Thanks, Robert!

Technically, I suppose I started collecting in 1981, when I swiped some ashtrays on my first trip to Las Vegas! But those ashtrays ended up in a box in the basement for several years.

About 10-11 years ago we found an ashtray from "Joe W. Brown's Horseshoe Club". We'd never heard of Joe W. Brown, couldn't find any info on him in a few Vegas books that we had. A couple of months later we found a postcard showing the $1,000,000 display at the Horseshoe...and it said Joe W. Brown's...!?!?

A month or three after that we headed to Vegas on a vacation. We stopped in an antique shop, and they had the same Joe W. ashtray. We asked the clerk who Joe W. was, and she said "OH! I know just who you need to talk to!" She went and got the owner of the store. He told us the story about Benny having to do time for income tax evasion, and Joe W. running the Horseshoe. WOW!! Whatta story!! Then he said he had something that we HAD to see! He literally ran up some stairs, and came back with a Joe W. Brown's craps game. He told us that he used to play with a couple of the Binions when they were all kids. He told us that he helped the Binion kids "stuff" the game boxes when the game came out. (Years later we found the game on ebay.)

A day or two later we were in the Gambler's General Store and I saw Art Anderson's Casino Ashtray book. I picked it up and turned to the Horseshoe page. Not only was the story there, but they said our .75 ashtray was worth $12-$15!! WOW!!! So I spent $20 for the book, so I'd have the story behind our ashtray . When we got home I remembered the ashtrays in the basement, and I dug them out. They listed from $3 - $15, as I recall. That was the start of it...

For awhile we just collected ashtrays, then we added postcards 'cuz I thought it was cool to see what the places looked like. Then we picked up a chip or two, then a matchbook or a swizzle stick...and we went headfirst right down the slippery slope of collecting casino stuff...and it's been a crazy ride!

Geeez...I do ramble on, don't I ? Sorry 'bout that!!