| The 1960's in Las Vegas was the era of the Rat | | | | At the end of the decade, Elvis returned to Las |
| Pack. The likes of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, | | | | Vegas & made a big hit with the tourists. Previous |
| Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop | | | | trips had been less successful because his |
| all appeared in Las Vegas hotels and casinos as | | | | audience had not come of age at the time of his |
| headlining acts & helped to shape the image of | | | | first visits. The '69 performance, however, was |
| the city for the entire decade of the 1960's. | | | | different because his base of loyal fans could now |
| In the very first week of the decade, the Sands | | | | legally partake in the pleasures of the city & |
| hosted a "Summit Meeting" in the Copa Room. | | | | came to see him in droves. |
| The meeting was presided over by none other | | | | Broadway musicals made their debut in the city, |
| than Frank Sinatra and the rest of the Rat Pack. | | | | with the introduction of Roger and Hammerstein's |
| The advancement in construction that had | | | | musical "Flower Drum Song" at the Thunderbird |
| marked the 1950's had settled down & no new | | | | Hotel. The show opened and was an instant hit |
| hotels were built until 1966, when the El Rancho | | | | with the tourist crowd & soon many more |
| burned & was replaced by the Aladdin. | | | | musicals made their way to Las Vegas, making it |
| A lot of the attention focused towards Las Vegas | | | | the "Broadway of the West". Hotels such as the |
| in the 1960's was negative. The mob ties of the | | | | Riviera & Caesars Palace all hosted musicals at |
| Rat pack were unmistakable & many people | | | | their establishment, cashing in on the success. In |
| began to associate the city with the mob. In fact, | | | | addition to Broadway shows, production shows |
| 10 of the 11 casinos opened during the 1950's | | | | began appearing in hotels all over las Vegas. The |
| were thought to be funded by mob money. It | | | | Dunes' Casino de Paris is an example of one such |
| wasn't until 1967, when Howard Hughes invested | | | | production show. The show became a lavish |
| over $300 million in hotel properties in Las Vegas | | | | overstatement of everything that Las Vegas |
| did the stigmata of the mob connection to Las | | | | hoped to embody for the visitors to this desert |
| Vegas begin to lift. In 1967, Hughs bought the | | | | wonderland. |
| Desert Inn among other hotels, and it was his | | | | The 60's were a bit of a roller coaster ride for |
| squeaky clean reputation that helped to lessen the | | | | the city of Las Vegas. Starting with a lot of |
| negative connotations of mob ties in the city. | | | | negative attention from mob ties, the city |
| Another change that happened later in the decade | | | | introduced many new innovations to their |
| was that the Circus Circus opened it's doors to | | | | entertainment choices for tourists in the latter |
| the world, heralding the first family oriented | | | | half. Las Vegas continued to evolve in the later |
| attraction in the city. In addition to the world's | | | | half of the 1960's into the city that we know |
| largest permanent circus, the hotel also offered a | | | | today, establishing many traditions that have |
| casino geared towards underage children, with | | | | made the city successful all the way into the next |
| games and attractions that did not actually involve | | | | millennium. |
| gambling. | | | | |