Bookies Runners Clock. Runners clocks like this were used in bookies from the 1920s until the 1960s. At that time, the only way to place a bet on the horses or dogs was by either placing it on the racetrack, or with a bookmaker. The bookie never loses, so they say - if Comer realised he wasn't going to do well at the races he would make off before punters came to collect their winnings. He also ran a con game called Take your Pick where people paid to pull a straw - but rarely won. Comer saw himself as a protector for Jewish shopkeepers but charged them for the privilege. Scott Fitzgerald: 1920-1925 In 1920, F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote his first book, This Side of Paradise. It was a huge success. In the same year, F. Scott Fitzgerald married Zelda Sayre. Zelda gave birth to Scottie Fitzgerald in 1921. The changes at Bookie’s Club 870 coincided with several changes in music, culture and, even, the law at the time as the drinking age nationally went f rom 18 to 21 making it harder for younger people, without a fake ID, to get into clubs. Bookie’s Calendar – September 1981 (Courtesy of Kevin Knapp) By 1980-1981, punk was mutating.
