Nevada's Golden Age of Gambling

Nevada's Golden Age of Gambling
Author: Al W. Moe
Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub
Total Pages: 182
Release: 2012-09-26
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781479352654

A photo-rich history of the first fifty years of Nevada's legalized gambling from 1931 to 1981. Chapters include stories about the most influential pioneers of Nevada gaming including Bill Harrah, "Pappy" Smith, Moe Dalitz, Howard Hughes, George Wingfield, "Bugsy" Siegel, Sil Petricciani, Nick Abelman and dozens more.

The Roots of Reno

The Roots of Reno
Author: Al W. Moe
Publisher: Al Moe
Total Pages: 260
Release: 2008-10-03
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN: 9781439211991

Reno was truly Hell on Wheels in the 1920's. The rest of the nation considered the town Sodom and Gomorra, but that's only half the truth. Reno offered everything in the way of adult entertainment, from speakeasy's and houses of ill-repute, to open gaming - legal or not. And it took plenty of sins by the founding fathers to make Reno "The biggest little city in the world." When the gold-veins of Tonopah and Goldfield ran out, the casino owners moved to Reno, where even greater riches awaited. Together, a group of four men (Nick Abelman, Bill Graham, Jim McKay, George Wingfield) took over Reno's casinos and held sway over the town for the next three decades. Together they administered policy, collected juice, ran politicians, and owned the red-light district and most of the town's casinos. When that wasn't enough they took over the banks and laundered money for crooks like "Pretty Boy" Floyd, Alvin Karpis, and Ma Barker's boys, and offered safety to "Baby Face" Nelson. It was a good gig. The Reno Four dictated policy all over Northern Nevada, taking special care of Reno and Lake Tahoe casinos up until the late 1950's. Their influence made Reno before Bill Harrah or "Pappy" Smith ever arrived, needing an introduction and permission to build their own casinos, Harold's Club and Harrah's. This is an expansion, an unabridged version of "Mob City - Reno" with much to tell about Nevada's gold mining towns.

Jews in Nevada

Jews in Nevada
Author: John P. Marschall
Publisher: University of Nevada Press
Total Pages: 706
Release: 2011-03-28
Genre: History
ISBN: 0874177480

Jews have always been one of Nevada’s most active and influential ethnic minorities. They were among the state’s earliest Euro-American settlers, and from the beginning they have been involved in every area of the state’s life as businessmen, agrarians, scholars, educators, artists, politicians, and civic, professional, and religious leaders. Jews in Nevada is an engaging, multilayered chronicle of their lives and contributions to the state. Here are absorbing accounts of individuals and families who helped to settle and develop the state, as well as thoughtful analyses of larger issues, such as the reasons Jews came to Nevada in the first place, how they created homes and interacted with non-Jews, and how they preserved their religious and cultural traditions as a small minority in a sparsely populated region.

The Curious Life of Nevada's LaVere Redfield: The Silver Dollar King

The Curious Life of Nevada's LaVere Redfield: The Silver Dollar King
Author: Jack Harpster
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
Total Pages: 193
Release: 2014-11-04
Genre: Photography
ISBN: 1625852363

LaVere Redfield was a prolific hoarder. When he died in 1974, his estate was estimated at more than $70 million. Executors found 680 bags of silver coins and 407,000 Morgan and Peace silver dollars in his Reno mansion. A local Reno legend, Redfield gambled regularly in Virginia Street casinos. He survived robbery and burglaries of his home, which contained false walls to store millions of silver dollars. Hating banks and paper money, as well as big government, Redfield opted to serve a prison term for income tax evasion rather than pay his debts from his ample fortune. Join author Jack Harpster for this first book-length study of this unconventional man behind the folklore and the myth.

Moon Nevada

Moon Nevada
Author: Scott Smith
Publisher: Moon Travel
Total Pages: 629
Release: 2018-06-05
Genre: Travel
ISBN: 164049202X

Whether you're an adventure junkie, road-tripper, or card shark, Nevada has something for you. Pull off the perfect trip to the Silver State with Moon Nevada. Inside you'll find: Strategic itineraries for road-trippers, campers, skiers, and more The best road trips through Nevada, from three days on "the loneliest road in America" to a week covering Death Valley and the Extraterrestrial Highway, plus detailed information on travel times, distances, and directions The top sights and unique experiences: Explore caves and glaciers at Great Basin National Park, or go fishing, swimming, or boating on Lake Tahoe or Lake Mead. Marvel at the Hoover Dam, camp at a secluded alpine lake, and experience the authentic Wild West in a ghost town saloon. Try your hand at a slot machine and eat your way through an epic Las Vegas buffet, or visit one of Nevada's major festivals and shop for local turquoise jewelry in a Gold Rush town Local tips from longtime Nevadan Scott Smith on where to stay, when to go, and how to get around, plus advice for families with children and travelers with disabilities Full-color photos and detailed maps throughout Thorough background information on the landscape, climate, wildlife, and local culture Focused coverage of Reno, Las Vegas, Death Valley, Tahoe, Central Nevada, Elko, the Ruby Mountains, and more With Moon Nevada's practical tips and local insight, you can plan your trip your way. Spending more time at the lake? Try Moon Tahoe. Headed to the parks? Try Moon Yosemite National Park or Moon Death Valley National Park.

Vegas at Odds

Vegas at Odds
Author: James P. Kraft
Publisher: JHU Press
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2010-01-14
Genre: History
ISBN: 080189865X

American historians and anyone interested in the history of labor or Las Vegas will find this account highly original, insightful, and even-handed.

Jokers Wild

Jokers Wild
Author: Thomas Barker
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 233
Release: 2000-09-30
Genre: Law
ISBN: 0313002444

A history and analysis of gambling in the United States from bingo to state lotteries to Indian gaming and the rise of Las Vegas, this book reveals how we have become a nation of gamblers and what the future holds for the gambling industry. From the colonial era to the present, Americans have enjoyed a love-hate relationship with gambling. It is a pastime that has gone from sin to recreational activity, and an industry that has moved from control by organized crime to management by executives with MBAs. While gaming is one of the nation's fastest-growing industries, Barker and Britz predict that this process will slow or stop in the next century as the result of market saturation and unknown social and economic effects which loom over the glitz, glamour, and action. Providing the latest information on the nature and extent of legalized gambling in the United States, this study examines why we gamble and how the relative impact of the activity differs in certain segments of the population. Legalized gambling is, at best, problematic behavior with both good and bad consequences. State-sponsored gambling, both in the form of monopolistic lotteries and in tribal casinos, does to some extent call into question the proper role of the state or tribal nation in promoting a potentially harmful activity among its citizens. States that have looked to legalized gambling as a source of economic salvation may soon experience difficulties as gambling venues multiply and unregulated Internet gambling becomes more widespread.

License To Steal

License To Steal
Author: Jeff Burbank
Publisher: University of Nevada Press
Total Pages: 582
Release: 2012-08-01
Genre: Law
ISBN: 0874174724

These seven precedent-setting case studies taken from the files of the Nevada Gaming Control Board and Commission illustrate vital issues addressed in the first decade of Las Vegas' megaresorts.

A Short History of Carson City

A Short History of Carson City
Author: Richard Moreno
Publisher: University of Nevada Press
Total Pages: 325
Release: 2011-03-28
Genre: History
ISBN: 0874178541

Nevada’s capital city is today a charming, modern community, with an unusually eventful past. A Short History of Carson City traces its history from its origin as a mid-nineteenth-century trading post to its rise as the political center of Nevada. Here are the hard-working citizens and colorful characters, the political and business decisions, and the evolving economy that helped shape it. This is the first comprehensive historical account of a thoroughly modern state capital with its roots deep in Nevada’s turbulent past.