THE UNDERGROUND SPEAKEASY AT THE MOB MUSEUM FEATURES LIVE MUSIC, LIMITED-EDITION COCKTAILS AND MORE IN AUGUST
LAS VEGAS (August 2021) – The Mob Museum, the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, announces its roster of public programs for August.
All Museum programs require registration. For more information on any of the public programs below and to register, visit www.themobmuseum.org/events/.
Why Misdemeanors Matter: How Petty Offenses Trap Millions in the System
Date: Monday, August 2
Time: 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Location: Inside the historic courtroom on the second floor. THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT. Limited space for media is available; please email Desiree Webb (desiree@thevoxagency.com) for a media credential.
Description: The Mob Museum, the Clark County Black Caucus and the Fines and Fees Justice Center present the Las Vegas premiere of the documentary “Racially Charged: America’s Misdemeanor Problem,” followed by a panel discussion. The inspiration for the documentary, Alexandra Natapoff, author of “Punishment Without Crime: How Our Massive Misdemeanor System Traps the Innocent and Makes America More Unequal,” will participate in the program virtually.
Speakers:
- Appearing virtually for a Q&A, Alexandra Natapoff wrote the book that inspired the documentary “Punishment Without Crime: How Our Massive Misdemeanor System Traps the Innocent and Makes America More Unequal.”
- Yvette Williams is the founder and current chair for the Clark County Black Caucus.
- Leisa Moseley currently serves as the Nevada State Director for the Fines and Fees Justice Center.
- Judge Belinda Harris was elected to serve as Justice of the Peace in 2020 for North Las Vegas Justice Court Department 3.
- Eve Hanan is co-director of the misdemeanor clinic at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Boyd School of Law.
Community Safety Forum: Fighting COVID-19 Scams and Fraud
Date: Sunday, August 8
Time: 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Location: Inside the historic courtroom on the second floor. A livestream of the presentation will be available on the Museum’s website. To RSVP to attend in-person or for the livestream link, click here.
Cost: Free. Thanks to NV Energy, pre-registered guests are given free admission to the Museum following the event.
Description: Presented in partnership with the Nevada Attorney General’s Office, this program will focus on an increase in scams related to the coronavirus pandemic. From debt relief scams to fraudulent treatments and vaccines, hundreds of thousands of consumer complaints have been filed with the Federal Trade Commission. Senior Deputy Attorney General Sheri Ann Forbes will offer useful tips to help combat different fraud schemes related to COVID-19.
Each month, The Mob Museum partners with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and other local agencies to host Community Safety Forums – free public programs focused on pertinent issues that affect Southern Nevada. Thanks to NV Energy, pre-registered guests are given free admission to the Museum following the event. The Mob Museum will also provide a recording of this presentation on its website.
Speaker: Senior Deputy Attorney General, Sheri Ann Forbes
Views from the Bench: Judges Debate a Fractured Legal System
Date: Tuesday, August 10
Time: 7 to 8 p.m.
Location: Inside the historic courtroom on the second floor. A livestream of the presentation will be available on the Museum’s website. To RSVP to attend in-person or for the livestream link, click here.
Cost: Free for Museum Members or with Museum admission.
Description: Senior U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff of New York and District Judge Tierra Jones of Las Vegas will discuss the range of problems in our legal system, including plea deals, sentencing guidelines, and the perils of eyewitness testimony and forensic science.
Speakers:
- Jed Rakoff is a senior U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of New York. He is also the author of “Why the Innocent Plead Guilty and the Guilty Go Free.”
- Clark County District Judge Tierra Jones became the first African American woman to sit on the state court bench in Nevada in 2017.
Debut of “The Fabulous Flamingo” Exhibit Showcasing Rare Artifacts Related to Bugsy Siegel and the Flamingo Hotel.
Date: Friday, August 13
Time: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Location: The exhibit will be located on the Museum’s second floor.
Cost: Ticket pricing and information can be found here.
Description: “The Fabulous Flamingo,” a permanent exhibit related to Bugsy Siegel and the Flamingo Hotel, will include four rare artifacts. Highlights of the exhibit include:
- The original $9,500 check written by Wilkerson to purchase the 33 acres where he planned to build the Flamingo. Wilkerson ultimately paid $84,000 for the parcel on Highway 91 south of Las Vegas.
- Five original canceled checks that Wilkerson wrote to five different Las Vegas casinos to pay gambling debts he incurred during the Flamingo’s development. Wilkerson’s severe compulsive gambling problem forced him to seek out underworld investors to finance his casino project.
- An original invitation to the Flamingo’s three-day grand opening from December 26-28, 1946. This invitation is for the third opening night, December 28, which focused on attracting Hollywood’s elite to see and enjoy the new resort.
- An original legal document, signed by Siegel, removing Wilkerson in all respects from the Flamingo operation. In this agreement, Siegel promises to pay Wilkerson $600,000 for his interest in the casino resort. (Wilkerson ended up getting only half.)
The Forgotten Capital of Vice: The Mob in Hot Springs, Arkansas
Date: Thursday, August 19
Time: 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Location: Inside the historic courtroom on the second floor. A livestream of the presentation will be available on the Museum’s website. To RSVP to attend in-person or for the livestream link, click here.
Cost: Free for Museum Members or with Museum admission.
Description: Before Las Vegas became the underworld’s casino playground, Hot Springs, Arkansas, was a favorite vacation spot — and hideout — for the nation’s big-time mobsters. Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, Frank Costello and dozens of other organized crime figures descended on the town’s soothing hot springs and dens of gambling and other vices. Author David Hill provides a detailed portrait of this often-overlooked corner of Mob history.
Speaker: David Hill originally hails from Hot Springs, Arkansas. He has authored many award-winning columns and books, including “The Vapors: A Southern Family, the New York Mob, and the Rise and Fall of Hot Springs, America’s forgotten Capital of Vice.”
Virtual Program – From Farmers to Kingpins: The Evolution of the Mexican Drug Trade
Date: Thursday, August 26
Time: 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Location: This will be a virtual program. This presentation will be available online here.
Cost: Free
Description: The Mexican drug trade has not always been characterized by corruption of high-level politicians and audacious acts of violence. How did this illicit industry, founded by peaceful farmers and village healers, become dominated by cartels and kingpins? Drawing on extensive new research, historian Benjamin Smith explains the roots and complicated dynamics of Mexico’s catastrophic drug war.
Speaker: Benjamin Smith is a historian and author of “The Dope: The Real History of the Mexican Drug Trade.”
Happy Hour General Admission
Cost: Save $10 on admission
Description: The Mob Museum offers a Happy Hour discount of $10 on general admission after 5 p.m. Sunday-Friday or before 11 a.m. Saturday. To purchase tickets, click here.
See themobmuseum.org for details and restrictions.
For more information, please call (702) 229-2734 or visit themobmuseum.org.
ABOUT THE MOB MUSEUM
The Mob Museum, the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, provides a world-class journey through true stories—from the birth of the Mob to today’s headlines. The Mob Museum offers a provocative, contemporary look at these topics through hundreds of artifacts and immersive storylines. Numerous interactive exhibits include a Crime Lab, Firearm Training Simulator and Organized Crime Today exhibit. The Museum is also home to The Underground, a Prohibition history exhibition featuring a speakeasy and distillery. The Mob Museum has accumulated numerous accolades, including being named one of TripAdvisor’s “Top 25 U.S. Museums;” one of Las Vegas Weekly’s “Twenty Greatest Attractions in Las Vegas History” and “Best Museum” by its 2021 Readers’ Choice Awards; one of National Geographic’s “Top 10 Things to Do in Las Vegas;” USA Today’s “Best Museum in Nevada,” 10Best Readers’ Choice travel awards for “Best Las Vegas Attraction” in 2020, “Top Five Best History Museums in the United States” in 2021 and one of its “12 Can’t Miss U.S. Museum Exhibits;” named “A Must for Travelers” by The New York Times and one of “20 Places Every American Should See” by FOX News. The Museum is a two-time winner of the Mayor’s Urban Design Award for Historic Preservation and Adaptive Reuse and is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. The Museum is open daily; visit the website for admission rates and operating hours. For more information, call (702) 229-2734, visit themobmuseum.org, or download the Museum’s free mobile app.
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