Times have indeed changed for legalized sports betting

I smiled at the news that revenue-hungry California legislators are setting the stage for legalized sports betting in their state. Then I thought of Leroy's.

First, the headlines. A statewide survey by Field Poll determined that 58 percent of California voters support legalized betting on professional sports teams such as the Lakers and Dodgers.

The rest must be Clippers and Angels fans.

The enabling bill passed the state Senate by a wide margin. With California towns and cities declaring bankruptcy, legalized sports betting is viewed increasingly as a potential revenue enhancer.

Somewhere in the shadows, an astute political handicapper is making the idea a slight favorite.

But how times have changed.

Not so many years ago Nevada had the only government-approved sports books in the nation, and few other states dared to consider following suit. It was hard to blame them. There might be a bookmaker in half the bars in Los Angeles and New York, and every watering hole in Cleveland, but federal prohibition and state political division created what appeared to be a hopeless tangle that assured Nevada would maintain its status as a legalized sports-betting paradise.

Unlike their manicured cousins on the casino floor, the bookmakers have had far more trouble shaking their street-corner stigma, even in Nevada, where veteran gamblers enjoy the status of founding fathers and retired Army generals. Gambling was legalized in 1931, but our sports books carried such a notorious reputation that for decades they weren't allowed inside casinos. They were "stand-alone" sports parlors with names like the Derby, Saratoga Club and Churchill Downs.

Then there was Leroy's in the heart of downtown on the site of the old Saratoga: May it rest in a cigar-fogged peace.

The Saratoga was run by "Fat Jerry" Dellman, who as the street story goes was one of the first bookmakers to fail to take seriously the suggestions of Chicago Outfit enforcer Tony Spilotro. When Fat Jerry was slain in 1976, a briefcase of cash was left untouched in his trunk.

The Saratoga suddenly became available, and Leroy B. Merrilat decided to reopen its doors on April 8, 1978. just in time for the baseball season. He called it Leroy's, and son-in-law Vic Salerno left a successful dental practice to try his hand behind the counter of one of the most colorful operations in Las Vegas history.

It was there that legendary Las Vegas oddsmaker Michael "Roxy" Roxborough apprenticed with the remarkable "Herbie Hoops" Lambeck, who for decades was as much a part of downtown as Vegas Vic.

Roxy recently told me about meeting Salerno for the first time, during the basketball season of 1978-1979: "As I walked into Leroy's to check the board, Herb Lambeck yelled, 'Rox, The Dentist wants to see you.'

"So we both were escorted into that iconic office with the close-up, one-way window into the insalubrious life of East First Street. Vic inquired to why each time my account was in 'the plus,' I took down the cash. But when it was 'minus,' I just carried over the figure from week to week."

Roxy continued: "After the meet and greet, I turned to Herbie and postulated, 'The over and under on The Dentist was 1.5 years. And only that long because I like him.' Turned out to be the worst line I ever made."

Roxy and Salerno eventually became the best of friends. Both survived the rough-and-tumble atmosphere of bookmaking in "modern" and "corporate" Las Vegas. This was a million years ago, and I have it on good authority the business has been taken over by prep school Phi Beta Kappa key-holders in tassel loafers.

Salerno, 68, retired recently after 34 years in the business. He built Leroy's into a respected name, then sold it to American Wagering. London bookmaking powerhouse William Hill bought American Wagering for $18 million. Both are publicly traded companies.

Salerno, a survivor who kept smiling through all the growing pains, crafted an essential legacy.

Some say legalizing sports betting is still too controversial to be successful.

Controversial?

Compared to what? Politics?

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