Yes, the real Nicky Santoro, Tony Spilotro, did sleep with Frank Rosenthal's wife, which ultimately played a part in his demise. Washington, D.C. Sept. 7, 1961. Yes. After leaving Rosenthal and stealing a portion of his savings, McGee died at a motel in Los Angeles on November 9, 1982, at age 46, of an apparent drug overdose. Frank Rosenthal was born in Chicago on June 12, 1929; his father was a produce wholesaler who also owned horses, and young Frank hung out at the track and devoured the Racing Form. She is buried in Mount Sinai Cemetery in Los Angeles. The discussion can be viewed here. He served as press secretary for Nevada Governor Bob Miller, and was political editor at the Las Vegas Sun and managing editor at KFSM-TV, the CBS affiliate in Northwest Arkansas. Frank Cullotta, a Chicagoan who reconnected with childhood pal Spilotro in Las Vegas in the 1970s, becoming his Mob lieutenant in town, said in a recent telephone interview that the Kansas City Mafia suspected Rosenthal of being a government informant and therefore wanted to take him down. By the time he was a young adult, he was heavily involved in the mob-controlled illegal gambling scene in Chicago. I ditched them at first and then I told them who I was and that I had my Departments permission to make the meeting. Children. He told Lefty about the story and that welching bookie. Courtesy of. He hosted a local television show featuring celebrity guests and even counted the blueberries in the kitchens muffins to make sure that there were always 10 in each. The true story behind Geri Rosenthal (Ginger in the movie) reveals that her interaction with these people ultimately led to her untimely death. You gotta love that you took inflation into account when figuring out the worth of his pants years later. Washington, D.C. Sept. 7, 1961. The real-life Anna Scott, Tamara Rand, was murdered in the kitchen of her San Diego home. McGee died on November 9, 1982, in Los Angeles, aged 46. with building work on the Frank Gehry-designed institution initiated in 2011. Didn't she divorce Rosenthal? For those of you who are curious, he claims to have never juggled on the show. Nearly two years later in early November 1982, at the age of 46, she was found dead in a motel room from an apparent overdose. Rosenthal left Las Vegas about six months later, and moved to Laguna Niguel, California. He spoke at length with Pileggi for the book and even briefly appeared in the movie as a Mafia hitman, a role he had taken on in real life. I'm trying to find my cousins..son and daughter of Cliff Jones Asst Govenor of LV back in 40s. Stephanie Rosenthal is leaving Gropius Bau in Berlin to head up the long-awaited Guggenheim Abu Dhabi museum. The coroner found a lethal combination of cocaine, valium, and whiskey in her system. Stephanie Rosenthal (right) will oversee the final stages of the construction of the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi (left) Rendering of the Frank Gehry-designed Guggenheim Abu Dhabi. The flames were reflected on the interior windshield. Who is Nicky Santoro based off of? Filming began in the fall of 1994, and the film was released a year later, in November 1995. [7] While Rosenthal had dined at the Tony Roma's restaurant at 620 E. Sahara Avenue, a person or persons unknown placed the bomb in his car. Was she really as offbeat and volatile as Sharon Stone in the movie? Yes. Another Rosenthal innovation was hiring more female Las Vegas blackjack dealers, which in . Nicholas Calabrese testified in the Operation Family Secrets trial in 2007 that mob hit man John Fecarotta told him that Spilotro was targeted for his affair with Rosenthal's wife. Investigators speculated his life was saved because the 1981 model of that car had a steel stabilizing plate beneath the drivers seat, which deflected the blast. Today, authorities still do not know who planted the bomb that blew up Rosenthals car on October 4, 1982. Every show was nothing short of spectacular as Frank was joined by a galaxy of Las Vegas brightest stars, TV and Hollywood celebrities, sports champions and handicappers. Everything had a price.. Rosenthal was denied a license because of his arrest record and his documented reputation as an organized crime associate,[9][incomplete short citation] particularly because of his boyhood friendship with Chicago mob enforcer Anthony Spilotro. That was the first thing Frank Lefty Rosenthal saw, according to what he told author Nicholas Pileggi. Born in Chicago on June 12, 1929, Frank Rosenthal spent many of his early days at the horse track with his father, who owned several horses, learning everything he could about racing. The adjoining showgirls bathroom has vivid lighting and marble fixtures. She was not depicted in the movie. Her aunt Naomi Ingram inherited a large amount of money upon the death of her husband O.W. Marmor recognized McGee's looks and talent, and he began entering her in swimsuit and dance contests, where she often took home prizes. Get the latest gaming industry news. But now can you answer about his wife? After the divorce, on October 4, 1982, Frank Rosenthal escaped serious injury when a bomb was detonated. On May 4, 1969, McGee married Frank Rosenthal and soon had two children with him: a son named Steven, and later a daughter named Stephanie. Anthony Spilotro sits in a Las Vegas courtroom in connection with two old homicide cases. A History Channel publication released in 2020 titled The American Mafia states that "most evidence" points to Balistrieri. Lenny Marmor was also a person of interest in Geri's death, suspected of stealing her wealth, but that was never proved and he remained free from all but a few minor legal entanglements until he died in 2016 at the age of 80. 3. They had 2 children, Steven and Stephanie. But Rosenthal emerged unscathed and took his two children to California and then to Florida, where he worked as a nightclub manager and ran an online betting site before dying in 2008 at the age of 79. In the movie, robert de niro portrays a character based on frank rosenthal, with sharon stone as his wife. At the time, Stephanie aimed a mic her way for an essay on This American Life her first essay for the program. Indeed they were. The film portrayed "Ginger" as the sick one meanwhile he was beating her and took away their children. -Las Vegas Sun, According to Frank Rosenthal himself, yes, this did occur but not under the circumstances portrayed in the movie Casino. Were not retiring any time soon.. Unverified and perhaps apocryphal reports still claim that Las Vegas murder rate went up by 70 percent after Spilotro arrived in town. Furthermore, Rosenthal learned that Spilotro had been having an affair with McGee. -FrankRosenthal.com, Yes. The third involved a biker crowd she'd gotten involved with in Los Angeles, where she moved after the divorce. He focused on raising his children, who were both accomplished youth swimmers. A few years ago, Rosenthals son Steven stopped by the house unexpectedly and asked to look around. Click a location below to find Stephanie more easily. Former friends of Rosenthal and Spilotro have debated purchasing the home. Yes, the real-life Spilotro brothers were beaten to death, but not in a cornfield as portrayed in the movie. So each mob boss got $200,000 back for their $5,000 investment. Yes, Lefty was the ultimate multi-tasker. According to the publication, Balistrieri blamed Rosenthal for the Chicago Outfit's demand that he "surrender 25 . The New York Times called his column subliterate.. After a few years, McGee began to resent domestic life, and she started going out at night and drinking. The fact it is for sale is exciting for the city of Las Vegas.. Thats nearly 1,000 in todays pants. In the movie, Lenny Marmor is the Lester Diamond character portrayed by James Woods. Ah, the circularity of the universe. He moved away from Las Vegas not long after the bombing, first to California, then to Florida, where he offered sports-betting advice on his own website before dying in 2008 of an apparent heart attack at age 79. The Greens made their own updates through the years but kept them aligned with the 1970s style. Meanwhile, authorities indicted Spilotro and a dozen other mobsters whod been making serious money off of these casinos. The details of the entire conversation/meeting were "somewhat" bizarre and interesting. He seems to have had as many admirers as critics, and helped shape Las Vegas casinos as we know them today. On October 4, 1982, Frank Rosenthal left Tony Roma's restaurant on East Sahara Avenue and got into his Cadillac which then exploded. The history of Las Vegas is filled with colorful characters. Senator Harry Reid. 33%. The film Casino (1995), directed by Martin Scorsese with a screenplay co-written by Nicholas Pileggi from his biography Casino: Love and Honor in Las Vegas, is largely based on Rosenthal's time in Las Vegas. He invoked the Fifth Amendment 37 times and was never charged. That was the equivalent today of maybe $400,000 or more. Similarly, just weeks before the bombing, Balistrieri told his sons he intended to get "full satisfaction" for Rosenthal's perceived wrongdoing. Frank Rosenthal adjusts his tie while refusing to answer questions before a Senate subcommittee on gambling and racketeering. He was creating a stir, Jenkins said in a recent telephone interview. So in 1974, Frank Rosenthal began working for the Stardust. Geraldine "Geri" McGee (May 16, 1936 - November 9, 1982) was an American model and Las Vegas. A History Channel publication released in 2020 titled The American Mafia states that most evidence points to Balistrieri. Together with Maisa Al Qassimi and an exceptional team of local and international colleagues, we will deliver one of the most progressive institutions of the 21st century. Touches of Rosenthal are dotted through the master bedroom. The script changed the couple's names from Geri McGee and Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal to Ginger McKenna (played by Sharon Stone) and Sam "Ace" Rothstein (played by Robert De Niro), and Lenny Marmor to Lester Diamond (played by James Woods). Rosenthal was later formally banned from Las Vegas casinos in 1987, when he was placed in "the Black Book", making him persona non grataunable to work in, or even enter, any Nevada casino because of his alleged ties to organized crime. Soon, Lenny Marmor convinced McGee to move to Las Vegas for more opportunities. In 1966, Tony and Nancy Spilotro (the real Nicky and Jennifer Santoro) adopted their only son, Vincent. I included the great Frank Rosenthal Show intro into the clip and hope you enjoy it. Of course, he truly did make his mark in revolutionizing the casinos gambling operation by moving heavily into sports betting and hiring female dealers. In the episode, Stephanie talks about writing "The . One of the men she met was Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal. Scorcese, Casino tells the story m, making it the largest of the four Guggenheim outposts, overtaking the monumental Guggenheim Bilbao, which was also designed by the Pritzker Prize-winning, Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry and first opened in 1997. Unlike the portrayal in the movie Casino where Sam "Ace" Rothstein (Robert De Niro) runs only one casino, the Tangiers, in real life Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal ran four casinos simultaneously, including the Stardust, Hacienda, Fremont and Marina for the Chicago mafia. To continue to build a collection centered in this region is one of the most exciting responsibilities I can imagine.