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, which means I was very easily distracted from my tasks 
) and ran across a LIFE magazine from 1945. Hmmm...the model on the cover is wearing a lot of jewelry, and the only indication of what's inside is the phrase "Fall Jewelry". Now I know we don't have a 64 year old magazine laying around for a story on jewelry! Wonder what's inside....
So I start to browse through the magazine, looking for the index. There's an ad for a fully automatic gear-shifting Hydra-matic Drive 1946 Oldsmobile...no clutch!! A Borden's ad with a whole story featuring Elmer & Elsie...and Beulah (their daughter? or would that be their calf??) A DeSoto ad proclaiming that 8 out of 10 owners say "DeSoto is the most satisfactory car I ever owned". For ten years of his life, from 22 to 32 Harry S. Truman was a dirt farmer...hmmm, didn't know that! An ad for Armour Treet "meal-ready meat"...and another ad promoting the health benefits of eating candy! (The candy ad reminds everyone that sugar is still being rationed, so if they can't find their favorite candy, they should buy another kind).
Finally, on page 27 I found the index. Ah-hah!! Page 116, "Close-up; Harold's Club"!
Here's a few pictures from the article...enjoy!
The article starts off saying that 35 year old corporal Harold Stewart Smith is the most successful gambler in the U.S. today, as the founder and principal owner of Harold's Club in Reno. He's gambled between $25,000 and $50,000 every day for the past year and a half, and probably won well over $1,000,000 during that time frame...without even being there!
In 1937 Harold's father, Ray, came to Reno and began working at (running) Harold's Club. Ray overheard a conversation that took place near the door of the club; one elderly woman said to another "I don't want to go in there--there aren't any women in there". That gave him the idea to start using women dealers. The first two women dealers were Harold's mother, Mrs. Dora May Newmeyer, and his wife Dorothy. Dora May dealt games that included chuck-a-luck and English Hazard; Dorothy mainly dealt craps and blackjack. These women taught other women to deal.
Another story in the magazine tells that "a few years ago" a customer in another Reno gambling joint found the light switch and turned off all the lights. He had a confederate who grabbed trays of money and dove through a window. Harold's Club had no windows, except for a heavily shuttered pair next to the front door. The club was arranged so that all entrances and exits were blocked by rows of slot machines and tables. Also, Mr. Smith had a set of gas lamps installed, with pilot lights that were always kept burning; if the lights did go off, any dealer could pull a chain over her head and light the club back up.
For a time the Smiths got into mining. They bought and operated cinnabar and silver mines, and one tungsten mine. They lost money. During one of Harold's furloughs from the army someone asked him if he would get back into mining after discharge. His answer "We've got the biggest gold mine in the West right here in Harold's Club, and it's getting bigger every minute. That's where I'm going to do my digging."
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