Kerry Packer was born in December, 1937, in Sydney, Australia to Sir Frank Packer<\/a> and Gretel Bullmore. Packer\u2019s early childhood was spent living through World War Two and the widespread fear of a Japanese invasion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Following\nJapanese submarine attacks on Sydney harbor during May and June 1942, Packer\nwas sent to live with an aunt in Bowral, a remote town in the New South Wales\nSouthern Highlands. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It was during\nPacker\u2019s stay in Bowral that he fell ill, contracting polio and spending nine\nmonths in hospital as a result. After leaving the hospital Packer moved to\nCanberra for two years where he slowly regained his full strength. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Packer\u2019s\nprolonged absence from education meant that he struggled upon returning to\nschool in Sydney. Undiagnosed dyslexia made catching up all but impossible and\nPacker was soon labeled \u201cthe family idiot\u201d by his father. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Cruel nicknames\nof this kind were not uncommon, and Packer struggled to develop close\nrelationships with either of his parents. He often put this down to his parents\nbeing extremely busy people, who prioritized work and the war effort above\nparenting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Packer never spoke ill of his parents and was quick to describe his father as firm but fair in an interview<\/a> transcribed by Inside Story: \u201cSo, what was my father? What were my feelings towards him? I was a bit scared of him. He was a strong man. He was a just man.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although Packer\nalways maintained that his father was a good man, other people described Sir\nFrank Packer as a monster, prone to drunken rages. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Many have\nsuggested that Packer suffered both physical and psychological abuse from his\nparents, which may have affected him throughout his adult life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Kerry Packer\nwas not a self-made man, receiving the entirety of his father\u2019s AU$100 million media\nempire upon his death in 1974. <\/p>\n\n\n\n At the time of inheritance,\nthe empire was made up of two television stations, a number of radio stations,\nmultiple provincial newspapers, and the country\u2019s largest magazine publishing\ncompany. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Famously,\nPacker only received this inheritance because his older brother Clyde was\nwritten out of his father\u2019s will following a dispute that occurred two years\nbefore Sir Frank\u2019s death. <\/p>\n\n\n\n After taking\nover the reins aged 37 Packer rapidly proved himself an effective businessman,\nexpanding his father\u2019s empire to include property development businesses whilst\nalso investing heavily in cattle ranching. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet, the media\nbusiness remained Packer\u2019s bread and butter and this industry was the basis of his\nmost famous business deal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The first part of the deal came in 1987, a time when Australian TV stations were skyrocketing in value. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Packer decided to sell his station The Nine Network to fellow high flier Alan Bond for a staggering AU$1 billion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The second part\nof the deal occurred a mere three years later when Packer bought the station\nback from a financially struggling Bond for a paltry AU$200 million and netting\nan incredible AU$800 million profit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Afterwards he\nwas infamously recorded saying \u201cYou only get one\nAlan Bond in your lifetime, and I’ve had mine.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Knowing when to buy and when to sell defined Packer\u2019s career, and consistently landing on the right side of deals saw him become Australia’s richest person and the 94th<\/a> wealthiest individual in the world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n His estimated net worth peaked at over $5 billion, whilst his land\nholdings amounted to an area the size of Belgium. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It may be hard\nto believe now, but in the 1970s few people thought cricket had serious\ncommercial potential. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Games were slow\nand grinding, very little revenue was making it to the players and, consequently,\nmany of them were struggling to make ends meet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It came as some\nsurprise then, when Packer\u2019s bid to secure exclusive broadcasting rights for\nAustralia\u2019s 1976 test matches was rejected by the Australian Cricket Board,\ndespite it being an exceedingly generous offer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Not one to\naccept rejection gracefully, Packer responded by creating his own cricketing\nseries, World Series Cricket, which he designed to maximize the commercial\npotential of the sport. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Using his formidable wealth Packer contracted a number of the globe\u2019s foremost cricketing stars, including English captain Tony Grieg. With these players in tow Packer created several international teams that played each other across two seasons in 1977-78 and 1978-79.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As World Series\nCricket was unbound by laws and traditions, Packer changed the game to make it\nmore broadcaster friendly and marketable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Matches were\nshortened from five day tests to one day internationals and games were played\nduring both day and night, a format that has proved popular ever since. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Helmets,\nbrightly colored uniforms and professional level salaries were also all\nimplemented by World Series Cricket and have since become standard for nearly\nall forms of cricket. <\/p>\n\n\n\n After the\n1978-79 season, World Series Cricket was terminated in a deal that saw Packer\u2019s\nChannel Nine awarded exclusive rights to Australian Test Cricket, as well as an\nunheard of 10-year promotion and marketing contract. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Packer\u2019s\ninfluence on the game was never forgotten and a minute’s silence was held\nbefore the second day of the Australia vs South Africa test match after the\nworld learned of his death. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Even\nthough Kerry Packer dominated the business world and reshaped an entire sport\nhe will be mainly remembered as a sensational gambler. <\/p>\n\n\n\n His\nexploits were largely due to his immense wealth, as Packer could afford to make\nbets that other people can only dream of. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In\nfact, Packer was seen as the biggest gambler in the world for much of his life,\nand his appearance was known to make many a casino manager weak at the knees\nwith a mixture of both hope and fear. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Packer\u2019s favored game was baccarat<\/a>, and his regular haunts included the MGM Grand, Bellagio and the exclusive Crockford\u2019s in London. <\/p>\n\n\n\n At\nthe latter, Packer made an unwanted piece of history, breaking the record for\nthe biggest ever gambling loss to occur in Britain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Over a three-day losing streak Packer lost $16.5 million<\/strong>, taking the record from Frank Saracakis, who lost $13 million playing roulette<\/a> at the very same casino.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You win some, you lose some as the old saying goes, and Packer certainly won his fair share. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps\nhis greatest gambling win took place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas where he\nwon $20 million in 40 minutes<\/strong>. An amazing feat only made possible because\nPacker was placing $250,000 bets across eight tables simultaneously<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Of\ncourse, betting of this magnitude can have massive impacts on the casinos\nthemselves and a visit by Packer could transform a casino\u2019s fortunes – for\nbetter or for worse. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If\nhe lost big, the companies that owned the casino would see their stock rise on\nWall Street. However, if Packer won, the casino might find itself strapped for\ncash. <\/p>\n\n\n\n On\nmore than one occasion Packer was politely asked by management to go and gamble\nelsewhere while the house recovered. An embarrassing conversation for any\ncasino manager to have, and one that Packer reportedly relished. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Regardless of whether he won or not, Packer always found the time – and the money – to tip<\/a> the staff serving him. From buying a car for a casino valet, to paying off a cocktail waitress\u2019 $130,000 mortgage, his generosity was widely known.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However,\nPacker\u2019s gratuities, whilst large, were not always straightforward. <\/p>\n\n\n\n His favorite way of spicing things up was to bet on behalf of the dealer. In one instance Packer bet a $100,000 tip on a game of blackjack<\/a> and duly won to the immense excitement of all the casino\u2019s staff. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Tips\nof this magnitude was something unheard of, as explained by former executive at\nWynn Casino, Paul Weintraub: “He was the biggest tipper ever in this city.\nNo one has ever made a $100,000 bet for a dealer except him. I just think he\nwas very generous.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Clearly,\nPacker was a man who liked to let his gambling do the talking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n An attitude that was perfectly illustrated in a story told by Mirage Resorts President, Bobby Baldwin. According to Baldwin<\/a>, Packer was playing cards at a table in the Bellagio, when a loud and obnoxious Texan asked to join his table. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite\nPacker\u2019s refusal the Texan continued to insist, stating: \u201cI\u2019m a big player too.\nI\u2019m worth $100 million.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Packer\nfished a coin from his pocket and turned to face the man before saying coolly,\n\u201cIf you really want to gamble, I\u2019ll flip you for it.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Needless\nto say, the Texan did not take him up on the offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Towards the end\nof his life Kerry Packer was very unwell, having suffered from at least four\nheart attacks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n One of these, which occurred while he was playing polo, left Packer clinically dead for seven minutes. After being resuscitated by paramedics he duly donated AU$2.5 million<\/a> to the health service to ensure all New South Wales ambulances were equipped with defibrillators. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Packer also\nsuffered from extensive kidney trouble in later life, a chronic condition which\nwas briefly improved when his long-standing helicopter pilot, Nick Ross,\ngenerously donated Packer a kidney. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite these\nmedical interventions Packer\u2019s ill health eventually caught up with him, and he\npassed away on December 26, 2005, at the age of 68. <\/p>\n\n\n\n He was awarded\na state memorial service which took place at the Sydney Opera house. His son\nJames, actor Russel Crowe, and Prime Minister John Howard all gave speeches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Packer was\nsurvived by his wife Roslyn, son James and daughter Gretel, all of whom he had\nan extremely close relationship with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u2018all in\u2019 approach Kerry Packer took to life has meant his influence is still being felt today, 17 years after his death. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The continued rise of short form cricket and its increasing popularity in broadcasting being just one example. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps most fittingly for a gambler of his stature, the Packer name once again made headlines recently as Crown Sydney \u2013 the casino dream of son James dating back 10 years, but one he was not able to realize \u2013 will finally open in August after being granted a license<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whilst this new\ncasino is sure to attract gamblers from around the world, no one expects it to\ncater for a gambler of his father\u2019s legendary caliber. <\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"Frank](\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Frank_Packer.jpeg\")
Building\nAustralia\u2019s Biggest Fortune<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Alan](\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/alan-bond.jpeg\")
Packer\nRevolutionizes Cricket<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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![\"Kerry](\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1977-world-series-cricket.jpeg\")
The Highest Of\nRollers <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Kerry](\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/kerry-packer-casino.jpeg\")
Kerry Packer\u2019s\nPassing<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Packer Legend Lives On<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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