Spite Leads to Creation and Destruction of World’s “Most Sumptuous” Casino

1929-1933 Le Casino Municipal in Nice, France refused to cash Frank Jay Gould’s check so he could keep gambling there. This irked him. Gould wasn’t just a member of the bourgeoisie. Rather, he was an uber-wealthy American who’d been living and investing millions of dollars in various business ventures in the French Riviera since 1913.…

Nevada: “Gambling and Prostitution Should Not Go Hand in Hand”

1954 Two gambling-related issues — cheating by operators and prostitution — in Nevada’s town of Searchlight came to a head at the July meeting of the state tax commission, then responsible for overseeing gaming. Regarding the roughly 300-resident community, commissioners 1) had heard rumors that its local ladies of the night mingled with customers in…

U.S. Prohibits Gambling on Domestic Election Results

1919-Today The now infamous Joseph “Joe” Conforte, known for having owned the Mustang Ranch brothel and having fought for the legalization of prostitution, both in Nevada, found himself behind bars there in fall 1960. The avid gambler officially asked for a reprieve from his 25-day jail sentence so he could wager on the outcomes of…