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…
Casino History
Gambling History
Gambling: Loss
Games / Races: Craps
Gaming History
It Really Happened
Law Enforcement / Judicial System: Lawsuit
Nevada
United States
Blaming It On The Dice
1946-1947 On the third Tuesday of April 1946, after work at the Southern Pacific Shop in Sparks, Nevada, Sam Lemel took the bus to Reno and went to Harolds Club where he played craps. He…
Quick Fact – Out of Thin Air
1964 When dealer Lue Dennis exited her work, Harolds Club casino, a man descended and hit the pavement in front of her. Reno resident, John Nahirney, age 79, had fallen from the Nevada casino’s fire…
Casino History
Eldorado Resort Casino (Reno, NV)
Four Queens Casino (Las Vegas, NV)
Gambling History
Games / Races: Creators / Manufacturers: Bally Distributing Company
Games / Races: Creators / Manufacturers: Currency Gaming Devices Inc.
Games / Races: Creators / Manufacturers: Dick Graves
Games / Races: Creators / Manufacturers: SIRCOMA (Si Redd's Coin Machines)
Games / Races: Creators / Manufacturers: William "Si" Redd
Games / Races: Slot Machines / Fruities: Big Bertha Constellations
Games / Races: Slot Machines / Fruities: Big Berthas
Games / Races: Slot Machines / Fruities: Super Berthas
Gaming History
It Really Happened
Nevada
Plantation Casino / Rail City Casino (Sparks, NV)
United States
Slot Machines Go Big … and Ginormous
1960s-Today The Big Bertha introduced in the 1960s wasn’t a circus lady or a German howitzer; it was a made-in-Nevada slot machine that became iconic. Named for its size, the three-reel device stood 5 to…