<P> In Casino , De Niro stars as Sam `` Ace '' Rothstein , a Jewish American gambling handicapper who is called by the Italian Mob to oversee the day - to - day operations at the Tangiers Casino in Las Vegas . His character is based on Frank Rosenthal , who ran the Stardust , Fremont , and Hacienda casinos in Las Vegas for the Chicago Outfit from the 1970s until the early 1980s . Pesci plays Nicholas `` Nicky '' Santoro , based on real - life Mob enforcer Anthony Spilotro , a `` made man '' in 1963 who could give Ace the protection he needed . Nicky is sent to Vegas to make sure that money from the Tangiers is skimmed off the top and the mobsters in Vegas are kept in line . Sharon Stone plays Ginger McKenna , Ace 's scheming , self - absorbed wife , based on Geri McGee . </P>
who are the characters in the movie casino based on
Frank Rosenthal Anthony Spilotro Geri McGee