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1937 A $2,000 check signed “Chico Marx” (about $34,600 today) was found in the pocket of Los Angeles gambler/bookmaker George “Les” Bruneman upon his murder carried out by a couple of Southern California Mafia hitmen.…
1971 The sight of Switzerland’s Montreux Casino burning down on December 4, 1971 was the inspiration for Deep Purple’s hit song, Smoke on the Water. A fan firing a flare gun during a Frank Zappa…
1952 “One of the members of the Journal news staff stopped in at a [Reno, Nevada] casino one night last week, put a nickel in a slot machine and hit the jackpot. The attendant came…
1934-1938 While doing time at Alcatraz, Alphonse “Scarface” Capone, infamous Chicago organized crime boss heavily involved in gambling, played the banjo and mandola (a large mandolin) in the prison band, The Rock Islanders, a rotating…
1940 “Apparently unaware that gold has been forbidden as a medium of exchange, a tall, dark complexioned cowpuncher walked into a [Reno, Nevada] gambling club last night and startled the dealer by casually dropping a…
1951 Upon entering The Westerner casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, an electrician told the guard he’d been dispatched to repair a boiler connection. After being admitted to the utility room, he produced a pistol and…
1967 The month following closure of its on-site Bullpen casino, the Nevada State Prison sold the brass coins that inmates had used for decades (since 1932) for wagering and as currency. Sets, containing one coin…
1940 After some angry husbands in Los Angeles, California complained their wives were gambling away the grocery money, two vice squad officers raided the Monday night birthday party of Ann Dicker, a 73-year-old great-grandmother, at…
1943 A site protection officer disciplined nine workers for shooting dice in a restroom and instructed them to report to the labor relations officer. This happened during the night shift at the Ford Motor Company…
1965 Interesting age and marital status restrictions are specified in this help wanted ad for casino personnel:
1931-1932 Actors Clara Bow and Rex Bell gambled at the Meadows in Las Vegas in summer 1931 and racked up a $1,100 loss (about $18,000 today), for which they left an IOU. By December, the…
1916 The Los Angeles city jail was likely the only legalized casino in California, with gambling taking place daily to a shocking extent, declared Faith Chevaillier, a woman whom President Chester Arthur appointed to evaluate…