Today, at 77, the panache remains. In double-breasted elegance, he sports a permanent tan and a silver mane; on his left hand is a Super Bowl ring from 1981 (his Eagles lost). But Tose can no longer play the part of the well-heeled fellow who has merely had a few setbacks. He’s just about broke. Creditors have set their sights on his house in the stabled suburbs of Philadelphia. For the last month he has been in a federal courtroom in Camden, N.J., fighting the Sands over the last of his blackjack debts there. It was a sad proceeding in which Tose was often portrayed as a drunk and a fool. Guest appearances in the gallery by the likes of basketball legend Julius Erving did little good. Late last week a jury gave him news he’s used to getting: he lost.
Three years ago the Sands won a $1.2 million judgment against him for his outstanding markers. Incensed and offended, he retaliated by claiming that he shouldn’t have to pay a thing because the casino knew he was drunk and let him go on betting anyway; indeed, he argued that he was entitled to money back for all his losses. “The state of New Jersey says that you can’t drive after only one drink,” Tose mused the day before the jury came back. “Casinos are tightly controlled by the state and yet they say they’re not responsible for my losses even after they offer drink after drink?” The Sands denies it knew that Tose was drunk.
In a landmark ruling two weeks ago in the case that terrified the casino industry, U.S. district court Judge Joseph Irenas held that casinos were liable if they allowed a “visibly and obviously intoxicated” bettor to continue at the table. It didn’t matter, the judge said, whether the bettor could continue to play well despite the booze. The decision dramatically extends state law making all drinking establishments responsible for the acts of their intoxicated customers. Verdicts for bettors in the kind of lawsuit brought by Tose could force casinos to eliminate serving liquor or at least make them closely regulate patrons’ alcoholic intake.
Despite the judge’s expansive ruling, the jury last week found that on four occasions between June 1985 and March 1986 Tose was not obviously drunk. Still, defeat is not total for Tose. The nine jurors couldn’t agree on three other dates during that period; all but one apparently sided with Tose. In a trial featuring conflicting testimony about Tose’s behavior-some described a bibulous bumbler who barely could communicate with the blackjack dealer, others spoke of a dignified man in control of his bets-the jurors leaned to Tose’s side, but not decisively. Irenas scheduled another trial for April 5 to resolve the three dates. After that, Tose will do battle with Merv Griffin’s Resorts and Casino seeking to recover $5 million from his gambling in the ’80s. For a man so versed in losing, he stays optimistic. “The last hand has not been played,” he told reporters after the verdict. “I’m going to win the next case.” Maybe, though lawyers say that no imbibing bettor has ever won on the “I wasn’t responsible because the casino made me do it” theory.
It’s hard to say whether Tose would be better off if he wins or loses. He has a long list of friends, and the Philadelphia community still remembers his philanthropic activities. But by his own account, despite acknowledging too much drinking and too much gambling, he hasn’t learned a whole lot. “Sure, I still drink,” he says. How many a night? “More than two, less than 10.” Nor does it seem he would be a better bettor. Jim Murray, the former Eagles general manager, says if Tose got back his money, he wouldn’t head home to Philadelphia. “He would be on the road to Atlantic City, in the exact-change lane at the toll.” Tose listens to this prognosis, and smiles a smile just this side of wistful.
