[ScoopLV]

Bugsy is the reason we wax nostalgic for the Mob era. Not because of Tony Spilotro or Lefty Rosenthal. Las Vegas has MUCH to thank Hollywood for. We wouldn't be the destination that we are without Hollywood celebrities (all the way back to Jack Benny) making this place their sinful home away from home.

You could do worse than Bugsy Siegel. The mob era should be represented on Mt. VegasMore. Who would you put up instead of a mobster? Jim Murren? Sheldon Adelson? How about Benny Binion -- he makes a fairly good face for the Mob era, and there were plenty of devious shenanigans happening a Binion's during his time at the helm.

[Willy702]

I don't have a mob figure on it because that would be a tough sell for one as a public statue glorifying someone who had people killed or killed them himself. Second I don't think any single figure really stood out as worth being idolized. The mob as a whole financed the casinos, but none did it out of some sense to make Las Vegas better. Running casinos and skimming money was just what they knew how to do best.

[kimba01]

I agree about the criminal part but since Las Vegas is all about entertainment and all the craziness, I think one of them should be there. Also Sinatra, Hughes, and Elvis.

Oscar G may be a good runner up.

[ScoopLV]

Originally Posted by Willy702

The mob as a whole financed the casinos, but none did it out of some sense to make Las Vegas better. Running casinos and skimming money was just what they knew how to do best.

Just about everyone I know who was here "back in the day" (actually, let's just say EVERYONE I know*) said that Mob-run Las Vegas was heaps better than corporate-run Las Vegas. They might not have had altruistic motives in mind, but their business strategy was better.

The mobsters let some departments lose money, and other departments pick up the slack. So long as the balance sheet was in the black, no problems.


* I know some cooks who were directly affected by the racism of old Las Vegas. They STILL thought mob-run Las Vegas was better than Corporate. And the mobsters themselves were basically color-blind (or at least pretended to be with the employees). There just weren't any black people working front of the house. That wasn't right. But it was still better than the mess of the strip today, according to friends of mine who lived it first-hand.

[lvoc]

I would take all that with a grain of salt. There was a period when Las Vegas had a virtually lock on gaming and could afford to subsidize everything else with the copious gaming revenues.

That is no longer the case though and gaming is now down to less than half the revenue.

And that is what has changed the nature of the beast. That appears to be a good thing. The Indian and other casinos can certainly strip revenue from the Las Vegas play...but they play hell getting the whole experience which now makes Las Vegas go.

If the gangsters had managed to hold control they would pretty much have had to do the same thing or they would have gone down the tubes. The good news is that they would have solved the water problems.

[Buzz123]

You'd have to go way back at least to Helen Stewart, maybe Senator William Clark who didn't live here, but held the town site auction in 1905, and of course, The "Father of Las Vegas", Pop Squires, C.P. Squires | Las Vegas Review-Journal

And then who knows. But nobody from the 50's on to now.

I'd have to consider Rafael Rivera from the Spanish Trail days, the first European to see the valley. "A young scout named Rafael Rivera is the first person of European ancestry to look upon the valley. His discovery of a valley with abundant wild grasses growing and a plentiful water supply reduces the journey by several days. The valley is named Las Vegas, Spanish for "The Meadows." "

John C. Fremont, because he let people know about it. "John C. Fremont arrived in Las Vegas and kept a journal describing two springs he found. These writings were very popular and lured many individuals to the area."

Probably President Herbert Hoover: "Beginning in 1931, the construction of Hoover Dam brings an influx of construction workers which starts a population boom and gives the Valley's economy, which was in the grips of the Great Depression, a needed boost."

[tijlover]

Visionary Steve Wynn for sure. When he proposed building the Mirage, with 4,000 rooms, the skeptics (no shortage of them in this city) predicted failure. How would he be able to fill even a portion of those rooms?

And?

[cre8lite]

i'm surprised no one has mentioned thomas & mack - it was they who actually worked with the mob to build vegas

[lvoc]

Originally Posted by cre8lite

i'm surprised no one has mentioned thomas & mack - it was they who actually worked with the mob to build vegas

Or Del Webb who was Bugsey's contractor on the Flamingo. Supposedly the recipient of the "Don't worry we only kill each other" comment by Bugsey.

[localinsight]

How about the State Parks? How long have they been here? NV keeps them in wonderful shape from the quick drives I have taken. I don't know who Charles Lamb was but the park is magnificent