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Magnates Bob Stupak
Bob Stupak was born in 1942 plus is the son of Chester
Stupak, a man who operated the highest running floating
craps game in Pittsburgh. Once Bob attained legal age,
he moved to Vegas and started a coupon book scam. He
put up for sale books full of two-for-ones and the like
plus made a tidy profit. He as well went to Australia
and did the same thing, only to be asked to go away
from the country for questionable business practices.
What Bob really wanted was to own a casino, and so at
the first chance, he opened one. With his own cash plus
dollars raised from his father's friends, Stupak obtain
a homely 1.5 acre (6,000 m²) parcel north of Sahara
Avenue at Las Vegas Boulevard South that on one occasion
was home to a car lot. What rose in its place plus opened
on March 31, 1974, was a small slot joint absurdly named
Bob Stupak's World renowned Historic Gambling Museum.
"The name was about 10 feet [3 m] longer than the
casino," Stupak recalled years later. On May 21,
an air conditioner caught fire plus burned the joint
down. Arson was suspected, but the insurance company
ultimately settled the claim.
Stupak went on to open Vegas World in 1979, a casino
identified for its crazy promotions and new-fangled
twists on games. At its peak in the mid 1980's, Vegas
World grossed $100 million per annum.
In 1995, Stupak was in a horrendous motorcycle accident,
breaking all bone in his face and going into unconsciousness.
It seemed impossible that he'd stay alive, let alone
function normally. Improbably, he improved. At the time,
he was at work developing The Stratosphere, an enormous
observation tower that he envisioned as the major sign
in Vegas, a town known for flashy signs. It opened in
late April of 1995, at a cost of $550 million, and was
a disaster. Many came to see it, but few stopped up
long enough to gamble, dine or shop. It went bankrupt
soon after that, and it was sold.
Since then, Stupak continues to plan Vegas projects,
as well as a purchase of the Moulin Rouge and a gigantic
hotel fashioned like the RMS Titanic but these have
gone nowhere.
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