What takes place in Vegas ... well, you know the rest. Here are 24 facts about Sin City you likely haven't heard.
1. Most of Vegas' renowned hotels aren't technically situated in the city of Las Vegas. A good portion of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the famous "Invite to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are actually located in an unincorporated area called Paradise, Nevada.
2. One destination that is within Las Vegas city limitations: Vegas Vic, the extra-large neon cowboy that presides over 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 an excellent thing the town boasts 14 of the world's 20 biggest hotels.
5. There's so much realty for travelers to benefit from, it would take a person 288 years to spend a night in every hotel room in the city.
6. There's a secret city beneath the city. Miles of tunnels-- initially constructed to protect the desert town from flash floods-- house hundreds of homeless citizens.
7. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Gambling establishment got its name from creator-- and legendary mobster-- Bugsy Siegel's girlfriend. Actress Virginia Hill passed the nickname "The Flamingo" because of her red hair and long, thin legs.
In the mid-20th century, Las Vegas possessed its own set of prejudiced Jim Crow laws, which-- with the exception of low-wage service tasks-- kept African Americans out of the growing city's hotels and gambling establishments. 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 ended up being the city's very first interracial casino. Legendary boxer Joe Louis, a part owner, declared, "This isn't the opening of a Las Vegas hotel.
10. In the 1950s and early 1960s, Las Vegas was known for placing 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 test nuclear devices. Las Vegas' Chamber of Commerce saw a moneymaking opportunity, and decided to disperse calendars promoting detonation times and option watching locations.
11. Legendary recluse Howard Hughes checked out the strip's Desert Inn on Thanksgiving Day 1966, renting the entire top two floors. He was asked to leave when he overstayed his 10-day booking. Rather, he began settlements to purchase the 715-room area. His purchase was total 3 months later on.
FedEx founder 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 endeavor's last $5,000 and turned it into $32,000 with a weekend of blackjack.
13. Do not interrupt: Vegas has more unlisted contact number than other city in the United States.
Nevada law states that video slot machines must pay back a minimum of 75 percent of the money deposited on average. (Though it's worth noting that in New Jersey, home to gambling mecca Atlantic City, it's 83 percent.).
15. It takes roughly 10 minutes to nab a marriage license at the bureau in downtown Las Vegas, which is open every day from 8 a.m. until midnight. No wonder some 10,000 couples wed in the city each month.
16. Let them eat ... shrimp cocktails? More than 60,000 pounds of the shellfish are consumed in the city each day. That's higher than the rest of the nation-- integrated.
17. The half-scale design of the Eiffel Tower, situated outside Paris Las Vegas, was originally planned to this company be full-size, but due to the close proximity of the airport-- just three miles-- it needed to be shrunk down. In contrast, the Luxor Las Vegas' Sphinx is actually larger than the initial Excellent Sphinx of Giza.
18. At 50 heaps, the bronze lion outside the MGM Grand Hotel is thought to be the biggest bronze sculpture in the western hemisphere.
19. The distinct gold color of the windows at the Mirage Hotel originates from real gold dust.
20. There are 3933 guest spaces at Bellagio Las Vegas-- more than the variety of citizens in the city of Bellagio, Italy.
21. Not into casinos? The city also features a heavy equipment playground where construction enthusiasts can drive around bulldozers for fun.
22. Before his death in 2009, Michael Jackson was looking into doing a Vegas residency. He planned to advertise it with a 50-foot robot-likeness of himself that would roam the Nevada desert.
23. At Vegas restaurant Cardiovascular disease Grill, waitresses gown in nurses clothes and clients can buy an 8000-calorie quadruple bypass hamburger with a side of flatliner french fries. (Fried in pure lard!) Regrettably, in 2013, among the area's regular patrons died ... from an apparent cardiovascular disease.
24. From outer area, the Las Vegas Strip looks like the brightest spot on Earth. Who cares if it's not in fact in Las Vegas?
Most of Vegas' iconic hotels aren't technically situated in the city of Las Vegas. A great portion of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the famous "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are really located in an unincorporated municipality called Paradise, Nevada.
One tourist attraction that is within Las Vegas city limits: Vegas Vic, the extra-large neon cowboy that administers over downtown's famed Fremont Street. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Gambling establishment got its name from founder-- and legendary 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 gambling establishments.