Peter Lawford and Sammy Davis Jr. in Las Vegas in 1962

John Loengard—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images

Peter Lawford plays gambles in Las Vegas with Sammy Davis Jr. in 1962. Sammy Davis Jr is wearing an eye patch.

Sammy Davis Jr. watches Peter Lawford roll the dice in 1962. “We gamble. There’s nothing else to do in Vegas. Man, it’s like Baghdad. You can’t sleep. All the chicks are after loot. So you sing, and what else do you do? Sometimes Dean and Frank sit in for the dealers. It must cost the house $1,000 every time. They see a little old schoolteacher making a bet and they slip her the good cards and let her win big.” —Davis, describing the lifestyle of “the Clan” to LIFE in 1958

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