THE STING at 50: Reel to Real Cons and Scams (Ep. 45)

December 25, 2023 is the 50th anniversary of THE STING’s theatrical release. In episode 45, we talk about THE STING and real-life cons, big and small, with veteran casino operator GENO MUNARI. Geno brings behind-the-scenes connections to the film and stories from his work in the gambling and hospitality business, including 8 years at The Dunes Hotel and Country Club in Las Vegas. Geno Munari is author of The Dunes Hotel and Casino: The Mob, the Connections, the Stories; and Scams, Swindlers & Cheats: What Every Gambler & Casino Operator Should Know, where he reveals the secrets of the gambling underworld. Winner of 7 Academy Awards including Best Picture, and Best Director for George Roy Hill, THE STING features Paul Newman and Robert Redford as two con men who team up to avenge the murder of a mutual friend by pulling off the ultimate big con to swindle a ruthless crime boss. Download the TRANSCRIPT for Ep. 45 from this ⁠⁠link⁠⁠⁠⁠.⁠⁠ PLEASE NOTE: TRANSCRIPTS ARE GENERATED USING A COMBINATION OF SPEECH RECOGNITION SOFTWARE AND HUMAN TRANSCRIBERS, AND MAY CONTAIN ERRORS. ---------- TIMESTAMPS 1:15 -  1973 THE STING & Impact 5:07 - Geno Munari (intro) 6:13 - The origins and types of confidence games 14:00 - Poker scene in movie "The Sting" with insights from Geno Munari 29:08 - Con games and scams in Las Vegas 32:04 - Break (30 sec) 33:56 - Greed, scams, and movie appearances 40:09 - Gambling, Las Vegas history, and book writing 46:05 - Classic Vegas, Lightening Round and time capsules with Geno Munari 48:48 Watch THE STING 49:03 Buy the "The Dunes . . ." book ------- STAY ENGAGED with HISTORICAL DRAMA WITH THE BOSTON SISTERS ⁠⁠⁠LISTEN⁠⁠⁠ to this episode and past podcasts. ⁠⁠⁠SIGN UP⁠⁠⁠ for our mailing list SUBSCRIBE to the podcast on your favorite podcast platform You can SUPPORT this podcast on ⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠ or⁠⁠⁠ SHOP THE PODCAST⁠⁠⁠ on our affiliate bookstore Thank you for listening!