The Flamingo Opens (1946)

1946

Opened: December 26, 1946 (casino); hotel rooms opened March 1, 1947
Location: Highway 91, today 3555 Las Vegas Blvd. South
Originator: William R. "Billy" Wilkerson, Hollywood Reporter publisher and owner of Ciro's nightclub
Key people: Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel, Meyer Lansky, Gus Greenbaum, Moe Sedway, Harry Rothberg
Land: A thirty-three acre parcel bought by Wilkerson in 1945; construction began November 1945
Budget: Estimated at $1.2 million; costs reached about $4-5 million
Opening acts: Jimmy Durante, the Xavier Cugat orchestra, Rose Marie and dancer Tommy Wonder
Siegel's death: Shot at Virginia Hill's Beverly Hills home on June 20, 1947
Later owners: Kirk Kerkorian bought it for $13 million in 1967; Hilton bought it from him four years later
Where to see it today: Flamingo Las Vegas and its free Wildlife Habitat; restored Flamingo signs in the Neon Museum's Boneyard

About

The Flamingo was Billy Wilkerson's idea. The owner of Ciro's on the Sunset Strip bought a thirty-three acre parcel on Highway 91 in 1945 and planned a lavish resort with a casino, showroom, pool and air-conditioning throughout, larger than the El Rancho and Last Frontier. Construction began in November 1945 on an estimated $1.2 million budget. When Wilkerson ran short of money, he took a $1 million investment from New York's Harry Rothberg, and Rothberg's associates Meyer Lansky, Gus Greenbaum, Moe Sedway and Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel became silent partners.

Siegel soon took over. With Lansky's blessing he forced Wilkerson out of creative control, made himself president of the Nevada Projects Corporation in June 1946, and pushed the project through postwar shortages of building materials. Costs soared. The Mob Museum notes that Siegel opened the casino on December 26, 1946, before the hotel rooms were finished, with a three-night grand opening featuring Jimmy Durante and the Xavier Cugat orchestra.

The opening is often described as a flop. The Mob Museum's account, by historian Larry Gragg, says big crowds came all three nights, with columnist Walter Winchell reporting 28,000 visitors, but that the casino lost heavily and local players drifted back to the more casual downtown clubs. Siegel closed the casino on February 6, 1947, and reopened on March 1 with the hotel finished. Business slowly improved, but his backers were impatient. On June 20, 1947, Siegel was shot dead at his girlfriend Virginia Hill's home in Beverly Hills.

Within minutes, Sedway, Greenbaum and Morris Rosen took charge of the Flamingo. Greenbaum's management turned a profit of $4 million in his first year. The Flamingo became the model for the 1950s Strip: luxury rooms, big-name headliners and a full range of gambling. It changed hands repeatedly; two later owners, Morris Lansburgh and Sam Cohen, were eventually convicted on charges related to skimming its casino proceeds, and in 1967 Kirk Kerkorian bought it for $13 million. Hilton bought it from him four years later. It still operates today as Flamingo Las Vegas.

What to expect

Flamingo Las Vegas, at 3555 Las Vegas Blvd. South, still operates under Caesars Entertainment. Its Flamingo Wildlife Habitat is a free, four-acre garden with Chilean flamingos, exotic waterfowl, brown pelicans, koi and turtles; no ticket is needed, and Caesars lists a daily Keeper Talk at 10 a.m.

At The Neon Museum's Neon Boneyard, at 770 Las Vegas Blvd. North, a 1976 Flamingo roadside pylon sign and two feather plumes were restored and relit in May 2024 as a single installation 20 feet tall and 30 feet wide.

Before and after

Atomic Tourism in the 1950s

Good to know

The Flamingo's opening-night story is disputed. The Online Nevada Encyclopedia describes a debut spoiled by a rainstorm that grounded Hollywood guests, while The Mob Museum says Las Vegas had no thunderstorm, only 0.12 inches of rain, and the casino was packed.
Wilkerson named the resort after the pink flamingos he had seen on a trip to Florida, according to the Online Nevada Encyclopedia.
During a 1993 renovation, the Flamingo removed Bugsy Siegel's private suite in the original hotel beside the pool.
The Flamingo's opening room count is given as 105 by the Online Nevada Encyclopedia and 100 by The Mob Museum.
Wilkerson planned no windows or clocks in the casino, and a floor plan that made people walk through the casino to reach the hotel.

Questions about The Flamingo Opens (1946)

Did Bugsy Siegel build the Flamingo?

Not alone. The Flamingo was conceived by Billy Wilkerson, publisher of the Hollywood Reporter, who bought the land in 1945 and began construction. When he ran out of money, organized-crime investors bought in, and Bugsy Siegel took control of the project in 1946 and saw it through to completion. Siegel is remembered as the Flamingo's builder, but the idea was Wilkerson's.

When did the Flamingo open?

The casino opened on December 26, 1946, with a three-night celebration. The hotel rooms were not finished, so Siegel closed the property on February 6, 1947, and reopened it on March 1, 1947, with the hotel complete. The Flamingo has operated on the Strip, under a series of owners, ever since.

Was the Flamingo's opening really a flop?

Accounts differ. Older histories, and the 1991 film Bugsy, describe an empty casino and a storm. Historian Larry Gragg, writing for The Mob Museum, says large crowds came all three opening nights and Las Vegas had only light rain. Both agree the casino lost money in its first weeks and struggled until the hotel opened.

What happened to Bugsy Siegel?

Siegel was shot dead on June 20, 1947, while sitting in the Beverly Hills, California, home of his girlfriend Virginia Hill. The Online Nevada Encyclopedia says his organized-crime backers, impatient over the Flamingo's costs, had agreed to have him killed. Within minutes, his associates Moe Sedway, Gus Greenbaum and Morris Rosen took over the Flamingo.

Can you visit the original Flamingo?

The resort still operates as Flamingo Las Vegas, but it has been rebuilt and expanded many times, and its original buildings, including Siegel's poolside suite, are gone. Visitors can walk the free Flamingo Wildlife Habitat, and the Neon Museum displays restored Flamingo signs relit in 2024.