The People Who Built Las Vegas
The founders, headliners and operators behind the Strip. Each profile covers what they did, when, and which properties still carry their fingerprints.
24 pages in this section.
1940s
1960s
1990s-2000s
1970s-2000s
1956-1976
1950s-1980s
- Benny Binioncasino-developerTexas gambler who opened the Horseshoe Club on Fremont Street in 1951, launched the World Series of Poker in 1970 and helped bring the NFR t
- Dean MartinperformerCrooner and Rat Pack member who headlined the Sands, the Riviera and the MGM Grand for four decades; a street west of the Strip bears his na
- Frank SinatraperformerSinger and Rat Pack leader whose Sands shows, from 1953, made him the Strip's biggest draw; he played Las Vegas for more than four decades.
- LiberaceperformerPianist and showman who debuted at the Last Frontier in 1944, became 'Mr. Showmanship' on the Strip, and made Las Vegas his legal home.
- Moe Dalitzcasino-developerFormer Cleveland bootlegger who ran the Desert Inn, helped build Sunrise Hospital and the Las Vegas Country Club, and became one of the city
- Sammy Davis Jr.performerSinger, dancer and Rat Pack member who headlined Las Vegas for four decades while facing the city's segregation, which he helped break down.