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Mike Agassi, the Las Vegas casino ambassador who pushed his son, Andre, to tennis greatness, has died.
Agassi passed distant astatine at Sheldon Adelson Hospice’s Tenaya Avenue installation astatine 9:17 p.m. Friday, Andre Agassi confirmed done substance Tuesday night. He was 90.
Andre Agassi said plans for immoderate memorial would beryllium kept private. The tennis fable offered nary further comment.
Born successful Iran, Emmanuel Agassi was an Olympic boxer for his homeland successful 1948 and 1952, erstwhile aft the Games helium followed his brother, Samuel, to Chicago. He changed and changed his sanction to “Mike” upon immigrating, and successful 1963 moved to Las Vegas to instrumentality a occupation astatine the Tropicana hotel-casino. Agassi rapidly and took enactment of the hotel’s mostly inactive tennis courts.
He was a novice subordinate but had a passionateness for the game, and offered to spruce up those courts and manager guests for free.
Agassi and his wife, Elizabeth, had 4 children: Rita, Phillip, and Tami and Andre. Mike recovered young Andre particularly talented and lorded implicit his career. He famously developed a tennis instrumentality called “The Dragon,” which fired balls astatine Andre to tech him due changeable technique.
Agassi swatted backmost 5,000 balls a time against that machine. He would go 1 of the game’s all-time large returners of service, and an eight-time Grand Slam champion.
Mike Agassi was celebrated for his hard-driving tutelage, and besides his temper. In his transcendent memoir, “Open,” Andre In Andre revisited his archetypal Grand Slam championship, beating Goran Ivanišević successful 5 sets astatine Wimbledon successful 1992. His father’s archetypal words to the caller champ were, “You had nary concern losing that 4th set.”
In that book, and successful interviews, the younger Agassi recalled his begetter mounting up a situation lucifer successful Vegas with NFL large and tennis buff Jim Brown erstwhile Andre was conscionable property 9. Brown was astatine a nine court, having acceptable up a “money” match. His hostile ne'er showed.
“My dada walked up to him, due to the fact that helium has nary quality to consciousness embarrassment whatsoever, and says, ‘You know, Mr. Brown, I person idiosyncratic who volition play you for money.’ Brown says, ‘Who’s that?’ It was me.”
Brown relented, saying, “I lone play for existent money.” Agassi responded, “We tin play for a location of you want.” Brown said helium didn’t request a house, but offered $10,000. Mike Agassi went location to retrieve a beardown container filled with cash, tips he’d made arsenic a waiter and maitre d’. A manager stepped successful to halt the projected wager, advising Brown that Agassi was nary emblematic 9-year-old player. Brown settled connected a $500 bet, and Agassi “took attraction of business,” arsenic helium said, winning the match.
Mike Agassi erstwhile said to Italian paper La Repubblica, aboriginal reprinted by Tennis World. “It’s amended to person a begetter beside his lad successful the athletics than his coach.” He was inducted into the Nevada Tennis Hall of Fame successful 2008.
Las Vegas tennis officials mourned his loss.
“Starting from an adverse puerility successful Iran mike Agassi virtually fought his mode to America to rise 4 bonzer children, each elite tennis players and Andre who went connected to alteration the crippled of tennis, and philanthropy,” United States Tennis Association of Nevada Director Ryan Wolfington said successful a statement. “Mike Agassi’s efforts arsenic a manager and profoundly passionate tennis advocator inspired countless lives. His astir cherished trait nevertheless is his large bosom to assistance those successful need, thing each of his children person carried connected successful singular ways.”
Wolfington went connected to accidental that Agassi “was 1 of the toughest radical I’ve ever met with the biggest heart. He and his loving woman Betty raised 4 bonzer children, elite athletes and humanitarians, and Mike had a large manus successful his lad Andre Agassi’s vocation that revolutionized the crippled of tennis and philanthropy.”
The elder Agassi became a fixture successful the Las Vegas hotel-casino community, arsenic an ambassador and maitre d’ astatine the Trop, the archetypal MGM Grand (later Bally’s), Landmark and the existent MGM Grand hotel. He became particularly adjacent to edifice magnate Kirk Kerkorian, with whom helium shared Armenian heritage.
“Kirk ever said that Mike was similar a brother,” said longtime Las Vegas edifice enforcement Gene Kilroy, who knew Agassi for 30 years. “Mike was a fable successful the casino industry.”
Kerkorian hired Agassi astatine the aged MGM Grand. Agassi was connected unit erstwhile occurrence erupted astatine the edifice successful November 1980, sidesplitting 85 people, temporarily closing the edifice and putting employees retired of work. Kerkorian made definite the Agassi household did not endure financially.
Kerkorian besides stepped up successful enactment erstwhile Mike Agassi underwent bosom country successful 1995. Fifteen years later, Andre Agassi said, “We’re inactive waiting for that bill.”
John Katsilometes’ file runs regular successful the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast tin beryllium recovered astatine reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him astatine jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats connected Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 connected Instagram.
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