Las Vegas flamboyant Mayor Oscar Goodman is caught in a contradiction.
For years, he had told the world that there is no mob, just alleged mobsters. This was when he was a defense lawyer who represented mobsters and even had appeared briefly in Martin Scorsese's Casino playing himself. Now, as mayor, he wants to take a National Historic Landmark, the old federal courthouse where he tried his first case, and turn it into a mob museum.
Many of Goodman's constituents and some former FBI agents are not happy, to say the least, but Goodman insists he's just recognizing Vegas' founding fathers.
One of the most prominent founders was Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel, a maverick underworld mastermind. He was the boss of gambling of the west coast and opened the Flamingo hotel in 1946 on what would eventually become known as the Strip.
The notion of a mob museum annoys the FBI agents who were Goodman's legal adversaries. In their opinion, this move is done in order to glorify Goodman and nothing else.
The yet unnamed museum would be across the street from City Hall in the old federal courthouse. City officials have yet to decide how the museum, which would open in 2008, will depict the Mafia.
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