硬石餐厅欧洲酒店开放

The year was1967 and it was in Saigon Vietnam that Chief Jim Billie began his love affairwith Rock & Roll.

“At that time, I remember this music came as a real Seminole.Bong Bang, Bong Bang, Bong Bang Bong Bang… All of these guys are sweaty anddirty, and machine guns hanging on the arms. But we were dancing to JimmyHendrix.”

Little did he know just ten years later his Tribe theSeminoles would be entering the highest stakes world of Bingo in Florida,becoming the first U.S. tribe to get into gambling.

“Someone brought me a paper says bingo on them. And I’ve seebingo played before by some white people in Oklahoma and they were using coinsand put them on little numbers on the spot. So it didn’t really make anyheadway on myself until I read the back pages that say you can make easily $3million in 6 months.”

Bingo gave the Seminoles a taste of the multi-million dollarindustry and soon they wanted more. In 2006, this Seminole tribe in Floridapurchased the Hard Rock café hotel and casino business for $965 million, takingthem from the swamps of the Everglades where they relied on federal loans foreconomic survival to the bright city lights.

“You know our ancestors sold Manhattan for trinkets. Todaywith the acquisition of Hard Rock Cafes, we are gonna buy Manhattan back onehamburger at a time.”

They are still working toward that goal. Today in addition tothe Hard Rock business, the Seminole Tribe owns and operates five othercasinos. Last year alone, the native of American gaming industry made almost$28 billion in revenues.

“Let’s just use a figure of a billion dollars. Of that amountof money, 50% of it, or maybe a little bit more of 50%, is actually real cashthat goes into individual families, whoever they may be.”

Back on Hard Rock’s Vault in London, where much of the 70,000pieces of memorabilia are stored, including Jimi Hendrix’s flying V guitar andMadonna’s bustier, chief Jim Billie can’t quite believe his place’s luck.

“I’ve seen a world on a stage, I would never have thought ofI being the man standing in my vault here.

This was started in Saigon, Vietnam, with a simple hum ‘Bang,Bong, Bang, Bong’ has brought fortune and music to his heirs.

Isa Soares,cnn, London.