Lionel Olay Character Analysis

Duke’s rich friend from Big Sur who won big at a casino in Reno three weekends in a row. On the fourth weekend, Lionel was invited back to the casino by the General Manager—all expenses paid—but by the end of the weekend, Lionel was $30,000 down. Lionel was forced to sell his business and was savagely beaten by “the world’s heaviest collection agency,” but still couldn’t cover his debt. “Gambling,” Duke says, “is a very heavy business—and Las Vegas makes Reno seem like your friendly neighborhood grocery store.” As Duke considers a casino in Vegas an example of the American Dream, Thompson implies that the American Dream is likewise rigged and largely unobtainable.