The Implosion of Las Vegas Entertainers
The Implosion of Las Vegas Entertainers

Author: L. S. Baker

Publisher: AuthorHouse

Published: 2002-05-08

Total Pages: 109

ISBN-13: 0759683476

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When you visit Las Vegas, you expect to get the best entertainment in the world. Well, why not. You are in "The Entertainment Capitol of The World." Well, do I have news for you! Las Vegas casinos not only want to take your cash, they are also ripping you off when it comes to music entertainment. This town has more corn in it than Iowa. Could you please pass the salt and butter? You will understand the meaning of this joke as you continue reading. In the good old days, Vegas entertainment was at its best. Who can forget the indelible Frank Sinatra and his Rat Pack? The majestic King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley crowned the viva into "Viva Las Vegas." Today, we still have the impressionable Mr. Las Vegas, Wayne Newton. Back in the old days, Entertainment Directors were privy to good music. The Entertainment Directors today, for lack of better words, are incompetent. They have zero knowledge of the entertainment business. Most of these people are in charge of the Food and Beverage Department of the casinos. How in the heck can they distinguish a "bottle of beer" from a great "entertainment act"? Entertainment Directors have a business scam of accepting kick back money. The stone cold truth of Las Vegas is politics and money. Forget sleeping with the right person to get a job. It is not applicable in this city. It's all about kissing ass and "SHOW ME THE MONEY!" So who finds the entertainment acts that are in casino lounges? We can thank those wonderful people who call themselves "agents." I call a majority of them thieves. They are in the same category as used car salespersons. They sell lemons. They are laughing all the way to the bank. This is when the amusement park fun begins for me. Bette Davis once recited in a movie, "Fasten your seat belts, it's going to be a bumpy ride." You might think I am vindictive and bitter towards agents and entertainment directors. I have been a victim of these vultures along with many other musicians. It is an insult to my musical intelligence. Unfortunately, I can not reveal names of casinos, Entertainment Directors, agents, sex and ethnicity of musicians. I do not want to end up in a court of law down the road. I will get satisfaction exposing their scams. It's a dirty job, but someone has to clean the scum off the toilet.

The Strip
The Strip

Author: Stefan Al

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2017-03-03

Total Pages: 267

ISBN-13: 026203574X

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The transformations of the Strip—from the fake Wild West to neon signs twenty stories high to “starchitecture”—and how they mirror America itself. The Las Vegas Strip has impersonated the Wild West, with saloon doors and wagon wheels; it has decked itself out in midcentury modern sleekness. It has illuminated itself with twenty-story-high neon signs, then junked them. After that came Disney-like theme parks featuring castles and pirates, followed by replicas of Venetian canals, New York skyscrapers, and the Eiffel Tower. (It might be noted that forty-two million people visited Las Vegas in 2015—ten million more than visited the real Paris.) More recently, the Strip decided to get classy, with casinos designed by famous architects and zillion-dollar collections of art. Las Vegas became the “implosion capital of the world” as developers, driven by competition, got rid of the old to make way for the new—offering a non-metaphorical definition of “creative destruction.” In The Strip, Stefan Al examines the many transformations of the Las Vegas Strip, arguing that they mirror transformations in America itself. The Strip is not, as popularly supposed, a display of architectural freaks but representative of architectural trends and a record of social, cultural, and economic change. Al tells two parallel stories. He describes the feverish competition of Las Vegas developers to build the snazziest, most tourist-grabbing casinos and resorts—with a cast of characters including the mobster Bugsy Siegel, the eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes, and the would-be political kingmaker Sheldon Adelson. And he views the Strip in a larger social context, showing that it has not only reflected trends but also magnified them and sometimes even initiated them. Generously illustrated with stunning color images throughout, The Strip traces the many metamorphoses of a city that offers a vivid projection of the American dream.

At the Sands: The Casino That Shaped Classic Las Vegas, Brought the Rat Pack Together, and Went Out With a Bang
At the Sands: The Casino That Shaped Classic Las Vegas, Brought the Rat Pack Together, and Went Out With a Bang

Author: David G. Schwartz

Publisher:

Published: 2020-08-26

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 9780990001638

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The lights are coming down. Frank, Dean, and Sammy are about to take the stage. This is the moment we remember, when Las Vegas became classic. And it was at the Sands. Built in 1952 over the ashes of Hollywood Reporter publisher Billy Wilkerson's last chance in Las Vegas, the Sands was a collective effort. Underworld figures like Meyer Lansky, Doc Stacher, and Frank Costello provided the cash. Beloved Texas gambler Jake Freedman was the public face. Manhattan nightclub king Jack Entratter kept the Copa Room filled and made the party happen, every night. Carl Cohen, esteemed as the greatest casino manager in the history of the business, made the team complete.No matter how well your casino is run, you need a good hook to get the gamblers through the door. Casino owners were learning that entertainment was a pretty fair hook. Entratter, who broke into the entertainment business as a bouncer at the Stork Club, had risen to become manager of the Copacabana, one of Manhattan's hottest hot spots, before heading to Las Vegas. At the Sands, "Mr. Entertainment" brought many of the brightest stars of the day to the casino's showroom, named the Copa Room. The Copa was the hottest ticket in America and, for performers, one of the most coveted stages in the nation. Headlining at the Sands-or even opening there-meant that you had made it.For gamblers, the Sands was paradise. For tourists, it was a chance to see some sophistication-and maybe run into a famous singer or actor. The resort itself became a celebrity. Early on, the Sands hosted numerous radio and television broadcasts, bringing the casino into American households coast to coast when gambling was still not entirely reputable. Las Vegas is a city built on public relations, and the Sands' Al Freeman was one of its early masters.The Sands did more than showcase stars: it made them shine brighter. In 1960, while filming Ocean's 11, the Rat Pack (though they were never called that in those days) came together onstage at the Sands, creating a cultural icon that would define the era. Behind the scenes, Davis and Sinatra resisted the prevailing segregationist mindset of Las Vegas and helped to overturn Jim Crow on the Strip. With Sinatra as its star, the Sands reached its highest point, hosting everyone from John F. Kennedy to Texas oilmen to Miami bookmakers.Yet the Sands wasn't all comps and curtain calls. Behind the scenes, the casino's connection with reputed mobsters made it a target. For years, the FBI tried to penetrate the casino, including a disastrous wiretapping operation that turned into a public embarrassment for the Bureau. And Frank Sinatra-at one point a 10 percent owner of the Sands-would divest his interests after a highly-publicized feud with Nevada gaming regulators over his friendship with alleged Chicago mob kingpin Sam Giancana.thanksAfter Howard Hughes bought the Sands in 1967 (with Frank Sinatra explosively departing soon after) the Sands lost some of its allure, but the casino soldiered on under Hughes and other owners before being sold to Sheldon Adelson, who closed the property in 1996 to make way for the Venetian mega-resort, along the way doing for conventions what Jack Entratter had done for entertainment in Las Vegas four decades earlier.In the end, the Sands went out with a bang-an implosion that brought down its hotel tower. It had a wild 44 year run. Along the way, a host of characters, including the Rat Pack (and their many friends) in all their glory, author Mario Puzo, Apollo astronauts, wealthy arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi, and President Ronald Reagan passed through the Sands' doors.At the Sands tells the story of how one of the most fondly remembered classic Las Vegas casinos beat the odds to become a success, staged some of the Strip's most memorable spectaculars, and paved the way for the next generation of Las Vegas resorts. The Sands may be gone, but it did not fade away.

Sun, Sin & Suburbia
Sun, Sin & Suburbia

Author: Geoff Schumacher

Publisher: University of Nevada Press

Published: 2015-09-01

Total Pages: 432

ISBN-13: 0874179890

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More than forty million visitors per year travel to Sin City to visit the gambling mecca of the world. But gambling is only one part of the city’s story. In this carefully documented history, Geoff Schumacher tracks the rise of Las Vegas, including its vital role during World War II; the rise of the Strip in the 1950s; the explosive growth of the 1990s; and the colossal collapse triggered by the real estate bust and economic crisis of the mid-2000s. Schumacher surveys the history of the iconic casinos, debunking myths and highlighting key players such as Howard Hughes, Kirk Kerkorian, and Steve Wynn. Schumacher’s history also profiles the Las Vegas where more than two million people live. He explores the neighborhoods sprawling beyond the Strip’s neon gleam and uncovers a diverse community offering much more than table games, lounge acts, and organized crime. Schumacher discusses contemporary Las Vegas, charting its course from the nation’s fastest-growing metropolis to one of the Great Recession’s most battered victims. Sun, Sin & Suburbia will appeal to tourists looking to understand more than the glitz and glitter of Las Vegas and to newcomers who want to learn about their new hometown. It will also be an essential addition to any longtime Nevadan’s library of local history. First published in 2012 by Stephens Press, this paperback edition is now available from the University of Nevada Press.

Chronicles of Old Las Vegas
Chronicles of Old Las Vegas

Author: James Roman

Publisher: Museyon Inc

Published: 2011-10-01

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 0984633413

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Discover one of America's most fascinating cities through 30 dramatic true stories spanning Las Vegas's 150-year history. James Roman takes readers on a tour through the glamorous and sometimes sordid history of Las Vegas and explains how a railroad town transformed itself into "the Entertainment Capital of the World." Essays explore the major historic events from the founding of Sin City and the building of the Hoover Dam to the rise of the Rat Pack at the Sands and the establishment of the Mafia-controlled casinos. Also included are intriguing tales of Vegas celebrities from Frank Sinatra and Liberace to Siegfried and Roy, as well as numerous historical photos and full-color maps.

Beyond the Black and White TV
Beyond the Black and White TV

Author: Benjamin M. Han

Publisher: Rutgers University Press

Published: 2020-06-19

Total Pages: 216

ISBN-13: 1978803850

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This is the first book that examines how “ethnic spectacle” in the form of Asian and Latin American bodies played a significant role in the cultural Cold War at three historic junctures: the Korean War in 1950, the Cuban Revolution in 1959, and the statehood of Hawaii in 1959. As a means to strengthen U.S. internationalism and in an effort to combat the growing influence of communism, television variety shows, such as The Xavier Cugat Show, The Ed Sullivan Show, and The Chevy Show, were envisioned as early forms of global television. Beyond the Black and White TV examines the intimate moments of cultural interactions between the white hosts and the ethnic guests to illustrate U.S. aspirations for global power through the medium of television. These depictions of racial harmony aimed to shape a new perception of the United States as an exemplary nation of democracy, equality, and globalism.

Time Out Las Vegas
Time Out Las Vegas

Author: Editors of Time Out

Publisher: Time Out Guides

Published: 2012-07-13

Total Pages: 340

ISBN-13: 1846703530

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Time Out Las Vegas is the only crib sheet travelers need to the world's most outlandish city. Whether going for a short or extended visit, this guide is an invaluable companion through the neon maze that awaits in Las Vegas. With the lowdown on all the hotels and casinos, money-saving tips, extensive restaurant reviews, hints on the hottest nightlife, and a full guide to gambling, it leaves nothing to chance. This seventh edition proves that there is more to Sin City than just sequins and slots — the dramatic expansion in hotel accommodations, fine dining, and shopping is attracting tourists from every economic strata, not just those with gambling as their sole agenda. The guide contains a detailed explanation of what games are available in the casinos, as well as tips on how to play them. There is also a chapter on suggested side trips to Hoover Dam, as well as other sights in Nevada and Arizona.

Enduring Innocence
Enduring Innocence

Author: Keller Easterling

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2007-09-28

Total Pages: 253

ISBN-13: 0262550652

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How outlaw "spatial products"—resorts, information technology campuses, retail chains, golf courses, and ports—act as cunning pawns in global politics. In Enduring Innocence, Keller Easterling tells the stories of outlaw "spatial products"—resorts, information technology campuses, retail chains, golf courses, ports, and other hybrid spaces that exist outside normal constituencies and jurisdictions—in difficult political situations around the world. These spaces—familiar commercial formulas of retail, business, and trade—aspire to be worlds unto themselves, self-reflexive and innocent of politics. But as Easterling shows, in reality these enclaves can become political pawns and objects of contention. Jurisdictionally ambiguous, they are imbued with myths, desires, and symbolic capital. Their hilarious and dangerous masquerades often mix quite easily with the cunning of political platforms. Easterling argues that the study of such "real estate cocktails" provides vivid evidence of the market's weakness, resilience, or violence. Enduring Innocence collects six stories of spatial products and their political predicaments: cruise ship tourism in North Korea; high-tech agricultural formations in Spain (which have reignited labor wars and piracy in the Mediterranean); hyperbolic forms of sovereignty in commercial and spiritual organizations shared by gurus and golf celebrities; automated global ports; microwave urbanism in South Asian IT enclaves; and a global industry of building demolition that suggests urban warfare. These regimes of nonnational sovereignty, writes Easterling, "move around the world like weather fronts"; she focuses not on their blending—their global connectivity—but on their segregation and the cultural collisions that ensue.Enduring Innocence resists the dream of one globally legible world found in many architectural discourses on globalization. Instead, Easterling's consideration of these segregated worlds provides new tools for practitioners sensitive to the political composition of urban landscapes.

Encyclopedia of Twentieth Century Architecture
Encyclopedia of Twentieth Century Architecture

Author: R. Stephen Sennott

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 546

ISBN-13: 9781579584337

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"A balance of sophistication and clarity in the writing, authoritative entries, and strong cross-referencing that links archtects and structures to entries on the history and theory of the profession make this an especially useful source on a century of the world's most notable architecture. The contents feature major architects, firms, and professional issues; buildings, styles, and sites; the architecture of cities and countries; critics and historians; construction, materials, and planning topics; schools, movements, and stylistic and theoretical terms. Entries include well-selected bibliographies and illustrations."--"Reference that rocks," American Libraries, May 2005.

Casino Conquest
Casino Conquest

Author: Frank Scoblete

Publisher: Triumph Books

Published: 2012-09-26

Total Pages: 315

ISBN-13: 1623680050

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Penned by a reputable authority on casinos, this guide provides the tools of the trade in order to perform a successful climb to the top of the gaming mountain. A step-by-step instructional approach is presented, going beyond the standard handbooks on blackjack, craps, and slots to include tips and tricks on baccarat, roulette, and more. A must-have for both casual and professional gamblers throughout the nation, this invaluable companion is guaranteed to provide the winning edge to beat the house.