Las Vegas: Biography and history
Susan Berman , Lady Las Vegas (TV Books). The book of the excellent TV series is a messy disappointment; Berman, who has herself fallen victim to a mysterious murder, shares some good family anecdotes from the days when her father ran the Flamingo , but as a history of the city it's vague and timid.Shawn Levy , Rat Pack Confidential (Doubleday, US; Fourth Estate, UK). Enjoyable hymn to the "last great showbiz party," when Las Vegas prostrated itself at the feet of Frank Sinatra and the boys.
Eugene P Moehring , Resort City In The Sunbelt; Las Vegas 1930-70 (University of Nevada Press). A dry but very detailed history that aims to show how much Las Vegas has in common with other western cities, as well as what makes it unique.
Nicholas Pileggi , Casino (Pocket Star Books, US; Corgi, UK). The mind-boggling true-life story of Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal and the "skimming" of the Stardust by organized crime during the 1970s, which became the basis of Martin Scorsese's movie.
Ed Reid and Ovid Demaris , The Green Felt Jungle (Pocket Books, o/p). This classic journalistic expose from 1963 of Las Vegas's seamy underbelly did nothing whatsoever to dent the city's growth; murders, the Mob, prostitution, it's all here.
Hal K Rothman (ed), Reopening The American West (University of Arizona Press). An essay collection that's worth buying for Mike Davis's eye-opening account of the environmental issues facing Las Vegas.
Jack Sheehan (ed), The Players: The Men Who Made Las Vegas (University of Nevada Press). Very readable warts'n'all biographies of the major figures in Las Vegas's casino history.
John L Smith , No Limit (Huntington Press). An entertaining chronicle of the genesis of Bob Stupak's folly, the Stratosphere .
John L Smith , Running Scared: The Life and Treacherous Times of Las Vegas Casino King Steve Wynn (Barricade Books). In which it turns out, despite Smith's best efforts, that there's not much more to Steve Wynn than meets the eye.
David Spanier , Welcome To The Pleasuredome (University of Nevada Press). This comprehensive overview of Las Vegas in all its glory, absurdity, and venality dates from 1992; many of the characters are still around, but a new edition would be nice.
Mike Weatherford , Cult Vegas (Huntington Press). The Las Vegas-Review Journal 's entertainment columnist runs a loving eye over the city's music and movie scene, with separate chapters devoted to Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley, and a fascinating survey of lounges both past and present.
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