Big Safe

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Some say it was the biggest theft in American history. Maybe it was.The multimillion-dollar burglary at eccentric gambler LaVere Redfield’s Reno mansion was an endless comedy of er rors. A target who hides from cameras and gets embarrassed for his dog. A failed songwriter “mastermind” who can’t keep her mouth shut. A safecracker who can’t pick a lock. And a convicted killer who allows his ill-gotten gains to be stolen while his pants are down. In almost every way, the 1952 Reno Heist is a study in how not to commit a crime, which is likely why the case lives on in infamy.Historian Gavin Schmitt unfolds the notorious misadventures of bumbling crooks, shady casino owners and femme fatales. Show more