VEGASWOOD

The Entertainment Capital of the World

Written by Don Logay

Las Vegas is a cultural phenomenon and a city like no other. It began pretty much by accident – maybe even a fluke – when early explorer, John Charles Fremont, who was charting the Wild West for the U.S. Government in the mid-1800’s camped one night by a spring the natives called “Las Vegas.”

He noted it on his map of the area and in the years that followed, pioneering settlers heading West purchased these government maps and, in turn, always included “Las Vegas” as a place to stop and camp when going through this desolate region.

Today and about 180-years later, millions of tourists from all over the world continue to seek out Fremont’s famous “watering hole” for fun, relaxation and entertainment.

Las Vegas is a prime example of the classic bandwagon effect, whereby “vast numbers of individuals continue to increase exponentially, behaving in a certain way just because other individuals are doing that same certain something,” resulting in soaring popularity and yes – a cultural phenomenon.

“What Happens Here, Stays Here” The opening of Bugsy Siegal’s fabulous Flamingo Hotel and Casino in late 1946 was an acknowledged “turning point” that ushered in today’s 4.2 miles of spectacular properties offering the world’s absolute best in lavish

accommodations surrounded by limitless 24- hour gambling, renown five-star restaurants and famous big-name entertainment.

For decades however, Vegas vacillated with uncertainty between the place to go for adult “fun, fun, fun” and as a welcoming place for “family entertainment” (yawn).

That lackluster imagery came to a resounding end in 2003, when the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) teamed up with the local brand innovation agency of R&R Partners to highlight Las Vegas as “the” place to stay and play... without reservation, repercussion and/or remorse.

The result was a somewhat catchy tag line – “What Happens Here, Stays Here” – that helped to position Vegas as the undisputed place for adult entertainment and also served to underscore the town’s secondary not-sosecret identity as “Sin City.”

In short order, this slogan became a cultural phenomenon as well, morphing into the iconic legacy phrase we all know and love – “What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas!”

Oops – Maybe not Such a unique venue also attracted the storytellers of the world. More than 80-years ago, Hollywood filmmakers discovered Vegas as a city like no other, with unparalleled potential to weave amazing tales in a neon wonderland that simply could not be told elsewhere.

Storylines exposed Vegas to the world with engaging voyeurism that ranged from the perils of dealing with the mob, the lure of big monetary windfalls and incredibly tense casino heist capers to poignant stories of finding love, or dealing with hilarious quickie marriages and the raucous adventures of insane days and wild nights on the town –starring the biggest superstar names of the day.

Some of the earliest major motion pictures filmed in Las Vegas were “Las Vegas Nights,” a 1941 comedy that was Frank Sinatra’s movie debut (singing with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra) and “Heldorado,” a 1946 musical Western featuring Sheriff Roy Rogers fighting organized crime and money laundering during the city’s Heldorado Days celebrations.

Since that time, some of the biggest and most iconic movies of all time have been filmed in Las Vegas or it was featured predominantly in telling the tale.

Vegas-Centric Blockbusters Las Vegas films we all know and love include the original “Oceans 11” (1960) with the famed Rat Pack seen at the Rivera, Sands, Desert Inn, Sahara and Flamingo Casinos, “Viva Las Vegas” (1964) starring Elvis and Ann Margaret in a musical love romp, “Diamonds are Forever” (1971) with Sean Connery as 007 James Bond all around town, “The Godfather” (1972) with Michael Corleone at the Tropicana, “History of the World-Part 1” (1981) a Mel Brooks comedy featuring Caesars Palace, “Starman” (1984) romance drama featuring alien Jeff Bridges and Karen Allen winning big money in Vegas, ”Rocky IV” (1985) with Sylvester Stallone slugging it out at the MGM Grand, “Rain Man” (1988) with Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman at Caesars Palace, and “Honeymoon in Vegas” (1992) pairing James Caan, Nicolas Cage and Sarah Jessica Parker at Bally’s along with skydiving flying Elvis impersonators.

More all-time greatest hits include the iconic “Casino” (1995) a gritty tale filmed at the Riviera, Landmark and famous Atomic Liquors, “Leaving Las Vegas” (1995) an alcoholdrenched tale filmed on the Strip and at the Excalibur, “Vegas Vacation” (1997) featuring the Griswold family’s misadventures all around town, “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery” (1997) with Mike Myers fighting evil at the Stardust, “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”

(1998) filmed at the Stardust and Riviera, “3,000 Miles to Graceland” (2001) an off-beat casino heist caper and a number of big name remakes that include “Ocean’s Eleven” (2001), “Ocean’s Twelve” (2004) and “Ocean’s Thirteen” (2007) and the “Jason Bourne” (2016) chase on the Vegas Strip along with a few more “Rocky” sequels and the mega-hit “The Hangover” series I (2009), II (2011) and III (2013).

Added to this list of notables, is the oddlycaptivating “Army of the Dead” (2021) with legions of zombies that literally destroy Las Vegas.

Movies, Movies, Movies The IMDb (Internet Movie Database) – the world’s most popular and authoritative source for movie, TV and celebrity content (containing over 10 million titles) – states there are thousands of movies, TV Shows, Events and Award Shows with locations matching Las Vegas. Yes thousands... 5,327 to be exact.

In addition, there are many other locations throughout Nevada where major movies, TV shows and various productions have been filmed and Las Vegas was featured.

Reno boasts over 400 titles that include “The Misfits” (1961) with Marilyn Monroe and Clark Gable, “Sister Act” (1992) with Whoopi G. in a Reno Nightclub and “Austin Powers in Goldmember” (2002) to name but a few.

Lake Tahoe has over 200 titles that include “The Godfather: Part II” (1974) with Al Pacino and Robert De Niro at the Thunderbird Lodge, “The Body Guard” (1992) with Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston and most recently, today’s new “Top Gun: Maverick” (2022) with Tom Cruise, again to name but a few.

All-in-all, and considering other sites like Sparks, Carson City and the surrounding photogenic deserts... there are an astounding 7,000- pus titles with locations in Nevada – and that number continues to grow daily.

“Las Vegas film permitting includes the City of Las Vegas, Henderson and all of Clark County,” notes Eric Preiss, Director of the Nevada Film Office. “Permits issued now typically exceed 500 a year for all types of filming.”

Phenomenon Ad Infinitum “While our destination is very popular with all types of content creators,” notes Preiss, he also observes another trend that is furthering the phenomenon of Las Vegas.

Today, there is a growing number of Studio Heads rethinking Hollywood as a home base and that are considering moving their production facilities to other more welcoming cities and states – such as Atlanta, Georgia... Austin, Texas... and yes, Las Vegas, Nevada.

A typical sentiment is that of Roland Cañamar, Founder and Studio Chief of Silver Dream Factory Studios – one of the leading boutique facilities in the Los Angeles area. “Running a motion picture studio requires a lot of overhead and today, it’s a lot more difficult in California,” he notes. “Regulations and high taxes have chased out most feature films to more businessfriendly states.”

“Out-of-state incentives have really made the difference in the last 10-years in courting feature films to relocate and to follow the money,” he adds, “and, for us...like many... what better

place to go than the famous 24-hour town of Las Vegas? It is certainly on our radar.”

The Nevada Film Commission notes a number of new Studio production facilities that are now in Las Vegas. The first was Caesars Entertainment Studios, a 48,000 square foot full-scale production location for motion picture, TV and e-Sports that opened in 2017 on 5-acres just behind Bally’s on the Strip.

“Caesars Studio is booked solid with TV Shows, like ‘Battle Bots’ that airs on Discovery Channel and has been home to shows like ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,’ and Gordon Ramsey’s ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ for multiple seasons as well as other game shows, commercials and movie productions,” notes Eric Preiss.

Other major Las Vegas facilities include Worre Studios, that opened in 2021, with a state-ofthe-art 25,000 square foot sound stage featuring a 360-degree 4k LED screen that allows hosts and presenters to interact with up to 250,000 attendees on video in real-time.

Another brand new cutting-edge production facility in Las Vegas is the $7 million 43,000 square foot Vü Studio utilizing expansive stateof-the-art “green screen” technologies as realtime virtual backgrounds for greater flexibility in filming.

“Logistically,” states Jason Soto, Vice President of Vü Studios, “it’s a lot easier to re-create a scene in our studio with a virtual background and physical props... than it is to film a scene on location, considering the multiple variables that could interfere with filming.”

“Look West, Young Man” There was a popular catch-phrase of the 19th Century that encouraged pioneering individuals to “Go West, Young Man” for an exciting future.

Today, regarding Las Vegas and its burgeoning film industry – for those pioneering writers, directors, producers and studio heads considering relocating – that phrase might better encourage them to first, head North on Valley View Blvd. to the Springs Preserve... and

to then stand at the spot where John Charles Fremont found the original Springs that put Las Vegas “on the map.”

They should then “Look West, Young Man” to the towering 11,916 foot-high Mount Charleston off in the distance, where – with a little imagination and as the sun sets behind and the lights of Las Vegas come to life – they just may foresee another “American landmark” in the making.

Off in the distance, one can envision a row of nine 45-foot high white capital letters poised high on the mountainside that proclaim another emerging cultural phenomenon of “today’s” Entertainment Capital of the World...

V-E-G-A-S-W-O-O-D.