the other day I was invited to a bachelorette party Joan uh and it wasn't one of those like simple one-day parties no no this was going to be an allout wild expensive Bachelorette weekend in the city of sin Las Vegas and you know I knew exactly what was going to happen Okay the shots Thunder from Down Under $300 dinners No Sleep bus no sleep another but you know and I get it like you're getting married but why why why do we have to go to this expensive city in the middle of the desert to celebrate you getting married don't get me wrong I love Vegas but it's kind of surprising when you think about it that it's still around I mean real talk Vegas has almost been cancelled over and over and over again there was the mob the recession Co inflation but Vegas always seems to find a way to survive right and I had to like get to the bottom of why so join me on this journey as we discuss the dark history of Las [Music] Vegas hi friends I hope you're having a wonderful day today my name is Bailey seran and I'd like to welcome you to my podcast dark history Here We Believe history does not have to be boring it might be TR Chic sometimes it's happy but either way it's our dark history now before we get into it don't forget to like And subscribe because I'm always posting content for you and also let me know what you think down in the comment section below cuz I read comments at the end did you know that but now let's get into today's story huh so I know when we think about Vegas our minds I don't know about you but my mind goes to like drunken bachelorette parties M strippers alcohol Gamblin but for a very long time Vegas was like this weird empty little town in the desert back in the early 1900s America was very religious and things like gambling and drinking were illegal in most of the country and look we all know just because the government says something is illegal that that doesn't mean people just like stick to it we the people tend to just do things illegally in private but in Vegas doing something illegal was celebrated in 1931 gambling officially became legal in Las Vegas you see the state was experiencing like hard financial times because of the Great Depression right A lot of people were so Nevada was like hey let's let people gamble legalizing gambling was also like a huge deal because no other state in the country would even think to do this so bold and brave people were just like itching to get to the casino and I think this is kind of where like Vegas found their identity because it's like when things in society were frowned upon Vegas was like you know what let's lean into it so first was gambling and then next was like divorce for example so if you needed a divorce at this time first of all it was expensive and honestly nearly impossible in most places but in Vegas they were like you know what we're going to look the other way you could do whatever you want here divorce was totally normal and the wait time to get one was around like 6 weeks which was a lot shorter than other places in the country so people were like [ __ ] yeah I can get rid of this guy let's go so Vegas at this time is essentially seen as a place where you go and you do naughty activities that maybe you couldn't do anywhere else also in 1931 Vegas was experiencing a ton of foot traffic because of the Hoover Dam did you see that one coming I know me neither I forget about the Hoover Dam I just just think like honestly Hoover vacuum I know um any but Hoover Dam it's a big Dam it's big and it's Hoover and it took thousands of workers to build it these guys would work long hours building a giant freaking Dam right and by the end of the week they were ready to do anything else but work right so after their shifts these workers would make their way over to a place just outside of the Las Vegas Strip called Fremont Street if if you've been to Vegas maybe you've heard or been to Fremont Street but Fremont Street was kind of the best part of Vegas at this point I mean it was the only place that had a paved Road okay wow plus the first hotel in Vegas it was called the hotel Nevada was built there and it was pretty um pretty sick so on Fremont Street this is where all like a bunch of sexy dancers sex workers they would just be all out there kind of just entertaining the construction workers a little bit and Fremont Street was just where you can go and have as much fun as you wanted legal or not and people just kind of they were like they didn't see it you know what I'm saying so the workers would spend their free time with like maybe a liity of the night eat a big fat steak at like the casino they could gamble drink whiskey get a divorce and then pass out like it just sounded like a blast well then in 19 19 36 the Hoover Dam was finished and this is what really gave Vegas its signature aesthetic I guess the dam pumped cheap Hydro El electricity AKA waterp powerered electricity right into Vegas so on Fremont Street they installed a bunch of these huge flashing neon signs all over town and it really like brought in more people tourists from all over the place wanted to see these Vegas lights it was like The Shining Light lighthouse in the middle of the desert just calling people to come party come party Come on Barbie let's go party honestly neon signs are really cool I tried to take a a neon sign class to learn how to like make neon signs but um I decided that wasn't my passion in life anyways but they're cool right and everyone wanted to see them and like this to a lot of people was like the height of technology Neon Lights holy [ __ ] people are like what I didn't know light could be blue it was just like mind-blowing at this time I mean people were still slowly getting access to electricity in their homes I mean their grandparents grew up using candles for lights and now they could see like lights on the street I mean come on this is the future so Freemont Street became so covered in neon lights that it earned a new nickname the Glitter Gulch what's a gch yeah that's what I call my [ __ ] the the Glitter Gulch you want some of the Glitter Gulch yeah I'm just kidding okay but the Glitter Gulch had signs that advertised restaurants casinos and even department stores and this plan to bring in more tourists with the neon lights really seem to be working I mean Vegas at this point is kind of doing everything right people from all over the country were coming to Fremont Street to experience booze titties lights gambling America you know so now there was all this money flowing in Vegas which naturally means that people are taking notice I mean cash is just flowing at these casinos faster than the country has ever seen before and anytime that much money is Flowing it's going to attract some dark characters with even darker connections the sun is coming out [Music] and now I can like you know put away my sweaters and uh start not wearing them there's just one problem my skin is dry as hell I don't know what's going 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episode now let's get back to the story so Vegas is taking off drinking sex work gambling divorces whatever and Mobsters are hearing this and seeing a moment of opportunity it's a huge moment of opportunity for them by the early 1940s there was already some mob presence in Vegas I mean they usually worked out of hotels but it wasn't something that dominated Society but all that changed with the arrival of a man named Benjamin seagull but he went by the name Bugsy now Bugsy I guess was known for stealing cars bootlegging liquor and being involved in gambling schemes in big cities like Philadelphia and New York so he goes to Vegas and decides that he's going to mainly focus on like the big money makers there which are the casinos Meer Lansky another notorious mobster gave Bugsy the job of overseeing the construction of a new hotel on the Strip they were going to call this hotel the flamingo cuz when you think of like the desert you think of flamingos yeah right no okay I know I was like why' they name it the uh the flamingo so there was a room going around that uh the hotel was named the flamingo after Bugsy's girlfriend because Bugsy's girlfriend had like long legs and she was known to get flushed after she drank alcohol I guess like a flamingo they must get flushed when they drink alcohol I don't know that's just like the rumor I could see that though I would be kind of offended like first of all I'm what skinny ass legs big ass beak flam okay whatever sure honey name it the flamingo I'd be like babe what about the swan yeah Swan babe shouldn't you don't you want to name it the swan because I look like a swan babe he's like no I'm thinking Flamingo Flamingo are you sure it okay the flamingo would be a new casino that doubled as a fancy Resort and like this was new it was exciting it was like something you would find in Hollywood and you know they were like hey let's like try to redefine this high-end Hotel experience which is pretty cool thought now even though Bugsy was a Golden Boy when it came to other mob related projects construction at the Flamingo was a disaster I guess construction was supposed to cost like $1 million at the time but it ended up taking way longer than expected and in the end I think it cost like $6 million to make so Bugsy had no experience with hotels therefore this doesn't end well because just a few months after the flamingo splashy opening it closed so the mob blamed Bugsy for the whole thing and even though the flamingo did eventually reopen it really didn't matter I mean the whole thing was mishandled and when you mishandle the mafia's money what do you think's going to happen they're going to be like no problem you know no no no in 1947 Bugsy was found dead in his home in Beverly Hills now listen to this listen because the case remains unsolved but many believe like who is responsible for it okay so Bugsy Gone Dead and the flamingo was under New Mob management and it actually became a huge Money Maker they were getting a cut of all the money coming into the casino by skimming from the top skimming comes from gambling the money goes into the back rooms of the casino and before it's officially counted the mob Pockets a cut of the profits for themselves I mean no one was stopping them so why not you know after the flamingo almost every Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas in some way became like associated with organized crime because casinos were bring in so much money more Mobsters backed more casinos as casinos were taking off so did the amount of tourist and by 1950 a million people came to Las Vegas only 10 years later in 1960 that number increased to 10 million people are happier than ever to head to a city that lets you in indulge in some adult activities without any judgment too you know be sloppy fall into a bush no one will know when you go back home also the country had just been through World War II many men had experienced some serious like shell shock from trauma right and they were having a hard time adjusting to society so naturally they went to Vegas to escape everything right numb it all out and the women you know women can't be forgotten all this either because while their men were at War many women joined the workforce for the first time and yes it was empowering we can do it you know before that many women were just um Housewives so it's safe to say everyone just wanted a moment to like have some fun everything was so serious all of the time right and it was like can we have some freaking fun with Vegas it was kind of perfect timing because after the war was a boost to the economy so like more Americans had some extra money lying around for vacations I mean it's just kind of like perfect little little combination going on here right so Mom and Dad you know would head to Vegas they wanted to let loose and get a little freaky and Vegas like starts to evolve to accommodate lots of different types of people not just gamblers Vegas introduces a new kind of entertainment I'm talking show Girls singers and St up comedians and when you look at pictures of like the classic Vegas show Girls you know they have Joan here perfect example but they had the uh the feather head piece the bedazzled bra the flowing skirt that swishes as they dance you know it was just like ooh ah people like shiny pretty things that's exactly what it was Han Jan very shiny and pretty look I'm not trying to judge Joan but you're wearing feathers that came from another animal when you yourself have feathers that's like me as a human wearing something made out of skin do you know what I'm saying but I'm not judging Flamingo yeah okay my first thought was that okay if the mob is running everything I bet you the working conditions sucked but actually allegedly what we read was that like it was the exact opposite musicians and performers from Angeles started to move to Las Vegas specifically because of how great the wages were there's this famous comedian um his name was red buttons he once said quote four weeks in Las Vegas could buy you a third world country okay in 1953 one of the biggest actresses at the time Marlene dedr debuted her act in Vegas she made $30,000 per week per week yeah uh if you do the math be that's like $354,000 today she made that per week honey if I did that bye you would never see me again goodbye make my money bye actress Debbie Reynolds used to talk about her love for the Vegas hotel management despite the fact that they were connected to the Mob she said quote you were like their family it was a wonderful time and they were great bosses I missed that loyalty that respect I don't say I respect how they got the money it's none of my business anyway and that's kind of the right mindset I think I mean maybe not I don't know cuz she's essentially like hey my checks are clearing the rest is not my business you know this era is considered to be the Golden Age of Las Vegas it was more than just a tourist trap I mean it was an escape from people's everyday life and all this success in entertainment paved the way for groundbreaking shows for example Harold Minsky shows I know I was like who what huh Harold was a show producer working in New York but his shows were like not doing well there people just didn't get it uh a lot of the people were calling his Productions in decent because they were a little risky but that wasn't a problem for the great city of Vegas right so when Executives heard that this man was available they were like hey you should come to Vegas because that sh will work over here yeah so in 1956 he staged the first show to feature topless show girls called Minsky's folies and apparently he had very specific characteristics he looked for in a topless showgirl step one she must have titties step two she must be topless but apparently he required um the women to be 5'8 they had to have small breasts and their breasts had to be firm so he would go up and be like no that's not right next no NE you know he he was really putting in the work but um Harold's toppler show represented a whole new form of risque entertainment and people loved it he would get tens of thousands of people watching his show every week and by the late 1960s things started to take a very very bad turn for Las Vegas so a whole new villain was about to take over and these guys made the Mobsters look like Angels a Joan and I are pissed well first of all I'm in a robe second of all Paul stood us up for dinner again I know we were out we were like oh my God dinner yay and then Paul was like sorry I can't come I'm sick and I was like Paul first of all you're a skeleton what do you mean I think you're freaking it and so does Joan but I can't blame him when it comes to keeping my doctor's appointments and actually showing up I'm not much better than Paul I've always got an excuse I have something else to do you know it's such an inconvenience doctors dentist I I wish they could just like come to you but thanks to Zach do there's no reason to delay Zach do is a free app and website where you can search and compare highquality in network doctors and click to instantly book an appointment and it's not just like standard doctors we're talking about booking in network appointments with more than 100,000 doctors across every specialty from mental health to Dental Health primary care to urgent care I mean they got everything you can filter for doctors who take your insurance and also who are like located nearby very convenient once you find the right doctor you can choose an appointment time slot that works for you and then you can click to instantly book and visit so you don't have to make any awkward phone calls like hi I don't know what I'm doing you know you just do it all through the app I love it it's too easy I start making appointments for no damn reason the best part and my personal favorite feature appointments made through Zach do happen pretty fast I'm talking within just 24 to 72 hours of booking you can even score a same day appointments Paul so stop putting off those doctor appointments and go to Zach do.com darkh hisory to find and instantly book a top rated doctor today that's Zach do Z do.com darkh hisory zach.com darkh hisory so even though like the Mobsters essentially run all of Vegas the average tourist genuinely like had a great time okay you'd hear like oh my God Vegas amazing but then all this changed in 1969 Nevada passed something called the corporate gaming Act now this meant that Executives and investors would own casinos now up until this point they had to be owned by a person not a corporation so famous billionaires like Howard Hughes swooped in and spent hundreds of millions of dollars to buy a bunch of hotels and casinos that had been owned by the mob and the mob they couldn't compete with like billionaire type of money you know so they slowly started moving out and big business started moving in and this is when Vegas starts to look a little different a little more corporate a little more sanitized remember the neon signs everyone loved well allegedly they were like too expensive to keep on constantly so the new business owners replace these signs with cheaper plastic ones now that big businesses were involved in these casinos law enforcement want to crack down on the remaining mob activity happening around town law enforcement discovered that the mobs method of skimming from the top brought in over $7 million just between 1974 and 1976 and you know at this point like they had been doing this for decades so probably a lot more than that and once the skimming story hit the news people began to lose faith in Vegas like people didn't want to gamble somewhere if they were just going to rip you off you know well the mob Gets In Trouble a lot mind you this is a side note we're kind of like glossing over the mob the mob of it all with Vegas there's so much more we could do like just a mob focused Vegas story if you wanted to so that's probably why if you're familiar you're like why aren't you getting into it cuz there's so much more but essentially what you need to know is that the mob eventually like they went through a bunch of court trials and cases and then they were officially like chased out of Las Vegas so at this point in the 1970s you know Vegas takes a turn the town has a bad reputation it's no longer about Lux Y and neon signs now it was sad it was crimer ridden it felt like a desert a desert hole that like just stole your money plus it wasn't just the casinos that were like getting a bad rap the big Vegas stars were mostly gone in fact big stars active actively avoided doing shows in Vegas because there was now like the stigma that only washed up CBS performed there people felt like Vegas is where their act went to die but there was one act that quite literally saved the day not only did it keep Vegas relevant it returned the city to the Glorious tourist destination it once was the who is this mystical creature that saved Vegas well technically I mean this creature was at the end of his career but he didn't feel that way because he was packing the house every night did you guess who I'm talking about Paul Paul did you guess Paul came dressed up if you're listening to this on the podcast Paul is dressed up as the one the only Elvis Presley you look just like him it's crazy I was like what that's crazy look just like Elvis decides to take a chance on the city you know Elvis huge massive Superstar wow crazy so when Elvis you know he's at the top of his career or whatever he definitely did perform in Vegas at some point but when he originally performed there it hadn't been a a good fit because at this time the crowds were older they were there to see Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin and to them like Elvis wasn't that you know Elvis was Rock like this rock and roll sex symbol so it was like the wrong audience so the first time that he Elvis had performed in Vegas it was like 1956 and he's up there being all haot like swinging his his hips singing in that sexy voice I mean have you seen the man he was truly a very handsome man right so um he's up there doing that and instead of like screaming crying teenage girls that he was used to performing for in Vegas at this time in the 50s he was performing for like their parents it just didn't click okay that was the ' 50s Elvis was still a young rock star and a lot of the older gener generation at the time really didn't like the guy because he was like swiveling his hips could you imagine I know oh my God he's moving his hips oh [ __ ] but by the end of the 60s he was just a different performer I mean his music career was in a major decline his albums were not selling well not as as well as they used to he had spent like the last decade acting in a bunch of movies that turned out to be not so great but he was majorly in need of a comp back just like Vegas idea so bring bring Sone calls up Elvis Elvis look baby listen what if we got you a headlining gig at the international hotel in Vegas thoughts they obviously offered him like a lot of money right Elvis agrees he's like I'll do it and the response I blew everyone away honestly because the tickets sold out right away even though the people were like super excited about the show right it's been it had been a while since Elvis performed live on stage so it was kind of like a comeback tour but no one was sure that he still had what it took to play to like a packed house still the show producers in Vegas were so desperate for a win they decided to put in a ton of resources behind his act Elvis was put in the theater which sat 2,000 people and it was like the largest theater on the Strip at the time on August 10th 1970 the audience was packed with a ton of celebrities and important names in the entertainment industry half of them were there to support Elvis and the other half honestly wanted to see like if he would flop they're like let's see how bad this show is yeah okay Elvis was feeling the pressure some of his friends and bandmates talked about how nervous he was before going on stage he just really wanted to be liked loved something there's actual footage of like this first Show online he walks onto the stage in the signature white frilly outfit and it looks like he's nervous he's dripping with sweat he's out of breath he seems to be freaking out he takes a sip from like a glass of water then he dumps the water glass out onto the stage but as soon as he started to sing it was clear he did not need to be nervous the magic was back baby Elvis abs absolutely crushed the show this was a groundbreaking moment in Vegas let me tell you this Elvis saved Vegas you have no idea Elvis went on to play for soldout crowds for his entire 4 week run over 101,000 people would see him in just that opening month between August and September and that's how we end up with the connection between Elvis in Las Vegas Elvis knew he needed Vegas and Vegas knew they needed Elvis so I feel like this Elvis collaboration really just changed Vegas forever right not forever but like it had a huge impact because after this I mean everything was like Elvis themed I mean that's why we have like Elvis impersonators marrying drunk people on like the strip and we can't forget the iconic Elvis wedding chapel Elvis is very ingrained in the Vegas culture I guess and thanks to Elvis other celebrities and per performers were actually excited and wanted to perform on the Vegas Strip again because they saw like him pop off they're like okay maybe I should try after this there was like a big boom in iconic shows like Sig freed and and Roy remember their magic show oo magic um we actually covered Sig freed and Roy in our we did an episode It's called creators ruined by their Creations dark history episode and it's so interesting you should check it out just saying so uh more people are coming to Vegas now right because they saw that Elvis is doing well money's being made I mean this is it's looking good but if you know anything about Elvis you know being around unlimited alcohol Fame gambling drugs blah blah it was not looking good for Elvis I mean just like any trip to Vegas vas it went on for a little too long if you've never been to Vegas let me tell you hot tip I would say two Max three days in Vegas is it okay you don't need to be there for 5 days you don't need to be there for a week two two maybe three okay nothing good happens after day three I got some stories if you want to know okay one time me my friend Lauren love Lauren uh she we went to Vegas and we stayed there for 5 days and it was such a big mistake we didn't sleep um and that's what [Music] happened but let me tell you on day five I was Dusty and I needed to get the hell out of there just nothing good happens but it makes for good stories when you're not on a public platform anywh who uh what I'm saying is Elvis was you know he struggled with addiction and all that stuff and by 1976 like his health and his marriage were just a complete disaster he was putting on a good show but it was clear to everybody that he was like physically and mentally struggling he put on a lot of weight because he wasn't taking care of himself plus he was reportedly using a lot of drugs and it was clear that it was time to leave Vegas finally on December 12th 1976 Elvis played his final Vegas show and just like every other show he performed he sold out the place less than a year later Elvis would sadly die of a heart attack when Vegas lost Elvis not to death but like the partnership or whatever uh they realized like oh [ __ ] Elvis was really keeping us afloat you know they were in trouble once again so the city was like desperate to Pivot to a new chapter that didn't have anything to do with Mobs gambling or Elvis right they're like we need a Rebrand so by the early 1990s after struggling for a while Vegas Executives looked around and realized hey there is an entire demographic we are just ignoring families listen listen stop talking I'm always down to try new things you know especially when it comes to different kinds of foods but you know as a kid like some some foods were just ruined for me like uh vegetarian food I remember once trying to go vegetarian and only being served broccoli for dinner was like cool I mean I I know there's more than that right and people swear by vegetarian diets Paul over here says it's what keeps him so young and he recommended that I give vegetarian food another try with hungry root hungry root is the easiest way to eat healthy they take care of the meal planning each week by recommending delicious recipes tailor to your taste nutrition preferences and your health goals and each of the meals are designed to have high quality nutritious food that supports whatever diet you follow so whether you're vegetarian like Paul or just trying to eat healthy like me and I know what you're thinking when you hear the words 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dark history that's hungryroot.com darkh hisory code dark history to get 40% off your first box and a free item of your choice for Life hungryroot.com darkh hisory code dark history well this is a '90s tooo so you got to think like this is prime like Disney World Disneyland other things like that you know family so Vegas they're they're thinking how can we uh kind of be like a Disneyland come on guys think let's think here how can we get the the kids the families so less than 10 years Vegas demolishes or rebuilds almost like every Hotel on the Strip according to the Center for gaming research it cost $12 billion for Vegas to get this upgrade it's funny cuz like throughout the story you learn like Vegas has no money Vegas has no money $ billion to get a facelift like what okay it's like when your parents would tell you they had no money they had no money but then they would go and like buy them s stuff and you're like so there there was only a few like iconic neon signs left in the city they tore those down they dumped them all in this place called the neon Museum have you gone it's still open I guess you can go to the museum today I haven't gone I've only seen pictures I would love to go I love neon whites I don't know what it is so on the Strip they opened up a couple of familyfriendly hotels like the Excalibur huh have you been there but it's fun it's not fun but it's you can get a room for like 20 bucks you know what I'm saying and then MGM Hotel they opened up a small theme park the luxer hotel now the luxer is wild it's an Egyptian themed hotel it looks like a pyramid and the elevator system in the hotel is like I've got questions but we okay let me not get off track cuz the elevators I could talk about all day so they had these interactive not River tours okay you get in the little boat and you'd be like woo and then Treasure Island they would put on wild Pirate shows right there on the Strip for the kids they're essentially trying to lure the families into the hotel in the Cino you know in the beginning this did bring in money but for like the real Vegas die hards you go to Vegas to sin you go to Vegas have fun and let loose they hated this idea you know Frank Sinatra himself described how this City had turned into a quote amusement park Frank also said quote in my era Las Vegas was Rock Solid and now it's papier-mâché one time hold on let me tell you my papier-mâché Story one time in third grade I made a papier-mâché stegosaurus it was huge it was like this big and let me tell you Mr Frank love your music but that papier-mâché stegosaurus you could not break break that guy apart apart like he was [ __ ] like unbreakable so what I'm getting at is I just don't think that was a good comparison cuz papermache is actually kind of the [ __ ] is what I'm saying I guess at some point Vegas agreed with them Vegas was in the middle of like an identity crisis I mean yes now they're like appealing to kids but at the same time there were strippers and clubs on the same street where 8-year-olds are now watching grown men dressed as Pirates fight one another and it was just kind of like you know like so people are kind of iffy about it Vegas takes a hard left and starts advertising for the adults again they realize children is not the way and with this Rebrand they go all in this is the era of what happens here stays here except for cdia so Vegas realizes let's go back to focusing on adults so they do and with this comes a new era the era of the celebrity chef I know I was like what I don't know this was a big thing it all started in 1992 when Wolf Gang Puck you know that famous chef decided to bring spogo his super popular restaurant to Vegas and for people with money this was a freaking game Cher that point a lot of the casinos were kind of offering just basic buffets which is fine but it wasn't like you know made by a world renowned Chef right but now they were starting to like bring people in and you could eat food from these amazing amazing chefs this was a big deal we love food food food yeah H Vegas is now like let's do fine dining I like that Vegas keeps trying you know they didn't get stuck in one way and never change they at least keep trying and evolving so now they're in their fine dining era and many people were willing to pay a lot of money and this was super important for those newly renovated hotels they knew they had finally struck gold with these celebrity restaurants since then every new luxury hotel has included at least one restaurant belonging to a celebrity chef see celebrity chefs are not my genre I know nothing about celebrity chefs I remember emerald and like that's as much as I remember about celebrity chefs excuse my ignorance there I just I'm uneducated on celebrity chefs but people loved it in the 2000s Las Vegas still made most of its money with gambling and the casinos but now people were traveling there specifically for the entertainment and now the food this is when we start to see big stars like Seline Deon began her residency at Caesar's Palace she ended up doing a 4-year res residency and during those four years over 5 million people came to see her in concert she performed over 700 shows making over $385 million good for her Seline was bringing in as much revenue and more tourists than a small country literally in Vegas history as of right now it could change Seline is actually the most profitable act to ever happen in Vegas seline's success was like permission for celebrities to come back seline's show proved that you could make money in Vegas and not be considered a joke you know so the city seemed to have bounced back in a in a huge way but then it fell apart again in 2008 remember the 2008 financial crisis aka the recession yeah bummer every day people suddenly losing their homes uh people were losing their jobs it was a very stressful scary time so with that being said vacation was completely off the table people are not going to gamble the money they have left during this crisis business at the casinos took a hit and this affected all the staff that work there people were let go I mean think about it all the people who work in a casino car dealers weight staff Club promoters so many people are employed by the the hotels and casinos and everything and Vegas ended up having to close about 67,000 properties so Vegas had the highest rate of home foreclosures in America I mean it was bad even after the crisis ended people were not about to blow their money on Vegas again so at this time it was clear to people running Vegas that the only way they could save the city was to Pivot away from old people gambling in casinos they needed to make it exciting exciting to the young people again okay not the 8-year-olds on family vacation they're like we need to Target now the Millennials they were looking around trying to replicate what Elvis did back in the day and they landed on someone with Elvis level star power but for the millennial generation someone who the media just could not get enough of and they turned their sights on one musical act who had the power to change and save Las Vegas once again do you know who it is oh baby baby this show is sponsored by liquid IV every week is a busy week right and honestly the only way I'm going to get through it is to give myself little rewards along the way 11:00 a.m. time for a treat 1:00 p.m. time to scroll on social media for 20 minutes max 300 p.m. time to give myself one of my favorite indulgences liquid IV liquid IV is powered by something called live hydroscience which is a combination of electrolytes essential vitamins and clinically tested nutrients that turn ordinary water into extraordinary hydration liquid IV contains eight essential vitamins and nutrients and whenever I need a little like pick me up after a long day I reach for a little liquid IV packet tear pour and enjoy I keep them at my office I keep them in my bag I keep them in my car my personal favorite flavor is concord grape I speak very highly of it cuz it's delicious oh my God it's it's like grape juice but if I'm feeling a little spicy I go for the Pina Colada flavor if I close my eyes it's like I'm on a beach enjoying the Sun or something you know honestly that's why I love liquid IV because they make hydration delicious liquid IV is always non GMO vegan gluten-free dairy free and soy free the best part it has three times the electrolytes of the leading sports drink break the mold and own your ritual just one stick and 16 ounces of water hydrates better than water alone treat yourself to extraordinary hydration from liquid IV get 20% off your first order of liquid IV when you go to liquid iv.com and use code dark history at checkout that's 20% off your first order with with code dark history at liquid iv.com get concord grape you're going to love it it's so good yeah maybe you guessed it maybe you didn't who saved Vegas Britney Spears saved Vegas on September 17th 2013 Britney Spears made an appearance on Good Morning America she announces to the world that she'll be doing a 2-year concert residency at Planet Holly would title of the show piece of me now when I heard this I lost my [ __ ] I did I was like Britney's going to Vegas like I could finally see her I had not seen Britney yet and that was like the one thing on my bucket list like I want to see Britney Spears like Prime Britney Spears perform and I hadn't seen it yet so when I saw this announcement I was like oh my God I'm going to B it like cuz I mean millions of us saw that and we were like we're moving to Vegas now until Britney's done yes but Britney herself promised that this would be the show of a lifetime she said quote the performances won't be simple there'll be a massive party from start to finish Britney's show was like well here's the part that disappoints me I never got to see the show I never made it I went whatever but I hear and what I've seen online cuz you could watch the performances on YouTube which I have but Britney show was like this the feast this Feast for the eyes I mean she start the show like you better work [ __ ] and then the audience were just like we're going to work [ __ ] you know losing losing their damn Minds the show was like modern Vegas wrapped in Britney you know it wasn't even Vegas it was just Britney world it was Britney World okay and I have to say though knowing what we know now because I read her book maybe you did too she did mention in her book that the whole time she was miserable she was in a conservatorship and how awful it was which knowing that now is sad because we all thought that she wanted to be there you know thought idea let me know Down Below in the comment section if we should do an episode on conservatorships that could be interesting let me know let me know if you want to see that anyhoo back to Britney so Britney poor Britney we love her she did over 140 performances and she sold 900,000 tickets and the show made over $138 million and that's just on the concert alone all those Britney fans needed hotel rooms meals gambling money outfits whatever so that overall just helped Vegas's economy right so to Vegas Executives it was clear that a star like Britney was a key turning point when it came to Bringing young tourists to Vegas which is what they needed according to Forbes Magazine quote Spears Triumph in Las Vegas became a catalyst for a wave of A-list artists to consider Sin City for their own residencies and quote after Britney the other poppies started the pop stars like Lady Gaga they followed Katy Perry Adele they were all calling up their managers like hey get me on that Britney [ __ ] you know and Vegas had a wave of huge celebrity residencies I think it's a great idea I don't know why people are so against the whole celebrity uh residency thing it's nice because if you were a celebrity you just it would be nice because you just stay put you're in a room you're set up everything's taken care of you show up you perform and then you're done you go home and like everybody comes to you and you don't have to go to them you know what I'm saying so I think that's cool but also as someone who wants to see them perform knowing that they're there and they're staying put and not moving to different locations I think it's nice Vegas is on this High they're like yeah bring in all these residencies and people are going whatever they it's doing better wow Vegas uh but you know what happens you know what happens 2020 March yeah guess who comes a Knockin get all Co so Vegas uh at this time you know they're like doing pretty good and then March 2020 rolls around and Co forced casinos and hotels to close even after the covid restrictions were lifted Vegas they needed to shapeshift once again I mean they had to they still kept the fancy restaurants they kept the concerts and all that stuff going but now they were like we need to move away from gambling which I thought was an interesting take according to Oliver lvot a CEO who tracks Vegas tourist data well he said quote people aren't coming to Las Vegas to gamble anymore that older generation above 65 that were coming to Vegas to gamble are going somewhere else I will say as I've gotten older and this is just one perspective I've noticed definitely a decline in people who gamble I don't know anyone who likes to gamble all of us think it's just a freaking waste of money and I think that's the right mindset to have because you've seen those people who gamble like their whole house away or something and you're like what the [ __ ] I don't want to be that guy but a lot of us don't really care to gamble plus we only we it's like the money you do have I'm not gambling that [ __ ] I got $245 in my account okay no Vegas is like okay now we we have to Rebrand again right so now their focus is on [Music] Sports they they've tried it all haven't they they're really going just check I don't know I admire that Sports is now their focus and in order to do this the execs they have to tear down what's left of the old Vegas for example Executives made the decision to tear down the iconic Vegas hotel the Tropicana oh I get the Tropicana and Flamingo mixed up cuz it's like kind of the same thing anyways so they want to tear this down so they can build a $ 1.5 billion Major League Baseball Stadium because when I think of Vegas I think baseball you know like so that makes sense they're planning on calling this Stadium new Las Vegas Stadium I know I know because I was thinking listen you go to a sports game have you gone to a sports game I went one time and I regretted it because everyone gets so drunk and sloppy and aggressive and they're always flushed in the face and Loud for what for what sorry so in my mind I'm like great so they're going to put like a stadium there and have all these these drunk fans everywhere in a Vegas Stadium like I can't imagine that's going to be a good time plus it's hot 112° you're going to die so that's what they're doing the stadium is supposed to open in the beginning of 2028 so stay tuned for that maybe I'm all wrong and it'll be like the best thing ever wouldn't it be funny though if like I talk all this [ __ ] and then in on the opening day of like the baseball you're watching the baseball game in Vegas and then the camera does like an audience pan and then you just lowkey see me there with my beer like you know wouldn't that' be kind of funny like Bailey you hypocrite and I like yeah well I never said I wasn't Vegas huh what do you think there's a story behind it it's pretty wild but it's had so many chapters and so many identities Vegas right it's kind of interesting and it's kind of cool cuz most places don't like to adapt they stay in their ways and they never change and Vegas is like down to [ __ ] figure it out and make it work and I think that's kind of cool I initially actually wanted to do this episode because I read the book um Elvis and me have you read that book it was really good I liked it I thought it was was sad of course and in the book it really talked about how Vegas wasn't doing well Elvis wasn't doing well they came together and literally Elvis saved Vegas and I was like oh my God this is so interesting this could be like an interesting episode and that's really what led me here and it's made me realize that uh Vegas has constantly rebranded itself and it seems to be uncan like it won't go away I don't think that's a bad thing but like it's just interesting because throughout history Vegas has come so close to like almost shutting down and then they're able to bring it back with someone like it's Britney [ __ ] you know like just wild but you have to give them respect where it's due Vegas they always manag to find a way to stay relevant oh yeah baby so I'm kind of looking forward to going to that bachelorette party last time I went I went to chippendale's which was kind of sad cuz it was empty there was like us and then maybe like four other people around and let me tell you I got called on stage I would show you the video but it's not appropriate and I definitely had dick in my face and where am I going with this I think everyone should go to Vegas once in their life just to see it it's very commercial now and it's actually it's really safe there was a period there where it was really sketchy but now the last time I went like it felt very very safe and that's what I think about Vegas you know I have a friend her name is Lindsay hey Lindsay she lives in Vegas this [ __ ] she's crazy um she's not crazy she's very smart successful independent bus bus woman and I love her for that but she tells me all of her like dating stories because she tells me like dating in Vegas is the worst thing ever she's like you will never find a partner in Vegas because people are constantly coming and going it's like a terminal nobody stays and the people that do stay stay forever so it's like the same people all the time in other words if you're single and you want to like date someone don't go to Vegas to meet your partner cuz it's probably not going to happen unless you want a one night stand you know that's my advice and don't get married in Vegas well you can never mind sorry never mind okay I need to gather my thoughts because when I talk about Vegas it's just I have so many stories and it's like which one do you I can't just start telling you the story because then you need the full story and that would take another 45 minutes you know what I'm saying so let me know down in the comment section if you want me to share some Vegas stories like the time I thought I got married you know something people absolutely love no not Twinkies pranks yeah some people love a classic prank like a whoopy cushion or scaring someone as they turn the corner of a room boo you know innocent fun but then there's those other people who take the prank way too far and sometimes that prank turns out to be a deadly mistake join us next week as we talk about the dark history of pranks gone wrong i' love to hear your guys' reactions to today's story so make sure to leave a comment below so I can see what you guys are saying and your comment might be featured in a future episode now let's read a couple of comments you guys have left me in the gang I wish you guys could read Shara Elias 6687 left me a comment on our episode about death saying quote that Zach do ad made me cry laugh so relatable Bailey great episode not sure how you made such a depressing subject delightfully interesting appreciate you a Shara well first of all that was really sweet thank you so much I know how do you talk about death and make it light you just do you know you know it's all going to happen in all of us so let's talk about it but I'm glad you like that ad because that was a good the pants off ad that was funny well thank you I appreciate you and thank you for watching the ads cuz sometimes we try to we try to be funny and and hope someone watches it yeah okay thank you t- rock rocks left a comment on our debutant Ball episode saying 2 weeks before my senior prom my boyfriend broke up with me and invited someone else I returned the $500 dress that matched him and my mom got to work making me an edgy dress out of denim and black lace so 2000s of me I felt so cool definitely rebellious and stood out like I wanted I kissed his best friend at the prom Afterparty and my ex left crying t- rocks t- rocks you rock because that story had everything listen Drama revenge characters happy ending sewing okay 20 out of 10 that was beautiful I'm happy for you everyone deserves a story like that I'm glad you had it and I hope that guy is still crying a little bit inside Michelle s Morelli 9379 left us an episode episod suggestion saying episode suggestion Esther Jones the Original Betty Boop who was black and she went through racial criticism as that's why on the cartoon she was white I would like to know more about her Michelle I hear you listen hold on Michelle will I like this episode suggestion I'm writing it down history of Betty Boop because I've been coming across this too I've done some light digging but I haven't done like major Di into Betty Boop and like the history of all that but I've been seeing this coming up lately and I think um this would be a great dark history idea so thank you for sending the suggestion I appreciate it thank you guys so much for watching and engaging I appreciate you guys so much keep commenting because um you'll be featured maybe maybe or maybe you won't but I do see your comments did you know you can join me over on my YouTube where you can watch these episodes on Thursday after the podcast airs cuz maybe you're a visual person and you want to see how gorgeous we all look and by we I mean me and my friends and also while you're there you can catch my murder mystery and makeup hey well don't forget to subscribe and if you don't know dark history is an Audi boom original a special thank you to our expert Larry grag curators distinguished teaching Professor am Meritus of history and author of Bugsy Shadow MO edwi Bugsy seagull and the birth of organized crime in Las Vegas and if you didn't know I'm your host Bailey seran I hope you have a good day you make good choices and I'll be talking to you soon goodbye nice and firm [Music] C