360 Vegas

Random Vegas When Jay Sarno would play craps downtown at the Horseshoe, Ted Binion, casino manager at the time, would deal the game himself.  It was the only way the game would move as fast as Sarno liked it.  He didn’t want the dice to stop rolling. Fun fact - He always played the pass line even though the odds are better on the don’t pass, Sarno said he didn’t like to bet on failure. Twitpic of the week Two awesome things in the photo.  First, it’s a picture of Caesars early on in its construction and it is wicked to see, not only the progress on the project but how much undeveloped land there is beyond the site.  It may not look like it today but Vegas really was an oasis in the middle of the desert.  Second, the photo was taken from a room at the Dunes.  Two things that together make me smile when I look at this picture shared by @Summacorp News Mirage for Sale Picasso Sale Palms Update

Random Vegas 98% of MGM Resorts salaried employees got the covid vaccine by the Oct 15th deadline.  Only 90 employees nationwide decided to quit due to the mandate. (@LasVegasLocally) Twitpic of the week I love this picture but it isn’t inspiring monolog.  I think the only thing I miss at today’s Cromwell is Barbary Coasts exterior neon.  But I can’t lament about it when you consider what significant renovations did to it.  It’s definitely better off.  It may have remarkably more douches in it but for the most part they’re standing in line to get to the pool.  Hey, what do you know, the picture by @Las_when did inspire a monolog? News Made in Vegas Closes EDC Issues Fountainebleau Update Free Downtown Parking  Venetian Locals Discounts 

Random Vegas In 1971, the Silver Slipper became the first property on the strip to hire female dealers. (lvstriphistory.com) Twitpic of the week   Before the giant rainbow signage we previously remember Fitzgeralds having, there was a sign that is remarkably similar to the sign it has today at The D.  I’m in no way insinuating that this sign inspired its current incarnation but in earnest.  This week’s picture from @VitalVegas is what caused this coincidence realization.  Gotta love those huge old sandwich board signs. News Atomic Range Durango, A Stations Casino Riviera Frontage Sale Caesars Inks Deal with Spiegelworld Planet Hollywood to Neon Museum

Random Vegas In July of 59, the New Frontier was the only casino in town who let their dealers grow mustaches, a fad at the time.  The property said they did it for two reasons One, it made them look like gamblers Two, they looked different from any other dealers in town Twitpic of the week He’s iconic.  Only Vegas could make a cowboy stay relevant by outlining him in neon.  Seeing Vegas Vicki resurrected at Circa to her original operating self only wets the pallet for Vic to return to motion.  However that is probably only slightly less likely than the Fremont Street Experience canopy being removed.  Regardless, this week we celebrate Vic via @las_vegas in all his neon glory. News MGM Moves Wynn Returns Misleading Survey  

Random Vegas In April of 1964, the Silver Slipper had its gambling closed on a dice cheating charge.  Gaming officials said that the slipper had been operating a crap game with “flat dice”, dice shaved on one side so that the winning combination of 6 and 1 did not come as often as it should, giving the house an extra percentage over the player Twitpic of the week The year is approximately 1972/73 and the original MGM Grand is almost complete.  It would go on to be one of the largest hotels, not just in Vegas but in the world with 2100 rooms.  After its 1980 fire in which 85 people died, it would become the safest hotel in the world.  Then in 1986 it was rebranded Bally’s and that brings us to today.  Rumor has it that another rebranding is on the horizon.  Whether that happens or not remains to be seen.  Thanks to @las_when for sharing the properties origins News Vegas Costume Contest Oyo options Newton Returns Beer Garden Tailgating Station Past Posting Cosmopolitan Mural Manneken Pissed Resort

Random Vegas In April of 1962, the Nevada Supreme Court upheld the dismissal of an $85,000 personal injury suit against the New Frontier The suite was attempting to hold New Frontier liable for a fall the plaintiff had into a planter in the lobby It was decided that the fall was a result of the plaintiff's intoxication and not the negligence of the resort Twitpic of the week In a world before color photos, I’ll bet things were even more grand when you saw Vegas in living color.  Not just the neon but everything.  A magical experience in a magical place.  Sadly virtually everything in this picture is gone.  No more Desert Inn, New Frontier, Landmark and Sahara is dead to us after their assault on free speech.  But that’s not what this monologue is about.  Its about this picture, shared by @TonyIllia.  Thank you, once again, for inspiring us. News Cosmopolitan for Sale Allegiant Vaccinations Macao Concerns Main St Opens with different casino

 Random Vegas  An employee at Wynn Resorts desk stated that the company has received over 12,000 cancelations since the 2nd mask policy was implemented (@svoth1)    Twitpic of the week    The Stardust, in all her motel glory.  It’s hard to imagine the casinos we know today as motels but that’s how they did it in the old days.  No property better showcased that than the Stardust shared by @GrandPaD.  Traditional architecture thought so little of it they nicknamed it the Painted Shed. That didn’t seem to impact its success.    News Boring excitement Trump Bomb Scare World Crawl Bar @Neonopolis Game of Thrones Vegas

 Random Vegas  Of the million dollars in fines levied so far in 2021 by the FAA, $112k are Vegas related.  7 of the 9 incidents involved passengers flying into Vegas.  Top violations include drinking alcohol not purchased from airline and not complying with the mask mandate.  Fines ranged from $9-$15k.  Twitpic of the week  Pretty much every building built since the Landmark topped out at 31 stories was built taller but that doesn’t diminish the feeling the Landmark exudes as a skyscraper.  Something about that pod at the top captures the imagination.  Sadly the casino at the top didn’t last long as gamblers like to get right into the action and didn’t see the point in making the trip to the top.  So they turned it into suites.  Considering its fate, imploded to make way for more parking for the Las Vegas Convention Center, its apropos that existing parking is featured prominently in this week’s winner, brought to you by @PixVegas777  News Bally’s Dining Options Rise Vegas Allegiant Stadium Outage Ne

    Random Vegas  The original Vegas Vicki was a hostess role at the Pioneer Club created in the early 60s, two decades before the famous neon sign of the same name.  (vintagelasvegas.com)    Twitpic of the week  She was a shithole at the end, there is no debating that but the memories Imperial Palace gave so many is invaluable.  Memories of low limit gaming tables, dealertainers and movie quality theming come flooding back when you see the photo shared by @UCVegas.  Just like most properties we’ve lost along the way they live on in the recollections of time past    News Eight Lounge Concert Vaccinations Bally’s Rebranding

Random Vegas It is illegal on Fremont St to consume package liquor within 1,000 feet of the store where it was purchased (@VitalVegas)    Twitpic of the week  @maverickheli captured a picture so good it looks like an artist rendering of Circa and not an actual photograph.  Circa is without a doubt the most impressive new casino to open in over a decade and the first to be built on Fremont in 50 years.  She really is the jewel of downtown and one hell of a sexy building.    News Vici Buys MGM Growth Allen Glick Dies Vegas Barbie

Random Vegas MGM resorts employs an estimated 35,000 employees worldwide, less than half the number employed before the pandemic   Twitpic of the week Shining lights, glowing neon, flashing bulbs, bathed in magic.  Welcome to Fremont St pre-canopy and post many, many drinks.  That special time when you’re in the sweet spot, loving life and enjoying the “Only in Vegas” scenery of your happy place.  @las_when coined it the Fremont Street Glare, we call it mesmerizing.   News Masks Are Back Game Day Express Angels and Airwaves Music Video

Random Vegas The Cosmopolitan requires unvaccinated employees to test negative for covid every 72 hours (@lasvegaslocally) Twitpic of the week Elegant and fabulous, opulent bordering on gawdy, the pool at Caesars Palace plays it right down the line to create an experience like no other.  @mississippirob4 shows us an elevated view of a gorgeous theme embraced fully poolside.  It’s a view that beckons one to join every time you look out your window. News Vegas Vic’s Tavern  The new Fontainebleau  Whitney Houston Residency 

PCP = Premium Content Preview The movie Lucky You, reminds us of a time in Vegas, when people thought the only limits the market had, were the limits of the imagination.  While it isn’t a period piece in the traditional sense, at least not yet, or intentionally, one of the truly fun things about Las Vegas, is how often it changes.  Unlike major cities all around the world, whose landscape typically just expands over the years, Vegas can look radically different from one decade to the next.  That’s, what we get to explore, with Lucky You, to see, just how different, the city looks, from the way it did in 2005, when the movie was being filmed, compared to today, less than 20 years later. 

Random Vegas  Resorts World offers players the option to “reserve” their slot machine while they step away to visit the restroom (@VitalVegas)  Twitpic of the week    Welcome to the new era of the strip complete with professional sports teams.  The city that has claimed to be the entertainment capital of the world for years now has a legitimate claim to it.  For those of you fans of a sport not currently in Vegas, be patient. It’s coming.  As long as the two teams in operation continue to show their respective leagues how to make destination entertainment, those not a part of the party will desire to become part of the conversation.  @MaverickHeli once again gives us a god like view of how grand and beautiful the incorporation of sports has been.    News FlyOver Las Vegas Beast Mode Comes to Mandalay Bay Go Go Claw slot machine Laurel Lounges Petition

 Random Vegas  City Center cost $8.5 billion to build and was the most expensive project in the western world (@vegas_only)    Twitpic of the week    Welcome back to the 90s in Las Vegas.  A time apparently before MGM new that Asian gamblers didn’t like to walk under the head of a lion because it’s bad luck or some other superstition.  But for a time, there she anchored the corner of Tropicana and Las Vegas Blvd in all her oversized glory.  @summacorp provides even more context to this week’s winner, clocking that the MGM Marquee sign is shown under construction, which would date this picture early 94, after the introduction of the Hilton marquee was erected as the largest sign in the city and before MGM built a larger sign.    News MGM Buys and sells City Center Plaza Evolves Problems @Pinball Hall of Fame

 Random Vegas  Wayne Gretzky’s ‘brand ambassador’ deal with BetMGM cost MGM Resorts around $10 million, according to someone familiar with the details.  It also included $1 million in casino Free Play (@lasvegaslocally)    Twitpic of the week    It’s here, finally.  The project that started with the closing of the Stardust in 2006 has finally open as Resorts World Las Vegas.  True its location is still a liability but we now have a resort that extends the strip north again to Circus Circus.  It even makes an argument that Sahara and Stratosphere are once again located on the strip.  As always, @maverickheli gives us an ideal view of the newest property to join the Las Vegas strip and captures the hope that it brings to returning the market to the number one tourist destination in the world.    News Resorts World Opens Tribal Expansion FSE Concert Series Mandalay Restaurants Reopening Station’s Stand

 Random Vegas  Celebrity chef deals with Caesars Entertainment require the personality to visit his or her Las Vegas restaurant(s) at least once each year for at least 24 consecutive hours.  Contracts also require the chef to be photographed in their restaurant(s) (Vital Vegas)  Twitpic of the week    A sizzling photo of just how sexy lightbulbs can be when you group thousands of them all together. Throw a couple mirrors strategically placed to overwhelm the senses in the best way it can be done legally and you get Plaza’s porte cashere, shared by @LasVegasLocally with a hat tip to @Summacorp.  Once your senses get done absorbing all this glowing awesomeness you realize the easter egg, the view down Fremont St as it was before Slotzilla and the canopy came to be.  Since we don’t see the Mint signage it can be determined that this photo is at least post Binion’s 1988 acquisition of the property.    News 360VVX Recap

Tropicana is the kind of property in Vegas that everyone knows about but most don't spend much time at, which is a real shame.  Its contribution to the experiences available in the market is a unique blend of classic intimacy and affordable luxury.  Many properties in Vegas seek to transport you from everyday life to a personal version of paradise but the use of bright spaces gives it a feeling of warmth and carelessness.  Without excessive ornamentation or theming, Tropicana has succeeded in what can best be described as that happy place on a beach people can retreat to when the stressed of life reaches levels requiring such a place.   A truly transformative experience, all with the convenience of virtually any other imaginable adventure available just outside, brought to you as only the Las Vegas strip can. 

 Random Vegas  June 27, 2002: On the eve of a concert tour by the Who, bass guitarist John Entwistle is found dead in his hotel room at Hard Rock. The coroner determined that Entwistle died of a heart attack caused by cocaine use. (latimes.com)    Twitpic of the week    Inspiring, every time I see a shot of the Mint in all her swooping neon glory. It’s the animation that does it.  Taking something as common and as simple as a single light bulb.  Now multiply that by thousands and with some careful choreography you’ve now brought it to life with animation.  Even though we lost the Mint signage, we are fortunate that this animation is a common lighting trick deployed on Fremont St to this day.  Thanks for the reminder @las_when.   News MGM Resorts Poolside Mobile Ordering WhiskeyX @Cosmopolitan Cirque Demand Cannabis Lounges Approved Dog Friendly Encore

*Premium Content Preview Patreon.com/360Vegas There are a collection of men who helped build the city of Las Vegas during its formative years that didn’t have colored pasts.  Their origins are not linked to organized crime and their stories aren’t the sort of things people make movies about.  However they would become the shining examples that the gaming industry could not only exist without the Mob but could continue to grow. A fact that was established in 1941 and continues to endure to this day.  The El Cortez is the city’s oldest hotel casino to continuously operate under the same name and only the 2nd casino ever added to the nation’s historical preservation list.  It’s also the only casino on that list still open to this day.  This is the story of the people and the properties that shaped Downtown Las Vegas.