October 05 ED*
9/2/05
1:19 AM
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lammers are picked up, someone is ‘ripping and tearing’ (stealing) and they are not being subtle about it. I was okay with it. My juice made it clear to me before I ever started working: ‘I’m going to put you to work, and all I expect in return is for you to put your head down and mind your own business.’ He also told me that should anyone ever give me a hard time, just dummy up and if things really got bad, go straight to him. In those days, if a boss were to f**k with you, a lot of times you had to look him dead in the eye and say ‘Listen asshole, you go to your juice and I’ll go to mine and we’ll see who’s working tomorrow.’ So people would leave you alone because they didn’t know who put you to work.” The Aladdin would eventually close down due to hidden ownership problems with organized crime. It is estimated that tens of millions were stolen in marker scams, and tens of millions more that were never collected. Steve explained that it was all one giant machination: there was never any intention of paying.
Steve was out of work, but he was okay. After making over $200 a day in “zukes” (tips) for many years at the Aladdin and with more than a few $1000 scores (all in addition to his pay) he had built up a decent bankroll for a young man. It was more money than he had ever seen in his life. During his first few years in Las Vegas, Steve was either working or practicing gambling sleight of hand, but once he was out of work he began devoting more time to his other gambling interests: counting cards and playing Poker. Steve experienced some limited success when he started playing but only for “short money.” “I was counting cards, playing a little Seven-Card Stud, and holding my own. I never thought about gambling professionally at that time but thanks to a very special friend, I always knew that I could if I wanted to.” The friend Steve refers to is a gentlemen known only as Big JB, a world class card player. To this day, after meeting many of the best gamblers and players in the world, Steve
Right: Rare Klondyke layout with Card Presses and Dice Drops beneath; Below: Homemade glasstop “Dicer”
ever had the pleasure knowing. The things he does that magicians would find interesting only make up a small—a very small— percentage of what he knows about gambling. He gets a kick from the way magicians admire and respect his ability with the cards, but he’ll always downplay his expertise by explaining he was fortunate enough to meet and learn from some of the greatest mechanics of his time. These people would be like the Vernon’s and Marlo’s in our world. Mr. Jim Keller, a most well-known and respected person in the gaming industry, once told me that people in the gambling world look up to Steve the same way magicians do. They place him at the highest level in their field. I’ve sat with Steve many times during the last few years, and every time he shows me new things—totally different techniques unlike anything I’ve seen before. Erdnase once wrote about the difference between the critical observer being able to suspect let alone detect an action, and Steve is actual proof it can be done! Everything he does is absolutely flawless. However, the only thing that impresses more than his knowledge and skill is his character and honor. People don’t get any better than Steve! 58
Genii
GENII: Do you have any anecdotes you would like to
share? MALONE: About a month ago, I was on the telephone talking to Steve about one of my favorite subjects, Blackjack mucks— switching one or both cards in a Blackjack hand. He told me I wouldn’t believe how many ways there were to do mucks. I asked, “Could there be as many as 50, or would that be too many?” He said, “I’m sure there are 50!” Just to put him on the spot, I mentioned that I would be in Vegas in a few days, and I’d like to see him do 50 mucks. To my surprise, he said okay, and not only that, but each one would be totally different in technique and not just a variant of one before it. When I met with Steve, he handed me a list of 50 mucks. He then went through the list with me and did all of them. They were flawless! What really got me, though, was that after we were through, I said that I couldn’t believe there were that many ways to muck cards. He said, “Bill, you gave me the number. I just listed 50 on a piece of paper and stopped there. I could have kept going!”•