He even tried to build a plane big enough to carry him, using war surplus weather balloons that were powered by natural gas.

He was the neighborhood kid responsible for mysterious blasts that shattered concrete or sent contrails into the sky. Thorp began a lifelong love affair with the public library and learned to make gunpowder and nitroglycerine from everyday products he could buy at a supermarket or drug store. Because he was the smallest kid in his class, he befriended the biggest one similar to the plot in 'My Bodyguard' and the kid became his protector. In school, he became so bored with his classes that his teachers moved him ahead a couple of grades. All he had to do was glance at a column of numbers and he could quickly add them up, astounding adults with his ability. He fell in love with books and read 'Gulliver's Travels,' 'Treasure Island' and other books that challenged his imagination.Įarly in life, he developed an uncanny ability to retain information, especially numbers.

His father was a low-paid security guard who shared his son's quest for knowledge. That would turn into another book, 'A Man For All Markets,' that would stay on the New York Times bestseller list for a long time. He would turn his knowledge into a best selling book, 'Beat The Dealer,' and would create a system for making money on Wall Street that would turn him into a multi-millionaire. Life was an exciting challenge for Thorp who would gain a PhD in math and who would come up with a formula for winning at blackjack and roulette. He began reading and learned to read and comprehend books that were far beyond his age. He squeezed them, cracked a couple, and learned just how much pressure to use before an egg would crack. She also warned him not to squeeze eggs because they would crack with pressure. When his mother warned him not to touch the stove because it would burn him, he touched it - only once. He also had to experience everything before he believed it. Young Edward starting counting and set a goal of counting to one million. He began talking in complete sentences a short time later and his father introduced him to numbers.

He'll talk when he's ready,' the physician said. The doctor told him to pick up his pencil and Thorp complied.Īfter a few more questions, the doctor smiled. The physician examined him by asking him to point to a ball on his desk. He didn't speak until his third year and his alarmed parents took him to a doctor to find out what was wrong. From the time Edward Thorp was three, his parents knew they had a special child.

Edward thorp on gambling and trading