 | |
| Reuben Tishkoff | |
|---|---|
| Character information | |
| Nationality | American |
| Gender | Male |
| Affiliation | Terry Benedict (formerly) Ocean's Eleven Willy Bank (formerly) |
| Occupation | Hotel-Casino Manager (formerly) |
| Expertise | Casino industry |
| Role | The Bankroll |
| Job(s) pulled | Benedict Job |
| Job(s) failed | van der Woude Job |
| Portrayed by | Elliott Gould |
| First appearance | Ocean's Eleven |
| Last appearance | Ocean's Eight |
Reuben Tishkoff is a flamboyant business kingpin and also an old school business tycoon in the Las Vegas casino industry. In Ocean's Eleven, Tishkoff gets muscled out of his Vegas hotel by Terry Benedict, which is the reason he finances the expensive casino-caper that Danny Ocean leads.
In "Ocean's Thirteen", Reuben is forced out of a partnership by Willy Bank, leading to a breakdown that triggers a heart attack that lands Reuben in hospital and in a coma. This leaves Danny and the Ocean's team shocked and enraged at Bank's treatment of Reuben and as such, the group gather together and vow to get revenge by ruining Bank.
Reuben eventually comes out of his coma and spends his day recovering by reading letters that the others have left for him. He soon returns to full strength and aids the team in the final stages of the con, Rusty having brought Reuben into the field after realizing that they needed help.
Having ruined Bank, Danny later reveals to Reuben that the group has used their money to buy property north of the Las Vegas Strip for Reuben which has Reuben and he later thanks Basher for the letters, stating that they helped him.
He later advises Danny's sister Debbie against pulling off the heist she's planning, telling her that Danny believed it'd work but shouldn't pull it off just to prove that. She doesn't listen.
Biography[]
Reuben has been working in the casino business for decades, at least as far back as the 1970s. When Reuben was sick and recovering from his coma, Rustie and Danny spoke with other members of the crew on their first encounters with Reuben in Vegas in the 1970s, and that Reuben helped them avoid a common casino scam.
Reuben owned at least one casino in before the events of Ocean's Eleven (so throughout the 1990s), but by Ocean's Eleven's events, Terry Benedict had purchased the lot where Reuben's casino was and it was demolished for a new project. Rusty and Danny were present at the event, when it was demolished with a large crowd watching the spectacle.
When Danny and Rusty first present the Ocean's Eleven plan plot to Reuben at his personal estate in or near Las Vegas, Nevada, Reuben says "he invented casino security", implying that he was a casino owner well before the events of Ocean's Eleven, going as far back as the 1970s, when Danny and Rusty had first met Reuben.
Personality, appearance, and traits[]
Reuben shows to be a well-known, extravagant businessman in the Las Vegas Casino industry, who likes to keep his money in order. Despite this, he has had problems with his business such as having his previous casino being taken over by Terry Benedict and henceforth demolished as well as being wooed into a large new casino contract by Willy but having his proceeds and shares cut by a shady deal.
Reuben is well off and in Ocean's Eleven, Twelve and Thirteen lives luxuriously, has a house servant/butler and a large house. Additionally, Reuben is shown to be interested in cosmetics as well as psychics. When Terry Benedict tracks down the Ocean's crew at the start of Ocean's Twelve, Reuben can be seen visiting some kind of psychic. Due to Reuben's vast wealth, he likes to dress in various expensive and custom-tailored clothing from gold-buttoned tuxedo shirts to several smoking jackets to several golden necklaces as well as having a taste for cigars.
Reuben can be usually seen with some kind of suit, tuxedo or lavish outfit and wears large glasses. He is fairly tall (Actor Elliott Gould's height is 190 centimeters), has a large build and has short dark, somewhat gray hair in all three of the films.
Trivia[]
According to Reuben himself, he was a pioneer in modern casino security. This is present in the scene when Danny and Rusty first present the Ocean's Eleven plan to Reuben.
Reuben's surname, Tishkoff, is of jewish-Russian origin. So too is the actor Elliott Gould's family background.
According to Danny, Reuben along with Willy Bank were members of a group of Las Vegas businessmen, who "shook [Frank] Sinatra's hand". In essence, this was a group of Las Vegas businessmen, who "swore" a common bond to protect each other's business and not take over each other's casinos in hostile takeovers. Despite this common bond, Willy Bank broke the agreement and took over most of Reuben's assets in shady circumstances. When Danny exits out of the Willy Bank hotel casino at the end of Ocean's Thirteen, Danny tells Mr. Bank that he broke the bond and thus suffers the consequences.[1][1]