Ned Sublette - Hotel Riviera Under the Brightest Full Moon of the Millennium

Yes, the Hotel Riviera, the one Meyer Lansky opened a year before the Cuban revolution. On this night, Dec. 22, the Winter Solstice coincided with the full moon and the earth was only 10 days from its perihelion (the closest point to the sun). According to Deane Rink of the Museum of Natural History, the rare coincidence of these events meant that the moon appeared about 14% bigger and 7% brighter than usual - probably the biggest, brightest moon of the entire millennium, as well as its last.