Valuetainment - October 02, 2018


Episode 179： FBI Takes Down Biggest Underground Poker Game - Molly Bloom's True Story


Episode Stats


Length

27 minutes

Words per minute

196.50905

Word count

5,494

Sentence count

486

Harmful content

Misogyny

7

sentences flagged

Hate speech

5

sentences flagged


Summary

Summaries generated with gmurro/bart-large-finetuned-filtered-spotify-podcast-summ .

Molly Bloom is one of the most famous poker players in the history of the game, and she did all of this in her 20s, and eventually FBI came after her. She tells the entire story in this sit down.

Transcript

Transcript generated with Whisper (turbo).
Misogyny classifications generated with MilaNLProc/bert-base-uncased-ear-misogyny .
Hate speech classifications generated with facebook/roberta-hate-speech-dynabench-r4-target .
00:00:00.000 Look, if you like the game of poker, you're going to love today's podcast because this
00:00:20.240 could be one of the best stories ever in the game of poker and that has to do with Molly
00:00:23.860 Bloom.
00:00:24.240 Molly's movie came out called Molly's Game, which she went from being a skier to a massive
00:00:29.140 injury, to move into L.A., meeting a producer, director, and from there, she gets invited
00:00:35.280 to a private poker game and then eventually she starts her own private poker game, East
00:00:39.580 Coast, West Coast, and the buying ends up being quarter million to half a million dollars with
00:00:43.980 some of the biggest Hollywood names and billionaires in the world.
00:00:47.380 And she did all of this in her 20s and eventually FBI came after her.
00:00:51.980 She tells the entire story in this sit down.
00:00:54.620 So it's January 1st, okay, we're back, we're relaxing, we go to watch a movie that night,
00:01:00.760 January 1st, 2018, we watch this movie called Molly's Game, okay, and I leave, I am so fascinated
00:01:08.960 by this story that I said, I've got to find out who this girl is.
00:01:12.400 So I go on Twitter, I find her, I tweet her at 10.44 p.m., I get a message two days later,
00:01:18.540 we go back and forth and here we are sitting down with Molly in Colorado.
00:01:24.540 Thank you for taking the time and visiting with us.
00:01:26.540 Yeah.
00:01:27.540 Thank you for coming to Colorado.
00:01:28.540 So Molly, you are known as the Poker Princess. 0.92
00:01:31.540 That's the nickname.
00:01:32.540 They get you, right?
00:01:33.540 Yes.
00:01:34.540 Biggest business, they call it a $100 million business, you ran, you had all these people
00:01:38.580 that would come in, the biggest poker game in America, quarter million dollar buy-in.
00:01:44.620 How did this whole thing get started?
00:01:46.100 I mean, how did you go from who you were at?
00:01:48.220 Were you playing poker at six years old, eight years old with daddy?
00:01:51.220 Tell us that part of the story.
00:01:52.220 It was really sort of an accident.
00:01:56.200 My life plan was to go to the Olympics.
00:01:58.540 I skied for the U.S. ski team.
00:02:00.360 I was a very serious student and I had just taken the LSAT and done incredibly well.
00:02:05.780 I was in the process of applying to law schools when kind of a fluke accident happened on my
00:02:11.520 Olympic qualifier run.
00:02:13.280 I literally tripped on a stick, a pine bough inserted itself into my binding and my ski
00:02:18.500 pre-release.
00:02:19.500 I was really injured and that was the end of my ski career and it sort of made me question
00:02:25.560 everything that I was doing and so I wanted to take a little bit of time to really think
00:02:30.340 that through to think if this life plan was why I wanted to do so.
00:02:33.460 I went to LA, I got a bunch of jobs, I was a cocktail waitress, I was a personal assistant
00:02:40.460 and my boss at the time said, you know, I'm going to need you to serve drinks to my poker
00:02:44.280 game.
00:02:46.280 I remember Googling what kind of music do poker players like to listen to and trying to understand
00:02:51.960 them as a species because I had zero exposure.
00:02:54.460 Never.
00:02:55.460 You've never.
00:02:56.460 I played a hand of poker.
00:02:57.580 The only time I had seen anyone playing poker was in the movies that we've all seen and
00:03:03.920 I'm just like, what am I walking into?
00:03:07.820 And so when I showed up at the game, really quickly I realized this was not what I thought
00:03:13.580 it was.
00:03:14.580 I walk in the room and some of the most famous, wealthy and powerful men are seated around this
00:03:20.580 table.
00:03:21.580 That night.
00:03:22.580 So your first night, you go there, you're seeing everybody there.
00:03:24.820 Yes.
00:03:25.820 In that moment I was like, light bulb moment, this is an incredible way to build a network.
00:03:30.580 This is not an opportunity that a 22 year old girl from Loveland, Colorado generally gets.
00:03:37.160 And then also they're speaking freely and I'm like, this is access to people, this is access
00:03:41.460 to information.
00:03:42.920 And then at the end of the night, I made $3,000, which at that time was a, you know, a night.
00:03:48.740 Yeah.
00:03:49.740 I mean, at that time, and now again, you know, I would be ecstatic right now.
00:03:56.580 So I learned the game.
00:03:59.380 I learned as much as I could about the game.
00:04:01.860 I studied the guys for, you know, six months to kind of understand what the draw was here,
00:04:08.060 how I could turn this into a business for myself.
00:04:10.480 You say study.
00:04:11.480 What do you mean by study?
00:04:12.480 So you studied the way they were playing or are you doing research about them?
00:04:15.480 Both.
00:04:16.480 So I'm learning all the terminology so that I don't seem like an amateur.
00:04:18.480 Got it.
00:04:19.480 You know, and I'm learning how to talk shop with them.
00:04:22.480 And then I'm sort of observing them.
00:04:25.480 I realized a couple of things.
00:04:26.480 First of all, these guys didn't, they didn't want things anymore, right?
00:04:30.480 They could buy all the things that they want.
00:04:32.480 They wanted experiences.
00:04:33.480 And, and this gambling, it really took them outside of themselves.
00:04:38.480 It was escapism.
00:04:39.480 So it was this experience, this transformational experience, this, this, you know, escapism.
00:04:44.480 And so when I ultimately took over the game, the first thing I did was I built on that.
00:04:49.480 You know, I built on like, these guys want to feel like James Bond for a night.
00:04:52.480 They want to be different when they walk out of this room than they were when they walked out.
00:04:56.480 So you made them feel like James Bond for a night?
00:04:58.480 I tried.
00:04:59.480 Yeah.
00:05:00.480 That's so, now some of the names, the names are out.
00:05:02.480 Yeah.
00:05:03.480 The names are out.
00:05:04.480 So, you know, one of the players, Ruderman, ends up having a Ponzi scheme from trying to
00:05:09.480 get investments from other people.
00:05:10.480 That's right.
00:05:11.480 And he came out and told them, I think Toby McGuire's on that list.
00:05:14.480 Leonardo DiCaprio's on that list.
00:05:16.480 Ben Affleck's on that list.
00:05:17.480 I think A-Rod's on that list.
00:05:19.480 Alex Rodriguez.
00:05:20.480 And there's a few other guys that came out on that list.
00:05:22.480 So now, you have all these personalities.
00:05:23.480 Yes.
00:05:24.480 You're 25.
00:05:25.480 The one part that I watch, and I really want to get into the relationship with your father,
00:05:29.480 that whole thing with Jeremy Jordan and all that, I mean, that's such an incredible story
00:05:33.480 of you.
00:05:34.480 The first question I asked you when I came inside was about your dad.
00:05:36.480 Yeah.
00:05:37.480 So do you think you are dealing with all these big personalities?
00:05:40.480 Toby McGuire, which is known as being a, you know, there's a lot of words in the dictionary
00:05:45.480 that are not in the dictionary that they use for Toby.
00:05:48.480 You got DiCaprio, you got Affleck, you got Ben Affleck, you got Alex Roddy.
00:05:53.480 These are strong personality people.
00:05:55.480 You're 25.
00:05:56.480 How did you know how to lead and handle people like this?
00:05:59.480 Because I'm sure they're trying to bully you as well to try to control everything.
00:06:02.480 How did that relationship take place?
00:06:04.480 A large part of it, I think, was instinctual.
00:06:07.480 Through these games, through these experiences, I realized what I was actually good at, and
00:06:12.480 I hadn't really known that up until this point.
00:06:16.480 I, you know, I guess my, I have a higher EQ than probably, you know, like IQ.
00:06:24.480 Like, I have a really well-honed EQ, and I also came at it from a place of trying to understand
00:06:33.480 humans instead of just running a game and being procedural about it and sort of, you know,
00:06:38.480 just trying to run it, like, in this very procedural way.
00:06:41.480 I tried to really understand people, and what I saw so often is when all these negative manifestations
00:06:49.480 of personality emerges that what's behind it.
00:06:51.480 Or mirroring.
00:06:52.480 Yeah.
00:06:53.480 You're watching this.
00:06:54.480 Yeah.
00:06:55.480 You know, it's fear, and it's fear because they just lost a lot of money, fear because
00:07:00.480 they have a rivalry with someone.
00:07:02.480 And so I realized that if I could try to reduce that fear in them, that I could try to make
00:07:08.480 them feel safe or try to, you know, that that was generally the best way to deal with people,
00:07:14.480 particularly, like, when they would lose a lot of money, you know, instead of going
00:07:19.480 at them and being like, I need you to write that check right now, which is what a lot of
00:07:22.480 people do, just giving people the space, you know, just to be like, you know, call me when
00:07:27.480 you want, and you'll just come back and win as much, if not more, next time.
00:07:32.480 What are some of the craziest things you saw happening with this, you know, personality-wise?
00:07:36.480 Was it just regular personality?
00:07:38.480 Was it conversations where they fairly open with one another?
00:07:41.480 Or somebody's throwing a comment at Ben about JLo?
00:07:45.480 Or what was that part like?
00:07:47.480 Yeah, I mean, to tell you the truth, I was really focused on trying to preemptively squash
00:07:54.480 any drama before it happened, you know?
00:07:58.480 And so, like, I was really focused on that, but I have to give it to these guys for the
00:08:03.480 amount of money that was being gambled and, you know, sort of the personalities, they were
00:08:09.480 really civil with each other.
00:08:11.480 There was never a physical altercation.
00:08:13.480 There was a lot of, sort of, getting angry and stomping out, you know, but in terms of
00:08:20.480 people fighting with each other or physical altercations or whatever, like, they really
00:08:26.480 kept it pretty civil.
00:08:28.480 Interesting.
00:08:29.480 Yeah.
00:08:30.480 Was Toby's personality, the way that it's, you know, presented in the movie?
00:08:37.480 Was it fairly as accurate as it is in the movie?
00:08:40.480 Well, Aaron would really want me to say that the character, Player X, is a composite character.
00:08:47.480 And he's a character that Aaron wrote based on lots of different stories that, you know,
00:08:54.480 I told him.
00:08:55.480 There's a character in the book that's...
00:08:57.480 Player X.
00:08:58.480 Player X.
00:08:59.480 That's Toby.
00:09:00.480 Yeah.
00:09:01.480 And he was difficult.
00:09:03.480 He was very difficult.
00:09:04.480 He wanted to control and manage the situation.
00:09:06.480 He wanted to make sure he had edge in different ways, you know?
00:09:10.480 He wanted to be the only player at the table that locked it down and that was tight.
00:09:14.480 And he wanted everyone else to be giving action and gambling.
00:09:17.480 And he, you know, he put a couple players in and he was doing all this stuff that, in
00:09:24.480 order to gain edge.
00:09:26.480 And I shut it down and he didn't like that.
00:09:29.480 He didn't like it.
00:09:30.480 Now, let me ask you, how old was he at the time?
00:09:32.480 Because he's got to be similar age to you.
00:09:34.480 He's similar age to me.
00:09:35.480 I think he's like two years older than I am.
00:09:36.480 So it's not like he's a 40-year-old guy trying to, you know.
00:09:39.480 No.
00:09:40.480 Was he already the guy?
00:09:41.480 No.
00:09:42.480 Was he already a, he was already?
00:09:43.480 Yeah.
00:09:44.480 He was like at the height of his sort of fame and career.
00:09:47.480 And, you know, he's really smart.
00:09:49.480 Like I have to give it to him.
00:09:50.480 He's, I really, he's extremely bright.
00:09:53.480 And he also knew how to leverage that fame and that, and that position to gain power.
00:09:59.480 So, do you think a part of why you had a very easy time, let's just say, not easy
00:10:04.480 time, but more than an easy time than an average person would in an environment like this,
00:10:09.480 because you had a father that was very tough.
00:10:11.480 Yeah.
00:10:12.480 Do you think that helped out a lot?
00:10:13.480 I think having a father that was really tough and that, from a very young age, taught
00:10:19.480 me to overcome fear.
00:10:20.480 I got real comfortable with risk, you know.
00:10:22.480 Early on.
00:10:23.480 Early on.
00:10:24.480 Yeah, because we weren't allowed to have fear.
00:10:25.480 So what would, how would he shape your mind to not have any fear?
00:10:27.480 If I was afraid of something, he would force me to do it.
00:10:30.480 You know, like mobile skiing.
00:10:32.480 I remember he put me in the water to learn how to get up on one ski and I was in that
00:10:36.480 water until I got up, you know.
00:10:38.480 It was a lot of like teaching me how to suffer constructively in the face of trying to accomplish
00:10:42.480 something.
00:10:43.480 It was a lot of like standing on top of a cliff on my skis being this big and being
00:10:48.480 like, you're going to conquer your fear right now, you're going to jump off that cliff,
00:10:50.480 you know.
00:10:51.480 You're kidding me.
00:10:52.480 No.
00:10:53.480 Wow.
00:10:54.480 So, so was he like that with all of you?
00:10:55.480 With you, Jeremy and Jordan?
00:10:56.480 Oh yeah.
00:10:57.480 Yeah.
00:10:58.480 My brothers and I learned we had to, from an early age, conquer our fears.
00:11:03.480 And it was never an unsafe context.
00:11:06.480 And I'm really, you know, listen, like my dad's gotten some crap because of the character
00:11:14.480 that is portrayed by Costner.
00:11:17.480 But I'm glad that my dad did that.
00:11:19.480 And he was harder on me because-
00:11:21.480 Wow, you're saying that now.
00:11:22.480 Yeah.
00:11:23.480 I mean, maybe it took me, it's taken me 39 years.
00:11:25.480 Have you told him that?
00:11:26.480 Have you told him that?
00:11:27.480 Oh yeah.
00:11:28.480 We've processed.
00:11:29.480 We've done a lot of healing.
00:11:30.480 Um, but, um, you know, he also said to me, look, I'm a psychologist.
00:11:34.480 I know what the world looks like.
00:11:35.480 And I particularly know that it's harder for, for women. 0.95
00:11:38.480 And I wanted you to be tough.
00:11:39.480 I wanted you to be formidable.
00:11:41.480 He said that.
00:11:42.480 Yeah.
00:11:43.480 But he didn't tell me that growing up.
00:11:45.480 So I just thought he didn't like me as much as my brothers.
00:11:47.480 Wow.
00:11:48.480 So that, because you, you know, you know, the most emotional part of the movie is the part
00:11:52.480 where, you know, it's at the end of the movie, you're sitting in with your dad.
00:11:55.480 And, you know, you're going back and forth, you're talking and he asks you, he says, go
00:12:00.480 ahead, Molly, ask me the question you've been meaning to ask me.
00:12:04.480 You know, I know the movie was that one scene, but tell me how it was in real life when that
00:12:09.480 happened.
00:12:10.480 Yeah.
00:12:11.480 Well, um, it was on, it was in California.
00:12:13.480 Um, we hadn't spoken for a year.
00:12:15.480 When I got arrested by the FBI, my dad got mad at me.
00:12:19.480 And it's understandable.
00:12:21.480 He's got a valid, how could you be mad at me, Dad?
00:12:26.480 But I was just like, what?
00:12:29.480 I mean, I'm scared.
00:12:30.480 I mean, my dad, but he was mad and it's understandable.
00:12:33.480 He warned me.
00:12:34.480 He told me I was being reckless.
00:12:36.480 He wrote me five page letters, you know, and, and when I got federally indicted, he was
00:12:41.480 pissed.
00:12:42.480 And so he said, get a public defender because he was mad and I didn't have any money because
00:12:47.480 the feds had already seized my assets.
00:12:49.480 And so I didn't speak to him for a year.
00:12:51.480 And then he wrote me a letter and he said, I'm coming to California because whether you
00:12:55.480 want to speak to me or not, I'm your father.
00:12:58.480 You're getting sentenced in federal court and I want to talk to you.
00:13:01.480 He's reaching out to you.
00:13:02.480 You're not responding.
00:13:03.480 Right.
00:13:04.480 Oh, I responded after that.
00:13:05.480 So he comes.
00:13:06.480 So he comes and, um, you know, I, I always wanted my dad to be proud of me and I always
00:13:13.480 felt like I felt short of my brothers and, and I don't really think I'd ever gotten real
00:13:18.480 with him.
00:13:19.480 You know, I, I just, I wanted to be tough and I wanted to be what I thought he wanted me
00:13:23.480 to be.
00:13:24.480 And then, you know, in my early twenties with this game, I just broke from all of that.
00:13:28.480 I just rebelled against all of that.
00:13:29.480 And I was like, you know what?
00:13:31.480 He wanted me to make money.
00:13:32.480 I'm making money, you know?
00:13:34.480 And, um, so we sat down and I think for the first time in my life, we got real.
00:13:40.480 And I, I said to him, why didn't you like me as much as my brothers?
00:13:43.480 Other than the fact that I was Brad.
00:13:45.480 You were Brad?
00:13:46.480 I was Brad.
00:13:47.480 Somehow I believe that.
00:13:48.480 I was Brad.
00:13:49.480 I, I didn't, you know, I, I was a teenager.
00:13:53.480 I was Brad.
00:13:54.480 And I was, um, you know, I was over rebelling against the, the, the norms and the, you know,
00:14:03.480 the situation.
00:14:04.480 Always having an answer or rebelling.
00:14:05.480 Yeah.
00:14:06.480 Is that why he said he'll be an attorney?
00:14:07.480 Yeah.
00:14:08.480 He was like, you like to read and argue if you should be an attorney.
00:14:11.480 Um, so, you know, then we had that real come to Jesus and he was emotional, you know?
00:14:18.480 Is that the first time?
00:14:19.480 Yeah.
00:14:20.480 Yeah.
00:14:21.480 I mean, the first time, it was the first time I got real with him.
00:14:24.480 And I, I asked him point blank, like, why didn't you like me?
00:14:27.480 And, um, you know, he got so emotional.
00:14:30.480 He was like, I didn't like you.
00:14:31.480 I, I love you, you know?
00:14:33.480 And I, I wanted you to be okay in the world.
00:14:37.480 You know, I know how hard the world is and I wanted you to be formidable.
00:14:42.480 And so, from that moment moving forward, it was, you know, I mean, he's my best friend.
00:14:48.480 I speak to him five times a day.
00:14:50.480 He's probably sticking to calling him.
00:14:51.480 Really?
00:14:52.480 Yeah.
00:14:53.480 Today, best friend?
00:14:54.480 Best friend.
00:14:55.480 And you couldn't have said that prior to that?
00:14:56.480 No.
00:14:57.480 He was like my worst enemy.
00:14:58.480 Wow.
00:14:59.480 Best friend.
00:15:00.480 Not my worst enemy.
00:15:01.480 That's amazing.
00:15:02.480 Yeah.
00:15:03.480 Now, let me ask you, what role did Jeremy and Jordan play?
00:15:05.480 I mean, so, so why don't you, you know, so for some people that don't know, what do
00:15:08.480 your brothers do?
00:15:09.480 So, Jeremy was, um, a six-time world champion, and I might get some of his stats wrong, but,
00:15:15.480 uh, two-time Olympian.
00:15:17.480 Um, he went straight from the Turin Olympics, where he was ranked number one in the world,
00:15:22.480 to the, the NFL Combine.
00:15:24.480 Got drafted fifth round to the Eagles.
00:15:26.480 Um, played in the NFL.
00:15:28.480 Oh, that's why you posted it when the Eagles won.
00:15:30.480 You posted the Eagles, I said, Eagles, what does this have to do with anything?
00:15:33.480 I was trying to figure that out.
00:15:34.480 Yeah.
00:15:35.480 Okay, this makes sense now.
00:15:36.480 Mm-hmm.
00:15:37.480 You said, I remember this phone call or something like that?
00:15:38.480 Yeah, because it was, it was, uh, when Jeremy got a call from Andy Reid.
00:15:41.480 Yes.
00:15:42.480 Yeah.
00:15:43.480 Yeah.
00:15:44.480 And, and then, you know, he left the world of sports and started a charity and tech,
00:15:50.480 and, I mean, he's just, he's in, he's extraordinary.
00:15:52.480 And then Jordan is a Harvard-educated cardiothoracic surgeon.
00:15:57.480 And, you know, he was, like, winning, beating my dad at chess at, like, five.
00:16:01.480 And I'm just sitting there going,
00:16:02.480 At five?
00:16:03.480 He was, uh, you know, they were both prodigies.
00:16:05.480 Truly.
00:16:06.480 Truly.
00:16:07.480 And I'm like, I don't, I like to read poetry.
00:16:11.480 Like, I didn't know what I wanted to do, you know, and I didn't have this, these skills
00:16:17.480 that presented and, um, but I had the competitiveness and I had the just needing approval, like I
00:16:25.480 needed air.
00:16:26.480 And so it was a really kind of bad combination.
00:16:30.480 And, and my brothers are extraordinary human beings, they're great brothers, but what they
00:16:35.480 did is they raised this bar so high that when I went into the world and I, and I stumbled
00:16:41.480 into this opportunity, I was like, this is, this is my chance to be significant.
00:16:46.480 And maybe it's not as flashy or shiny or whatever as my brothers, but like, this is a, this may
00:16:53.480 be my only chance.
00:16:54.480 That's what I thought, you know, cause you're in your early twenties and you think if you
00:16:58.480 haven't figured it out by 22, you're never going to figure it out.
00:17:00.480 You've done, yes.
00:17:01.480 Yeah.
00:17:02.480 Um, I mean, I, I honestly think 22 is the oldest I've ever thought.
00:17:05.480 Did they know how hot, like, did they know what you were doing or not really?
00:17:08.480 They didn't know like.
00:17:09.480 Yeah.
00:17:10.480 I mean, you know, I gave them.
00:17:11.480 While you were doing it.
00:17:12.480 Yeah.
00:17:13.480 Did they kind of have an idea?
00:17:14.480 Yeah, for sure.
00:17:15.480 And I gave them a PG 13.
00:17:16.480 By the way, your mom and dad, did they only have three kids?
00:17:19.480 Yes.
00:17:20.480 Same mom and dad.
00:17:21.480 Yes.
00:17:22.480 Big Brown was a horse that raced in a Kentucky Derby. 0.99
00:17:26.480 Okay.
00:17:27.480 So they went and they were selling his stat fees for $400,000 per.
00:17:31.480 Okay.
00:17:32.480 I know.
00:17:33.480 Somebody should go to your mom and dad and say, listen, I will pay a hundred grand.
00:17:37.480 Let's freeze this damn thing and put it away and let's see what we can come up with.
00:17:41.480 Cause three kids to do that at that level. 0.52
00:17:43.480 Yeah.
00:17:44.480 Yeah.
00:17:45.480 You know, your brother's winning in chess at five years old.
00:17:47.480 Yeah.
00:17:48.480 That's insanity to think that.
00:17:49.480 Yeah.
00:17:50.480 That's insanity.
00:17:51.480 If you, if you, if your mom and dad see this, Hey props, you know, props, we were cheering
00:17:55.480 you on for that.
00:17:56.480 But so go back to what you were doing East coast, West coast, East coast.
00:18:00.480 It sounds like you got into the Russian community and it was good.
00:18:03.480 So what was the biggest difference you're doing West coast audience, East coast audience?
00:18:07.480 West coast.
00:18:08.480 West coast.
00:18:09.480 It was a smaller game.
00:18:12.480 It was a fit.
00:18:13.480 It was still huge.
00:18:14.480 It was still a monster.
00:18:15.480 It was a $50,000 buy-in no limit game.
00:18:17.480 And people were winning and losing high six figures, a million dollars for sure.
00:18:20.480 East coast, $250,000 and no limit PLO, no limit Omaha, no limit Texas Holden.
00:18:28.480 People were winning and losing five to 10 million.
00:18:31.480 You know, these are, these are wall street guys.
00:18:34.480 They, they move in units.
00:18:36.480 Right.
00:18:37.480 And it's like, they're just so used to the fluctuation.
00:18:39.480 Was it always cash or was it Lena?
00:18:41.480 Listen, I don't have cash.
00:18:42.480 I'll throw my Lambo in there.
00:18:43.480 I'll throw my, well, I'll throw my condo in here.
00:18:46.480 Was it like that?
00:18:47.480 I never got to that point.
00:18:48.480 I didn't want to deal with property.
00:18:49.480 Yeah.
00:18:50.480 I was going to say something.
00:18:51.480 No, it was, um, it was bank wires and checks.
00:18:54.480 Okay.
00:18:55.480 Yeah.
00:18:56.480 Um, very rarely cash anymore.
00:18:58.480 Cause it's just the amounts were so high.
00:18:59.480 So here's my question for you before we talk about the FBI felony, all that other stuff,
00:19:03.480 right?
00:19:04.480 Well, I mean, it was legal for in LA.
00:19:07.480 It was completely legal.
00:19:08.480 To do that.
00:19:09.480 Yeah.
00:19:10.480 Okay.
00:19:11.480 Got it.
00:19:12.480 And what I was doing was legal too.
00:19:13.480 Um, because I wasn't taking a break.
00:19:14.480 I was just operating on tips.
00:19:15.480 That's the biggest challenge when that happened is when things change, right?
00:19:17.480 When there's a rape being taken.
00:19:18.480 Yes.
00:19:19.480 And I had retained criminal attorneys from both coasts that were former federal prosecutors
00:19:23.480 and I was paying my taxes and I was walking for a long time that gray line.
00:19:28.480 And then I remember the exact moment where I made that choice to step over here.
00:19:34.480 Do you remember like-
00:19:35.480 I remember, I could tell you what it smelled like in the room.
00:19:38.480 I mean, yes.
00:19:39.480 When you did it, did you say, shit, I shouldn't have done this?
00:19:41.480 Or did you do it saying, uh, let's roll the dice?
00:19:46.480 Yeah.
00:19:47.480 I had that, uh, just like that, that scary feeling and then it was just like, whatever,
00:19:52.480 I'll handle it.
00:19:53.480 You know?
00:19:54.480 But like, yeah, I knew it in the pit of my stomach.
00:19:56.480 Um, you know, I was just, I was, I wanted, I wanted more.
00:20:00.480 I wanted to scale it more.
00:20:01.480 I wanted the games to be bigger.
00:20:02.480 I wanted the games to be, uh, you know, I wanted to move it to Europe.
00:20:06.480 I wanted more and more and more.
00:20:07.480 And I-
00:20:08.480 Vision, expansion.
00:20:09.480 I wanted expansion, but it wasn't the world.
00:20:11.480 You know?
00:20:12.480 It wasn't sustainable.
00:20:13.480 It was just me.
00:20:14.480 I didn't have any financial partners.
00:20:15.480 Right.
00:20:16.480 Um, so I'm extending this crazy credit every week.
00:20:18.480 I'm running seven games a week.
00:20:20.480 So you, you didn't think there was any limits.
00:20:22.480 You're like, I'm going to push a little bit more and a little bit more and a little bit
00:20:25.480 more.
00:20:26.480 Yeah.
00:20:27.480 So let's go back to what you were talking about the moment, you know, you crossed the
00:20:28.480 line.
00:20:29.480 So you did that.
00:20:30.480 Then what happened after that?
00:20:32.480 So things started to fall apart pretty quickly.
00:20:35.480 Um, how, how quick is quickly?
00:20:37.480 So I would say from the time I took a rake to the time that I was completely shut down,
00:20:41.480 it was probably six months.
00:20:42.480 So six months, it still lasted six months.
00:20:45.480 Um, yeah.
00:20:46.480 So around the same time that I started taking a rake, I had let these Russian guys start 1.00
00:20:51.480 to play.
00:20:52.480 And there's a lot of people that-
00:20:54.480 This is New York.
00:20:55.480 This is New York.
00:20:56.480 That said, didn't you know they are a Russian mob? 0.99
00:20:58.480 No.
00:20:59.480 The answer is absolutely not.
00:21:00.480 I mean, they showed up, they were well dressed.
00:21:02.480 They had a serious story that I had vetted out in terms of what their business was.
00:21:05.480 They were well-spoken, educated.
00:21:07.480 They could mesh well with the players.
00:21:09.480 They just gave a ton of action.
00:21:11.480 Turns out they were running this hundred million dollar insurance fraud scheme, the biggest
00:21:15.480 in New York City history, and the feds are on to them.
00:21:19.480 The feds are wiretapping them.
00:21:20.480 Right?
00:21:21.480 So, and simultaneously, you know-
00:21:23.480 The feds are wiretapping them.
00:21:25.480 So simultaneously, you got the Ponzi scheme happening.
00:21:29.480 That gets revealed-
00:21:30.480 With Ruderman.
00:21:31.480 With Ruderman in California.
00:21:32.480 So now they're, the feds, here and here.
00:21:36.480 This goes west, this goes.
00:21:37.480 And, you know, through these wiretaps and through this, through the discovery, they're
00:21:42.480 like, oh my god, here's this girl. 1.00
00:21:45.480 She's got these Russians playing. 1.00
00:21:47.480 She's got Wall Street guys playing. 0.73
00:21:49.480 And you know how much the Southern District loves a Wall Street takedown.
00:21:52.480 You know?
00:21:53.480 And then the west coast guys, the celebrity factor.
00:21:57.480 And it's all connected through this poker game.
00:22:00.480 Like, it's obvious.
00:22:01.480 It's dangerous.
00:22:02.480 But like, in my heart of hearts, I don't think I was ready to walk away.
00:22:05.480 Which is a crazy moment of, all of a sudden, now you're putting this money and this greed
00:22:11.480 and this power over life and liberty.
00:22:13.480 Right?
00:22:14.480 Because I'm breaking the law, and now my life's in jeopardy.
00:22:16.480 And I'm still choosing to go down this path.
00:22:18.480 And I look at the newspaper about 10 days later.
00:22:21.480 125 guys arrested in the biggest mob-related takedown in New York City history.
00:22:26.480 Never heard from them again.
00:22:28.480 125.
00:22:29.480 They had to, like, rent out a gymnasium for processing.
00:22:33.480 Like, a month or two later, I get a call from one of my dealers at one of my smaller games.
00:22:37.480 You know, don't come here.
00:22:40.480 The FBI's here.
00:22:41.480 So, I throw all my stuff in a suitcase.
00:22:46.480 And I'm on the phone with my travel agent, and I'm like, I need to book a flight.
00:22:50.480 I need to go home.
00:22:51.480 I want my mom.
00:22:52.480 And, um, she's like, your credit card's getting deployed, or your card's getting deployed.
00:22:56.480 And I looked at my balances, and they all read negative $9,999,999.
00:23:03.480 So, all of my accounts were shut down and seized.
00:23:07.480 So, that was game over.
00:23:08.480 You know?
00:23:09.480 So, I went and moved home with my mom.
00:23:10.480 I didn't have a bank account.
00:23:11.480 I started writing this book.
00:23:13.480 I tried to battle back.
00:23:14.480 All the games are shut at this point.
00:23:17.480 Done.
00:23:18.480 Done.
00:23:19.480 Two years later, I kind of started to really make headway in putting my life back together.
00:23:23.480 I had moved back to L.A.
00:23:24.480 I had gotten a job.
00:23:26.480 Um, I had almost finished my book.
00:23:29.480 And I was starting to pitch to Hollywood.
00:23:31.480 And 10 days after moving back to L.A., 17 FBI agents, machine guns, high beam flashlights,
00:23:39.480 arrest me.
00:23:40.480 And that was when they, they federally indicted me.
00:23:43.480 This is while you're pitching your story?
00:23:45.480 Yeah.
00:23:46.480 And I'm like, well, I guess it's a better story now.
00:23:49.480 Shhh.
00:23:50.480 Okay.
00:23:51.480 So, this happens now.
00:23:52.480 You're being indicted.
00:23:53.480 What happened next?
00:23:54.480 I was starting to show a Russian mob RICO indictment.
00:23:56.480 The guy at the top of the indictment was this guy known as...
00:23:58.480 RICO indictment?
00:23:59.480 Yes.
00:24:00.480 Was this guy known as a VOR.
00:24:01.480 And a VOR in Russian organized crime is the scariest, like, most dangerous human being. 0.63
00:24:06.480 And he's in Moscow.
00:24:07.480 And I'm like, I don't know the VOR.
00:24:09.480 Like, I don't know these people.
00:24:10.480 They linked you to them.
00:24:11.480 Yes.
00:24:12.480 Said 90, I said I was looking at 90 years on the press release.
00:24:17.480 I mean, it was gnarly.
00:24:18.480 Gnarly.
00:24:19.480 90 years.
00:24:20.480 Yeah.
00:24:21.480 90 years.
00:24:22.480 Looking at 90 years on the press release.
00:24:24.480 And I flew to New York and I interviewed 10 attorneys that day, that next day.
00:24:28.480 And every one of them said, you don't have any money?
00:24:31.480 Like, we can't.
00:24:32.480 My last meeting of the day, I met Jim Walden.
00:24:34.480 And he was at Gibson Dunn.
00:24:35.480 He was a former federal prosecutor.
00:24:37.480 And I told him my story.
00:24:39.480 And he's like, you need representation.
00:24:42.480 And I would have never indicted this case.
00:24:44.480 And like, I need to make sure that you're okay.
00:24:47.480 So, I walked into that courtroom the next day with all these Russian mobsters and some gamblers. 1.00
00:24:55.480 And, you know, it was just, it was pretty surreal.
00:25:00.480 That's crazy.
00:25:01.480 What was the biggest thing afterwards?
00:25:03.480 Once everything was finalized, what was the biggest thing that changed with you afterwards?
00:25:08.480 I mean, I think everything changed.
00:25:10.480 The truth is, is that fundamentally nothing really changed inside.
00:25:15.480 And so, knowing that, and knowing that that was the case, and also being decimated and publicly decimated, you know, was liberating to some degree.
00:25:26.480 I'd faced, I was, you know, I'd faced my biggest fear.
00:25:29.480 I was completely, um, I'd failed on a huge level.
00:25:33.480 And I was still alive.
00:25:35.480 You know, I was still breathing.
00:25:36.480 So, I started building myself, my self-worth, and sort of, um, from the inside, you know?
00:25:42.480 And a lot of that was like, showing up for my family again.
00:25:45.480 And, like, being of service, or making my life about something bigger than myself.
00:25:49.480 Now, my drive is, is, I still, I'm still ambitious, and I still have a drive, but, like, my picture of success, and my motivation for success looks very different.
00:26:01.480 That's interesting.
00:26:02.480 That's great to hear.
00:26:03.480 And then, last but not least, you watched the movie.
00:26:06.480 What's your reaction when you watch the movie?
00:26:08.480 It is your story.
00:26:10.480 I mean, obviously, she did a phenomenal job representing you.
00:26:13.480 She did.
00:26:14.480 Well, I came, I came at this from a place of, okay, I'm gonna, you know, I know that this is a long shot, but I think the best shot for coming out of this massive mess that I've created.
00:26:26.480 Um, both financial and reputation, and, and, you know, now coming, trying to navigate life as a felon, was to tell my story.
00:26:35.480 And to tell it in the biggest way possible.
00:26:37.480 So, I was coming to this movie with such an overwhelming sense of gratitude.
00:26:42.480 It wasn't like someone decided to write a movie about my life, and, like, I was gonna have to watch it, you know?
00:26:47.480 I knew that, that Sorkin, and Jessica, and Idris Elba, and the producers had taken, you know, had, were invested.
00:26:56.480 And that it, and it wasn't just a movie, it was a second chance.
00:26:59.480 So, um, I was already in a bunch, in a lot of gratitude.
00:27:03.480 And then when I saw the movie, I was just like, just blown away, you know?
00:27:08.480 I, I can tell you, that's exactly how I felt when I watched.
00:27:11.480 That's why I reached out to you.
00:27:12.480 So, for me, it's, hands down, the best movie I've seen in the last, last year.
00:27:16.480 I mean, I don't think anything comes close to it.
00:27:18.480 I was so blown away by this story, and I'll just sit with you and hear it from you.
00:27:21.480 Thank you so much for taking the time and visiting with us.
00:27:24.480 Thank you.
00:27:25.480 Yeah, thanks for coming.
00:27:26.480 Thanks, everybody, for listening.
00:27:27.480 And by the way, if you haven't already subscribed to Valuetainment on iTunes, please do so.
00:27:32.480 Give us a five-star.
00:27:33.480 Write a review if you haven't already.
00:27:35.480 And if you have any questions for me that you may have, you can always find me on Snapchat,
00:27:39.480 Instagram, Facebook, or YouTube.
00:27:41.480 Just search my name, Patrick VidDavid.
00:27:43.480 And I actually do respond back when you snap me or send me a message on Instagram.
00:27:48.480 With that being said, have a great day today.
00:27:50.480 Take care, everybody.
00:27:51.480 Bye-bye.
00:27:56.480 Bye-bye.