At the Sands: The Casino That Shaped Classic Las Vegas, Brought the Rat Pack Together, and Went Out With a Bang (David Schwartz) - a podcast by Rob Mellon

The lights are coming down. Frank, Dean, and Sammy are about to take the stage. This is the moment we remember, when Las Vegas became classic. And it was at the Sands. Built in 1952 over the ashes of Hollywood Reporter publisher Billy Wilkerson’s last chance in Las Vegas, the Sands was a collective effort. Underworld figures like Meyer Lansky, Doc Stacher, and Frank Costello provided the cash. Beloved Texas gambler Jake Freedman was the public face. Manhattan nightclub king Jack Entratter kept the Copa Room filled and made the party happen, every night.  No matter how well your casino is run, you need a good hook to get the gamblers through the door. Casino owners were learning that entertainment was a pretty fair hook.  The Copa was the hottest ticket in America and, for performers, one of the most coveted stages in the nation. Headlining at the Sands–or even opening there–meant that you had made it.  For gamblers, the Sands was paradise.  Behind the scenes, Davis and Sinatra resisted the prevailing segregationist mindset of Las Vegas and helped to overturn Jim Crow on the Strip.  After Howard Hughes bought the Sands in 1967 (with Frank Sinatra explosively departing soon after) the Sands lost some of its allure, but the casino soldiered on.  In the end, the Sands went out with a bang–an implosion that brought down its hotel tower.  It had a wild 44 year run.  The Sands may be gone, but it did not fade away.

HOST:  Rob Mellon

FEATURED BREW:  Excited State Unfiltered Pilsner, Able Baker Brewing Company, Las Vegas, Nevada

BOOK:  At the Sands: The Casino That Shaped Classic Las Vegas, Brought the Rat Pack Together, and Went Out With a Bang
https://www.amazon.com/At-Sands-Classic-Brought-Together/dp/0990001660/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1625631204&sr=1-1

MUSIC:  Bones Fork
https://bonesfork.com/

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