What was Benny Binion's relationship to Joe Civello? Binion of course opened the Horseshoe in Vegas. Many considered him the racket boss of Dallas. Civello was relatively low key. Was it similar to Bugsy Siegel and Jack Dragna, where Dragna was technically in charge according to the commission but Binion was really in charge? Did Binion pay tribute to Civello?

no clue for me

I've read that Binion was the top bootlegging/gambling boss in Dallas in 20/30s, but the source seemed to be based more upon rumor and myth.

What is certain he had some kind of a relationship to Dragna. When Louie Strauss tried to shake down Binion in the early 1950s, Binion went to Dragna for help, who summoned Strauss to a meeting in LA. Once he arrived in LA Jimmy Fratianno and Frank Bompensiero killed him.

Thanks for the response, Tony Pro.

So, I take it Civello was pretty low key? Binion seemed to be the syndicate's guy in Dallas. Interesting about the Dragnas. Wasn't Dragna trying to get a piece of a Vegas casino? Did he think Binion was his meal ticket?

The family is dead. Binion and Civello did not get along well, until after Binion moved to Nevada. While in Dallas Benny was close to Tony Lopiparo, the Ianna family and the Genaro brothers. He hooked up with Frank Costello.

Thanks, Vacari. I was hoping you would chime in. Many accounts refer to Binion as the undisputed mob boss of Dallas. I wonder how that could sit well with the Italian mob's designated boss of Dallas. You mention Binion being in contact with Costello, which convinces me it was similar to the Bugsy/Dragna situation. Dragna technically the boss, but Luciano telling Dragna to back off and let Bugsy do his thing. Did Costello have a similar edict for Civello?

The Italians never had much influence in Dallas due to a low population. The police were on the payroll of the good ole boys. There was no real rackets boss in Dallas. It was a loose knit group of gamblers.

Not just gambling, but prostitution and narcotics. There is a long history up till after WW2. The real Racket boss was actually Warren Diamond, who was a mentor to Binion, that committed suicide in 1933, which allowed the Italians to gain more in the gambling scene. Diamond empire fractured.

Back on Binion. He split from Diamond in 1926 or 1927 and joined Salvatore Lopiparo son of Tony, and Ray Laudermilk to start up Southland Hotel which was owned by Sam Maceo of Galveston, with Tony Lopiparo overseeing it. This also about the time that he started to have a solid friendship with deputy sheriff Bill Decker which would lead him to having a friendship with Sheriff Schmid. Sam Murray was a former Diamond Lieutenant who operated on his own and was left alone. This act is said to have started the hatred between Binion and Joe Civello. Finally Murray started to muscle in on Binion's and the Dallas mobs number rackets. So Binion sent Ivy Miller a new face to dispatch Murray. This murder would set off a war in Dallas. Herbert Noble who was Murray Bodyguard would eventually take over Murray rackets after two more killings, was able to get Ray Laudermilk to switch to his side. When Laudermilk was killed the war stopped when Noble discontinued his Policy games. After that Binion became the top gambling boss in Dallas. During WW2, he moved in on Fort Worth and gave free rent to the gamblers of the city. Near the end of WW2, Chicago was interested in Dallas and used Big Phil father of Joe Civello to start the ball rolling. Binion did not like it was pouring money to both the Sheriff and DA races. When he his choices lost, he moved to Las Vegas. There he met Bugsy, Bones, and other Jewish gangsters that would eventually lead to him meeting New York, Cleveland, and Detroit higher ups in LCN. He met with David Berman after Bugsy was killed, weather it was an approach to run the Flamingo or not is unknown. Binion would meet Frank Costello who helped start up The Horseshoe with Binion doing as he pleased as long as he kicked up tribute, the casino had Genovese, Cleveland, and Dallas interests in it. Binion and Costello got along well, but Binion and Nobles fued stopped Costello from pumping money to Texas gambling operations.

Wow. Great as usual, Vacari. Thanks. I knew there had to be some history there.

I've read before that Civello was Marcello's guy. You mention Chicago. Wasn't Jack Ruby from Chicago, too? What was his role in Dallas's racket scene? By some accounts he was just a night club owner, but for some reason he capped Oswald on national television.

Jack Ruby was from Chicago, but was no strongman, that is what Pat Manno was for. Ruby was a pimp and was getting ready to make a move to Fort Worth, Texas after he left the Army, there was no Air Force at the time, but he was an aviation mechanic. Fort Worth was the Red light capital of Texas at the time, but city changed made him forget about it. He showed up in Dallas in 1947 where he operated as a nightclub owner and pimp. Sometime in 1949 he met Vincent D'Ingianni a fellow pimp living in Houston who got Ruby involved with arms trafficking. There is enough evidence and statements from Vice Detectives that shows Jack Ruby visiting the Smiling Restaurants that Vincent owned about half a dozen times a year, and informants that said Ruby helped D'Ingianni run guns to Cuba on boats in the early 1950's which led Jack meeting members of New Orleans and Tampa Bay. It is most likely D'Ingianni also got Ruby involved with narcotics. In 1950 he met became friends with Lewis McWillis who worked for Benny Binion while Binion was in Dallas. McWillis would go on to run Casinos in Cuba and later in life worked at the Horseshoe in Las Vegas. On the JFK and Oswalt there are a few threads on here you can look up.

The Dallas Family like the Maceo family in Galveston was always small and become defunct in the 1960s because the lack of italians in texas and because invested much of the money in real estate so once retired their sons become legittime bussiness men.

Thanks for the posts Furio. It shows the rumor that members of Dallas were wary of Bosco is true. Honestly, I figured Joe Colleta was the informant.

http://mafiamembershipcharts.blogspot.it/search/label/Murders?m=0

Know people killed by Texas family.

Leoluca Genaro - 1932
Vincent Vallone - 1949

Joe Civello Funeral | Mafia In Dallas | Dallas Crime Family (1970)

I know Binion had connections to Tommy Lucchese and Jack Dragna...

I believe Binion paid money into the 60s to the LA Family

Also Binion had relationships with guys in Chicago like Accardo,Alex,Giancana,Fishettis and Caifano..

Dallas family was pretty inconsequential, the height of the family was the 30s and 40s I think even before Civello was boss....
I know Civello had close ties to the Dallas Cowboys in the 1950s and would just stroll into the owners office whenever he wanted....

BoomBoomRoom,

You put up some great videos. You and MobFax really dig deep for some of this stuff.