Hot Springs: Illegal Gambling Mecca, Criminal Hangout

Albert Anastasia, Alphonse "Al/Scarface" Capone, Anti-Gambling / Anti-Casino Efforts, Arkansas, Arkansas Club (Hot Springs, AR), Arlington Hotel (Hot Springs, AR), Belvedere Club (Hot Springs, AR), Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel, Bridge Club (Hot Springs, AR), Casino History, Charles "Lucky" Luciano, Crimes / Violence / Punishments: Gambling, Edward P. Jones, Ellsworth "Bumpy" Johnson, Frank "The Prime Minister" Costello, Frank Nitti, Gambling, Gambling History, Gambling Laws / Regulations: AK Local Option Horse Racing and Greyhound Racing Electronic Games of Skill Act of 2005, Games / Races: Dog Racing, Games / Races: Horse Racing, Gaming History, George "Bugs" Moran, H. Dane Harris, Hot Springs--Arkansas, Illinois Club (Hot Springs, AR), Indiana Club (Hot Springs, AR), It Really Happened, Jack McJunkins, Joe Adonis, Kentucky Club (Hot Springs, AR), Meyer Lansky, Mickey Cohen, Mobsters / Gangsters / Syndicate Members (Alleged) / Organizations, Oaklawn Park Race Track (Hot Springs, AR), Ohio Club (Hot Springs, AR), Owney "The Killer" Madden, Politicians / Politics: AK Governor Winthrop Rockefeller, Ralph "Bottles" Capone, Sam "Golf Bag" Hunt, Sam "Momo" Giancana, Southern Club (Hot Springs, AR), Ted Roe, United States, Vincent "Jimmy Blue Eyes" Alo, William "Bill" JacobsLeave a comment

1860s to 1960s “The loose buckle in the Bible Belt” and “Las Vegas before Las Vegas had water” — these were Hot Springs, as described in the press (Hot Springs, 2013). This Central Arkansas city boasted illegal, yet wide-open, gambling for about a century, from the late 1860s until the late 1960s, making it the…

Nevada Makes Gamblers Choose

Albert Anastasia, Casino History, Charles "Lucky" Luciano, Clifford "Cliff" A. Jones, Cuba, Desert Inn (Las Vegas, NV), Fremont Hotel and Casino (Las Vegas, NV), Gambling, Gambling History, Gambling Laws / Regulations, Gaming History, Governing / Regulatory Bodies: Nevada Gaming Control Board, Hilton (Havana, Cuba), It Really Happened, Jake Lansky, Las Vegas--Nevada, Meyer Lansky, Nacional (Havana, Cuba), Nevada, Politicians / Politics: Cuba President Fidel Castro, Riviera (Havana, Cuba), Sands (Las Vegas, NV), Thunderbird (Las Vegas, NV), United States, Wilbur ClarkLeave a comment

1957-1959 During Nevada’s 1957 legislature, State Senator Kenneth Johnson (R-Ormsby), voiced his concerns about some of the state’s gambling licensees* simultaneously co-owning Cuban casinos. He feared that: • Nevada licensees might form alliances with U.S. Mobsters in Havana, who primarily ran gambling there • Nevada licensees might use those relationships to hide Mob interests in…