Ruthie was born in Texas in 1943. She grew into a wholesome Texan beauty who gave up working on her family's farm at seventeen to become a model and dancer. In 1964 she moved out to Las Vegas and joined the Lido extravaganza at the Stardust Hotel and Casino. She quickly became one of the show's best dancers and main attractions. One night after the show she met Hall of Fame Casino Cheat Joe Classon at a Strip saloon. She was intrigued by Classon's strong personality and good looks and accepted a date with him. When she found out that Joe had his own Strip extravaganza, mainly scooting in and around casinos and then out with loads of pilfered cash, Ruthie quickly advised Joe that she might be able to pirouette around casinos and come out with the cash as well.
Joe loved the idea of having a beautiful and charismatic woman claiming casino cheat moves, especially at roulette tables where most women gamblers spent their time and money inside casinos. He knew that Ruthie would be able to charm the pants of pit bosses who would all be willing to pay her claims on pastposted roulette bets. As Vegas casinos in the 60s were completely dominated by male bosses with big egos, Ruthie would slither up to them in the pits doing a Marilyn Monroe swirling-dress number each time she noticed their hesitation to authorize the dealers to pay her claims. She would whisper into their ears with her hot breath, practically promising sex to the enraptured bosses when her evening of gambling was done. Of course they paid her nearly every time and of course she never delivered the sex. She just blew them kisses as she danced around roulette pits collecting $3,500 and $7,000 payoffs.
Ruthie became so enamored of her "new" Vegas dance show that she quit the Lido at the Stardust. Besides, she was making more money claiming Joe's pastposts. She was so good that Joe brought her to the craps tables, where women usually stayed on the arms of high rollers, and had her claim craps moves. The stickmen and boxmen on the craps tables couldn't get enough of her. She was admired by casino personnel much the way Sharon Stone's hustling character was in the film "Casino."
And "film" was her ultimate destiny, much to the chagrin of Joe Classon. New Year's Eve, 1967 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas marked the beginning of Ruthie's acting career. Joe Classon had just pastposted two $100 chips on number 13 after the ball on the spinning roulette wheel dropped into that corresponding number slot. Ruthie, ravishing as usual, decked-out in her revealing cocktail dress, danced and sang her way to the $7,000 payoff. The pit boss who authorized the payoff surely thought he was gonna start the new year off with a "bang" after Ruthie hugged and kissed him, and even rubbed his sex organ.
Unbeknownst to Ruthie and Joe, a successful Hollywood movie producer was sitting at that roulette table when the move and claim went down. He happened to be an experienced gambler as well, and he saw Joe pop in the move and understood immediately that Ruthie was his partner "acting out" the claim. The producer was quite taken aback by her performance and said to her, "Where have you been all my life?" He gave her his business card and told her to call him the following morning in Hollywood. She did, and that very afternoon flew to L.A. and had lunch with him. That evening, she called Joe back in Vegas and told him both their relationship and her casino-cheating career were over.
13 really proved to be Joe Classon's unlucky number.
Ruthie went on to become an internationally-known movie actress in the 1970s, although she was never quite a top star. Of course "Ruthie Berin" is not her Hollywood name and of course you want to know exactly who she really is. Sorry, but that information cannot be given out for reasons of potential libel lawsuits--unless Ruthie one day gives permission to make her pre-Hollywood career known.
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