Where Was the Tower of Pizza? | Las Vegas Advisor

In your QoD about Tony Spilotro, you mentioned the Tower of Pizza, which elicited a couple of strong positive memories. Where was it and what was so great about it?

Located right on the Strip near the Jockey Club, Tower of Pizza was a popular late-night hangout with mobsters, including Tony "the Ant" Spilotro, and Strip performers. You can see a couple of photos of the "leaning" sign on VintageLasVegas.

It was originally owned by a well-known bookmaker and loan shark from New York, Gaspare "Jasper" Speciale. Speciale was at one time a client of Oscar Goodman's, who has fond memories of the place. "We used to hang out there. All the characters used to come in there. Those were the good days."

Scotty Schettler, long-time Las Vegas sports book manager and author of the book We Were Wise Guys and Didn't Know It, worked there as his first job in Vegas, juiced in by one "Little Nicky" who meant something to Speciale. He wrote about the place.

"Jasper and [his partner] booked, loaned out a few dollars, and put out good Italian food. We made our own bread and were well known for it. Nobody could copy Vince the bread man’s recipe. We made our own sausage, meatballs, and sauce. Everything was made from scratch.

"Strip headliners could come in without being hassled. Jasper’s clientele wasn’t impressed with celebrities. The 'guys from out of town' [New York, mostly, where Speciale came from] would get a table in the side room, quietly have a good Italian dinner, and not be bothered.

"After the showrooms closed, maitre d’s, showgirls, dealers, cocktail waitresses, and assorted wiseguys headed for The Tower to cap their night. It might be morning before everybody was gone.

"If the barmaid was away from the bar, special customers went behind and poured their own drinks; they never forgot to put something in the register. They could also walk back into the kitchen and tell the cooks how they wanted their food prepared."

The prices were, of course, reasonable, even for those days. Medium pizzas were $1.50-$2.50, larges $2.25-$3.25. Dinners -- steak, pork chops, ribs, shrimp, veal -- with soup or salad, spaghetti, and vegetable -- were $2.95. The most expensive item on the menu was the "Pie of all Pies," with everything thrown in except the tower, for a whopping $3.50. Three heated delivery trucks dropped menu items off around town at no charge.

Speciale sold the place in 1979 to Bobby Capozzoli, son of a California restaurateur who'd arrived in town earlier that decade. A few years later, the rent almost tripled from $5,500 to $17,000, and Capozzoli moved the business to Boulder Highway. In 1985, he and his brothers Joe and Mickey opened Capozzoli's at 3333 S. Maryland Parkway, which drew the crowd from the Tower of Pizza days; we reviewed it in the July 2004 Advisor. Capozzoli's burned down twice, the latter closure in 2007 turning out to be permanent.

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O2bnVegas Sep-18-2023

Fun stuff

I think this kind of history is what 'never been there' folks and those planning their first trip have in mind about Sin City.  Even more recent regulars who know by now that most, if not all of that is no longer there may sense that era in anticipation of the trip.  

I swear, though I know better, having read lots about it, seen movies (with Hollywood 'touches' of course), and visited many times, just reading through this piece makes me feel like I might have been one of the onlookers at The Tower (I wasn't).  I did gamble at The Dunes, Riviera, Stardust, The Sands, the Desert Inn, all those long-gone ones, even Little Caesars, watched the showgirl-style extravaganzas; this enables me to fanticise about those times that preceeded my first trip.

Thanks for this excellent read, and the linked photos.  One of my first (maybe THE first) jackpots ($300) was at the Dunes.  Felt like a million at the time, since the machine locked up and was a hand pay.  Wow! 

Candy

[email protected] Sep-18-2023

The "Good Ol' Days" in Vegas

That era was really the good ol days. Prices on everything were cheap, customer service was as it should be, and the mobsters never bothered regular folks unless they tried to cheat in one of their casinos and then they got what they likely deserved. Well except for the "Hole in the Wall" Gang and that POS Frank Cullata (RIP) that burglarized rich people's homes...

jay Sep-18-2023

Chicago Joes

Chicago Joe's is an off the beaten path place that hearlds back to long ago. Close enough to DownTown to walk - although I don't suggest you do that at night. https://chicagojoesrestaurant.com/
decent food.

Kevin Lewis Sep-18-2023

The good old days

I continue to be amused by the glamorization of the Mob, especially in Vegas. They were and remain criminals and violent thugs, even if they DID make good Italian food. And that they were eventually replaced by even worse criminals is neither here nor there. But I get it--at least they didn't charge resort fees.
It is indeed interesting to read about how things used to be in Vegas. The lawlessness and the domination of all activities great and small by a well-organized criminal gang created a rather...unique atmosphere, where the rules found elsewhere didn't apply. Perhaps America needed that safety valve, though.

CLIFFORD Sep-18-2023

RESORT FEE

In a timeshare last week.  Cleaning fee of $180 replaced with a $200 RESORT FEE.  A kiss for timeshare owners.  Never did the pizza tower.  Wish I had known that it was a magnet for celebrities.  Any one have pizza there?  Any good(1-5*) ?

Doc H Sep-18-2023

hmmm

Now let me see; what other industry where 'They were and remain criminals'; 'that they were eventually replaced by even worse criminals'; oh oh oh, and 'where the rules found elsewhere didn't apply.'

Again, 'where the rules found elsewhere didn't apply.'

Where, oh where, and why does this ring such a bell? OHHHH, YES! Eh, never mind, herd is asleep, especially the enabler who brought us these wonderful parallel observations but too blind to see the parallel reality.

CLIFFORD Sep-18-2023

Doc H

What?

Doc H Sep-18-2023

In addition

Weren't you an 'advantage player' for years and lived in Las Vegas? Visited casinos frequently? Ate there, gambled there, drank in the casinos? And as I recall from your past postings, actually worked as a dealer in Las Vegas?

With that backdrop, and given your hatred for the casinos run by the mob, and further stating the corporations that replaced the mob are even worse in your words, 'And that they were eventually replaced by even worse criminals is neither here nor there.'; 

Well, it is actually here AND there because you seem to have enabled what you say you so despise so much. Not only given them your money for gambling, dining, and drinking, but being employed by them.

What's up with that? The QOD folks and myself will find your rationalization I'm sure most, well, interesting let's say.

VegasVic Sep-19-2023

Doc

Always count on Doc to post the MAGAt drivel lmao

Question of the Day - 18 September 2023

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