Posted on 10/16/2008 9:05:23 AM PDT by prolifefirst
Frank "Lefty'' Rosenthal was a Chicago bookie who was sent to Las Vegas by the mob and helped turned sports betting into a billion-dollar business. The manager of several well-known casinos, his life inspired the Martin Scorsese movie "Casino.''
Rosenthal, 79, died Monday after a heart attack at his Miami Beach condo.
Born in 1929 in Chicago, Rosenthal got involved in illegal bookmaking and eventually connected with mobsters. His nickname stemmed from a 1961 Senate hearing on gambling and organized crime at which he invoked the Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination 38 times. Throughout his testimony, he kept his left hand raised, leading to the "Lefty" moniker.
He went to Las Vegas in 1968, ran several mob-owned casinos in the 1970s and 1980s and was involved in setting up the original sports books in Las Vegas, where the bets were legal, taking the business away from local bookies, said Jim Wagner, a former FBI agent and past president of the Chicago Crime Commission. "I don't think we will see anyone along the likes of Lefty again because of his ability to set the odds and run the sports book the way he did," said Wagner. "He was one of a kind.''
The mob sent Tony Spilotro to keep an eye on Rosenthal. That relationship turned sour when Spilotro had an affair with his wife and later, in 1982, planted a car bomb in Rosenthal's 1981 Cadillac Eldorado. Rosenthal was blown out of the car but survived.
Spilotro wasn't so lucky. At the Operation Family Secrets mob trial in federal court here last year, witnesses testified the affair was part of the reason Spilotro was killed and dumped in an Indiana cornfield -- and also because the attempted hit on Rosenthal hadn't been OKd by the Chicago Outfit.
Rosenthal left Las Vegas after he was banned from going to casinos in the late 1990s. But he returned yearly, in disguise, to visit old friends and employees, said Steve Fischer, author of When the Mob Ran Vegas: Stories of Murder, Mayhem and Money. "Many of the working people in Vegas really liked him,'' Fischer said.
I’m sure Rosenthal will still be voting (again and again) come November 4 ...
Here’s an article that compares the movie, “Casino”, with real life:
The 1995 Martin Scorsese movie “Casino” was based on the life of Frank “Lefty” Rosenthal, but the movie took some liberties.
The movie: “Sam ‘Ace’ Rothstein” was played by Robert DeNiro. His mob associate, played by Joe Pesci, was “Nicky Santoro.”
Real life: Rothstein is Rosenthal. Santoro is Tony Spilotro. Spilotro’s brother Michael was renamed Dominick. Rosenthal’s wife is Geri McKenna, not Ginger McGee (played by Sharon Stone).
Movie: Rothstein ran the Tangiers casino, loosely based on the Stardust.
Real life: Lefty ran several casinos.
Movie: Santoro goes to Las Vegas and is introduced to Ginger.
Real life: Spilotro reportedly hooked up with Geri in Atlantic City before she married Lefty. And long before marrying Lefty, Geri had a daughter with her longtime boyfriend.
Movie: Spilotro and his brother are beaten with aluminum baseball bats and buried alive in an Indiana cornfield.
Real life: Dumped, yes — but not buried alive. According to testimony by mob turncoat Nicholas Calabrese in last year’s Operation Family Secrets mob trial, the Spilotros were killed in a basement in Bensenville.
Movie: Rothstein has his own TV show.
Real life: Rosenthal was indeed on TV but said before he died, “I did not juggle on my television show!’’
Did the baseball bat scene really happen ?
This article comparing the “Casino” movie to real life can be found in the Chicago Sun-Times at http://www.suntimes.com/news/obituaries/1224914,CST-NWS-xrosside16.article#
Wow, the uber edition of Casino is supposed to arrive in my mailbox today. Awesome movie, interesting guy.
Hmph... what are the odds of surviving a mob contract?
Read the suplimentary article right above your post to find out more about the baseball bat scene.
Per the suplementary article I posted at number 2 or 3 he didn’t survive a contract per se, in that the Joe Pesci character try to kill “Lefty” without authorization, which lead to his own death.
self ping for later...I have info to share later
“And that’s that!”
Here’s a detailed article about how skimming worked in Las Vegas at the Chicago Sun-Times web site. (For a link and Part II go to the bottom of this post.)
Skimming the Las Vegas Casinos — Part I
Thursday, September 04, 2008
By Denny Griffin
Much has been written and there have been several documentaries about various organized-crime families taking cash — “skimming” — from Las Vegas casinos. The skim money was removed from the casino prior to it officially being entered into the books as revenue. Taxes weren’t paid on this unreported income, a fact on which the Internal Revenue Service frowned. The casinos involved in these illegal operations became the equivalent of piggy banks for the Midwest crime bosses.
Prior to delving into the skim while writing The Battle for Las Vegas, I considered it as being relatively dry and boring financial crimes. I didn’t realize the amount of violence and intimidation involved to launch and maintain the scams. And I had no idea of the immense investigative effort it took to bring the perpetrators before the bar of justice. However, it wasn’t long before I understood that if it weren’t for the mob’s hidden ownership of and control over the casinos, and the need to protect the status quo, there may never have been a Tony Spilotro and his gang in Las Vegas. So, although Tony wasn’t one of the inside men in the casinos, the skim operations were part and parcel of the Spilotro era.
My research focused on the skims run in the casinos owned by the Argent Corporation and the Tropicana. These facilities were the subject of two major investigations, called Strawman 1 and 2. Many of the same players were involved with skimming from both the Argent properties and the Trop, but the courts ruled that these were separate conspiracies. There were separate indictments, trials, and convictions. Some of the participants entered into plea deals and testified against their colleagues. Others gave testimony as unindicted co-conspirators. Several top mobsters from the Midwest went to prison.
A continuation of the Strawman investigations was called Strawman-Trans Sterling. This operation zeroed in on the Trans Sterling Corporation, another mob-controlled company that purchased Argent’s casino holdings, and resulted in more gangsters going to prison.
From a law enforcement standpoint, these investigations and subsequent convictions marked the end of organized crime’s influence over the Las Vegas casinos.
I believe you will find the story of the Vegas skim to be as interesting as I did. However, due to the volume of information it’s necessary that I break my presentation into three segments. I’ll begin by explaining how the skim was structured and why it was necessary for multiple crime families to work together to loot the casinos. I’ll also introduce the main criminal players and explaining the involvement of the Teamster Central States Pension Fund. In the subsequent articles I’ll address the specific method of skimming the Trop and the FBI’s investigative efforts, both nationally and by the Las Vegas field office.
The Families
Four Midwest organized-crime families were involved in the hidden ownership and skimming of the Argent-controlled casinos and the Tropicana: Chicago, Kansas City, Milwaukee, and Cleveland. They each had ownership and control of, and/or participated in the illegal removal of cash from, the involved gaming establishments. Although all four shared in the money taken from the Tropicana, the courts ruled that it was a Kansas City operation and that the other three families weren’t involved in the covert ownership of that casino.
Allen Glick’s Argent Corporation was a different story than the Tropicana. Glick had a clean criminal record and could withstand the background check conducted by Nevada gaming regulators. So being the owner of record of multiple casinos wouldn’t be a problem. But he needed a large amount of money in order to purchase the Stardust, Fremont, Hacienda, and Marina. And at a time when not many reputable financial institutions were willing to invest in Vegas, the best source of that funding was the Teamster Central States Pension Fund (CSPF). Three of the four families — Milwaukee, Kansas City, and Cleveland — held influence over one or more of the CSPF trustees or union officials. Since any one trustee could veto the loans, cooperation among the families was necessary to assure the trustees and officials were all on board and that Glick got the money he needed. In return for their assistance in obtaining the funding, the families had effective control of Argent, with Glick serving as their front man. Shortly after the skim began a dispute developed between Kansa City and Milwaukee. Chicago intervened and resolved the matter, then joined the conspiracy, taking a 25% cut of the action.
For the mobsters, it began as a marriage made in heaven. For gaming authorities and law enforcement, it was a nightmare. The lawmen came to realize that like a malignant tumor, the influence of organized crime in the Las Vegas casinos had to be cut out and destroyed. However, once the malignancy had taken root, removing it was easier said than done.
The Main Mob Players
The Chicago Outfit was the dominant family operating in Las Vegas. The two most powerful mobsters in Chicago at that time were Joe Aiuppa and Tony Accardo, the same men who had sent Tony Spilotro to Vegas. In addition, other members involved in the family’s Las Vegas business dealings were underboss John Cerone, West Side boss Joseph “Joey the Clown” Lombardo, Angelo LaPietra, and Allen Dorfman.
Kansas City, under the leadership of Nick Civella and his brother Carl, contributed underboss Carl “Tuffy” DeLuna, Anthony Chiavola, Sr., and Joe Agosto to the conspiracies. Although Chiavola resided in Chicago, he was a nephew of the Civella brothers and was more closely associated with their group.
Nick Civella was born Guiseppe Civello in Kansas City in 1927. At the age of 10 he was brought before juvenile authorities for “incorrigibility.” By the time he was 20, Nick had dropped out of school and had a lengthy arrest record for crimes such as car theft, gambling, and robbery. In 1957 he attended the infamous “gangland convention” in Apalachin, New York.
Due to his criminal history, Nick Civella was among the first people to be placed in Nevada’s “black book,” barring him from entering Nevada’s casinos. Undeterred by his exclusion, Civella frequently visited Las Vegas wearing wigs and fake beards to fool state gaming officials. During these forays, he usually stayed at the Tropicana or Dunes.
In Milwaukee, boss Frank “Frankie Bal” Balistrieri was the first mobster to be contacted by Allen Glick regarding the Teamster loans for Argent. Balistrieri’s mob had control of the loan sharking, bookmaking, and vending-machine businesses in their city. Balistrieri himself had been convicted of income-tax evasion in 1967 and served two years in federal prison. During Frank’s absence, Peter Balistrieri, his brother and underboss, ran the show.
Milton Rockman represented Cleveland. He served as a bagman for the delivery of the purloined money, and as a liaison person for Kansas City’s Carl DeLuna.
These talented criminals and their minions put together a plan that took millions of dollars from Las Vegas and put the money into their own pockets.
Nick and Roy
In addition to his clout in Kansas City and with other mobsters around the country, Nick Civella had something else working for him: He was able to influence the decisions of the Teamster Central States Pension Fund through his control of Roy Williams, a Teamster official and its eventual president.
Williams, a decorated World War II combat veteran, returned to Kansas City after the war and resumed his job as a truck driver. He also became heavily involved in the Teamsters and rose through the leadership ranks with the backing of another rising star, Jimmy Hoffa.
Hoffa picked Williams to take over a troubled local in Wichita, and later Kansas City’s Local 41. It was then that he met Nick Civella and they became close personal friends. In 1952, Williams attended a secret meeting of Midwest mob leaders in Chicago, where Williams agreed to run the Kansas City Teamsters and in turn cooperate with his organized-crime friends. Williams discussed all major union problems with Civella before making a decision. If the two men couldn’t agree on a subject, Hoffa ordered Williams to “do what Nick wants.”
Hoffa was pleased with the way Williams worked with Civella and followed instructions. He rewarded his underling by appointing him as a trustee of the Central States Pension Fund. It was a powerful position, and Nick Civella certainly approved of his lackey occupying it.
When Frank Balistrieri needed help in assuring Argent got the Teamster money it needed, he knew Nick Civella would be able to deliver.
Argent
Allen R. Glick was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1942. He served in the military as a helicopter pilot during the war in Vietnam and later turned up in the San Diego area as a land developer. In early 1974, Glick contacted Frank Balistrieri in Milwaukee, seeking assistance in obtaining loans from the Central States Pension Fund to finance Argent’s purchase of several Las Vegas casinos. Balistrieri brought Kansas City and Cleveland into the deal, with Chicago joining a short time later, in order to assure that the CSPF trustees whom they controlled would vote the right way. The loan was approved. Between the initial loan of $62 million and subsequent loans, Argent received approximately $146 million in Teamster money.
The financing came with strings attached, of course. After Glick purchased the casinos, he was required to install Frank “Lefty” Rosenthal in a management position at Argent. From that post Rosenthal ran casino operations and facilitated the skim. The Stardust and Fremont were the casinos from which the thefts took place.
Carl DeLuna (Kansas City), an efficient overseer, was assigned to monitor the Vegas action and make sure each family received its fair share of the proceeds. In that role, he was one of the most trusted men in American organized crime. He also maintained regular contact with the other groups through Angelo LaPietra (Chicago) and Milton Rockman (Cleveland). To assure everything was done on the up and up, at least as far as the gangsters were concerned, DeLuna kept records — detailed written records.
The skimmed cash was removed from casino count rooms by couriers with full access to those sensitive areas. These men weren’t challenged, or even acknowledged, by other employees as they entered, made their withdrawals, and departed. The currency they took was never logged in and there was no official record of it. For all practical purposes, it was as though the money never existed. The loot was then delivered to LaPietra in Chicago. He kept a portion for the Outfit and passed the balance along to Anthony Chiavola, Sr. and Milton Rockman for delivery to their respective families.
The scheme was relatively simple and went smoothly, at least at the start. But after a while it became apparent that Allen Glick didn’t completely realize that he was only a powerless figurehead. He actually believed he could make major decisions regarding casino operations. He tried, and when he and Rosenthal clashed, Glick attempted to fire him. Lefty responded with a threat, prompting the naïve tycoon to complain to Frank Balistrieri. Bad move.
In March 1975, Glick was summoned to Kansas City to meet with Nick Civella. There, the boss explained the facts of life to him. The two men met in a hotel room where Civella announced that Glick owed the Kansas City family $1.2 million for its assistance in getting the CSPF loan approved. If Glick didn’t know it before, he quickly became aware that the mobsters considered the pension fund to be their private bank.
Glick later recalled what Civella told him. “Cling to every word I say … if it would be my choice you wouldn’t leave this room alive. You owe us $1.2 million. I want that paid. In addition, we own part of your corporation and you are not to interfere with it. We will let Mr. Rosenthal continue with the casinos and you are not to interfere.”
The following year, Rosenthal started causing problems. His battles with Nevada gaming regulators were not only problematic, they were high-profile. The bosses had a good thing going in Vegas and wanted to stay below the radar screen. The unwanted publicity made some of the higher-ups nervous.
But as the months passed, Lefty’s difficulties and the related media coverage only intensified. The bosses held conversations to discuss whether Rosenthal should be replaced and, if so, should the removal be on a permanent basis. Although some favored that resolution, Lefty was allowed to stay on and continue his struggle with the licensing officials.
By March 1978, Allen Glick was getting on everyone’s nerves. He was particularly unpopular with Nick Civella. The Kansas City chief decided that Glick needed to go, but was willing to let him get out while still breathing. A buyout proposal in the amount of $10 million was delivered to Glick through Frank Rosenthal. Glick turned down the offer, another ill-advised decision.
On April 25, Carl DeLuna flew to Las Vegas to give Glick a message from Nick Civella. The Civella family frequently used its attorney’s office in Kansas City — without the lawyer himself present — to hold sensitive meetings. They knew there was little chance that the locale would be bugged and they could talk freely. Following that practice, DeLuna, Glick, and Rosenthal got together in Oscar Goodman’s office, sans Goodman. Allen Glick later testified about that meeting.
“I entered Mr. Goodman’s office and behind Mr. Goodman’s desk with his feet up was Mr. DeLuna. Mr. DeLuna, in a gruff voice, using graphic terms, told me to sit down. With that he pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket … and he looked down at the paper for a few seconds. Then he informed me he was sent to deliver one final message from his partners. And then he began reading the paper. He said he and his partners were finally sick of having to deal with me and having me around and that I could no longer be tolerated. He informed me it was their desire to have me sell Argent Corporation immediately and I was to announce that sale as soon as I left Mr. Goodman’s office that day. He said he realized that the threats I received perhaps may not have been taken by me as serious as they were given to me. And he said that since perhaps I find my life expendable, he was certain I wouldn’t find my children’s lives expendable. With that he looked down on his paper and gave me the names and ages of each of my sons.”
Less than two months after that meeting, Glick publicly announced his intention to sell Argent. In December 1979, the corporation was sold to the Trans Sterling Corporation, another company with mob ties. Although Argent was no longer the licensee, it did remain an entity, thanks to the mortgage it held on the casinos. Kansas City continued to share in the skimmed proceeds without interference from the new owners. This arrangement continued until around 1983, when indictments were issued against the Argent conspirators. Allen Glick was out of the gambling business, but he and his sons were still alive.
Next: Skimming the Trop and the FBI goes on the offensive.
PART I as pasted above (http://www.suntimes.com/news/blogentries/index.html?bbPostId=Cz3G0i52L96UFCzBdvtXJeI4OfBEYHKxxPF1x2Cz556jdg2ChxW&bbParentWidgetId=B8k88rWwXopuz5STgLeVwBLu)
Yeah, interesting...in that scummy, selfish, materialistic criminal dirtball sort of way.
A funny part about the skim, which really tells you a lot about how adddicted to money mobsters are, that got outlined in the Casino book was that they even skimmed the COINS. All the casinos owned by the Glick group transport all the slot machine money to one casino (the one whose count room was where the skim happened) so it could be skimmed. Millions of dollars (and million of pounds) of change being trucked back and forth on the streets of Vegas all so the mobsters could make sure they got their percentage of every penny.
I have a photo of him taking the 5th 38 times before the Senate, but I don’t know how to post it. Can anyone help?
In addition to post 3, here’s more info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Spilotro
The mention in the “Death” section about sand being found in the lungs
during autopsy makes it sound possible that although mortally battered
in the basement, the Brothers Spilotro may have taken their last breath
while getting started on their “dirt nap”.
‘Casino’ gets compared a lot to ‘Goodfellas’ and some people think it comes up a little short. However, it’s a really good movie and stands on it’s own (and most other movies come up more than a little short compared to Goodfellas IMO).
It’s a glimpse into a different Vegas, a freewheeling Vegas that even at the time portrayed in the movie was starting to disappear. In the movie DeNiro says “it was the last time guys like us were given anything that f...ing valuable”. The tide of accountants and lawyers was sweeping over the country, and not even the Mob or Vegas were immune.
Yeah but only Godfather I had a real mobster in it. Moe Green was played by Bobo Petriconi of Somerville MA’s “Winter Hill” gang.
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