Laughlin, Nevada

Don Laughlin, the Colorado River casino magnate, was born and raised in Owatonna, Minnesota.  While in high school he earned money as a fur trapper.  He did well and being a born entrepreneur he took the profits and bought slot machines and installed them in hunting lodges, which eventually earned him $500 a week.  His high school principal gave him an ultimatum: get rid of the slots, pay more attention to homework or get out of high school.  Since Laughlin was making about three times what the principal was earning, he got out of school.

    In the late 1950s, Laughlin migrated to Las Vegas and bought the 101 Club, his first casino.  By 1964 he had sold the club and was looking for a new enterprise.  It always had been his aim to find a place on a state line because as he figured it, “you get much higher play there than anywhere else.”  In his Las Vegas club, he estimated nine out of every ten people were there just to have a drink, but on a state line all ten come to gamble.  One day he motored out to South Pointe, a tiny wide spot in the road located on the banks of the Colorado River at the southern tip of Nevada along the border with Arizona. There sat a run down eight room motel and cafe, so without blinking an eye he bought the place, moved his family into four of the rooms, served all you can eat chicken for 98 cents, installed twelve slot machines and a couple live gaming tables and by so doing hoped he could make some real money and that is exactly what he did!  The little run down motel soon became the high rise Riverside Hotel and Casino.  South Pointe got a name change and became Laughlin.  And the man from Owatonna did indeed make some real money; he made a fortune. 

    Today, there are eight other casinos, with 10,000 rooms, 60 restaurants catering to close to 5 million visitors each year.  You do the math.  

Q