Alvin J. Paris

Alvin J. Paris (born 1918) was a New York bookmaker and gambler who, as a "front man" for a gambling syndicate based in Elizabeth, New Jersey, fixed college sporting events through bribing of star athletes, including Rocky Marciano.

After being recorded on federal wiretaps on December 15, 1946 in an investigation by Manhattan District Attorney Frank S. Hogan, a former assistant to crusading New York District Attorney Thomas Dewey, he was convicted of attempting to bribe professional football players Merle Hapes and Frank Filchock of the New York Giants with $2,500 each to throw the NFL championship game against the Chicago Bears. Paris was eventually convicted of bribery on January 8, 1947 and, although Hapes and Fitchcock were cleared of bribery charges, both men were initially suspended by then league commissioner Bert Bell (with Filchock being allowed to play the final game against the Chicago Bears).

During his trial, Paris chose not to take the stand in his own defense and later testified against his partners David Krakauer, Jerome Zarowitz and Harvey Stemmer, for which he would later receive death threats. Paris's sentencing had been deferred until after the second trial and he received a one-year sentence on April 7 of which he served nine months before his parole.

Further reading

• Cook, William E. Pete Rose: Baseball's All-Time Hit King. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2003. ISBN 0-7864-1733-1
• Moldea, Dan E. Interference: How Organized Crime Influences Professional Football. New York: William Morrow, 1989.
• Sammons, Jeffrey Thomas. Beyond the Ring: the role of boxing in American society. University of Illinois Press. 1990. ISBN 0-252-06145-4
• Smith, John L. Running Scared: the life and treacherous times of Las Vegas casino king Steve Wynn. New York: Thundermouth Press, 2003. ISBN 1-56858-190-4