Jay Sarno

Jay Sarno (July 2, 1922 – July 21, 1984) was an American developer, hotelier and casino owner. He developed and owned the Atlanta Cabana Motel in Atlanta, Georgia, as well as several motels in California and Texas. He was the founder of the Caesars Palace hotel and Circus Circus in Las Vegas, Nevada. Early life Sarno was born in 1922 in St. Joseph, Missouri. His parents were Jewish immigrants from Poland. His father was a cabinet maker, his mother a homemaker. Sarno graduated from the University of Missouri, with a degree in business. While in college, he met Stanley Mallin, who would become his lifelong friend and business partner. During World War II, he joined the United States Army and served in the Pacific theatre alongside Mallin. Career With Stanley Mallin, Sarno became a tile contractor in Miami, Florida. They subsequently built subsidized housing in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1958, after they had met Jimmy Hoffa and Allen Dorfman, they built the Atlanta Cabana Motel in Atlanta with a loan from the Central States Pension Fund. They went on to build Cabanas in Palo Alto, California, and another motel in Dallas, Texas.