A00155 - A Poker Game in Heaven
I attended the Celebration of Life for Len Miller who died on March 4, 2023. The service was held on May 15, 2023 at the UC Irvine Barkley Theatre and included a program. The following are some of the excerpts from the program which have tended to haunt me since the ceremony just two days ago. First,
"Len's life was enhanced by many enduring friendships. He met his lifelong best friend and basketball icon, Denny Crum, during fraternity rush at UCLA. Len and Denny were fierce competitors, often teaming up to challenge other fraternity brothers to contests about who could get the highest grade on a test or in a class. They remained close and loyal friends for the rest of Len's life, taking great pride and pleasure in each other's successes including being present when the other won each of his NCAA titles. They also enjoyed competing against each other: there was no round of golf, fishing trip, or poker game played without their friendly rivalry. Their running dialogue included a debate over who between them made the best pancakes."
Len's best friend and great fishing buddy, Denny Crum, died on Tuesday, May 9, 2023
Second,
"Anyone who knew Len knows he loved to play poker. Texas Hold 'Em, to be exact. He learned to play while in college, and he enjoyed playing at the Golden Nugget Casino in Las Vegas every chance he could. In fact, he loved Las Vegas so much that he celebrated each of his grandchildren's 21st birthdays by taking them to Vegas for special weekend. But Len was happy to play poker anywhere. During the 1970s, he organized a monthly poker game with neighborhood friends who wanted to play when space allowed. Len's kids, who were school age at the time, remember more than a few occasions waking up the morning after a poker game hosted in their home began to the sounds of that game still in progress!
"Len's poker hobby turned into a business in 1985 when he purchased one of only a few poker licenses available in the state of California at the time. Len adapted his coaching style to fit the skills necessary to run a successful business, and he treated his customers at the Oceanside Card casino as though they were members of his team."
Here is a newspaper article which explains what led to Coach's going into the card club business
What has haunted me about this is that while at the Memorial Service one of Coach's poker proteges, a young man who has made a profession out of playing poker, came up to me and told me that one of Coach's "silent" partners in his card club enterprise was none other than the legendary Doyle Brunson, the first person to win consecutive World Series of Poker Main Event championships. I suppose part of the rapport between Coach and the craggly old Doyle Brunson is that Doyle was, in his youth, a champion miler in the State of Texas. A simply stunning revelation. But the most stunning of all came when I got home and read the following
I know about the rather ominous saying about "Death Comes in Threes" and there just may be some merit to that. However, Coach was a gregarious man who may have been a little lonely wherever he may now be. With the recent passings of Denny Crum and Doyle Brunson, now Coach has two of his closest friends with him. So, I have faith that there is a very lively Poker Game in Heaven going on today and these three men will never be lonely again.
Peace,
Everett "Skip" Jenkins
Fairfield, California
May 17, 2023
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