THE MOB MUSEUM ANNOUNCES MAY PROGRAMS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 (Photo Courtesy of The Mob Museum)
THE MOB MUSEUM ANNOUNCES MAY PROGRAMS

LAS VEGAS (April 2021) – The Mob Museum, The National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, announces its roster of public programs for May.

All Museum programs require registration. For more information on any of the public programs below and to register, visit www.themobmuseum.org/events/.

Community Safety Forum: The Road to Zero Fatalities
Date: Sunday, May 2
Time: 2 to 3 p.m.
Location: Inside the historic courtroom on the second floor. A livestream of the presentation will be posted on the Museum’s website thanks to NV Energy’s generous support. To attend in person or watch a livestream of this event, click on the “Watch” button here.
Cost: Free, including free Museum admission, thanks to sponsorship provided by NV Energy. Registration is required.
Description: This year marks the 10-year anniversary of Zero Fatalities, a program designed to save lives on Nevada’s roadways. Nevada’s Department of Public Safety and Transportation recently committed to achieving “Zero Fatalities by 2050” – the first time the organization ever assigned a timeline to its efforts. Attendees will learn how the Nevada Office of Traffic Safety is prioritizing driver safety and leveraging technological advancements in an effort to eliminate roadway fatalities.

Each month, The Mob Museum partners with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and other local agencies to host Community Safety Forums – free public programs focused on pertinent issues that affect Southern Nevada. The Mob Museum will also provide a recording of this presentation on its website.

Speaker: Andrew Bennett, public information officer, Nevada Office of Traffic Safety.

Teachers and Educational Support Professionals Receive Buy One, Get One Free Admission During National Teacher Appreciation Week
Date: Monday, May 3 through Sunday, May 9
Time: During regular Museum hours: Daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Cost: Buy one admission ticket, get one free for qualified education professionals with valid I.D. Tickets can only be purchased at the box office.
Description: The Mob Museum is honored to partner with the hard-working teachers and educational support professionals throughout the year. During Teacher Appreciation Week, the Museum is pleased to offer this special admission value as a thank-you for their service.

Writing the Mob: Chronicling Organized Crime in the 20^th Century – A Virtual Author Talk Series
Date: The Mob Museum will host a series of Virtual Author Talks through June. The May presentations of the series follow:
Wednesday, May 5: Michael Cannell, “A Brotherhood Betrayed: The Man Behind the Rise and Fall of Murder, Inc.”
Wednesday, May 26: Nick Christophers, “Mafia Ties: The Greek Syndicates”
Time: 4 to 5 p.m.
Location: The Virtual Author Talks will be available online at themobmuseum.org/events, on Facebook Live and YouTube Live.
Cost: Free
Description: This series of virtual presentations, exploring the real stories behind the Mob’s heyday, features authors of new organized crime histories and memoirs. From New York to Los Angeles and even Johnstown, Pennsylvania, the Mob’s tentacles reached into all corners of North America during the 20th century. Historians continue to explore this rich story to understand what really happened during the Mob’s American heyday.

K-9 Crime Fighters: Inside the World of Police Dogs and Their Handlers
Date: Saturday, May 8
Time: 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Location: Inside the historic courtroom on the second floor. To attend in-person or watch a livestream of this event, click here
Cost: Free for Museum Members or with Museum admission.
Description: From searching for missing people to inspecting crime scenes and finding bombs or illicit drugs, police K-9 teams perform a wide range of duties and their highly trained dogs can detect a variety of specific odors. Lieutenant Jeff Clark and other handlers from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) will explain how each dog is selected and trained. A live demonstration will illustrate how K-9 teams detect explosives and narcotics.
Speaker: Lieutenant Jeff Clark, LVMPD.

Law Enforcement Professionals Receive Buy One, Get One Free Admission During Law Enforcement Appreciation Week
Date: Sunday, May 9 through Saturday, May 15
Time: During regular Museum hours: Daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Cost: Buy one admission ticket, get one free for qualified law enforcement professionals with proof of I.D. Tickets can only be purchased at the box office.
Description: The Mob Museum is pleased to offer buy one, get one free admission to all law enforcement professionals with valid I.D. during Law Enforcement Appreciation Week.

The Accidental Gangster: From Insurance Salesman to Hollywood Fixer
Date: Tuesday, May 11
Time: 7 to 8 p.m.
Location: Inside the historic courtroom on the second floor. To attend in person or watch a livestream of this event, click here.
Cost: Free for Museum Members or with Museum admission.
Description: From his comfortable perch in Beverly Hills, Ori Spado built a career intersecting with an array of high-profile celebrities and mobsters. He gained a reputation as someone who could “fix” problems for prominent people without attracting attention from the media. However, his underworld activities came to a halt when the FBI showed up at his door. During this event, Spado will share stories from his colorful life and sign copies of his memoir, “The Accidental Gangster: From Insurance Salesman to Mob Boss of Hollywood.”
Speaker: Hailing from Rome, New York, Orlando “Ori” Spado served in the U.S. Army and held various jobs before becoming an insurance salesman for the Prudential Insurance Company.  After moving to Beverly Hills, Spado became known as the Hollywood fixer, doing favors for A-list celebrities and mobsters. In 2008 he was arrested on a racketeer influenced and corrupt organizations (RICO) indictment. With the release of his book, he hopes he can caution others against entering a life of crime.

Arming the Cartels: How America Fuels Violence South of the Border
Date: Thursday, May 13
Time: 4 to 5 p.m.
Location: The event will be available to online at themobmuseum.org/events, on Facebook Live and YouTube Live.
Cost: Free
Description: Journalist Ioan Grillo, who has covered the international drug trade and its brutal tactics for 20 years, will discuss an often-overlooked facet of the story: the United States is the primary source of guns for the murderous Mexican drug cartels. Grillo tracks how legal guns in America make their way into the hands of criminals, fueling violence on both sides of the border.
Speaker: Ioan Grillo is the author of “Blood Gun Money: How America Arms Gangs and Cartels.” Grillo is a reporter based in Mexico City. He has been covering Latin America’s association with drug cartels since 2001 and his media portfolio includes Time Magazine, CNN, Reuters, The Houston Chronicle, The Associated Press, CBC, The Telegraph and much more. Ioan has witnessed it all from murder scenes to the fields of where drugs are born and even prison cells as well as luxury condominiums of criminals.

Cracking the Code: Elizebeth Friedman vs. the Rumrunners During Prohibition
Date: Wednesday, May 19
Time: 7 to 8 p.m.
Location: Inside the historic courtroom on the second floor. To attend in person or watch a livestream of this event, click here.
Cost: Free for Museum Members or with Museum admission.
Description: Once described by the U.S. Coast Guard as “one of the most remarkable women to ever work for the U.S. government,” cryptanalyst Elizebeth Friedman decoded more than 12,000 shortwave radio transmissions sent by rumrunners during Prohibition. Friedman became a vital part of Prohibition enforcement with her team’s work resulting in 650 criminal prosecutions. Claire White, educational programs manager for The Mob Museum, will discuss Friedman’s life and vital contributions to cryptology, the modern science of secret writing.
Speaker: Claire White, educational programs manager for The Mob Museum.

See www.themobmuseum.org for details and restrictions.

To ensure the safety of staff and visitors, all guests are required to wear face coverings. All personnel of The Mob Museum have a comprehensive public safety operational plan to follow which can be found here.

For more information, please call (702) 229-2734 or visit themobmuseum.org.

ABOUT THE MOB MUSEUM
The Mob Museum, the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, provides a world-class journey through true stories—from the birth of the Mob to today’s headlines. The Mob Museum offers a provocative, contemporary look at these topics through hundreds of artifacts and immersive storylines. Numerous interactive exhibits include a Crime Lab, Firearm Training Simulator and Organized Crime Today exhibit. The Museum is also home to The Underground, a Prohibition history exhibition featuring a speakeasy and distillery sponsored by Zappos. The Mob Museum has accumulated numerous accolades, including being named one of TripAdvisor’s “Top 25 U.S. Museums,” one of Las Vegas Weekly’s “Twenty Greatest Attractions in Las Vegas History,” one of National Geographic’s “Top 10 Things to Do in Las Vegas,” USA Today’s “Best Museum in Nevada” and No. 1 in the 2020 10Best Readers’ Choice travel awards for “Best Las Vegas Attraction” and one of its “12 Can’t Miss U.S. Museum Exhibits,” “A Must for Travelers” by The New York Times and one of “20 Places Every American Should See” by FOX News. The Museum is a two-time winner of the Mayor’s Urban Design Award for Historic Preservation and Adaptive Reuse and is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. The Museum is open daily; visit the website for admission rates and operating hours. For more information, call (702) 229-2734, visit themobmuseum.org, or download the Museum’s free mobile app.

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