Prisons

Allen Smiley Argyle Hotel (San Antonio, TX) Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel Beverly Country Club (New Orleans, LA) California Casino History Colony Club (Gardena, CA) Divorce / Annulment Falsely Claiming Citizenship Flamingo (Las Vegas, NV) Frank Costello Gambling History Gaming History Garden of Allah (West Hollywood, CA) Horse Racing It Really Happened Johnny Rosselli Junkets McNeil Island Corrections Center (WA) Meyer Lansky Rex (offshore, Southern CA) The Knickerbocker (New York, NY) Transamerica Wire Service

10 Intriguing Facts About Mobster/Gambler Allen Smiley

Allen Smiley “was one of the most powerful gangsters in [California],” wrote author Gerald Horne in Class Struggle in Hollywood, 1930-1950. He was Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel’s partner and best friend and subsequently, Johnny Rosselli’s* right-hand…

Bookmaking CA Governor Edmond "Pat" G. Brown CA Governor Gerald "Jerry" Brown California Casino History Feuds Folsom State Prison (CA) Frank Bompensiero Gambling Gambling History Gaming History George "Les" Bruneman It Really Happened Jack Dragna Jimmy "The Weasel" Fratianno Johnny Rosselli Leonard "Leo/Lips" C. Moceri Los Angeles-California Murder Nationwide (Wire Service) Surf Club (Redondo Beach, CA) United States

Los Angeles Mafiosos Snuff Out Innocents' Lives Over Gambling Beef

1937-1981 An innocent man was placed in law enforcement’s crosshairs in late 1930s Los Angeles for a heinous crime … the frame-up stuck. Caught Unawares While strolling on Southern California’s Redondo Beach Strand, or boardwalk,…

Alcatraz (CA) Alphonse "Al/Scarface" Capone California Did You Know? Gambling Gambling History Gaming History Quick Facts The Rock Islanders United States

Quick Fact - A Renaissance Convict?

1934-1938 While doing time at Alcatraz, Alphonse “Scarface” Capone, infamous Chicago organized crime boss heavily involved in gambling, played the banjo and mandola (a large mandolin) in the prison band, The Rock Islanders, a rotating…

Casino History Coins--Brass Did You Know? Gambling Gambling History Gaming History Nevada Nevada State Prison (Carson City, NV) Quick Facts United States

Quick Fact - Brass in Pocket

1967 The month following closure of its on-site Bullpen casino, the Nevada State Prison sold the brass coins that inmates had used for decades (since 1932) for wagering and as currency. Sets, containing one coin…

110 Eddy (San Francisco, CA) 21 (El Cerrito, CA) B&R Smokeshop (San Francisco, CA) Cal-Neva Lodge (Lake Tahoe, NV) California Casino History Clara Bow Contra Costa County--California Crystal Bay--Nevada Divorce / Annulment El Cerrito--California Elmer "Bones" F. Remmer Emeryville--California Federal Correction Institution, Terminal Island (San Pedro, California) Gambling Gambling History Gaming History Illegal It Really Happened Jury Tampering Kefauver Committee Lake Tahoe--Nevada Lawsuit Menlo Club (San Francisco, CA) Nevada Oaks Club (Emeryville, CA) Reno--Nevada Tax Evasion Tax Evasion Terminal Island United States

10 Intriguing Facts About Gambling Kingpin "Bones" Remmer

Today An unpleasant, self-described “big gun,” Elmer “Bones” F. Remmer (1898-1963) was “once one of the San Francisco Bay Area’s flashiest and most successful gambling czars,” having owned numerous clubs in which he offered illegal games…

Equipment Fraud Gambling History Gaming History Joe Larango Lawsuit Nevada Nevada State Prison (Carson City, NV) Oak Room (Reno, NV) Pyramid Securities Inc. Reno--Nevada Slot Machines / Fruities

Slot Machines Land on Trouble in Reno

1953 Theodore “Ted” Donaldson, 31, bought six slot machines from Joe Larango of Pyramid Securities Inc., a company with the devices in several Reno, Nevada locations, including the Oak Room casino. Donaldson paid the $1,825 cost…

Casino History Did You Know? Gambling Gambling History Gaming History Jefferson City--Missouri Missouri Missouri State Penitentiary (Jefferson City) Privilege 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 Gambling History Gaming History Illinois State Penitentiary (Joliet, IL) It Really Happened Nevada Nevada State Prison (Carson City, NV) Poisoning Reno--Nevada Robbery / Theft / Embezzling United States

Wily Desperado Falls Short on Crime Execution

1943-1949 Two acquaintances were having a drink at a Reno casino bar — Miles T. Ellis, 47, a tourist, and Anthony Swiderski, 52, a local chef in the Northern Nevada town. At an opportune moment,…

Barn Club (Reno, NV) Casino History Folsom State Prison (CA) Gambling Gambling History Gambling License Gaming History Harrah's (Reno, NV) Irving Cowan It Really Happened Jack Fugitt Joseph Scrivani Larry Tripp Louis "Lou" J. Wertheimer Nevada Northern Club (Reno, NV) Openings Otell "Mike" Micheletti Reno--Nevada Robbery / Theft / Embezzling United States Walter Oswald William Lawrence Hunger aka Larry Brady World War II

Criminals, Money Problems Plague Reno Casino

1940-1943 The Barn Club casino’s existence during World War II was rocky and, therefore, cut short. It began in December 1940, when Jack Fugitt, an entertainment machine business owner, and Walter Oswald, assumed the lease…

Casino History Douglas County Sheriff's Office--Nevada Drugs / Narcotics Ernest "Ole" C. Olson Eugene "Rosy" Bastida Gambling History Gambling License Gaming History It Really Happened Lake Tahoe--Nevada Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary (Leavenworth, KS) Nevada Nevada State Prison (Carson City, NV) Nevada Tax Commission Sales Salvatore "Tar Baby" Orester Terrano Ships Stateline--Nevada Trafficking Twin States (Stateline, NV) United States USS Chaumont Waxey Gordon / Irving Wexler

Conviction Schmiction, Here's a Gambling License

1930s-1952 Salvatore “Tar Baby” Orester Terrano is one of numerous criminals whom Nevada gambling regulators approved to own a casino in the state. In May 1947, the tax commission granted the Northern Californian, then 43,…

00 (Double-0) Saloon (Las Vegas, NV) Casino History Gambling History Gaming History Illegal It Really Happened Las Vegas Hotel (Las Vegas, NV) Las Vegas--Nevada Nevada Nevada State Prison (Carson City, NV) Northern Saloon (Las Vegas, NV) Star (Las Vegas, NV) Turf (Las Vegas, NV) United States

Busted for Running Gambling in Nevada

1916 The year brought indictments in Las Vegas against individuals for violating Nevada’s anti-gambling statute, which was unusual because law enforcement generally ignored or poorly enforced it. Operating a gambling game then constituted a felony.…

California Casino History Estate Folsom State Prison (CA) Gambling History Gaming History It Really Happened John Quinn Lawsuit Nevada Palace Club (Reno, NV) Reno--Nevada Robbery / Theft / Embezzling San Francisco--California United States

Gambler's Wealth Meets Undue Fate

1924-1932 The story of the estate of a long-ago Nevada gambler after his passing is strange and unfortunate. John Quinn was a man who’d lost and made large fortunes in gambling and mining stock deals…