Vegas at Night, June 1963
Sin City. Glitter Gulch. Sparkle Town. San Gamblino. Twinkleburg. These are just some of the nicknames for Las Vegas. Except for three of them that I just made up.
Let's take a time machine back to 1963 and see what's cooking on Fremont Street! Hint: it involves neon and blinky lights.
Somehow I have accumulated quite a few night shots of the Fremont Street casinos. Check out Binion's Horseshoe Hotel and Casino! Our photographer carefully waited until all of the sequential lights were fully lit, which is mighty neighborly of him. Unlike other casinos that lured guests with singers and comics, the Horseshoe was all about games of chance. Its luck ran out when it closed in December of 2009.
Vegas Vic says, "Howdy Podner!" (every 15 minutes) as he urges you to lose your money at the Pioneer Club. The 40 foot-tall neon cowboy can still be seen today, restored and part of the "Fremont Experience") - though his arm no longer moves and he no longer speaks.
The Mint had one of the more spectacular displays of neon signage, and that's saying something. Look at that impressive wall of red, with the name of the casino marked out in twinkling lights! The Mint is infamous for being the place where Hunter S. Thompson stayed (for one night) in "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas". In the 1980's it was sold to Binion's and became part of the Horseshoe (seen in photo #1) which, as I mentioned earlier, closed in 2009.
Stay tuned for more night photos of Las Vegas!
14 comments:
Major-
Pics of Sin City - especially at night - always pleases, Heck, it's like seeing images of The Mine Train Thru Nature's Wonderland; but with fewer cactus-!
Thanks, Major.
Major, these pics of Twinkleburg are super! Reminds me of our trip home from California in the '60s, when Dad stopped our car in Vegas and had us stand next to a window so we could watch him play a slot machine and he would demonstrate the evils of gambling. He put the nickel in, pulled the lever...and won a $1! Yep, that certainly taught us a lesson...
Bill in Denver
Interesting the fascination this community (including myself) has for photos of vintage Sin City, considering that Walt decried the "cheap Las Vegas strip development" that happened around his Anaheim park. Somehow, though, Fremont Street at night doesn't really match that description. There's a beauty in the massive light displays that evokes a sense of excitement, grandeur and splendor all its own, different from Disneyland's but no less valid.
Thanks for the tour down memory strip. It's too bad that Vegas Vic broke his arm and lost his voice. Great nostalgic pics.
Nanook, I never thought I'd see the NWRR compared to Las Vegas!
Bill in Denver, your dad did better with that one nickel than I did in an entire weekend! I did learn that I didn't enjoy gambling, however. Maybe if I was "luckier".
Chuck, the Fremont Street strip had the biggest and the best of the hotels and casinos (and their light displays), but there was (and still is) a lot of tawdry, ugly neighborhoods right near the glitz and glamor. And parts of Harbor Blvd. really did resemble those areas! It's nicer now.
Snow White Archive, getting older is no fun, even when you're Vegas Vic.
Wow!! These are absolutely beautiful. Vintage Las Vegas is another subject I never tire of. Thanks, Major.
Chuck - For me, I like all things mid-20th century and vintage Las Vegas fits that bill. I'm a huge fan of Disneyland and many things Disney, but I don't care for the Disneyfication of public spaces in the real world environment as it tends to take the edge and character out of a place. I loved the old Harbor Blvd. in all its tacky glory and there were actually quite a few architectural gems in that chaos. I especially loved the competing large motel signs. So yeah, Walt decried it, but I loved it.
@ Major-
I aim to surprise-!
I agonized for hours over whether or not to stay at Binion's in 2008 - it was the cheapest room in the area, but the reviews were truly horrible. I guess if I'd booked that room it would have kept them from going under!
Melissa, where did James Bond stay in "Diamonds are Forever"?? That's where you should have stayed! Unless it no longer existed of course.
Melissa, where did James Bond stay in "Diamonds are Forever"?? That's where you should have stayed!
007's home base of the Tropicana is still alive and kicking, but I ended up at another "Diamonds are Forever" location, the Hilton. It came with free passes to the now-defunct Star Trek Experience, which one the day.
"Won" the day, even!
And after a quick memory-refreshing Google, this site reminded me that Bond and Tiffany Case did also spend a night at the fictional Whyte House (which the Hilton was doubling for), so I guess I did after all.
Nothing like Old Las Vegas. It's just not the same now.
Thank you, Major.
JG
Love all that neon!! :-)
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