OH - I thought I had just dreamed that up, but I did hear that somewhere!

I ADORE Vegas. When my husband and I were living in AZ, we used to take as many road trips as possible there. He is deployed to Irag for a year, but we are already in the works of planning a trip there in April 2006--is it bad that I am so looking forward to it already?!

Oh, Lost Wages, who was the Mafia Dude who was killed? He started it with a load of BS that proved to be true, a sucker Born Every Minute.

I want some of my money back from you big winners.

MGM, the old one, was thre 3 Months before it burned as The Balley. What a screwed up place. Was on the 27 th floor! No more, second or wont stay! 2 nights and 3 days, 1/2 months salary!:(

Been There, Done It Did It aint doing it again!:mad:

Oh, one of My Guys is Advisors to the UNLV LXA Chapter!:D

Are you refering to Tony the Ant Spilotro (the guy in casino that they beat and buried alive in the corn filed)?

I am CRAZY about Vegas!! My husband and I have been going there every year for the past 4 or 5 years. When we were there last year we bought vacation property there at the Hilton on the strip right accross from the Sahara. We also saw Celine (who wass amazing) and the new cirque du soliel show KA. I highly recommend Vegas, in fact our Vegas trip for this year is scheduled for this December and I can not wait!!:D

Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel (no one ever called him "Bugsy" to his face, especially if they valued their life) was the mobster who bankrolled the construction of the Flamingo (now the Flamingo Hilton). When it first opened in 1946 it didn't get very many customers; the action was a few miles north on Fremont Street downtown. Suspicion by "The Commission" of him pocketing some kickbacks from the construction got his ass whacked in Los Angeles the following year. For close to fifty years there was a rose garden in the Flamingo dedicated to his memory, planted there by persons unknown, but whose influence was derived from a certain organization with the initials M.A.F.I.A. Eventually, it was moved or demolished to make way for expansion.

The original MGM Grand (later Bally's) had adequate sprinkler systems in the hotel tower; the fire codes of the time did not require sprinklers in the casino area because it was considered constantly occupied 24/7. A small fire in a deli that was closed for the evening was left to rage unchecked and unseen until it was too late when it flashed over and engulfed the casino. An electrical problem caused the HVAC exhaust fans to fail. While there were a few casualties from the fire, many of the others died from smoke inhalation. To date, it is the second worst hotel fire in U.S. history.

Tony was a vicious sonofabitch, but he (and others) made it much easier for a bigger mob to take over the casinos - the corporations. Mob activity - if any still exists - is kept at a very low profile these days.

If you go the Flamingo Hilton today, they have a bronze plague about "Bugsy" in the Rose Garden by the pool area.

I'll be there from Aug 17-21!! Can't wait! I've been there before, but I wasn't 21 yet, so this is gonna be a totally different experience!

I don't know where I'm staying though, just because I am blindingly trusting my friend who booked the trip and just wrote him a check! I'm sure its pretty nice though, as he's a Vegas snob and will be there to celebrate his 30th bday.

Once again...cant wait!!

Ahhh you got one of them too, huh? Mr. 1228 is a MAJOR Vegas snob. But sometimes I wonder about him... :D
So, if a Vegas snob picked the hotel, I think you have done well! :)

Most Vegas snobs would not have anything to do with:
Circus Circus (they have a good steakhouse though), Stratosphere, Boardwalk, Excalibur (too many kids running around. they have a beautiful wedding chapel...we got married there) Some can take or leave the Imperial Palace

We are looking at going in Mid August too. Hmmm Vegas GC hookup? :)

Some nicknames locals use for casinos:

Stratosphere: You can build the tallest structure on the West Coast, but you can't shake off the image of "Vagrant's World" (originally Bob Stupak's Vegas World).

Desert Inn (now the Wynn): D.I.
Treasure Island: T.I.
Tropicana: Trop
Binion's Horseshoe: The Shoe
California: The Cal
Union Plaza: The UP
Golden Nugget: The Nugget
Imperial Palace: The I.P.
MGM Grand: MGM

"Out, seven, line away, pay the don't and the last come" - What you don't wanna hear from the 'stickman' if you have a bet on the pass line - shooter sevened out and didn't make his point.

Dealer-speak:

tokes - tips
George - player who tips dealers
fleas - low-limit bettors

The Spilotro family still resides in the valley (aka known as Vegas). P.S. How do you know so much about Vegas are you from here?

Used to live there about 15 years ago... my younger brother currently lives and works there. He's dayshift boxman/floorman at the Palace Station (been there for nearly 15 years). He's also enrolled part time at UNLV working on an accounting degree - taking it the slow way! :)

I used to work at the Aerotech rocket motor plant... long before it went up in smoke.

You used to work at Pepcon. Wow. I have lived here since I was three, so over 20 years. I work at UNLV and of course went to school here. I love Vegas history and since the centennial was this last weekend we have had an influx of history in the newspaper. The centennial went well thanks to our trusty mob lawyer mayor Oscar Goodman. He was honored at UNLV's graduation last weekend and made a comment how he found it ironic that the other person being honored was the former head of the FBI in las vegas. What side of town did you live in?

Actually, I worked for a company that bought ammonium perchlorate from Pepcon for the making of model rocket motors. I moved there after Pepcon went up in smoke. After pepcon we bought the AP from Kerr-McGee. Stuff came in two different grinds: 400-micron (about the consistency of kosher salt) and 200 micron (about the consistency of table salt. We had a specially-modified grinder (made explosion-proof) to grid it even finer; 30 micron was about the consistency of confectioner's sugar.

Used to live off Sahara and Decatur, then off Valley View and Bonanza. My brother's usual watering hole is Money Plays on Flamingo east of Decatur - he's been a regular for so long he's in like the top three of the 100-Yard Club (with well over 3000 yards!).