Weird Wagers (Part 1) - All about death…
Everyone loves a bet, eh? So for the first installment of Weird Wagers, we’re all about death…
No 1: William Hill tells the tale of a deluded hermit in a small town in Venezuela, who challenged villagers to thinking he could hypnotise a jaguar. Unsurprisingly, he was savaged to death.
No 2: One poor Paulo Romero Cedero, an Ecuadorian refugee, claimed ‘abuse on the high seas’ back in Aug 2006. He recounted a grim tale of being soaked in fish blood by the crew of his aunt’s ship (loving family) and thrown overboard and bets were taken as to whether he would be eaten by sharks. He survived – just.
No 3: Prior to the shocking death of Princess Diana, Jeff Carter, a keen gambler from Ogle had a dream of the passing of the princess. Bookmakers would not allow a straight bet on her death, but offered him a royal accumulator, with a payout of a cool £1m on the successful sequencing of four royal deaths (Princess Diana, then Princess Margaret, Queen Mum and then the Queen herself). Only the queen remains, meaning that as long as there are no premature deaths of her offspring, he looks set to pick up his fat cheque.
No 4: Arther Robinson, a 91 year old pensioner bet £500 that he would die by a certain date to cover his inheritance tax bill of £3000. This was the first betting on death that William Hill bookmakers allowed, claiming he put a valid case forward. Sadly for Arther he lost his bet, but news was his wife was pleased.
No 5: In Nov 2006, James Quick (42) was charged with murder after shooting his friend Richard Johnson over a $20 bet they had on an annual college rivalry game. His friend’s wife and several friends told police that Johnson, prior to being shot, had exclaimed “You can’t shoot me, I’m invisible.” Unfortunately for Johnson, he wasn’t.
No 6: Celebrity death pool www.cash4cadavers.com takes sixth spot, where teams pay $20 dollars to enter and pick 20 celebs they feel will snuff it in the next year. Those with the most points at the end of the year, wins the pot.
Check back soon for the next installment of weird wagers…
