E-320: Allegedly Redacted

Random Vegas

The Western Village attraction at the Last Frontier was less of a replica of a real old western town and more of a movie set, complete with life-size papier-Mache figures on display throughout the streets. (The Strip – Las Vegas and the Architecture of the American Dream)

Twitpic of the week

I love when Vegas creates temporary structures to accommodate the wackiness that is this great city. Don’t have a facility that can house a championship boxing match?  No worries, we’ll just build one in the backyard.  This picture, shared by @classiclasvegas, captures a time before Mirage had its million-dollar villas or its convention center, both of which share the space the arena occupies here.  We also get reminded of a time before Caesars Forum shops existed.  It also shows us when the Mirage and Caesars had parking lots that rivaled shopping malls in scope.  In fact, virtually all those parking spaces have been replaced with buildings for retail, dining, conventions and parking garages, a far more efficient use of land on the strip that has sold for as high as 33 million an acre.  (FYI, that was the Frontier that sold for 1.2 billion for 36 acres.)

News

The Glass House of Wynn
Vintage FSE

E-319: I Am Bipolar

Random Vegas

There are more adults living in Nevada, that were born in California, than were born in Nevada. More than 141,000 people moved to Nevada in 2018, 50,000 ish were Californians, the 2^nd highest in the past 10 years.  127k came from other states and 14k came from overseas. (@reviewjournal) 

Twitpic of the week

Just when you thought the Neon Boneyard couldn’t get any cooler, @MaverickHeli drops a 12-foot cock on all of us, hovering over history like it’s a 1980s micromachines commercial.  Kudos to whoever was clever enough to set the Treasure Island Pirate head on the ground so it would be identifiable from Google earth.  And the Hard Rock Café sign is not only a great addition to the collection, it serves as a beacon for those looking to take a stroll down memory lane, surrounded by steel and neon giants of days past. 

News

Rock n' Roll Marathon 2

M Resorts/Raiders Deal

FSE Renovation Completion

Palms Place Penthouse Sold

"Live in Vegas with Kelly and Ryan"

Sheldon Adelson DOSEN't own the RJ...?

E-318: Casinary

Random Vegas 

Another key moment in my life may be the moment I realized one of my favorite neon signs in Las Vegas history, a sign I accepted I would never be able to see with my own eyes, was NOT lost to the world.  And not only does it still exist, it’s been hidden in plain sight, in classic Vegas fashion.  The iconic, original Mint hotel marquee, with the swooping arch and cascading lights soaring 10 stories tall, is right where you remember it.  Except you’ve not been able to see it, because Binion’s built its signage over top of the Mint’s after purchasing the property in 1988 and expanding into the space.  Binion’s Whiskey Liquor Up project required the removal of the properties south west signage to accommodate.  So much in fact, it exposed that the former stone façade and the legendary 1959 Mint signage still exists. Today, Whiskey Liquor Up celebrates their history, and the history of Fremont, by featuring this revealed section of the Mint signage along the staircase, that takes you up to the bar/restaurant. 

Twitpic of the week 

What can you say about aerial photographs of the strip that hasn’t already been said before?  Let’s see.  These shots always overwhelm me, sincerely.  It’s almost like I’m awed by the shear scope of the whole thing.  It makes you wonder if Vegas is too big to fail, setting aside that, that phrase is most commonly affiliated with the Titanic.  What I mean is, is all the gripping we do about the people running things valueless because Vegas can’t be stopped?  Is Vegas a microcosm of our planet with a built-in self-defense mode programmed to shake humans off like a bad case of fleas if we actually become a real threat, or is it a monument to human decadence that we will one day look back on and learn from the mistakes made.  Or maybe it’s just views like this, shared by @maverickheli that puts the city in an idealic state, somehow impervious to the politics below.  Either way, well done humans on the invention of the helicopter and photography. 

News

KAOS and Disorder

Winnebago parking at the Cannery

Ms. Las Vegas

Diablos 2

Signage Updates

Resorts World Updates

R.U.N. Stopped

Homeless Eradication Bill