Review of The Man With the $100,000 Breasts

Title:

The Man With the $100,000 Breasts

Author:

Michael Konik

Publisher:

Broadway Books

Date:

1999

ISBN:

0-7679-04455-1

Pages:

234

Price:

$12.00

Reviewed by Nick Christenson, npc@lvrevealed.com

February 14, 2000

Michael Konik has written numerous articles about the colorful characters and events that have shaped Las Vegas and other gambling scenes. Early in 1999, Huntington Press published a collection of his work titled, The Man With the $100,000 Breasts. Late that year it was reprinted as a paperback with the same name by Broadway Books.

The book contains a total of 26 stories broken up into six sections. The sectional division isn't really very important, it's merely there to break up the book a bit. Many of these stories originally appeared in other magazines such as Sport, Maxim, and Cigar Aficionado. They're all expertly written and provide some interesting insight into their own special world. Some are better than others, but I didn't feel there were any true duds.

Some of the stories, like those about poker legend Johnny Moss, the meteoric rise and fall of craps legend Archie Karas, and the history of race handicapping legend Andrew Beyer are fairly well known, often even outside of gambling circles. Others, like the stories of the "Cold-Deck Crew" or SCA Promotions are likely not nearly as widely known. There is something here for just about anyone with a sports, gambling, or Las Vegas interest.

I've read a lot of books that are collections of gambling stories, and The Man With the $100,000 Breasts is one of the better ones. While I wouldn't rate it quite as highly as, say, Alvarez' The Biggest Game in Town, it does score well above the median. It's well worth reading by those with an interest in the topic, but I recommend purchasing the paperback version.

Capsule:

Yet another collection of gambling stories, The Man With the $100,000 Breasts ranks above average in this category. It's a blend of both the very familiar and novel new stories about this rich subject. If you find the subject interesting, definitely pick up the paperback version newly released by Broadway Books.

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