In 1946, Benjamin ‘Bugsy’ Siegel approached a combination of underworld investors in order to fund his dream casino-hotel, the Flamingo, in Las Vegas. Construction should have cost $1 million, but he spent over three times that and needed more. Eventually, after Mr. Siegel’s untimely demise, the Flamingo became a roaring success and set the precedent for mob-owned casinos for decades to come.