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It would be hard to imagine New York City ever razing the Plaza, or Paris tearing down the Ritz, but Las Vegas has brought down many of its historic landmarks without so much as a toodle-oo. Heck, by the 1990s, the city was promoting the destruction as a tourist attraction — at least if they had to go, they went out in style. Here's a list of just a few of the oldies but goodies that got lost during the Strip's endless makeover.
El Rancho Vegas
Built in 1941, the El Rancho was the first hotel resort ever built on the Strip — not Bugsy Siegel's Flamingo, as many people mistakenly assume. Its success launched a building boom on the Strip, a movement that is still going strong today. Alas, the hotel was destroyed by a fire in 1960 and was never rebuilt; all that's left of it is a big vacant lot at the corner of Sahara and Las Vegas Boulevard South.
The Other El Rancho Hotel
Not to be confused with the El Rancho Vegas, this place actually started out in the 1940s as the Thunderbird hotel before being renamed the El Rancho in 1982 after a series of ownership changes. Standing right across from Circus Circus, it closed in 1992 and remained empty and decaying until 2000, when it was purchased by Turnberry Place, the new $600-million condo development right behind it (just opposite the Las Vegas Hilton). The company says that it will probably partner with a casino developer and build something there, but for now, it just wants to demolish the graffiti-covered buildings.
Dunes
A Strip fixture since the 1950s, the Dunes' claim to fame is that it was first to host that most Vegas of art forms, the topless showgirl review (in 1957). Purchased by former Mirage owner Steve Wynn in 1992, the Dunes at least got a proper Vegas sendoff. In 1993, more than 200,000 spectators watched as the Dunes imploded and its famous neon sign exploded amid a fireworks display that set Wynn back more than a million dollars. Wynn then spent more than a billion dollars putting up the Bellagio in its place.
Sands
This legendary spot made its debut on the Strip in 1952, but it is most famous for hosting the "Summit Meeting" of the Rat Pack (Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Peter Lawford, and Sammy Davis, Jr.) in 1960. No show ticket since has been as hard to come by. Renowned for its entertainment, the Sands helped boost Las Vegas's reputation as a happening town. The hotel was reduced to a 30-foot-high pile of rubble in 1996 to make way for the Venetian, which memorialized the Sands by naming its convention center for it.
Hacienda
Another old-timer that went out with a bang, the Hacienda opened in 1956 and quickly became a Strip favorite. Known for its friendly service and old-style character, it simply couldn't compete with the mega-resorts that sprang up along the Strip in the 1990s. Hundreds of thousands came out to say goodbye to the hotel when it was blown up on New Year's Eve 1997 to make way for Mandalay Bay.
The Old Aladdin
Following the tradition of the Hacienda and the Sands, the Aladdin went up (or down, if you want to be picky) in smoke in 1998. Built in 1963, the Aladdin had major history behind it — Elvis married Priscilla here in 1967. Caught up in financial problems, management finally decided to ditch the old resort and replace it with a new and improved — and more expensive — version. The new Aladdin opened on the site of the old one in August 2000, promptly went bankrupt, and was redone as Planet Hollywood.
Vegas World
More notorious than famous, Vegas World sprang from the imagination of the casino maverick Bob Stupak, a PR master determined to take guests for every dollar he could — he was eventually fined by the casino commission for false advertising. Calling the hotel a money pit would have been kind. As a marketing ploy, Stupak started building a large tower next to the hotel as a tourist attraction, but it went bankrupt and was forced to sell out to Grand Casinos. Cutting its losses, the new owner stuck with the tower — today's Stratosphere hotel — and demolished Vegas World.
Desert Inn
When Mirage Resorts was acquired by MGM Grand in the spring of 2000, Steve Wynn went looking for a new hotel to revamp. He settled on the Desert Inn. The venerable Strip contender had been losing money for a while, but, unlike many of its mega-resort competitors, it had class. With more than 50 years on the Strip, the historic hotel was home to Howard Hughes for most of the '60s. It gained major fame as the main setting for the '70s television show Vega$. On October 23, 2001, the hotel's Augusta Tower was spectacularly imploded to make way for the Wynn Las Vegas luxury resort, which cost an unprecedented $2.7 billion to construct.
Elvis
Okay. He isn't a hotel; but with all due respect to the King, he is a Las Vegas institution that did blow up there toward the end. And, like the Strip hotels that continue to re-create major landmarks and themes, Vegas is awash in Elvis impersonators who copy the legend — and with the same degrees of success. From his marriage to Priscilla in 1967 to his sold-out stints at the Las Vegas Hilton, Elvis did as much to promote the city as any hotel. Elvis may have left the building, but his presence is very much alive in Sin City.
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