Pro gambler Alan Boston: Living la vida 'pura'

At least one of Alan Boston's quotations in this column had to be cleaned up for propriety's sake before it was published in the newspaper. Referring to a popular TV commercial that showed Steve Wynn standing on the roof of his high-rise resort hotel on the Las Vegas Strip, Boston's quote read: "I was rooting for him to fall off." What Boston actually said was: "I was rooting for him to fall off and fucking die."  A couple of other swear words have also been restored.

High-stakes sports betting is alive and well in Las Vegas, professional gambler Alan Boston says.

It's just that the rest of the city makes him sick.

"Unfortunately, when the evil vermin scum casino corporations have so much power, nothing good can happen as a result," Boston said. "You get roads that take forever to be built, air quality that is way below standard, and nothing's being done about it. ...

"There's absolutely nothing good here -- except you can bet. So here I am."