How were the rooms in Las Vegas in the 1960s

Everyone likes to talk about the glory days of Las Vegas in the 1960s. You know the days when the casinos were owned by the mob, and Sammy, Dean and Frank were at the casinos.

I wonder if the visitors to Las Vegas were able to go into a time machine and come out in the early 1960s and checked into a room, what would they think of the whole thing. I wonder what the rooms were like at the casino hotels like the Desert Inn, The Rivera, The Dunes, and The Sands. How were the common areas and the casinos?

Are the third tier places like Circus Circus, The Tropicana, and other cheaper places on the strip really nicer today than any hotel was in the glory days of Las Vegas in the 1960s? Any memories?

How were the rooms in Las Vegas in the 1960s

Before my time I would suppose that the high rollers were quite plush indeed with big rooms and fine brand new furnishings.

A basic hotel room has not changed much since then except perhaps it is bigger. like now a washroom and bed, a dresser and a place to hang your stuff. A alarm clock maybe but not a clock radio and probably no TV in the average room.

The casino was mostly live table games with a few slot machines. back then. Cheaters were dealt with serverly.

Of course the fix was in and if you were well liked by the management there was no need to spend a lonely night as.company would come your way compliments of the management. My how times have changed.

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Where are these rooms now, mostly in the garden or older tower rooms. It is something that a lot of folks don’t think about but If you look at the old photos, from say the 40’s, 50’s and even into the 60’s, a lot of the famous Las Vegas hotels looked a lot like a motel to our modern eyes. This is pretty much what they were. Folks would drive in from say LA and that worked back then. Later air travel was promoted, see the display at McCarran, and that became the way to arrive. Later, space being limited, the towers were added and the rest is history.

Take a look at th El Cortez which has not changed that much since the old days.

So when you look at the “garden rooms”, many times you are seeing the original hotel, not the overshadowing towers. Naturally, dating from so long ago, if they are not kept up, they can get a little funky to say the least.

How were the rooms in Las Vegas in the 1960s

Check out the original ';Ocean%26#39;s 11'; starring the Rat Pack. Danny Ocean%26#39;s room looked pretty basic-I don%26#39;t think they even had TVs in them back then. Look at them now-plasmas everywhere!

My first trip to Vegas was in the late seventies, around 1977 or 1978. I flew to LA, drove a Datsun B210 to Vegas and stayed at the Landmark, a Howard Hughes Casino/Hotel located just off Convention Drive for two nights. The Landmark was kind of like a predecesor (sp?) to the Stratsophere, not as tall but with a revolving restaurant at the top. I had a';garden'; room in the back, pretty much Motel6 quality. Caesars Palace seemed to be one of the newest casinos on the strip, like the Wynn is now. I ventured down to Fremont St. one night and found table minimums of 10-25 cents, much lower than the Strip%26#39;s $2 minimums. Binion%26#39;s Horseshoe had sawdust on the floor. I

Bring back the saw dust.

To be honest, who cares what they were like 40+ years ago. What will conversationists next topic be:

Is the coffee stronger in Nevada or Arkansas?

In 1914 the soldiers in WW1 played a primitive version of craps, was this taken up by Vegas casinos and if so why?

Bats in your Las Vegas hotel wardrobe...truth or myth?

Actually CVrom, I think its a nice topic. Refreshing from all the Where to stay .... (guilty as charged your Honour!) questions.

I often think about that. Someone recommended a good book on Vegas here a few days ago too. (when the mob ruled or something)

Even where I am from (seaside town) I think about how it would have been 100 years ago, without cars and people ';perambulating'; along the seafront, when people%26#39;s gardens would ahve reached right to the seafront.

The whole dynamic in Vegas must have been so different. Now most everyone can get to Vegas (even us Europeans and Antipodeans). The whole ';Sin City'; thing would have been such a ';shick horror'; and so exciting for people then, i reckon.

Big surprise, I agree with cvrom. Conversationist is really scraping the bottom of the barrel with this one.

%26#39;How were the common areas and the casinos%26#39;?

Answer - I dont know, I wasnt born.

%26#39;Any memories%26#39;?

Answer - None what-so-ever, I wasnt born.

I think I may be guilty of bringing this on the forum. I recently posted about a book I read called when the mob ran Vegas.

Apologies!!!

Nick

Was it not only yesterday you started a whole discussion about people who supply answers like you just did??

mpo

Oh troll, please crawl under your bridge and stay there.......

I hope it won%26#39;t take long for TA to boot you conversationist..