The Legend of Jimmy the Greek

I would like to think that I know who Jimmy the Greek is because his name is known to every male of a certain age, but then I don't think I fall into that age category.

After all, I was 10 when Snyder was let go from his position on The NFL Today on CBS, and how many normal 10-year-olds know the name of the shady looking guy on the NFL pre-game show who makes predictions that people across North America followed religiously?

The answer: kids who grew up with gambling; kids like me.

Anybody who has placed a bet against the spread or at a Las Vegas sports book can thank Jimmy the Greek for that opportunity. This is the man who made the "Vegas line" what it is today, and took betting on sports from being something discussed in dark corners and done in even more shadowy locations into the mainstream.

While he couldn't sit on the air and specifically tell the audience at home to take the points on this game or lay the points on another, Snyder spent 12 years dispensing his brand of insight alongside Brent Musburger, Phyllis George, and former player Irv Cross on the show that paved the way for the litany of preview shows that have followed over the years.

Though there are still plenty of people who view gambling as nothing but trouble, there is no denying that betting on sports has become far more mainstream over the last 25 years.

Just take a gander at how many viewers this year's World Series of Poker final table drew to ESPN and you'll see how prevalent and influential gambling has become. The days of sports betting being a back-room activity are long gone, and Jimmy the Greek is partially responsible for that.


This is going to sound very weird — and maybe even wrong to some people — but watching this film by Fritz Mitchell makes me think of my childhood.

As much as I played with G.I. Joe, participated in sports, and tried to spend as much time as possible hanging out on the monkey bars with Jenny, Kelly, Shannon or whichever neighborhood girl had become the center of my world that week, a bunch of my fondest childhood memories came from being at the track.

Watching the horse races — thoroughbreds first, then harness — is where my bonds with my father and grandfather got tighter, where I was welcomed as my brother's sidekick, and where I first found my niche as a kid.

I was the kid who could pick horse races, got to bet on horse races, and occasionally made money on Saturday afternoon or Sunday night at the horse races.

"You got to go to the mall and buy a new hat on Sunday? Cool; I went to the track and hit the trifecta in the last race and won $500." I was 11, maybe 12, and it was awesome.

I laughed out loud watching this film when the voice-over actor speaking as "The Greek" said something along the lines of "If somebody tells you they've got a system for beating the horses, don't believe them" because the men in my family toiled for years trying to find a way to beat the horses.

We'd have some good days, the occasional great day, but mostly, we dropped more tickets than we cashed. Everyone does, and if someone tells you differently, they're lying.

Hearing the depiction of Jimmy the Greek in his days after being fired by CBS hit way too close to home; it sounded like far too many people I knew in a previous life, a life I left behind a long time ago.

He was broke and grimy, happy to see you, and happier if you could spare a dollar or two. The man who was the most famous sports gambling aficionado in the US was reduced to trying to borrow a couple of bucks from an old friend to make a couple more bets.

There's a point in the film where someone brings up Jimmy's response to having the winning horse — slapping the ticket down on the table and bellowing "That's mine" loud enough for everyone to know he had the winner. It was followed by the sad statement that when the days were real rough, he'd buy a ticket on every horse in the field just so he could be certain he'd win.

I know all of that — the "That's mine" feeling, and the desire to buy a ticket on every horse in the race just so you can cash. I knew it real well for a good six or seven years, and I know a lot of people who have never been able to shake either one.


It's such a weird feeling to look back at a time with both fondness and fury; smiling at the good times, but unable to get by the bad.


Gambling brought my family closer together for a number of years, but ultimately became one of the things that pushed us apart as well.

I don't begrudge my parents for bringing us to the track, letting us bet on the horses, or any of those things; like I said, some of my greatest childhood memories took place as the ponies barreled down the stretch towards the finish line.

I just wish there were more memories in other locations or a single happy ending to look back on now.