P. Moss Takes Readers Behind The Fictional Velvet Curtain Of 1960s Vegas

P. Moss is a legendary bar owner and the author of twisted/crime fiction. His latest title is “Screwing Sinatra,” his tale of Frank Sinatra and other recognizable names.

Ginger Bruner

Surviving Sinatra could describe P. Moss himself. With a career worthy of a Ryan Murphy, Shonda Rhimes, or David E. Kelley series, the bar owner, author, entrepreneur, and musician has lived a life as vivid, quirky, and unpredictable as the characters — and chaos — he writes about.

Best known for his legendary dive bars — the Double Down Saloons in Las and New York City, and Frankie’s Tiki Room in Las Vegas — Moss has built a legacy on defying convention. That same rebellious streak fuels his fiction, often rooted in alternate or historical realities, where he channels grit, danger, and dark humor into stories entirely his own. In Moss’s world nothing is off-limits.

Blending historical fact with his signature noir storytelling in Screwing Sinatra (and his earlier works), Moss dives into the tangled lives of Frank Sinatra, John F. Kennedy, Jackie Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe, Dean Martin, and gangster Sam Giancana, among other prominent figures. For decades, stories have circulated that Sinatra and Giancana helped rig the presidential election for JFK — though hard proof has never surfaced. And Moss, naturally, offers his own take on how it might have gone down.

“You take what really happened — you get from point A to point B. But along the way, you spice it up and just have fun with it,” said Moss, who will be at New York Comic Con on October 9 signing copies of the book. “It’s like, did they really do that, or did he make that up?”

From Bars to Books

A lifelong fan of film noir and pulp fiction, Moss grew up in Chicago and Minneapolis, drawn more to drama than comedy — a sensibility that defines his dark, twisted brand of storytelling. He calls American crime writer James Ellroy (L.A. Confidential) his “God,” admiring Ellroy’s unfiltered voice and seismic influence.

“You know, he’s nuts, but he’s brilliant — absolutely brilliant! I could never be James Ellroy. Nobody can. The guy’s amazing,” Moss said. “But I’ve learned from him — from his kind of film noir, from screenwriting, from the rhythm of storytelling — and I’ve built my own version of that.”

Like many artists early on, Moss faced unpaid bills, long hours, and an uncertain future. But he had a vision. Independent and entrepreneurial to the core, he believed in his bars — which became known for their no-frills authenticity and subversive charm, mirroring their creator. That same drive defines his writing, where real-life chaos meets crafted fiction to produce noir that feels both classic and alive — and, at times, darkly funny.

Reimagining the Intrigue, Glamour, and Corruption of an Era

Before his first book, Vegas Tabloid in 2017, Moss honed his literary voice through short stories published in magazines and anthologies. Vegas Tabloid, which follows a wisecracking con man and his troupe of small-time criminals who accidentally become the hottest act on the Las Vegas Strip, introduced readers to Moss’s trademark blend of noir, pulp, and wit.

Through sharp dialogue, unpredictable twists, and vividly rendered scenes, Screwing Sinatra also captures both the glamour and the grime of an era where fame and danger walked hand in hand.

“What I find interesting is Sinatra’s life, more than his career. Frank Sinatra as a person is fascinating. He was the most generous guy who ever lived, yet he had a violent temper. I touched on those things, but the book is really about something else,” Moss said. “I’ll get an idea, and sometimes it’s not about the story at all — it’s about a character or a situation. I do my research, but I take the liberty of telling the story my way.”

“That’s part of the fun of writing historical fiction. I not only get to make some things up, I get to give somebody a personality. For example, I think Jackie Kennedy needed a pair of balls — and I gave them to her. She was elegant and wonderful, but she was being trampled on. From my eyes, she deserved more, and I rectified that.”

From Page to Screen

The world of Screwing Sinatra feels tailor-made for the screen — larger-than-life characters, high-stakes drama, and moral tension at every turn. It’s easy to picture as a prestige limited series on a streaming platform, combining the glossy suspense of a Ryan Murphy true-crime saga, the character-driven pulse of a Shonda Rhimes production, or the psychological intensity of a David E. Kelley thriller. Given today’s appetite for dark, stylish period dramas, a director like Ben Stiller — fresh off Apple TV+’s Emmy-winning Severance — could add yet another compelling layer to Moss’s morally charged universe.

In an era where content is everywhere and attention is fleeting, Screwing Sinatra stands out — as both a book and a concept. The only question that remains: Who could embody Frank Sinatra’s magnetism? Who could bring John and Jackie Kennedy’s allure and vulnerability to life? Who could capture Marilyn Monroe’s fragility — or Sam Giancana’s criminal persona?

No doubt, P. Moss has his ideas. Whether behind a bar, at a keyboard, or pounding out words on a proverbial typewriter, he thrives on extremes — passion, conflict, and reinvention. Screwing Sinatra doesn’t just revisit the Rat Pack era; it reimagines it through the eyes of a storyteller who’s lived enough wild nights to know that truth, like a good cocktail, is always best served with a twist.

As a book, Screwing Sinatra is impossible to put down. As a potential limited series, get ready for your next binge.