Mob Experience dispute less violent than real mob experience

When I heard "Mafia Princess" Antoinette Giancana was having trouble as a consultant for the Tropicana's Mob Experience exhibit and wanted to speak with me about it, I could only sigh.

My how the world has changed.

Time was, the daughter of the infamous Chicago mob boss Sam Giancana wouldn't have dreamed of chatting up an ink-stained newsy to get someone to see her side of things. When the name Giancana reigned supreme in Chicago, the mob's clout was no lounge comic's one-liner. But the Mafia titan was murdered on June 19, 1975; Las Vegas went corporate long ago; and today, most casino people wouldn't know Momo Giancana from Mama Cass.

But the public remains fascinated by the mob's heyday, and that popularity is one reason Las Vegas now has competing mob museum projects. The city that for so long denied the mob's existence now hopes to cash in on the legend. Go figure.

Since her father's death, Antoinette has carved out a career as his daughter, publishing a couple of popular books and appearing often in magazine articles and documentaries. Her meeting in 2009 with Jay Bloom must have seemed like a match made in mob heaven.

Bloom is the driving force behind the "Mob Experience" at the Tropicana, which hopes to rival downtown's Mob Museum for the greenbacks of tourists fascinated by the evolution of organized crime.

In short order, Giancana signed a lucrative five-year agreement with a Bloom limited liability company to consult on and promote the project. She says she also agreed to sell the family living room furniture as part of an "artifact purchase agreement" to create a Giancana exhibit.

She accuses Bloom's company of missing payments, bouncing a check, and failing to treat her in the manner befitting her status as a Mafia Princess.

Contacted Thursday, Bloom expressed surprise Giancana, 75, was dissatisfied with her arrangement. He denied he has breached any part of her contract, or that the Mob Experience is experiencing financial difficulty. She remains under contract, he said, and has been getting paid for more than a year.

"She obviously gets compensation as a consultant and is continuing to get paid as a consultant ..." Bloom said. "She's obviously been through a lot. She's at a later age. Honestly, I have difficulty reading her sometimes. She certainly is with the project still. She can be challenging to work with at times, but she still has a story to tell, and she's still very much a part of this project."

Giancana, it appears, wants to play a bigger role or pack up her family furniture and go elsewhere. She said she was promised a higher profile as "spokesperson for this project. I am to do the interviews. I am to do the media events. I am to be on the billboards and other advertising media for them. Jay agreed, fine. As of today, I am not. He just turned it around."

Bloom responds that Giancana's contract clearly defines her role. With $12 million spent on the $25 million project, the Mob Experience is bigger than one person or even one powerful family name.

Bloom's challenge is made complicated by the fact the Mob Experience is located on the property of a Nevada casino licensee. Missed payments and negative publicity eventually could reflect on Tropicana management.

Back in the day, this would be the time set aside for a sit-down between disgruntled parties. Afterward, the matter would be settled, either with a handshake and a glass of vino, or a bullet and a ride in the trunk of a Lincoln. Today, you don't go to the mattresses. You go to court, or the press.

I don't advocate violence -- even if it would be a helluva promotion for a mobster museum -- but I'm starting to think life was simpler when the mob ran the town.

John L. Smith's column appears Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. E-mail him at Smith@reviewjournal.com or call 702-383-0295. He also blogs at lvrj.com/blogs/smith.