I’ve got some good news to share for those of you who want to hear more about the Sands. On Thursday, October 7, I’ll be giving a talk in the Clark Country Library’s main theater on the history of the Sands. It is an outgrowth of my most recent book, At the Sands. Here’s the
Upcoming Talk: The Sands at the Clark County Library Read More »
bookThis Friday 8/20 at noon (PDT), I am giving a talk for the UNLV Alumni Association’s Rebel Recharge series called “Lessons Learned from COVID and the Path Ahead.” I’m going to be looking at has happened to Las Vegas over the past 18 months, and suggest four lessons we can learn from it. The event
Upcoming Online Talk: Lessons Learned from COVID and the Path Ahead Read More »
eventsIf you like listening to books and are partial to the history of Las Vegas, I have great news for you: the audiobook version of At the Sands is now available. Follow these links to get the book on Amazon, Audible, and Apple Books/iTunes. If this news prompts you to use Audible for the first
“At the Sands” Audiobook is Available Read More »
bookFor my latest commentary, I started thinking about how two recent bits of pop culture reflect on casinos. The answer: not well: The casino gaming industry is in a funny place. For those of us inside the bubble, it’s a business brimming with regulations, compliance, and integrity. For those outside it, though, casinos are still,
Marty Byrde, King Dice, and gaming’s enduring image problem – CDC Gaming Reports Read More »
CDC GamingI’ve got another commentary up today, marking another important milestone: Today, we mark another milestone of Nevada gaming history, one that reminds us how far the state and the industry have come, and how far both still have to go. On March 26, 1960, Governor Grant Sawyer, Las Vegas NAACP President Dr. James McMillan, Las
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CDC GamingToday’s column was a fun one to write. It started out as a simple look back at the 90th anniversary of Nevada getting gaming back, but turned into an exploration of alternate history. Today marks the anniversary of what might be the most consequential event in American gambling history: the relegalization of commercial gaming in
Nevada gaming turns 90 – CDC Gaming Reports Read More »
CDC GamingI’ve got another commentary up on CDC Gaming Reports. This one is about why we shouldn’t write off conventions in Las Vegas: The casinos of the Strip were particularly vulnerable to the pandemic, not only because it put a temporary halt to gaming on casino floors. Casinos across the country (mostly) managed to emerge from
They Will Return – CDC Gaming Reports Read More »
CDC GamingLast week I had a commentary published on CDC Gaming Reports about the possibly already forgotten Golden Knights/Upick partnership. As usual, I tried to see the positive. Here it is: You probably have already heard the story. It raced across Twitter in a brilliant blaze last week before sputtering into dust over the weekend. The Vegas Golden
All’s well that ends well with the Upick debacle – CDC Gaming Reports Read More »
CDC GamingOne of the major attractions of the Sands hotel was the music–whether it was in the Copa Room, the lounge, or, in later years, the Celebrity Theater. To commemorate the musical legacy of the Sands–and give you something to listen to while you read At the Sands, I’ve created a Spotify playlist featuring over 43
At the Sands Playlist Now on Spotify Read More »
bookI have good news for all those who want a copy of At the Sands and who prefer hardcovers: the book is now available through Amazon as a hardcover. If you’d like to preview the book before buying, you can read an excerpt and look at the chapter titles here. If you’d like to see
At the Sands now in available in hardcover Read More »
bookI’ve got an excerpt from At the Sands that you can read at On The Strip: From the start, the Sands involved several personalities: Jake Freedman, who had arrived in America destitute but by dint of his personality had become a beloved gambling operator and racehorse owner, was its president and public face. Jack Entratter,
How the Sands Seduced Guests, Gamblers and the Media – On The Strip Read More »
bookIn honor of Kefauver Day, the Mob Museum published a short article I wrote that summarized the drama of the Kefauver Committee’s hearing in Las Vegas; The U.S. Senate’s Special Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce, chaired by Tennessee Democrat Estes Kefauver, focused attention as never before on gambling-related crime as a national
The Kefauver hearing in Las Vegas | The Mob Museum Read More »
writingI recently was featured on “Talk about Las Vegas with Ira” talking about, what else, At the Sands: This week, Ira spoke with David G. Schwartz, author of “At the Sands: The Casino That Shaped Classic Las Vegas, Brought the Rat Pack Together, and Went Out With a Bang.” In this 30-minute episode of Talk
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bookGreat news for Kindle owners: you can now buy (and read) At the Sands on Kindle. With that, the book is now available on all major (and a few minor) ebook platforms, for the (relatively) low price of $6.49. See At the Sands on Kindle.
At the Sands is now on Kindle! Read More »
bookI’ve got a new article published with the Gaming Law Review called “Venomous in the Extreme: Understanding Frank Sinatra’s Acrimonious 1963 Exit from Nevada Gaming.” Here’s a peek: Today, there are few personalities more intimately connected with the classic era of Las Vegas casinos than Frank Sinatra. Indeed, the pre-corporate period (1940s to 1966) is
Article Published: “Venomous in the Extreme” Read More »
authorI’m taking a quick break from promoting At the Sands to share some other exciting book news. My book Boardwalk Playground, which chronicles the history of Atlantic City in 100 short pieces, is now available in a multitude of ebook formats. You’ve got: Kindle Apple Books Barnes & Noble Kobo And, if you want to
Boardwalk Playground ebook Available Read More »
authorAfter a long writing, editing, and publication process, my new book, At the Sands: The Casino That Shaped Classic Las Vegas, Brought the Rat Pack Together, and Went Out with a Bang is available on most platforms. You can buy it in paperback from Amazon and Barnes and Noble, and in Apple Books, Nook, Kobo,
At the Sands Is Out (Mostly) Read More »
bookGood news! I’ve gotten the print proof of At the Sands, my forthcoming book. Here is a photo of the cover: And here is the title page: And here is a random page: I know that we shouldn’t judge books by their cover, but I’m happy with the overall look of At the Sands.
At the Sands on its way Read More »
author, bookI recently had an essay I wrote about Fallout New Vegas’s Honest Hearts DLC published on First Person Scholar. Here’s the first paragraph: As a Western set in a post-apocalyptic Mohave, Fallout: New Vegas demonstrates that the big questions that drive Western history are durable and malleable enough to survive even the (fictional) nuclear demise
Dreaming of Zion – First Person Scholar Read More »
writingI have an article in the latest edition of the Popular Culture Review about Mario Puzo’s views on capitalism and gambling: The Godfather made him a wealthy man, but Mario Puzo’s long years as a struggling writer and childhood in New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen conditioned him to treat money—and those who made a great