You're right...we need Phil on this!

Robert speculated that BJ, Craps, Roulette were only a minor part of Club Fortune's business, with the main focus being on Tango/Bingo...I agree with that. A lot of their space and resources were devoted to bingo/tango.

Dwayne Kling, in his book "The Rise of the Biggest Little City" has a write up on Club Fortune. Some quotes from his article...

"Club Fortune was one of the finest gambling clubs in downtown Reno. It featured supurb dining, entertainment, a cocktail lounge, casino diversions, and a tango (bingo) salon."

"In February 1937 Robert Feder of Los Angeles announced the completion of arrangements for the opening of what became (up to that time) one of Reno's largest clubs... The Club Fortune would feature tango, although other games would also be available."

"...opened on May 28, 1937. ...The room on the east side of the building was the tango salon, modern in all respects, with many innovations in electrically controlled equipment. The room on the west side held a continental lounge, an elaborate bar, and gaming tables."

"The center of attraction in the tango parlor was a movable cart into which patrons threw baseballs while laying the popular game. The compartments into which the balls fell were wired to a large board that registered the number hit by each throw of the baseball. An operator sat in a control booth at one end of the room and called out the numbers and at the same time switched on lights in the register board at the other end of the room. The patrons throwing baseballs into the compartments added excitement to the game because customers felt that their skill in throwing the ball could influence the outcome of the game and help them win."

"In January 1945 the Club Fortune was licensed for fifteen slot machines, one craps game, and one roulette game."

"On January 18, 1947, Joe Zemansky, sole owner of the club, announced that his lease had expired and that the club and all the faicilties would close on January 20, except the bingo game, which would close one week later."

"The Fordonia Building, in which the club was housed, was sold by James McKay and Jack Scarlett (Sullivan) for $250,000 in June 1948 to Sanford Adler and his associates. In November 1948 the Adler group opened the Club Cal-Neva at this location..."

So...since the main focus of the club was Tango/Bingo...is it possible that they operated with silver dollars on the tables, for amounts less than $25? Or, I'm sure it's possible that there is a $5 chip out there somewhere, that just hasn't been discovered yet...

Meanwhile...stuff from Club Fortune.

Their matches ranged from under-sized to humongous!

The quarter and the regular size matchbook are in these pictures for size perspective...

A wartime postcard from Club Fortune...

A menu...