Lottery winner Jack Whittaker's losing ticket

Dec 19, 2012, 10:03 am (128 comments)

Jack Whittaker

Jack Whittaker, a 55-year-old contractor from Scott Depot, W. Va., had worked his way up from backcountry poverty to build a water-and-sewer-pipe business that employed over 100 people. He was a millionaire several times over. But when he awoke at 5:45 a.m. on Christmas morning in 2002, everything he'd built in his life held only passing significance next to a scrap of paper in his worn leather wallet — a $1 Powerball lottery ticket bearing the numbers 5, 14, 16, 29, 53, and 7.

Whittaker had purchased his lucky ticket, along with two bacon-stuffed biscuits, at the C&L Super Serve convenience store in the town of Hurricane on Dec. 24, 2002. That night, Whittaker went to bed thinking he'd missed winning the lottery by one digit — only to wake up on Christmas Day to find that the number had been broadcast incorrectly and the winning ticket was in his hand. "I got sick at my stomach, and I just was [at] a loss for words and advice," he later remembered. When he returned to the convenience store on Monday, he quietly told the woman at the cash register he'd won. "No you didn't," she replied. "You're not excited enough to win the lottery."

The day after Christmas, Whittaker put on his Stetson cowboy hat, black suit, and white shirt — he always dressed this way — and appeared on live TV together with his wife Jewel, daughter Ginger, and 15-year-old granddaughter Brandi Bragg, to accept a check for $10 million from West Virginia Governor Bob Wise. It was the first portion of a jackpot that had been building since Halloween. On Christmas Eve, when he bought the ticket, the prize stood at $280 million. A late surge of buyers pushed it to $314.9 million, making Whittaker the winner of the biggest single undivided jackpot in lottery history.

"The very first thing I'm going to do is sit down and make out three checks to three pastors for 10 percent of this check," Whittaker announced in a half-hour press conference watched by many citizens of his state, which, along with 23 others (plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico) is part of the multistate Powerball lottery pool. He also said he planned to rehire 25 workers he'd laid off before Christmas and to fund schools and other programs to help West Virginians better themselves. "Seventeen million in the state of West Virginia will really do good for the poor," he said.

He also had his eye on a helicopter and wanted to send his wife Jewel on a trip to Israel. Bragg, his granddaughter, a beautiful girl with blonde hair, hazel eyes, and her grandfather's broad smile, said she wanted to meet the rap star Nelly and buy a custom blue Mitsubishi Eclipse.

Whittaker's good fortune was immediate and contagious. Larry Trogdon, who owned the C&L, got $100,000 from the lottery for selling the winning ticket. The state would receive approximately $11 million for school and senior-citizen programs from the 6.5 percent tax bite it levied on Whittaker's prize. Whittaker told the biscuit lady at the C&L to pick out a new Jeep, gave her a check for $44,000, and then bought her a house worth $123,000 more. He also made good on his promise to help the poor: He donated $7 million to build two new churches and set up the Jack Whittaker Foundation with an initial grant of $14 million for the purpose of aiding the needy. The Foundation gave money to improve a Little League park and buy playground equipment and coloring books for children. It was also able to help with some of the thousands of requests for aid of every kind that poured in from across the state.

Yet there was something about Whittaker's lottery winnings that felt different from the money he'd earned as a businessman. "I've had to work for everything in my life," he said at that first press conference. "This is the first thing that's ever been given to me."

The state announced Whittaker had won $314.9 million — it said so right on the giant check they gave him on TV — but Whittaker never saw anything near that amount of money. Instead of taking annual installments over 29 years, he chose a one-time payout of $113,386,407.77. After taxes, he was left with about $93 million, approximately 30 percent of the sum reported in the newspapers and advertised by Powerball. The false impression left by reports of Whittaker's record win was nevertheless a powerful lure for West Virginians to keep playing a lottery in which their chances of winning were negligible. (Where New York and Massachusetts, the two biggest lottery-playing states, take a mere 34 percent and 20 percent of the pot from their winners, West Virginia takes a full 41.5 percent.)

There is no shortage of lottery winners who go broke — enough to fill many seasons of reality television — but there was good reason to think that Whittaker, a successful businessman whose journey from rags to riches was the product of self-reliance and hard work, would make good use of his new wealth. The idea that 10 years later he would wish he'd torn up his winning ticket and thrown away the pieces would have struck the man and everyone who knew him as nuts.

Jack Whittaker's downfall began at the Pink Pony strip club in Cross Lanes, W. Va., a crenelated building with pink-frosted stucco walls and black glass doors. The club's unsettling combination of girlish innocence and highway-access-road menace might serve as a metaphor for the lottery winner's inner life. At approximately 5 a.m. on Aug. 5, 2003, Whittaker called the police from the parking lot of the Pink Pony complaining that he'd been drugged and that a substantial sum of money was missing from his Hummer. "There's no confusion on the fact that he didn't have all his faculties," a police spokesman told reporters. Whittaker gave the police a urine sample for analysis, and his private investigator found $545,000 in cash behind a trash bin an hour later; the strip club's manager and his girlfriend were charged with robbing Jack, but were never indicted. "I'm simply a businessman who has seen his share of failures and successes," Whittaker told reporters. "My personal life is my own, and I make no excuses for my actions."

Whittaker's faith that he could handle his enormous lottery winnings with the same qualities of self-reliance, hard work, and aggression that had allowed him to master previous challenges was tragically misplaced. Less than three months after the incident at the Pink Pony, Whittaker was arrested after driving his Hummer into a concrete median on the West Virginia Turnpike. The arresting officer, M.J. Pinardo, reported that he smelled alcohol, but Whittaker refused sobriety tests and became "extremely belligerent." The police found a small pistol and $117,000 in cash on Whittaker. "It doesn't bother me, because I can tell everyone to kiss off," he explained to reporters outside the local courthouse after his arrest. His reply to criticism of his gas-guzzling Hummer was equally succinct: "I won the lottery," he said. "I don't care what it costs."

The cost of Whittaker's insouciance went up sharply the following year. On Jan. 25, 2004, according to a police report, he got drunk, parked his car in the middle of the street, went away, returned to find that $100,000 he had left on the passenger seat was stolen, and was charged with drunken driving when the police arrived. Vernon Jackson Jr., also from Scott's Depot, was indicted on charges including breaking and entering an automobile and grand larceny, but it was also possible to imagine that Jackson had simply taken money Whittaker no longer wanted. After all, he'd left the cash out in plain sight on the passenger seat.

Later, Whittaker was arraigned on charges of trying to assault and threatening to kill Todd Parsons, the manager of Billy Sunday's Bar and Grill in St. Albans, after previously being banned from the establishment. Further lawsuits followed. In March 2004, Whittaker was sued by a floor attendant at the Tri-State Racetrack & Gaming Center in Nitro named Charity Fortner, who claimed he'd forced her head toward his pants while he gambled at the dog track. The suit was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum.

In September 2004 three men broke into Whittaker's home, even as a fourth man lay dead inside. The dead man, Jesse Joe Tribble, 18, had died of a drug overdose, though it was never exactly discovered when. The three burglars — J.C. Shaver, 20, James Travis Willis, 25, and Jeffrey Dustin Campbell, 20 — were captured on Whittaker's security cameras stealing stereo equipment and other valuables. (A wrongful death suit brought by Tribble's family against Whittaker was settled.) The four men were friends of Whittaker's granddaughter, whose spectacular public disintegration soon overshadowed that of Whittaker himself.

Whittaker's transformation from successful businessman and loving grandfather to disheveled and obnoxious strip-club patron took less than two years and alienated many of his friends and family members — beginning with his wife, who soon filed for divorce. While a reflection of Whittaker's own flaws, such personal upheaval is more common than not among jackpot winners, according to Mike Kosnitzky of Boies, Schiller & Flexner, a law firm in New York. Kosnitzky has been involved in the representation of half a dozen large lottery winners; his clients include a former attendant at a parking garage in Midtown Manhattan named Juan Rodriguez, who in 2004 won a Mega Millions jackpot worth $149 million.

In his experience, Kosnitzky says, most lottery winners suffer tremendous guilt as the result of their good fortune; they're also troubled by family members and friends who feel entitled to their winnings and who become angry when they don't get what they feel they deserve. Without access to financially and psychologically sophisticated advice, winners quickly find themselves easy marks for every kind of manipulation and often take refuge in preexisting addictions, which are compounded by seemingly inexhaustible wealth.

Contrasting lottery winners with professional athletes — who are often also from poor backgrounds, and suddenly find themselves blessed with great wealth — Kosnitzky says lottery winners generally do much worse. "With most athletes, there's enough attention on them from an early age that there's a vetting process before that circle is created," he said, pointing out that most professional athletes complete at least a year or two of college. "LeBron James has his friend Maverick [Carter], and they surrounded themselves with educated people who knew every aspect of law, finance, accounting, contract negotiations, and all the things he needed to know to build his brand. A lottery winner doesn't have that. It happens suddenly." Professional sports leagues, Kosnitzky says, are well aware of the perils of sudden wealth and prepare athletes accordingly, adding, "There's no rookie course for lottery winners."

Whittaker's combination of self-reliance, arrogance, and money were particularly dangerous for his granddaughter, a teenage girl whose father had committed suicide when she was small. Bragg's mother, Ginger, Whittaker's only child, had suffered from recurring lymphoma. As a result, the girl had lived off and on with her grandparents and became particularly close to her grandfather. When she got out of school, she telephoned the man she called Paw-Paw to tell him about her day; when she wasn't in school she often came with him to work. In their spare time, one friend told a reporter for the Washington Post, they liked to flop down on Bragg's bed together to watch movies and eat popcorn.

It was Whittaker's dream that Bragg would inherit everything he had amassed; he planned to give all of his companies and associated properties to her when she turned 21. "She was the shining star of my life, and she was what it was all about for me," he later said. "From the day she was born, it was all about providing and protecting and taking care of her."

Whittaker lavished her with money and gifts, including the pale-blue custom-painted Mitsubishi she had wanted and at least four other cars. According to her friends, it wasn't unusual for him to hand Bragg $5,000 in cash to spend in a single day, which didn't bring her happiness but an entourage of drug dealers and petty criminals. Within a year of Whittaker's windfall, Bragg went into rehab for OxyContin addiction, but she quickly relapsed. "They want her for her money and not for her good personality," Whittaker complained a year after his win to a reporter from the Associated Press. "She's the most bitter 16-year-old I know."

Surrounded by enablers and local kids who wanted to share in her wealth, Bragg dropped out of school and spent her days sleeping and shopping and her nights driving aimlessly and buying large quantities of junk food to keep her entourage fed. She also smoked "a lot of crack. Big rocks of crack," according to J.C. Shaver, one of the men who broke into Whittaker's house in September 2004. According to a reporter who peeked inside, the interior of Bragg's Mitsubishi was littered with candy wrappers, soda bottles, DVDs, and loose 5-, 10-, and 20-dollar bills — the change from the stacks of hundreds Whittaker gave her as spending money. Hundred-dollar bills would fly around inside the car and sometimes out the window as she cruised around with friends, one of them recalled. "She doesn't want to be in charge of the money. She doesn't want to inherit the money. She just looks for her next drugs," Whittaker told a reporter in 2004.

He had plenty of problems of his own. At one point, Whittaker estimated that he'd been involved in 460 legal actions since winning the lottery — an estimate quickly superseded by further arrests, along with more lawsuits, some of which were thinly veiled attempts at extortion. His attempts to recover money he'd loaned to friends and acquaintances were often expensive and usually in vain. He was sued by a casino for debts totaling more than $1 million; in a countersuit, Whittaker claimed the casino owed him money — for a new kind of slot machine he'd invented, which they'd promised to buy. In the hope of keeping trouble away, Whittaker hired off-duty sheriffs' deputies to guard his house and serve as bodyguards. The move appears to have discouraged law enforcement from pursuing drunk driving cases. It also reinforced his belief that his lottery wealth had put him beyond the reach of the law.

On Dec. 9, 2004, Whittaker decided to stop fighting a drunk driving charge in court, surrendered his driver's license, and checked himself into rehab. He also called the police to report that Bragg, now 17, had been missing since Dec. 4.

On Dec. 20 a girl's body was found wrapped in a plastic tarp behind a junked van in Scary Creek, an unincorporated area outside the town of St. Albans. The girl's body was in bad enough shape that police needed to use tattoos on the corpse to formally identify her as Bragg. Bragg had pills and a syringe hidden in her bra and cocaine and methadone in her system at the time of her death, which was ruled to be the result of an accidental overdose. Services were held Christmas Eve at the Ronald Meadows Funeral Parlors in Hinton. Jack and Jewel Whittaker sat side by side in a packed funeral home listening to a song by the rapper Nelly. White doves were released at Bragg's graveside.

Things didn't get much better for Whittaker after Bragg's death. In April 2008 his divorce from Jewel was finalized, ending nearly 42 years of marriage. In July of the following year, his daughter Ginger Whittaker Bragg was found dead in her opulent home on Lake Drive in Daniels. She was 42 years old.

On Jan. 25, 2008, Jack Whittaker once again bought a lottery ticket at the C&L convenience store in Hurricane. Lottery spokeswoman Nancy Bulla stated that Whittaker had "matched four numbers plus the Powerball number for a $10,000 prize" — meaning he had been one number off from winning a second mega-million-dollar jackpot. His run of bad luck had not yet ended.

In the ten years since he became the wealthiest lottery winner in history, Whittaker has spoken rarely with the press. There have been reports that he's broke. His name isn't listed in the phone book, and none of his businesses — which include a bewildering variety of names and addresses — seem to be currently operating. At the rural address on the tax returns of the Jack Whittaker Foundation, there's little more than a muddy lot with a few trailers and rows of used construction equipment. At the end of the lot, a small single-story building with a sign on the door reads "Please ring bell for assistance."

In October, I rang the bell and waited in the rain. Through the glass of the door, I could see a photocopied color snapshot of a smiling blonde girl with hazel eyes, whom I recognized as Bragg. The plant by the front desk was dead, and judging by the leaves on the carpet, had been for a while. Around back a man in work clothes was sitting in his Jeep, waiting for the tank to fill up with diesel. "You won't find him here," he said. He offered a rough location for another Whittaker office, half an hour away.

There, opposite a tractor dealership, was a modest house that served as an office. On the license plate of a gold Hummer in the driveway was a picture of a smiling Bragg. I left a note under the door and another note on the windshield of the Hummer.

When I came back the next morning the Hummer was gone. I knocked on the door. Whittaker's secretary was there and let me wait in a set of rooms with a space heater. After half an hour I got back in the car and headed north. Five minutes later, I passed a gold Hummer heading south, with Whittaker behind the wheel. I followed him at high speeds down a two-lane road for a while, until he doubled back toward the house.

I parked by the side of the road and walked up to the door of the house. Whittaker was standing outside by his mailbox and talking with a bearded man in a pickup truck. I nodded, giving him time to finish his conversation, and went inside to wait. Whittaker came in 10 minutes later with the man, whom he introduced as his pastor.

Dressed in his usual black suit, white shirt, and black Stetson hat, his barrel chest protruding over a sizable gut, Whittaker looked like a man who had done battle with the devil in a backwoods ghost story. "Today is my birthday — I'm 65 years old," he said, and then explained his policy of not giving interviews, except for money. I suggested that he'd been through experiences that no sane man would want to go through, that others might benefit from being able to understand, and that was why he should speak to me for free. I told him that his story was an American story, about the belief in luck and the damage people can do while meaning to do good.

He looked me up and down and shrugged. "I don't care what people think I am. That doesn't bother me one bit," he said. "I know who Jack Whittaker is. And some days I don't like who I am." He knew Christmas would be the 10th anniversary of his big win, a thought that seemed to fill him with pride and bitterness. "Yeah, I'm not even the biggest single winner anymore," he said. "Somebody about a month ago won $327 million somewhere, so that kicks me out of the Guinness Book of World Records." The charge for an interview would be $15,000. Otherwise, he said, he wasn't interested in talking.

He kept talking anyway. He hardly needed the money, he explained; reports that he was broke were false. His refusal to give interviews wasn't the result of shame, but rather his response to the lies that have been printed about him and broadcast on TV. "That's the only way that I can live with the way they print things, and if I'm getting paid, they can write whatever they want to about me," he said. "I'll be their whore, I don't care."

He gestured over to a stack of papers on top of a file cabinet. "I got a stack of screenplays this big that people are offering to me about my life, and they all have something wrong with them," he said. "They don't have what's right."

His pastor smiled. Whittaker had built his church and funded his missions to Africa. They went hunting together. He knew that there was good and bad in Whittaker, just as there was good and bad in everyone. "Somebody needs to take it back to the beginning, the old sawmill days, when there was nothing there," he offered. "When you and your dad and them, they built that Mary Jane Church."

"You were a millionaire before you won the lottery, right?" I asked him.

"Nobody knew I had any money," Whittaker said. "All they knew was my good works."

"Life was easier then too, wasn't it," the pastor said, in the instructive tone of voice one might use with a bright but headstrong child.

"Yeah, it was a lot easier then," Whittaker said sadly.

News story photo(Click to display full-size in gallery)

Thanks to lottaballz and Evan for the tip.

Businessweek

Comments

dpoly1's avatardpoly1

Ding Cuckoo!

Kumo's avatarKumo

Won't see me crying for  him, he brought this upon himself.

Moral of the story is, 'Don't be so darn boastful and careless after winning, it will always come back to bite you in the ass!'

Nikkicute's avatarNikkicute

That's what makes this whole story sad...this was a business man, a man who already had money,

a person who worked his way from the ground up. you'd think things would have worked out better for

him than the average joe lottery winner.

noise-gate

The old adage is true " Money, especially vast sums of money reveals who people truly are"
Lottery winners have lost close friends over money.At times so called friend or acquaintances seems to think that if one of them wins, they all entitled to partake of the winnings, when that is rejected- the hatred comes out.
Life tells us that we ought to learn lessons from those who went before- but for some reason there are those people who want to experience it for themselves.
Pain....you gotta love it.

x1kosmic's avatarx1kosmic

Nice Story,

    Losing Ticket  huh, ....  Sure makes You Think

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by x1kosmic on Dec 19, 2012

Nice Story,

    Losing Ticket  huh, ....  Sure makes You Think

He should have just bought the sandwich.

Ronnie316

I wonder how he feels about killing his family members??

Ronnie316

Jack Whittaker is my Whore............ 

Scott311

If any members of Lottery Post win the jackpot,Todd would like a new Corvette.Cheers

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by Scott311 on Dec 19, 2012

If any members of Lottery Post win the jackpot,Todd would like a new Corvette.Cheers

lol. lol. I think we can be quite certain that post was NOT endorsed by Todd...... lol.lol.

Ronnie316

I would anyone here should be happy to give him the exclusive story.

(except for those who will go into remote seclusion, of course)

Artist77's avatarArtist77

If JW is looking for a screenwriter for his life story, he needs to hire the writer of this article.

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

The surprising thing about Whittaker's crash and burn is that he was already a self made millionaire.

One would think that he would be better at managing money, unlike say, David Edwards who was a failure to begin with.

The stupidest part is carrying gobs of cash around,

my guess is people

like Bill Gates, Warren Buffet and even Jimmy Buffet don't even have $100.00 in their pocket.

The saddest part is the grand-daughter,  4 cars, really ?  $ 5000.00 cash spending $ for 1 day, really ?

Artist77's avatarArtist77

Quote: Originally posted by haymaker on Dec 19, 2012

The surprising thing about Whittaker's crash and burn is that he was already a self made millionaire.

One would think that he would be better at managing money, unlike say, David Edwards who was a failure to begin with.

The stupidest part is carrying gobs of cash around,

my guess is people

like Bill Gates, Warren Buffet and even Jimmy Buffet don't even have $100.00 in their pocket.

The saddest part is the grand-daughter,  4 cars, really ?  $ 5000.00 cash spending $ for 1 day, really ?

You give a teenager money like that and with limited things to do in a small town and likely little interest in school and no adult monitoring, you are asking for trouble,

Seattlejohn

Sorry, no sale.  I have no sympathy for this guy at all.  All of his problems (lawsuits, rehab, arrests, divorce, death of his grand-daughter, loss of money, etc) were all self induced.  His arrogance & need to have people think of him as a bigshot is what fueled his demise; it's all on him...

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

Quote: Originally posted by Seattlejohn on Dec 19, 2012

Sorry, no sale.  I have no sympathy for this guy at all.  All of his problems (lawsuits, rehab, arrests, divorce, death of his grand-daughter, loss of money, etc) were all self induced.  His arrogance & need to have people think of him as a bigshot is what fueled his demise; it's all on him...

I think you drove that nail w/1 shot.

Todd's avatarTodd

Quote: Originally posted by Scott311 on Dec 19, 2012

If any members of Lottery Post win the jackpot,Todd would like a new Corvette.Cheers

Well, there is a new model of Corvette coming out in 2013.  Idea

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Todd on Dec 19, 2012

Well, there is a new model of Corvette coming out in 2013.  Idea

LOL

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

Quote: Originally posted by Todd on Dec 19, 2012

Well, there is a new model of Corvette coming out in 2013.  Idea

C7 ? 

Can you go and build your own engine ?

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by Todd on Dec 19, 2012

Well, there is a new model of Corvette coming out in 2013.  Idea

Nice choice, and lets hope it comes with the Vader voice GPS for those tricky "round-abounds" lol. lol.

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by haymaker on Dec 19, 2012

The surprising thing about Whittaker's crash and burn is that he was already a self made millionaire.

One would think that he would be better at managing money, unlike say, David Edwards who was a failure to begin with.

The stupidest part is carrying gobs of cash around,

my guess is people

like Bill Gates, Warren Buffet and even Jimmy Buffet don't even have $100.00 in their pocket.

The saddest part is the grand-daughter,  4 cars, really ?  $ 5000.00 cash spending $ for 1 day, really ?

I Agree! A Fool and his money are soon parted. No Pity!

 

 

i think he said he bought $100.00+ per week in lottery tickets.

JakpotRetiree2b

Quote: Originally posted by helpmewin on Dec 19, 2012

I Agree! A Fool and his money are soon parted. No Pity!

 

 

i think he said he bought $100.00+ per week in lottery tickets.

$100/week is nothing for someone carrying around sacks of cash with $100k plus in them and just blowing it at strip clubs...

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by JakpotRetiree2b on Dec 19, 2012

$100/week is nothing for someone carrying around sacks of cash with $100k plus in them and just blowing it at strip clubs...

no i mean before he won, are you talking before or after???

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

Quote: Originally posted by JakpotRetiree2b on Dec 19, 2012

$100/week is nothing for someone carrying around sacks of cash with $100k plus in them and just blowing it at strip clubs...

My point was that ppl. that are smart w/$ don't carry much on their person,

they don't need to, they have good credit everywhere.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by JakpotRetiree2b on Dec 19, 2012

$100/week is nothing for someone carrying around sacks of cash with $100k plus in them and just blowing it at strip clubs...

Right, he would have done BETTER if he had hired people to fill out play slips all day long.

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by haymaker on Dec 19, 2012

My point was that ppl. that are smart w/$ don't carry much on their person,

they don't need to, they have good credit everywhere.

I Agree!            i say hide all the money under your  Bed

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by helpmewin on Dec 19, 2012

I Agree!            i say hide all the money under your  Bed

I say spend it on stuff you can sell later if you need to......... LOL

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 19, 2012

Right, he would have done BETTER if he had hired people to fill out play slips all day long.

ronnie, you can just tell them to run your same ticket 50 times.Hyper

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 19, 2012

I say spend it on stuff you can sell later if you need to......... LOL

think about it no one is going to look under your bed if someone breaks in your house.

 

hmmmm lets look under the bed Thud

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by helpmewin on Dec 19, 2012

ronnie, you can just tell them to run your same ticket 50 times.Hyper

@ 98,820 lines per MM draw, it would take 101 draws to spend $10 million.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 19, 2012

@ 98,820 lines per MM draw, it would take 101 draws to spend $10 million.

Jack gave more than $10 million away to his local churches before he even started to wildly spend the rest.

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 19, 2012

@ 98,820 lines per MM draw, it would take 101 draws to spend $10 million.

Thumbs Upwhatever you wanna do.Noel

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 19, 2012

Jack gave more than $10 million away to his local churches before he even started to wildly spend the rest.

 Blue Angel

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by helpmewin on Dec 19, 2012

Thumbs Upwhatever you wanna do.Noel

Not me angel face, Jack would have been BETTER off starting a gambling enterprise......... 

He could have made his grand-daughter earn a pay check for filling out play slips instead of drugging her to death with cash that she didn't have to earn........

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 19, 2012

Not me angel face, Jack would have been BETTER off starting a gambling enterprise......... 

He could have made his grand-daughter earn a pay check for filling out play slips instead of drugging her to death with cash that she didn't have to earn........

no commentApprove

HaveABall's avatarHaveABall

Well, it appears that Jack Whittaker is currently in the healthiest mental position that he's possessed in over a decade.  He's not grasping for sympathy, he understands it's unimportant.

It's fascinating that Jack continued to gamble big, during and after his huge jackpot win; yet within 2 years indicated that he wished he hadn't received the $53M net (or so after rapid fed & state income taxes, tithes, donations, gifted vehicles and houses, huge 'monetary gifts' to family and friends, etc.).  Maybe things would have been different if Jack had INSTEAD been satisfied with these Powerball jackpot win millions, closed his multi-million annual revenue businesses, helped his daughter with the lymphoma and husband's surprise departure, helped his granddaughter to choose and conquer high school courses, and created daily hobbies for all of his family members to share efforts in.  Then his daughter wouldn't have needed outside "friends/acquaintances."

It's also fascinating that Jack almost won a 2nd Powerball Jackpot win 5.1 years later!!! -- I wonder if that first and/or Second big Powerball win were 'quick-picks'?  If not, I wonder if Jack is one of the most rarest and exciting types of psychic w/number sequences people that are not-for-hire?

Jack-in-the-Box

Ronnie316

                  Blue Angel

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by HaveABall on Dec 19, 2012

Well, it appears that Jack Whittaker is currently in the healthiest mental position that he's possessed in over a decade.  He's not grasping for sympathy, he understands it's unimportant.

It's fascinating that Jack continued to gamble big, during and after his huge jackpot win; yet within 2 years indicated that he wished he hadn't received the $53M net (or so after rapid fed & state income taxes, tithes, donations, gifted vehicles and houses, huge 'monetary gifts' to family and friends, etc.).  Maybe things would have been different if Jack had INSTEAD been satisfied with these Powerball jackpot win millions, closed his multi-million annual revenue businesses, helped his daughter with the lymphoma and husband's surprise departure, helped his granddaughter to choose and conquer high school courses, and created daily hobbies for all of his family members to share efforts in.  Then his daughter wouldn't have needed outside "friends/acquaintances."

It's also fascinating that Jack almost won a 2nd Powerball Jackpot win 5.1 years later!!! -- I wonder if that first and/or Second big Powerball win were 'quick-picks'?  If not, I wonder if Jack is one of the most rarest and exciting types of psychic w/number sequences people that are not-for-hire?

Jack-in-the-Box

I think he should start taking gambling MUCH more seriously.........

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Todd on Dec 19, 2012

Well, there is a new model of Corvette coming out in 2013.  Idea

How Much ?Money 2

HaveABall's avatarHaveABall

I have BIG appreciation, helpmewin, for your cool looking money counting icon!!! Lovies

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by helpmewin on Dec 19, 2012

How Much ?Money 2

You have to get the ZR1 Coupe if you want to spend $111,600. but no one pays MSRP......

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by helpmewin on Dec 19, 2012

How Much ?Money 2

The base model is $49,600.

Ronnie316

Now my computer thinks I want a Corvette, and keeps suggesting that I buy one. lol. lol.

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 19, 2012

Now my computer thinks I want a Corvette, and keeps suggesting that I buy one. lol. lol.

i wonder what it looks like? oh have they built them yet?

 

wonder what color he will choose? Smiley Santa

Artist77's avatarArtist77

Quote: Originally posted by haymaker on Dec 19, 2012

My point was that ppl. that are smart w/$ don't carry much on their person,

they don't need to, they have good credit everywhere.

I rarely have more than $20 on me.  If I won the lottery, I would still do the same.

Artist77's avatarArtist77

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 19, 2012

Not me angel face, Jack would have been BETTER off starting a gambling enterprise......... 

He could have made his grand-daughter earn a pay check for filling out play slips instead of drugging her to death with cash that she didn't have to earn........

I agree. Idle hands.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by helpmewin on Dec 19, 2012

i wonder what it looks like? oh have they built them yet?

 

wonder what color he will choose? Smiley Santa

One can only surmise what Darth Vader would drive.......................

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 19, 2012

One can only surmise what Darth Vader would drive.......................

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 19, 2012

One can only surmise what Darth Vader would drive.......................

That looks like a el vette dorodo !

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

Quote: Originally posted by Artist77 on Dec 19, 2012

I rarely have more than $20 on me.  If I won the lottery, I would still do the same.

I don't have more than $100 unless I'm on the way to use it, (race track) but I like to keep some at home,

when the juice goes out cash is king.

May not be a problem for you, but before I lived here I never seen the power go out so often.

Artist77's avatarArtist77

Quote: Originally posted by haymaker on Dec 19, 2012

I don't have more than $100 unless I'm on the way to use it, (race track) but I like to keep some at home,

when the juice goes out cash is king.

May not be a problem for you, but before I lived here I never seen the power go out so often.

Yea power issues have been common here the last several years. After the last fiasco, I focused on getting emergency supplies like a camping stove, little camping pots, even an outdoor coffee pot, small propane tanks, water storage, solar charger for cell phone, etc. Money is useless here (too many people) since everyone is on the roads looking for some place open (and living near the Pentagon we are all supposed to be ready to "shelter in place.") I could not even get onto the main road last time and out of my neighborhood (had to turn around and make coffee from the hot sink water...was not too bad).

jeffrey's avatarjeffrey

Quote: Originally posted by Kumo on Dec 19, 2012

Won't see me crying for  him, he brought this upon himself.

Moral of the story is, 'Don't be so darn boastful and careless after winning, it will always come back to bite you in the ass!'

boo hoo, i was praying to win to pay for life saving transplants for my mother and little brother who were poisoned by government toxic waste dumps of waste yellow cake uranium and carbon tetrachloride. they died screaming in pain and this sob spent hois windfall on sex, gambling and drugs. you make your bed and you have to sleep in it. there is another lottery, maybe he can win that too and fritter it away. losers seek to spend money, winners use it to accomplish something. who needs more stuff. possessions are chains and you can't take them with you. imagine all the good that could have been done but that opportunity is lost. it was his money but don't ask me to think about how sad he is to have won the lottery. he shouldn't have bought a ticket, it ruined him. give me his opportunity, i won't waste it.Rant

sully16's avatarsully16

Thats a very long story, this man has had ups and downs.

balyanango

Incidentally, the excact tenth anniversary of Whittaker's hapless Xmas lotto win falls on this coming Tuesday. When we play the Mega which falls on this day, we shall have Whittaker in our thoughts. However, the tenth anniversary of Whittaker's lotto win for Powerball falls on the following day, Boxing day, on Wednesday, the 26th.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by sully16 on Dec 20, 2012

Thats a very long story, this man has had ups and downs.

Long story is right, and Ive read his story before........

It was worth reading though even if just to learn that he doesn't mind been a whore for those who choose to write about him. Funny that he will charge $1500. for an interview and NOT consider himself a "whore" when he is getting paid.... I suppose in that case he has promoted himself to prostitute......What?

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by balyanango on Dec 20, 2012

Incidentally, the excact tenth anniversary of Whittaker's hapless Xmas lotto win falls on this coming Tuesday. When we play the Mega which falls on this day, we shall have Whittaker in our thoughts. However, the tenth anniversary of Whittaker's lotto win for Powerball falls on the following day, Boxing day, on Wednesday, the 26th.

Really? Who is boxing on the 26th?

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by Artist77 on Dec 19, 2012

Yea power issues have been common here the last several years. After the last fiasco, I focused on getting emergency supplies like a camping stove, little camping pots, even an outdoor coffee pot, small propane tanks, water storage, solar charger for cell phone, etc. Money is useless here (too many people) since everyone is on the roads looking for some place open (and living near the Pentagon we are all supposed to be ready to "shelter in place.") I could not even get onto the main road last time and out of my neighborhood (had to turn around and make coffee from the hot sink water...was not too bad).

Sorry to hear. Could be somewhat adventurous though?

Electricity and sunshine is something we take for granted in AZ....... Dance

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by haymaker on Dec 19, 2012

I don't have more than $100 unless I'm on the way to use it, (race track) but I like to keep some at home,

when the juice goes out cash is king.

May not be a problem for you, but before I lived here I never seen the power go out so often.

I think its been about 10 years since anyone wrecked into a power poll bad enough to cause an outage.

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 20, 2012

Really? Who is boxing on the 26th?

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by helpmewin on Dec 20, 2012

         Thumbs Up

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 20, 2012

         Thumbs Up

                Yes Nod

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 20, 2012

                Yes Nod

                       LOL

rdgrnr's avatarrdgrnr

I feel sorry for the guy.

Just my nature I guess.

Wife gone, daughter dead, grandaughter dead.

I'm sure no one could condemn him more than he condemns himself for his actions.

But he did a few good things too and he's still a human being and I hope his life improves.

Nikkicute's avatarNikkicute

This is the most detailed story I ever read about good old Jack, I read every word.

The story on how it all went bad never gets old for me, so many lessons on what NOT to do.

Thanks TODD!!

PrisonerSix

ThisThe police found a small pistol and $117,000 in cash on Whittaker. "It doesn't bother me, because I can tell everyone to kiss off," he explained to reporters outside the local courthouse after his arrest.

I think having this attitude was the underlying cause of all of his problems.

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by PrisonerSix on Dec 20, 2012

ThisThe police found a small pistol and $117,000 in cash on Whittaker. "It doesn't bother me, because I can tell everyone to kiss off," he explained to reporters outside the local courthouse after his arrest.

I think having this attitude was the underlying cause of all of his problems.

I Agree!

Cletu$2's avatarCletu$2

Quote: Originally posted by PrisonerSix on Dec 20, 2012

ThisThe police found a small pistol and $117,000 in cash on Whittaker. "It doesn't bother me, because I can tell everyone to kiss off," he explained to reporters outside the local courthouse after his arrest.

I think having this attitude was the underlying cause of all of his problems.

You can't fix stupid!

No matter how much money you have.

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Cletu$2 on Dec 21, 2012

You can't fix stupid!

No matter how much money you have.

I Agree!

fwlawrence's avatarfwlawrence

I'm going to do something stupid. In "honor" of Jack winning the Powerball 10 years ago, I will play those same numbers for the Wednesday the 26th.

rdgrnr's avatarrdgrnr

"... West Virginia takes a full 41.5 percent.)"

That's highway robbery. That's just plain wrong.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by PrisonerSix on Dec 20, 2012

ThisThe police found a small pistol and $117,000 in cash on Whittaker. "It doesn't bother me, because I can tell everyone to kiss off," he explained to reporters outside the local courthouse after his arrest.

I think having this attitude was the underlying cause of all of his problems.

That's what alcohol problems do to people...........

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by Cletu$2 on Dec 21, 2012

You can't fix stupid!

No matter how much money you have.

Jack should go to one of the places he gave money to and follow their advice........

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 21, 2012

That's what alcohol problems do to people...........

Green laugh

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 21, 2012

Jack should go to one of the places he gave money to and follow their advice........

Crazy

Ronnie316

Yeah, people like Jack like to tell people what to do without EVER being told what to do.... lol. lol.

Ronnie316

Not that I'm an expert on Jack Whitetaker, but drinking and thinking don't mix.........

Ronnie316

                            Crazy

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 21, 2012

Yeah, people like Jack like to tell people what to do without EVER being told what to do.... lol. lol.

                                             

Ronnie316

                                                       No Nod

HaveABall's avatarHaveABall

Quote: Originally posted by helpmewin on Dec 21, 2012

                                             

Another cool emoticon! Mail For You

helpmewin's avatarhelpmewin

Quote: Originally posted by HaveABall on Dec 21, 2012

Another cool emoticon! Mail For You

Big Grin Santa

RJOh's avatarRJOh

At least this Christmas no one will be getting a big lottery check with hundreds of folks wanting their share of their free money.  Those folks will have to hit up their family, friends and communities with their sad stories. 

Merry Christmas Jack.          Big Grin Santa

balyanango

Quote: Originally posted by Kumo on Dec 19, 2012

Won't see me crying for  him, he brought this upon himself.

Moral of the story is, 'Don't be so darn boastful and careless after winning, it will always come back to bite you in the ass!'

This guy Jack, incidentally hit 7 as the red ball that sealed his luck/misfortune in that lotto game. 7 is considered to be a very lucky number, while 13 is considered to be the unluckiest  of numbers. In my life it seems 13 has hovered much in life, although it could also be a very lucky number. I have won a few Megamillion games with 13 as the golden number. 7 also can prove to be a very unlucky number as our friend Jack has found out the very hardest of ways over the past decade since he won that Jackpot. I think Jack's ordeal should be made into a movie. I strongly believe that movie should be a very big hit and Jack may recover some of his misplaced lotto millions of dols in the process.

leilamiller

Lies, lies.

J.W bought not 1 dollar Powerball, but

100 tickets by 1 dollar each. 

He spend tens and tens millions to the charity and churches.

his jackpot money was 114 million USD AFTER taxes.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by leilamiller on Dec 23, 2012

Lies, lies.

J.W bought not 1 dollar Powerball, but

100 tickets by 1 dollar each. 

He spend tens and tens millions to the charity and churches.

his jackpot money was 114 million USD AFTER taxes.

He gave 10% to the church.

Ronnie316

He also killed people by giving them too much money.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by RJOh on Dec 23, 2012

At least this Christmas no one will be getting a big lottery check with hundreds of folks wanting their share of their free money.  Those folks will have to hit up their family, friends and communities with their sad stories. 

Merry Christmas Jack.          Big Grin Santa

Jack voluntarily handed money over to dope addicts who killed themselves with it.

Ronnie316

                               

ttech10's avatarttech10

Quote: Originally posted by Nikkicute on Dec 19, 2012

That's what makes this whole story sad...this was a business man, a man who already had money,

a person who worked his way from the ground up. you'd think things would have worked out better for

him than the average joe lottery winner.

Look at people like Chris Shaw ($258m on PB), Holly Lahti ($190m on MM) and Neal Wanless ($232m on PB). The three are doing great today and given their backgrounds, I think many assumed they would have problems.

 

This is why I can't exactly feel too bad for Whittaker. The lottery isn't a curse and people from all financial backgrounds can and have made the most of their win. The difference with Jack is he wanted to flaunt his money around and throw it at everything out there. He thought money was the answer to everything.

addai1516's avataraddai1516

Terrible lost jack , you have to listen and sorrond yourself to wise people .u still human but once his attitude change Thats gonna help him through .

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by ttech10 on Dec 23, 2012

Look at people like Chris Shaw ($258m on PB), Holly Lahti ($190m on MM) and Neal Wanless ($232m on PB). The three are doing great today and given their backgrounds, I think many assumed they would have problems.

 

This is why I can't exactly feel too bad for Whittaker. The lottery isn't a curse and people from all financial backgrounds can and have made the most of their win. The difference with Jack is he wanted to flaunt his money around and throw it at everything out there. He thought money was the answer to everything.

Perhaps he thought money was the answer to nothing, and that's why he threw it all away??

RJOh's avatarRJOh

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 23, 2012

He also killed people by giving them too much money.

Just another reason a lottery jackpot winner shouldn't be too anxious to share his winnings, even with family members.  A lot of people can't handle spending more money than they've worked for.

DC81's avatarDC81

Quote: Originally posted by RJOh on Dec 24, 2012

Just another reason a lottery jackpot winner shouldn't be too anxious to share his winnings, even with family members.  A lot of people can't handle spending more money than they've worked for.

This!

Though after all this time it still boggles my mind that he thought it a good idea to give his teenage grand daughter such a stupid amount of money.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by RJOh on Dec 24, 2012

Just another reason a lottery jackpot winner shouldn't be too anxious to share his winnings, even with family members.  A lot of people can't handle spending more money than they've worked for.

I Agree! Most people think money will solve all their problems and it wont.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by DC81 on Dec 26, 2012

This!

Though after all this time it still boggles my mind that he thought it a good idea to give his teenage grand daughter such a stupid amount of money.

I Agree! I think of Jack as a stone cold killer.........

Simba774

The only tragedy was Brandi overdosing. Someone put her body there.  Who did? We may never know. There are many folks who made money the old fashion way and lost it. Yes, these people went to Ivy League schools. Most people who started a business was poor. In order for a family to be rich someone has to make the money first, so I never believed it had anything to do with what kinda of family your were born into or how much education you have.  Anyone can be a fool with money, but what's so odd about Whittaker is that he didn't go wild with the millions he made! Brandi wasn't given thousands of dollars a week back then. Maybe Jack thought, "Well, I'm rich and God just made be richer, so I'm King of the World!"

balyanango

Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on Dec 20, 2012

Really? Who is boxing on the 26th?

The day after Christmas outside of the USA, that is December 26 is considered to be Boxing day, that is when people presumably throw away the gift boxes they have accumulated leading to Christmas. Oftentimes, the day remains a public holiday like Christmas.

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by balyanango on Dec 27, 2012

The day after Christmas outside of the USA, that is December 26 is considered to be Boxing day, that is when people presumably throw away the gift boxes they have accumulated leading to Christmas. Oftentimes, the day remains a public holiday like Christmas.

Is that why the dumpster is so full.......What?

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by Simba774 on Dec 26, 2012

The only tragedy was Brandi overdosing. Someone put her body there.  Who did? We may never know. There are many folks who made money the old fashion way and lost it. Yes, these people went to Ivy League schools. Most people who started a business was poor. In order for a family to be rich someone has to make the money first, so I never believed it had anything to do with what kinda of family your were born into or how much education you have.  Anyone can be a fool with money, but what's so odd about Whittaker is that he didn't go wild with the millions he made! Brandi wasn't given thousands of dollars a week back then. Maybe Jack thought, "Well, I'm rich and God just made be richer, so I'm King of the World!"

The way I remember the full story, Brandi WAS given a least $1000. per week for her and her "friends"

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by addai1516 on Dec 24, 2012

Terrible lost jack , you have to listen and sorrond yourself to wise people .u still human but once his attitude change Thats gonna help him through .

I Agree! Time for Jack to stop being a bar fly..........

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by RJOh on Dec 24, 2012

Just another reason a lottery jackpot winner shouldn't be too anxious to share his winnings, even with family members.  A lot of people can't handle spending more money than they've worked for.

               I Agree!

supra27

Quote: Originally posted by Scott311 on Dec 19, 2012

If any members of Lottery Post win the jackpot,Todd would like a new Corvette.Cheers

Nice!!  I have my eye on the 2013 Cadillac CTS-V, silver with black rims!

If somebody wins,please buy me a car ,too.Dance

Ronnie316

Quote: Originally posted by supra27 on Dec 27, 2012

Nice!!  I have my eye on the 2013 Cadillac CTS-V, silver with black rims!

If somebody wins,please buy me a car ,too.Dance

                              I Agree!

Ronnie316

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