Bugsy Siegel

Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel (February 28, 1906 – June 20, 1947) was an American gangster, popularly thought to be the impetus behind large-scale development of Las Vegas. He hated the nickname, Bugsy, and wouldn't allow anyone to call him that to his face.

The Flamingo fiasco

However, Siegel knew little about construction; under his oversight, the construction costs ballooned from $1 million to $6 million. Allegedly, the Del Webb company, which was in charge of construction, would drive building materials onto the site, before simply driving them out the back gate and billing Siegel for the work. When Webb told Siegel of his fears that that he would come to harm, Siegel reputedly joked: "Don't worry, Del. We only kill each other."

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The Mafia members on the East Coast who had invested in Siegel's project began to suspect that Siegel was stealing money from them. Because Hill had been making frequent trips to Zurich, the mob worried that Siegel might be putting the money into Swiss bank accounts.

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In 1946, several of Siegel's business and crime partners flew to Havana, Cuba, for a meeting with Luciano, who was now directing the American Mafia operations from Italy and Cuba after being paroled from prison in the United States and deported. One of the main topics for discussion at the Havana Conference was whether they should order a hit on Siegel, who was kept in the dark about the meeting. Lansky, who remembered fondly how Siegel had saved his life on various occasions when they were young, took a stand against the hit and asked them to give Siegel a chance by waiting until after the casino had opened. Luciano, who believed that Siegel could still make a profit in Las Vegas and pay back what he owed the Mafia investors, agreed to cancel the hit.

Related Topics:
1946 - Havana, Cuba - United States - Havana Conference

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Siegel opened his casino on the star-studded night of December 26, 1946, although he did not have as many Hollywood celebrities with him as he had hoped. Soon the Flamingo ran dry of entertainers and customers, and the gangsters once again met in Havana to decide whether to "liquidate" Siegel. But, luckily for Siegel, he had turned a profit for the month of that second meeting, so Lansky again spoke up in support of his old friend and convinced Luciano to give Siegel one last chance.

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