No Limit

by Smith, John L.

• ISBN13: 9780929712185
• ISBN10: 0929712188
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1997-07-01
• Publisher: Huntington Pr

Summary

No Limit provides a penetrating look at Bob Stupak, controversial casino owner and builder of the Stratosphere Tower. Between his early years as the son of a notorious gambling operator in Pittsburgh and the grand opening of the Stratosphere Tower, Stupak raced motorcycles, gambled, hustled coupons, and ran Vegas World-home of the infamous VIP Vacation Package, the longest running casino promotion in history. Native Las Vegan and veteran author John Smith draws on his years of experience as a journalist and columnist for the Las Vegas Sun and the Las Vegas Review-Journal, as well as his previous work Running Scared (the life of Steve Wynn), to create yet another riveting biography of one of Las Vegas' most engaging and colorful characters-Bob Stupak.

Author Biography

The most widely read columnist in Nevada, John L. Smith has been honored by the National Headliner Awards, the National Society of Newspaper Columnists, and the Nevada Press Association. In 2001, John was named a finalist for the prestigious Batten Medal. He appears regularly on national television shows and was a featured source for the award-winning British documentary Mob Law: The True Story of Oscar Goodman.

Table of Contents

Author's Note: A View from the Top	xv
Prologue: The Cruelest Month	1	(6)
A Gambler's Son	7	(36)
The Million-to-One Shot	43	(18)
Only at Vegas World	61	(40)
The Huckster in Paradise	101	(34)
The Big Idea	135	(10)
The Huckster in Hell	145	(22)
Selling the Tower	167	(14)
Towering Inferno	181	(10)
Enter Berman	191	(14)
Coming Through	205	(16)
Street Legal	221	(14)
The Curse of Naked City	235	(16)
After the Fall	251	(14)
Epilogue: Life After a Sure Thing	265	(8)
Bibliography	273	(14)
Notes	287	(8)
Index	295