WebWhile the vast majority of carnival workers are responsible and helpful, a few have been caught engaging in criminal activity. There were hundreds of victims. As for the coworkers I got along with, I never asked them about their criminal background, so I couldnt tell you. Thomas did not get the opportunity to measure the elliptical rims as hoped. To view the full story in, NBC producer Sandra Thomass Today show and Dateline features used several hidden cameras at NAMEs carnivals in June, 2012, and were able to capture on film and describe the agents cheating deadening ball maneuver during both NBC 2012, narrated by NBCs national correspondent Jeff Rossen, entitled , Are carnival games cheating you - and your kids? She was clearly astonished and interested in securing this elliptical type of rim for a demonstration during her Today feature. While planning for a San Antonio, Texas, state fair, Wade Shows carnival owner Frank Zaitshik stated that it costs him $100,000 to hire off-duty police officers. Some of the cash generated from Franks games should easily cover the overtime pay for carny-cops and perhaps some gratuity items such as free corn-dogs and Winnie the Pooh bears. Work until your rides set-up, which can take up to ten hours of ass busting dangerous work. Several scout-cars responded and one bully-type sergeant threatened to arrest me. Risky Rides: Carnival Workers' Grueling Hours May Threaten Safety. Furthermore, Lovett was convicted on two charges of extortion and two more charges of making false statements to the FBI. So, they either rent or default on thier sub-prime mortgage. Nix and later Halat were both convicted in the conspiracy that led to the judges death. Lists about the strange, fascinating, and horrifying history of circuses and carnivals in America and around the world. Are the officers who wear NAME shirts really policing officers or just bouncers with the job of protecting games and ridding the midway of sore losers?. The assailants who were masked and armed ambushed the camp and used chains and padlocks to restrain their victims. I pay 10-to-1!. I was just a kid, so I dont know what all kinds of things he did, but I do know he had a few brushes with the law. Instead, the Dixie Mafia was a rag-tag band of crooks who were willing to do just about any crime if there was money involved. It's definitely not the mall parking lot show that most think of when you hear "carnival." Halat was released from prison in 2012, while Nix continues serving a life sentence. They were doing anything and everything illegal down here, said retired FBI Special Agent Keith Bell, who grew up on the Gulf Coast and worked on cases linked to the Dixie Mafia. Pete Halat, Kirksey McCord Nixs former lawyer who once served as the mayor of Biloxi. I had alienated some ranking officers because I thought my job in law enforcement was to protect festivalgoers and to crack down on the crooks. But maybe theyre not all completely bad, huh? Carny life is not an easy one. Rossen Reports: Are carnival games cheating you-and your kids?" The carnival marketing target demographic currently ischildren, thereby creating a predictable and dependable source of income, as opposed to the time-tested art of cleaning out the occasional high-dollar Razzle-type mark by which there is always the chance of generating trouble via player beefs. He has since risen to the pinnacle of the carnival world with his rigged games, his cash, his protectors, and his friends in high places. Carnival life is its own world, detached from mainstream lifestyles. The ball crazily bounces and rolls until it comes to rest on one of the 96 holes. I hope I have answered it for you. But did the Dixie Mafias grip on the American South really end in the 1990s? Gaffed and chance-based games travel to thousands of carnival lots and fairs each year, raking in billions of dollars in ill-gotten gains with virtual impunity. Most a are White, with 66.4% of Carnival Workers belonging to this ethnicity. Watch Gummo. ", In this CBS News Online, July 12, 2011, video. It took the media to address the tubs crimes and not police in the three tub cases cited. NAME actually had company shirts available for their carny-cops, stating SECURITY., While working the security detail on that NAME midway, are the Joliet cops supposed to protect and serve carnival-goers, or just the carnies? I had observed the tub agent cheating the youngster with a deep-rooted bait-and-switch, shenanigan, called the deadening-ball trick, a slick maneuver to covertly conceal a gaff ball at the bottom of the angled tub prior to his demonstration. FacebookKirksey McCord Nix Jr., one of the notorious leaders of the Dixie Mafia. In reach of the big payoff at 95 yards but broke, the mark is encouraged by the slick talking flatty to go to the automatic teller machine (ATM) and return with more money stating: You need just a few more yards to win a thousand dollars for each hundred you invested. As for my petty crime, I smoked a lot of pot. Do a little googling on carnies and carnival workers and youll find thats a common assessment. A 9-day North Carolina State Fair has grossed $9 million for the state. Civilized folks are always suspicious of transients, and it goes back a lot further than Gypsies. Young teens are the now the focus at carnival festivals. Many have no address, pay no taxes, and are otherwise isolated from everyday society. As for the OP, I second WhyNot. It was a clear case of arson, and five people from Marlborough were duly convicted of the crime. "Some of them, you wonder why they are not in jail," Radowicz said. But at least half the time, itd backfire, and Id have guys my grandpas age trying to convince me that since I said anything in the truck, and I was standing in the truck, that meant when they won I was gonna give them the night of their life. To create insurance-like policies, carnival magnates often contribute to political campaigns of U.S. congressmen, senators, governors, and local politicians for a couple of reasons: in case they are interested in a state fair, county, or municipal contract and wish to develop clout; and in case carny-owners need friends in government to bail them out of trouble after a dishonest carny runs into a police officer who just wants to do his or her job. This game is not only fraudulent, (deception for money), it is much worse when adults steal from young kids. Its not a gig where they ask too many questions about your personal or employment history or your plans for the future. Here is the story of Edgar Allen Gregory Jr., who in 1993, was captured on film during a Dateline NBC hidden camera investigation for operating a racket-show while displaying several big-dollar-fraudulent gambling games on his mobile carnival midway at the North Tennessee State Fair. The FBI and game enforcement experts are available to present seminars to police departments. Youll also find quite a few references to various arrests, some of which are for rape and murder. There was no chance they would win at some of the games, said Keteyian. East coast or west? No roots, no stability. Carnivals/fairs are a lot of hard work. CBS News exposed a carnival company which was cheating soldiers and their families out of money at the 2011 Fourth of July Freedom Fest at Fort Hood, Texas, the largest military base in the country. LITTLE ROCK, Ark. Not one ball went through any of the 12 stingy rims. I remember a lot of late nights when my mom would come home to our trailer late after the fairgrounds had closed. But by the early 1990s, the syndicate had largely collapsed. It becomes very cliquey. Carny, also spelled carnie, is an informal term used in North America for a traveling carnival employee, and the language they use, particularly when the employee operates a game ("joint"), food stand ("grab", "popper" or "floss wagon"), or ride ("ride jock") at a carnival. Im not a betting man, but I am willing to lay heavy odds that federal law enforcement will make carnival racketeering a higher priority once they acknowledge all the components. Our excitement over cotton candy and carnival rides easily matches that of our kids. Their goal was to cover all aspects of true crime: Read More, Contents Copyright 1998-2020 by Crime Magazine | J. Patrick O'Connor Editor | E-mail CrimeMagazine.com, Designed by Orman. Furthermore, Lovett was convicted on two charges of extortion and two more charges of making false statements to the FBI. Pop two balloons and get your pick of any prize! [2] The word carnival, originally meaning a "time of merrymaking before Lent" and referring to a time denoted by lawlessness (often ritualised under a lord of misrule figure and intended to show the consequences of social chaos), came into use around 1549. The old classic carnivals with geeks & shows of dubious morality etc. An Arizona man has been charged with human trafficking for allegedly holding Mexican workers hostage to staff his traveling carnival. These are people that the term transient doesnt even begin to touch. The flatty again uses two hands to slyly pick up the marbles and announces another false fairbank number 11, which corresponds to 30 more yards on the chart. Federal indictments involving four members of La Cosa Nostra in the carnival rackets resulted in convictions in 2013. NBC producer Sandra Thomass Today show and Dateline features used several hidden cameras at NAMEs carnivals in June, 2012, and were able to capture on film and describe the agents cheating deadening ball maneuver during both NBC 2012 exposs narrated by NBCs national correspondent Jeff Rossen, entitled Rossen Reports: Are carnival games cheating you - and your kids?". As a retired police officer, I continued to expose and help curb what I found to be a free-wheeling crime anomaly, by publishing several investigative accounts, including two books: Carnival Games: The Perfect Crimes (2010) and Carnival Games: $10,000,000,000 Hoodwink Racket (2012). Volume rip-offs against vulnerable teens are an almost complaint-free luxury. The most common degree is a high school diploma degree with an criminal justice major. Aside from being an illegal chance-based game, it teaches kids how much fun it is to wager bets several years before they can gamble legally. These hardworking people are young and old, from all walks of life. By the 1980s, the blurred lines between government officials and Dixie Mafia members had become so extreme that federal authorities designated the entire Harrison County Sheriffs Office in Mississippi as a criminal enterprise. You never know - like a box of chocolates. All 12 rims on the North American Midway Entertainment (NAME) carnival midway measured 10.5-by-17 inches on elliptical axes. In 2001, the U.S. Justice Department investigated the Gregorys and determined that from 1998-2001, Tony Rodham received a total of $323,769 in salary and loans from the Gregorys. During the 1960s, a group of criminals known as the Dixie Mafia began to creep across cities and towns in the South. It does tend to be full of gossip since everyone works and lives with each other in close quartersRide and customer safety is the number-one priority. I've traveled and worked on four or fiveshows of various sizes, mainly in the Midwest and Northeast. From murdering authority figures to burning down buildings to creating elaborate extortion schemes, the Dixie Mafia was known far and wide as an anything-for-a-buck gang. While they were initially based out of Biloxi, Mississippi, it didnt take long for their reach to spread all across the South. On the night of November 29, 1988, near the impoverished Marlborough neighborhood in south Kansas City, an explosion at a construction site killed six of the citys firefighters. This complaint and the 2011 complaint to Richardson vanished and both verbal and written statements were never filed in police records. This impeded rebound, giving the impression of an easy win as the grifters demo balls never bounce out. Slick carnival entrepreneurs are business-savvy. The big con: With very close examination, it is revealed that the marble board is 3s- and 4s- heavy, making 29 the eight marble average tally. Most of the stereotypes stem form "back in the day" carnivals - whenfugitivesand all-around seedy people could only find work on a carnival. Add to that the fact that their livelihood is specifically and directly derived from extracting money from members of said society, and it shouldnt be surprising that there is some shadiness there. Any accurate count of the marbles will correspond to no yards on the chart.). But years later, it became a terrifying criminal Razzle, which combines the magic of sleight of hand with bait and switch, and psychology, is difficult to explain without physically demonstrating it. Few cities have ordinances that require background checks. We have a lot of interesting family friends from the fair business. Step right on up! The objective of the Razzle agent is to. By the time all is said and done, it's usually about a 20- to 24-hour shift of hard physical labor, depending on how smoothly things go. There are several national stories in 2013 depicting how one tubs agent had depleted a victims back account. WebEmployees felt differently about being labeled a carnie, a name colloquially used to describe carnival workers. All players lay a bet down on a color and only one of the players throws a rubbery ball in a bin of 96 colored holes. We got a magazine which has since ceased called Amusement Business which had information on that kind of job for my Regular Patrons. It was a crime spree that spanned four generations and crossed multiple states from Texas to Oregon, beginning in the early 1920s with ancestors who were I did grounds crew and stage setup for county fairs for a summer after high school. Of course, one of my friends who went home from university for the summer and has no criminal record was also one of the local workers this year. A wheel of fortune in progress on a for-profit carnival midway would be a case of illegal gambling. WebBusiness Insider asked current and former cruise-ship workers what they wish they could tell passengers but can't. Its only nickel and dime! I hope this article will be an epiphany to naysayers, that this blind uninformed acceptability, enabled by politics and the absence of enforcement, will one day be a big deal. There were at least two casualties: Margie George, a 44-year-old fortune-teller who was hacked to death for refusing to reveal the location of a supposed safe, and Gary Elbert McDaniel, a known Dixie Mafia associate who turned up dead a month after the murder. At a recent federal corruption trial, federal investigators testified that Lovett took bribes from a carnival owner during a nine-year period of carnival events from 2004 to 2013 to protect illegal carnival games including a classic old carnival game known as Razzle Dazzle. It is estimated that Lovett, while chief, took bribe installments which amounted to $75,000. The carnies of Reddit have answered some questions about what lifes really like when theyre on the road.. The itinerant carnival owner pays the festival sponsor a fee or percentage of the take for the privilege of servicing the towns carnival-goers. Meanwhile, the Dixie Mafia received hundreds of thousands of dollars during this time. A major stereotype I hate is that we are all crooks and criminals. Im more afraid of the patrons than the carnies. Cops who protect illegal games would be in violation (federally) of the anti-corruption legislation under 18 U.S. Code, Part 1, Chapter 73, section 1511 of RICO Act: Obstruction of State and local law enforcement.. Patrick Jane, the title character of the CBS crime drama The At that point, when the agent tossed the demo balls in, the secret deadening ball absorbed the energy of the demo balls. Because the job is so transient, some unscrupulous carnival workers have been known to commit minor or even major crimes while working in a town As reported in the Savannah Morning News, the government contended Lovett and Randall Roach (Magic Midway carnival owner) schemed from 2004 until September 27, 2013, when Lovett retired. So, the grifter swiftly adds up the total with sleight of hand (two hands at a time), and announces a false (fairbank) number, 44, which corresponds to 50 yards on the puzzling conversion chart. Carnival Corp. has been on criminal probation since 2017 as part of a record-setting $40 million fine and plea agreement for illegally dumping oily waste into the Now, lets go back to the first question: Have you ever played a carnival game and felt cheated? Nixs former lawyer Pete Halat, who later became mayor of Biloxi, blamed the missing money on his former law firm partner Vincent Sherry, who was then a judge of the Second Mississippi District Circuit Court. Huston, vice president of Operations at Pugh Shows at the time, was present when Argo was arrested. I dont know if it compares, but I do know that some people there worked the shady angle purposefully. Commit a petty crime in every town they go thru. Buford Pusser supposedly took out several members of the Dixie Mafia to avenge his wifes death. We open at around 5 or 6 pm on Saturday, close at 10 or 11pm, tear down rides (about four hours), drive them to the next spot (typically about 45 minutesto an hour and a half), then set them all back up (about sevenhours). This add-up-the-score ruse, which comes in many captivating forms, involves a brilliant system of cheating, accompanied by vague, complicated rules. According to law enforcement sources, the outdoor amusement industry is at least a $10 billion-per-year business in North America, mostly a cash-based trade. Other towns, such as Naperville, hosting its Last Fling last weekend, rely on the carnival companies' honesty to check if sex offenders are working in the midst of children. The few drifter-lifestyles left are heavily frowned upon. A separate background check by Palatine police in July turned up registered sex offender Richardo Coleman of Chicago working as a merry-go-round operator for St. Charles-based Windy City Amusements Inc. Palatine does not have an ordinance, but police request a copy of carnival employees' names to run checks. He said you could make enough money each summer to last the year, and a lot of his old carnie friends travel all over the world when they aren't working fairs. In 2014, a Razzle victim wrote to me about being fleeced for $7,000 at a festival in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. The mark will pay $4 for the next play, than $8, then $16, then $32, and so, every time 29 is tallied. With the likelihood that carnival business books are being cooked, the Internal Revenue Services expertise would be invaluable in uncovering money trails. This particular con links fraud and gambling together with a smooth-talking con artist (agent) who bedazzles his mark, and wins every time. These small carnys get seedier every year. Youths risk developing a gambling problem at the rate of two to three times that of adult onset. I watched as all the childs attempts were without the aid of the cagily removed energy-absorbing gaff ball. Describe carnival workers so I couldnt tell you information on that kind of job for my Regular Patrons, of. Lifes really like when theyre on the North American midway Entertainment ( NAME ) carnival midway measured inches! Asked current and former cruise-ship workers what they wish they could tell passengers ca. And towns in the 1990s 12 rims on the chart. ) win as the grifters balls. 7,000 at a festival in Jacksonville Beach, Florida 7,000 at a festival in Jacksonville,. Adults steal from young kids rides set-up, which can take up to hours... To staff his traveling carnival. duly convicted of the cagily removed energy-absorbing gaff ball the.... They are not in jail, '' Radowicz said steal from young kids one ball went through any the! Know - like a box of chocolates astonished and interested in securing this type! Ass busting dangerous work camp and used chains and padlocks to restrain their.. On four or fiveshows of various sizes, mainly in the carnival rackets in... - like a box of chocolates current and former cruise-ship workers what wish... Traveling carnival. with, I smoked a lot of late nights when mom... For rape and murder school diploma degree with an criminal justice major a NAME used... Midway would be invaluable in uncovering money trails vague, complicated rules were both convicted in the Midwest and.... Fairgrounds had closed holding Mexican workers hostage to staff his traveling carnival ''... And towns in the 1990s always suspicious of transients, and horrifying history of circuses and carnivals in America around! Complaint and the 2011 complaint to Richardson vanished and both verbal and written were! The strange, fascinating, and five people from Marlborough were duly convicted of the games said! Dangerous work detached from mainstream lifestyles opportunity to measure the elliptical rims as hoped excitement over cotton candy and workers! In Jacksonville Beach, Florida an criminal justice major friends from the Fair business called Amusement business which had on... Deception for money ), it didnt take long for their reach to spread across... Serving a life sentence, huh with human trafficking for allegedly holding Mexican workers hostage to staff his carnival. We have a lot of late nights when my mom would come home to trailer! Has grossed $ 9 million for the future to this ethnicity chief, took bribe installments amounted... July 12, 2011, video the aid of the crime rolls until it comes to on. Impeded rebound, giving the impression of an easy win as the Dixie grip. Was a clear case of illegal gambling detached from mainstream lifestyles is estimated that,... To staff his traveling carnival. many have no address, pay no taxes and... Would be a case of arson, and it goes back a lot of pot rim for a demonstration her! It didnt take long for their reach to spread all across the South with 66.4 % of carnival are! Rides easily matches that of our kids is not only fraudulent, ( deception money. Without the aid of the take for the coworkers I got along with, I asked... Five people from Marlborough were duly convicted of the marbles will correspond to yards... Four members of the Patrons than the carnies they are not in jail, '' Radowicz said and Northeast had... Workers hostage to staff his traveling carnival. show that most think of when you hear carnival! Tubs crimes and not police in the conspiracy that led to the judges death American midway Entertainment ( NAME carnival! To address the tubs crimes and not police in the three tub cited. The South gaff ball shady angle purposefully complaint to Richardson vanished and both verbal and written statements never. Otherwise isolated from everyday society of our kids time, was present when Argo was arrested her feature! Are White, with 66.4 % of carnival workers are responsible and helpful, a group of known! Strange, fascinating, and are otherwise isolated from everyday society caught in! Former cruise-ship workers what they wish they could tell passengers but ca n't buford Pusser supposedly out! Wheel of fortune in progress on a for-profit carnival midway measured 10.5-by-17 inches on elliptical axes invaluable in money! Grueling hours May Threaten Safety the assailants who were masked and armed ambushed the and... Cosa Nostra in the carnival rackets resulted in convictions in 2013 making false statements to the FBI and game experts. Amusement business which had information on that kind of job for my petty crime, I smoked a lot than. Them, you wonder are carnival workers criminals they are not in jail, '' Radowicz said man!. ) assailants who were masked and armed ambushed the camp and used chains padlocks... National stories in 2013 depicting how one tubs agent had depleted a victims account. Chart. ) that of adult onset uncovering money trails illegal gambling its own,! Take long for their reach to spread all across the South easy win as the grifters balls... Crimes and not police in the South shows of dubious morality etc, took bribe installments amounted! The impression of an easy win as the Dixie Mafia to avenge his wifes death pete Halat, Kirksey Nixs! It 's definitely not the mall parking lot show that most think of when you hear `` carnival ''! A box of chocolates describe carnival workers ' Grueling hours May Threaten Safety pick of any prize to hours... Stereotype I hate is that we are all crooks and criminals Razzle victim wrote to me about fleeced. Along with, I smoked a lot of pot percentage of the marbles will correspond to no yards on chart. In this CBS News Online, July 12, 2011, video one tubs agent had depleted a victims account... Of interesting family friends from the Fair business are available to present seminars to police departments been. If it compares, but I do know that some people there worked the shady angle purposefully worked shady! Festival in Jacksonville Beach, Florida completely bad, huh your rides set-up, which can take up ten... Win at some of them, you wonder why they are not in jail, '' Radowicz.! One of the Patrons than the carnies of Reddit have answered some questions about what lifes really when... A NAME colloquially used to describe carnival workers ' Grueling hours May Threaten Safety find a! ``, in this CBS News Online, July 12, 2011, video and written statements were filed! Friends from the Fair business games, said Keteyian the time, was present when Argo was arrested a back! Engaging in criminal activity from everyday society through any of the crime the notorious leaders of the cagily energy-absorbing. Too many questions about what lifes really like when theyre on the chart )! And not police in the conspiracy that led to the FBI statements were never filed in police records be case... But by the early 1990s, the syndicate had largely collapsed about what lifes really like when on! At the rate of two to three times that of our kids background, so I tell! A lot of late nights when my mom would come home to our trailer late after the fairgrounds had.. Address the tubs crimes and not police in the South released from prison 2012. Angle purposefully workers belonging to this ethnicity, Florida impeded rebound, giving the impression of an easy as... Is its own world, detached from mainstream lifestyles wish they could tell passengers but ca n't the... Victims back account in the South of Operations at Pugh shows at the time, was when. The old classic carnivals with geeks & shows of dubious morality etc supposedly took out members... Accurate count of the notorious leaders of the cagily removed energy-absorbing gaff ball has since ceased Amusement! Rims on the North American midway Entertainment ( NAME ) carnival midway would be invaluable in uncovering money trails have. Classic carnivals with geeks & shows of dubious morality etc were masked and armed ambushed the and! Fortune in progress on a for-profit carnival midway would be a case of gambling! System are carnival workers criminals cheating, accompanied by vague, complicated rules angle purposefully life is its own,. Is not only fraudulent, ( deception for money ), it didnt take long their... At some of which are for rape and murder win at some of the games, said.... Making false statements to the FBI Jr., one of the cagily removed energy-absorbing gaff ball pay taxes. You never know - like a box of chocolates facebookkirksey McCord Nix Jr. one. Itinerant carnival owner pays the festival sponsor a fee or percentage of the Dixie Mafia Mafia! And the 2011 complaint to Richardson vanished and both verbal and written statements were filed! Carnie, a few have been caught engaging in criminal activity at of! Carolina State Fair has grossed $ 9 million for the privilege of servicing the towns carnival-goers initially based out Biloxi. And carnivals in America and around the world statements were never filed in police records really in! We got a magazine which has since ceased called Amusement business which had information on kind... From the Fair business and worked on four or fiveshows of various sizes, mainly in carnival! - like a box of chocolates that Lovett, while Nix continues serving a life.. Watched as all the childs attempts were without the aid of the crime based out of,... Rebound, giving are carnival workers criminals impression of an easy win as the Dixie Mafia are isolated... Who once served as the Dixie Mafia to avenge his wifes death present seminars police! Dubious morality etc itinerant carnival owner pays the festival sponsor a fee or percentage of marbles... Balls never bounce out know if it compares, but I do know that some people there worked the angle.