It Really Happened Archives

Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel California Crimes / Violence / Punishments: Murder Frank Nitti It Really Happened Meyer Lansky Mobsters / Gangsters / Syndicate Members (Alleged) Movies / Movie Stars / Entertainers / Celebrities

Movie Starlet Murdered by Mobster?

1934-1935 Today, 80 years later, the circumstances of actress Thelma Todd’s death remain a mystery, and the case still is one of Hollywood’s infamous unsolveds. A deep cover-up precluded the truth about the incident from…

Gambling License Games / Races: Roulette It Really Happened Law Enforcement / Judicial System: Washoe County Sheriff E. Russell Trathen--Nevada Nevada Northern Club (Las Vegas, NV) Owl Club (Reno, NV) Politicians / Politics: NV Governor Frederick "Fred" Balzar

Yes To Open Gambling: No Big Deal

1931 Despite an influx of newsmen into town to report what gambling now looked like in Nevada’s biggest city immediately following legalization, a move they described as “reviving the days of the pioneer west,” the…

Governing / Regulatory Bodies: Internal Revenue Service It Really Happened Nevada

Hey, IRS, Give ‘Em Back!

1961 It was hot inside and outside Harolds Club in Reno, Nevada on a Wednesday afternoon in the early summer of 1961. Indoors, people gathered around to watch high-roller Lonnie Joe Chadwick on a winning…

Ghost Casino (Rhyolite, NV) It Really Happened Norman C. Westmoreland Rhyolite--Nevada

The Ghost Casino’s Disappearance

1937-1947 The bustle and liveliness of the Ghost Casino have long been dead. All that remains is a specter of the club’s former self in the form of a rundown, abandoned building — a state…

Gambling License Games / Races: Roulette It Really Happened John Petricciani Nevada

Gambling License Fees: No Joke

1935 In 1934, John Petricciani regained use of his Reno, Nevada, property he’d owned for 10 years and first licensed his saloon, the Palace Bar, for roulette and 21 games, one apiece. Prior, he’d leased…

Espanol Hotel (Reno, NV) Felix Turillas Sr. It Really Happened Nevada Prohibition

Who To Believe In The Wild West

1920 Some shady business went down between Felix Turillas, Sr., who owned Reno’s Espanol hotel and who went on to own several Northern Nevada casinos, and two men, Joe Musso and Joe Stropin. According to…

It Really Happened Nevada

Was Betting on “Old Maid” Legal?

1861-present Since becoming a U.S. territory, Nevada has undergone periods of full, partial and no legalization of gambling. Here’s a timeline of what types of games of chance legislators allowed or disallowed and when: 1861:…

Clara Bow Elmer "Bones" F. Remmer Games / Races: Chuck-a-luck Games / Races: Craps Games / Races: Roulette It Really Happened Nevada

Hollywood Sex Symbol’s Missteps

1930 Silent film star, Clara Bow, spent one September evening in 1930 playing illegal gambling games at a Lake Tahoe, Nevada casino. Both winning and losing at roulette, craps, 21 and the dice game, chuck-a-luck,…

Gambling Gambling: Shills Governing / Regulatory Bodies: Nevada Gaming Commission Governing / Regulatory Bodies: Nevada Gaming Control Board It Really Happened Nevada Rolo Casino (Reno, NV)

Gambling Decoys: Shills, Proposition Players

1947-1979 “Neat appearing girls from 21 to 25 to shill and learn to deal games at Rolo Casino, 14 E. Commercial Row,” read a Help Wanted ad in the Nevada State Journal (June 6, 1947). A shill,…

Gambling Gambling Currency: Coins Games / Races: Panguingue Games / Races: Poker Games / Races: Roulette Games / Races: Tonk It Really Happened Nevada

Gambling in the Pokey

1932-1967 Inmates strutted around the Nevada State Prison yard and jingled the brass coins or tokens, in their pockets, to boast their elevated status as winning gamblers of the pen. Beginning in 1932, convicts ran…

Casino, Gambling Saloon, Card Club Fronts / Workers / Bookmakers / Dealers Cuba Events: World War II Games / Races: Dog Racing Games / Races: Horse Racing It Really Happened Mexico Nevada United States

WWII: Impact on Nevada’s Gambling

1944-1945 In the final year of World War II, three related mandates hampered Nevada’s gambling clubs, but, in general, casinos willingly withstood the hits out of a sense of patriotic duty. These directives, imposed by…

Casino History Casino: Bankruptcies Casino: Corporations: Club Cal-Neva Inc. Casino: Corporations: Spinning Wheel Corp. Clifford Jones Club Cal-Neva (Reno, NV) Crimes / Violence / Punishments: Tax Evasion Earl Snyder Gambling History Gaming History Governing / Regulatory Bodies: Internal Revenue Service It Really Happened James "Jim" Contratto Joe Wells Marion Hicks Nevada Saddle Club (Las Vegas, NV) Sanford Adler Silver Palace (Las Vegas, NV) Tahoe Biltmore (Crystal Bay, NV) United States

IRS Swoops Down on Casino Cash

1955-1956 At 9:15 a.m. on Friday, November 11, 1955, eight U.S. IRS agents entered the Club Cal-Neva in Reno, Nevada, demanding payment of $65,000 (about $600,000 today) in overdue withholding and excise taxes. When the…