CITY PASSING OF RETIRED PLAYBOY/RIVIERA EXEC Retired Playboy/Riviera talent exec, Sam Distefano, resident of Chicago, Miami, Lake Geneva, Atlantic City, & Las Vegas, passed away peacefully of old age & natural causes, in his sleep, MON (3AM 4/13), at Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas, surrounded by his Goddaughter & only son, both present by his bedside, after a long & distinguished career in the entertainment & hospitality industries.
EARLY YEARS – Sam Distefano was an exceptionally gifted, brilliant-minded, Italian-American jazz-pianist & talent executive born on the south side of Chicago, IL, in Dec. of '26. He exhibited signs of genius at an early age by demonstrating a wide range of talents that included speaking 2 languages fluently, performing piano recitals of complicated classical pieces (including the 'William Tell Overture' perfectly at only 8 years old & with a high fever no less), & earning straight A’s throughout elementary school & high school. He was elected editor-in-chief of his high school newspaper at Tilden Tech & interviewed President (then General) Dwight Eisenhower at the Drake Hotel for the paper when he was only 16. As a teen & early-aged adult, Distefano worked many jazz clubs on piano in the Chicagoland area. He studied time & motion engineering at IT&T Institute & attended college briefly at the University of Illinois at Navy Pier before joining the military in the early '50’s.
MILITARY PERIOD - It was during this period that his lifelong, close friendship with the famous jazz pianist, Bill Evans, ensued. During the Korean War, Distefano & Evans were stationed together at Ft. Sheridan in northern IL, bunkmates in the same platoon, & performed together in the 5th Army Band. This unique opportunity enabled Distefano to further develop his jazz piano playing. It was also during this period that Distefano’s wide range of talents once again shone through as he was accepted into the 5th Army Band on trumpet & upright-acoustic-string-bass-fiddle, called upon to perform "Taps" at many Chicagoland area Vet funerals, assigned percussion parts (including crash cymbals in the marching band), & was awarded the National Defense Service Marksmanship Medal for having demonstrated perfect firearms skills & proficiency in combat training.
EDUCATION - After serving honorably in the U.S. Army from '52-'55, Distefano moved to Miami, FL & invested in a notable nightclub named the Crab Shanty that he changed to the Stut N’ Tut where he performed on piano with the legendary jazz trombonist, Carl Fontana. Performing in & operating the Stut N’ Tut enabled Distefano to return to college. Majoring in accounting, he graduated from the University of Miami in '57 with a 4-year, Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. He accomplished this degree on limited amounts of sleep from having to work nights at the Stut N’ Tut while attending his full classload during the days.
EARLY MUSICAL CAREER - After graduating college, Distefano returned to his hometown of Chicago, where his versatility of talent was exhibited yet again, as he was working days as an industrial engineer for IT&T, & nights as a musician, playing both piano & upright bass. Sam performed in many of the city’s famous nightclubs, such as The Cloisters, The Trade Winds, & The Living Room, relieving such famous pianists as Joe Parnello (Frank Sinatra’s pianist), Larry Novak, & Joe Iacco on their off-nights. It was in one of these clubs, that Playboy founders, Victor Lownes & Hugh Hefner, caught Distefano performing with his trio & accompanying female jazz vocalists on piano.
PLAYBOY - Lownes & Hefner liked Distefano’s playing enough to ask him to perform with his trio at the opening of the very 1st Playboy Club at 116 E. Walton St. in Chicago, in Feb. of '60. This launched what would turn into Distefano's elaborate 25-year career with Playboy Enterprises, Inc., that included his being promoted to musical director at their club in Miami from '62-'69; orchestra leader, conductor, & entertainment director at their country club & resort hotel in Lake Geneva, WI from '69-'78 (where he led his own 32-piece orchestra, accompanied on piano, & conducted for, such artists as Peggy Lee, Mel Torme, Anthony Newley, Tony Bennett, the Smothers Brothers, Liza Minnelli, & Ann Margaret, to name a few); & eventually vice-president of entertainment for their entire international chain of clubs & hotels, worldwide. He also served, along with producer/director, Peter Jackson, as executive producer of the "Playboy Fantasy" production show & revue at the Playboy Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, NJ from '81-'83. He was retained as a consultant to Playboy thru Dec '84. It was also during this period that Distefano owned, operated, & often hosted at, Doro’s Italian Restaurant & Lounge at 871 N. Rush St., a then popular, downtown Chicago nightspot, frequented by VIP’s, Hollywood stars, & every "who’s-who" of the entire Tri-State area. A Chicago VIP himself, Distefano was often featured in Irv Kupcinet’s Chicago Sun-Times "Kup’s Column," on local radio interviews, & on T.V. journal shows like WFLD’s "PM Magazine Chicago."
LAS VEGAS - Immediately following his successful 25-year career with Playboy, Distefano was hired by corporate conglomerate tycoon, Meshulam Riklis, in ’84, to head the entertainment department as vice-president of entertainment & special events at Riklis’ legendary Riviera Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV. Distefano booked & launched many successful entertainment events at "the Riv" during his decadelong tenure there. These included numerous world-heavyweight-championship-boxing bouts, concerts, & full-scale production shows like "A New Year’s Eve with Frank Sinatra & Pia Zadora;" the "Legends of Comedy" event, which featured Sid Caesar, Milton Berle, & Danny Thomas; "Burns & Hope Together," wherein George Burns & Bob Hope performed live together for the first time; "Luciano Pavarotti with the Las Vegas Symphony Orchestra;" the "An Evening At La Cage" female impersonator show; the "An Evening at the Improv" comedy club; the "Crazy Girls" sexy revue; & the award-winning, multi-million-dollar production-extravaganza, "Splash," which ran successfully for over 20 years in the Versailles Theater, was associate-produced by Distefano, & acclaimed as "Las Vegas’ International Show of the Year" by the Las Vegas Review Journal for over 10 years in a row. Distefano was often a featured guest on the KVVU Las Vegas hit T.V. show, "AM Southern Nevada," as well as a judge on the popular '80’s & '90’s national T.V. series "Star Search," with Ed McMahon, that paved the way for today’s talent search shows like "American Idol" & "America’s Got Talent." Distefano’s career was a highlighted exhibit in the Las Vegas Museum of Entertainment History at the Tropicana Hotel & Casino, & in '97, he was honorarily inducted into the Casino Legends Hall Of Fame. To this day, Sam remains the frequent subject of numerous, popular books about the history of music & entertainment in Chicago, Las Vegas, & the iconic Playboy Clubs.
FAMILY & PERSONAL INTERESTS – Distefano hailed from humble beginnings. His parents were both Roman Catholic immigrants from Sicily, with limited education. His mother was a seamstress & his father was a meatplant worker on Chicago’s south side in the famous "Back of the Yards" union stockyard district during the Great Depression. Yet they succeeded in raising 2 children - Distefano & his only sister (Mary). Distefano married in '67 in Miami (his wife, Pam, was an airline stewardess for Eastern Airlines), had 1 child in '69 (a son, Michael), divorced in '78, & never remarried. His personal interests included reading National Geographic, traveling, fishing, cooking, billiards, yachting, & poker (he was the 1st place winner of 3, large, international poker tournaments hosted at the Riviera & Desert Inn Hotels & Casinos in Las Vegas in '88 & '94, respectively). He was an avid movie & T.V. fan of Charles Bronson, Steven Seagal, Peter Sellers (the 'Pink Panther' films), & Peter Falk (particularly the '70’s detective series, 'Columbo.'). Sam participated in many large, charitable, fundraising events in both Chicago & Las Vegas for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, Alzheimer’s Association, & Injured Police Officers’ Fund. A devout Catholic, he attended Mass regularly at St. Anne’s Catholic Church in Las Vegas. Sam also enjoyed performing music with his son (who also plays jazz piano & drums).
RETIREMENT & MOST RECENT YEARS - Distefano retired from the Riviera in '93 & formed his own entertainment management & consulting firm with his son, which they continued to operate successfully until the senior Distefano developed Alzheimer’s in '03. Distefano resided with his son & was with him in Las Vegas at Sunrise Hospital at the time of his peaceful ascent to Jesus due to natural causes in his sleep, MON (3AM 4/13). Sam is survived by his son, Michael; Goddaughter, Claudina Vespia; ex-wife, Pam Johnston; nephew, Gary (Sharon) Kurnat; niece, Linda (Casey) Kowalski; grand-niece, Allison (Stephen) McCuan; grand-nephew, Steven (Whitney) Kowalski; great grand-nieces, Aubrey McCuan & Daphne Kowalski; & great grand-nephew, Cooper Kowalski. FRI 4/17: Las Vegas Viewing/Wake 8AM-12PM & 2PM-4PM (Rosary at 3:30PM) at Palm Downtown Mortuary, 1325 N. Main St., Las Vegas, NV 89101 (702) 464-8300. SUN 4/19: Chicago Viewing/Wake 8:00AM-1PM & 3PM-7PM (Rosary at 6PM) at Blake Lamb Funeral Home, 4727 W. 103rd St., Oak Lawn, IL 60453 (708) 636-1193. MON 4/20: Funeral 8AM (Blake Lamb), Funeral Mass 9:30AM [St. Linus Catholic Church, 10300 S. Lawler Ave., Oak Lawn, IL 60453 (708) 422-2400], Former Homes Tour 11:00AM (departs from St. Linus; complimentary stretch limousines available), Internment 2:00PM [Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, 6001 W. 111th St., Alsip, IL 60803 (708) 422-3020], Complimentary Luncheon 3:00PM [Palermo’s 95th, 4849 W. 95th St., Oak Lawn, IL 60453 (708) 425-6262]. More info at Blake Lamb. Anyone/everyone is welcome to attend all events, all 3 days. Flowers are very much appreciated & may be sent to Palm Downtown, Las Vegas (FRI 4/17 at the latest), &/or to Blake Lamb, Oak Lawn (MON 4/20 at the latest).
(References - Las Vegas Review Journal, Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, Miami Herald, Lake Geneva Regional News, Atlantic City Press, Playboy Club News, The Playboy Paper, Larry Novak, Pam Johnston, Mary Kurnat, Michael Distefano)
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