In 1959, the Casino du Liban opened its doors in Maameltein, just north of Beirut, and became the glittering heart of Lebanon's Golden Age. This episode explores how a single gambling resort drew oil-rich sheikhs, European jet-setters, and Hollywood stars to a tiny Mediterranean country, generating revenue that rivaled the state budget. We trace the casino's founding by Michel el-Khoury, its design by architect Pierre El-Khoury, and its role as a hub for intelligence operatives and arms dealers during the Cold War and the early civil war. We also examine the darker side: the casino's ties to political corruption, its use as a safe house for CIA and Mossad agents, and how it survived the 1975 War — only to be forced to close by the Syrian army in 1989. Along the way, we hear about the Lebanese singer Fairuz's boycott of the casino, the casino's ownership battles, and its eventual reopening in 1996 as a symbol of attempted post-war normalcy. This is a story of excess, espionage, and the fragile dream of a 'Switzerland of the Middle East.'
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