Quick Fact – Playboy Casino
1971 Adult magazine publisher Hugh Hefner announced to the media that in two years’ time, Nevada would be home to a Playboy casino in either Las Vegas or on Lake Tahoe’s South Shore. It didn’t…
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:…
Quick Fact – Reno Flood
1950 The Truckee River in downtown Reno, Nevada overflowed, the raging waters swelling high enough to deluge nearby businesses. One was the Riverside hotel, where 4-plus feet of water amassed in the casino, restaurant and lobby.…
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,…
Quick Fact – Tips Taxable
1976 The Ninth U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco, California ruled any tips, or tokes, that individuals give to casino dealers is a form of taxable income. Photo from freeimages.com: “Batch of Dollars” by…
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…
Quick Fact – Cuban Right
1958 To crush subversive or revolutionary activity, Cuban President Fulgencio Batista suspended for 45 days all constitutional guarantees in the country, including the right to public assembly. Yet, he allowed gambling operations to continue. Photo…
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…
Quick Fact – Cattle Drive
1963 Because another route wasn’t available, in August, ranchers drove more than 200 cattle through the casino section of Stateline, Nevada, located at Lake Tahoe’s South Shore, en route to the bovines’ summer range in the…
Cal Vada (Lake Tahoe, NV)
Cal-Neva Lodge (Lake Tahoe, NV)
Games / Races: Bingo
Governing / Regulatory Bodies: Nevada Tax Commission
It Really Happened
Nevada
Casinos in Bingo Trouble
1954 A brouhaha over bingo made it a memorable year for gambling at Lake Tahoe. To lure as many tourists as possible into their casinos, numerous operators offered big-ticket prizes for winners at summer’s end…
Quick Fact – Wheel Woods
Early 1900s Manufacturer B.C. Wills & Co. crafted roulette wheels out of one or more woods — boxwood, ebony, rosewood, walnut, Honduras mahogany or satin wood — that were seasoned and kiln dried in a…