Benny Binion’s million-dollar gamble lives on 75 years later
On August 14, 1951, Benny Binion opened the Horseshoe Club in downtown Las Vegas. Binion’s Horseshoe would become a cornerstone of the casino industry, particularly for downtown. It also made Binion a household name for both locals and tourists, as well as poker players the world over. But when the Horseshoe Club first opened, Binion’s footing was uncertain. His struggles in obtaining a gaming license also offer a fascinating case study for 1950s Las Vegas and just how committed—or not—state officials were in keeping the Nevada casino industry free from organized crime entanglements. From Texas rackets to Las Vegas casinos Binion moved to ...
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Chicago Outfit mobster Tony Spilotro and brother Michael murdered 40 years ago this month
Forty years ago, Tony Spilotro’s neon excesses gave way to the cold reality of Midwestern soil. In June 1986, a…
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Since World War II, Russian mobsters have traded prison cells for battlefields
“I like watching historical films,” said the Wolf, a middle-aged ex-convict who wished to remain anonymous. “I don’t watch all…
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Celebrities to compete for cash, get ‘whacked’ in Mob-inspired reality show
A Mob-themed competition show is set to air soon on Hulu and Disney+, featuring celebrity contestants at a luxury Italian…
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Mob fashion at its finest: The top 5 best-dressed mobsters
Adjectives that come to mind when people think of the most infamous organized crime figures may include ruthless, intimidating, or…
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Robert Blakey, architect of the RICO Act that crippled the Mob, dies at age 90
No one made life more difficult for the Mob than Robert Blakey. In 1969, Blakey, a Notre Dame Law School…
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Myth busted: Vietnam War-era drug traffickers did not smuggle heroin in soldiers’ coffins
Fifty years after U.S. officials brought down Leslie “Ike” Atkinson, the claim that heroin was smuggled into the United States…
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Geraldo Rivera uncovered ‘The Mystery of Al Capone’s Vaults’ on live television 40 years ago
On April 21, 1986, television reporter Geraldo Rivera completed his final on-air shot in a live broadcast from the Chicago…
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