Description:

Lansky, Meyer (1902-1983) Recently moving to Israel to avoid any legal problems which might arise in Miami, two weeks before he applied for Israeli citizenship stating his income was about $60,000 from investments, Meyer Lansky asks his daughter if he had received "the checks from Sam Garfield on the Watson Wells"... dividends on his 1960s oil investment... and to "please send me my balance'"

Autograph Letter Signed "Love /Dad," one page, 8.5" x 10.75". [Tel-Aviv, Israel], November 23, 1970. To Meyer Lansky's daughter Sandra and her husband Vince Lombardo, with original "Dan Hotel Tel Aviv" mailing envelope addressed by Lansky. On lightweight lined paper. Fine condition.

In part, "I'm uncertain when I last wrote time is passing by to fast... How is good old Florida?... The climate here is beautiful mornings cool, afternoon warm and nites cool... Enter in my check book a withdrawal of $5000 Nov. 15. Also $2500 Nov. 23, Please send my balance. Did I receive the checks from Sam Garfield on the Watson Wells if not ask Uncle Jack to call him."

Robert Lacey in "Little Man: Meyer Lansky and the Gangster Life" (Boston: Little, Brown & Company, 1991) writes, "In 1964, Meyer Lansky finally laid hands on a legitimate investment that made some money. He bought himself an oil well... Under the tutelage of [old friend Sam] Garfield, Meyer expanded his oil and gas holdings. The two men bought more Michigan leases together, and they extended into Ohio... He was scarcely an oil tycoon... and never an oil millionaire. But thanks to Sam Garfield, he was successful. His energy concessions brought him revenues in the $25,000-$30,000-a-year range... confirming the impression that he sought to convey, of a retired businessman, living on his investment É In 1964, Meyer's old friend Doc Stacher had avoided the worst consequences of a conviction for tax evasion by consenting to deportation and going to Israel to live. In July 1970, Meyer Lansky decided not to wait for the conviction - or anything else... Lansky landed in Israel on July 27, 1970 ... He wanted to stay in Israel, and he wanted to live there not as a visitor, but as an Israeli citizen."

On December 7, 1970, Lansky requested Israeli citizenship under Israel's Law of Return which gives any Jew the right to be granted Israeli citizenship. However, it denies citizenship to a Jew "with a criminal past, likely to endanger the public welfare." A week later, in an affidavit, Lansky stated that he was living exclusively on dividends from his real estate and oil investments, and his annual income was "roughly $60,000 (before taxes)."

In March 1971, Lansky was charged with being involved in a conspiracy to skim from the Flamingo Hotel, his old Las Vegas venture with Bugsy Siegel. In May, Lansky's U.S. passport was revoked and in September, his application for Israeli citizenship was denied. "Meyer Lansky v. the State of Israel" was heard before the Israeli Supreme Court and on September 11, 1972, the court ruled unanimously against Lansky. After trying to find refuge outside the United States, on November 7, 1972, Meyer Lansky returned to Miami and was promptly arrested by FBI agents aboard the plane.

In a 1988 interview with Robert Lacey, Anna Strasberg revealed that Meyer Lansky had phoned her husband, Lee Strasberg who was nominated for the 1975 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the role of Hyman Roth in "The Godfather, Part II." With her husband's knowledge, Anna listened in on the extension. Lansky said, "You did good." Lee replied, "Thank you. I tried." Lansky added, almost with a sense of humor according to Anna, "Now, why couldn't you have made me more sympathetic? After all, I am a grandfather."

Victor Riesel, in his December 10, 1970, nationally syndicated column, "Inside Labor," reported that "in the past month there have been two mass indictments on various charges. One is a 72-count securities fraud indictment and brings in some new names such as Vincent Lombardo, son-in-law of the shadowy financial wizard, Meyer Lansky."

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