MANSFIELD — Brad Smith collects chips from every casino he’s ever entered.
He has a seperate collection of rare chips from Las Vegas casinos which have closed or changed their original name.
Smith, who moved to Mansfield about five years ago, has belonged to the Casino Collectibles Association for many years. After retiring from his job, he began doing public relations work for the association.
“The club has a big show in Las Vegas every summer and my job is to help promote and get people to come,” Smith said.
Tasked with attracting attendance, Smith frequently contacted people related to the gaming industry — VIPs.
This led to Smith’s first encounter with Tom McEvoy, a professional poker player who was inducted in 2013 to the Poker Hall of Fame. McEvoy is best known for winning the main event at the 1983 World Series of Poker.
“I said (to McEvoy), ‘Would you be willing to come to the show for a couple of hours?'” Smith said. “He said, ‘No, I want to come to the show for the whole three days.
“Give me a little table.'”
The two had ample time to converse during the three-day show, discussing McEvoy’s life experiences — which developed into a friendship.
Smith was asked to write autobiography
A poker player himself, Smith plays in the seniors event each year at the World Series of Poker. He also has a strong passion for Las Vegas history.
Smith has written several Las Vegas-related articles for the Casino Collectibles Association’s quarterly magazine.
“I shared with Tom (McEvoy) some of these articles that I’ve written on the little-known poker pioneers of Las Vegas, ones that were there long before Bugsy Siegel ever set foot in Vegas,” Smith said.
McEvoy was fascinated with the stories, as well as Smith’s writing style.
Putting two-and-two together, the Hall of Fame poker player asked Smith to pen his autobiography. The pair spent about the next year and a half crafting the book.
Smith said the publishing process took about another year itself.
McEvoy had several scrapbooks for Smith to pour over, including historic reference material and pictures.
“He’s one of the kindest, nicest and most honest people that you’ll ever meet, which is kind of in direct opposition to what you think of as a gambler,” Smith said.
The autobiography, titled “Poker Pioneer,” shares the story of McEvoy’s 50-year career, including the risk he took quitting his job five decades ago, his rise to fame and everything in-between.
It’s available for purchase in paperback, hardcover or as an e-book on Amazon and Barnes & Noble, among others.
“A lot of the things that Tom (McEvoy) did were kind of pioneering the sport,” Smith said. “I just wanted to help capture poker history and was just thrilled at the opportunity to do it.”