Vegas Magazine - Niche Media - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/61759
photography courtesy of unlv special collections F ront Runners opening hand WITH THE FIRST ROLL OF THE DICE AT EL RANCHO VEGAS ON APRIL 3, 1941, THE LAS VEGAS STRIP WAS BORN. by shaké ajamian W 14 vegasmagazine.com hat we now know as the Las Vegas Strip was once a stretch of road that extended as far as the eye could see. It took the smarts of one man, Thomas Hull, to change that forever. He plopped his El Rancho Vegas hotel right off Highway 91 to lure in weary travelers on their way to Los Angeles. With an address at 2500 Las Vegas Blvd. S. (opposite the site of the recently shuttered Sahara), El Rancho opened its doors on April 3, 1941, kicking off the most famous casino stretch in the country with 70 slot machines, two blackjack tables, a roulette wheel, and a lone craps table. Now drivers could duck inside to gamble, rest, dine, and be entertained before finishing their trek west. The El Rancho must have seemed like a mirage in the desert, with a sparkling pool and a waterfall tumbling over rock that could be seen from the road. The hotel stood proudly with a neon-lighted windmill on top, beckoning all to come in for some Vegas-style fun. Styled after a ranch (complete with horse stables), the modest 63-room hot spot boasted badmin- ton courts, an outdoor barbecue grill, and even a gas station. Its Opera House Showroom was home to such famous acts as Jane Russell, Zsa Zsa Gabor, and Lena Horne; Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward tied the knot there in 1958. The property changed hands many times, eventually growing to 220 rooms. Then, on June 17, 1960, as Betty Grable and her husband, trumpeter/bandleader Harry James, performed on stage, a fire started in a nearby dressing room, burning the entire building to the ground. Despite promises and intentions of starting anew, the glory days of this Las Vegas landmark had come to an end. But the Vegas Strip was just beginning. V