IV
Mille
Shaw
'60 MINUTES' LOOKS AT VIDEO POKERS • LETTER TO '60 MINUTES' • NCMI RESPONDS TO REPORT •
PENNSYLVANIA HOUSE BILL WOULD LEGALIZE VIDEO GAMBLING • MESQUITE WITHDRAWS APPEAL,
LICENSES ALADDIN'S CASTLE • POST-BOOM LOSSES CLOSE SANDERS DISTRIBUTING • CVS GAMES MANU-
FACTURER FOLDS • ENTER-TECH LEAVES TUNI BANKRUPTCY SHADOW • MARSHFIELD MERCHANTS
APPEAL TO CITIZENS • FACE-OFF ENJOINED BY FEDERAL COURT • BALLY MAKES INTERNAL CHANGES
'60 M INUTES'
LOOKS AT VI DEO PO KERS
A "60 Minutes" report titled From
Pac-Man to Poker Man, aired Sun-
day, January 22, is already heighten-
ing awareness and intensifying
activities of law enforcement agen-
cies nationwide as they tackle sub-
terfuge gambling on video poker
machines.
The popular television magazine
show focused on bar owners and
law enforcement officials in New
York and Tennessee, painting a pic-
ture of corruption, extortion,
organized crime, and property
destruction that surrounds a $2
billion illegal gambling industry.
The following occurred the week
after the report: (1) the district
attorney general in Nashville an-
nounced an effort to have video
poker machines with pay-off fea-
tures declared gambling devices per
se (so authorities can seize the
games without having to observe
payoffs); (2) several state police
agencies contacted "60 Minutes"
for information on how to assess the
problem in their states; (3) the
Boston Globe was one of several
newspapers to initiate investigative
As part of its continuing support for local youth organizations, Wizard's
Castle, Canada's largest family amusement center chain, hosted the 46th
Toronto Cub Packs for free play on the new games in its Rexdale Ontario
showroom.
10
studies on the issue; and (4) the pro-
ducers of "Hill Street Blues" started
gathering information for an epi-
sode focusing on video poker
gambling.
The results of the "60 Minutes"
investigation were no surprise to
coin-op industry members who
have struggled with the issue, trying
to keep amusement businesses
thriving in the face of illegal gam-
bling competition . The report
found every bar along a dozen
blocks of one street in the Bronx
housed poker machines. A New
York State Liquor Authority under-
cover agent estimated 30,000 ma-
chines produced a $.75 billion take
annually. A Tennessee district attor-
ney, Clayburn Peeples, said his rural
territory supports just 113,000 resi-
dents but produced more than $7
million in video poker gambling
money last year.
The report allotted time to those
opposing the crackdown on the
machines.
A Tennessee attorney said the
games are not at fault. "I'm n~
naive enough to say there isn't gam-
bling going on on these machines,"
Larry Stenneker told Mike Wallace.
"But put the players in jail; don't put
the machines in jail."
"Folks will find a way to gamble,"
Wallace challenged Peeples.
"The difference here is that we're
dealing with a national phenome-
non," Peeples answered. "lhe tech-
nology is just beginning."
•
PLAY METER. March 15. 1984