Las Vegas Magnets
Description: The Pioneer Club occupied a building that was built in 1918 and originally served as a restaurant. The Pioneer Club Casino and Cocktail lounge opened in April 1942 on the corner of 1st Street and Fremont Street. 'Vegas Vic' was added to the exterior of the building in 1951, changing the exterior of The Pioneer club forever. Although the Pioneer Club ceased operations as a casino in 1995, Vegas Vic (The 40 ft neon cowboy) and the Pioneer Club signage live on as a true Las Vegas landmarks above what is now a large souvenir store.
Description: Riviera (colloquially, "the Riv") was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada, which operated from April 1955 to May 2015. The casino was first proposed by Detroit mobster William Bischoff as the Casa Blanca, and received a gaming license in 1952. Bischoff later withdrew from the project, which was taken over by Miami businessman Samuel Cohen. By March 1955, Cohen, identified as a member of Miami's S & G gambling syndicate, was no longer part of the investment group, though rumors persisted that he secretly maintained an involvement. Marx Brothers Harpo and Gummo held minority interests at the opening.
Description: The Dunes Hotel was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, that operated from May 23, 1955 to January 26, 1993. Designed by architects John Replogle, Robert Dorr Jr., Milton Schwartz and Maxwell Starkman, it was the tenth resort to open on the Strip. Bellagio now stands on the former grounds. In the early 1950s, Al Gottesman, the retired owner of a movie theater chain who was living in Miami, received a request from two developers for a $58,000 loan that would be used to purchase desert property for a Las Vegas hotel. Gottesman agreed to provide funding in exchange for a small portion of the hotel's profits. Gottesman provided an additional $16,000 to hire an architect for the new project.
Description: Steve Wynn, purchased the future land of the Mirage in 1986. A hotel-casino, the Castaways, occupied a portion of the property and was demolished to make way for the Mirage. The resort opened on November 22, 1989, after two years of construction. It was the world's most expensive resort, completed at a cost of $630 million. It was also among the world's largest hotels. The Mirage was the first megaresort to open on the Las Vegas Strip, and its success prompted a building boom in the 1990s for other large resorts along the Strip. The Mirage closed on July 17, 2024, and is expected to reopen under its new name in late 2027.
Description: The $5 million Hotel Sahara opened on October 7, 1952, with an African Sahara theme. Attendees to the grand opening included Ray Bolger and Gus Greenbaum. It was the sixth resort to open on the Las Vegas Strip. Max Maltzman was the architect, and Ragnar Qvale was the interior designer. The Sahara utilized a modern and simple design. The North African desert theme was conveyed only minimally in the Sahara's architecture. Outside, the only depiction of the theme consisted of fake camels and Arabian people. The interior included statues of Arab guards.
