Cut Numbers

Last updated
Cut Numbers
Cut Numbers.jpg
Author Nick Tosches
Country United States
Language English
Genre Novel
Publisher Harmony (USA)
Publication date
June 15, 1988 (USA)
Media typePrint (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages233 pp (hardback first edition)
ISBN 0-517-56870-5
813/.54 19
LC Class PS3570.O74 C88 1988

Cut Numbers is the first novel by Nick Tosches. [1] [2] It involves small-time criminals struggling to maintain the financial viability of their cut numbers game after the implementation of the New York Lottery. They establish an elaborate scheme to fix the legitimate state lottery. The main character is Louie Brunellesches, who also appears in Tosches' novel In the Hand of Dante .

Nicholas P. Tosches was an American journalist, novelist, biographer, and poet. His 1982 biography of Jerry Lee Lewis, Hellfire, was praised by Rolling Stone magazine as "the best rock and roll biography ever written."

The numbers game, also known as the numbers racket, the Italian lottery, or the daily number, is a form of illegal gambling or illegal lottery played mostly in poor and working class neighborhoods in the United States, wherein a bettor attempts to pick three digits to match those that will be randomly drawn the following day. For many years the "number" has been the last three digits of "the handle", the amount race track bettors placed on race day at a major racetrack, published in racing journals and major newspapers in New York.

New York Lottery organization

The New York Lottery began in 1967 as the third modern U.S. lottery, after Puerto Rico's began in 1934, and New Hampshire's in 1964. As part of the New York State Gaming Commission, it provides revenue for public education and is based in Schenectady.

See also

<i>Lucky Numbers</i> 2000 film by Nora Ephron

Lucky Numbers is a 2000 comedy film directed by Nora Ephron. The screenplay by Adam Resnick was inspired by the 1980 Pennsylvania Lottery scandal. It is the only film Ephron directed without also writing the screenplay.

Nora Ephron American film director and writer

Nora Ephron was an American journalist, writer, and filmmaker. She is best known for her romantic comedy films and was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Writing: for Silkwood (1983), When Harry Met Sally... (1989), and Sleepless in Seattle (1993). She won a BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay for When Harry Met Sally.... She sometimes wrote with her sister Delia Ephron. Her last film was Julie & Julia (2009). Her first produced play, Imaginary Friends (2002), was honored as one of the ten best plays of the 2002–03 New York theatre season. She also co-authored the Drama Desk Award–winning theatrical production Love, Loss, and What I Wore. In 2013, Ephron received a posthumous Tony Award nomination for Best Play for Lucky Guy.

John Travolta American actor, dancer and singer

John Joseph Travolta is an American singer, actor, and dancer. Travolta rose to fame during the 1970s, appearing on the television series Welcome Back, Kotter (1975–79) and starring in the box office successes Saturday Night Fever (1977) and Grease (1978). His acting career declined through the 1980s, but enjoyed a resurgence in the 1990s with his role in Pulp Fiction (1994), and he has since starred in films such as Get Shorty (1995), Broken Arrow (1996), Face/Off (1997), Swordfish (2001), Be Cool (2005), Wild Hogs (2007), Hairspray (2007), Bolt (2008), and The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009).

Related Research Articles

Shirley Jackson novelist, short story writer

Shirley Hardie Jackson was an American writer, known primarily for her works of horror and mystery. Over the duration of her writing career, which spanned over two decades, she composed six novels, two memoirs, and more than 200 short stories.

In the United States, lotteries are run by 48 jurisdictions: 45 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Powerball is an American lottery game offered by 44 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It is coordinated by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL), a nonprofit organization formed by an agreement with US lotteries. Powerball's minimum advertised jackpot is $40 million (annuity); Powerball's annuity is paid in 30 graduated installments or winners may choose a lump sum payment instead. One lump sum payment will be less than the total of the 30 annual payments because of the time value of money and also because one check for a much larger sum will be taxed at a greater rate than 30 checks each at a much lower sum will be taxed.

Florida Lottery organization

The Florida Lottery is a government-run organization in the state of Florida, United States. With numerous on-line and scratch-off games available, players have a wide variety of prize levels to choose from. Since it began, the Florida Lottery has continued to add variety to its portfolio of games. The Lottery has experimented with higher price points, enhanced traditional games, and introduced seasonal promotional games. In 2012, Florida was the third-ranked state in yearly lottery revenue with $4.45 billion; revenue passed $5 billion in fiscal year 2013. Florida passed the legislation to enact the lottery in 1986 by a two to one ratio. The new lottery was spearheaded by Governor Bob Martinez and the Florida legislature with the mission of maximizing revenues for the enhancement of public education in Florida. The lottery was founded on the basis that it would provide the people of Florida the opportunity to benefit from additional revenues while providing the highest quality games available. The lottery's first game, MILLIONAIRE was a $1 scratch-off that was immensely popular. Within 17 days, the scratch-off game had paid back the entire $15.5 million to the state's general fund. Florida currently offers 10 terminal-generated games: Cash4Life, Mega Millions, Powerball, Florida Lotto, Pick 2, Pick 3, Pick 4, Pick 5, Fantasy 5, and Jackpot Triple Play.

Pennsylvania Lottery Lottery run by Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Lottery is operated by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Lottery was created by the Pennsylvania General Assembly on August 26, 1971; two months later, Henry Kaplan was appointed as its first executive director. The Pennsylvania Lottery sold its first tickets on March 7, 1972 and drew its first numbers on March 15, 1972.

EuroMillions transnational lottery

EuroMillions is a transnational lottery that requires seven correct numbers to win the jackpot. It was launched on 7 February 2004 by France's Française des Jeux, Spain's Loterías y Apuestas del Estado and the United Kingdom's Camelot. The first draw was held on 13 February 2004 in Paris. Initially, only the UK, France and Spain participated, with the Austrian, Belgian, Irish, Luxembourgish, Portuguese and Swiss lotteries joining for the 8 October 2004 draw.

<i>Solar Lottery</i> novel by Philip K. Dick

Solar Lottery is a 1955 science fiction novel by American writer Philip K. Dick. It was his first published novel and contains many of the themes present in his later work. It was also published in altered form in the UK as World of Chance. The main story is about a man named Ted Benteley who lives in a strange world, dominated by percentages and the lottery. Lotteries are used to choose the next leader as well as a new assassin, whose job is to try to kill the leader or "Quizmaster". Everybody in society has the opportunity to be selected as a leader or an assassin. Benteley unexpectedly gets chosen to be a member of the committee trying to assassinate the new Quizmaster and he must decide what he is going to do.

The Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) is an American non-profit, government-benefit association owned and operated by agreement of its 34-member lotteries. MUSL was created to facilitate the operation of multi-jurisdictional lottery games, most notably Powerball.

Idaho Lottery organization

The Idaho Lottery began play on July 19, 1989, and is run by the government of the state of Idaho. It is a member of the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL). Fifty percent of all net funds is given to public schools, while the remainder is pledged to the Permanent Building Fund, which is used as a financial resource for the state's colleges and universities.

Tennessee Lottery

The Tennessee Lottery is run by the Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation (TELC), which was created on June 11, 2003 by the Tennessee General Assembly. TELC derives its legal authority from the Tennessee Education Lottery Implementation Law, which the General Assembly passed in accordance with a November 2002 amendment to the state constitution establishing the lottery and approved by 58 percent of the voters.

Texas Lottery

The Texas Lottery is the government-operated lottery available throughout Texas. It is operated by the Texas Lottery Commission, headquartered in downtown Austin, Texas.

The Hoosier Lottery is the official state lottery of Indiana, and is the only US lottery that uses the state's nickname as its official name. It is a member of the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL). The Hoosier Lottery sells scratch-off tickets; its draw games include Mega Millions, Hoosier Lotto, Powerball, Cash 5, and Poker Lotto.

The Illinois State Lottery is an American lottery for the U.S. state of Illinois, operated by Camelot Illinois.

National Lottery (United Kingdom) national lottery in the United Kingdom

The National Lottery is the state-franchised national lottery in the United Kingdom.

<i>Castle</i> (TV series) American police procedural comedy-drama television series (2009-2016)

Castle is an American crime-comedy-drama television series, which aired on ABC for a total of eight seasons from March 9, 2009, to May 16, 2016. The series was produced jointly by Beacon Pictures and ABC Studios.

<i>In the Hand of Dante</i> book by Nick Tosches

In the Hand of Dante is the third novel by Nick Tosches.

Steven P. Tosches is an American former college football coach. He was the head coach at Princeton University from 1987 to 1999. Tosches had previously served as an assistant on the coaching staffs at Princeton, the University of Maine, and the University of Rhode Island. He played college football as a quarterback at Idaho State and Rhode Island.

Thai lottery

Thailand's official national lottery is administered by The Government Lottery Office (GLO). The lottery is drawn on the first and the sixteenth of every month. It is one of only two forms of legalised gambling permitted in Thailand, the other being horse racing in Bangkok.

References

  1. Probst, Bethami (October 16, 1988). "Loan Shark Blues". The New York Times . Retrieved November 9, 2009.
  2. Dretzka, Gary (July 31, 1988). "Two Perfectly Seedy Setups for Novels of Urban Crime". Chicago Tribune . Retrieved November 9, 2009.