Las Vegas

Southern Nevada was originally occupied by Anasazi Indians from 300 BC to 1150 AD. They were followed by the nomadic Paiute Indians, who depended mostly on hunting small rodents, lizards, and rabbits, harvesting pine nuts in autumn, and gathering seeds and roots - which prompted the first white explorers, 600 years later, to nickname them "Diggers."

In 1776, some 2,500 miles from the Revolutionary War in the east, two Spanish friars were establishing both ends of what came to be called the Old Spanish Trail. This 1,200 mile route between Santa Fe and Los Angeles meandered north into southwestern Utah, then south along the Colorado River through southern Nevada into California - servicing Mexican missions along the way. Jedediah Smith and Kit Carson traveled parts of the trail in the 1820s; other trappers and traders covered the entire route in the 1830s. By the time John Fremont, legendary surveyor and cartographer for the Army Topographical Corps, started heading east from Los Angeles in 1844, the Old Spanish Trail had become the most traveled route through the Southwest.

Fremont probably paused in a valley known in Spanish as Las Vegas ("The Meadows"), a popular camping spot within a three-mile stretch of grass along a creek fed by springs. This was the last green, not to mention water, till the Muddy River, some 55-miles away.

In 1854 Brigham Young dispatched a party of missionaries to establish a community at Las Vegas to aid and convert Paiute Indians. This ill-fated venture was plagued with problems and was abandoned in 1858.

Soon after the Mormons abandoned the mission, discovery of the Comstock Lode under Virginia City in northwestern Nevada triggered the first backwash of mines and immigrants east from California, when gold and silver was discovered in Nevada. In 1899, 25 people lived in the 26-mile long Las Vegas Valley, but all that would soon change.

In the early 1900s the railroad finally came, and Las Vegas was a major stop on the line between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles. In 1905, a new townsite map was drawn up and the present city of Las Vegas was settled. The population hovered between 3,000-5,000 people until the early 1940s.

But, with the completion of Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, the area quickly became a major tourist and recreation destination, and hotels and casinos began springing up to accommodate the visitors. Most new hotels were erected downtown in the heart of the city, but the El Rancho Vegas (1940) and the Last Frontier (1943) "resorts" were built on the Los Angeles highway far (for then) south of town.

In addition, Las Vegas Army Airfield (now Nellis Air Force Base) was installed nine miles north of town to train pilots and gunners for combat in World War II. By the end of the war, Las Vegas' population topped 17,000.

In 1946, Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel arrived in town, backed by Meyer Lansky, who recognized the vast potential of the Mafia entering into legitimate casino operations in Nevada. His Flamingo Hotel, his vision of a lavish one-stop hotel-casino-resort in the Las Vegas desert, was named for the birds that lived in a pond inside the Hialeah Racetrack in Florida, which Siegel had a part interest; he considered flamingos a good-luck symbol.

The hotel had been budgeted to cost a million, and Meyer Lansky dup into the underworld treasury to finance it. But construction materials were scarce after the war, and Siegel's lavishness limitless. The cost overrun reached a healthy (or unhealthy, as it turned out) $5 million, which Lansky graciously fronted to his old partner in crime.

At a meeting of the bosses in Havana on Christmas Day 1946, Lansky revealed that Bugsy had skimmed $300,000 of the building budget into a Swiss bank account (though some old timers still swear it's all stashed in a super-secret room in the hotel!); a vote was taken. If the Flamingo was a success, Siegel would be reprieved. If it flopped...

The hotel opened the next day, with Georgie Jessel as the MC, the Xavier Cougat band making the music, and Jimmy Durante and George Raft headlining. Rainy and cold, the half-finished hotel, miles out of town, attracted nobody.

The Flamingo closed in January. Even though is reopened in March 1947, and started showing a profit in May, Siegel's fate had been sealed. In the Beverly Hills mansion of his girlfriend Virginia Hill in June he was hit. That same day three of Lansky's lieutenants assumed control of the Flamingo.

After the contract expired on Siegel, the state began to get nervous, however it took them about 10 years to assume control of licensing and taxing the casinos. In that time, no less than 10 new hotel-casinos had sprung up on the new "Strip", and it was the worst-kept secret in west that they were built with mob money; the underworld didn't even need a clean frontman to pretend ownership.

In the late 1950s and early 60s, even with all the clamping down on the casino licensing, government investigations, and attempts to focus unwanted attention away from Las Vegas and Nevada, the scandal-obsessed press unleashed all the "gang-controlled, crime-ridden, whore-ridden, and rotten" stories about the casinos onto the public.

Las Vegas was already known as a "cesspool of crime", but when a story was published in Life magazine by Edward O. Thorpe, a mathematics professor, that introduced card counting at blackjack and claimed that casinos called in "mechanics" to cheat winning players, every hotel in town went up for sale.

Enter Howard Hughes, in 1966 - through the back door, at midnight, incognito, with a tractor full of Kleenex, and an entire floor at the Desert Inn reserved for him and his entourage.

The story goes that Hughes grew so comfortable at the Desert Inn that he didn't feel like moving out in time for Christmas, when the hotel needed the ninth-floor suites for its high rollers. He had just sold his interest in TWA for a cool half billion, and felt like spending some. So he paid owner Moe Dalitz $13 million for the hotel - and he didn't have to move.

But he moved his cash in a big way, embarking on the most robust buying binge in Nevada history. When the dust finally settled at the end of "the summer of the Hughes miracle," Hughes' Summa Corporation owned the Landmark, Silver Slippers, Sands, Castaways, and Frontier hotels, in addition to the Desert Inn.

He also acquired all the valuable acreage along the Strip (some which is worth so much money today that the Summa Corp won't even quote a price). Finally he added a dozen Nevada mining claims and the North Las Vegas Airport to his holdings, and spent the change on a TV station and an airline. In all, Howard dropped $300 million.

Las Vegas was more or less swept clean of the "undesirable elements" by the arrival of large public-traded corporations (Bally's, Caesar's, Circus Circus) and international hotel chains (Hilton, Ramada, Holiday Inn), whose names were synonymous with reputable and licit business practices - and who are so big and powerful they don't need mob money. Although it remains a matter of speculation as to how many current front men in Vegas are financed by or represent corporations controlled by Mafia money working out of Swiss bank accounts.

Downtown (Glitter Gulch)

This used to be the main gambling center of town, before the days of the hotel/casino/resort complexes of The Strip. The most famous residents downtown are that 60 ft tall cowboy with the glittering smile, Vegas Vic, and Sassy Sally, his cowgirl neighbor. Vic and Sally are the most photographed sights in town.

Wedding Chapels

Las Vegas, and Nevada in general, is a popular place of marriages. They require no waiting period, no blood tests and accept out of state checks. There are currently about 41 different places to get married in the town of Las Vegas.

Silver Bell Wedding Chapel (607 Las Vegas Blvd S.) Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson were married the first time here. She was 18 and he was 26. Their cabdriver was the witness.

Graceland Wedding Chapel (619 Las Vegas Blvd S.) is where Jon Bon Jovi, a big Elvis fan, married his high school sweetheart here in May 1989. It was also the scene of Loranzo Lamas's most recent marriage, and Phil Joanou, the director of the U2 concert movie, Rattle and Hum was married here in March of 1992. Footage from the ceremony was featured in U2's 1992 U.S. tour - it was shown on a big screen above the stage.

For only $150 you too, can have an authentic Elvis impersonator witness your wedding. He will also perform for a 1/2 hour, and you can record it all on video. About two couples are wed the Elvis Way per week.

Little White Chapel (1301 Las Vegas Blvd S.), complete with the Drive-up wedding window, has been the scene of many famous marriages. Joan Collins and Peter Holm (remember him - the Swedish tennis player who blockaded himself in their Beverly Hills home before they divorced?), Bruce Willis and Demi Moore, and basketball star Michael Jordan were also married here.

Candlelight Wedding Chapel (2855 Las Vegas Blvd S.) has been the site of nuptials by Whoopi Goldberg, Bette Midler, Patty Duke, Barry White, John Byner, and Michael Caine.

The Little Church of the West (3960 Las Vegas Blvd S. near La Hacienda) claims to be the "Wedding Place of the Stars." Judy Garland, Fernando Lamas, David Cassidy, Steven Adler (Guns N' Roses), and Dudley Moore were all married here.

The Strip

The Strip begins at the corner of Main and Las Vegas Blvd with Vegas World, and runs all the way (about 5 miles total) to La Hacienda near the airport.

El Rancho (now closed) is located across the street from the original El Rancho Vegas, the first resort/casino complex on The Strip (1942).

Circus Circus has the world's largest buffet and 2,800 rooms. The clown out front is 13 stories high.

Las Vegas Hilton (3000 Paradise Rd), was known as the Las Vegas International when it opened in 1969. Elvis Presley was booked as the second act to play at the hotel (the first was Barbara Streisand). When Elvis hit town in July 1969, he was booked to play four weeks at $125,000 a week - and hadn't performed live in eight years. Needless to say, he was a huge success and became a Vegas fixture until his death.

Elvis lived in the 30th floor Imperial Suite (now the Elvis Presley Suite). Priscilla told Elvis good-bye in this room. And it was also here that Elvis shot out a TV during a Robert Goulet song.

A 400-pound bronze statue of Elvis stands near the entrance to the main showroom. The statue, in a "reaching out to touch the audience" pose, was dedicated by Priscilla and Vernon (Elvis' father) in 1978 during a 10 day fan convention. There is also a bronzed Elvis guitar in a case nearby, as well as a Vegas-era jumpsuit.

The Stardust sign is perhaps one of the most spectacular sites in town. The sign is 183 feet high and has over 50,000 bulbs, and 30 miles of wiring. It costs about $2500 a month to lite.

The Frontier Hotel (3120 Las Vegas Blvd) is the oldest hotel on The Strip, and is where Elvis made his Las Vegas debut in 1956, billed as the "Atomic Powered Singer." Years ahead of his time in music, Elvis' first gig in Vegas was a flop, and he didn't return to perform until his 1969 comeback concerts (although he was in town several times during those years, including the filming of Viva Las Vegas with Ann-Margaret in 1963 and his marriage to Priscilla in 1967).

The Desert Inn is where Howard Hughes started his Las Vegas shopping spree.

The Mirage opened in 1990, making it one of the newest hotel/casinos in Las Vegas. It was built by Steve Wynn, the Donald Trump of Las Vegas (he owns several other buildings in town, including the Golden Nugget downtown). The Mirage has 3,600 rooms, cost $630 million to build, and costs $1.4 million a day - just to keep the doors open. The volcano erupts every 1/2 hour during the day and every 15 minutes after dark, until midnight. Siegfried and Roy's White tigers are on display here, and there is also a dolphin show.

Treasure Island, at the Mirage, has pirate ships that will battle at the top of the hour at the main entrance.

Caesar's Palace is one of the older casinos on the Strip, but was renovated a few years ago. Be sure to check out the Forum Shops, a collection of expensive and fun shops, near the north entrance.

Flamingo Hilton, across the street from Caesar's, still contains part of the original Flamingo which ended up costing Bugsy Siegal his life. Near the pool at the far right side of the building is the original rose garden which Bugsy started over 40 years ago.

Bally's, scene of the recent movie Honeymoon in Vegas, has over 3,000 rooms, is 26 stories high, employees 4,500 people. It is the 14th most populated place in the state of Nevada, with the highest density of people. It also has the most blackjack tables in town, 6 restaurants, a 40 store shopping mall, 2 showrooms and 2 lounges.

The Aladdin Hotel (3667 Las Vegas Blvd) is were Elvis and Priscilla were married on May 1, 1967. It is now co-owned by Wayne Newton, who has taken Elvis' place as Mr. Vegas.

The Tropicana has the world's only swim-up blackjack tables.

The Excalibur, owned by the Circus Circus Corp, is, for now, the world's largest hotel resort. It has 4,032 rooms, and 100,000 square feet of slots and gaming tables. It opened in June of 1990, and has managed to pay off its $400+ million mortgage in just two years.