided to sit down and make fun of the number changers.


Looking back at that for a moment and considering that my mentor D. Wayne Mauldin is hand picked by Scotty himself one of the top 5 people to ever work that job, as well as being part of a legendary crew, I should almost be ashamed of myself.



In any event, we won like crazy that night. I mean everything. Including a bet on Montanna which seemed funny to us, because thats the only place we had ever seen that booked that conference. Funny thing is we went all over, but never really went in there. We perfered downtown and the four corners by far. Even caught a good beat with the Clips when Isiah Thomas dribbled the ball off his foot in a tight game that went to overtime. Also got harrased by some old men whom did not think we knew what we were doing and were trying to give us hints.

Old men whom later became to be prominent daily people in my life and constitute stories that have yet to be told. Freddie the Funeral chief among them.


The four corners by the way are a story onto themselves. Many in here are smiling because they know exactly what I mean. You the spoiled internet generation will never even begin to comprehend. Some would even call it a right of passage.


The cashiers cage was a trip there too, look something right out of who in the hell thought up, this set up. Better still there was an old man cashier in there whom later turned out to be one of my favorite co workers named Manny Fisher. We made fun of him to because he looked like he had been there since the place opened. We were like how old are you, how come you are not running the place? At least a supervisor after 30+ years you would think.


OHH man if I only knew then what I know now.


Amazing.

sunday night football openers around 6pm, the morning lottery, & sam brown.

Mistakingly booking a room (pre internet) in the Motor Lodge...it was AWFUL...and a bit dangerous

Took my brothers there for a Superbowl party.
One of my brothers was playing VP and a young lady approached.
She asked him if he could smell her !! and leaned way over.
Bro did not have a clue what to say, After all these years he is still iconfused.

So many memories .......

1. Hanging with Jimmy Walker(JJ) almost on a daily basis from 85-86 in the back row of the racebook wagering sports.

2. Watching the LEE PETE, DONNY BADER, and JIM BROWN radio show on several occassions LIVE from the sportsbook.

3. Watching an entire PENGUINS game with poster KYHAWK and pulling out our biggest hockey wager of the season in incredible fashion. Laid -.5 goal and PITT tied it with under 10 seconds remaining and won it in overtime.

4. Getting approached by no less than 1,000 hookers over the years.

5. Beating their casino for thousands and thousands playing vision slot machines and Flush Attack video poker.

6. The Lottery

7. Getting to know a ton of the regulars in the sportsbook between 1985-2001.

8. Sleeping in the front row of the sportsbook in 1982 because I had no money for a room and telling some lady she looked like an elephant when she woke me.

Back later with more if memory gets jump started.

Sugarbear,
Hope you continue to post your stories. Great reads. Thanks.

Sleeping with wife on 18th floor @4am when northridge quake hit.She thought somebody was breaking in.Went downstairs ... played BJ.

chanoo552 said:

Sleeping with wife on 18th floor @4am when northridge quake hit.She thought somebody was breaking in.Went downstairs ... played BJ.

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There was damage to that building big time after that quake. If I remeber correctly they did not find out about it till a week later. People were pissed.

playing bj at stardust; about 1978; free individual cigarets available as singles at the tables; player gets bj (21 first 2 cards), but does not turn it over to show dealer; dealer starts to pay player at end while collecting cards; but floorman intervened and ruled that a player would not be paid on natural 21 if he does not immediately turn cards face up and show dealer...

only time i ever saw that in 30+ years at vegas...

yeah; floorman looked and talked like mobster...

lol

gl

:cryingcry

Sugarbear, Quake was on Monday,We left on Thursday.Was there structural damage to tower?

chanoo552 said:

Sugarbear, Quake was on Monday,We left on Thursday.Was there structural damage to tower?

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I assume you were talking about the 92 quake which took place on a Saturday. I remember the day clearly and yes there was damage.

January 17 (Monday) 1994. I remember people from LA wondering if they would have trouble getting home as it was a legal holiday for most.(Martin Luther King day).

Fish you know Charlie Kessler? Sam Brown Yokie Bobby the Owl Chickie and leo [race book] and on and on