All Bets Are Off: Mai Tai Tom’s 66 Hours In Las Vegas
Day One: Is There A Sporting Event Coming Up?, Must Be A Sign, Pinball Wizard, A Night In Tuscany, I Think My Wife Did It, Hitting The Wall, A Shocking Development, Cocktail In A Book, Flipping The Bird, Married To The Mob, Sphere Of Influence, The Eyes Have It, Lost In Venice, Off The Strip Excellence and Happy Lunar New Year
There are not many events that can draw me to the madness that is Las Vegas. However, when we received an invitation to my niece’s wedding and found out it would be presided over by none other than Elvis, I figured It’s Now or Never.
Early on a Saturday morning in February, Tracy and I drove the nearly four hours to Sin City (we gambled there wouldn’t be much traffic at that hour). We briefly thought about stopping for a photo of the overrated “World’s Tallest Thermometer” in Baker, California, but upon seeing it for about the 100th time in my life, I realized it still is not worth a stop.
Just outside of Vegas, we did see something of interest on the side of the road that would cause us to detour on our way home.
Getting into Las Vegas, we took the offramp where Allegiant Stadium is located. In just a little more than a week, it would be filled with thousands of fans attempting to catch a glimpse of Taylor Swift along with some football game.
Our goal at the moment was to stop and photograph the famed “Welcome To Fabulous Las Vegas” sign. So, it seemed, did hordes of other people. The 25-foot sign was designed by Betty Willis (who we would find out more about later on our journey) and erected in 1969. There is a small parking area adjacent to the sign which was a nightmare to navigate with cars cutting each other off to secure spots. Knowing my patience (or lack thereof) in these situations, Tracy instead took a photo out the car window.
We stopped nearby to take a photo of a museum that we would unfortunately not have time to visit. The Pinball Hall of Fame relocated its 25,000 square-foot facility to 4925 Las Vegas Blvd. South a few years ago. Tracy wouldn’t let me inside because she figured I would spend the entire 66 hours playing pinball. Is it my imagination, or does that sign seem to tilt?
We would stay at two hotels during our stay. The first night would be at the “Home Of Vegas’ Largest Martini,” The Tuscany Suites & Casino located just off the Strip (255 E Flamingo Road).
Not able to book The Blue Man Group, the hotel did the next best thing and features The Jew Man Group. The room was spacious (450 square feet), the shower great, free parking and the price? Inexpensive, by Vegas standards (a little less than $200). As it turned out, we probably should have stayed here all three nights (more later).
While most people would immediately head out to the casinos, Tracy and I had organized crime on our mind, as we drove to downtown Vegas to visit one of the city’s many unusual attractions, The Mob Museum (300 Stewart Avenue). I believe it’s the only place in Vegas where you can be shot, electrocuted and plied with bourbon in one setting. We purchased our tickets online ($34.95 per person) to what is technically called the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement. I have been wanting to visit this museum for years, and it certainly now ranks #1 with a bullet of museums I’ve been to recently.
The 1933 building has housed a number of businesses over the years, including the federal courthouse, post office and other government entities. After getting suited up with a wrist band, we were instructed to walk up the stairs (always dangerous for me) to the third floor to begin our self-guided tour. I hoped I would end up better off than this guy who looked a little shot after attempting his climb. And you thought the newspaper business was tough now!
Before entering the museum’s displays, Tracy and I were called in to be a part of a police lineup. Although innocent, we were told to make some sort of a face and mug for the camera. To tell the truth, I wasn’t sure if Tracy looked a little like Lucy Ricardo in the photo or someone in the early stages of a stroke. In any case, this will not be included on our Christmas card.
First we learned about the birth of the mob, and how each “immigrant group faced discrimination from those who had arrived before them.” The mob was involved in all sorts of illegal activities, and I was frightened someone would learn about my recent Fantasy Football winnings.
Then we discovered the origins of Las Vegas and some of the nefarious shenanigans that took place in the early days of this desert town.
I think Tracy might be packing heat here.
Not everything was illegal. The building of Hoover Dam was supposed to take seven years, but was completed in two.
Although we were in Vegas for a wedding, we found out the business of divorce was profitable for the city … and also Clark Gable’s ex-wife.
The museum’s most famous attraction was just around the corner in the next room. Located here is the actual St. Valentine’s Day Massacre Wall, where seven of bootlegger Bugs Moran’s men were gunned down in Chicago’s North Clark Street garage on February 14, 1929.
When the building was torn down, the bricks were removed, numbered and relocated to a nightclub in Vancouver, BC. The Mob Museum acquired them and the wall stands here as it did in 1929. The only thing missing were Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon. No, these are not real blood stains.
What is real? The only firearm recovered from the actual scene of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. Frank Gusenberg, a contract killer and enforcer was a member of the North Street Gang, and one of the seven men who were lined up against the wall before being shot by four men, two of whom were disguised in police uniforms. Gusenberg was shot 14 times. He was transported to Alexian Brothers Hospital. Sergeant Clarence Sweeny asked Gusenberg who shot him. Declining to rat anyone out, reportedly his last words were, “I ain’t no copper.” It is thought the hit was carried out by Al Capone’s men, but it was never proven.
The Mob Museum has Frank’s Colt .38 special, which was found at the scene. Later that year, two Tommy Guns which were also used in the massacre, were recovered in St. Joseph, Michigan and are now owned by the Berrien County Michigan Sheriff’s Office. They are shipped to the Mob Museum every Valentine’s Day to be reunited with the Colt .38 for display. As a bonus, the museum also offers free admittance on that day.
“You dirty rat!!!”
There was only one survivor of the massacre, a German shepherd named Highball (aka Martini). Unfortunately, poor Highball had to be euthanized due to post traumatic stress syndrome. Legend has it that Highball’s ghost haunts the scene of the crime (in Chicago) to this day.
Every barrel of Moonshine tells a story. I was going to ask for a shot, but realized this might not be the safest place.
The museum also showcases one of Capone’s revolvers.
Stories about other infamous mobsters could be found. They all give an alternate definition to high caliber individuals.
From Dick Tracy to J. Edgar Hoover, the stories of the crime fighters were also highlighted.
Next we visited a replica of “Old Sparky,” Sing Sing’s electric chair. Sing Sing prison was where mob boss, Louis “Lepke” Buchalter was executed. He was the only mob boss to meet such a fate (at least not by the hands of other mobsters). Somehow I survived my shocking current event encounter. Obviously, the sign above me proved I was the wrong man.
Sports gambling has long been a haven for illegal activities, including the 1919 Black Sox scandal. “Say it ain’t so, Joe!”
I attempted to get some tips on the third race at Santa Anita. I wasn’t on the phone furlong.
Mobsters were not shy … nor modest.
The mafia in film created some tense moments on the set.
Interestingly, someone did not love Lucy’s husband.
And dealing drugs really was no small tomatoes (poetic license).
The second floor courtroom is where the Kefauver hearings took place. Tennessee Senator Estes Kefauver conducted interviews about organized crime involvement in the Las Vegas casino industry. This is a very interesting area to learn a lot of mob facts. Numerous mob people were interviewed. The courtroom was restored and looks as it did during the 1950 hearings (photo courtesy of The Mob Museum).
Also on the second floor is Open City, which was a term used meaning any mob syndicate could operate here (Nevada had legalized gambling from 1931). Some of the displays brought me back to when I was a kid and came here with my parents, who, by the way, were not mobsters.
We read about different hotels and their place in the history of Las Vegas. We’d learn more about the Moulin Rouge at the Neon Museum.
Ah, the fabulous Flamingo had ties to mobster Bugsy Siegel (who has been highlighted in other Mai Tai Tom tales, from the Formosa Cafe in West Hollywood to Hollywood Forever Cemetery, where Siegel is interred).
Developer Del Webb was apprehensive about the mob, but Bugsy reassured him by saying, “We only kill each other.” His assurance to Webb portended “shades” of things to come. Bugsy opened the Flamingo in December of 1946.
