Jack Sheehan introduces newcomers to three giants who helped give the Las Vegas Valley the shape they see today

Sunday, Feb. 11, 2007 | 7:18 a.m.

"Not to know what happened before one was born is to remain a child." - Cicero

While it's true that the history of Las Vegas is but a grain of sand in time, especially compared to that of the ancient Rome of Cicero, our back story is still a fascinating saga of endurance and growth through equal measures of fantasy, greed, intelligence and foresight.

Equally astounding is how little most members of our current population know about the roots of the place they now call home. I was reminded of that recently when I dropped some important historical names at a business lunch and was met with blank stares. But first, some background:

Within a five-month period in 1989, Las Vegas lost three giants in our city's storied history. These men are legendary to anyone who has lived in Las Vegas for 25 years or more. They were Las Vegas Sun Publisher Hank Greenspun, former bootlegger and racketeer turned developer Moe Dalitz and Binion's Horseshoe owner Benny Binion.

Hank was a month short of turning 80 when he died, Benny was 85 and Moe was 89, and all had spent the better part of their adult lives promoting Las Vegas and building their fortunes from its vast potential.

It's hard to think of any men in that earlier generation who contributed more to the dialogue about Las Vegas, or did more to impact the growth and future of the city. While they may have had an equal share of admirers and detractors, a common thread among those three was a fierce belief that Las Vegas was the next great city in the American West.

Yet at in informal get-together last week with two bright young businessmen who now call Las Vegas home - and who I might add are making significant amounts of money here - I was surprised to hear that they knew barely a thing about any of them.

One of the men was aware that the Greenspun family was still prominent in Las Vegas, and the other recognized the Binion family name from the alleged murder of Teddy Binion and the equally celebrated trial that followed it seven years ago. But neither had a clue about who Moe Dalitz was or what role he had in the history of Las Vegas.

While I was surprised by their lack of knowledge, maybe I shouldn't have been when you consider that half of our population of nearly 2 million residents wasn't even here a dozen years ago. (One of these businessmen had been here just seven years and the other only four.)

They were far more interested in immediate matters like the slowdown in sales of existing homes, a concern over what percentage of the announced new high-rise developments will actually get out of the ground and achieve full occupancy, and what the new governor's true plans are regarding the funding of all-day kindergarten and elementary education. Like many recent transplants, these guys care about today and tomorrow in Las Vegas, and just haven't given much thought to our past.

So I filled them in on some of the things that these late legends had done in Las Vegas, and I mentioned the titles of a few books I thought might help them get up to speed on the history of their new city.

Although I wouldn't consider myself a history nut, I do love stories about old Las Vegas, if indeed the term "old" can be applied to a city that just two years ago celebrated its centennial.

One of the more memorable interviews I've done was with billionaire Kirk Kerkorian in the early 1990s. For you newcomers, Kerkorian is the primary stockholder in MGM Mirage, and a man who on three different occasions built the largest hotel in the world. He opened the International (now the Las Vegas Hilton) in 1969, the original MGM Grand (now called Bally's) in 1973 and the current MGM Grand in 1993.

Each time, the conventional wisdom held that he was either overbuilding or choosing the wrong location for his new property. And each time, the conventional wisdom was wrong. Kerkorian's amazing business instincts are among the reasons that today at 89 years old he finds himself the largest stockholder in one of the two largest gaming companies in the world.

In that interview, at which I was not allowed either to take notes or use a tape recorder, Kerkorian talked about his friendship with Howard Hughes, and how they shared a love of boxing and aviation. "I met Hughes on four different occasions," Kerkorian told me. "I liked him. He was a helluva guy. If you take him early in his career, he didn't get the credit he deserves."

Kerkorian also said some of his fondest memories of Las Vegas were in the 1970s, when Elvis Presley was filling every seat in the Hilton's showroom. "I could tell you a million stories about those years," the media-shy billionaire said. And as I eagerly awaited some juicy tales, he added, "But I'd rather not."

My favorite Las Vegas stories are those where the paths of these legendary Las Vegans cross. An example is when Dalitz was trying to force Hughes to vacate his ninth-floor quarters at the Desert Inn to make room for high-rolling customers. Instead of moving, Hughes had his front man and alter ego Bob Maheu arrange to purchase the hotel from Dalitz.

The acquisition of the Desert Inn became the first move in an eventual monopoly game that saw Hughes buy up seven different properties on the Las Vegas Strip. As Maheu told me recently, "Hughes is sometimes credited with helping build the modern Las Vegas. In reality, he built nothing. He just bought a lot of properties and helped prepare the city for the great builders of today."

Another time, Greenspun and his bride, Barbara, attended a masquerade ball at the Desert Inn, where they specifically were not invited, and they reveled in hearing all sorts of wonderful gossip about themselves beneath the cloaked identity of their elaborate disguises.

I would encourage all newcomers to our town to spend some quality time researching the roots of Las Vegas. They will find those times every bit as interesting as the events that fill this newspaper today.

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