Las Vegas Shutting Down Due to Coronavirus

Since yesterday, Las Vegas hotels and casinos have been announcing their temporary closures due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Here is a list of what is closing and shows and events that have been cancelled.

MGM Resorts is temporarily closing all its Las Vegas resorts effective beginning tomorrow, Tuesday, March 17th.

Wynn Resorts are temporarily closing beginning at 6:00pm on Tuesday, March 17th.

The Las Vegas Sands Corp. announced they will keep their resorts open.

Caesars Entertainment announced they were cancelling all ticketed live entertainment at their various venues.

Penn and Teller at the Rio have gone dark.

David Copperfield has suspended his show.

The Fremont Street Experience is closing its live entertainment stages, effective immediately.

The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) show April 18-22 is cancelled.

The NFL Draft, set to take place on April 23-25 has cancelled all public events.

The Academy of Country Music Show has been cancelled.

All Cirque du Soliel shows have been halted.

The Discovery Children’s Museum closed today, Monday, March 16th and will stay closed through April 11th.

The Mob Museum is temporarily closed.

The Las Vegas Springs is temporarily closed.

The Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas and six other state museums throughout the state are temporarily closed.

The Japanese Spring Festival at Sammy Davis Festival Plaza is cancelled.

Tacos and Tamalas Festival at Desert Breeze Park is cancelled.

All Las Vegas public schools are closed. All athletic events have been cancelled as has out-of -state and international travel.

Catholic schools have cancelled athletic and travel events.

The Meadows School is closing.

The Alexander Dawson School is closing.

UNLV is transitioning to on-line classes only.

Will update this as more news becomes available.

Upcoming Events and Book Signings!

I have a busy end of the week! Don't forget, if you are in Los Angeles, on Thursday evening, Oct. 17th, I'll be giving a presentation on the early history of the Las Vegas Strip and doing a book signing at the Los Feliz Library. It's free and starts at 6:45 (doors open at 6:30).

Hope to see you there!

And on Saturday at the Las Vegas Book Festival!!!!!

If you are in Las Vegas on Saturday, Oct. 19th, I am going to be at the Las Vegas Book Festival 2019.

I am on a panel about the Mid-Century Modern Las Vegas Strip at 9:00 am. The panel will be moderated by Geoff Schumacher. The other panelists are authors Esper Esau and Larry Gragg. I will also be doing a book signing for my book, "Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955 as well.

Hope to see you there!

Movie Theaters of my Youth

It is time to fire up the Way Back Machine.

As we celebrate the waning days of summer (somewhere that’s not the southwest where we have summer for another two months), I thought it might be fun to take a look at the movie theaters that were scattered around the Las Vegas Valley when I was growing up there back in the day. Back then, movie theaters were one of the recreational places we had on a hot summer day.

The Cinerama Theater -there weren't very many of them built-but, surprisingly in Las Vegas, we had one.  Located on Viking Road just off Paradise, this was a terrific theater.  It opened on January 13, 1965 with the John Wayne potboiler, “Circus World”. In 1967, MGM studios re-released “Gone With the Wind” in 70mm and my mother took me to this theater for the first time. I fell in love with it. I dragged my friends there to see many a film, including "Fantasia", "The Hindenburg" and "The Three Musketeers". For a time, between the Cinerama’s Dome, the Convention Center Rotunda and the Landmark Hotel that section of Paradise Road was mid-century modern nirvana. Like all great things in Classic Las Vegas, it was not to last. The Rotunda got torn down and replaced with the larger, low-rise Convention Center and the Cinerama was sold to a church and the ultimately demolished. I still miss it. Many people often confuse this theater with the Cine-Dome multiplex that was located on South Decatur Blvd. back in the 1980s and 1990s. They aren’t related.

      The Fox Theater was located in the Charleston Plaza Mall.  It was a large and elegant theater located in the first mall in Las Vegas.  On East Charleston, just south of downtown, this theater had a sign that could be seen for miles.  It opened on March 5, 1965 with the Jack Lemmon comedy, “How to Murder Your Wife”. We saw "The Sound of Music", "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid", "The Hot Rock" and on New Year's Eve, "The Poseidon Adventure".

It was torn down to enlarge the mall. The Fox Theater sign is now in the Neon Museum’s Boneyard.

 The Stardust Drive-In began life as the Motor Vu and was the first drive-in in town. It originally openedon March 25, 1949 with Jon Hall starring in “Kit Carson”. It closed in 1956. After the hotel opened, it changed hands and names to become the Stardust Drive-In and reopened on March 20, 1959 with the Disney comedy, “The Shaggy Dog.  We saw "Viva Las Vegas" there.  My parents were big Elvis fans and my dad was working at the Golden Gate when they were filming the movie and stepped outside of the casino to watch the filming of the race. It closed for good in 1968 and was demolished.

The SkyWay Drive-In.  After the Stardust Drive-In closed, we used to drive out Boulder Highway to this great Drive-In.  It opened on June 9, 1954 with Joan Crawford in the cult classic, “Johnny Guitar” I remember on summer early evening, my dad got the old station wagon ready and took us to see "Night of the Living Dead" after my mother brought home a Reader's Digest that had an article, "The film you don't want your kids to see".  My dad had a wicked sense of humor. The Sky Way closed in 1981 and the theaters of the Boulder Station were built.

  The Huntridge Theater at East Charleston and Maryland Parkway was the closest theater we had to an old- fashioned movie palace.  It was designed by famed Los Angeles architect, S. Charles Lee. It opened on Oct. 4, 1944. In the 1950s and early 1960s, it was known around town for being non-segregated. Complete with soundproof "cry room" for unruly babies, the theater was home to Disney films and Saturday afternoons the theater was filled with kids.  In addition to the Disney films, my friend Allen and I saw "Kelly's Heroes" and "The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean" there. It closed in 1977 and was divided into two theaters. The new owners just built a dividing wall down the center of the auditorium. That didn’t last and it closed as a movie theater in 1989. In 1993, it had a new life as a concert hall and performing arts venue. The auditorium was restored to a single space and all the seating was removed. Before a concert featuring the Circle Jerks, the roof caved in. It was sold to the Mizrachi family in 2002 and finally closed for good in 2004 where it was used as storage for the family’s matress store next door.

Other theaters I loved were the long-gone MGM Grand Theater in the original MGM Grand Hotel (now Bally's).  This theater had plush love-sets and a cocktail waitress that brought your drink order to you.  You ordered just by pressing a button on the cocktail table in front of you.  They only ran classic MGM films but I was already a big film buff by the time the hotel opened in 1973 and they changed the bill every week.  You got a handout with a synopsis of the film and the cast listing.  They showed a cartoon, newsreel and then the film.  It was old-fashioned and it was beyond great.

The Red Rock Theaters located on West Charleston.  We lived in Charleston Heights and this was the theater closest to us.  Started as a single screened theater, and it ultimately expanded to 11 theaters.  The theaters in the back were placed around an old-time Main Street -like square from the turn of the previous century.  There were two snack bars. One was located in the center of the Main Street square area and the other was located up front by the original entrance. We lived at this place, it seemed, when I was in high school.  Between this and the MGM Grand theater, my weekends were spent at the movies.  We saw "The Sting", "Billy Jack", "The Godfather”, “American Graffiti,” and every major (and minor) film that came out in the early to mid 1970s. It was demolished in 2002

The Guild Theater, the El Portal and the Fremont Theaters were all located downtown.  The Guild was originally named The Palace and had opened in 1932. By 1943, it had been renamed the New Palace Theater. It was located on 2nd Street (today Casino Center Blvd). It was remodeled in the late 1950s and renamed The Guild in 1960. By the time I was going to the movies, it was more an art house back then.  I saw "Next Stop, Greenwich Village", "The Passenger" and other art films of the 1970s there. It was demolished and a parking structure replaced it.

The El Portal had been built in the late 1920s. It had originally been an outdoor theater called the Airdome. It opned in June 1928 wiith a pre-release of Clara Bow’s film, “Ladies of the Mob”. Built by Charles Alexander MacNelledge, the hacienda style building was an immediate hit. There was no front signage, just the marquee. The theater was successful enough that it had the first air conditioner in town installed The only signage originally was a roof-top sign. All that remains of the original theater are the interior beams and the exterior facade. The theater had a balcony and a strict segregation policy. Unlike Lloyd Katz, Cragin did not believe that blacks and whites should sit together in a movie theater.  In the early days there was a mighty Wurlitzer organ, luxury box seats and chandeliers. The El Portal also pioneered late, late screenings to accommodate the men and women who worked swing shift and could not see the movies during regular business hours. Frank Sinatra's film "The Joker is Wild" premiered at the El Portal in 1957. Ernie Cragin was the mayor of Las Vegas during the 1940s

It was segregated until the Civil Rights Act was passed. By the late 1970s, it was closed and turned into a gift store and then Indian Arts & Crafts store. That store was closed a few years ago and now it houses a tavern.

The Fremont Theater was attached to the Fremont Hotel and Casino. The Fremont Theater (approximately where the FDC Feeds Garage Dry Sign is today),  was owned by the Nevada Theater Group and run by Lloyd and Edythe Katz.  They also ran the Huntridge Theater on East Charleston at Maryland Parkway.  The Fremont Theater opened in 1948.  The seating capacity was reported to be 800 with a small balcony.  Katz had come from Los Angeles after World War II.  Katz had many Hollywood connections and a flair for showmanship.  Unlike the El Portal, the Fremont was not segregated. Katz loved to bring out the kleig lights and have old-fashioned movie premieres.  “The Las Vegas Story”, “Suddenly” and “Ocean's 11” all premiered at the Fremont Theater.  The “Suddenly” premiere had the added bonus of Frank Sinatra working the box office. Locals crowded into Fremont Street to see the men in tuxedos and women in fur coats and evening gowns going into the theater for the evening.  The “Ocean's 11” premiere was held on August 3rd, 1960 with the stars of the film in attendance.  After the premiere, the party continued as the revelers took over the Copa Room at the Sands for the Rat Pack's dinner show.  By the mid-1970s, the theater changed hands and became the place to see low-budget horror and Chuck Norris karate films.  It was cut up into a small multi-plex before finally being annexed when the Fremont Hotel expanded.

The Parkway Theater across the Maryland Parkway from the Boulevard Mall.  It opened as a single screen theater in February 1970 with the Barbra Streisand musical, “Hello Dolly!”  Five years later, The Parkway became a triple screen theater and was renamed The Parkway Cinemas.  We saw "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and "Star Wars" there. The theaters closed in 1995 and were converted to businesses.

How about you, which theater was your favorite? 

This Thursday, Aug. 1st, "The Las Vegas Strip We Once Knew" and Book Signing

Don’t forget, this Thursday, August 1st, I will be giving a free presentation at the Clark County Flamingo Library at 7:00 pm.

My presentation will be on the “Las Vegas Strip We Once Knew” at 7:00 pm. The talk will feature rare and wonderful images and cover the early years of that famed boulevard, the hotels, the stars, the glitz and the glamour!

Both before the presentation and immediately afterwards, I will have copies of my new book, “Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955” for sale (along with the companion DVD) and will gladly be autographing them.

So, we hope to see you there!!!!!

Thursday, August 1st, 2019 at 7:00 pm

Clark County Library

1401 E. Flamingo Rd. Las Vegas NV 89119

50 Years Ago Today

“But the world all stopped to watch it, yeah, on that July afternoon,

They watched a man named Armstrong walk upon the moon"  John Stewart, "Armstrong"

 Has it really been fifty years?  It doesn't seem that long ago.  But the calendar and the television specials all say that fifty years have passed since that fateful day on July 20th.

On May 25th, 1961, President Kennedy had said "First, I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth. No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish."

America rolled up its sleeves and got out its slide rules.  We had put Alan Shepard into space and John Glenn was slated to go next.  The Mercury Astronauts caught not only the imagination of the country but of the world.  Every little boy and girl it seemed wanted to either be the Beatles or an astronaut.

I wanted to be an astronaut but slide-rules and math confounded the crap out of me.  And they still do.

We rolled out of bed in the early, early hours of the morning to watch the launches, breaths held as the countdown went down to zero and the button was pushed.

Televisions were rolled into schoolrooms around the country, including Las Vegas, so that we could track their progress.

The Mercury astronauts gave way to the Gemini Project and Ed Whitebecame the first American to walk in space.

Each step brought us closer to the goal of going to the moon.  All of this during a decade of turmoil and conflict the likes of which this country hadn't seen in a hundred years.  The Civil Rights movement, the loss of JFK, the Vietnam War, the youth movement, free speech, the anti-war movement, the silent majority are part of our history of the 1960s.

But through it all, even in the dark days (and we had our share of dark, dark days back then), the resolve to complete JFK's dream of putting a man on the moon by the end of the decade stayed strong. 

We lost Mercury astronaut Virgil "Gus" Grissom, the beloved Ed White and Roger Chaffee on the launch pad in the  Apollo One fire in 1967 and for a brief moment our resolve wavered.  But instead of scraping the idea, NASA and the country moved forward determined to solve the problems and hold the course.

In December of 1968, Apollo Eight with Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and Williams Anders became, not only the first Americans, but the first ever to orbit the moon.  That Christmas Eve they read Bible passages to the world from outer space.

As the 1960s were coming to a close, the decade seemed to be imploding on itself.  What had once seemed like a shining, optimistic beacon had become the very opposite.  Death, violence and drugs had taken over and the decade seemed like it was spiraling out of control.

But on a July afternoon in 1969, that shining optimism was recaptured and reborn as the Lunar Module with Neil Armstrong and "Buzz" Aldrin landed on the moon.

Around the world, people stopped what they were doing to watch history being made.

In Las Vegas, it was a Sunday afternoon/early evening..  At our house in Charleston Heights, we stopped and watched.

In the casinos on Fremont Street and on the Las Vegas Strip, gamblers were doing what they do best, gambling away.

Televisions had been set up around the casinos on both Fremont Street and the Strip so that patrons could watch if they wanted to.

Growing up in Las Vegas, we all know how difficult it is to get gamblers away from the tables and we know the stories of how it is next to impossible to get people to leave slot machines.

But on the Sunday up and down Fremont Street and up and down the Strip, they did just that. 

They stopped gambling to watch Neil Armstrong descend from the lunar module and "take one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind" before erupting in applause and tears.

It was a shared historic moment felt the world over and that included Las Vegas. Over a half million people shared the moment.

I know what you're thinking.  They could have gone upstairs to their rooms and watched.

But it was one of those moments in history when you wanted to be with other people and share the experience.

The Space Race which had begun twelve years earlier with the launch ofSputnik One by the Russians ended with Americans landing on the moon.

We had completed the dream that President Kennedy had set forth eight years earlier with slide rules, mainframe computers and American ingenuity.

And the world held their breath and then cheered with delight as Neil Armstrong set foot upon the moon, July 20th 1969.

The 1960s would all but officially come to a close two and half weeks later with the Manson Family killing spree in Los Angeles.

But, for a brief shining moment on that fateful July afternoon/early evening,, we reminded ourselves and the world of what the best of America could be.

Credit: Airboyd and NASA

Presentation and Book Signing August 1st!!!!

I am thrilled to announce that I will be returning to the Clark County Library on Flamingo on August 1st for a new presentation and book signing.

My presentation will be on the “Las Vegas Strip We Once Knew” at 7:00 pm. The talk will feature rare and wonderful images and cover the early years of that famed boulevard, the hotels, the stars, the glitz and the glamour!

Immediately following the presentation, I will be signing copies of my new book, “Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955”.

So please save the date and we hope to see you there!!!!!

Thursday, August 1st, 2019 at 7:00 pm

Clark County Library

1401 E. Flamingo Rd. Las Vegas NV 89119

Talk and Book Signing at the Mob Museum

SAVE THE DATE:

I am thrilled to announce that I will be giving a talk at the Mob Museum on Saturday, April 27th at 2:00 pm. Afterwards, I will be signing copies of my new book, Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955.

The Mob Museum

300 Stewart Ave.

Las Vegas, NV 89101

Saturday, April 27th

2:00 pm

The Las Vegas Strip We Once Knew

Las Vegas has changed a great deal over the last twenty-five years. Growing from the sparsely populated city many of us grew up with in the 1960s into a sprawling metropolis of over two million.

Back then, the Las Vegas Strip was revered as the “Entertainment Capital of the World”. Up and down that five- mile stretch of Boulevard, some of the greatest names in entertainment played the hotel showrooms. From Frank Sinatra to Judy Garland to Lena Horne and Harry Belafonte, they entertained guests twice night, first at the 8:00 dinner show and later in the night, at the 12:30 am Late Show (there was even the occasional Late, Late Show on Saturday nights). They often were booked for two weeks or more and the hotel marquees were in constant rotation.

Performers such as Louis Prima, Keely Smith, Sam Butera and Freddie Bell and the Bellboys and the Mary Kaye Trio kept the various lounges jumping from late night to early in the morning. They often rotated throughout the night with comedians such as Don Rickles, Buddy Hackett and Shecky Greene.

There was no walking the Strip back then. In those days the hotels catered to tourists in automobiles. There were often large expanses of desert between hotels. Gas stations, bars, diners and family run motels dotted the landscape between the larger hotels.

Giant neon signs that could be seen up and down the Boulevard danced in the dark night skies providing a show all their own.

Back then, people dressed up to go to a show, with the men sporting tuxedos and the women draped in sparkling evening gowns and draped in furs and jewelry.

It was a party that was never supposed to end.

Today that has all but vanished from the famed Las Vegas Strip as giant resorts built out to curb appeal to the modern tourist in search of fun, shopping and fine dining.

You can revisit those days in the new paperback version of my book, Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955 which covers the histories of the first 10 hotels built on the Strip in those years. The companion DVD offers video interviews with the men and women who were there and helped to make that history.

You can get a personally autographed book and the companion DVD here:

http://classiclasvegas.com/shop

In the meantime, enjoy some images of the way it used to be:

Images courtesy of the Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas, UNLV Special Collections, Joel Rosales, and the As We Knew It: Classic Las Vegas Collection

Request for photos and info on the Pussycat A-Go-Go

This is an old post from our original blog and one of our readers asked if I could post it here:

Any photos and history. I was a bass player with Don Corey and the Camps in 1966 at this club.

August 1, 2013 | Bob Ruppell 8/1/2013

The Pussycat A Go Go was opened in 1964 by Garwood Van, a longtime musician and bandleader on the strip. The Pussycat (had NOTHING to with the Pussycat dolls!)was the first live rock and roll dance club on the strip. It featured two stages, a back-bar stage, for smaller musical groups and/or Go Go Dancers that alternated with the larger bandstand on the dance floor. The club wouldn't really start kicking till after 2:00 AM, when the dancers, showgirls, musicians and those who worked the strip would arrive. By 1965, the Pussycat had earned its reputation as "THE" place to go for dancing and socializing. It was not unusual to find many of the strip headliners such as Johnny Carson, among many others, bumping and grinding on the dance floor. The Pussycat was also the hottest place in town to hear and see the newest, up and coming groups and artist, such as Sly and The Family Stone( who played the Pussycat beginning in 1967 as a six piece group) The Checkmates LTD ( with Bobby Stevens ) played their first Las Vegas gigs at the Pussycat. The Pussycat started the trend of dance clubs the major hotels now enjoy. The success of the Pussycat was quickly copied by other venues elsewhere on the strip as well as downtown, but none captured, then or now, the excitement of the Pussycat. The Pussycat also featured a small restaurant and a tiny casino, 2 or 3 Blackjack tables and a couple of dozen slots. The Pussycat survived until the late '60's. The Wynn properties now occupy the area where the Pussycat and the Colonial House ( with it's Pussycat-style club) once stood. The Pussycat A Go Go was truly the first, and some would say the hottest, dance club Las Vegas ever had. Anyone who had the experience of visiting the Pussycat in it's heyday, would agree. (Ask Sonny Charles, he was there!)

October 21, 2013 | Basse B

Nice article Basie B. My band, Stark Naked and the Car Thieves began playing at the Pussycat in 1966. Very improbably, we got an audition for Caesars to open Nero's Nook lounge, along with Checkmates, Ltd. only at the last moment they changed our name to "The Big Spenders" to help promote Sweet Charity that started a little after we did. There was a certain amount of controversy over all that and we returned to the Cat to play with bands like Sly Stone, Gary Pucket & the Union Gap, Six the Hardway, Fifth Cavalry, Tom Chase's great horn band. Jim Morrison had driven over from Orange County, Ca, to see us the night he got so badly beaten there, Unfortunately, it was our night off so we were no help. We were also there when Sly was chased off the stage and out of town. We went on to play the Flamingo Skyroom and the International Hotel's Crown Room, the second time Elvis was there and occupying the 17 bedroom suite next door. I'd enjoy talking with anyone who has information or memories of these days, especially as it relates to the band. I'm working on a memoir of the years between 1965 and 1971 called THINGS WE LOST IN THE NIGHT. You can see more about it athttp://larryjdunlap.com. Please contact me through the site. Best wishes to all.

June 8, 2014 | Larry J Dunlap

Hi Larry. I also played at the 'Cat' with our group The Orange Colored Sky in 68-69 three times I think.We had Morrison forced on us by the entertainment director Jack I think his name was (short guy bad toupe) Jim was so drunk (as usual) I had to hold him up on stage by the scruff of his jacket while he tried to sing a song. I remember thinking to my self at the time, that Im holding a dead man here.

May 26, 2016 | Tony Barry

The Poor Boy's played the Pussycat 1965. A great dance club and was packed all of the time. Loved playing there!

May 20, 2017 | Bob Allen

The entertainment director at the Pussycat in the mid-late 1960's was Jack Turner. (This was in his pre-toupee days)! Have often wondered what became of Mr. Turner, as well as another headliner (and Lana Turners last husband) Dr Ron Dante/ Ron Pellar, who played the Pussycat in 1966/67.

August 26, 2017 | Tony Barry

Hi stagemates! I appeared at the "CAT" the summer of 1964 or 65 (can't recall) with a group out of Saginaw, MI called The "Estyles." The other group was, of course, the Checkmates. I wonder whatever became of them?? I remember Lana Turner and especially. Dr. Dante who taught me a lot about Hypnotism (a whole book could be written about what I did with that info.😄 I know that Dante was for real cos he put my close friend Danny under and made him do a bunch of stuff totally out of character for Danny. In case you ever wondered,it was 4 real!!! Anyway,good to reminisce after all these years. Interestingly,that Devil's music--R&R-- Helped pay my way to a law practice now in its 41st year.the bass player became a PhD in Psychology and guitar player/lead singer a Civil Engineer. Much more in music accomplished, but solid careers backed it all. Best,Richard. (State Bar of Michigan #P-27181)

September 30, 2017 | Richard Dumas

My band, The Estyles played the Pussy Cat in 1996. The Checkmates were the house band and we were a traveling band out of Saginaw, Michigan. We met a lot of movie stars as we played. Guys like Bobby Darin sat in with us. Dr Dante did a great intermission show. That was the hottest club on the strip. Since we played until 6 am in the morning, the entertainers came to dance to our music after their performances were over. It was a great club and we had a great time playing there.

April 17, 2018 | Dr Don Steele

Autographed Copies of Gambling on a Dream Now Available

Now that the holidays are over and you can relax, why not do so with an autographed copy of my book, Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955. Learn about the early days of the Strip, when it was just a two-lane, pot-holed, blacktop linking southern California with the small town of Las Vegas. You can discover the in-depth histories of the first eleven hotels built on that lonely stretch of road and how the visionaries who built those hotels, turned that stretch of the highway into the fabulous Las Vegas Strip.

The book covers the architecture as well as the neon signs and offers stories from the men and women who were there.

If you love Las Vegas history (and who doesn’t) or if you want to learn about the hotels that made the Strip of today even possible, this book and the companion DVD offer plenty of glamour, glitz and history!

Personalized autographed copies available now: Gambling on a Dream book/DVD

Presentation and Book Signing, Saturday Dec. 8th!

Just in time for the holidays!

Just a friendly reminder that I will be giving a presentation and doing a book signing at the Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas next Saturday afternoon beginning at 2:00.

The presentation will be on the first twenty-five years of the Las Vegas Strip, how it began and how it grew. I’ll also be taking about the visionaries who dreamed up the hotels along with some myth-busting!

After the presentation, I’ll be signing copies of the new paperback version of my book, Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vega Strip 1930-1955.

So if you love Las Vegas history or know someone who does and need the perfect holiday gift, here’s your chance to do some shopping!

We hope to see you there!

Gambling on a Dream Presentation and Book Signing: Dec. 8th

If you live in Las Vegas or visiting there, I am happy to announce that I will be doing a presentation and book signing for my newly published book, Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955 on Saturday, December 8th at the Nevada State Museum (at the Springs Preserve).

I’ll be talking about the early days of the Las Vegas Strip when it was better known as a pot-holed. two-lane highway that connected the small town to southern California, how it began and how it grew.

It all begins at 2:00 pm and I hope to see you there!

Autographed Copies of My New Paperbook Book

So happy to announce that the Paperbook version of my popular book on the first twenty-five years of the Las Vegas Strip: Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955 is now available! If you go to my website, you can order a personalized autographed copy:

http://classiclasvegas.com/book-vol1-paperback/

The book covers the first bars and nightclubs that were located on Highway 91 before the first hotel, the El Rancho Vegas, was built. Once the dreamers came along new hotels began to take shape up and down the boulevard. The book also covers the first 10 hotels from conception to demolition (with a significant survival story included), and their neon signs that came to define the Las Vegas Strip. This is the story of how the Las Vegas Strip was born and how it grew.

You can also order the companion DVD that offers over 35 interviews with the men and women who were there and share their stories. Great story-tellers such as hotel executive Burton Cohen, Nancy Williams Baker who danced at the El Rancho Vegas in the early days of the hotel, those who knew Howard Hughes and Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel, performers such as Sam Butera, Claude Trenier, Pete Barbutti and Steve Rossi as well as many others. Bonus features also include a photo gallery of rarely-seen, historic images.

Printed Version of "Gambling on a Dream" coming soon!

So excited to share this with all of you:

For all who were asking about a printed version of my book, Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955, I have good news just in time for the holidays!

Fonthill Media and Arcadia Publishing are publishing the printed version on Oct. 29th!

The book is filled with rarely seen photographs as well as detailed histories, from conception to implosion with a couple of survival stories, of the first 11 hotels built on the famed boulevard.

As Oct. 29th gets closer, I'll have more details to share including an upcoming book signing, autographed copies and a special DVD of the interviews that are in the e-book version but couldn’t be included in the printed version.

Places That Aren't Here Anymore Presentation This Thursday

This Thursday, June 7th,  Historian Dennis McBride and I will be presenting "Places That Aren't Here Anymore", 

Join us for a trip down memory lane we share stories and images of iconic and beloved places that were once part of the Las Vegas landscape. From the Alpine Village to the Cinerama Dome with an emphasis on a variety of restaurants, movie theaters, bars and everyday places will be highlighted.

We hope to see you there!

Clark County Library 

7:00 pm

1401 E Flamingo Rd, Las Vegas, Nevada 89119

Admission is free

We hope to see you there!

Happy Easter from Classic Las Vegas!

We are wishing everyone a Happy Easter.

Here's a look back at some Easter celebrations in various Las Vegas neighborhoods (feel free to share yours!):

Neon-Gone But Not Forgotten

Up until about ten years ago, neon was king in Las Vegas. But with technology changing so quickly, LED and video screens soon became the dominant signage. To my mind, the LED and video screens lack the warmth and whimsy of the neon signs that used to dot the Las Vegas landscape from downtown to the Strip to the surburbs, neon was everywhere.

Here's a look back at some the ones that we used to have: