Friday, June 13, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

COLUMN: John L. Smith

Inaccuracies don't impair sales of book that led to Goodman complaint

Flawed or not, "Positively Fifth Street: Murderers, Cheetahs, and Binion's World Series of Poker" is a red-hot seller in Southern Nevada, local bookstore clerks say.

At Gamblers Book Club, the center of the universe for such things, the $26 hardback is jumping off the shelves.

The scandalous tale of the Binion clan and its poker dynasty was the subject of a complaint from Mayor Oscar Goodman over the way he was depicted by author James McManus. The offending paragraph will be removed from future printings, and a full-page advertisement containing an apology will appear in the July 6 edition of The New York Times Book Review.

Not only was the allegation that Goodman was involved in a criminal conspiracy without factual basis, it wasn't the only error in the paragraph. The dominant subject of the paragraph, Jimmy Chagra, was called a heroin trafficker, but in reality he worked with cocaine and marijuana. In addition, the figure offered Charles Harrelson for the murder of federal Judge John Wood was $250,000, not the $50,000 reported in the book.

Exactly how the retraction advertisement has been paid for is unclear. Although reporters attending a Tuesday news conference at City Hall thought the publisher was responsible for placing the ad, that isn't the case, according to Farrar, Straus and Giroux official Elisabeth Calamari.

In the book industry newsletter Publishers Lunch this week, Calamari said: "We have not agreed to publish an advertisement containing our letter to the Mayor in The New York Times Book Review (or anywhere else) and have no plans to do so."

Goodman attorney Anthony Glassman kept it brief.

"We are bound and governed by the confidentiality provision, and we will honor that," Glassman said. He did, however, add that it was the mayor's choice of publication and publishing date. Goodman declined comment.

While denying a direct link to the ad, the Farrar, Straus executive didn't indicate another source of the money to pay for it.

And anyone who knows Goodman realizes he wouldn't pay a nickel for such an advertisement.

TEAM MONCRIEF: Those looking for signs that the tenure of Councilwoman-elect Janet Moncrief might turn out to be more mainstream than once thought are looking no further than her transition team of political veterans Tom Letizia and Bill Marion. Both men have close contacts with the mayor's office, an indication that Moncrief and Goodman have opened the lines of communication.

Meanwhile, public sightings of Moncrief and casino maverick Bob Stupak continue. Stupak, a longtime tinkerer in City Hall politics, was suspected of manipulating Moncrief's upstart campaign from behind the scenes. It's a charge that Stupak and Moncrief have denied.

INTERNET SESSION: Angry letter-writers have taken on new weight at the Legislature thanks to e-mail.

Legislators on both sides of the tax issue have been bombarded by messages attempting to sway their positions.

With the Legislature continuing its deadlock during a special session, it's obvious that some of those public servants are slow readers.

'MEN' AT RIV: "Men: The Show" won't be confused with "The Man Show." On the contrary. It's a high-gloss Chippendale-style strip-off that further illustrates the Strip's trend toward risque adult entertainment.

It's also the first stage production credit for Adam Gentile, who teams up with Collin Foster. Gentile is the son of defense attorney Dominic Gentile.

ON THE BOULEVARD: Black Book member and all-around sports world wiseguy Frank Rosenthal celebrated his 74th birthday Thursday.

That's many more candles on the cake than many people believed he'd ever gather after he survived a 1982 car bombing.

Rosenthal, whose life was portrayed by Robert DeNiro in the movie "Casino," resides in Florida.

A lifelong gambler, he acknowledges the futility of trying to buck the house's odds.

"Winning is virtually impossible," Rosenthal told a "Frontline" reporter in 1997.

"If you want to speak about getting lucky, anybody can get lucky," he continued, "but if you're attempting to sustain yourself over a period of time and take money out of a casino or a race track, you're better off climbing Mount Everest by yourself."

Have an item for the Bard of the Boulevard? E-mail comments and contributions to Smith@reviewjournal.com or call 383-0295.