The Players: The Men Who Made Las Vegas
Las Vegas has been described as "the last great, mythic city that Western civilization will ever create," and its brief, phenomenal history has been largely shaped by a handful of colorful and astute casino operators who turned a dusty desert town into the gawdy, booming holiday mecca that it is today. The essays in this book introduce us to these "players" and outline the decisions that led them and their chosen city unparalleled heights of success. We discover how early leaders like Cliff...
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Las Vegas has been described as "the last great, mythic city that Western civilization will ever create," and its brief, phenomenal history has been largely shaped by a handful of colorful and astute casino operators who turned a dusty desert town into the gawdy, booming holiday mecca that it is today. The essays in this book introduce us to these "players" and outline the decisions that led them and their chosen city unparalleled heights of success. We discover how early leaders like Cliff Jones, Moe Dalitz, and Benny Binion first grasped Las Vegas's potential as a center for high-stakes gambling, and we read of mobster "Bugsy" Siegel's efforts to bring to reality another man's dream of a glamorous resort-casino on a then-remote site at the edge of town. Other visionaries like Jay Sarno, Sam Boyd, and Jackie Gaughan helped turn casinos into islands of fantasy, replete with lavish entertainment spectacles, that have become the norm for subsequent construction in the city, and they began the now-standard practice of mass-marketing the Las Vegas experience to middle America. The arrival of eccentric Howard Hughes introduced a new style of corporate management to an industry hitherto led by independent entrepreneurs and their families - a style of management since carried on by Kirk Kerkorian and Steve Wynn.
List of IllustrationsPreface1A Peculiar Institution12Cliff Jones: "The Big Juice"233Moe Dalitz and the Desert354Benny Binion: He Who Has the Gold Makes the Rules485Sportman's Paradise686The Ghost of Ben Siegel817Jay Sarno: He Came to Play928Sam Boyd's Quiet Legacy1049Jackie Gaughan: Keeping the Faith on Fremont Street12010Howard Hughes in Vegas13311Kirk Kerkorian: The Reticent Billionaire15912Steve Wynn: King of Wow!16813Cowboys, Crooks, and Corporations: How Popular Literature Has Treated Las Vegas18325The Adult Playground Becomes a Heaven for Families200Contributors213Index215
