I'Ll Do My Own Damn Killin,' Benny Binion, Herbert Noble, And The Texas Gambling War

GARY W. SLEEPER

Publication: Published by Barricade Books, Inc, 2006, Fort Lee, New Jersey

First edition. 8vo. Light blue boards, titles stamped in silver on the spine, vi, 284 [1] pp., prologue, illustrated from photographs, portraits, appendices, selected bibliography, index, acknowledgments. This book traces Benny Binion's rise to power in Dallas during World War II. Most assume Benny Binion’s glory days were as the iconic force behind the Horseshoe Club casino in downtown Las Vegas. However, as the author points out, this was merely a modest second act. From the mid-1930s through the mid-1940s, Binion owned at least half of the more than two dozen illegal casinos operating in Dallas and reportedly pocketed more than $1,000,000 a year from his various enterprises. Much of Sleeper’s book documents the violent feuds between competing illegal operators. Binion was frequently challenged, and violent shootouts ensued. One such incident involved Herbert Noble, a Binion rivel who survived a dozen attempts on his life. He was finally killed when his mailbox blew up in 1951. Binion was suspected but never charged. In 1946, the reform movement took hold in Dallas and Binion could see “the handwriting on the wall.” With $3,000,000 in cash in the trunk of his car, he arrived in Las Vegas. Well researched and written, this is the best book on this notorious Dallas gambler. Fine, bright copy in dust jacket.

Inventory Number: 51645