Lester Ben "Benny" Binion's life story reads like an exciting work of fiction - but it's all true. He repeatedly ran into trouble with the law, owned casinos, and loved to play and promote poker.
He was born in Texas in 1904 and because of his poor health his father, a horse trader, never sent him to school. His father did take him on his business trips, however, and perhaps the outdoor life restored his health.
At age 17 Binion moved to El Paso and took up moonshining. He gave that up after being convicted twice and started to run numbers - also illegal. He began gambling to pass the time and gradually came to enjoy it. Running with the criminal element it's no wonder his FBI file lists a series of crimes such as, theft, two murders and suspicion of a third, and charges of carrying concealed weapons. His first murder - a moonshining competitor - carried a suspended two-year sentence. For his second murder he killed a competitor in the numbers racket making it look like self-defense. He shot himself in the shoulder and argued the victim fired first. The third casualty was a second competitor but there wasn't enough evidence against him and charges were dropped. By eliminating the competition and securing the protection of a powerful politician Binion gained control of gambling operations in Dallas, where he had settled drawn by the oil money that flowed there. By the early 1940s he was the capo di tutti capi - the number one mob boss in the city.
Having conquered Dallas, Binion tried to extend his reach to Fort Worth. Before long the local mob boss took a fatal bullet. After World War II, Binion's empire came crashing down. First, stronger gangsters, the Chicago Mafia (founded by Al Capone), decided to move into Dallas, and second, Binion's politician/protector lost in the elections. With his kingdom collapsing around him, Binion pulled up stakes and hightailed it to Las Vegas.
In 1951 he opened Binion's Horseshoe Casino to an avalanche of popularity because of the high bet limits. Although he offered unprecedented comps to high rollers (he pioneered picking them up in limousines and giving them free drinks), he welcomed any player regardless of bankroll. Almost single-handedly he changed casinos from smoky joints to carpeted palaces. His success and notoriety did not go unnoticed by the national Mafia who had substantial investments in Las Vegas. After a murder in the men's room in one of Binion's casinos, and a violent feud with a small-time hood (his wife was murdered and he died in a car bombing), they felt the negative publicity he generated would hurt business. They helped the government collect incriminating evidence and Binion lost his gambling license in 1951. In 1953 he went to Fort Leavenworth federal penitentiary in for five years for tax evasion.
As far back as 1949 Binion held head-to-head poker tournaments for superstar players. These tournaments mushroomed beyond his wildest dreams taking in more and more gamblers until the World Series of Poker was born. In 2006 over 8,500 paid the $10,000 buy-in fee and signed up for the main event. The colorful showman died on Christmas Day in 1989. 
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