In early August, Downtown Las Vegas lost one of its pioneering figures when casino veteran Jeanne Hood passed away.

Hood, born in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1926, started managing hotels in the 1950s and came to Las Vegas in 1973 with her husband, David, who was assuming his role as the new president of the Four Queens.

The Four Queens, named for then-owner Ben Goffstein’s four daughters, had opened in 1966 as a small Downtown hotel and casino. Hyatt, for whom the Hoods were working in California, bought the property in 1972.  David made several changes, including the opening of Hugo’s Cellar, which is today still one of Las Vegas’ top casino restaurants.

After David’s death in 1977, Jeanne assumed the role of president and chief operating officer of the casino, and continued expanding the property, eventually doubling its hotel size.

When the Hyatt company bought the Four Queens, it created a wholly-owned subsidiary, Elsinore Company, which also later acquired the Hyatt Lake Tahoe. In the early 1980s, Elsinore moved into Atlantic City, in partnership with Hugh Hefner, and built the Playboy hotel-casino. After Hefner ran into licensing difficulties, Elsinore became sole owner of the property, renaming it the Atlantis.

Hood became president of Elsinore in 1983, and succeeded in selling the unprofitable Lake Tahoe and Atlantic City casinos so that the company could focus on the solid Four Queens. She continued to lead the company until 1993, when she left to become a director and gaming consultant with American Vantage Companies.

In Las Vegas, Hood left a strong legacy, both at the Four Queens and in Downtown Las Vegas. From the 1970s, she championed the cause of Downtown, and in the 1990s was pivotal in the redevelopment of the area. As one of the leading casino executives in a pivotal period in Downtown’s history, Jeanne Hood was a true pioneer.

SOURCE: Fedora Bontempi-Simpkin Collection, UNLV Special Collections

By David Schwartz

David G. Schwartz an Atlantic City native and the director of the Center for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. He is the author of Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling. His web site can be viewed at www.dieiscast.com.