Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1112633 in Books
• Published on: 1996-09-09
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 150 pages

Synopsis
The screenplay of a Martin Scorsese film dealing with the violent triangular relationship between gambler Ace Rothstein, his wife Ginger (a former prostitute), and his strong-arm associate, Nick Santoro. The story is set amid a glittering, festering Babylon in which appearance is everything.

Customer Reviews

Decent, but doesn't have the power of Goodfellas
The famous Nicholas Pileggi film follow-up from Goodfellas was this claustrophobic tale of troubled mobsters trying to force control in Las Vegas' casinos during the mid-70s to early 80s by back handers, bribing and skiming to name. However, Pillegi decides to tell the man behind the face of the Stardust of all-Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal.

Rosenthal was born and brought up in Chicago. Rosenthal is described as being engrossed in horse racing from an early age, eventually becoming very interested with odds in horse racing both with those all across America in a time where the information was harder to find, subscribing to all the magazines and then onto to basketball teams. Through a back door in Las Vegas, he starts running the Stardust illegally, without a license, like a crack of the whip, determined to punish dealers who lift their cards too high to an equal amount of blueberries in every muffin and catching law breakers with the obedient eye in the sky.

The book analysies his best friend from childhood, Tony "The Ant" Spilartio who gets in the way of Lefty rules and regulations by interferring with the business; how his previous time in Chicago including the infamous 1963 homicide case among other cases which are thrown at him, the decline of his marriage to Jenny and heart problems are destined to destroy him. According to Pileggi, the Ant was considered to be the real power of the Stardust behind Frank's back.

Rosenthal's relationship with the elegant Geri was love at first sight. The intentions run high for them, when Geri is determined to marry him for his wealth and rob him of this. Rosenthal-Pileggi explains-spoils her with jewellery, clothes and shoes, but couldn't love her where later on he takes the opportunity to flirt with the showgirls, whilst Geri rekindles an old on and off romance with Lenny Marner (the father of one of her daughters, Robin).

Casino is about the failures of a man whose glint of success in Las Vegas was marred with disaster along the long dusty and bumpy road, where they are a lot of holes in the desert. Although, not as strong as Goodfellas, this does ease and help understand at least the confusion of the fast pace of the movie adaption (the first of Scorsese's works to be on digital film) around the time this novel was released.

Facinating - I couldn't put the book down
From start to finish the whole book about the mafia in Las Vegas was completely facinating, and the fact that is a true story made it even more exciting. As with goodfellas, the author Pileggi made the book very easy reading, helping you to visualise every event. I'd suggest to anyone interested in organised crime or Las Vegas to read this book.