I'm sure every chipper has that one chip or collectible that they are in search of that could be considered the absolute and ultimate prize in the quest for a complete collection.

I know I've had one for just over four years. In June of 2001, I decided to collect everything that I could from the now defunct Little Caesars casino that was located in a small strip mall where Paris Las Vegas now stands. At the CC & GTCC convention that year, I traded for the three sports book chips. I remember walking (okay, bouncing) away from Bill Akeman's table with the three chips in my hand all proud of myself because I now had all of the chips known from Little Caesars.

As I got out my TCR and my highlighter to mark off the last three chips, my jaw hit the floor when I noticed that there was a $5 hot stamped chip listed. How did I miss that? I never knew there was a $5 hot stamp from Little Caesars!

I immediately went back to Bill's table and inquired about it. He said that the listing was a mistake because the chip didn't exist. I asked several other prominent dealers and I was told the same thing - No such chip existed. I went to Allan Myers' table and asked him. He said that he was sure the chip existed but that he would have to check his records back home to verify any details.

I emailed Allan a few weeks later and he said that not only was the chip listed in the C&W Price Guide, but that there was a picture of it!! I immediately got a copy of the book and opened it up. There it was - a Little Caesars $5 hot stamp in full color!! Rage swept through my veins as my blood boiled!!! I would actually have to wait an entire year until the next convention to get the chip!

The following year I hit every single dealer table on the bourse floor asking about the chip. Not only was I on the hunt, but several of my chipping buddies were also making inquiries. I kept hearing remarks from the dealers that several people were looking for the same chip!! It seemed that every time I got a lead, it turned out to be the inlay chip. One dealer told me he had one back home and would sell it to me. I followed up several weeks later to discover that he didn't have it after all. My heart was broken.

Every chip show I attended after that seemed like Groundhog Day. I asked as many people as possible if they had the chip and I kept hearing, “No!” As time went by, the value in both Nevada price guides continued to climb. I had about come to the conclusion that I would never own the chip.

Alas, a few weeks ago I received an email with the results of my daily search on ebay for “Little Caesar”. There it was! A $5 hot stamp!! With an opening bid of $9.95!!! My heart raced, my palms sweated, and my, well, uh, let’s just say I couldn’t stand up. The only problem was that it was a seven day auction. How was I going to go without sleep for seven days?!?!?! After a grueling week of watching the auction, I sat by my computer, with two hours to spare, watching the countdown clock. Finally, in the last minute, I put in my bid of a ridiculous amount of money knowing that know one in their right mind would pay that much for that chip and I nervously refreshed the page until the clock stopped and I was declared the winner!!! Luckily, the underbidder didn’t push me into bankruptcy and I got the chip for a very reasonable price. An eerie silence and calm set in shortly after I danced around my office screaming. How could this be, I thought. It can’t be that easy? What’s going to happen next? A lost package in the mail? The seller backing out, perhaps? Something MUST go wrong here!!!

A few days later the package arrived in the mail and I was stunned at just how beautiful this little piece of clay was. There was a brief period of happiness and proud accomplishment, but then I became very concerned. Uh-Oh! What do I do now? I love this hobby but is there any reason to go on? I’m done. There’s nothing left. What will I search for now?

I put the chip away. Sure, I told some people about it and even looked at it a few times. But I refused to enter it into my database. No way was I going to be done with this hobby.

Finally, I took the chip out of the package and entered it into my database. I got out my highlighter and my TCR and completed the Little Caesars section. I then placed the chip in my collection alongside all of the other Little Caesar’s chips.

But then something strange happened - I wasn’t sad and I wasn’t depressed. I had a smile from ear to ear because I knew that I wasn’t giving up on this hobby. I may not have a “dream chip” at the moment, but another will come along. I’ll still enjoy acquiring the chips that fill in those holes in my collection. I’ll still actively pursue dice, cards, tokens, matchcovers, photos, and keys. I’m not stopping my search for historical pieces or just plain ol’ good-looking chips. No way, this hobby is just too much damn fun to quit because I happened to obtain a killer piece!!!!

So, I’ll be seeing you at convention!! You may not recognize me, though, because I won’t be asking every person in sight if they have a Little Caesar’s $5 hot stamp for sale. I already have one!!!!

Thanks for putting up with my rambling! I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed re-living it.

And, by the way, if you have any items from Little Caesars that you want to part with, I’m still on the lookout for things I don’t have. Below is a list of what I do have:

All of the chips!
Lucky Ducat tokens
Jackpot Loot bags
Coin redeemable for $5 in slot play
Decks of cards in black, blue, and red
Dice (lots of them!)
Signage
Ink pen
Plastic slot machine
Copy of the gaming license from the State of Nevada
Sports Book ticket
Business card
Paycheck stub
Original photo
Dealer’s apron
Lots of great memories

-Tyrus