hahahahahahaha... he's going to jail...

It was my understanding that you cannot be forced to pay a gambling debt. (at least legally)

If the casino is stupid enough to loan you money at the tables it is their loss if you decide to reneg on paying it back.

Errk: I wonder where he really made his fortune?

Cookies.

"It also benefitted the two casinos' parent company, Harrah's Entertainment Inc., which derived about 5.6% of its Las Vegas gambling revenue from Mr. Watanabe that year."

But it's nice to hear he made a difference!

T.M.S.: It was my understanding that you cannot be forced to pay a gambling debt. (at least legally)

Maybe not legally, but two guys in suits in the backroom with a crowbar might beg to differ.

Toshiro Mifune's Letter Opener: Somewhere, Elisabeth Shue is helping this doofus buy a crapload of booze...

That Sir, gets my vote for "post of the day"

Somaticasual: T.M.S.: It was my understanding that you cannot be forced to pay a gambling debt. (at least legally)

Maybe not legally, but two guys in suits in the backroom with a crowbar might beg to differ.

I think in this case, if you are the one with 127 million still in your pocket, you can probably hire people to take care of 2 guys in suits. Can probably easily get 5 semi-violent ex-marines for 200k a pop per year, so its still a hell of a lot cheaper than paying off that gambling debt :)

Tunk87: Some douchebag tried this same thing here are one of the casinos in Detroit.

It was quickly thrown out of court.

Casinos in detroit will refuse to pay out your winnings if you find the coin on the floor and put it in the slot machine too. I was hoping people would riot and burn them down after that incident.

Nevada has had a lot of this lately - lots of people are having their markers called in and they cant afford to pay them.

Former NBA player Antoine Walker (new window) has to pay $12K/mo or $21K/mo (depending on whether or not he gets a job) until the debt is payed off.

Somebody call the WAAAAAmbulance for this shiathead. Johnny Midwest who loses his kids' college fund won't get any leeway. fark that guy.

Most defendants agree to pay the debt through a payment plan before charges are filed, with around 10% tacked on to fund the D.A. unit

So the DA has replaced the mob?

We have a Harrahs Indian casino close to where I live (San Diego county close)

I was doing well, not great was up only about 400 bucks on the roulette table they switched dealer EVERY spin until I got tired of it and left. Big deal up 400 for a 100 bet.

Cheap bastards, guaranteed if he had been drunk and WINNING they would have enforced 'the rule'.

Still he is a grown ass man, he CHOSE to drink and gamble.
If Harrahs gave him the credit AFTER he was clearly drunk them shame on them. The establishment has so many people to look after it.

This needs a judge and jury. Harrah's has the DA in their pocket which is NEVER good.

Way to write an article on something we were talking about like 6 months ago. They left out the nifty shiat like how they gave him tons of coke.

/Perhaps this is one of those few times where I'm ridiculously ahead of the curve.
//Step-father worked the high-limit pit in Caesars at the time this took place.

Simple gambling rule to live by as applied to betting against the house in a casino (doesn't necessarily apply to playing poker against other players):

If you gamble, you will lose. The more you gamble, the more you will lose.

After the first million was burned..I'd probably sober up.

PROBABLY

Why the fark would somebody with 127 million bucks even be in a casino??

The real joke is that Harrah's is even broker than he is. Looks like they will be right next door in bankrupcy court.

$23.1 billion debt hanging over Harrah's

Gaming giant at risk of default as revenue continues to shrink

http://www.lvrj.com/business/41420582.html (new window)

Mr. Watanabe

So many punibilities there.

Wonton.

Wannabe.

Wait that guy owns Oriental Trading? That magazine is so goofy.

Dinki: It devoured much of Mr. Watanabe's personal fortune, he says, which he built up over more than two decades running his family's party-favor import business in Omaha, Neb.

You can make money millions selling party favors in Nebraska??????

The Oriental Trading Company is a huge catalog business. The stuff they sell is inexpensive per unit, but the volume is huge. My sister bought some artificial flower leis and other Hawaiian themed items from the catalog for her wedding reception.

/I hate to say it, but I'm the one that showed her the catalog.
//I also pointed her in the direction of a flower wholesaler so members of the wedding party could have real orchid leis.

Dinki: It devoured much of Mr. Watanabe's personal fortune, he says, which he built up over more than two decades running his family's party-favor import business in Omaha, Neb.

You can make money millions selling party favors in Nebraska??????

There is a world outside LA and New York, and its not revolving around either of those places.

I used to work with a lady who was a part-time housekeeper at his home. The guy is a bit of a flamer and was known for having extravagant(said with jazz hands) parties. And, any celebs that come to town would somehow have dinner at his house. I guess he's got photos hanging all over of those he's dined with.

/or so she said.

Actually I see his point to a degree. The problem is that we're not talking about blowing $20k in a couple hours. I take it this didn't happen at a single sitting. If not, then the guy should have called it quits or at least sent the drinks back. Seriously, how do you lose that much money?

And I agree, the casinos ignore the whole drunk gambling all of the time. They want you drunk and will comp drinks to get you going. The casinos make their living off keeping folks inside and chunking money in.

Anyway, this guy is basically screwed. No NV judge is going to give his case anything more than a courtesy look over before tossing it out. If Harrah's goes for the owed money, this guy will be lucky to keep his business.

farkityfarker: Simple gambling rule to live by as applied to betting against the house in a casino (doesn't necessarily apply to playing poker against other players):

If you gamble, you will lose. The more you gamble, the more you will lose.

Ah! It's a profit deal!

"A fool and his money are soon parted."


ploink!

My mother in law knows him, he's a bit flamboyant but super nice to casino employees.

They left out he spent alot of time at the Palms, mostly because he won... He also joined the little card program made for the regular rubes and earned himself something upwards of 50 50" plasma screens. His orders were to distribute them to casino employees on a list he provided. The Palms refused behind his back and once he learned of this had them shipped to his home and took his business elsewhere.

She mentioned he'd be so exhausted/drunk/high that he would doze off regularlly.

Bluestab: Actually I see his point to a degree. The problem is that we're not talking about blowing $20k in a couple hours. I take it this didn't happen at a single sitting. If not, then the guy should have called it quits or at least sent the drinks back. Seriously, how do you lose that much money?

And I agree, the casinos ignore the whole drunk gambling all of the time. They want you drunk and will comp drinks to get you going. The casinos make their living off keeping folks inside and chunking money in.

Anyway, this guy is basically screwed. No NV judge is going to give his case anything more than a courtesy look over before tossing it out. If Harrah's goes for the owed money, this guy will be lucky to keep his business.

he sold the business off, thus affording him free cash supply and lots of time to go with it.

I'm guessing his closet homosexual lifestyle pushed him to Vegas where he could "be himself" as from the article I'd gather his family seems to be deluded that he never found the right girl cause he was married to his work.

I am building a gambling debt of extraordinary magnitude!