Tony Cornero (born Anthony Cornero Stralla in Northern Italy, 1899) was a moving force in the California rum running enterprises of the 1920s and an early Las Vegas casino owner. When his father lost the family farm in Italy due to gaming loses, young Tony vowed to be on the other side of the cards... Continue Reading →
Reno’s Definitive and Dangerous Bank Club Casino
Reno's Bank Club casino opened in the Golden Hotel basement in 1929. The property was owned by George Wingfield, Nevada's richest man with a net worth of $50 million dollars in the early part of the 20th century due to his mining success in the towns of Goldfield and Tonopah. His exploits and Reno's growth... Continue Reading →
Bill Harrah – Nevada Gaming Pioneer
Bill Harrah came to Nevada to open casinos in the 1930s.
Meyer Lansky’s Mob Influence
Meyer Lansky was influential enough to draw hundreds of inquiries from law-enforcement agencies during his lifetime, from the FBI, CIA, Highway Patrol offices in dozen's of states, local police, detective agencies, you name it, somebody wanted to know more about him. Strange, because as dirty and sticky as his hands were for the Mob, no... Continue Reading →
Vegas and the Mob
The Mob didn't start the gambling in Nevada, and especially not in Las Vegas. In fact, they were relative latecomers, since Nevada had gambling for years before it was officially legalized in 1931. Because Nevada was such a large state with such a small population, there wasn't much reason to spend any capital to set... Continue Reading →
"Bugsy" Siegel Still an Icon
"Bugsy" Siegel is still an enduring icon of Hollywood, the Mob, and Las Vegas. Quite a legacy, really. Growing up in the Williamsburg district of Brooklyn (Feb. 28, 1906), no one expected the tough, skinny kid to even live long enough to have an impact on the world. (See our YouTube story and photos here)... Continue Reading →
Nevada Casino Poker Going Online
The Nevada legislature passed the first Internet gambling bill in the US on Monday, June 3, 2001, but it took until 2012 to grant approval to South Point Poker LLC as Nevada's first interactive gaming operator for intra-state gaming. The state's operators will have a tough time competing with established company's like William Hill, which... Continue Reading →
Big Time Poker In Arizona
In the late 1990s, while I was toiling away in Reno, poker players in Arizona were enjoying something new: poker for big stakes in a casino. After Fort McDowell Casino opened near the end of Shea Blvd. past Fountain Hills (half an hour from Scottsdale), players could play all types of poker and they could... Continue Reading →
Harrah’s 30-years Ago
Next door to Barney’s at Lake Tahoe was Harrah’s Sports Casino. I walked in and was surprised by how small it was. There were about a dozen chairs for a keno game, several TV’s by the bar, a craps game, and half-a-dozen blackjack tables. They had little yellow signs with $1 to $100 on them.... Continue Reading →