Mobsters / Gangsters / Syndicate Members (Alleged) Archives

Anthony "Tough Tony" Capezzio Chicago--Illinois Crimes / Violence / Punishments: Kidnapping Edward "Red" Meehan Edward P. Jones Gambling Gambling Currency: Coins Games / Races: Policy / Numbers George Jones It Really Happened Matt Capone Mexico Ralph "Bottles" Capone Sam "Golf Bag" Hunt Tony "Joe Batters" Accardo United States

Gambling Czar Abduction Mystery

1946 Two brothers — Edward P. and George Jones — freely controlled Chicago, Illinois’ policy* racket for 25 years, beginning in the 1920s. As a result, the two raked in money, $10 to $30 million…

Did You Know? Jimmy "The Weasel" Fratianno Mickey Cohen Quick Facts

Quick Fact – Gangster’s Obsession

1948 Mickey Cohen (né Meyer Harris Cohen) — violent Los Angeles, California mobster and gambling kingpin with ties to Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel and the Flamingo in Las Vegas, Nevada — suffered from obsessive compulsive disorder…

Desert Inn (Las Vegas, NV) Gambling Laws / Regulations: Nevada's Black Book / Excluded Person List Governing / Regulatory Bodies: Nevada Gaming Control Board It Really Happened Louis Tom Dragna Nevada

Nevada’s Black Book: Civil Rights Violation?

1960-1967 Los Angeles mobsters, Louis Tom Dragna and John “The Bat” Battaglia, conversed in a hotel-casino cocktail lounge on the Las Vegas Strip one day in February 1960. But their visit was cut short when…

Allen Smiley Club Savoy (Las Vegas, NV) Games / Races: Craps It Really Happened Jack Durant Louis "Russian Louie" Strauss Norman Khoury

Dirty Dealings in Las Vegas

1949-1953 Only months after Cleveland bar owner, Norman Khoury’s 1949 acquisition of Club Savoy in Las Vegas, Nevada, Allen Smiley, an associate of the then-deceased Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel, unexpectedly approached him. He introduced Khoury to…

Dennis Day Entertainment It Really Happened Myrton "Mert" Wertheimer Publicity Stunts / Promotions / Advertisements

Now, That’s A Publicity Stunt

1951 The Irish tenor, Dennis Day, was about to begin a singing engagement at downtown Reno’s Riverside hotel in the summer of 1951. Day is known for his appearances on the Jack Benny comedy show…

Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel Did You Know? Quick Facts

Quick Fact – Siegel’s Estate

1955 When presumed-to-be-wealthy mobster, Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel, was slain at age 41, the estate he left was worth $35,609 (about $314,550 today). Before his murder, Siegel co-financed and oversaw completion of the Flamingo hotel-casino in…

Bobby Garcia Carl "Cork" Civella Gambling Laws / Regulations: Nevada's Black Book / Excluded Person List Governing / Regulatory Bodies: Nevada Gaming Control Board It Really Happened Joe Sica John "The Bat" Battaglia Louis Tom Dragna Michael "Trigger Mike" Coppola Motel Grzebienacy Murray "The Hump"/"The Camel" Humphreys Nevada Nick Civella Sam "Momo" Giancana

The Original Black Book

1960 A cheap, spiral notebook held great power in Nevada’s gambling world for decades. It contained known U.S. mobsters whose underworld statuses and histories were such that the state gambling authorities didn’t want them anywhere…

Bernard "Mooney" Einstoss Casino: Financings: Reconstruction Finance Corporation It Really Happened Louis "Lou" J. Wertheimer Mapes (Reno, NV) Nevada United States

Was The Mapes’ Financing Unethical?

1947 The United States’ Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) co-financed construction of a gambling enterprise via its $975,000 loan for the Mapes hotel-casino in Reno, Nevada in 1947. Under Attack Three years later, Senators William Fulbright…

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…

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,…

Beldon Katleman Casino History Gambling History Gaming History Gus Greenbaum It Really Happened Marion Hicks Nevada Paradise--Nevada United States Wilbur Clark William J. Moore Winchester--Nevada

Just Like Living in Paradise

1950-Today When people are on the Las Vegas Strip, they’re really in Paradise — the town, that is. In 1950, a rumor surfaced that the City of Las Vegas’ boundaries would be expanded to include…

Casino History Cleveland's Mayfield Road Gang Did You Know? Gambling History Gambling: Run Games / Races: Craps Geographical Areas Moe Dalitz Nevada Quick Facts United States

Quick Fact – Beginners’ Luck

1950 The $1.6 million Desert Inn resort had just opened in Las Vegas, and a gambling naif nearly put it out of business. A 22-year-old sailor, who didn’t know much about gambling, bet $1 on…