Chapter 23

We met with Steve and one of his managers. Sam just wanted to use our sound stage at the network headquarters but Steve wanted to show a helicopter fly around as it was announced that it was being broadcast from the Will Hotel and Casino. He was willing to pay to sponsor the event so I didn’t see why we shouldn’t play at the hotel. When Sam started talking about lighting, camera angles, air conditioning to compensate for the extra heat from the lighting, Steve forgot the high roller suite and even the conference room.

The head of facilities was brought in and he was instructed to take a space in the hotel and convert it to a sound stage built to look like a suite but with all the specifications that Sam had laid out. We were all promised a two-week turn around and many things would be built into the room to make Sam’s job easier and the coverage better.

That afternoon in the meeting, Steve was excited and talked about all the work that was being done to set up the room for the TV show. Next, Britt called on me to talk about the web site and progress that I’d made along with what I’d done to get the television set up.

Doyle talked about the game the previous night and Patty being brought in to add a fresh face and personality to the game. Finally, Britt turned to Bill and he had nothing. Britt said, “We all have bought into this idea and want it to become a reality. The question that I have is what happens if it does become a reality? Jack is paying staff out of his pocket to build a web site. Steve is footing the bill for the new sound stage. Doyle was asked to come in as a personality and spokesperson.

“We’ve talked about how much reserves and bonding should be backing these types of companies. We never talked about the end game. Are we each going to start our own online casinos and compete against each other? Are we going to form one and take on the world? Are we each going to own 20%? Are we each going to put up two hundred and fifty million to have that billion-dollar company? What are our next steps?”

Steve was still hyped up. “I’m going to do this no matter what. I was planning on going into business with you but if you want to compete then we can do it on our own.”

Doyle said, “I’m just a pretty face. I don’t have two hundred and fifty million lying around like you all do.”

Heads turned to me and I said, “I’m kind of like Steve and as much as I love Doyle, I’m happy to give him a portion but not an equal stake if I’m footing a quarter billion of the project.”

Bill Segal was last to speak and he said, “I’ve been kind of wondering the same thing. I kind of feel like a third wheel in this endeavor. I don’t have that kind of money either but do believe in the concept. I knew that this talk would come up at some point and I was ready for it. Based on what you have and what you need, I’m not part of the mix. I would like to start my own company and come up with my own investors. That would mean that I’ll be competing against you. Would you be alright if I did that? If not, then I’d like to buy in with you all for a smaller stake. Maybe a ten percent share for a hundred million?”

Britt was who everyone was waiting on since he’d started everything. “Bill I’m glad that my thinking wasn’t out of line and that you see things the same way. I think that your offer is a fair one but to be honest, if we have a monopoly then there will be others complaining. I think that competition is good and that you’ll make more by setting up a competing brand. If you need investors, I’ll throw in some money. I’ll make Jack invest and ask Steve to come along. Doyle is the only one with a non-compete. I will pledge four-hundred and ninety in backing for forty-nine percent between Jack, Steve and me. If you can come up with investors that can back the other half a billion, then we will both be up and running. We can even compete and have a tournament between the two brands at the end of the season, whenever that is.”

“That’s during the slow sports months, when people want to watch something competitive.” I added.

Steve was nodding and Bill shook everyone’s hands before saying. “It shouldn’t take too much effort to come up with that much and I don’t feel bad about this. I look forward to the competition. Thanks for the support and good will. Good luck to you and to us all.”

After the door, had closed behind him, Doyle said, “And I thought that the big game was big. I’m not sure that I followed everything that just happened but if felt like he got cut from the team and I held on to mine.”

Britt said, “Doyle it looks like you’ve been given ten percent of a billion-dollar company. You are the ambassador for the company and the game of poker. Your smile, soft heart and table manners along with your poker skills have earned you a place in history and a place in our company.”

He got a little teary eyed and said, “I feel honored.”

Two weeks later we had the web site up and running but being added to daily. The sound stage was set up and the first game was set to be played. Britt had announced that the first game wouldn’t be for real money because of all the distractions and possible mistakes. He didn’t want it to cost anyone but they would all be paid an appearance fee like they would every night that they showed up to play.

The first problem came up when the announcers started to talk. They couldn’t talk about strategy or tendencies without causing problems with the players and what they were saying. The announcers were getting heckled by the players during the hands. They also found that the announcers couldn’t talk about much since they didn’t know what the cards were while they were playing and turning over the cards after a folded hand was not something they were willing to do.

We stopped the game and it was easy enough to run a camera feed to the next room where the announcers could discuss the hands in play but not be heard by the players. Patty said, “Why don’t you just put a little camera in the table and the cards could be seen by the production crew. The cards could be known by the announcers and viewers but not the players.

Everyone agreed that it would take some time to get used to showing the cards to the cameras but also agreed that it would make for better television. Since the games would be played for real with real money on the line there had to be some rules set up about where monitors could and couldn’t be placed so that no one in the room could see the hole cards until they were turned over on the table. This would help eliminate even the possibility of signals or cheating.

It took two days for the new table to be built and to have the small cameras installed. The room next door was set up as a room for the announcers and the place where they’d been in the room was set up as a place where people could get some food, drink or sit on a sofa between hands.

The next fake test game went off well and everyone seemed happy with the results when we had a viewing party after the taping. They liked that the cards could be seen and the production people were already planning some graphics, statistics and other things that could add to the viewing. One thing that Sam announced after the viewing that not even I knew was that she’d inserted a delay into the filming.

She said, “I want this to be totally fair and ethical. I don’t care if we must wait a while but there is a two-minute delay in the feed from the playing room to the announcing room. We use this in live sports all the time in case someone dies or misses a play and starts cussing. The announcers will talk as if it’s live but will be talking two minutes behind what is actually happening.”

The players seemed happy with that and I didn’t care either way. We played the rest of the week, being taped but not for release on TV. It was to get everyone ready but after the second night and everyone’s approval, we did play for real money. Sam would spend the days, doing background pieces on the different players. There was a total of eight players. Three were amateurs, Patty, Bill Segal and me. The other five including Britt were professionals. They played for money and didn’t have a day job that they had to go into most days.

Patty’s interview was the most interesting. They showed her at a couple different Survival of the Fittest locations working out at each one. They showed clips of her playing volleyball in the Olympics, at Florida and wearing the smallest bikini imaginable with me on the beach in Malibu. When they got around to poker she said, “I learned how to play in college and became a student of the game. There is a lot to learn and I learned all that I could.”

The announcer asked, “You play in what they call the big game in Vegas where over a million dollars can be on the table at any time. How did you get to that level of the sport?”

“I was in Monaco working on the Sport Support beach volleyball tour. We had some free time one night and I went with Jack to the casino. We played cards but at different tables. We both won that night and the other nights that we were there. At first people thought they could take advantage of me because I was a woman and their bullying techniques turned into cash for me. This is one sport where men and women can compete on equal footing; chess is another. It is about your mind and strategy, not your brawn. I left at the end of the week and had won over a quarter million francs or dollars. I never spent that money and it started my bank roll that I use to play in cash games and tournaments. If I ever lose it all then I’ll have to figure out if I want to risk more to stay in the game. I haven’t come close to losing my initial investment yet.”

They would play snippets during the shows but could do a special if they wanted to. Mine was less exciting but it wasn’t painful either. The announcer was a woman and asked, “Jack, you seem to be everywhere and nowhere at the same time. How do you spend your time?”

“I’m a college graduate and a businessman.”

“We know that but we can see you hosting wet t-shirt contests, surfing in Fiji, skiing in Colorado or Utah and riding a motorcycle or skateboard anywhere else in the world. How do you have time to do all those things, run a business and play poker?”

“I am up early every day to work out. I don’t watch movies or read many fiction books. My day is set up with a list of things to accomplish and that is what I focus on. Most people work eight to ten hours a day to make a pay check. I work sixteen hours a day to live life. If I want to look good I work out. If I want to skateboard well, I practice skateboarding. If I want to play the guitar, I practice that. If there is something that needs to get done at one of the companies, then I do that. I just prioritize my time but have sixteen hours a day, seven days a week so I normally can fit it all in.

“Cards are great because it keeps your mind active and healthy. You can talk, eat, learn and play all at the same time. There are also various levels of the game from friendly home games to the ones that they are showing on TV. I’m an amateur but I win as often as I lose even at this level. With enough practice and a little luck, each hand is up for grabs.”

For the people around the table it was just another night at the casino but for almost everyone in the viewing audience the sight of people pulling bundles of hundred dollar bills out and putting them on the table was something they never even thought about. Stacks of chips, stacks of cash and blinds of five and ten thousand dollars were how the game started and grabbed the attention of many viewers. The next five episodes each increased in viewership as people told their friends and the popularity grew.

The web site that had been set up was getting a lot of hits as the viewers responded to commercials for freedom to do what they wanted to do and do it legally. There was a direct link for people to put in their email, attach or select a message and hit send. The email would be sent to their congressman and their Representative. Their name would be added to the petition and they would be added to the newsletter that we had started. It was one stop shopping for our cause.

The show was a success and there were a lot of emails to the station wanting Patty to show up at different casinos to open a tournament, play in a tournament or be part of the event in some way. I received a few requests but she was getting a lot of publicity out of the show and was asked to speak at some women’s groups.

The first time she was asked to speak it was to a group of women executives. They’d formed a group that focused on the challenges that women faced in society, at work and at home. Patty came to me about a week before and wanted to cancel her attendance. She said, “I didn’t want to do this but Darcy said that it would be a good thing for me to do and that Karen has these same kinds of requests all the time.”

“What did they ask you to talk about?”

“They want me to talk about overcoming the problems that women have in their everyday lives. How would I know anything about that? I don’t have those problems.”

I just started to laugh at her.

“What’s so funny? I don’t have those problems.”

“I think that you just wrote your speech.”

“I’m getting frustrated.”

“I’ll fuck you after you write your speech. But I’ll give you a hint. It should start off talking about this conversation. You have the same problems as all the other women in that room and around the world but you don’t focus on the problems and don’t see them as problems. You focus on the solution.

“Your dad left you before you were born, your mom was drunk until you went to college, you had your mom’s drunkard boyfriends coming and staying in your trailer. Why aren’t you a drunken, crack-head whore?”

“Those aren’t the problems these women have.”

“No but dishes and report writing seems minor after that. It all comes down to prioritizing your duties and creating a life that you enjoy. I’m not saying to quit your job and put the kids up for adoption but if you don’t like your job you can look for another one or make the one you have better. If you don’t like yard work hire someone and then spend that time doing something to make your life more efficient or enjoyable.”

“I like to sleep but like how my body feels after a good workout. I love the job or jobs that I do. I love my new family, playing cards and being with you. I loved to be the best at volleyball and made the commitment to excellence. I can talk about those things. Women tend to trap themselves with, a husband, kids, a job, a big house and other obligations and then hate all of them. The choices they make should be deliberate and in the end, they should be happy. Make the kids do their part. Get a smaller house or a richer husband. They should make a conscious effort to live life to the fullest and to strive for happiness. Problems are opportunities to make changes. Don’t focus on the problem, focus on the solution. I am getting paid a lot to speak and I am going to tell it like I see it and not sugar coat it.”

“Make sure you don’t come off as Wonder Woman because I think that you are. Try to show some of your human side, some of the struggles that you went through. Not all those women are part of a family that could spend a billion dollars a day and not worry about it. Try to make them laugh as well.”

“I can do this. Do you want to fuck me before I start writing it or when I’m done? My mind is laying out a book that needs to be written.”

“If you promise to write and speak then I’ll fuck you now. Be a good girl and get naked. I love to see those long firm legs and perfect ass as you bend over the back of the couch and moan into the seat cushions. I may let you cum if you beg well enough.”

She was taking off her clothes before I finished speaking. She did get fucked, she did beg like a good girl. She had her cum and then was up for another hour writing down the outline for her speech and her first book.

I flew with her to Dallas where she was going to be speaking. She read her speech to Darcy, Mindy and Eve but didn’t want me to hear it before she delivered it. I was allowed in the room to hear it though and I was glad that the lights were turned down to hide some of the tears that I shed.

It was a roller coaster of a speech as she took them from the lowest of lows in the trailer of a drunken whore as she grew up to standing on the podium while a medal was placed around her neck. She made them laugh with some of the antics from her travel and adventures. She talked of the privileges she had living with me and with the job that she had but the theme was about being happy.

She opened with, “We are all women and women live on emotions. Men dream of becoming policemen, firemen and sports heroes. Women dream of becoming princesses. We want to be adored, worshiped and taken care of. Men can become policemen, firemen and play sports to a certain level if they want to work for it but there are few princesses in the world and it is more based on your family than anything you can do. So, we women are screwed before we leave elementary school.” That started the night with a big laugh and then she told her story.

She told about the first time she woke up with a strange man touching her while she was in her bed while he fondled himself at the same time. She talked about watching her mom drinking until she passed out but not having any food in the house because her mom had sold the food stamps for money to buy booze. She remembered the day that she was sent home because her clothes were too small and she was causing a distraction.