Frequently Asked Questions
What is “Thieving Bastards” about?
Thieving Bastards: True Confessions of the World’s Greatest Cheats contains interviews with a range of professional gambling cheats, and one interview with an investigator who worked for the Nevada Gaming Control Board (GCB) in the enforcement division. The cheats discuss how they entered the criminal underworld, how they learned the tricks of their trade and some of the scores they made. It puts the reader right in the action, whether it’s poker games in smoky clubs, mafia-run clambakes or a crew about to take off a huge score in a casino on the Las Vegas strip.
What kind of cheats are interviewed in “Thieving Bastards”?
Thieving Bastards is the first volume of a series of books. Volume one contains the uncensored stories of a range of card thieves and dice cheaters who worked in poker and craps crews across the West Coast, from Washington State down through Oregon and California and across to Nevada and beyond. It also includes an interview with a notorious casino crossroader who ran major casino scams in Las Vegas, Reno, Mississippi and even on cruise ships that operate casinos. His plays were so devastating that the industry changed its procedures to stop the casinos bleeding money. You’ll meet a black hustler who went from hustling in the Bronx to switching decks on millionaires at Superbowl parties, and a technical specialist who designed and sold advanced cheating technologies using hidden cameras and spooky chemicals.
Does “Thieving Bastards” teach any of the methods used by professional cheats?
It’s not intended as a manual but it certainly exposes methods and systems used to take off games, and that are still being used in certain venues. Some of the specific details have never been exposed in print. As one gaming expert noted while copy editing an early draft: “Really fantastic and I learned a lot - no mean feat considering my strong interest in the subject matter for 35+ years.” There is an extensive original glossary of cheating terms and a whole chapter that gives you a “guided tour” of the key methodologies used by professional hustlers to steal your money.
How did you meet the cheats that appear in “Thieving Bastards”?
As a young man I worked as a card magician. I was fortunate enough to meet some people who straddled the line between magic and the gambling underworld. I had developed expertise in cheating moves that made them realize I wasn’t like other magicians. Through those people I was introduced to cheaters on the circuit as well as people who operated underground supply companies that sold marked cards and loaded dice to amateurs and professionals alike. Every contact I made led to a new contact, and so my knowledge grew over time.
Does the book contain interviews with magicians?
No. The book is absolutely about professional cheats, a group of criminals very far removed from the romantic world of magicians. This is a world with a strict criminal code and one that involves serious risk of explosive violence. However, magicians do use some techniques from the cheating world and in fact some cheats started down the crooked path to becoming thieves after dabbling in magic to find ways to cheat. So the book discusses the differences between these two worlds.
Will there be an audio book of “Thieving Bastards”?
It’s possible but it would need to be voiced by actors. While I retain recordings of these interviews, all of the subjects insisted that the audio was never to be shared. That’s because we used fake names to protect the identities of some subjects, such as “Bobby Machines” and “Black Johnny”, and others. Some of the guys are still operating and one or two transitioned to “respectable” careers later in life. Others used real names but our recorded conversations include information that we agreed to leave out of the finished book. This includes certain people who got screwed over and for how much, and those guys might be pissed off if they realize they’d been skinned alive at the table.
Does Thieving Bastards have any photographs or illustrations?
The book contains photos of some of the people interviewed as well as photos of cheating equipment discussed in each of the chapters. This ranges from crooked dice, to marked cards, and from “holdout machines” to “slick sleeves” to “whip cups” and electronic technology. There are also some pages from vintage gambling catalogues reproduced in the book. Around 60 unique photos in color and black & white..
How many volumes are planned for this series?
At this point, volume two is close to the copy editing and proofing stages. However, we are always on the lookout for new people interested in telling their stories.
Have you ever cheated for money?
Yes.