The Journey 78. Geno Munari: LBJ, Gangsters and A Sniper Met in Vegas in 1963

Publisher RA “Kris” Millegan talks with Geno Munari about Las Vegas, the casinos in which he worked, and his book, “The Dunes Hotel and Casino: The Mob, the Connections, the Stories.”

Geno was involved in all facets of the gambling and hospitality business. He was casino director, hotel director, executive in charge of gaming, baccarat dealer and floor-man in a number of casinos. He has been a contributor and columnist for many publications, has worked on a number of scripts and movies, and was Adjunct Professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, for Casino Operations and Management.

Kris: [I first went to Vegas in the 70s. I really liked it.] Did your Italian last name help you with dealing with people in Las Vegas?

Geno: There’s pros and cons to that. Naturally, everybody thinks you’re in the mafia when you have a vowel at the end of your name. Many, many, many were or were associated or were at the fringe or were front men. A guy not in the mafia but who maybe runs an operation for them.

Kris: The mob asked me one time to be a front man. And I turned them down. Your book is filled with great stories and also a lot of history. You tell how these people were involved in gambling in Kansas and New York and all kinds of different places and then they end up in Las Vegas.

You tell a story about the JFK assassination.

Geno: When I was working on my book in the early stages, I bumped into this guy I used to know very well who worked at The Desert Inn for years. I said I was writing a book about The Dunes. He said, “I’ve got a story to tell you.” He was in the snipers in the Marines. Grew up in Alabama, near Phoenix City. He learned to deal and went to work in Hot Springs [Arkansas]. Moe Dalitz at The Desert Inn called because he needed a dealer. My friend was recommended and went out there. Dalitz says, “They tell me you were also a sharpshooter. One day we’ll go in the desert and shoot some cans.” They go out. My friend can shoot a dime off of a can at fifty yards. Dalitz was really impressed and kind of joked, “Maybe someday we can put you to use.”

One day my friend got some information that Dalitz wanted. Dalitz was in the country club behind the hotel. He goes there and Dalitz is in a meeting. But guards send word to Dalitz that my friend was back, and Dalitz comes out and says, “First, I want you to meet a few guys.” They go in and Dalitz introduces him with, “This is the man I told you about. He’s a great man and” so on and so forth. My friend was shocked. In the room were Vice President Johnson, Nick Civella, Carlos Marcello, and Sam Giancana. All in a meeting. Two days later Dalitz tells my friend, “You know, I might have a little something that you could do with a gun.” My friend says, “I don’t kill women and I don’t kill” something else. That was basically about it. We don’t know who Dalitz had been referring to.

Bruce de Torres: When was that meeting?

Geno: 1963. And at Lyndon Johnson’s Presidential Library, in the files, you can see that it says that he stayed at The Desert Inn Hotel, in Room 340, on January 15, 1963. My friend wasn’t exact on the date but he said it was the year before Kennedy was killed. I told him I wanted to use this story. He said, “Yes, just keep my name out of it.”