Didnt the mob help turn vegas into a casino town?
"In 1945, Siegel found an opportunity to reinvent his personal image and diversify into legitimate business with
William R. Wilkerson's
Flamingo Hotel.
[70] In the 1930s, Siegel had traveled to southern
Nevada with Sedway to explore expanding operations there. He had found opportunities in providing illicit services to crews constructing the
Boulder Dam. Lansky had handed over operations in Nevada to Siegel, who turned it over to Sedway and left for Hollywood.
[71][72]
In the mid-1940s, Siegel was lining things up in
Las Vegas while his lieutenants worked on a business policy to secure all gambling in Los Angeles.
[73] In May 1946, he decided that the agreement with Wilkerson had to be altered to give him control of the Flamingo.
[74] With the Flamingo, Siegel would supply the gambling, the best liquor and food, and the biggest entertainers at reasonable prices. He believed that these attractions would lure not only the high rollers but thousands of vacationers willing to gamble $50 or $100.
[49] Wilkerson was eventually coerced into selling all stakes in the Flamingo under the threat of death and went into hiding in
Paris for a time.
[75] From this point the Flamingo became syndicate-run.
[76] "
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