Busloads of Senior Citizens roll onto the Reservation for high stakes bingo. Lottery tickets show up on people's shopping lists in 47 states. Practically every office has a pool on the NFL or the Final Four or the outcome of the latest reality television series. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, America's obsession with gambling. Indian casinos. The lure of Las Vegas. And the race horse that lifted the nation out of the Depression.
Kim Isaac Eisler is the author of "The Revenge of the Pequots: How A Small Native-American Tribe Created the Most Profitable Casino." He talks with Jim Fleming about Indian casinos, admitting to the same ambivalence society feels. Casinos are fun, but they're making too much money off their patrons. Also, Sally Denton and Roger Morris are the co-authors of "The Money and the Power." As they tell Steve Paulson, their book details the hidden history of Las Vegas — the intricate inter-relationships among organized crime, "black" money and political institutions. People go to "Sin City" to have a good time, but the city is the international capital of money laundering.SEGMENT 2:
Anthony Zuiker is the creator of the hit CBS TV series, "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation." The show is set on the graveyard shift in the forensics office of the Las Vegas Police. Zuiker loves the city and has lived there for over thirty years. He tells Steve Paulson that getting the science right in "CSI" is crucial; remembers how great it was when the Mob ran Las Vegas; and admits he's the show's gambling expert.SEGMENT 3:
Carole Case calls her book "The Right Blood: America's Aristocrats in Thoroughbred Racing." It's a history of New York's Jockey Club, the elite cartel that controls the thoroughbred stud book. She tells Jim Fleming who the founders of the Jockey Club were, how the Club has changed with the times, and how racing has come to accept the presence of gambling at the Track. Also, Laura Hillenbrand's book "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" has been topping the New York Times non-fiction bestseller list for some weeks. Hillenbrand tells Ann Strainchamps how the story of this ugly animal with a ferocious will to win reflects the history of the United States as it left the frontier behind.Cassette copies are available at 1-800-747-7444. Ask for program number 01-05-13-A.
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