The Last Good Time: Skinny D'Amato, the Notorious 500 Club, & the Rise and Fall of Atlantic City

This is great reading! It's a wonderful journey down the nostalgic road back to the endless antics and travels of The Rat Pack (Sinatra, Bishop, Lewis, Martin, Lawford, and Davis, Jr.). Also, you'll find lots of good history on Atlantic City, and, on Joe Dimagio, George Raft, Marilyn Monroe, and many other celebrity notables who lived "on the fringe." You'll read all new stuff in here! Well-researched and a real page-turner. My highest recommendation to readers of all interest areas.

The new and the old Atlantic City! A fast read from the days of the old Steel Pier right up to the Resort Casinos that line the Boardwalk today. Van Meter starts this journey as he arrives in town to work at Atlantic City Magazine. He gets word about a "sale" at the home of the late Paul "Skinny" D'Amato, the owner of the famous "500 Club." This is 1986 and Atlantic City is now a gambling mecca. Van Meter quickly becomes enthralled with D'Amato and the history of the city and figures he's a got a pretty good book on his hands. He's right! The Frank Sinatra/Dean Martin/Marilyn Monore/ Mob connections drive the narrative and the reader gets caught up in their world. Van Meter keeps the pace with the rich and famous and their connection to D'Amato rolling along, and you get to go for the ride. Damn good ride! All 296 pages of it. Recommended!

Jonathan Van Meter's book is a COMPELLING story,rich with Atlantic City history, about a man and a time gone by. I am not old enough to have ex-perienced that time, but Van Meter's wordscatapulted me into an era that seemed thrilling.I highly recommend this book.

As often I am call "old school" it was new and refreshing for me to read of the old Atlantic City. I thought Jon Van Meter brought back to life a time that has been dead far too long. I would strongly recomend it to anyone who loves the golden area in American history.

From the beginning to the end this book is a page turner. Thehistory of Atlantic City is fasinating and it is an exciting journey through the lives of the D'Amato family and their celebrity friends (ie Sinatra, Di Maggio, Kennedy and Giancana). I recommend this book highly!