The 30 Greatest Sports Conspiracy Theories of All-Time - Elliott Kalb [47]
On Wednesday, December 4, Stemmer asked Paris if Hapes and Filchock could be talked into throwing the Redskins game. Paris didn’t think so, so the gamblers bet $2,500 on the Giants, which included a $500 bet for each of the two players.
On December 8, the Giants routed the Redskins 31-0 before 60,000 fans in New York. After the game, Hapes, his wife, and brother went to dinner with Paris. Later, Hapes and Paris went out partying, and it was then that Paris made his move to fix the Championship Game.
That Sunday night, Paris was to testify later, he gave each of the players $500 apiece for having won the bet on the Giants against Washington, setting up the title clash with the Bears. In the trial record, when asked if he had had any conversation with the defendant [Paris] about football, Hapes testified: “Yes, he asked me if the Bears would win by ten points. I said, ‘What do you mean?’ Alvin said, ‘I want you to throw the game.’ I said, ‘What do you mean?’”
Hapes went on to testify that, when he finally found out what Alvin meant, he told him, “No soap.” Also on the witness stand, Hapes said, “He told me there would be money in it for him if the Bears won by ten points. I told him to speak to Frank Filchock himself. I told him I could only fumble the ball, and that was a no go. I told him Frankie Filchock would be the man if anything like that could be done. I told him he should speak to Filchock himself, and he went to the phone.” Fitchock also said “No soap,” and swore, “Hot damn, Alvin, I just ain’t going to do it. The boys have too much confidence in me, and they got much more at stake than any dough I can make.”
When the two were asked why they didn’t report the bribe, the players said that they still hoped to get the off-season job. Filchock turned down the offer when it was presented to him on Tuesday by Paris. It was then that Paris introduced him to a car dealer that might have been able to land him the car that he was interested in buying. Later in the week, Paris had to advise his associates to hedge their bets, as the quarterback still wouldn’t go along with letting the Bears win by at least ten points. When the syndicate hedged their bets, and started making sizable wagers the other direction, the resultant change in the betting odds attracted the attention of detectives.
Coach Steve Owen took his Giants up to Bear Mountain, New York (about two hours away), on Thursday, for three days prior to the Championship Game, which would be played at the Polo Grounds in New York. Paris drove Hapes’ wife and daughter, end Jim Poole’s wife and daughter, and Mrs. Poole’s sister up to Bear Mountain for the afternoon to watch practice. While there, Paris was introduced to some more of the Giants players. Paris spoke with Hapes by phone on Saturday, telling him that he was going to get some money down on the Giants, and to play well. Paris reminded Hapes of their plans to get together for dinner after the Bears game—Paris, the two players and their wives (Filchock’s wife was up from their Washington home).
The police lucked into finding out about the bribery attempts just in time. As it turned out, Eddie Ginsburg’s phone was tapped by the District Attorney in an investigation into other bribery matters. The D.A. found out about Paris’ connection to the Giants almost by accident.
On Saturday night, New York Mayor William O′Dwyer summoned Hapes and Filchock to Gracie Mansion and confronted them with evidence, gathered by police, of the fix attempt. Hapes admitted to being offered a bribe. Filchock admitted nothing of the sort. The quarterback was questioned well past midnight. Hapes wasn’t sent home until 6:30 in the morning, and then told he might be needed further. The Mayor had called Giants owner Tim Mara as well. Mara, with his sons Wellington and Jack and coach Steve Owen, showed up to see their starting backfield being grilled by cops hours before the