Pit boss Irving “Pete” Berger diligently walks around the table games area at Ellis Island monitoring the action with his hands clasped behind his back.
Berger is in his element. He, after all, has more than six decades of experience in Las Vegas casinos. And, even though he should be long retired, the 90-year-old still comes to work five days a week at Ellis Island.
He’s more than a novelty. With his quick wit, knack for recalling numbers and dates and wide smile, he easily passes for a much younger man. He turns 91 this week.
“Working keeps me alive, it’s as simple as that,” Berger said. “I’ve always been enthralled with the gaming business. It’s always been exciting to me.”
Berger in 1991 had a short-lived retirement, quickly realizing he missed being part of the action. It was more than a job; it was his passion. So, he went to work at the Hard Rock.
“That was almost 30 years ago, and the time went like that,” Berger said while snapping his fingers to emphasize his point. “I was 62 and I could get Social Security. After a couple of years, I was bored.”
In 1997, Berger moved over to Ellis Island, which is owned and operated by Cindy and Gary Ellis, Berger’s daughter and son-in-law. He’s never left.
“When you think of old Vegas — the Rat Pack, the showrooms, the neon — everything points to Pete Berger,” Gary Ellis said of his father-in-law. “Having him in the pit and doing what he loves to do has brought tremendous joy to me and my family. His smile permeates throughout our little casino.”
After a stint in the U.S. Air Force in the Korean War, Berger and his wife, Dolly, moved from New York to Las Vegas in 1955. He first worked for an airline, but soon found his way into the gaming industry, where he had some familiarity with craps from playing on the streets as a boy with friends in the Bronx.
He has had stops at numerous properties, including the Stardust, Sands, Monte Carlo, Silver Slipper, Tropicana, Bonanza, Aladdin and Circus Circus, to name a few.
“I stayed in Las Vegas because of the excitement,” Berger said. “I had been around gambling, but not like they had here. Not with the kind of money I saw thrown around — I couldn’t believe it.”
Berger, of course, has plenty of stories to tell.
“I was in the Sands one night and saw people standing two or three-deep around a craps table,” Berger said. “Here’s Danny Thomas with a fist full of c-notes throwing money like it was water. I was dealing one day at the Stardust who walks out of the showroom but Cary Grant. …He was the most handsome guy I’ve ever seen in my life so help me God.”
The nicest celebrity he met while working on the Strip was journalist Howard Cosell.
“I ran the Metro Club at MGM before it was Bally’s and I saw a lot of celebrities there,” Berger said. “Howard was just the nicest guy in the world. There was nothing pretentious about him. Cosell was my favorite, along with Telly Savalas. One day, Telly signed photos for my daughter (Cindy), her friend and all the help in the Metro Club.”
Berger still has a zest for life and work. His secret?
“The secret to staying alive, I think, is to move,” Berger said. “I walk every day and I drink a lot of water. You can’t just sit around on the couch. I still get sick sometimes even with all that, but I feel good and I can still do the job. If I couldn’t, I wouldn’t be here.”
Berger also enjoys coming to work every day because he gets to be around family, especially his granddaughters. Christina Ellis, 27, is director of marketing for Ellis Island while Anamarie Ellis, 25, works as director of player development.
“It’s awesome working with my grandpa,” Anamarie Ellis said. “He’s always giving me the scoop about players that come through the pit. He’s not only part of our family, he’s part of the Ellis Island family forever. Everyone knows Pete.”
A third granddaughter, Michaela, a recent University of San Diego graduate, will start work later this summer.
“I’m a lucky guy — those are my bosses,” Berger said of his granddaughters. “I’m going to keep working here until the day when I’m no longer able to. I love this place — this is my place.”