Star Wars At Odds With Bookies

An Internet-based bookmaker is giving Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace odds of 1-20 that the sci-fi epic will trounce The Lost World: Jurassic Park's 1997 opening-weekend record of $92.73 million. Good news for the film, diabolical for the punters who stand to get only one dollar for every 20 put down - of course, this is in the Caribbean. The line has been established by the Caribbean-based, Internet betting site Intertops. It is of course illegal in the United States to bet on anything other than sports or racing. Though some Las Vegas firms do publish odds for such film-related events as the Oscars, but they're always marked "for entertainment purposes only." Other bets - risky though they may be - available to punters are betting whether the film comes in under or over $115 million on its opening weekend (10-11). And for the truly stupid, 17-1 odds say that Phantom Menace will not beat the record. A bet surely not even the Rebels would gamble on...