Draft:Louis Strauss
| Submission declined on 12 April 2025 by PARAKANYAA (talk). This submission's references do not show that the subject qualifies for a Wikipedia article—that is, they do not show significant coverage (not just passing mentions) about the subject in published, reliable, secondary sources that are independent of the subject (see the guidelines on the notability of people). Before any resubmission, additional references meeting these criteria should be added (see technical help and learn about mistakes to avoid when addressing this issue). If no additional references exist, the subject is not suitable for Wikipedia.
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Comment: large amounts of uncited content, 1st and 3rd sources are unreliable, 2nd and 4th are relatively brief mentions. no sources that help WP:GNG. I would suggest searching for sources on him in books. PARAKANYAA (talk) 02:39, 12 April 2025 (UTC)
Louis Strauss | |
|---|---|
| Born | Louis Matthew Strauss October 26, 1904 San Francisco, CA, U.S. |
| Died | April 16, 1953 (aged 48) Las Vegas, NV, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Gangster, businessman |
Louis Matthew Strauss, also known as “The Russian” or “Russian Louie” (October 26, 1904 – April 16, 1953) was an American gangster and gambling entrepreneur operating in California and Nevada during the early to mid 20th century. An associate of famous crime figures of the time, including Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel, he would later be murdered by Jimmy Fratianno and Frank Bompensiero.[1]
Early life
[edit]Strauss was born October 26, 1904 in San Francisco, CA to Lithuanian parents. Despite his nickname, neither he nor his parents were from Russia, instead likely attributed to his accent. Strauss’ criminal career began as early as the age of 11, when he was arrested on burglary charges. By the age of 16, he was involved in stealing and reselling liquor with friends Jerry Feri, James Lanza, and Tony Cornero. Lanza would go on to become boss of the San Francisco crime family.
While Feri and Cornero were involved in bootlegging, Strauss took to forcing his way into partnerships with small Italian restaurants around Fisherman's Wharf, often rubbing people the wrong way. He was charged with shooting a rival bootlegger, but spent only a short time in jail when the injured party refused to press charges. After falling out with bootlegger Genaro Broccolo and Cornero's imprisonment, Strauss found work in Los Angeles with Milton Page, and made connections with the Los Angeles crime family.
Criminal career
[edit]While working in one of Page's many illegal casinos, he met Charles H. Howe and John W. Burns. On May 20, 1930, Strauss led a raid on the Monfalcone gambling ship, commandeering the vessel for 3 days and reportedly walking away with a hefty take. It is rumored Siegel and Mickey Cohen demanded to be cut in on the Monfalcone's profits. In August, the Monfalcone was destroyed in an explosion that was deemed an accident.[2]
In October 1934, Strauss was involved in a scheme with Howe and Burns and a fixed card game at the Northern Club in Las Vegas. After approaching owners David Stearns and Elmer Sober, Howe convinced them to allow him to set up a game of faro at their tables. Burns arrived at the table and began winning big, racking up $3,200 before Stearns shut the table down.
When Burns was paid only $800 of his winnings, the group took the case before a city committee, demanding the Northern Club's gambling license be revoked. When Las Vegas police chief Clint Boggs learned of the group's criminal backgrounds, they quickly settled out of court for less than half of the money.[3]
Harry Sherwood murder
[edit]In 1947, Strauss partnered with Abe Chapman, Sam Houser, George Kosloff, and Harry Sherwood to buy the Tahoe Village casino and resort in Lake Tahoe. Chapman, also known as "The Trigger", was reportedly a former member of the Murder, Inc. organized crime group, and Sherwood was a former boxer and restauranteur in San Francisco.
By September, it was discovered that Sherwood had embezzled and gambled away between $60,000 and $100,000 of the casino's profits. Strauss and Sherwood argued over the lost money, with Kosloff present. After the 230-pound former boxer punched him, Strauss drew his .38 caliber revolver and shot and wounded Sherwood.
Strauss attempted to escape, but was caught in his Cadillac convertible by Carson City police chief Howard Hoffman. Strauss was arrested on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, and released on a $25,000 bail. The charge was upgraded to murder when Sherwood died of a pulmonary blood clot on October 3. At trial, Kosloff, Chapman, and Houser testified Strauss acted in self-defense. The charge was dropped when Justice D.W. McCleery concluded there was no evidence against Strauss and that he likely acted in self-defense.
Sherwood previously served an 8-year federal prison term for robbing a gambling ship off of the Los Angeles coast.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ Apoyan, Jackie (2022-12-22). "The Las Vegas misadventures of Russian Louie". The Mob Museum. Retrieved 2025-04-08.
- ^ Ferchland, William (2006-03-08). "Tahoe's good fellas". www.tahoedailytribune.com. Retrieved 2025-04-08.
- ^ "L. M. Strauss (The Russian) and Nevada Casinos". Al W Moe's Nevada Gaming History. 2024-04-10. Retrieved 2025-04-08.
- ^ "These are five of Las Vegas' most notorious mobsters". KLAS. 2023-02-18. Archived from the original on 2023-03-31. Retrieved 2025-04-08.