Quick Fact – Hankow Fire
1928 Countless people died and an estimated 10,000 people lost their homes due to a ferocious fire started in a gambling den that razed a major street in the heavily populated city of Hankow, China.…
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…
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…
Quick Fact – Gambling Hours
1889 Nevada passed a law mandating that gambling houses couldn’t open any earlier than 6 a.m. and couldn’t close any later than midnight. The sentence for violation was a $200 to $500 fine and/or 30…
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…
Quick Fact – WPA Mandate
1937 The director of the Works Progress Administration, the New Deal agency that employed individuals to construct public works projects, informed all Nevada workers that it wouldn’t tolerate “gambling, drinking or other unnecessary expenditure” and…
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…
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…