Milton Prell
| Milton Prell | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
September 6, 1905 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | June 2, 1974 (aged 68) |
| Cause of death | stroke |
| Occupation | hotel owner, developer |
| Spouse(s) | Devorah Zion (1945-1974, his death) |
| Children | Sheila Prell (Sonenshine) |
Milton Prell (September 6, 1905 – June 2, 1974) was a hotel owner and developer most notable for his projects in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Born in Saint Louis, Missouri, as a young man he moved to Los Angeles, California. He was good friends with Colonel Tom Parker, best known as the manager of Elvis Presley. Elvis married Priscilla in Prell's apartment at the Aladdin Hotel in a private wedding shielded from the media. Prell was married to Devorah Zion on July 9, 1945; they had one child, Sheila Prell (Sonenshine).
Prell started in the gambling business with a "bingo palace" in California. Prell ordered that the prizes were to be given out honestly to the players and word got out that the place was to be trusted. The bingo palace thrived.
Milton Prell was a successful jewelry salesman in Los Angeles and moved to Butte, Montana in the 1930s. According to the Las Vegas Sun: “(Prell).. went on to become an automobile salesman and later he became a jewelry salesman. Before long he organized his own jewelry organization which rapidly became one of the most successful in California. In 1937, still thinking in terms of his boyhood dream, Prell gave up his business in Los Angeles and moved to Butte, Mont., where he opened the "30 Club." He originally planned to enter the hotel business in Montana, but was sidetracked by the business potentialities of fabulous Las Vegas.” Frank Schivo and his family were residents of Butte. Frank’s mother Emma, operated a small café and bar in Butte. The Schivos and the Prells became friends early on and Frank went to work in Prell’s casino behind his retail operation which was a front for the illegal but tolerated gaming operation. Schivo became a protégé of Prell and travelled with him to Reno and Las Vegas, looking for the right opportunity.
After many preliminary trips to Nevada, Mr. Prell and his family moved to Las Vegas in 1945 with the idea of opening a small hotel.
Remembering the success of his club in Butte, however, he decided first to open a similar spot. here. Club Bingo soon became one of the most popular non-hotel gathering places in Las Vegas and its rapid success again brought forth they young Milton Prell's dream. For a time he thought of adding an adobe village to Club Bingo and making it a small but unique hostelrym but fortunately these plans on paper didn't fit in with the maximum beauty and luxury which Milton Prell had always visualized when he thought of owning his own hotel.
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