The Rise of the Biggest Little City - Reno

The Rise of the Biggest Little City is an encyclopedic history of Reno, Nevada gaming during the period 1931 to 1981. Open gambling was legalized in Nevada in 1931 and the city of Reno began to expand its role as the gambling capital of the United States.

Although Las Vegas grew at the same time, Reno was the number-one gambling destination in the country until the 1970's.

• Written by Reno resident and casino worker with ties to the 1950's
• Comprehensive listing of every Reno, Nevada casino from 1931 to 1981
• Big 8x11 format
• 76 vintage photos
• Appendix with maps and a full index

Low Points

• Photos are small, all black and white
• Text, like any encyclopedia, can be dull and dry
• Great pains are taken to portray only the best things about Reno

Description

• The Rise of the Biggest Little City by Dwayne Kling was released in 2000
• 236 pages, over 70 photos
• Publisher: University of Nevada Press

The Rise of the Biggest Little City is an encyclopedia about Reno, Nevada casinos. Author Dwayne Kling does an excellent job of containing and categorizing the casinos during the years 1931 (the legalization of open gambling in Nevada) to 1981. His actual experience as a casino dealer and executive after arriving in Reno in 1947 plays well to his overall knowledge of Reno in its heyday.

Kling became a dice dealer at Harold's Club in the 1950's and was able to see many new casinos open in the town. Casinos in the 1950's depended heavily on the game of craps and Kling was able to soak-up much of town's background and foreground from his perch across the green felt.

Unfortunately, the actual essence and flavor of the town's casinos are lost in this encyclopedia simply because it is not addressed, except generally for a few larger properties of text about Harold's and Harrah's casinos.

As usual, the University of Nevada Press has produced a very accurate, detailed portrayal of the subject matter. The book is laid out nicely, alphabetically, and uses mostly old newspaper clippings and Harvey Fuller's casino license listings to authenticate the clubs and their start dates.

Unfortunately, Kling chooses the period of 1931-1981, the same dates found in Nevada's Golden Age of Gambling, an earlier book about Nevada casinos and their pioneers with a heavy emphasis on Reno and a more lighthearted, story-telling approach.

The forward, beautifully written by respected newsman Rollan Melton, emphasizes Kling's dedication to detail and his lengthy search for documentation. These aspects are well evident in the book. Melton also editorializes about how "Nevada's detailed screening of gaming license applications and its increasingly tough controls and careful monitoring have dramatically reduced the number of forced closures" [of local casinos].

This is all well and good, and Kling does mention the reasons for some of these closures, but as a book published by the University of Nevada Press, a great effort has been made to paint a very clean, civil picture of Reno, even in the 1930's. According to newspaper reports and the recollections of old timers who were there in the early days of Reno's legalized gambling, the town and its casinos was anything but civil.

The University of Nevada Press with endless archives and access to thousands of photos of the town of Reno could have produced a glossy, photo-driven encyclopedia, it chose not to. Like most offerings from the University, this book depends on the fine words of its author to tell the story. Kling is clear and concise, and occasionally dull.

Overall

Readers won't find a more comprehensive book about the casinos of Reno, Nevada. Kling keeps most of his descriptions about the casinos to "just the facts," but has produced a valuable tome about Reno casinos. There are some interesting tidbits about foreclosures and license suspensions, but as with Melton's pandering to the University's editorial board, Kling does not discuss any truly unsavory aspects of Reno or its casinos. I believe readers are sophisticated enough to accept and expect the truth, warts and all.

This book also contains a glossary, 11-pages of casino-related definitions for words used in the text.