What happens in Vegas ... well, you understand the rest. But here are 24 truths about Sin City you likely have not heard.
1. Most of Vegas' iconic hotels aren't technically situated in the city of Las Vegas. A good part of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the renowned "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are in fact located in an unincorporated area called Paradise, Nevada.
2. One destination that is within Las Vegas city limits: Vegas Vic, the large neon cowboy that commands downtown's well known Fremont Street. It's the biggest mechanical neon check in the world.
3. More than 41 million visitors cycle through Sin City each year ...
4. ... So it's a great thing the town boasts 14 of the world's 20 greatest hotels.
5. There's so much realty for travelers to make the most of, it would take a person 288 years to invest a night in every hotel space in the city.
6. There's a secret city underneath the city. Miles of tunnels-- originally constructed to secure the desert town from flash floods-- house hundreds of homeless citizens.
7. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Casino got its name from founder-- and famous mobster-- Bugsy Siegel's sweetheart. Actress Virginia Hill went by the label "The Flamingo" due to the fact that of her red hair and long, thin legs.
In the mid-20th century, Las Vegas had its own set of inequitable Jim Crow laws, which-- with the exception of low-wage service jobs-- kept African Americans out of the growing city's hotels and casinos. In 1952, acting legend Sammy Davis Jr. took a dip in the whites-only swimming pool at the New Frontier Hotel & Gambling Establishment.
In May 1955, the Moulin Rouge made history when it became the city's first interracial casino. Famous fighter Joe Louis, a part owner, stated, "This isn't the opening of a Las Vegas hotel.
10. In the 1950s and early 1960s, Las Vegas was known for putting on a various kind of program. At the Nevada Test Website, just 65 miles northwest of the city, the U.S. Department of Energy would evaluate nuclear devices. Las Vegas' Chamber of Commerce saw a moneymaking opportunity, and decided to distribute calendars marketing detonation times and option watching locations.
Famous recluse Howard Hughes checked into the strip's Desert Inn on Thanksgiving Day 1966, leasing the whole leading 2 floorings. When he overstayed his 10-day appointment, he was asked to leave.
FedEx creator Frederick W. Smith conserved the shipment business with a journey to Vegas. In 1974-- 3 years after he produced the business-- the Yale graduate took the venture's last $5,000 and turned it into $32,000 with a weekend of blackjack.
13. Do not disturb: Vegas has more unlisted phone numbers than any other city in the United States.
Nevada law states that video slot machines must pay back a minimum of 75 percent of the loan transferred on average. (Though it's worth keeping in mind that in New Jersey, home to gambling capital Atlantic City, it's 83 percent.).
15. It takes approximately 10 minutes to capture a marriage license at the bureau in downtown Las Vegas, which is open every day from 8 a.m. until midnight. Not surprising that some 10,000 couples wed in the city every month.
More than 60,000 pounds of the shellfish are consumed in the city each day. That's greater than the rest of the nation-- integrated.
17. The half-scale model a fantastic read of the Eiffel Tower, located outside Paris Las Vegas, was initially prepared to be full-size, but due to the close distance of the airport-- simply three miles-- it needed to be diminished down. In contrast, the Luxor Las Vegas' Sphinx is really larger than the initial Terrific Sphinx of Giza.
18. At 50 loads, the bronze lion outside the MGM Grand Hotel is believed to be the biggest bronze sculpture in the western hemisphere.
19. The distinct gold color of the windows at the Mirage Hotel originates from actual gold dust.
20. There are 3933 guest rooms at Bellagio Las Vegas-- more than the variety of citizens in the city of Bellagio, Italy.
21. Not into casinos? The city also includes a heavy devices playground where building enthusiasts can drive around bulldozers for fun.
22. Prior to his death in 2009, Michael Jackson was checking out doing a Vegas residency. He planned to market it with a 50-foot robot-likeness of himself that would stroll the Nevada desert.
23. At Vegas restaurant Cardiac arrest Grill, waitresses dress in nurses clothes and customers can order an 8000-calorie quadruple bypass hamburger with a side of flatliner french fries. (Fried in pure lard!) Sadly, in 2013, one of the spot's regular clients died ... from an apparent cardiovascular disease.
24. From external area, the Las Vegas Strip appears as the brightest area on Earth. Who cares if it's not really in Las Vegas?
Most of Vegas' renowned hotels aren't technically located in the city of Las Vegas. A good part of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the well known "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are actually situated in an unincorporated area called Paradise, Nevada.
One attraction that is within Las Vegas city limitations: Vegas Vic, the large neon cowboy that presides over downtown's famed Fremont Street. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Gambling establishment got its name from founder-- and famous mobster-- Bugsy Siegel's sweetheart. In the mid-20th century, Las Vegas possessed its own set of inequitable Jim Crow laws, which-- with the exception of low-wage service jobs-- kept African Americans out of the growing city's hotels and casinos.