Did You Know? Archives

Cal-Neva Lodge (Lake Tahoe, NV) California Casino History Crystal Bay--Nevada Did You Know? Gambling History Gaming History Lake Tahoe--Nevada Nevada Publicity Stunts / Promotions / Advertisements Quick Facts United States Will Rogers

Quick Fact - "Castle in the Sky"

1938 To draw guests, a 1938 newspaper ad for the new casino resort at Lake Tahoe in Crystal Bay touted the cinematic history of the land. It read, “All America enjoyed the beloved Will Rogers…

Casino de la Vallée (Saint-Vincent, Italy) Casino History Did You Know? Europe Gambling Gambling History Gambling: Win / Jackpot Games / Races Games / Races: Roulette Gaming History Italy Quick Facts Saint-Vincent--Italy Sean Connery

Quick Fact - Good Things Come in 3s

1963 On his third spin of the roulette wheel, having bet on the number 17, actor/producer Sir Sean Connery won, not just once, but thrice … in a row. With this wager, he raked in…

Casino History Did You Know? Gambling Gambling History Gambling: Privilege Gaming History Jefferson City--Missouri Missouri Missouri State Penitentiary (Jefferson City) Quick Facts United States

Quick Fact - Privilege Lost

1955 In a longstanding tradition, Missouri State Penitentiary inmates were allowed, on New Year’s Day, to gamble with their prison savings while playing dice and card games with each other. The warden, however, rescinded the privilege after…

Casino History Casino: Openings Did You Know? Gambling Gambling History Games / Races: Craps Games / Races: Keno Games / Races: Roulette Games / Races: Slot Machines / Fruities Games / Races: Slot Machines / Fruities: Big Berthas Gaming History Nevada Quick Facts Reno--Nevada Silver Spur (Reno, NV) United States

Quick Fact - Spurring On Business

1968 During the grand opening of the Silver Spur casino at 221 N. Virginia Street, Reno, Nevada on July 1, 1968, the ribbon was cut with a silver spur that Audie Murphy used in the…

Boxers / Fight Promoters: Edward "Gunboat" Smith Casino (Reno, NV) Casino History Crimes / Violence / Punishments: Robbery / Theft / Embezzling Did You Know? Gambling History Gaming History Law Enforcement / Judicial System: Reno Police Department--Nevada Nevada Quick Facts Reno--Nevada

Quick Fact - Questions of Identity

1923 A new man in town was thought to be the famous Irish American boxer Edward “Gunboat” Smith. But when the City of Reno police arrested him as a suspect in a $310 ($4,500 today)…

Avi Resort & Casino (Laughlin, NV) Did You Know? Gambling History Gaming History Laughlin--Nevada Nevada Quick Facts United States

Quick Fact - Aptly Named

1995-Today The casino name, Avi, translates into “money” or “loose change” in the language of the Mojave tribe, whose members own it. Uniquely located geographically, Avi Resort & Casino is on the Fort Mojave Reservation,…

Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel Casino History Casino: Openings Did You Know? Flamingo (Las Vegas, NV) Gambling History Gaming History Jimmy Durante Las Vegas--Nevada Nevada Quick Facts United States

Quick Fact - Holiday Season Launch

1946 Which famous hotel-casino debuted in Las Vegas, Nevada the day after Christmas in this year? Hint: Jimmy Durante was the grand opening star; while on stage he destroyed a $1,600 piano (a $20,000 value…

Arkansas Casino History Did You Know? Gambling History Gaming History Hot Springs--Arkansas Politicians / Politics: Kefauver Committee Politicians / Politics: U.S. Senator (TN) Estes Kefauver Quick Facts United States

Quick Fact - Kefauver in Hot Springs

1924 Senator Carey “Estes” Kefauver (D-Tenn.), the driving force behind rooting out illegal gambling and organized crime in the United States in the 1950s with his famous eponymous committee, decades earlier had taught math and…

Anti-Gambling / Anti-Casino Efforts Did You Know? Gambling Gambling History Games / Races: Bridge Whist Gaming History Manila--Philippines Quick Facts

Quick Fact - Rabid Anti-Gamblers

1907 William Howard Taft (not yet the U.S. president) was in Manila, the Philippines on Secretary of War duties. His wife, Helen, or “Nellie,“ who’d accompanied him on the trip, was at a Saturday morning bridge…

Casino History Casino: Openings Did You Know? Gambling History Gaming History Nevada Quick Facts Sonoma Inn (Winnemucca, NV) United States Winnemucca--Nevada Winners Inn and Casino (Winnemucca, NV)

Quick Fact - "Fun, Play and Gaiety"

1947 The Sonoma Inn hotel-casino debuted on May 27, 1947 at 185 W. Winnemucca Boulevard in Winnemucca in Northwestern Nevada, about halfway between Reno and Wells, likely named after the nearby Sonoma Range mountains. In…