Molly's Game (2017) - full transcript

A survey was taken
a few years ago that asked

three hundred professionals
one question.

"What's the worst thing
that can happen in sports?"

Some people answered,
losing at game seven.

He scores,
Bruins win in seven games!

And other people
said getting swept in 4.

Some people said it was
missing the World Cup.

Guatemala is eliminated!

Goal!

And some Brazilian said
it was losing to Argentina.

Not just in the World Cup.
Any time, ever, in any contest.



But one person answered
that the worst thing

that can happen in sports is
fourth place at the Olympics.

This is a true story,
but except for my own

I've changed all the names
and I've done my best

to obscure identities for
reasons that'll become clear.

I'm Molly Bloom.

And right now, I'm ranked third
in North America

in Woman's Moguls.

I grew up
in Loveland, Colorado

about two hours
north of Denver.

I have a B.A.
in Political Science

from the University
of Colorado

where I graduated
Summa Cum Laude

with a 3.9 GPA.



The median L-Sat score
at Harvard Law School is 169.

My score is 173.

Number 87, up!
Fifty six on deck!

I've spent 16 years
chasing winter

and being coached
by the best in the world.

Sundays were for working out
with my father.

Something's really wrong.

When I was 12 years old

for no particular reason

my back exploded.

Tough it out.

- Good advice.
- And lose the attitude.

Less than 10
minutes later, I was in

the back of an ambulance.

I had what's called
rapid onset scoliosis.

My spine was curved
at 63 degrees

and I'd need a seven hour
surgical procedure

that involved
straightening my spine

extracting bone from my hip

fusing 11 vertebrae together

and fastening steel rods
to the fused segments.

- She's gonna be fine.
- Oh!

I wouldn't let her ski anymore,
definitely not Moguls.

And obviously
skiing competitively

is out of the question.

Oh, God, thank you.

I was on skis again in a year.

Running Moguls in 18 months

and by my 20th birthday

I made the U.S. Ski Team.

It's the last round
of qualifying

for the Salt Lake City
Olympics.

This is the champion run
at Deer Valley.

The altitude is 8100 feet.

And the pitch is 52 degrees

which is the same as the sides
of the great pyramids.

The wind's 20 to 25 miles
an hour blowing left to right.

It's 3 below zero
at the top of the slope.

And with seventeen skiers
in front of me

it's gonna be like trying
to stick a landing

on a frozen infinity pool.

Kiki blew out of her line.

Shannon was off balance
on her second landing.

He's talking about Kiki Bandy

and Shannon Keebler

my two toughest competitors

who had significant
point deductions

on their final runs.

I can make the Olympic team.

- Right now.
- Go get it.

And if I have three prefect
runs in Salt Lake

the best runs of my life

I can beat the Austrians
and the Swiss

and have a realistic shot
at the podium.

Then law school
and then a start up.

A foundation that seeds
entrepreneurial women.

My father's
at the bottom of the slope

telepathically telling me
to check my line.

- Check your line.
- I check my line.

Ready?

Good snow contact.
Calm upper body.

Legs together. Good shape.
No line deviation.

Set up for the D-Spin and...

stick the landing.

Now, two things you need
to know

before the second trick

which will be a 720.

The first is that
when visibility is bad

the way it is now,
race officials toss pine boughs

on the course
so the skiers have some

foreground depth reference.

The second is that
the tightness of your bindings

is determined by what's
called a DIN setting.

If you're a beginner, your DIN
setting is probably a 2 or 3.

If you're an experienced
weekend skier

it's probably seven or eight.
Mine's fifteen.

My boots are basically welded
to my skis, right?

So how does this happen?

It happened
because I hit a pine bough

that had become frozen
in the snow.

And I hit it so precisely

that it simply snapped
the release of my bindings.

Right in that moment
I didn't have time

to calculate the odds
of that happening

because I was about
to land pretty hard

on my digitally re-mastered
spinal cord

which was being held together
by spare parts

from an Erector Set.

- Give her room!
- Get out of the way! Move!

None of this has
anything to do with poker.

I'm only mentioning it
because I wanted to say to

whoever answered that the worst
thing that could happen

in sports was 4th place
at the Olympics...

Seriously? Fuck you.

- Hello?
- Molly Bloom?

- Is this Molly Bloom?
- Yes.

This is Special
Agent Tomasino of the FBI.

We have a warrant
for your arrest.

- Sorry?
- We're outside your door.

We want you
to come out here. Okay?

Listen to me now. Make sure
we can see your hands.

Who is this?

This is Special Agent Tomasino

of the FBI, Miss Bloom.

You've got 30 seconds to open

your door
or we're breaking it down.

Do you understand
what I just said?

Hands in the air!

Put your hands in the air!

- There's been a mistake.
- Are you Molly Bloom?

I want you to walk toward me
very slowly. Okay? Go ahead.

- I'm...
- Slower. Slower. Slow down.

Come on. Come on.

I'm having a hard time seeing,
the, the flashlights in my eyes.

- Walk slower.
- Yes, sir.

Hands on the wall.
Spread your arms and legs.

Is there anyone
in your apartment right now?

Uh, no, sir.

Are there any firearms
in your apartment right now?

- No, sir.
- Go.

You're under arrest for running
an illegal gambling operation.

- Do you understand?
- Uh, yes.

Say you understand.

I understand, but
there's been a mistake.

Because I haven't
run a game in two years.

I want you to take a look at

this piece of paper right here.

Can you see what
it says at the top?

Yes.

Read to me
what it says at the top.

"United States of America
vs. Molly Bloom."

I bet heavy on the favorite.

Alright, what do you, um...

think about
the following concepts?

Just gonna run them by you.

- Marriage.
- It is a trap.

- Society?
- It is a joke.

People.

I... think there's good and bad.

But I don't trust them.

I don't trust people.

Every year on our
birthdays, my father would

interview my younger
brothers and me.

Who are the heroes
or heroines in your life?

Who, uh... who do you
really respect?

I don't have any heroes.

You don't have any heroes.

How's this for hubris?

I don't.

Because if I reach the goals
I set out for myself

then the person I become,
that'll be my hero.

Even by teenage girl standards

I would appear
to be irrationally angry

at nothing in particular.

It would be another 22 years
before I'd find out why.

After my colossal wipe out
at Deer Valley

I decided to take a year off
before law school.

I needed to go away,
sever myself from reality

and come up with a new plan.

So I chose Los Angeles.

A friend of mine
from the ski team

had agreed to let me crash
on her couch for a while.

My father had disapproved
of postponing law school

and so, declined to help out.

But I had $1700 dollars I'd
saved from babysitting money

and that would support me until
I found a waitressing job.

I'd already had a career
and retired from it.

I wanted to be young
for a while in warm weather.

I think that's what I wanted at
first. It's hard to remember.

I got a job working
bottle service at a club

in Hollywood
called "Nacional Nightclub."

It was Cuban themed,
so my uniform

was camouflaged short-shorts
and a wife beater.

The promoter would go over
which record producer

was sitting where, which
hot designers, which Lakers

and Borislava the Bulgarian
billionaire, who didn't drink.

But he ran a $100,000 bar tab.

My job was
to get people to spend

more money than they needed to.

Could we get a bottle of Skyy?

You guys look like
you deserve Grey Goose.

What do guys who deserve
Grey Goose look like?

To begin with,
they've got a bottle

of Grey Goose in front of them.

You're quick. Very clever.

Uh, alright, yeah. Grey Goose.

They just spent an
additional $300 dollars

bringing their total
to $900 dollars

for $8 and 50 cents
worth of vodka.

But the club doesn't
need you to buy a bottle.

They need you
to buy five bottles.

So these girls over here

they let you buy them
shots for a living.

It would be like waiting
in a long line to get into

the Gap so you can pay
1000% percent mark-up

to buy all the employees
a pair of pants.

I only had one shift a week.
I didn't wanna tell my parents

I was a cocktail waitress and
back then, I never turned down

an opportunity
to make more money.

So I found a second job
as an office assistant.

And that's how I ended up
working for Dean Keith.

Dean was a partner
in Black Hues Investments.

He was a regular at the club,
and one night he said...

People seem to take to you.

Hey, how would you like to
get paid to go to grad school

and get an MBA
in how life works?

What makes you think
you know and I don't?

I'm a regular here
and you're a waitress here.

Look at the fuckin' scoreboard.

Dean explained what
my job was by saying...

Me. I'm your job.

I answered the phone, made
coffee runs, set appointments.

- Made spread sheets.
- What is that?

And showed Dean
what a spreadsheet was.

Spreadsheet.

But I made $450 dollars
a week on top

of the $300
I was making at the club.

Which would be enough
to get off my friend's couch.

I remember the day started
by being about bagels.

- This is Molly.
- Get to the office.

Pick up bagels.

Do you mean now?

Dean was a Hollywood staple.

Over leveraged. Going broke.

Trying to prove
he wasn't broke and making

a true effort to be
as vulgar as possible.

Honestly making an effort.

I hadn't told anyone
I was a skier

and it was hard not
to laugh when Dean said...

Anyone ever teach you
how to fuckin' hurry?

- No.
- What are those?

Bagels.

- Are these from Blue Bell?
- Yeah.

- It's on the way from my house.
- Seriously?

You might as well have stopped
at a fuckin' homeless shelter!

You might as well
have walked into

a mother fucking
homeless shelter and said

"I'd like a dozen bagels from
this homeless shelter, please."

I do not eat bagels
from Blue-fucking-Bell, Molly

because these
are poor people bagels!

From where would you like me
to get your bagels...

Forget about the fuckin' bagels.

- Done.
- Except smarten up.

- Got it.
- Hang on.

Like I said, the day started

by being about bagels,
but that would abruptly change.

My weekly poker game
is moving to the Cobra Lounge.

Tomorrow night,
and then every Tuesday night.

You'll help run it.

Take these names and numbers.

Tell them to bring
ten grand in cash

for the first buy-in.
The blinds are 51/100.

- And Molly.
- Yeah.

Don't fucking tell anybody.

I'd regarded Dean as a
nitwit when I regarded him at all.

But on that pad were nine names
along with phone numbers of

some of the wealthiest and most
famous people in the world.

I put the numbers in my phone
and composed a simple message.

There'd be a game tomorrow
night at the Cobra Lounge.

There was
a $10,000 dollar buy-in.

All nine players confirmed
that they'd be there.

All within 90 seconds
of my sending the text.

The Cobra Lounge sits on
the edge of the Sunset Strip.

And in it's heyday was famous
for introducing unknown bands

like "The Doors"
and "The Beach Boys."

All I knew was school work
and skiing.

I'd always figured
sophistication

would be easy to learn
if I ever needed it.

My cheese platter had
a sticker that read

"Cheese From the Great State
of Michigan."

Diego, a professional dealer

was setting up the table
when I got there.

I Googled "What type of music

do poker players
like to listen to?"

and then tried to figure out
how to make a playlist

out of one Kenny Rogers song.

I set up the bar...

put out my cheese platter...

and positioned myself
at the door where I'd been

instructed to only let in

the names on the list.

I was wearing my best dress,
which I had bought

two years earlier
at J.C. Penney for $88.

The players started to arrive.

I introduced myself as Molly,
Dean's assistant.

For you.

Asked if I could
get them a drink.

And took from each of them
$10,000 in cash.

- Hi.
- Hi.

I'm...

I know.

- Your boss...
- Everybody here?

- Yeah.
- Hey, buddy.

Fuck off,
I'm gonna own your shit.

Ugly dress.
Ugly shoes.

Let's play!

Diego fanned nine
cards out on the table

and the players
chose for seats.

Eleven and eleven...

He checked,
the action's on you.

I just finished
counting out $90,000 in cash.

I was in a room
with movie stars, directors.

Rappers. Boxers.

- He's in trouble.
- And business titans.

They were going all in,
all the time.

Burning through their
buy-ins over and over.

- Here you go. Good luck
- Thank you so much.

I don't know.

I Googled every word
I heard that I didn't know.

- Flop. River.
- Fourth Street.

Fourth Street. Tilt. Cooler.

- Boat. Nuts.
- Yeah, he's pot committed.

Playing the rush.

You keeping track
of the buy-ins?

- Yeah.
- Where? Where's the paper?

Spreadsheet.

Yeah, motherfucker.

All in.

The game ended at 3:30.

And when it did,
that's when Dean shouted out...

Hey, tip Molly if you wanna
get invited back next week.

Tip Molly.

Deep down, I didn't like
the sound of that.

Deep down, I knew
that when your boss says...

- And Molly.
- Yeah.

Don't fucking tell anybody.

That's usually
not the beginning

of a promising law career.

See you next week.

But that was deep down.

I just made $3000.

What are you reading?

"The Crucible."

For school?

My father assigned it.

Do you know how many witches
were burned at Salem?

- How many?
- None.

They didn't burn witches.
It's a myth. They hanged them.

Or drowned them, or crushed them
with heavy rocks.

Wait. Aren't...
You're Molly Bloom.

- Right?
- Yeah.

You don't look the same
as in your photos.

None of us do.

- Molly.
- Yes.

- I'm Charlie Jaffey.
- Oh.

Thank you again
for seeing me so early.

- This is my daughter, Stella.
- We met.

Isabel will be here in 45
minutes to take you to school.

- Finish your math?
- Yeah.

- Civ? You know it?
- Yeah.

Could you teach it
in class today?

If I asked you to teach me
Roman Law, could you do it?

- Yes.
- Okay.

So. First things first.

When was the last time you
slept? Today's Friday.

Tuesday morning at 5 a.m.,
I was arrested by the FBI.

I spent Tuesday
in L.A. County Jail.

I was assessed to be
a minimal flight risk

and bail was set
at a $100,000.

My mother signed over her house.

I was released on Wednesday
and ordered to appear

in Federal Court
in New York's Southern District.

10 a.m. today.

In here.

Close that, will you?

I flew here Wednesday and met
with five attorneys yesterday.

Have a seat.
You didn't hire any of them?

Three of them had
already been taken.

Yeah, 31 people were named
in your indictment.

It's Black Friday
for criminal lawyers.

How about the other two?

One told me money was his

second favorite form of payment.

- I know him.
- The fifth was also taken.

- But he recommended I call you.
- Why?

I told him I wanted someone
who'd worked in

the prosecutor's office and
wasn't even a little bit shady.

Do you know about me?

Um, I've been briefed a little
by my daughter, who knows

a lot about your story
because her mother's a moron.

- Her mother reads the tabloids?
- Yeah, and I read them too.

I read your indictment
after I got your call last night

and I bought your book.

I'm only on page 112,
but, Molly, did you commit

a felony and then write
a book about it?

I haven't run a game
in over two years.

Not to spoil the ending,
but that's

when the government
raided my game

and took all my money assuming

all of it was made illegally,
which it wasn't.

I've been living in my
mother's house in Telluride

and... I wrote the book so I
could start paying off debts.

I just finished the press tour
for the book and I moved back

to Los Angeles
so I could start over.

Hm. You ran games in L.A.
for roughly eight years?

- Yeah. Right.
- Without taking a rake?

And then you ran games
in New York for roughly two.

Well, I took a rake
for the last six months.

In the first 112 pages,
you name a bunch of names.

- Sorry?
- Uh.

You named the names
of some movie stars

that played in your game.

Yeah.

That not against
some sort of poker code?

Am I supposed to be sitting
all the way over here?

- Can you hear me from there?
- Yeah.

Are you taking me
on as a client?

My retainer is $250,000.

Do you have $250,000?

No. I don't have anything.

What about the sales
from your book?

The book isn't
jumping off the shelves.

But I will find a way
to pay you, Charlie.

Ask around about me.

Unfortunately,
the people I'd ask

are goin' away for a while.

What happened on Tuesday morning
was called a "GPS Takedown."

Thirty-one people were arrested
in the same instant.

Something in excess
of 600 agents were dispatched

to locations
in New York and L.A.

in coordinated strikes
with automatic weapons.

And you're trying to tell me
you're in my office

because you raked a game
of Texas Hold 'Em?

Have you seen the other names
in your indictment?

"Nicholas Kozlowski.
Peter Druzhinsky.

Peter Antonovich.
The Gershen Brothers."

I mean come on, Molly,
just how deep

into the Russian mob were you?

Because your book doesn't say.

Why are you making your daughter
read "The Crucible?"

So she can see
what happens to a group

of bored teenage girls
when they gossip.

- I never read the play.
- Many consider it to be...

The best play
of the 20th century.

Is that what
many consider it to be...

I don't defend
violent criminals.

- I've never hurt anyone...
- Your friends have.

I've never heard of 90%
of the names...

- On the indictment.
- And the other 10%?

I didn't know they were
connected.

I'd no idea
who they were.

Let me ask you a question.

The character in the book
you call "Dean Keith"

he didn't say
"Poor people bagels," did he?

I think I know who he is.

I think I know
a real estate lawyer

that worked with him
and quit.

He said...

"Nigger bagels," right?

I'm not telling you his real
name. He's not involved in this.

But you were willing
to name some names.

Why is the FBI arresting me

two years after
I stopped running games?

Were you paid extra
in your book deal

to name the movie stars?

I'm not your guy, Molly.

I wish you good luck,
but this just isn't for me.

I didn't know
who the Russians were.

I can get you
the $250,000.

I left 10 times
that on the street.

It'll just take some time.

We regularly lend out our best

litigators like me to the ACLU

Southern Poverty Law Center,
veterans groups.

But I don't think
I can convince my partners

to take a flyer
on "The Poker Princess."

I didn't name myself
"The Poker Princess."

Uh, "Molly Bloom, the self
proclaimed Poker Princess..."

Is that "Us Weekly?"

Yeah, I would agree
it would be unusual

for them to print
something that wasn't true.

But it's not true,
and if you think

a Princess can do what I did,
you're incorrect.

I'm getting you don't
think much of me.

But what if every one
of your ill-informed

unsophisticated opinions
about me were wrong?

- I'd be amazed.
- Yeah. You know what, bud?

- You would.
- You don't need me.

- You need a publicist.
- No, I need a fucking lawyer!

You didn't answer my question.

When was the last time
you slept?

It was a while ago.

Alright.

I'm gonna walk you through
the arraignment this morning

'cause you shouldn't
do that alone.

I'm gonna put some bodies
on you and walk you

through the side door,
'cause I don't know

what you've got on the Russians.

But neither do they.

And the Russians
take care of shit.

Do you understand
what I'm saying?

Yes.

Almost. You gotta keep
your eyes up, alright?

Always gotta look ahead.

If you look down

that's where
you're gonna go.

Alright?

If you look down

that's where you'll go,
alright?

- Yeah.
- Alright.

Let's go.

My father's a therapist

and psychology professor
at Colorado State.

No! No!

The second rule of his house

is that academic excellence

and athletic excellence
weren't optional.

You can't be afraid of it,
alright?

Don't play defense.

And the first rule

was that he made all the rules.

Again.

Dad, I'm pretty tired.

Hon, she's tired.

We've been out here
since 6 o'clock.

Her lips are blue.

- You're tired?
- Yeah.

What's another word for tired?

Name a synonym for tired
and we'll get in the car.

Weak.

That's right.

Let's go home.

Again.

I decided to postpone
law school another year.

After six weeks of tips,
I went to Barneys

and asked for a dress that made
me look nothing like myself.

I'd overheard stories
about games that folded

after one bad night and I
needed this one to keep going.

And I needed to bring
value to it.

I knew if I
wanted to cement my place

there was one guy I needed
to team up with.

Ten thousand.

And that was this man.

The game had regulars
and the game had guests.

And four of the regulars
were famous actors.

And I'm gonna call one of them
Player X.

I'm all in.

Player X subscribed

to the belief that money won

was twice as good
as money earned.

He lived to beat people
and take their money.

Here's Player X
talking to one of the guests

into folding the winning hand.

I swear on... look at me.

I swear on my mother's life,
I have you.

Player X was the best
player at the table, and tonight...

this guy was the worst.

He's staring at his cards.

Even a reasonably good amateur

would know it was
mathematically the best hand.

Which in poker
is called "The Nuts."

There was $47,000 in the pot

and the guest
was holding the nuts.

But he was starting
to get confused

because a movie star
was talking to him.

My mother's life man,
I'm not messing with you.

Why would you be telling me?

Either I am messing with you

or you're new to the game.

You've had bad cards all night.

You should've folded
after the flop

and I don't wanna win
more of your money this way.

I've got queens under here.

Take your time.

- Fold.
- Fuck you.

- No!
- Oh.

A fish is a
particular kind of player.

A fish has money.

A fish plays loose
and doesn't fold a lot.

A fish is good...
but not too good.

There's an ATM in the hall, bro.

The Cobra Lounge may belong

to Dean Keith.

But the game belonged
to Player X.

People wanted to say
they played with him.

The same way they wanted to say

they rode on Air Force One.

My job security
was gonna depend

on bringing him his fish.

But where would I find people
with a lot of money

who didn't know how to spend it

and liked to be
around celebrities?

If they say
they're interested in poker

you give 'em my number,
I vet them.

They end up playing in a game...

I'll give you a $1000
the first time they play.

Five hundred every time
after that.

Be sure to mention
these guys are all regulars.

Is this true?

These guys play?

The Commerce Casino is
off the 5 freeway in East L.A.

And no one's ever gonna confuse
it with Monte Carlo.

I'd watch the tables
for a while

before I approached
a friendly-looking pit boss.

Third chair
at table eight can't lose.

Unless there are players
at his table who can win.

You know about the game
at the Cobra Lounge, right?

Sure.

One thousand for every player
you send me.

You get a piece
of what they lose.

No pros.

I'm Molly.

Poker was my Trojan horse

into the highest level
of finance, technology

politics, entertainment, art.

All I had to do was listen.

The art world is controlled
by a few major dealers.

China's Telecom companies wanna
partner with other providers.

The owners don't mind
spending $30 million

on an outfielder
that hits 320 with 110 RBI.

They alone control the market.

They chose the artist
they wanna be important.

They don't mind
spending $10 million

on a pitcher
who is 8-14 this season.

- It's gonna be Gephardt.
- They set the prices.

They even mark 'em up,
70, 80, 90 percent.

They're all very excited
about a company called Twitter.

Unregulated money.
Usually all cash. Unreported.

- His days are numbered.
- His days are numbered.

I don't know how much longer
she's gonna be in that job.

- She's done.
- She's gone.

All in.

People have asked me what

my goal was at that point.

What was my end game?

Back then, I would have
laughed at that question.

I was raised to be a champion.

My goal was to win.

At what and against whom?

- Those were just details.
- I'm all in.

I had my own apartment now.

I'll take it.

A new car...

and $17,000 in a shoebox.

Law school could wait
one more year.

Next, please. Come on through.

Step on up please. Thank you.
Come on through.

So. Here's all that's
gonna happen today.

Judge is gonna ask
each defendant

if they've read the indictment

or they'd like the court
to read it to them.

Then the judge is gonna ask
how you plead.

You're gonna answer,
"Not guilty."

I'll make it clear
for the record

that I'm not your counsel

but I am appearing
on your behalf

at the arraignment.

In propria persona.

In propria persona
means on your behalf.

- Yeah.
- No.

I'm saying it means
on your behalf.

I am appearing on your behalf.

In propria persona means

you're appearing on your behalf.

Not my behalf.

I'll check that out,
but the point is...

I'm not your lawyer.

And I'll make that clear
for the record.

That's us over there.

You know, why don't you
sit there?

And you sit on the other side.

You've gotta good judge.
He's a good guy.

- Counsel, please...
- How about the prosecutor?

Good morning, Your
Honor, Harrison Wellstone

Assistant U.S. Attorney
for the Southern District

joined at counsel table
by Assistant U.S. Attorney

Eric Brennan and FBI
Special Agent Deborah D'Angelo.

Thank you.

Are there any oral motions
at this time?

Switch with me.

On behalf of the defendant...

Just in case your lawyer
doesn't mention it

next time you appear
in front of the judge

you might wanna re-think
your clothes. Okay?

You look like the Cinemax
version of yourself.

I sold my clothes
when the government seized

all of my money two years ago.

Which, incidentally,
was the last time I ran a game.

But I think
I already mentioned that.

- Okay.
- Not guilty.

- Thank you, you may be seated.
- Hey. Switch back.

Defendant number two.
Nicholas Segel.

Has the defendant seen
a copy of the indictment?

Yes, Your Honor.

Have you discussed it
with your lawyer?

Yes.

Switch back.

Yes.

- And how do you plead?
- Not guilty.

Thank you,
you may have your seat.

Your old boss.

The one in the book
you called Dean Keith.

He was terrible to you.

Why cover up for him
by changing it

to "poor people bagels?"

I promise you
it couldn't matter less.

Has the defendant seen
a copy of the indictment?

- Just making conversation.
- Yes, your honor.

- Hey, switch back.
- Discussed with your lawyer?

- I have.
- How do you plead this time?

Not guilty.

Have a seat.

Defendant number four.
Molly Bloom.

Good morning, Your Honor.
Uh, Charles Jaffey

for the defendant,
just for the purposes...

Well, it's good to see you,
Mr. Jaffey.

Are you with us this morning?

Mr. Jaffey?

Uh, yes, sir.
Just, uh, one moment.

- Switch back.
- Seriously?

You said you left ten times
that much on the street.

In my office, when I said
the retainer was $250,000

you said,
"I left ten times that much..."

Yeah.

Counsel! I need to record
your appearance.

If it please the court,
Your Honor, Just one moment.

You're extended credit,
you're destitute

and you leave two and a half
million dollars on the street?

I had to.

Didn't anyone try
to buy your debt sheet?

Everyone tried to buy my debt
sheet. Is this...

Why didn't you sell it like
you sold your clothes?

- I couldn't.
- Why?

I couldn't be sure
how they were gonna collect.

I was afraid
you were gonna say that.

Counsel!

Yes, your Honor. Uh...

Charles Jaffey
for the defendant.

For the purposes
of this hearing only?

No, sir.
I am Molly Bloom's attorney.

Uh, she's read the indictment,
discussed it with her lawyer.

Waives the right
to have it read to her

and pleads "Not guilty."

Thank you, you may be seated.

Defendant number five!
Ilian Gershen!

Good morning, Your Honor.

I'm gonna have to keep
reading your book.

There was a track
star of the 1930's

named Matthew Robinson.

Matthew Robinson shattered
the Olympic record

in the 200
at the Berlin Games in 1936.

Absolutely shattered
the Olympic record...

and came in second.

The man who came in first
was Jesse Owens.

Jesse Owens went on
to be a legend.

Matthew Robinson
went on to be a janitor

at a whites-only
middle school in Pasadena.

The difference
was 4/10 of a second.

As if that wasn't enough

Matthew Robinson
had a little brother

who was also an athlete.

His name was Jackie.

I have two younger brothers

who are overachievers as well.

While I was ranked third
in North America

my brother Jeremy
was number one in the world.

And while I was placing into
AP Chemistry as a sophomore

my brother Jordan was doing it

when he was 12-years-old
or something.

I don't know.

I was a hot shot student
and a hot shot skier

everywhere but my own house.

As I got older, I began
to bait my father into fights

without really knowing
why I was doing it.

What did everyone
learn in school today?

Uh... I learned
that Sigmund Freud

was both a misogynist
and an idiot.

And anyone who relies
on his theories

of human psychology is a quack.

I don't know why you'd say that.

You asked me what I
learned in school today.

- Is this Mrs. Linwood?
- Yup.

Did she happen
to mention anything

about his work
on the unconscious mind?

His dream analysis has
the credibility of a horoscope.

But what got my attention

was that he opposed the women's
emancipation movement.

He believed that a woman's life

is about her
reproductive functions.

So you're really getting
to the nuts and bolts

of why middle-class
suburban white girls

have been oppressed
for centuries.

No, Mrs. Linwood was just...

Barbara Linwood
doesn't like men, Molly.

She doesn't like dicks,
dad, there's a difference.

Molly...

Don't disrespect me
like that at the table.

I wasn't disrespecting you.

I was disrespecting Freud.

And it's the kitchen table

not the tomb
of the unknown soldier.

And I'm a professional
psychologist, not a quack.

- I never said you were...
- Yeah, you did.

And don't do it again.

And don't ever use language
like that again.

Okay. Ignore my teachers,
watch my language

and respect the kitchen table.

What else do I
need to do before

I'm allowed
to disagree with you?

Make your own money

so you can live
in your own house...

and eat your own food.

I'd been running
the game for three years

and saved $58,000.

I was recruiting
and vetting players.

- Keeping the books.
- Call.

Collecting
and delivering checks.

Meeting the needs
of all the players

through out the week
and still working

full time for Dean Keith.

Who made it clear that
if I quit the office job

I'd lose the game.

- Call.
- Eights, full of nines.

I thought he had trips too.

He was slow-playing
into the river

and he hid the pocket eights
pretty well.

It's a tough beat, man.

- You owe the game...
- I know what I owe the game!

I wanna talk to you a minute.

- Okay.
- In the hall.

♪ It came from heartache ♪

♪ Then it died ♪

♪ From the street... ♪♪

Is he cheating?

No.

- How would you know?
- I'd know.

He and Diego
aren't in bed together?

No.

What about him and you?

A 52 card deck produces

hundreds of millions
of random patterns.

But every time one of you loses
two weeks in a row

you're sure something fishy
is going on?

Come on.

I'm gonna stop paying you.

- What do you mean?
- As my assistant.

- Are you firing me?
- I'm not firing you.

I'm just gonna stop paying you.

You get paid once a week
from the game.

It doesn't seem fair.

But I also have a job working
for you 24 hours...

And if you didn't have a job

you wouldn't have the game.
You understand what I'm saying?

I understand each of the words
that you're saying but I don't...

- Look!
- 24 hours a day, every day.

But you're gonna stop paying me
to do that job

because I'm making too much
money doing my second job?

And if I say no,
I'll lose both jobs?

Because it doesn't seem fair?

Business is bad right now.

Welcome to the real world.

Alright, here it is.
Banks are loaning you money.

And they shouldn't.

You're a bad risk, they know it.

So the debt service
on your loans

is close to 20%,
which is crazy.

Twenty percent is
barely survivable

if it's a bridge loan.

But, like for instance

it's taken you 10 years
to build seven houses.

All of which are worth
less than they were

before you built them,
because the housing market

is on a downward trajectory
for the first time

in the history of houses.

And that's why business
is doing bad.

Not because you're paying me
$450 a week.

You're a business savant?

I've read every piece of paper
in your office.

You're making thousands
in tips every week.

Why do you care about $450?

Because I don't want to pick up
your dry cleaning for free!

Well, you don't have
bargaining power here!

You can refuse the pay cut
but you could lose the game.

Cash me out, please.

I wasn't gonna wait for Dean

to take the game away from me

before I put a plan in place.

The next morning,
I made appointments

at the Four Seasons,
The Peninsula

and the Beverly Hills Hotel.

The suite was $5200 a night.

I spent $17,000

on a shuffle master that was
installed in the table.

Faster, more reliable shuffles.

Less downtime between hands.

Food was brought in
from Mr. Chow

and available to eat
on the side tables.

There was Macallan 18

Belvedere, 1942

Remy Martin,
and a '88 Lafite Rothschild

served by a bartender who'd
already memorized your drink.

Cohibas and Monte Cristo
were in the humidor.

A professional stylist
turned me

into what my defense attorney
would later call

"The Cinemax version
of myself."

I spent almost everything
I had in preparation

for the phone call
I knew was coming.

- Hello.
- I want you to listen to me.

- 'Cause you need to hear this.
- Where are you?

I need to tell you something
in plain English

and I need to know
that you understood it.

- Dean.
- You are unimportant.

Do you hear me?

And you are fired.

The job, the game...

- You're fired.
- Can I ask why?

How many of my friends
are you sleeping with?

I'm not sleeping
with any of 'em.

That's not what I heard.

Listen to me.
With a HAZMAT suit, I wouldn't...

Can I give you some advice?

Lose the bitchy air.

Lose the superior air.

And go to the office
and get your stuff

and be out of there
before I show up.

Hey, are you Molly?

Yeah.

I'm Leah, um...

Dean asked me
to pack your personals.

I appreciate it.

He also asked me
to get the numbers

of tonight's players
so I can confirm the list.

I'm really sorry.

Don't be.

My phone's in my car.

Uh, I'll text you
all the numbers

you need when I get downstairs.

I texted my replacement
a bunch of random numbers

with 310 area codes.

Then I sent a text

to the players for tonight

and told them
the game had been moved

to the Four Seasons Hotel,
Suite 1401.

- Hey, how you doing?
- Drink?

- Thank you very much.
- Do you a part...

I'd love to.

Yeah?
So this guy's producing it.

You should, uh, come down.

- Amazing.
- Yeah, it'll be fun.

Fellas, can I have your
attention for a moment?

Where's Dean?

I'll be hosting a game in this
suite every Tuesday night.

If you play tonight, you'll be
guaranteed a chair for a year.

If you prefer to play
at the Cobra Lounge...

there'll be no hard feelings.

Let's play.

The game is mine now.

I incorporated and Molly Bloom
Event Planning was born.

I paid taxes and 1099'd
my employees.

I never became romantically
or sexually involved

with any of the players.

The game would have
fallen apart.

This was back when I was
still making good decisions.

And I went to a lawyer
to make absolutely sure

all this was legal.

- Are you taking a rake?
- No.

Then you're not
breaking the law.

- But can I give you advice?
- Please.

There's a saying
in my business.

Don't break the law
when you're breaking the law.

- What do you mean?
- No drugs. No prostitutes.

No muscle to collect debts.

Oh, I don't do
anything like that.

But you just said
I wasn't breaking the law.

You wanna keep it that way
because you don't wanna

break the law when
you're breaking the law.

Am I breaking the law?

Not really.

We're able to find out
for sure, aren't we?

Laws are written down.

You're not taking
a percentage of the pot?

No.

You're running a square game.

My game had a tricky ecosystem.

These guys could buy anything.

But here, in this room

you couldn't buy your win.

You couldn't buy me,
you couldn't buy the girls.

And you couldn't buy
a seat at the table.

There's nothing as sweet
as a win you have to work for.

And the wins and loses were
compelling, and they were real.

Of course, it helped that the
players were gambling addicts.

Can I see you for a second?

Jay, you're famous.

You are an international
rock star.

Oh, I wasn't sure
you'd noticed.

You can't send
emails like that.

Well, it's not a federal
production, okay?

I just invited you to Cabo
for the weekend.

The next woman you send
an email like that to

is not gonna be me.

It's going to be someone else.

You're playing with fire.

I'm telling you that
I'm in love with you

and you are worried about me
getting blackmailed?

Oh, my, that just makes me
more into you.

Lemon head. They won't need
to blackmail you.

They can get just as
much money from TMZ.

And TMZ will give them
what they really want.

Tell me the truth.
Was mine the first love letter

you've gotten from a player?

It was the seventh.

All digitally transmitted.

You are begging for
your life to be turned

into a very public hell.

So that's a no on Cabo?

Why don't you just give your
wife and kids a break

and run 'em over with a limo?

I love the way that
you talk to me.

Oh, God.

- I've had a thought.
- Yeah?

Raise the stakes.

To what?

50k buy-in. Blinds are 250/500.

- That's a 500 percent hike.
- Yeah.

I don't think it's a good idea.

Could you guys give me
the room for a second?

Sure.

The players that are losing
a $100,000 a week

are gonna be losing
half a million.

The players winning
a $100,000 a week...

Will have no one left
to play with.

Players are gonna get hurt,
others are gonna get killed.

And some will drop out.
It's not sustainable.

We'll lose the game.

Find new players.

He meant "Find new fish."

I went recruiting again.

First up was Donnie Silverman.

Donnie won the World Series
of Poker last year

and got in touch with me
through one of the players.

Are you fucking nuts?

Donnie Silverman won
the World Series of Poker.

You can watch it online.

He took 11 hands
at the final table.

But he had the nuts
on eight of them.

And three of those...

Three were two outers with
four players still in the hand.

He ran hot.

He doesn't lock his chips down,
he's reckless.

He gives tons of action
and he's got $12 million.

You know,
I don't like playing poker.

Why do you play?

I like destroying lives.

Give him a chair.

The next recruit
was Brad Marion.

Who everyone called Bad Brad

because he was uniquely
terrible at this game.

If there was a worse
player in the world

Brad would still find a way
to lose to him.

Sorry, I don't have a chair,
but you're welcome to a drink.

No, I just came to
introduce you to, uh, Brad...

I'm all in. Calling it.

- Yeah, I call.
- Sorry.

I just wanted to introduce
you to Brad Marion.

- He wants to play.
- Give me his information.

- I'll check him out.
- Derek's gonna vouch for him.

"Derek's gonna vouch for him"
meant Derek would cover

any losses if Brad didn't pay,
up to any amount.

- Hi, I'm Molly Bloom.
- Brad Marion.

- Nice to meet you.
- You too.

But he could pay and had to.

Because he embraced the fallacy
of being pot committed.

I'm all in.

You've already invested so much

you might as well see it
through to the end.

Bad Brad had raised
$700 million

for a fund that traded
oil futures and every week

he came to the game,
lost a $100,000 and tipped me

five thousand so he could
play the next week.

He wasn't getting any better...

and the guys were
feasting on him.

Can I get another 50?

- Can we talk for a second?
- Sure.

Brad, this game might not
be for you.

I know I'm no card shark.

No, you're not.

Here are your losses
after ten weeks.

And you've won... never.

It's actually
a statistical anomaly.

Yeah. I know.

I like playing with the guys.

I don't have that many friends.

Don't take my seat away.

I can tip you more.

No.

Your tips are very generous.

How about I-I get you
some books.

Or even, even a pro
to give you lessons?

Yeah, maybe.

- Yeah, let me think about it.
- Okay.

Turned out Bad Brad
knew what he was doing.

He was getting customers.

He'd drop his
100K at the game

and pick up four million
for his hedge fund.

- Tell him what's smart...
- Not me.

More on that later, but first

Harlan Eustice.

Player X said he met Harlan

at the Commerce Casino

and that he'd be
good for the game.

But I wasn't seeing
what he was seeing.

He played tight, folding after
the hole cards 64% of the time.

It wasn't clear
where his money came from.

He produced backyard
wrestling videos

and other low-rent productions.

But worst of all

Harlan Eustice
was a good card player.

Why would Player X want someone
at the game who could beat him?

I learned the answer
to that one the hard way.

- How was your flight?
- Just fine.

How are you paying for tickets
between L.A. and New York?

I had two million points
left on my Amex.

They took the card,
but let me keep the points.

Which I thought
was nice of them.

- You had meetings.
- Hmm?

You had meetings in L.A.
about your book and life rights.

- I did.
- Was there any interest?

A company that owns
four thousand

video poker machines

wants to put my face on them.

Anything else?

"Treat Magazine"
made a generous offer.

- "Treat?"
- It's a new magazine.

For the high-end
photography enthusiast.

- They want you to pose naked.
- I'd be the April treat.

I meant interest in your book.

Ah, yeah.

- Any offers?
- A few, I guess.

Couple...

Five.

- Really?
- Yeah.

- And...
- I passed.

You're destitute
and you passed on

five offers to turn
your book into a movie.

You will be paid, Charlie.

I'm just curious as to why

you passed on
what would appear to be

the only way out you have.

Creative differences.

- Okay.
- Should we start?

You know, I am gonna
figure you out.

Well, let me know
what you find.

You see this?
This is discovery.

Let's see what we discovered.

Over here we have
Peter Druzhinsky

Peter Antonovich
and Peter Slobo.

The three Petes.

Now the three Petes run a chain

of corrupt medical clinics

and have been committing
insurance fraud

wire fraud and mail fraud
on an epic scale.

Now, over here we have

the Ragnyada-Gershen
Organization.

They're a worldwide
bookmaking operation

handling hundreds of millions
of dollars a year

in illegal sports betting.

And over here, we have

the Alexander-Habib
Organization.

This is also an illegal
sports betting organization.

But this one,
financed by an art gallery

owned by Shillel Habib,
who everyone calls...

Shelly.

This is the Russian Mafia
and the three are tied together

in the indictment through...

a poker game.

- Were they tapping my phones?
- No.

Thank God.

They were tapping the phones

of everyone you talked to.

Okay.

They got you confirming
that you ran raked games

at the Plaza Hotel and various
locations in New York.

They've also got
a confidential informant

confirming that you ran
raked games at the Plaza Hotel

and various locations
in New York.

You were in violation of 1955,
which is a part of the U.S. Code

that makes it illegal to run
an illegal gambling business.

You know what you did?

You finished writing a book
before the good part happened.

You really get a kick out
of yourself, don't you?

You know,
I don't like this picture.

- Thank you.
- You're like the cat...

That ate the canary
and then told

the canary's
parents about it.

It's the picture
the publisher wanted

and I didn't get a vote.

I liked the book, good story.

- Well told.
- Thank you.

I need you to tell
it again, though.

From the beginning,
and this time

without skipping over
the Russians.

Would you
like a glass of water?

I'd like a glass of Bourbon.

- One more thing.
- Yeah?

I need your hard drives.

- Going back how far?
- What do you mean?

Well, I kept my hard drives
when I'd buy a new laptop.

- You're kidding.
- No.

It had a record of who owed what

and spreadsheets on the players.

It has more than that.

Every time you charge your phone

by plugging it into the computer

the computer takes a record

of all your text messages
and emails.

My laptop has a record
of all text messages and emails

received years ago on phones

that have been smashed
with an aluminum bat?

I wanna run a forensic imaging
on your hard drives.

Oh, no. Thanks anyway, but I'll
be destroying those hard drives.

No, you can't do that,
they're evidence.

I'm going to blow them up,
I am literally gonna use

explosives and scatter
the remains in the sea.

Except you told me they exist.

You're gonna have
to pretend I didn't tell you.

- Can't do that.
- Yes, you can.

You wanted a lawyer that

wasn't even a little bit shady.

New information
has come to light.

- I see that was stupid.
- Molly.

There are no hard drives.

If you destroy evidence
and obstruct justice

on top of the charges
already brought against you

in this case, you will be,
I promise, incarcerated.

You don't understand
what's in those text messages.

I understand you've had
boyfriends and there'll be

some exchanges that are a little
bit, you know, embarrassing...

I don't care about embarrassing
text messages from boyfriends

as there is not left
the smallest corner

of my private life

that isn't available
for public scrutiny.

There are messages that
would destroy other lives.

There are messages
that would end careers

and obliterate families.

If those the text messages
were to be made public...

- They won't be.
- If they were...

- They won't be.
- It would be catastrophic.

- I'm a lawyer, I'm legally...
- No.

Listen to me,
I am legally prohibited

from disclosing anything...

Someone leaked
my last deposition

to the National Enquirer,
Charlie.

- Butterball?
- My last lawyer's name...

Was Butterman
and he was one of five people

in the room besides me.

But the information
in that deposition

will be nothing compared
to the consequences

of those text messages...

Ah! I just got it.

Showing up everywhere.

I couldn't figure out why you

named some people
but not others.

I thought that maybe
some people paid you.

You were wrong.
But doesn't matter.

No, the only people you named
in that book were the ones

that were already named in
the Bad Brad Marion deposition.

- Which you think...
- I know.

- Somebody leaked it.
- Sold it.

- To the tabloids.
- Yes.

- Maybe even Butterbean.
- Butterman.

But I don't know who it was.

I watched Jenny McCarthy

beat you up
for naming the players.

Why didn't you just say,
"Hey, those names

are already public record?"

I don't know. 'Cause I wasn't
on "The View" under subpoena.

Can we please get back
to the emails and texts?

Is that why you have
creative differences

with the Hollywood offers?

Because they want information

and you won't give them.

- I don't know you.
- Hm.

If what happened last time

were to happen this time

it would make
what happened last time...

What is this for?

It's got every text message
and email

I sent in the last year
as well as a variety

of incriminating evidence
about my clients.

Now if anything
of yours get leaked

you can sell my phone
to the highest bidder

and I'll lose my job
and get disbarred.

So in order to demonstrate
the sanctity

of your attorney-client
confidentiality

you're betraying
the confidentiality

of all your other clients?

I know you're not
gonna look at it.

How do you know?

I don't know.

I'll fly home to Colorado...

and be back the next day
with the hard drives.

Harlan Eustice was excited

about the surprise
40th birthday party

he was throwing for
his wife in 24 hours.

I rented out the whole
courtyard of the Buffalo Club.

It'll be about a hundred people.

Kumamoto oysters,
snow crab, lobsters.

He wasn't taking off
menu items to show off.

He was genuinely excited
about the party

he was giving his wife.

She doesn't know
anything about it.

She thinks we're having dinner

with her brother and his wife.

I liked Harlan.

But nobody else liked him
except Player X.

- He played tight.
- Fold

Didn't give a lot of action

and always got
his money in good.

Which means he was
running the odds.

- Five thousand to call.
- No.

In other words,
he was playing poker.

And the others were gambling.

And he won.

By midnight, Harlan had
tripled his original

fifty thousand dollar buy-in.

But everything came off
the rails with one hand.

And that's how it happens.

That's how you go full-tilt.

Harlan, the best player
at the table

the best player at most
tables was about to get

bluffed off the win by,
of all people...

Bad Brad. How?

Because Harlan had never
played with Brad before

and didn't know yet
that Brad was bad.

Harlan's got a boat.
9's full.

Brad's got nothing.

But his pre-flop
betting made it look

entirely accidently,
like there was

a chance he had pocket kings.

Twenty thousand.

Which if true

would give him
the better full house.

Brad's counting off $20,000,
which means he's going to call

and Harlan knows that if
Brad's gonna call and not raise

it means he didn't
have the boat.

And he's betting
a high two pair.

Probably kings and queens.

But then instead
of calling the bet

Brad pushes $72,000
into the pot.

I'm all in.

Harlan looks at Brad.

Every tell Harlan knows about

carotid artery pumping,
stiff hands...

Brad's doing the opposite.

Brad's betting represented
a huge hand

by calling on the flop

check raising the turn
and bombing the river.

Of course, Harlan didn't know

that Brad didn't know
what any of that meant.

So Harlan, always
a good sport said...

Nice bet. I'm laying this down.

As he tossed in what he
didn't realize was the winning hand

Brad tosses in his cards too

and one of them flips
over and Harlan sees...

You didn't have pocket kings?

I didn't have any kings

except the one in the middle.

- You had two pair?
- I had one pair.

The nines in the middle.

Thank you.

It wasn't even that
it was that much money.

Harlan only lost
about $40,000 on the hand.

But a circuit breaker blew

and Harlan was
out for blood now.

Everyone's.

We have a
$112,000 on the table.

You want another 50?

Give me another 100, please.

Sign here for a 100,000.

By 5 a.m., Harlan
was down half a million.

He'd abandoned everything
he knew about poker

and was playing
like a frat kid

swinging for a home run
on every hand.

- Another 100 please.
- Hey, bud...

Molly, please. Let's go.

Sign here for a 100.

Text messages were going
out letting everyone know

Harlan was bleeding.

Guys were coming by to play

for a couple hours before work.

They'd been losing
to him for months.

Everyone wanted a check
from Harlan Eustice.

If you go home now you can have

a few hours sleep
before Sheila's party.

Soon.

Come talk to me.

Hi, guys.
Help yourself to some coffee.

You're on tilt.

Everybody knows it.

You're playing
without the weapons

you need to win.

You're right.

Alright, thank you.

Just give me $500,000.

I just gotta get back to even.

That should be the second line

of every gambler's obit.

Mr. Feldstein died while
trying to get back to even.

Harlan never did.

And he never got to his wife's

birthday party.

She filed for divorce
two days later.

There was one last punch coming

that would put Harlan
on the floor for good.

Harlan was heads up against
a guy named Frederick

who was Austrian royalty.

Call.

Harlan had pocket queens.

His Excellency had ace king.

They were both in 65K pre-flop.

Flops queen seven-seven.

Harlan has a full house again.

Queens full of sevens.

With three rounds of betting
in front of him...

the Count has nothing.

- All in.
- And the Count goes all in.

He wants Harlan
to think he's got

two more sevens under there.

- Call.
- "Nope," says Harlan.

He's not falling for this again
and he snap calls all in.

There's $750,000 on the table.

Diego burns a card
and deals a turn.

A king. Otto Von Bismarck
now has two pair.

Kings and sevens.

But two pair is nothing
next to a full house.

And at this point

the only hand left that can

beat a queen full house...

is a king full house.

Captain Von Trapp
bluffed two pair

and rivered into kings full.

Motherfucker!

Motherfucker!

- Fuck you, fucking mechanic.
- Hey!

Fuck you, you bottom-dealing
party magician!

Hey! Get out on the terrace.

You've been pulling this shit
on me for two days!

- Come on, come on.
- Party magician.

- You good?
- I'm okay, thanks.

What the hell?

I'll apologize to Diego.

Yeah. And you're gonna go home.

I'm making a floor call,
that's it.

Did you hear me?

I don't have it.

A million two.

I don't have it.

I'm sorry.

Go home.

I'm very sorry.

You got to tell
Sheila the truth, okay?

Tell her the truth.
Tell her what happened.

And I'm gonna help you.
I'm gonna get you to a meeting.

We'll meet tomorrow
and figure out

what to do about the money.

Harlan and I
didn't meet the next day.

He just called me
and said everything was okay

and showed up the next week
with a bank check

for a million, two hundred
thousand dollars.

Where did he
get the money from?

- I loaned it to him.
- Loaned it?

I get 50% of his wins
until the debt's paid off.

And then fifty percent for the
next two years with no exposure.

You're getting 50% of the wins.

- And no exposure on the losses?
- Yeah.

First of all, he'll never
climb out of that.

That's sharecropper math.

It's also usury.
It's racketeering.

Second, you can't
stake a player

and play in the game
at the same time.

I've been doing it
for two years.

- You've been staking Harlan?
- Yeah.

- Jesus Christ.
- It's not cheating.

It creates
the opportunity for it.

- Tell me how.
- Are you kidding me?

- Tell me how!
- You've interest in another...

You think I'm going
to take a dive?

And if I did, who would care?

You fold your hole cards.

Five of clubs,
and a jack of hearts.

He's still in the game.

It would benefit him to know

that the five of clubs...

You think I'm signaling him?

I'm saying it can't

fucking happen again.

- You disapprove of me.
- It's not personal.

It feels personal
when you chat up

every other guy
at the game except me.

When you stay late for a drink
with J.T. but never...

Have you visited his Oscar?

I think it's bolted
on the hood of his car.

It's noticeable,
when you go out of your way

to demonstrate that you
have no interest in me.

You did the same thing to Dean.

These guys want to play cards
with me, not you!

Be that as it may...

You know who the biggest
winner in this game is?

- It's you.
- You know who...

The second biggest winner is?

- Look...
- It's you.

What are you taking home,
10,000 a night now?

That is my business,
literally.

Between you, the dealers
and the servers

you're taking a lot of money
out of this game.

Not as much
as I'm bringing to it.

That 10,000 is 10,000

that doesn't go in my pocket.

Again, my money is...

Your money is my money.

Is it?

I think we should talk
about capping your tips.

You want to get together
with the other players

who on my tax returns,
are called clients

and discuss putting
a ceiling on my wages?

That's right.

It'll be America's most closely
watched anti-trust case.

Right there, right then

that fast, I lost the game.

It was the next Tuesday,
game night.

He waited until he knew
I'd be on the way to the hotel

and then sent me a text.

It said, "We're playing
at Dave's tonight.

No need to show up."

And I knew the truth
even before I answered

the call that came next.

You are so fucked.

There's no such word
as verticality.

- Hmm?
- In the book, on page 152.

"When you lose the game in L.A.
and come to New York

you admire
the city's verticality."

It's a word.

Once you're in New York

you talk about games

lasting all night, two nights.

Bein' up for days,
but you don't mention drugs.

There were drugs.
I'm two years clean.

But you left the drugs
out of the book.

You know what?
I'm not paying you $250,000

for your Amazon
customer review.

So far, you're not
paying me for anything.

I just emailed you
verticality

from Merriam-Webster's
Dictionary.

What's an advance
on a book like this?

The advance?

It depends.

If you guarantee the publishers

certain elements

then I can get you
a million and a half.

Which you'd probably
double on sales

plus ancillary rights.

What kind of elements?

- You have to use real names.
- Eli...

There's a guy who sits
outside my Starbucks

with a, uh,
with a cardboard sign

that says "Vietnam Vet."

And every morning,
I give him a quarter.

And right now,
the only difference

between you and him

is that you have
a story.

I'm one thousand
percent sure that

the homeless Vietnam vet
has a better one.

You have one asset.

Write your story
and I can get you

a million and a half,
and-and that's the floor.

Go big or go home

and live with your mother.

For the rest of your life.

What if I...

What if I told the publishers

that I-I would name the players

who are already named in
the Brad Marion Deposition?

All four?

I'll use the real names
of the players

who are already
named by Bad Brad.

- What if I told them that?
- You spent eight years...

In Hollywood and
two years in New York

running the world's
most exclusive

glamorous and decadent
man cave.

So what do the
publishers get from you

about people with real names?

My advance was $35,000.

Well, the first thing
I'm gonna do is

get you a minor role reduction.

Get the 12 points
knocked down to ten.

- What's a minor role reduction?
- I'm going to argue...

To the prosecutor that you're,
uh, an employee that was

hired and fired
by the players.

- Not a chance.
- I think we got a good chance.

No, not a chance I'm letting
you make that argument.

- Why not?
- It's not true.

Let me explain how
the point system works.

I know how it works.

Points correspond
with the prosecutor's

sentencing recommendation.

You try to get a point reduction

based on a variety of factors

including, say,
prior criminal history

which I don't have,
or whether the defendant

played a minor role,
which I certainly did not.

You really think this is
a good time to hog credit?

- I built it from scratch.
- No.

There was already a game
at the Cobra Lounge

when you came along.

The New York game is
what I'm talking about.

I built from scratch.

I wasn't fireable.

I made sure of that.

So, no.

I wasn't really listening.

I'm refusing you permission

to seek a minor role reduction.

I'm refusing you permission

to invalidate
my entire career.

- And I'm not caring.
- I built a successful...

Hey, do you want kids?

You interested
in having a family?

Very much.

I don't get you
some point reductions

and the sentencing
recommendation guidelines

say eight to twelve years.

And that's before they
try to jam you up

more for money laundering.

The moment you changed the
Russian's money for chips...

I would've had to been aware
where the money was...

Find me twelve men and women
who'll believe

that you weren't aware
of exactly who was sitting

at your table
and where the money came from.

So, that's it.

You were a cocktail waitress.

When I lost the L.A. game,
I told myself it was no big deal.

It was just supposed
to be an adventure

and a way to meet
influential people.

And I'd saved over $200,000.

But that was just a weak
firewall I'd hastily built

to keep out the humiliation
and depression

I knew was coming.

It had to end sometime.

I just thought
it would be on my time.

The game had given me
an identity

respect and a defined place

in a world
that was inaccessible.

And in one irrational
heartbeat, it was taken away.

I was irrelevant...

and forgotten, overnight.

It'd been two weeks
since I lost the game...

and I made an appointment
to see someone.

Because now,
the humiliation and depression

had given way
to a blinding anger

at my powerlessness
over the unfair whims of men.

It was that
there weren't any rules.

These power moves weren't
framed by right and wrong.

Just ego and vanity.

Selfish whims with
no regard for consequence.

No fairness, no justice.

And that giggling,
cackling call from Player X.

You're so fucked.

I couldn't lose to that
green-screened little shit.

And I didn't want a therapist

to make me feel okay about it.

You know what makes you feel
okay about losing?

Winning.

I got on a plane to New York.

Wall Street. Madison Avenue.

Fifth Avenue. The Dakota.

The San Remo.

The players were here.

I just had to bait the hook.

This time,
I didn't have movie stars.

This time,
I used Playboy Playmates.

These weren't
just any Playmates.

Jesse was
a Puerto Rican knockout

who grew up working
in card rooms

and was a good player herself.

I could stake her,
infiltrate other games

and poach
their big ticket players.

Shelby could write code

and run more thorough
background checks

than the T.S.A.

Winston was the daughter
of an American diplomat.

She's lived in nine
different countries

and had the email addresses

of half
the Saudi Royal Family.

Who's the biggest
game in Manhattan?

On any given night, it's either
Teddy Chin or Tutti Toscano.

- But that's Manhattan.
- What do you mean?

Biggest game in New York
is in Brooklyn.

Russian Jews.

Buy-in's a 100k.

No one runs the game.

They just play and pay.

We couldn't promise anyone
they'd rub elbows

with movie stars.

But New York has one thing

Hollywood doesn't.

The Yankees.

And there was one
Yankee in particular

that every man in America

would line up to lose to.

Don't say his name out loud.

Write it on a cocktail napkin.

Crumple up the napkin up.

Put it in a glass of water

so they can see
the ink dissolve.

- That's really necessary?
- No.

It's not at all necessary.

When do we tell them the game

is going to start?

Tell them it's been happening

once a week for about six months

at a location you won't
disclose right now.

There's a pretty long
waiting list for a chair

but Molly's here somewhere

and I'll introduce you to her.

50K buy-in,
blinds are five and one?

Yeah, fifty...

Mol?

50K buy-in?

No, 250.

That's going to make noise.

Enough to be
heard on Rodeo Drive.

The Gold Coast of Long Island

has been home
to the Vanderbilts

Roosevelts, Whitneys

J.P. Morgan
and F.W. Woolworth.

It's an impossible ticket
to get, but I can talk to Molly.

Tonight was a $10,000
per person fundraiser

to pay for major renovations

at the East Hampton Yacht Club.

Molly's around here somewhere.

I could introduce you, but I
wouldn't get my hopes up.

That's for real.

There was a charity event

for residents of the Hamptons

who own yachts.

In my business, that's called

a target-rich environment.

I have to tell you
the initial buy-in is $250,000.

$250,000? That's almost as much
as my second car.

Your friends come to the games?

Mm-hm.

It took only 7 weeks

of recruiting to get 10 players

and 7 on a waiting list.

And in these circles

that was more than enough

to start the mythology.

By morning,
gamblers would be telling

and hearing stories
about this game in London

Tokyo and Dubai.

At the end of that year

I reported an income

of $4,773,000.

Every square inch of it
legal and on the books.

I was the biggest game runner
in the world.

All tips.

I still hadn't taken a rake

and I still hadn't accidentally
recruited members

of a Russian crime syndicate.

In the beginning, I was using
drugs to stay awake.

First Adderall,
then Adderall crushed up

to defeat the time release.

Then coke, Valium, Vicodin

Percocet and more Adderall.

I rented a penthouse apartment
and installed plasma screens

for the sports bettors.

I had the lower stakes
games on Wednesdays

Thursdays and Sundays
at my place

with Tuesday night at
the Plaza being the big game.

At 7:00, the dealers came

and the table was set up
and polished

and ten chairs
were placed around it

exactly 12 inches apart.

I used custom chips
and two dealers

who worked an hour on,
an hour off

with a new crew coming in
after 12 hours.

Casinos had discovered
that certain scents

make people more likely
to place big bets.

The Casinos pump those scents
in through the ventilation.

I had custom candles made.

I'd been working
with a new dealer named "B."

Not like Beatrice,
just the initial.

She'd been working in
trashy card rooms

on the East Side
and we became friends.

Tone it down.

The big players
don't like fast hands.

Sarcastic dealing, cool.

You got to do it,
not doing it is insanity.

You must be able to see that.

You've been stiffed four
or five times.

You've got hundreds of thousands
on the street.

That's money you're
never gonna see again.

B had been suggesting
it for a long time.

She was suggesting it again

because of an incident
the week before.

- Hey, Cole.
- Hey.

- Come on in.
- Thanks, you got my check?

I do.

- It's right here.
- Thank you.

Hey can I show you
something on TV?

Umm, actually,
I'm in kinda a hurry.

It'll just take a second.
Have a seat.

This is last Tuesday's game.

Shit, Molly,
if the guys find out

you've got cameras on them,
they're gonna go nuts.

Yeah, that's you
in the seventh chair.

Look at your stack of chips.

I've got a cab downstairs...

Look at the time stamp.
1:06 a.m.

Let's fast forward to 1:07.

1:07,
you lose a hand to Boosty.

- What is this?
- 1:08.

Our sheets say that
you didn't buy-in again

between 1:06 and 1:08.

But look at that,
your stack's bigger.

- I can explain, it's just, uh...
- Okay, let's rewind.

This screen's got
the dealer changeover

while at the same time,
on this screen

and... there we are.

This is why I can't reconcile
$57,000 from Tuesday's game.

A 7-11's got security cameras
on their slushy machine.

I've got a million
dollars changing hands

every two minutes, imbecile.

You don't think
I've got eyes on the table?

Relax.

I, uh, I owe people money.

I know. Why isn't it coming
from the trust fund?

I need my parents' permission
to get that much.

And they'd kill me. You don't
even understand what it's like.

People don't realize
trust fund kids.

Are suffering
in this economy, too.

I realize what I did was wrong.

Did it take a lot of soul
searching to get you there?

Okay, okay, first of all

the guys that are making
the counterfeit chips

are taking you for a ride.

They know that
there are signatures

built into the chips.

Exact weight, infrared markings.

Breathe. Second.

Don't try this
at anyone else's game

because if you do,
they are going to express

their anger in a much different
way than I am.

You owe me $57,000.

When I get it, you get the tape

but until then

you don't play in anyone's game.

So when Tuesday night
came, B was at it again.

Your exposure's crazy.

It's not if, it's when.

You're gonna get blown up.

Your risk is nuts.

If I took a rake, this game
would no longer be legal.

And if you can't cover,
this game will no longer exist.

You're the bank now.

You're guaranteeing the game.

If you see a hand

you don't want to carry

just look at me

flash me a number

and I'll take it off the table.

Most runners cap it
at five percent.

- I'll see you out there.
- See you out there.

Two weeks later, around 2 a.m.

there was a pot that was up to
$1.3 million, pre-flop

with five players still in.

My hope was that the flop
would chase four of them off.

$200,000.

Raise a $100,000.

- $300,000 to you, sir.
- Call.

There was now 2.1
million on the table.

$300,000 to you, sir.

Plus 200.

$2.6 million.

Three million.

She was right.

I was extending credit.
Big numbers.

And it's not like
Harlan Eustice hadn't already

put the fear of God into me.

If I couldn't pay one time

that'd be the end of the game.

I was the house.

That's how quickly
I made the decision.

And just as quickly, B
calculated 2 percent of the pot

and took it off the table.

That was it,
I had just taken a rake

in violation of
U.S. Criminal Code, 1955.

It's time to introduce
Douglas Downey

'cause Downey's gonna
take us all the way home.

Downey was a drunk,
and he'd stay after the game

and hang out
while I did the books.

He was hard to understand
when he was drunk

and his conversation openers

would always sound like

the title of a detective novel.

Victim of circumstance.

Yeah.

Story of, you know...

Story of my proverbial,
you know...

- Life?
- Life.

He'd talk about his marriage.

I married young, Mol.

I married young
and I married dull.

If I'd been born in Greenwich
instead of Flushing...

He talked about
wanting a better life.

New Canaan...

Gone to... Rye Country Day

Princeton...

The life I'd have.

The wife I'd have?

I'd be a player.

Victim of circumstance.

Mol, these are things
I only say to you.

Good call.

And he'd talk about another

game he played in.

It was the Brooklyn game.

The Brighton Beach game

where they played all night

and all day.

The game that was
populated by Russians.

I'm the only Irish guy
they'll let play.

Mol, these are the nicest
guys I've ever met.

Then one night, Douglas
Downey lost $80,000 at my game

and didn't have it.

Winston, can I have
the room, please?

Sure.

- I'll see you tomorrow.
- Mm.

You won a $190,000 last week.

- I owe Teddy Chin and Tutti...
- Right.

And some sports bets.

I'm a winner trapped
inside the body of a...

- Stop.
- Yeah.

The Brooklyn game.

Is everything I've heard true?

What have you heard?

The Russian's have deep pockets

bad at poker, give action

pay instantly
and wear a coat and tie.

It's all true.

Bring me some of those players
and I'll give you

a piece of the game
until your 80K is paid down.

Loser is what I was gonna say.

Winner trapped inside
the body of a...

- I know. Got it.
- Loser.

Can you bring me some players?

I'm the only Irish guy
they'll let play.

Do you understand the deal
I'm offering you?

No, I'm saying this
because you're Irish

and they may not want
to play in your game.

I'm the only Irish guy
they'll let play.

I'm not Irish.

- You're not?
- No.

Molly Bloom?

You're thinking
of the James Joyce character.

I always thought you were Irish.

I'm not.
Can you bring me some players?

Isn't there a famous book...

Okay, Douglas, focus up.

Yes, there's a book
by James Joyce called "Ulysses"

and there's a character
named Molly Bloom

and that is why
you think I'm Irish

but now it's time
to move past that.

Can you bring me
some Brighton Beach players?

If you're not Irish,
what are you?

I'm a Russian Jew.

The next week, I
had some new players.

Mike was the first one
to arrive.

- I'm Jesse.
- I'm Mike Davidoff.

Mike owned a
chain of medical clinics

and had already posted
with a wire transfer.

Next were the Gershen brothers.
Illya and Alexei.

They were in the business
of exporting steel to China.

Alexei brought a quarter
of a million dollars

in cash, in a backpack.

Mr. Habib, good evening.
I'm Shelby.

I'm Shelly.
Only one letter's different.

Also I'm a billionaire. I think
I may have seen you naked.

No. You would remember.

And then Shelly Habib.

The Habib family
owns the largest collection

of classical art in the world,
valued at 3 billion dollars

and Shelly runs
the Hallie Gallery

on Madison Avenue.

As for tonight, I was not able

to put my hands on cash today

because I woke up this morning

after the banks had closed.

So I'm hoping you'll accept

this as temporary collateral.

That is an authentic Monet?

Grabbed it right off the wall.

You came over here
carrying a Monet?

I was driven and I have security
outside the door.

Okay, Shelly.
Here's what I need you to do.

I need you to get this...

- What, four?
- Seven.

Seven million dollar

painting out of here right now.

- And you're, I assume, armed?
- Sure.

Security can't stand
in front of the door.

Fix this up, come on back

and I'll extend you credit
tonight up to one and a half.

You're a very
beautiful woman.

Please be careful
with the painting.

Always.

Mike, Illya,
Alexei and Shelly.

Those were the players
Doug Downey brought me.

As advertised,
they played loose, gave action

lost to the regulars
and settled right away.

People have asked,
"Wasn't there any way to tell

"that some of the players
at your game were connected

"to one of the darkest,
deadliest

and far-reaching organized
crime syndicates in the world?"

No. There wasn't.

I'm gonna go all in.

I wish I had better news.

Harrison Wellstone didn't go
for the minor role reduction?

No.

He didn't buy that
I was a cocktail waitress?

- No.
- Aww. Is it because I wasn't?

Hey, I tried, which is what
you're not paying me to do.

So what now?

The Government
is expressing an interest

in you being
a cooperating witness.

- You don't say?
- Molly.

Who could've possibly seen that
coming?

- Let's have the conversation.
- It will be short.

Because I don't know anything
at all that can help them.

You don't know anything that can
help them convict

the Russians, but you
know things that can help them.

Did you know that
97 percent of Federal cases

never make it to trial?

Even though the chances
of being convicted

at trial is a little more than
one in a hundred?

If you want to go
to trial, that's fine.

But it's gonna cost you
in the area of $3,500,000

Which the Justice Department
knows I don't have

because they took
all of my money

in a civil forfeiture
which they can do

without a warrant,
because my property

doesn't have a presumption
of innocence.

Then after I'm arrested
by 17 agents

holding automatic weapons,
totally necessary

not at all meant
to intimidate me.

I'm given two days
to hire a lawyer

and appear in a courtroom on
the other side of the country.

If you're saying
that everything that happens

from the moment
you are arrested is designed

to persuade you to plead guilty,
you are correct.

So tell me all the ways
I can help

'cause I really feel
I owe it to them.

Oh, speaking of owing

the IRS put a tax lien
on the money they took from me.

Are you ki... Alright.
None of that matters.

Taking my money wasn't a tax

I also need
to give them my money.

- Or they will take it again.
- None of that matters.

- It needed to be said.
- Not really.

So, to be clear, you're not
interested in entering

a cooperation agreement
with the prosecutors?

If I had testimony that would
lead to the conviction

of a bad guy, no one would have

to coerce me into cooperating.

But I don't. I have dirt.
I have dish. I have gossip.

So my value to the prosecution

is exactly the same
as it is to Hollywood.

I'm here to ensure the
New York Post covers the trial.

I'm here to sell tickets.

Which is nonetheless
value to the prosecution.

So what we do
is leverage it to get

you a favorable sentencing
recommendation

or, better yet,
complete immunity. What?

Oh. Hey, honey.

- Hey, Stella.
- Hey.

Hey.

What does he have you doing now?

An essay on three poems

with what he believes
are a common theme.

Not an essay. Two paragraphs.

- Which three poems?
- Close, Rush and Walls.

Oh, I know those.
What's the common theme?

Things with one word titles.

Are you sure you're qualified
to be teaching poetry?

Hang on... And yes.

Anytime you wanna run away from
home, you can come live with me.

Then you'll discover
she doesn't have a home

and you'll come back to me.

This is good. Great.

Why don't you grab a snack
and start your homework

in one of the conference rooms?

Okay. See ya.

There's no law that says you
can't just hit him in the head.

There is a law that says that,
it's the first thing

I taught her to read.

Go.

My father used
to give us extra work.

Can I ask you a question?

You think I'm too hard on her?

I met a girl when I first moved
to L.A., she was 22.

Someone arranged through
a third party

to spend the weekend
with her in London.

You know what she got?

For a weekend? Five grand.

A bag. A Chanel bag she wanted.

Whatever you're doing
with Stella, double it.

Where's your father in all this?

You mean, physically?

He's in Colorado.

Your parents still together?

No.

You and your father close?

No.

Was he tough on you?

You know how many girls
at the Olympics

have demanding fathers?

- All of them?
- Well, that's right.

I was tough on him.

What do you mean?

Um...

I was a brat.

Fathers don't care.

- I'd start fights with him.
- Why?

You're lying!

Why would I
start fights with him?

Yeah.

I put you through grad school!

I raised the kids.

I did every... God, everything!

No.

No, you listen to me.

All you do is cheat on me,
and lie to me

and lie to the kids!

You lie to your wife
and you lie to your kids.

I don't know.

For the record, the law in 1955

that I'm accused of breaking it,
defines gambling as betting

on games of chance.

- Yes.
- Poker isn't a game of chance.

Roulette's a game of chance.

- Poker's a game of skill.
- Still, I me...

I'll tell them everything
they want to know about me.

About me.

That's it.

Remember Bad Brad Marion?

It turns out his $700,000,000
hedge fund

wasn't what you would
call... real.

It was a Ponzi scheme.

He'd been falsely reporting
profits for years.

He wasn't even registered
with the SEC.

With the money given to him
by friends and family

and players at the game,
he bought several

Malibu Beach Houses

an airplane hanger
full of cars

another one with an airplane,
and a life he wanted.

When he was arrested,
he had $740 in the bank.

Brad cooperated with the FBI
and gave them hours

of testimony
on a range of subjects.

Including how three years
earlier

he lost $5,200,000

in an underground
celebrity poker game

that was run by a girl
named Molly Bloom.

His story was that
I had induced him

to play in a high stakes game.

I just wanted to introduce you
to Brad Marion.

And that due to my enabling

he'd become a gambling addict.

...who made me
become a gambling addict.

Brad, this game might
not be for you.

Federal Bankruptcy lawyers

were brought in to recover
as much

of the boosted money
as they could.

I was sent a subpoena and flew
out to L.A. to be deposed.

Can you confirm
the names on the list

all played poker
with Brad Marion?

This list was provided
to you by Brad Marion?

I just need you
to confirm for the record

that your game included
but was not limited to...

I understand, what I'm trying
to get on the record is that

I'm not the one
who provided the list.

These names were provided
by Brad Marion.

So, under oath...

Yes. I can confirm
the list is accurate.

The L.A. players
and I were given a choice.

Testify against each other
in open court

or help make restitution to the
victims of Brad's Ponzi scheme.

I wrote the government
a check for $500,000 dollars.

And somewhere in an FBI field
office in New York

someone was pinning
my picture to a wall.

I was running six games a week

sometimes at two different
locations in a night.

And by this point,
I was addicted to drugs.

Adderall. Ambien. Xanax. Coke.

Alcohol, Valium,
Ativan, Trazadone.

Anything that could keep me up
for a few days

and knock me out
for a few hours.

But I wasn't just taking them
to stay awake anymore.

It was dark and friendless
where I was.

I felt like I was in a hole
so deep, I could go fracking.

It didn't feel like depression,
it felt more violent.

I was tired of living
in the frat house

I'd built for degenerates.

I was tired of the greed.

Mine, not theirs. Everybody's.

I was sick
of being high all the time.

I was sick
of living in the grey area.

I couldn't recognize myself

and what I recognized,
I couldn't stand.

After a game one night,
Douglas Downey surprised me

with a confession,
after opening

with another
detective story title.

Gut shot on the river.

- I want to say something.
- Okay.

- I want to say, um, something.
- Okay.

- I'm just gonna say...
- Cool.

Because there's a poem,
a famous, uh...

A poem about...

thoughts left unexpressed.

Two roads emerged
from the woods.

Do they explode?

I don't know.
Do you like poetry?

I did until a second ago.
I'm gonna call you...

I'm, I'm in love with you.

- This isn't happening.
- Plain and simple.

You're the woman
I've always dreamed of

and I've been dreaming...

Shh. Stop it.
Listen to me, Douglas.

I'm the woman all of you
have always dreamed of.

I'm the anti-wife.
I encourage your gambling.

I have drinks served
to you by models

who simultaneously
create the impression

that you're the kind of guy
who can score

a dime piece anytime you want.

It's nice for you in here.

Do you know who Circe was?

- Uh...
- Circe?

Used to play
in Teddy Chin's game?

Nope. Circe did not play
in Teddy's game.

She was the Greek goddess
of magic.

And she gave men feasts
with wine and honey

and then turned them into swine.

- Why?
- Fantastic question.

I would never do that to you.

Missed the point by miles,
but that's okay.

Oh.

Um, Molly.

Shelby and Winston
will close up.

I'll see you next week.

Here you go,
thanks a lot, Randy.

Thanks, Molly.

- Good morning.
- Morning, Pat.

Pat was my driver and security.

- Straight home?
- Yeah.

We didn't know
much more about each other

than we needed to know,
but I liked him.

We were friends.

I used to be
a competitive athlete.

I didn't know if you knew that.

What sport?

Skiing.

Freestyle.

Were you good?

I don't know.

- Hey, Molly.
- Pat asked me a favor.

He said there were a
couple of hedge fund guys

in New Jersey
who wanted to play

and he could score points
with them if he was able

to get them a meeting with me.

I said, "Sure," and set
the meeting

for 5 p.m. on a Thursday
at the Four Seasons Bar.

Knowing that if they were legit

they'd recognize someone
in the crowd at happy hour

at the Four Seasons right after
the closing bell.

It turns out I didn't
need to be that clever.

These weren't finance guys.

They were from the cast
of "Jersey Boys."

They looked around the bar
self-consciously.

They were out of their element.

And tough guys
try to look tougher

when they're insecure.

I had a good hunch
what they wanted

and I was gonna have
to shut down

this meeting quickly,
but without being rude

to Joey Bag-a-Donuts
and Secaucus Sal.

I'm Molly Bloom.
Nice to meet you.

- John G.
- And you are?

Paul.

How do we get a drink?

I don't remember
what the other guy ordered

but I'll never forget
what John G had.

He looked at the waiter
as if to say

that he could handle
himself just fine

among the Manhattan elite
and said...

I'll have an Appletini.

- Okay.
- So, how was your week?

My week? Uh, it was fine.
Thank you.

Pat said you guys might
be interested in a game?

We want to partner
with you.

- We've talked to Tutti, Will...
- Teddy Chin.

Teddy Chin.

We did a little work
with them too.

We can make
your life easier.

Nobody will fuck with you.

Nobody will stiff you.

I appreciate the offer,
but really, I'm fine.

I don't carry a big debt sheet.
I feel safe.

Ah-uh, you lied just then

when you said you don't carry
a big debt sheet.

You've got 2.8 million
on the street right now

right as we're sitting here.

We do our research.

That money should be
in your hands.

'Cause it's yours. It's yours.

And if you don't have it,
you got

to go into your pocket
to pay the wins.

Fellas, I'm sorry.

It's just a friendly game
with higher stakes.

It was really nice
to meet you though.

Let me know if there's ever
anything I can do for you.

I like to do favors.

They'll put your drinks
on my card.

There are some
gaps in my memory

which they say is common
when you've had

what's called, an event.

For instance, I don't remember
where I was

coming from when I walked
into my building.

Just that my doorman, Reggie,
said he had packages for me.

Ms. Bloom, I think
I got some things

for you in the package room.

- I'll bring them on up.
- Thanks.

It was the first
night of two weeks off

for Christmas and New Year's.

And my plan was to take a bath
and try not to take drugs.

Reggie came up
with my packages.

Ahh, I'm sorry,
you're in the wrong...

Wait! Okay, hold on a second,
I have...

Not a sound.

Do you hear me?

I have money. It's all cash.

- Where?
- S-safe.

Where is it?

- It's in the closet.
- Show me.

Put the money
and jewelry in a bag.

Gold bars too.

Come on.

Open your mouth.
Open your mouth.

It wasn't an offer they made.
It wasn't a suggestion.

This will be
your only reminder.

Your mother lives alone
in Telluride, Colorado. Right?

Right? Right, Molly?

She doesn't live there anymore.

Yes, she does.

I couldn't call a
doctor or go to an E.R.

They'd take one look at me
and call the police.

My eyes were swollen and black.

My lips were cut and bloody.

I couldn't feel my face.

Pat had set up the meeting

and he was how they knew
where I lived.

I stayed in my apartment
for two weeks

waiting for my face to heal...

and waiting for the phone call
I knew was coming.

But the call didn't come.

Where was the call from John G?

"So maybe you've had
a change of heart?"

After ten days, I opened my
front door for the first time.

People were coming back into
town after New Years in Cabo

and St. Bart's,
and South Beach.

My phone was blowing up with,
"When's the next game?"

But nothing from John G.

And then right there
on the front page

of the New York Times
from eight days ago...

nearly a 125 arrested
in sweeping mob roundup.

Those guys
were either laying low

or they were in custody.

Sometimes God happens fast.

My face had healed enough,
so that a little make-up

would cover the bruises
that were left.

I put together
a week of games.

One week of games to get
the 2.8 million I was owed

and then I was out, I was done.

One week of epic games.

I had some of my
London players in town

and the Russians had
visiting friends from Moscow.

Jesse and Shelby had already
started the game at the Plaza

and were reporting
heavy early action.

I was on my way
when the phone rang.

It was Douglas Downey.

I'm on my way, Doug.

Wait, Molly. Wait.

I'm hiding in the bathroom.

I just... I-I need you
to believe me, okay?

- I just...
- Whose bathroom?

I need you to believe me
because, uh...

Uh, at the suite, at the plaza.

Why are you hiding
in the bathroom?

I would never tell them
anything about you.

I said, "Guys,
you want me to go further

"you want me to go other
places, I'll do it.

"But nothing about Molly,
she can't be touched.

- Just the Russians."
- Okay, you're drunk.

And a little difficult
to understand

so I'll see you in a few minutes
when I get there.

I was, uh...

I was... uh...

I was cited
for securities fraud.

It was scrubbed from my record.

- That's why you don't know.
- Did you say Securities Fraud?

I would never help them
build a case against you

I would have never give them
anything against you

I'd commit perjury
before I did that.

It was such bullshit,
it was 2006.

If you'd had an arrest,
I would've known.

- It was bullshit!
- Doug.

I told them I'll go further

I'll go other places,
but not you.

I love you, I, I love...

Doug, listen, I-I need you to
pull it together for a second.

Did they scrub your record,
because you've been informing?

Should I...
Should I have told you?

That's a question that'll,
that'll haunt me for all my...

Why are you hiding
in the bathroom?

...for my days, Molly.

Always know that I was
trying to protect you.

Five blocks away,
the FBI had raided my game.

I fully expected the lobby
to be filled

with guys wearing windbreakers,
but it wasn't.

Ms. Bloom. Haven't
seen you for a while.

- Yeah.
- You need a cab?

I guess you never made it
upstairs with the packages.

Maybe I didn't tip you enough
before Christmas.

Then you got into
a cab, took the cab to JFK

and flew to your mother's house
in Denver.

Telluride.

My mother lives in Telluride.

- That was two years ago.
- Mm-hmm.

In a cab on the way
to the airport

I checked
my bank account balance.

There should've had a little
over four million dollars

but instead, it said the balance
was zero, and there was a note

telling me to contact
the Justice Department.

I just want to mention that she
also voluntarily checked herself

into 28-day rehab and has been
sober and clean for two years.

I don't care. Were the women
that worked for you call girls?

No, sir.

They never exchanged
sex for money?

No.

Have you ever exchanged
sex for money?

- No.
- I think he was talking to me.

I meant, no, she's not
answering that question.

- The purpose of this meeting...
- I know.

- Purpose of this meeting...
- We're off the record.

We're not off the record.

Do you see
a stenographer in here?

We're off the record in
as much as there is no record

but you're free to use
the information you're given

and we're not giving
the information for free.

I've been sitting at this table
for five hours

waiting for the opportunity
to implore you to do

the right thing while begging my
client for the last three weeks

to act in her own
best interest.

Neither of those things
should be hard.

The purpose of this meeting
is for you to meet Molly Bloom

and discover, as I have,
that she's not the person

the press has invented.

She's not under
Federal indictment

for getting bad press, Charlie

and the purpose of the meeting,
for me is to discover

if your client is willing to
cooperate with the government

in putting away
some bad people.

No.

You're not willing to cooperate?

Uh, no, I never traded
sex for money.

I'm still not sure if there's
a record but if there is

I want it to be certain
that was in it.

It appears to me throughout
your career as a game runner

you were extremely diligent
about vetting players.

I was.

But you let four guys
play in the game

without knowing
they were connected?

Yeah, plus an FBI informant,
it's embarrassing.

I was high
at the end and...

doing my job badly.

I'll also add that in my limited
experience with the Russian mob

they don't immediately
present themselves as mobsters.

My experience with the Italian
mob on the other hand...

Help us.

I don't know anything
that can help you.

- Yes. Yes, you do.
- And if I did...

You can provide color.
You can paint a picture.

You can tell us Druzhinsky
wore a $100,000

Patek Philippe
and even drove a Phantom.

You can tell us Illya Gershen
showed up

with a quarter million dollars
cash in a backpack and you can

tell us how much action Shelly
was taking on a sports bet.

No one was allowed to place
sports bets inside the room.

They would have to go outside.

So I had no idea how much

anyone was taking or laying.

So now you're saying
you knew they were making

and taking sports bets.

That's the point of them
going outside.

They could have been calling
their mother for all I knew.

- Molly?
- Yes, sir.

I don't believe you.

In Mike Davidoff's phone
intercepts alone

just Davidoff, your
name comes up 19 times.

We need Molly... Get
Molly... Bring Molly...

It strongly suggests
that you were important

to his business, so it's hard
for me to believe

that someone with your savvy
and obvious intellect...

Talking about the drug...

Get Molly... Bring Molly...
We need Molly...

It's... They're talking
about the drug ecstasy.

Shit. My office is next to yours
for two years

and I've seen you make
some bone-headed moves

but I've never seen
any prosecutor

step in it
the way you just did.

You should thank
all of the Gods that

there is no physical evidence
of that exchange.

- Hey, look.
- No, you look.

Weren't you going to implore me
to do the right thing?

This woman does not belong
in a RICO indictment.

Are you out of your minds?

She does not belong
in a mob indictment.

She raked a game, that's it,
for seven months, two years ago.

And why? Because she was giving
credit in the millions

and she didn't want to use
muscle to collect.

She has had opportunity after
opportunity to greatly benefit

herself by just telling
the real stories that she knows.

Okay? I have the forensic
imaging going back to 2007.

And I'm talking
about text messages, emails

movie stars, rock stars,
athletes, billionaires

all explicit,
some married with kids

and that's just
the tip of the iceberg.

What about the guy
that comes this close

to being the U.S. Ambassador
to Monaco?

He's withdrawn from
consideration at the last minute

no one knows why, she does.

CEOs with college-aged
mistresses

an SVP of an investment bank

who wanted Molly to put
a marked deck in a game.

The head of a movie studio
that texted her that

a particular movie star was too
black for his liking, I mean...

J. Edgar Hoover didn't
have this much shit on Bobby!

You know, she could
have written a best seller

and been set for life.

Easy, she's got the, she's got
the winning lottery ticket

and she won't cash it.

Your office took every dollar
she has in a constitutionally

fucked up seizure
and then put the IRS on her

to tax what you seized,
I mean...

I've been in those
strategy meetings.

You-you broke her back
so she couldn't possibly

afford to defend herself.

And now she has an opportunity
to guarantee her freedom

by "providing color,"
and she still won't do it.

This woman does not belong
in a RICO indictment

she belongs
on a box of Wheaties!

So, yes, Harrison,
I am imploring you

to do the right thing.

She knows nothing
about the three Petes

nothing about Ragnyada, nothing
about RGO or insurance fraud.

Between the two of us, we've
appeared in front of this judge

28 times as prosecutors
and not once

has he deviated from
our sentencing recommendations

he's not gonna start now.

I know you've been putting this
bust together for three years

and there's no one who doesn't
want to see mobsters go to jail

including and especially
the one person in the room

who's had one of them
put a gun in her mouth.

Probation, community service,
or better yet

just consider that all she did

was run a poker game
exactly the same way

every casino in America does
and drop the God damn charges!

Anything else
you'd like to add?

No.

There's nothing else
she'd like to add.

Uh, I'd like to talk
to Charlie in private

if that'd be okay with you?

Yeah.

Why don't you just grab
some dinner for an hour

and meet me back at the office?

Huh? I'm sorry?

Did you want a hot dog?

I'll have a pretzel, please.

Here you go.

Hi. I would like to rent
a pair of skates, size 7.

But I don't have any money.

These are $800 dollar leather
Chanel gloves, I'll trade you.

$800 dollar gloves?

And they keep hands just
as warm as the $10 dollar kind.

- Miss, are you alright?
- I'm fine.

I'm divesting.

♪ These dreams go on ♪

♪ When I close my eyes ♪

♪ Every second of the night ♪

♪ And you become alive ♪

♪ These dreams asleep ♪

♪ Every moment I'm awake ♪♪

- Hey, look out.
- Careful.

Hey, slow down.

Hey, miss, slow down.

Catch me.

Come on, catch me.

Hey, slow down!

- Bend your knee.
- Dad?

- Ah! Ah.
- Oh.

You alright?

- Sorry about that.
- I got you.

Sorry.

Takin' you off the ice
right now.

How's it goin'?

What're you doing in New York?

And how'd you know
I was at the skating rink?

- I'm a doctor of the mind.
- Well, dad...

I'm here in New York,
because that's where you are.

I called your mom at the hotel
and she said you were here.

Listen, it's not a big deal,
but from what I saw out there

I think you're having
a small breakdown.

That's weird,
I can't think of why.

Probably because of the arrest
and not knowing

what's going to happen next.

Old man, do you really
not recognize sarcasm?

Do you?

Here, drink this.

I'm an alcoholic, I can't drink,
but thanks for remembering.

It's hot chocolate.

Okay.

And for diagnostic purposes

do you think that we're on
a cocktail lounge right now?

Seeing waiters
with trays of champagne?

Wanna check your pulse.

- Have you found a pulse?
- Yeah.

Just admiring my watch.

I can see you're getting
warmed up, but I really

don't have the emotional
bandwidth to defend

my "as usual
irresponsible behavior."

I know, I got your email.

I get that I'm not
welcome in your life right now.

As your father though,
you should know

I could give a shit
if I'm welcome or not.

But I'm not here in my capacity
as your father.

I'm indifferent to whether
your father lives or dies.

I'm a very expensive therapist
and I'm here to give you

one free session.

You think what I need
right now is a therapist?

Ha-ha-ha. Yeah.

I have to be back
in my lawyer's office soon.

Do you like your lawyer?

I wasn't asking for money
when I called you, dad.

I just needed my dad.

God forbid you part
with a nickel.

Yeah, Tiny Tim, you grew up
on a lake and you've skied

all over the world,
were those work houses tough?

- I gotta go.
- Molly.

- I gotta go.
- Molly, sit the fuck down.

Alright, we're gonna do
three years of therapy

in three minutes.

How?

I'm gonna do what patients
have been begging

therapists to do
for a hundred years.

I'm just gonna give you
the answers.

- To what?
- Well, let's start with this.

Why does a young woman,
who, at 22

has a gold-plated resume,
why does she run poker games?

Why did I choose
to make a ton of money?

That's a head scratcher.

You were gonna be a success
at anything you wanted.

You know it. If you'd gone
to law school, you'd have...

You'd have owned
the law firm by now.

Why did you do
the other thing instead?

I don't know.

Drugs.

You didn't start with the drugs
until the end.

They weren't the problem,
they were the medicine.

It was so you could
control powerful men.

Your addiction was
having power over powerful men.

- Is that what you really think?
- No.

I know it for sure.

You've now completed
your first year of therapy.

I saw an opportunity,
it wasn't about you.

Nah, it wasn't just about me.

- It wasn't at all about you.
- It was.

Second year, second question.

Do you think
you were a good husband?

What do you care?

I care because you were married
to my mother.

I care because
my father's an asshole.

Congratulations.

You've completed year two.

And for the record,
your father raised three kids

on a college professor's salary.

One of them
is a two-time Olympian

a sixth round draft pick
of the Philadelphia Eagles

and a leading philanthropist.

The other is a cardiothoracic
surgeon at Mass General

and the third managed to build
a multi million dollar business

using not much more
than her wits.

I'm about to plead guilty
in Federal Court.

Well, nobody's perfect.

The point is I did
a few things right.

Last question.

No. I've to go.

Last question, Mol. I'll answer
it, but you have to ask it.

You have... to ask it.

Why didn't you like me
as much as my brothers?

There it is.

I did.

It only from time to time
appeared that I didn't.

It only appeared
that you didn't?

Yeah.

That is some
Schedule 1 bullshit.

Why would...
"It only appeared..." What?

What? O-okay,
I had an attitude problem.

I talked back, I...

broke some normal
adolescent rules.

I snuck phone time after curfew

I took your car
when I wasn't allowed to.

You drove it into a McDonalds.

And kids get punished for that
but they don't...

Did you not see the McDonalds?

I mean, did you misunderstand
what drive-thru meant?

You'd turn into a different
person, your voice, your face...

It's because
I knew you knew.

I didn't hear what you said.

I said...

"I knew you knew."

You knew I knew what?

What do you, uh, think about

the following concepts?

Just going to run them
by you. Marriage?

It is a trap.

That I was cheating on mom.

I knew you knew.

- Society?
- It is a joke.

No. I didn't know
unt-until I was 20.

- People?
- I don't trust people.

No, you'd known
since you were five.

You saw me in my car and you
really didn't know what you saw.

I don't have any heroes.

You knew, honey, and I knew
you knew. And that's...

That's how I reacted
to the shame.

And you reacted by showing...

seething contempt for me.

By driving my car
into McDonalds.

Wanting to have power over
powerful men?

No.

That was a red-herring
just to make you mad.

- You're such...
- You tripped over a stick.

Okay? Twelve years ago,
you tripped over a stick.

It was a one in a million thing.
You tripped over a stick.

That's what you did wrong.

There's your session.

It's funny how much faster
you can go

when you're not charging
by the hour.

I'm your father.

Trying to comprehend
how much I love you

would be like trying
to visualize the size

of the universe.

I didn't know...

you'd got beaten up
until I read it in your book.

It was a hell of a way
to learn about it.

You should know
that I'm hirin' someone

to find the guy who did it.

Then, I'm hirin'
someone to kill him.

Don't even joke about that.

I'm not.

It wasn't a purse snatcher, dad.
It was the mafia...

I don't care
if it's the leader of Hamas.

Someone put their hands
on you, they're gonna suffer.

- Dad, I'm fine.
- No, they're gonna suffer.

Dad...

- I'm, I'm alright.
- No.

They're gonna suffer.

Really, I'm fine.

- Did you know that...
- Oh!

I didn't see you.

Did you know that we know
what the center

of our galaxy smells like?

It smells like
rum and raspberries.

The center of the galaxy
is ethyl formate

which is the same gas
that gives rum its smell.

And raspberries their taste.

Why do you know these things?

To stay busy during games,
I surfed the internet.

Then I started
taking online courses.

I'm 12 credits away
from a degree in Astronomy

I didn't even know
I was enrolled.

Hey.

I wanna thank you
for what you said tonight.

It was Stella...

who asked me to be your lawyer.

She read the book.

I accused her
of reading trash.

But she defended
the book impressively.

And then defended you.

You're her role model.

I'm good with that.

There's a new offer
on the table.

What is it?

We hand over the hard drives.

I don't get it.

We hand over
the forensic imaging

of the emails and texts
in exchange for...

Exchange for, what could they
possibly offer me to do that?

I wrote it all down.
It's, um...

Your money back.

They'll give you all your money
back, plus interest.

It's over five million dollars.

Is that why they took it
in the first place?

So they could offer it
back to me?

Yeah. For what it's worth

if we went to trial,
you'd have to hand over

the forensic imaging
and the discoveries.

But that's different than
voluntarily handing it over...

Sure, but it's not really
voluntary anymore

when the alternative
is prison.

And that's what they're going
to recommend, 42 months.

Why do you keep breaking
eye contact with me?

I-I'm looking right at you.

You think I should do it.

You gotta let me keep
you out of prison.

You've seen
what's on those hard drives.

Yeah. Yeah.

It's a lot more
than a little color.

Yeah, but complete immunity.

Alright?
You get all your money back.

You'd be the first defendant
to walk out of a courtroom

better off
than when you walked in.

Careers will be ruined.

Families, wives, lives on both...

Hey, you know,
w-when a rich goes to jail

he spreads his money around,
his-his lawyer knows

how to take care of that.

He spreads his money around.
You don't have any.

The composition of female
inmates in a federal prison.

They did not commit
financial crimes.

They're drug dealers.
They get raped by prison guards.

Y-you will... You...

You will not be anonymous,
Molly.

You will be a target!

Children will read
their father's text messages

saying he wished
he'd never had kids.

- These guys...
- These guys, where are they?

Why're you in this alone?
Where are your friends?

Where is the one guy saying,
"Hey, you know, Molly

"I know you're doing everything
to save my life.

What can I do for you?
Let me buy you a sandwich."

Where are they, Molly?
You kept their secrets.

Where are the people
you're protecting by not telling

the whole story in the book?

By settling
the Brad Marion suit.

By not taking
five million dollars

of your own money,
by going to jail!

Where did everybody go?

It's not their names
I'm protecting, Charlie.

- It's mine.
- Oh, that's great.

Well, we don't have
the luxury of integrity.

- You have to take the deal.
- No.

You stay out of jail,
you get your money back.

You pay your debts.

- You start a new life!
- No.

Is this self-imposed punishment

for namin' four guys
in a book?

- It's not.
- You didn't do anything wrong.

I threw four people under
the bus for $35,000, Charlie.

I noticed you kept that out of
your speech to the prosecutor...

No, don't do that to me.

I took advantage
of gambling addicts.

Donnie Silverman,
my brilliant find.

He lost six million dollars
on my table...

- Molly, stop. Stop. Uh-huh.
- Moved to Florida.

Got a job as a substitute
teacher, then hanged himself.

- In his shower.
- Oh! And that's your fault.

- That's not your fault!
- Donnie Silverman's dead!

Harlan Eustice is in jail
in Nevada wishing he was.

But that's not why
I'm saying no.

You're not saying no.

I was named
after my great grandmother.

- I don't care, you stay here...
- Molly Dubin Bloom...

- ...all night, you understand?
- ...is my name.

Until you understand nobody
gives a shit

about your good name.

- I do!
- Why?

- Because...
- Why?

- Because...
- Tell me why!

Because it's all I have left.

Because it's my name.

And I'll never have another.

Now, you read "The Crucible!"

Yeah. Everyone's right.
It's great.

It is great.

I want to go
into that courtroom...

and plead guilty.

No deals. No trades.

And you're very sure?

Yes.

All rise.

The business
of the court began.

We stood for the honorable
judge Dustin Foxman.

And counsel entered
their names for the record.

Assistant U.S. Attorney
Harrison Wellstone

for the Southern District
of New York...

- The docket was called.
- Docket number 1009...

And some pro forma
instructions were given to counsel.

And I was asked a series
of questions

from a script
the judge had in front of him.

Molly Dubin Bloom.

How old are you?

Have you taken any drugs?

Medicine or pills, or had any

alcoholic beverages
in the past 48 hours?

Sudafed.

Is there anything about
the reasons

for you taking Sudafed

that would interfere
with what's going on...

87 questions
he was required to ask

before he'd permit me
to plead guilty.

Is your mind
clear today, Ms. Bloom?

- It is.
- Do you understand...

- What's going on here today?
- I do.

Under the constitution and laws

of the United States,
you have a right

to plead to the charges
in the indictment.

- Do you understand that?
- Yes, Your Honor.

- And do you understand that?
- Yes, sir.

At that trial,
you would be presumed to be

innocent and would not have
to prove that you were innocent.

- Do you understand that?
- Yes, sir.

Yes, Your Honor.

Yes, sir.

If you plead guilty

and I accept your plea

you will give up
your right to appeal

along with all other rights
I've enumerated.

- Do you understand?
- Yes, sir.

Do you understand
that you are charged

in count 20 with operating
an illegal gambling business

in violation of Title 18
United States

Code Sections 1-9-5-5 and 2?

Yes, I understand.

Understanding everything
you've been told

do you now wish
to enter a plea?

- Yes, sir.
- How do you plead to the charge?

Guilty, Your Honor.

Your plea has been so recorded.

And you may take your seat.

Before we move
to the sentencing phase

I would like a word
with counsel, please.

And then, something happened.

Pardon me, Mr. Jaffey,
just government counsel.

Yes, sir.

What's going on?

What are they doing?

- Wait for it.
- What?

Will the defendant please rise
for sentencing?

Based on all available
information

this court manifestly disagrees

with the government's
sentencing recommendation.

This courthouse
is located within

spitting distance
of Wall Street.

I know this
from my personal experience

trying to spit at it.

The men and women
who work there will commit

more serious crimes
by lunchtime today

than the defendant has committed
in this indictment.

I simply don't see how
either the people or the cause

of justice are served
by locking Molly Boom in prison.

It was as casual as if he
was ordering lunch off a menu.

Ms. Bloom,
this court sentences you

to 200 hours
of community service.

One year
of supervised probation.

Drug testing
and a $200,000 fine.

This case is adjourned.

And that was that.

There was crying and hugging.

Jokes from my brothers.

Tough talk about how no one
messes with the Blooms.

And level-headed talk
about Christmas miracles.

Steaks and beer
bought by my father

and full reenactments.

And in the middle of it all

as grateful as you are

the reality starts creeping
toward you like the tide.

And that's the first time
you have the thought.

What do I do know?

We've got a racer down!

We need a toboggan
and a back board!

I'm a felon,
I'm 35 years old

unemployed, and pled guilty
in a mob indictment.

Make way, people!
Make way!

Patrol here, move away!
Move away!

I owe the government
close to $2,000,000

in taxes assessed
on the civil forfeiture.

Plus, a $200,000 fine.

And you better believe
they're gonna come get it.

Clear a path!
Move back please!

I have a quarter of a million
dollars in legal bills.

I don't know what I'd say
in a job interview.

Or if I'll ever be given
a job interview.

I'll never be allowed
to vote again.

I'm going to
need a set of vitals.

And for some
reason, I'm not allowed

to go to Canada.

Molly, can you hear us?

Hips are stable.
Pelvis is stable.

Yeah.

- Her dad's here.
- What's her LOA?

- Uh, she's comin' around now.
- Open your eyes...

- If you can hear us.
- Okay, she's conscious.

- Molly, what day is it?
- You need to stay down, okay?

You need to go to a hospital.

What day?

- Dad, I'm fine.
- Trust you not to move, Molly.

- Let go of my arm.
- You trying to get up, hon?

- Yeah.
- She wants to get up.

Our cameras
can't get in there

so we don't know...

I wonder if
Tracy's got an update

for us on the ground.

- She's moving.
- She's moving.

- You sure you're good?
- Yeah.

Okay, here we go.

We can see that she's
being helped to her feet now.

Molly Bloom is of course,
the sister of Jeremy Bloom

who holds the world's
number one ranking.

That's her long time coach
there, Ted Keene

and her father.

She came back from an injury
when she was just 13.

You know, you have to wonder
about the psychological toll

coming that close,
only to lose it like that.

Did anything good come of this?

Not really.

But I learned
something encouraging.

I'm very hard to kill.

You and I both know
people who've never gotten over it.

I don't know if the
young woman we've just seen is

is one of those people,
we may not see her ski

competitively again, but I
think we're gonna see her.

Winston Churchill
defined success

as "The ability to move
from failure to failure

with no loss of enthusiasm."

So, I guess I'm pot-committed.

She'll be back.

Alright, up next at the gate

is Whitney Summerhill

who's currently
in 12th place after...