Introduction
Moe Sedway (1894–1952) was a Jewish-American businessman and mobster. He was an associate of Bugsy Siegel and a faithful lieutenant of organized crime czar Meyer Lansky. He had his own police record dating as far back as the early 1920s in New York.
Biography
Early life
Moe Sedway was born as Morris Sidwirtz in 1894 in Poland.
Career
At an early age, he began his criminal career in Manhattan running in street gangs with Bugsy Siegel. Later in his career, he began making trips to Las Vegas on Meyer Lansky's behalf in the early 1930s to franchise the syndicate's Trans-America race wire service.
By 1945, along with Gus Greenbaum, he ran the El Cortez Hotel with great success. Sedway was also instrumental in the financing and construction of the Flamingo Hotel when William R. Wilkerson ran into financial difficulties. Sedway saw the Flamingo as unique opportunity for their group to expand operations in Las Vegas. Minutes after Bugsy Siegel's murder, Sedway and Greenbaum took possession of the Flamingo. No one questioned or disputed their authority. Under Sedway's and Greenbaum's partnership, the Flamingo became a non-exclusive facility with prices affordable to almost anyone. They made the enterprise extremely successful. In the first year alone, Sedway and Greenbaum turned a $4 million profit. He accurately predicted that the post-war demand for "entertainment" would be enormous. According to his calculations hordes of gamblers from every state in the union would soon be flooding to Las Vegas. His name was merged with Gus Greenbaum's to inspire the name for the character "Moe Greene" in the American crime drama film The Godfather. Sedway served as a Clark County alderman, and was head of the United Jewish Appeal in Las Vegas. He was also on the board of directors of the Clark County Library. Sedway was married to Beatrice Bea Sedway.
Death
He died from natural causes in 1952. He is buried in Hollywood Forever Cemetery.