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Viewpoint of Las Vegas
Welcome to Las Vegas
Frontier Justice Style --Part 3 of 3
By: Frank Rosenthal
Welcome To Las Vegas-Frontier Justice Style
Round 3 of 3. Having been exiled from "sin city" the hard way compliments of
Clark County Sheriff Ralph Lamb and his pit bulls did, in a sense, provide
me some degree of comfort. Aside from a throat bruise and wrists that were
punctured from being tightly handcuffed, I was in pretty good shape. Could
have been much worse considering the fact that I was on unfriendly turf with
little if any recourse. I'm back in my home town waiting for word on whether
or not the Sheriff would allow me to return to Las Vegas without a battle.
Jerry Zarrowitz had dispatched the "cowboy" Dean Shendal to straighten
things out. Dean was as close to Ralph Lamb as anyone could be. They were
both journeymen cowboys, and there respect for each other was mutual.
I became impatient, frustrated and angered for two good reasons. I was
engaged to be married to a knock-out Las Vegas showgirl and prepared to take
a good shot at the Vegas Sports Books. That was my chosen profession, high
stakes gambling. It was not recreational or entertainment, I had been a
professional gambler for many good years, mixed in with a few bumpy roads.
At this point in my career I felt very confident, however I did need to be
in the main arena in order to increase the potential for solid opportunity.
I was forewarned that even if I were able to return to Vegas I wouldn't
stand much of a chance of winning. The warning came to me in the second
person by way of a very successful and knowledgeable bookmaker. When I say
successful, that's probably an understatement. This particular fellow was
bailing it up. He had a great client base, along with just about every
player in town. From dealers, doormen, pit bosses and hot shots, the
bookmaker was on a positive roll. I understood his philosophy, players
simply can't win. Were on the wrong side of the counter and the games are
tough to beat. He was right, however exceptions to the rule do exist.
A week had past and still no word from Caesar or the cowboy. I'm ready to
get married and everything's on hold. A couple of days later I received the
call! The sheriff had agreed to allow me back in town, with restrictions.
(1) "Tell him he's got a curfew." That's from the sheriff. Weekdays 10 PM,
weekends till midnight. "If we catch him on the strip after hours he's
heading back to the slammer."
In addition to that it was made very clear to me that if I were to become
involved in any form of a "jackpot" all bets are off, which meant back to
the windy city. My first reaction was, okay it's April Fools Day. I was
wrong, that's the game plan, take it or leave it.
A week had past and still no word from Caesar or the cowboy. I'm ready to
get married and everything's on hold. A couple of days later I received the
call! The sheriff had agreed to allow me back in town, with restrictions.
(1) "Tell him he's got a curfew." That's from the sheriff. Weekdays 10 PM,
weekends till midnight. "If we catch him on the strip after hours he's
heading back to the slammer." In addition to that it was made very clear to
me that if I were to become involved in any form of a "jackpot" all bets are
off, which meant back to the windy city. My first reaction was, okay it's
April Fools Day. I was wrong, that's the game plan, take it or leave it. The
caller did mention that the situation will change. "Give me a little more
time Frank and I'll be able to smooth things out, but for now lets do it his
way." How about that curfew? As the saying goes, "beggars can't be
choosers." The priority seemed clear. Get back to Vegas, be careful and
cautious. Follow the rules, no "jackpots." Said good-bye to my family and
friends. Back in the sky on my way to the desert. I thanked the cowboy,
Caesar and a few others. Eventually most of everything began to settle down.
Not at first, the chief of detectives still had a pin for me and as
previously mentioned he was a very formidable opponent. Occasionally I would
see him when I would be visiting the Palace. The chief would stare just
waiting for me to make a mistake. Never happened.
Eventually I became good friends with the good sheriff and the chief too!
How about that? Coming up in the next edition of the Insider Viewpoint of
Las Vegas and on the internet, "Bring On The Girls-Or Else." Stay Tuned &
Good Luck!
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Frank Rosenthal
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