Viva Odd Vegas, part one

Viva Odd Vegas, part one

I just got back from Las Vegas, Nevada where I attended a business conference.  Yes, I know what you must be thinking:  Vegas?  Work?  Seriously, it was for work.  I was a delegate at an annual industry conference that actually is beneficial for me to attend.  I am not a big drinker, or a gambler, so Vegas does not have that much appeal to me.  But now and again, it is interesting to go out there and pretend I belong.

I was curious as to how Las Vegas came to be, so I did a little research.  The name, Las Vegas, loosely translates to “the land of cheap souvenir T-shirts”.  This translation seemed a bit odd, when I read that this area was visited by Indians and Mexican goat herders long before T-Shirts were invented.   Some things never change, however.  Back then, parents returning from the area brought back woven blankets that were hand painted with:  “Mom and Dad went to Vegas and all I got was this wool blanket.”

The famed one armed explorer, John C. Fremont was sent by the U.S. war dept. to the Las Vegas valley in 1844, when it was still Mexican territory, in preparations for a possible war with Mexico.   There ultimately was a war and this area became U.S. territory.  It is said that Fremont, in a moment of dire thirst, said “I’d give my right arm for a cold beer right now”.  He was a century too soon, but the sentiment of giving up an arm to be in Vegas is the reason why slot machines are referred to as one armed bandits.  Well… this story sounded plausible when I first made it up.

In 1930 the Hoover dam was started, which eventually furnished the region with water.  The city literally blossomed in the desert from the abundant water, almost free electricity from the dam generators, and money from the mafia.  The Nevada state legislature made gambling legal and the first casino, Pair of Dice, opened in 1931.  By 1942 organized crime figures such as New York's Bugsy Siegel, (not to be confused with Bugsy Bunny, who would have been here, but took a wrong turn in Albuquerque), took interest in the growing gaming center.  Other resorts such as the Flamingo, which opened in 1946, and the Desert Inn, which opened in 1950 joined the casino world.  After the casinos on Freemont Street were built the money started flowing in from all over the world.  

Elvis was a Pee-Wee wannabe.

Gambling was no longer the only attraction; the biggest stars of films and music like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Liberace, Elvis Presley and Pee-Wee Herman, performed here.  OK, maybe he wasn’t a big star, compared to Pee-Wee,  but Elvis eventually gained some notoriety, and weight here. After coming to see these stars, the tourists would resume gambling, eat at the gourmet buffets, then go back home and have a heart attack.  Perhaps it was not from over-indulging, but from seeing the credit card bill.

One problem for the City of Las Vegas was that the Strip did not reside in Las Vegas proper. Because of this, the city lost tax revenue. There was a push to annex the Strip by the City of Las Vegas, but the Mafia used a legal maneuver to organize the Las Vegas Strip properties into an unincorporated township called Paradise. The city of Las Vegas, cannot annex an unincorporated township. To this day, virtually all of the Strip remains outside the City of Las Vegas

I think that the phrase “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” is really misleading.  None of the stuff that happens in Vegas is really in Las Vegas.  So does that mean it does not stay there?  Does it now follow you all over the world, like a stalker? 

I will continue with part two of this after I have had time to sober up enough to attend my Gamblers Anonymous meeting.