The Tropicana evolved out of a nightclub called Edén Concert, operated in the late 1930’s by the late by Cuban impresario Victor de Correa.
It has quit a history and impressive architecture.
The casino of the Tropicana was operated by Frank Bishop who in the U.S. was a suspected drug trafficker. His assistant in the day to day running of the casino was Pierre Canavese, a direct associate of Salvatore Lucania, alias “Lucky” Luciano. Canavese had been deported to Italy, it was suspected that he entered Cuba with a false passport.
The Arcos de Cristal won numerous international prizes when it was built and was one of six Cuban buildings included in the 1954 Museum of Modern Art exhibit entitled “Latin American Architecture since 1945.” Borges won the Premio Anual, from the Colegio de Arquitectos in 1953 for his work on the Tropicana. The Arcos de Cristal may be seen in the Tropicana scene of the movie Our Man in Havana.
