The Gambler
Page 35
1. Unless otherwise noted, the anecdote about groundbreaking ceremonies for the MGM Grand Hotel comes from details in Dial Torgerson’s book, Kerkorian: An American Success Story (The Dial Press, 1974).
2. Martin Kasindorf, “How Now Dick Daring?” New York Times, September 10, 1972.
3. Interviews with Alex Yemenidjian.
4. Patrice Sawyer, “Gaming Panel Oks Resort Deal,” Clarion Ledger, May 19, 2000.
5. Unreleased family video, “Kerkorian: His Story,” by Alan Grossbard, executive producer George Ann Mason (Charliedog Productions in association with Kirk Kerkorian, 2001).
6. Interviews with Una Davis.
7. David Streitfeld, “Born Gambler,” Los Angeles Times, June 9, 2005.
8. Interviews with Alex Yemenidjian.
9. Interviews with Una Davis.
10. David Colker and David Streitfeld, “Kirk Kerkorian Dies at 98, Shook Up the Car, Movie and Casino Industries,” Los Angeles Times, June 16, 2015.
Chapter 1: Gambling on the Wind
1. “DeHavilland DH.98 Mosquito Multirole Heavy Fighter/Fighter Bomber (1942),” www.militaryfactory.com.
2. Kirk’s experiences as a civilian contract pilot for the Royal Air Force were informed by a variety of detailed sources. Unless otherwise noted, primary source material came from the following: Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Special Collections, #OH-01009, for “The First 100: Portraits of the Men and Women Who Shaped Las Vegas,” edited by A. D. Hopkins and K. J. Evans; Flying the Secret Sky, The Story of the Royal Air Force Ferry Command, written, produced, and directed by William VanDerKloot (WGBH Boston and VanDerKloot Film and Television, 2008); Torgerson, Kerkorian; and unreleased family video, “Kerkorian: His Story.”
3. “Mosquito Creates Atlantic Record,” Flight, May 18, 1944. Wing Commander Wooldridge would make news again a few months later for his other skill as a classical music composer. The conductor of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra offered to perform the thirty-three-year-old pilot’s latest composition every time he shot down five enemy aircraft. “Downs 5 Nazi Planes, Rodzinski to Play Work,” New York Times, August 18, 1944.
4. Ministry of Information for United Kingdom Air Ministry, Atlantic Bridge: The Official Account of R.A.F. Transport Command’s Ocean Ferry, reprinted from 1945 edition (University Press of the Pacific, 2005).
5. “Aeroplane Data Base: Lockheed Hudson,” www.aeroplanemonthly.com.
Chapter 2: The Kid from Weedpatch
1. Unless otherwise noted, narrative accounts of Kirk’s early flying days, his youth, and his family’s travails were informed by the following: Torgerson, Kerkorian; Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History; and unreleased family video, “Kerkorian: His Story.”
2. “Assault Case of Last Year Ended: A. Kerkorian Fined $50 for Attack with Grape Stake Long Ago,” Bakersfield Californian, May 16, 1924.
3. Interviews with Emmanuel (Mike) Agassi.
4. Interviews with Gene Kilroy.
5. “Kirk Kerkorian Decisions Mendoza Here . . . Boxer Uncorks Savage Attack to Win,” Kern Herald, Undated, 1938.
6. Poster Advertising Kerkorian-Souza fight on October 23, 1939.
7. Unless otherwise noted, additional background on Pancho Barnes and her flight school came primarily from two detailed sources: Lauren Kessler, The Happy Bottom Riding Club: The Life and Times of Pancho Barnes (Random House, 2000); and The Legend of Pancho Barnes and the Happy Bottom Riding Club, written by Nick Spark (Nick Spark Productions for KOCE Orange County, 2009).
8. Carl A. Christie with Fred Hatch, Ocean Bridge: The History of RAF Ferry Command (University of Toronto Press, 1995)—by far the most comprehensive history of the Ferry Command, its heroic crews, and their wartime mission.
9. VanDerKloot, Flying the Secret Sky.
10. Christie with Hatch, Ocean Bridge.
11. VanDerKloot, Flying the Secret Sky.
12. Ibid.
Chapter 3: Bet of a Lifetime
1. Unless otherwise noted, narrative accounts of Kirk’s experiences as a civilian contract pilot for the Royal Air Force were informed by the following: Torgerson, Kerkorian; VanDerKloot, Flying the Secret Sky; and Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History.
2. Captain Edgar J. Wynn, Bombers Across: The Story of the Transatlantic Ferry Command (E. P. Dutton & Co., 1944). This account by one of the early recruits provided wonderful and sometimes harrowing color and detail about ferry pilot routines, camaraderie, and life on the ground in Prestwick, Scotland.
3. Interviews with Una Davis.
4. RMS Queen Mary Passenger Manifest, List of United States Citizens, October 2, 1944, accessed via www.libertyellisfoundation.org/passenger.
Chapter 4: Scraps, Craps, and John Wayne
1. Unless otherwise noted, narrative accounts of Kirk’s return to civilian life and launch of his charter air service were informed by the following: Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History; Torgerson, Kerkorian; and unreleased family video.
Chapter 5: On a Wing and a Spare Tank
1. Unless otherwise noted, the narrative account of this incident was informed by details from various sources, most notably: Torgerson, Kerkorian; Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History, UNLV, Special Collections, #OH-01009; and unreleased family video.
2. “How to Fly the C-47, Part 1,” www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVXpGYKH0SY.
3. “4 Pacific Fliers Beat Death in Race to Mills Field,” San Mateo Times, October 12, 1946.
Chapter 6: Bugsy Siegel’s Last Flight
1. Unless otherwise noted, the narrative account of “Bugsy Siegel’s Last Flight” was informed by: Unreleased family video; B. James Gladstone and Robert Wagner, The Man Who Seduced Hollywood: The Life and Loves of Greg Bautzer, Tinseltown’s Most Powerful Lawyer (Chicago Review Press, 2013); Torgerson, Kerkorian; A. D. Hopkins and K. J. Evans, editors, The First 100: Portraits of the Men and Women Who Shaped Las Vegas (Huntington Press, 1999); Su Kim Chung, Las Vegas Then and Now (Thunder Bay Press, 2012); and Deanna DeMatteo’s website, www.lvstriphistory.com, an often fascinating and eclectic collection of memorabilia and historical information about all Strip casinos and the pioneers of Las Vegas gaming.
2. Kirk’s difficulty fathering children would become a recurring subject of discussion in later years during his conflicts with Lisa Bonder over the paternity of her daughter, Kira Rose Kerkorian. See the voluminous Los Angeles Superior Court case BD-308513, Lisa Kerkorian v. Kirk Kerkorian, September 10, 1999.
3. Interviews with Jack Holder.
4. Benny Binion, Oral History, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Special Collections, #OH-00017, transcribed.
5. Interviews with Gene Kilroy.
6. Additional details of Kirk’s friendship with Ralph Lamb were developed during interviews with a group of Kirk and Ralph’s mutual friends over drinks at the Las Vegas Country Club. They were Nick Behnen, son-in-law of gaming legend Benny Binion and the co-owner with his wife of Binion’s Horseshoe Club; Guy Hudson, a senior credit executive for Wynn Resorts and a former credit executive for Kirk’s Flamingo and International hotels; and Alda Lanzone, a longtime friend of Sheriff Lamb.
7. “‘Bugsy’ Siegel Murdered,” Los Angeles Herald-Express, June 21, 1947.
Chapter 7: Art of the Junk Deal
1. Unless otherwise noted, narrative detail in “Art of the Junk Deal” was informed by: Torgerson, Kerkorian, and Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History.
2. Associated Press wire photo of the January 8, 1951, incident was published January 11, 1951.
3. Interviews with Una Davis.
4. Ibid., and a second confidential source.
5. Interviews with Nick Behnen.
6. John F. Lawrence, “Vegas Must Reckon with Another Name as Well as That of Hughes,” Los Angeles Times, March 2, 1969.
Chapter 8: Gambling on Gambling
1. David G. Schwartz, “The Long Hot Summer of ’55: How a Season of Hubris and Disappointment Helped Reinvent Vegas,” Vegas Seven, August 4, 2015.
2. Unless otherwise noted, the narrative acco
unt in “Gambling on Gambling” was informed by: Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History, and www.lvstriphistory.com.
3. Interviews with Nick Behnen.
4. “Gambling Town Pushes Its Luck,” Life Magazine, June 20, 1955.
5. Irwin Ross, “Kirk Kerkorian Doesn’t Want All the Meat Off the Bone,” Fortune, November 1969.
Chapter 9: Jack Magic and the Blade
1. Warren Rogers, “Snow or No, Gala Goes On,” New York Herald-Tribune, January 20, 1961.
2. Interviews with Una Davis.
3. Ibid.
4. “Floyd Fails to Appear at Show,” United Press International, April 30, 1959.
5. “Don Jordan’s Scrap Is with Commission,” Associated Press, July 28, 1960.
6. “Kirk Kerkorian 95th B-Day Flash Mob—Beverly Hills Hotel,” posted June 7, 2012, accessed July 2, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEL32jBe4MU.
7. William R. Conklin, “Griffith Beaten on Split Decision,” New York Times, October 1, 1961.
8. Robert Dallos, “Tape Alleges Kerkorian Talk With Mafia,” Los Angeles Times, January 17, 1970.
Chapter 10: A Crapshooter’s Dream
1. Unless otherwise noted, narrative accounts of Kirk’s search for a jet and its funding in “A Crapshooter’s Dream” was informed by: Torgerson, Kerkorian, and Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History.
2. Nicholas Gage, “Kerkorian Is Named in Crime Hearing,” New York Times, September 28, 1971.
3. www.planespotter.net.
4. Interviews with a confidential source.
5. David Anderson, “A $41 Million Lawsuit Charges Plot to Loot Vending Machine Company,” New York Times, July 3, 1965.
6. “2 Executives Convicted Over Loan to Union Official,” New York Times, May 22, 1963.
Chapter 11: His First Million
1. Kenneth S. Smith, “Studebaker Seeks to Acquire a West Coast Non-Sked Airline,” New York Times, September 20, 1962.
2. Torgerson, Kerkorian.
3. www.lvstriphistory.com.
4. Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History.
5. David G. Schwartz, Grandissimo: The First Emperor of Las Vegas—How Jay Sarno Won a Casino Empire, Lost It and Inspired Modern Las Vegas (Winchester Books, 2013).
6. Ibid.
7. Burton Cohen, videotaped speech, Jewish Leaders of Las Vegas series, 2005, Special Collections, University of Nevada Las Vegas.
Chapter 12: The Armenian Connection
1. Unless otherwise noted, narrative details in “The Armenian Connection” were informed by: Torgerson, Kerkorian, and interviews with Emmanuel (Mike) Agassi.
2. Mike Lupica, “Bud Collins: The Best Friend Tennis Ever Had,” New York Times, September 6, 2015.
3. Unreleased family video.
4. Interviews with Gene Kilroy.
5. Interview with Michael Milken.
6. Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History.
Chapter 13: Trouble with Mobsters
1. “Last Good-byes Said to ‘Nick the Greek,’” United Press International, December 30, 1966.
2. Ibid.
3. Tricia Hurst, “Nick the Greek Turns Out to Be Jolly Old St. Nick,” Los Angeles Times, December 16, 1980.
4. Benny Binion, Oral History Special Collections, University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
5. Ibid.
6. Dmitri N. Shalin, “Erving Goffman, Fateful Action, and the Las Vegas Gambling Scene,” University of Nevada Las Vegas Gaming Research & Review Journal, Volume 20, Issue 1.
7. Unless otherwise noted, the narrative account of Kirk wooing Alex Shoofey to work for him was informed by: Alex Shoofey, Oral History, Special Collection, University of Nevada Las Vegas, OH#-01694, for Jay Sarno Project, March 4, 2007.
8. “How the Mafia Built Las Vegas,” (London) The Independent, January 11, 2003.
9. Schwartz, Grandissimo.
10. John L. Scott, “Caesars Palace Creates Setting Fit for the Gods,” Los Angeles Times, August 8, 1966, for a colorful account of the extravagant hotel opening.
11. Steve Wynn, Oral History, Special Collections, University of Nevada Las Vegas, OH#-02036, for Gaming Project, interviewed by David G. Schwartz, December 8, 2006.
12. Gene Blake and Bob Jackson, “Grand Jurors Here Probing Gathering of Big Gamblers,” Los Angeles Times, December 18, 1966.
13. Hank Greenspun column, “Where I Stand,” Las Vegas Sun, October 16, 1971.
Chapter 14: A Clash of Tycoons
1. Norman Sklarewitz, “Enigmatic Howard Hughes’ Real-Life Game of Monopoly Uses All Las Vegas as ‘Board,’” Wall Street Journal, October 6, 1967.
2. Michael Drosnin, Citizen Hughes (Random House, 1985).
3. Torgerson, Kerkorian. His book provided extensive details informing this narrative account of negotiations behind the Transamerica deal for Kirk’s Trans International Airlines.
4. “Plan for $150 Million Sands Addition Told by Hughes,” Associated Press, January 25, 1968.
5. Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele, Empire: The Life, Legend and Madness of Howard Hughes (W. W. Norton and Co., 1979).
6. Greenspun, “Where I Stand,” October 16, 1971.
7. Barlett and Steele, Empire.
8. Ibid.
9. Drosnin, Citizen Hughes. His book provided detailed background on the circumstances of Hughes’s arrival in Las Vegas.
10. “Gaming Commission Approves Flamingo Sale,” Reno Gazette-Journal, August 17, 1967.
11. Alex Shoofey, Oral History.
12. “Laxalt: Hughes ‘Exists,’ Isn’t Monopoly Threat,” Associated Press, January 27, 1968.
13. Irwin Ross, “Kirk Kerkorian Doesn’t Want All the Meat Off the Bone,” Fortune, November 1969.
14. Drosnin, Citizen Hughes.
15. Barlett and Steele, Empire.
16. Drosnin, Citizen Hughes.
17. Ibid.
Chapter 15: A $73 Million Side Bet
1. Unless otherwise noted, the narrative account of Kirk’s Western Air Lines bid in “A $73 Million Side Bet” was informed by: Robert J. Serling, The Only Way to Fly: The Story of Western Airlines, America’s Senior Air Carrier (Doubleday & Company, 1976).
2. Interview with Stanley Mallin.
3. Alex Shoofey, Oral History.
4. Shoofey’s troubles with Fred Benninger were colorfully detailed throughout: Alex Shoofey, Oral History.
Chapter 16: Hello, World!
1. Robert E. Bedingfield, “An Armenian with a Flying Carpet,” New York Times, February 16 1969.
2. Lawrence, “Vegas Must Reckon.”
3. Ibid.
4. Serling, Only Way to Fly.
5. Ibid.
6. Ibid.
Chapter 17: Cary and Kirk and Barbra and Elvis
1. Alex Shoofey, Oral History.
2. Interview with Bobby Morris.
3. Torgerson, Kerkorian.
4. John L. Scott, “$20 Million Key Opens Hughes’ 6th Vegas Hotel: Landmark Opens,” Los Angeles Times, July 3, 1969.
5. “Half Million Dollars Lost by Hughes,” Associated Press, July 9, 1969.
6. Earl Wilson, Syndicated Columnist, “New Hotel Opens in Las Vegas,” July 8, 1969.
7. Robert Maheu and Richard Hack, Next to Hughes: Behind the Power and Tragic Downfall of Howard Hughes by His Closest Advisor (Harper Collins, 1992).
8. Interviews with Guy Hudson.
9. Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History.
10. Alex Shoofey, Oral History. His recollections inform the narrative account behind the deal that made Elvis an International Hotel regular.
Chapter 18: The Smiling Cobra
1. Unless otherwise noted, the narrative account in “The Smiling Cobra” was informed by: Gladstone, The Man Who Seduced Hollywood.
2. The narrative account of Bautzer’s run-in with Bugsy Siegel was informed by details in Gladstone, The Man Who Seduced Hollywood.
3. Interviews with Terry Christensen.
Chapter 19: A Kick in the Ass
1. “MGM Head Talks to Mafia,” New York Post, January 15,
1970.
2. Kirk Kerkorian, Oral History.
3. Torgerson, Kerkorian.
4. Thomas F. Brady, “Kerkorian’s Name Is Brought in as Crime Inquiry Hears Tapes,” New York Times, January 17, 1970.