Jerome D. Mack (a.k.a. Jerry Mack) (November 6, 1920 – September 26, 1998) was an American banker, real estate investor, political fundraiser and philanthropist in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

. He was the founder and president of the Bank of Las Vegas and, later, the Valley Bank. He was the president of the

Riviera () is an Italian word which means , ultimately derived from Latin , through Ligurian . It came to be applied as a proper name to the coast of Liguria (the Genoa region in northwestern Italy) in the form , then shortened in English. Riviera may a ...

casino as well as director of the Four Queens and

Dunes A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

casinos. He was a major fundraiser for the

Nevada Democratic Party The Nevada State Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Nevada. It has been chaired by Daniele Monroe-Moreno since March 2023. It is currently the state's favored party, co ...

and active in Jewish philanthropy both in Las Vegas and

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

. He was one of the founders of the

University of Nevada, Las Vegas The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the ...

(UNLV).

Early life

Jerome D. Mack was born on November 6, 1920, in

Albion, Michigan Albion is a city in Calhoun County in the south central region of the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 7,700 at the 2020 census. Albion is part of the Battle Creek Metropolitan Statistical Area. The earliest ...

.LV civic leader Mack dies
''

Las Vegas Sun The ''Las Vegas Sun'' is one of the Las Vegas Valley's two daily subscription newspapers. It is owned by the Greenspun family and is affiliated with Greenspun Media Group. The paper published afternoons on weekdays from 1990 to 2005 and is now ...

'', September 28, 1998 His father, Nate Mack, was a haberdasher and later a banker. His mother was Jenny Solomon. He moved to Las Vegas with his parents in 1929, when he was nine years old.University of Nevada, Las Vegas: Jerome D. Mack
/ref> Mack attended Boulder City Grammar School and graduated from the

Las Vegas High School Las Vegas High School is a Public school (government funded), public high school in Sunrise Manor, Nevada, part of the Clark County School District. It is the oldest high school in Las Vegas and originally opened in 1905 on what was then the out ...

in 1938. He then graduated from the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

(UCLA), where he was a member of the

Zeta Beta Tau Zeta Beta Tau () is a Greek-letter social fraternity based in North America. It was founded in 1898 at City College of New York. Originally a Zionist youth society, its purpose changed in 1954 when the fraternity became non-sectarian and open to n ...

fraternity A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...

. He served as a navigator in the Army Air Corps during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Career

Mack started his career at the Bank of Las Vegas in 1954, working alongside his father. Indeed, in January 1954, his father had co-founded the bank with Walter E. Cosgriff, Bob Kaltenborn, Jake Von Tobel, Bruce Beckley, and Herb Jones, the brother of Cliff Jones.Jack Sheehan, ''The Players: The Men who Made Las Vegas'', Las Vegas, Nevada: University of Nevada Press, 1997, pp. 32-3

/ref>Eugene P. Moehring,''Resort City in the Sunbelt: Las Vegas, 1930-2000'', Las Vegas, Nevada: University of Nevada Press, 2000, p. 24

/ref> It was the first bank to lend money to casinos in Las Vegas.Chris Sieroty
Bank takes famous name, poises for future
''Las Vegas Review-Journal'', April 29, 2012 Its first loan was to

Milton Prell Milton Prell (September 6, 1905 – June 2, 1974) was a hotel owner and developer most notable for his projects in Las Vegas, Nevada. Early life Prell was born to a Jewish family in Saint Louis, Missouri; as a young man he moved to Los Angeles, Ca ...

, who used it to build the

Sahara Casino Sahara Las Vegas is a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. It is owned and operated by the Meruelo Group. The hotel has 1,616 rooms, and the casino contains . The Sahara anchors the northern end of the Las Veg ...

. Fifteen years later, in 1969, the bank merged with the Valley Bank of Reno, a bank established by

E. Parry Thomas Edward Parry Thomas (June 29, 1921 – August 26, 2016) was an American banker who helped finance the development of the casino industry of Las Vegas, Nevada. Along with his business partner, Jerome D. Mack, he is credited with building Las Vegas ...

, originally based in

Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...

. By then, Mack had replaced his father at the helm of the bank and it had changed its name to the

Valley Bank of Nevada A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains and typically containing a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over a ve ...

.David Schwartz, ''Suburban Xanadu: The Casino Resort on the Las Vegas Strip and Beyond'', Routledge, 2013, p. 11

/ref> Their bank was acquired by

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (Bank of America) (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment banking, investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in ...

for about US$380.5 million in 1992. Mack served as vice president of the Continental Connector Corporation, vice chairman of the United Tanker Group, and president of First Bancorporation (later known as the Nevada National Bank, which went on to merge with

Wells Fargo Wells Fargo & Company is an American multinational financial services company with a significant global presence. The company operates in 35 countries and serves over 70 million customers worldwide. It is a systemically important fi ...

). He also served on the board of directors of the Pioneer Title and Insurance Corporation. He served on the board of directors of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce for two terms. Mack was the president of the Riviera Casino as well as director of the Four Queens and Dunes hotel-casinos. He started developing the

McCarran Center McCarran may refer to: Places * McCarran Field (disambiguation), airports formerly named after Senator Pat McCarran People *Pat McCarran (1876–1954), US Senator from Nevada See also *McCarran Internal Security Act, 1950 U.S. law against Commu ...

in 1991. Located south of the

McCarran International Airport Harry Reid International Airport , formerly known as McCarran International Airport, is the primary international airport serving the Las Vegas Valley, a metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Nevada. It is located south of downtown Las Vega ...

and spanning of land, it includes offices, a hotel and several restaurants.

Politics

Mack served as finance chair of the

in the 1960s.Karen Mack
The Big Secret
''The Los Angeles Times'', April 5, 2009 He then served on the Democratic National Finance Council and the Democratic Party National Committee. From 1958 to 1980, he was state coordinator and treasurer for

Howard Cannon Howard Walter Cannon (January 26, 1912 – March 5, 2002) was an American politician from Nevada. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served four terms in the United States Senate representing Nevada from 1959 ...

, a Democratic member of the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

. In 1964, he served as the Nevada finance chairman for

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...

's bid for president. Four years later, in 1968, he was state coordinator for

Hubert Humphrey Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. (May 27, 1911 – January 13, 1978) was an American politician who served from 1965 to 1969 as the 38th vice president of the United States. He twice served in the United States Senate, representing Minnesota from 19 ...

's presidential campaign. Mack was appointed to the Nevada Tax Commission by Governor

Mike O'Callaghan Donal Neil "Mike" O'Callaghan (September 10, 1929 March 5, 2004) was an American politician and educator who served as the 23rd Governor of Nevada from 1971 to 1979. He was a member of the Democratic Party. Early life Born in La Crosse, Wis ...

in 1972. By 1975, he became its chairman. Later in the 1970s, President

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

appointed him as a member of the nominating commission for U.S. Circuit Judges for the 9th Circuit Court. With E. Parry Thomas, Mack lobbied state legislator

Bill Harrah William Fisk Harrah (September 2, 1911 – June 30, 1978) was an American businessman and the founder of Harrah's Hotel and Casinos, now part of Caesars Entertainment. Early years and education Harrah was born in South Pasadena, California, th ...

as well as former governors

Grant Sawyer Frank Grant Sawyer (December 14, 1918 – February 19, 1996) was an American politician. He was the List of Governors of Nevada, 21st Governor of Nevada from 1959 to 1967. He was a member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party. ...

and

Paul Laxalt Paul Dominique Laxalt ( ; August 2, 1922 – August 6, 2018) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 22nd governor of Nevada from 1967 to 1971 and a United States senator representing Nevada from 1974 until 1987. A member ...

to pass a law legalizing the corporate ownership of casinos. According to Mack's daughter Karen, this put an end to corruption in Las Vegas, as it enforced more regulations and disclosures for the

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street crash of 1929. Its primary purpose is to enforce laws against market m ...

Philanthropy

In the 1950s, Mack co-founded the Nevada Southern College with

Maude Frazier Maude Frazier (April 4, 1881 – June 20, 1963) was an American politician. She was the first female lieutenant governor of Nevada. Before entering politics, Frazier was a teacher, principal and school superintendent. She was a member of the Democ ...

and

Archie Grant Archibald Brewster Grant (24 July 1904 – 6 June 1970) was a New Zealand railway worker and trade unionist. He was born in Millerton, West Coast, New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean ...

. It later became known as the

. He also served on a committee to select the first board of trustees of UNLV. In 1967, with his business partner, E. Parry Thomas, he donated 400 additional acres of land to expand the campus. The two men also funded the construction of the basketball stadium at UNLV, which was named the

Thomas & Mack Center The Thomas & Mack Center is a multi-purpose arena located on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in Paradise, Nevada. It is home of the UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team of the Mountain West Conference. History The facility first ...

in their honor. Later, the Thomas & Mack Legal Clinic at the

William S. Boyd School of Law The William S. Boyd School of Law is the law school of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and the only law school in Nevada. It is named after William S. Boyd, a Nevada attorney and co-founder of Boyd Gaming Corporation who provided the ...

as well as the Thomas & Mack Moot Court Building were also named after them.UNLV Foundation: A Conversation with Joyce Mack
May 13, 2013 Mack chaired a fundraising effort for the construction of the Artemus Ham Hall on the UNLV campus. He was inducted into the Business Hall of Fame of the Lee Business School at UNLV. He also received an honorary doctorate from UNLV in 1983. Additionally, he served on a committee to establish the first board of trustees at his alma mater, UCLA. He was also a founding member of the UCLA Chancellors Association. Mack served on the Boulder Dam Council of the

Boy Scouts of America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with over 1 million youth, including nearly 200,000 female participants. Founded as the Boy Sco ...

. Additionally, he was the founder and director of the Boys Club of Nevada and served as chairman for advance gifts of the

United Way United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit organization, nonprofit fundraising affiliates. Prior to 2015, United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public. Individual Un ...

. He was the 1972 recipient of the United Way Leadership Award as well as the National Conference of Christians and Jews Silver Medallion Award. Mack served as president of Temple Beth Sholom, a synagogue in Las Vegas. Later, he established the Nate Mack Elementary School at the temple, in honor of his father. He was also president of B'nai B'rith. He served on the board of trustees of the

American Jewish Committee The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is a civil rights group and Jewish advocacy group established on November 11, 1906. It is one of the oldest Jewish advocacy organizations and, according to ''The New York Times'', is "widely regarded as the wi ...

and the national committee of the

United Jewish Appeal The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), formerly the United Jewish Communities (UJC), is an American Jewish umbrella organization for the Jewish Federations system, representing over 350 independent Jewish communities across North Ameri ...

. He funded the chair in cancer research at the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...

. From 1959 to 1976, he served as chairman of the

Israel Bonds Israel Bonds, the commonly known name of Development Corporation for Israel (DCI), is the U.S. underwriter of debt securities issued by the State of Israel. DCI is headquartered in New York City and is a broker-dealer and member of the Financial ...

Campaigns, a fundraising effort to develop the state of Israel.John P. Marschall, ''Jews in Nevada: A History'', Las Vegas, Nevada: University of Nevada Press, 2008, p. 25

/ref> He was also the chairman of the

. In 1973, he was a recipient of the Prime Minister's Medal of Israel. That same year, he also received the Silver Anniversary Award from the State of Israel. Mack was one of the founders of the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas.

Personal life

Mack married Joyce Rosenberg in 1946. They had met at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

. They had three daughters: *Barbara Mack Feller Levine. She married Norman Levine. *

Karen Mack Karen Diane Mack (born January 4, 1950) is an American television producer for ''CBS'' and co-author of three novels, from Los Angeles, California. Early life Karen Mack grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada.Lisa CarterKaren Avenue named for Thomas & Ma ...

. She married

Russell Goldsmith Russell Goldsmith is an American attorney, businessman and banker. He served as the chairman and is the former chief executive officer of the City National Bank, which he retired in January 2022. Early life Goldsmith graduated from Beverly Hill ...

, the chairman and chief executive officer of City National Bank. *Marilynn Mack.

Death

Mack died of cancer on September 26, 1998, in Los Angeles, California. His funeral took place at Temple Emanuel in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hills ...

. A middle school bearing his name opened in 2006 in

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mack, Jerome D. 1920 births 1998 deaths People from Albion, Michigan Philanthropists from Los Angeles Businesspeople from Los Angeles People from the Las Vegas Valley University of California, Los Angeles alumni Businesspeople from Nevada Jewish American bankers American bankers Bank of America people University of Nevada, Las Vegas people Nevada Democrats 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American philanthropists Mack family (banking) American businesspeople in real estate 20th-century American Jews