History Main / DrunkRolling

* Website/{{Subeta}}'s Drunk Carl gives {{FetchQuest}}s. Occasionally the items you give him will make him pass out, in which case you get your reward for the quest directly from his pockets. This may happen regardless of what he asked for, which can include bags of coffee grounds, beef jerky, pastries, and ''boxes of tiles''.

* Website/{{Subeta}}'s Drunk Carl gives FetchQuest[=s=]. Occasionally the items you give him will make him pass out, in which case you get your reward for the quest directly from his pockets. This may happen regardless of what he asked for, which can include bags of coffee grounds, beef jerky, pastries, and ''boxes of tiles''.

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* In ''Film/GlamourForSale'', Police detective Jim Davis enlists the aid of good-girl Ann Powell, inadvertently involved with bad-girl Peggy Davis, in the investigation of an escort service that thinly disguises such nefarious practices as rolling drunks, blackmail, and extortion.

* In ''Film/PoolOfLondon'', the man who takes Johnny to the illegal drinking club steals his cash while Johnny is passing out drunk.

* The first time the street kid Pete is seen in ''Film/TwoHands'' he is stealing the wallet of someone passed out in an alley.

* ''Film/OnceUponATimeInAmerica'': In 1918, Noodles and his pals plan to rob a drunk as a truck hides them from a police officer, but they're foiled by Maximillian "Max" Bercovicz, who jumps off the truck to rob the man himself. Noodles confronts Max, but a crooked police officer steals the watch that they are fighting over

* In ''Film/MoneyTrain'' Charlie is a transit cop who plays a decoy drunk to foil a suspected heist, but a couple of prostitutes try to roll him. Grace, a female cop, has to intervene, pretending to be his enraged girlfriend.

* Website/{{Subeta}}'s Drunk Carl gives FetchQuest[=s=]. Occasionally the items you give him will make him pass out, in which case you get your reward for the quest directly from his pockets. This may happen regardless of what he asked for, which can include bags of coffee grounds, pastries, and ''boxes of tiles''.

* ''Series/MurderSheWrote'': :[[Recap/MurderSheWroteS5E12SmoothOperators Smooth Operators]]":Upon seeing Elliot dumped in the alley, a local homeless man creeps up on him and steals his watch and wallet. He then tries to steal his shoes, but can only get one off due to rigor mortis.

[[caption-width-right:350:A [[StreetUrchin Growler Gang]] demonstrates for the photographer how they make their living robbing drunks: New York City, 1890]]]]

Needless to say, this does occur in RealLife. The term "rolling the drunks" originated in 19[[superscript:th]] century New York, when tavern owners would tip off a local gang when a suitably inebriated customer was leaving the premises. the gang would "roll" the drunk into an alley and swiftly and efficiently relieve him of valuables, with possibly a blow to the head if he wasn't already passing out. The gang would pay the tavern owner a percentage of the take for the tipoff.

* In ''Film/GlamourForSale'', Police detective Jim Davis enlists the aid of good-girl Ann Powell, inadvertently involved with bad-girl Peggy Davis in the investigation of an escort service that is thinly disguising such nefarious practices as rolling drunks, blackmail and extortion.

* In ''Le Mauvais Génie'' of Countess de Ségur, Alcide steals money from Mr. Georgey after he made him and Julien (his little protege) drink more and more liquors, and put a little in Julien's pockets to make him look as the guilty.

* In ''Literature/RedDwarf: Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers,'' the introductory chapters on Mimas introduce a pair of homeless drug addicts by the name of Denis and Josie. With Josie completely immersed in [[LotusEaterMachine Better Than Life]], Denis has to provide for both of them, most commonly by stealing from drunken spacers on shore leave: the last decent meal he's had is a slice of pizza nicked from one such tourist two days prior. In the end, this doesn't work out, so Denis resorts to taking some [[FantasticDrug Bliss]] for Dutch courage and ''mugging'' his targets instead - the first of them being Lister.

* ''Series/DeadMansGun'': In "The Highwayman", Robert Cosgrove obtains the eponymous gun (and $93 in cash) by rolling Jonathan Barrett--a guest at his boarding house--when he is passed out drunk.

* More than once in ''ComicStrip/KnightsOfTheDinnerTable'', B.A. has become frustrated by his players ignoring his carefully crafted adventure in favour of roaming the alleys of the city attempting to scam easy XP by rolling drunks.

In extremis, a hero who is strapped for cash may be forced to attempt this. Expect them to be humorously bad at this, and for [[HilarityEnsues hilarity to accompany their attempts]].

OrganTheft could be considered a specific instance of this where one's organs are stolen while intoxicated.

* In ''Film/MoneyTrain'' Charlie is a transit cop who plays a decoy drunk to foil a suspected heist, but a couple of prostitutes try to roll him. Grace, a female cop, has to intervene, pretending to be his enraged girlfriend.[[/folder]]

* The old English music hall song "If You Want to Know the Time Ask a Policeman" was about the well-known practice of policemen stealing watches from drunks. A Conservative MP in Thatcher's government, not knowing the background, referred to it as an example of the friendly relationship between the 19th C. police and the working class.[[/folder]]

[[/folder]]

[[/folder]]

Needless to say, this does occur in RealLife. The term 'rolling the drunks' originated in 19th century New York, when tavern owners would tip off a local gang when a suitably inebriated customer was leaving the premises. the gang would 'roll' the drunk into an alley and swiftly and efficiently relieve him of valuables, with possibly a blow to the head if he wasn't already passing out. The gang would pay the tavern owner a percentage of the take for the tipoff.

[[folder:Comic Books]]

[[folder:Film -- Live Action]]

* In ''Le Mauvais Genie'' of Countess of Segur, Alcide steals money from Mr. Georgey after he made him and Julien (his little protege) drink more and more liquors, and put a little in Julien's pockets to make him look as the guilty.

* In ''Series/TheDefenders2017'', Jessica steals a can of beer from a passed-out homeless man on the subway.

--> ''That biker guy was passed out on the floor''
--> ''We took his wallet and the keys to his Harley''
--> ''And now he doesn't have them anymore''

-->''Master of the house, keeper of the zoo''
-->''Ready to relieve 'em of a sou or two''
-->''Watering the wine, making up the weight''
-->''Pickin' up their knick-knacks when they can't see straight''

[[AC:Audio Plays]]

[[AC:Comic Books]]

[[AC:Film -- Live Action]]

[[AC:Literature]]

* In ''Literature/RedDwarf: Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers,'' the introductory chapters on Mimas introduce a pair of homeless drug addicts by the name of Denis and Josie. With Josie completely immersed in [[LotusEaterMachine Better Than Life]], Denis has to provide for both of them, most commonly by stealing from drunken astros on shore leave: the last decent meal he's had is a slice of pizza nicked from one such tourist two days prior. In the end, this doesn't work out, so Denis resorts to taking some [[FantasticDrug Bliss]] for Dutch courage and ''mugging'' his targets instead - the first of them being Lister.

[[AC:Live-Action TV]]

[[AC:Music]]

[[AC:Theatre]]

-->''Pickin' up their knick-knacks when they can't see straight''