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The Chip Board Archive 20

Wilbur Clark's Casino, Havana matchbook

A scarce match from Wilbur Clark's Casino at Hotel Nacional in Havana, Cuba in the 1950's. Apparently, the Casino Parisien advertised here was the night club and the gambling was at Wilbur Clark's. Casino. I'm not sure what the reference to the Cabana Club and Casino is at the bottom on the back of the match. Maybe that was Meyer Lansky's corporate name for the operation in Cuba? I also see Cabana Club on some of the Nacional's postcards showing the pool and surrounding cabanas, so maybe the reference is just a listing of other attractions at the Hotel.

You're welcome to the scan for the Carib web site, Charles. I see you have the one the seller posted in the auction but I've scanned both sides.

Here's a blurb from the CubaDomainsForSale website:

Wilbur Clark's Casino - Hotel Nacional.
Note: The Nacional (later an Intercontinental) Hotel in Havana, was a subsidiary of Pan Am. Wilbur Clark's fabulous Casino Internacional, the adjoining Starlight Terrace Bar and Casino ParisiƩn night club - Home of the Famous Dancing Waters! This complex was completely redone and enlarged and sublet by the hotel for a substantial rent to a casino operator. That operator was Meyer Lansky. This became home to Wilbur Clark's Casino. After Batista fled, Wilbur Clark went on to front for the opening of the Desert Inn in Las Vegas.


Copyright 2022 David Spragg