Drea Knufken
Gambling pays. Just ask casino king Sheldon Adelson, the world’s 13th richest man, according to Forbes. Sheldon got his start developing COMDEX, one of the world’s first computer trade shows. Adelson poured his COMDEX earnings into Las Vegas’ Sands Hotel and Casino, building the Sands Convention Center, still one of Las Vegas’ biggest.
Adelson later razed the original Sands to build the Venetian, the Venice-themed adult playground that is still one of Vegas’ biggest attractions. After selling COMDEX, Adelson built Sands and Venetian resorts in Macao, and a Sands in Singapore. When the Las Vegas Sands went public in 2004, Adelson hit it big, accumulating a net worth of $17.5 billion over the next 2 years, according to the New York Times. He plans to develop a massive resort city, a Vegas counterpart of sorts, in Macau. The taxi driver’s son spends his spare time suing people, lobbying conservatives, pushing for a unified Israel, and publishing a free Israeli daily newspaper.
