Quick Fact – Life Staked on Coin Toss

1909 Businessman David Eldridge and self-described “desert rat,” Malapai Mike, traveled 40 miles across Death Valley in California to investigate a proposed power site for the Brockington Company in Boston, Massachusetts. On their return, they got lost in what seemed to be a sinkhole. In the oppressive heat, they grew exhausted and dehydrated, and one of their…

Quick Fact – The Customer is an Ass

1947-1962 A wild burro sauntered into the popular gambling spot, the El Rey Club in Searchlight, Nevada at about 11 o’clock every morning. It approached the proprietor, Willie Martello, who always fed it something he had in his pocket. Then the donkey retreated back into the desert. Photo from freeimages.com: “The key is the donkey,”…