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The official Grandissimo proclamation

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October 19, the day of the official launch for Grandissimo, is shaping up to be huge. The launch will be part of the Vegas Internet Mafia Family Picnic event at The D hotel & casino on Fremont Street.

How big a deal is the launch? Well, I’ve got a proclamation from Las Vegas mayor Carolyn Goodman that says it’s worthy of recognition:

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The text reads: 

I, Carolyn G. Goodman, Mayor of the City of Las Vegas, do hereby proclaim October 19, 2013 as Jay Sarno—Grandissimo Day in the City of Las Vegas and ask all citizens to join me in recognizing all the contributions Jay Sarno made to the development of Las Vegas through the groundbreaking casinos he built, Caesars Palace and Circus Circus. Thirty years after his death, his influence on how casinos are built and run is still felt. Today we celebrate the launch for GRANDISSIMO: THE FIRST EMPEROR OF LAS VEGAS by David G. Schwartz, a full-length biography of Sarno that tells the incredible story of the Las Vegas pioneer.

Thanks for this go to the mayor’s office, which kindly issued the proclamation.  

And if you needed another reason to join us in launching Grandissimo, the mayor thinks you should. 

The official Grandissimo proclamation Read More »

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ISBNs for the book

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Another sign of Grandissimo’s impending publication: I have two ISBNs for the book. 

What is an ISBN? Bowker, the kind folks who sell ISBNs, say that “ISBNs are used world-wide as a unique identifier for books. They are used to simplify distribution and purchase of books throughout the global supply chain.”

For the Grandissimo paperback, the ISBN is: 978-0-9900016-0-7

For all editions of the Grandissimo ebook, the ISBN is: 978-0-9900016-1-4

If you want to order the book from a retailer, you should be able to give them the paperback ISBN and, once the book has been populated in the Ingram catalog, they should be able to find and order it.

ISBNs for the book Read More »

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Here’s the cover!

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You got a glimpse of it in the photo of the print proof—here is the cover in all of its glory.

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Brilliant work from cover designer Mr. Charles S. Monster—it matches the interior content in many ways, some of them quite subtle. You’ll notice liberal use of Sarno block, an architectural element from Caesars Palace that to me perfectly represents Sarno’s design aesthetic.

Here’s the cover! Read More »

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Here’s the cover!

author • • • ,

You got a glimpse of it in the photo of the print proof—here is the cover in all of its glory.

Brilliant work from cover designer Mr. Charles S. Monster—it matches the interior content in many ways, some of them quite subtle. You’ll notice liberal use of Sarno block, an architectural element from Caesars Palace that to me perfectly represents Sarno’s design aesthetic.

Here’s the cover! Read More »

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We have a call number

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This is really exciting to me: GRANDISSIMO now has a Library of Congress call number, thanks to Kathy Rankin of UNLV Libraries. That means that, once the book is out and available in libraries, this will be its call number.

The call number is: HV6710.3.S27 S38 2013

This is just one of the many little steps the book takes before it’s ready for you to read. 

We have a call number Read More »

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Paperback edition available again!

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I’ve successfully migrated Roll the Bones from Lulu to CreateSpace, which means that the book is available directly from the print on demand vendor again.

The upshot of all this for you, the reader, is that the retail price has dropped from $26.00 to $21.95. Thanks for CreateSpace producing books less expensively than Lulu, I’m able to offer them at that new, low price. 

I’ve also made a few slight interior changes, including modifying the title page and cleaning up a few typos, and the spine of the book is now much better looking. I’ll try to post a picture later.

This printing will be working its way into other distribution channels over the next week or so, so if you’re planning on buying from Barnes and Noble, wait until you see it for $21.95 retail. At Amazon, it’s now on sale for $20.85. Follow this link and you can’t go wrong!

Thanks to everyone who helped me migrate the book. And thanks to you, if you have bought it or are thinking about buying it.

Paperback edition available again! Read More »

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Progress on Grandissimo

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With Roll the Bones out now, I’ve dove back into GRANDISSIMO. In the past few weeks I’ve given the manuscript its hopefully final major edit and have started to flesh out this site.

You can now read Who is Jay Sarno to get a sense of the man GRANDISSIMO is about, and see the Cast of Characters.

My next step is to create a Kickstarter campaign to get the money I need for the last bit of work on the book—copy-editing, indexing, and marketing.

Hopefully by this October, you’ll be able to read GRANDISSIMO for yourself.

Progress on Grandissimo Read More »

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Q & A with Newsworks New Jersey

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Q & A with Newsworks New Jersey:

It’s always great to talk to people from my native New Jersey, particularly Jen A. Miller, who has written a great book about the Jersey Shore. 

Go here to read the whole interview, where I put an Atlantic City spin on the book, which already has some great material about the seaside resort. 

You can also read an excerpt from the book’s Atlantic City chapterl The Rise of Atlantic City.

I’ve definitely got Atlantic City covered in this new edition.

Q & A with Newsworks New Jersey Read More »

author, Roll the Bones

Q & A with Newsworks New Jersey

author, Roll the Bones • •

Q & A with Newsworks New Jersey:

It’s always great to talk to people from my native New Jersey, particularly Jen A. Miller, who has written a great book about the Jersey Shore. 

Go here to read the whole interview, where I put an Atlantic City spin on the book, which already has some great material about the seaside resort. 

You can also read an excerpt from the book’s Atlantic City chapterl The Rise of Atlantic City.

I’ve definitely got Atlantic City covered in this new edition.

Q & A with Newsworks New Jersey Read More »

author, Roll the Bones

Q & A with Newsworks New Jersey

author, Roll the Bones • •

Q & A with Newsworks New Jersey:

It’s always great to talk to people from my native New Jersey, particularly Jen A. Miller, who has written a great book about the Jersey Shore. 

Go here to read the whole interview, where I put an Atlantic City spin on the book, which already has some great material about the seaside resort. 

You can also read an excerpt from the book’s Atlantic City chapterl The Rise of Atlantic City.

I’ve definitely got Atlantic City covered in this new edition.

Q & A with Newsworks New Jersey Read More »

author, Roll the Bones

Three excerpts from Roll the Bones

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Today I’ve added three excerpts from Roll the Bones to the site to give you a little flavor of the book if you haven’t picked up a copy already. Enjoy!

1. Author’s Note/Prologue

This is the introductory overview to the book, giving an idea of its scope—and the changes in the Casino Edition.

2. Why the Mob won Vegas

This excerpt, from chapter 10, “A Place in the Sun,” explains how the Mob carved out influence on the Las Vegas Strip in the 1950s and 1960s, and why it was so dominant.


3. The Rise of Atlantic City

The opening pages of chapter 12, “America’s Playground…Again” discuss the rebirth and rise to (brief) dominance of Atlantic City’s casinos in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

To learn where you can buy Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling, please visit here. 

Three excerpts from Roll the Bones Read More »

atlantic city, author, gambling & culture, life in vegas