Florida’s Casino Stan Dies Aged 69

Stan Wertheimer, otherwise known as ‘Casino Stan’ has died at the age of 69.

Casino Stan was a tireless gambling proponent for almost 35 years despite rarely gambling himself.

Wertheimer died before he had the chance to see the full-fledged resort casinos in Florida. He’s always believed that it was just a matter of time before they were built, claiming that they would create jobs and increase tourism.

He was a swimming pool manager at a Hallandale Beach condo, but was always working for the advancement of the casino industry.

He would collect petition signatures and worked on every casino campaign in Florida over the last 30 odd years. He would also phone radio shows, write to editors, petition politicians and speak at legislative meetings.

According to his son, he had 226 letters published in local newspapers over the years. 

According to Dan Adkins of Mardi Gras Casino, Casino Stan was instrumental in shaping South Florida’s gambling landscape over the years.

Casino Stan began his activism in 1978 when he was working at the Newport Beach Resort. The management at the resort assigned him to work on a petition drive to get a casino initiative on the state-wide ballot.