Vegas Roots

My family took many trips to Las Vegas in the 1960s. My father was a friend of Ash Resnick, who organized gambling junkets.

This first photo of me was taken at the Stardust Hotel, in 1969. The next is of me at the hotel pool.

I always knew that Ruby Lazarus was my father's first cousin. My grandmother was the sister of Ruby's father.

Ruby was mentioned in Ed Reid's 1969 book, "The Grim Reapers." He died in 1991.

I have an audiotape that was transposed for me from three very old records. It was made by a sound specialist who works at Lincoln Center. The records were created by my father for his parents during a stopover in St. Louis as he headed to the Aleutian Islands during WWII. In one of the recordings my father mentions Ruby, who was with him in St. Louis as he also waited to be shipped out.

Ruby Lazarus, waiting to testify during the Grand Jury gambling investigation:

Photo by Frank Scherschel, Time Life Pictures: Getty Images

Ash Resnick