Celebrities in Las Vegas

The Killers

In today’s blog we’re going to take a look at celebrities born and raised in Las Vegas (and the surrounding Nevada area), as well as those who made their fortunes in this thriving area of America. While it’s no Hollywood, Las Vegas does have a long history of glitz and glamour. Who, after all, can forget the Rat Pack shows in Las Vegas, which, according to some, helped the area abandon its segregation legislation? Or how about Elvis’ iconic Viva Las Vegas?

As well as all the casinos, gambling and cheap dinners, Las Vegas is also home to a simmering celebrity culture and don’t let anyone convince you its heyday has passed! If you’re wondering whether Vegas is still producing and inspiring talent, then look no further than our list of notable Nevada residents and upstarts. While some of our featured famous folk may have quickly made their money and left, Las Vegas has been an integral part to their success. Read on to find out more and make sure to consult our article on the best kept secrets in Las Vegas if you wish to explore more than just casinos:

Steve Wynn

We couldn’t begin a list of Vegas entrepreneurs and successes without including Steve Wynn. Born and raised in New York, Steven Alan Weinberg (later Wynn) first ventured into the casino business in 1968, when he bought a stake in Vegas’ Frontier Hotel and Casino. It seems that Wynn soon caught the Vegas bug, as he went on to become one of the biggest casino titans in the world. Now owning countless casinos, in 2004 Wynn became a billionaire and in 2005, he opened his iconic Wynn Las Vegas.

The Killers

After forming through an advert in a Las Vegas newspaper, The Killers began gigging around the Vegas area in various bars and clubs. While they achieved mainstream success in the UK first, The Killers are now regarded as musical heroes in their hometown and have shown that the area has a lot more to offer than just casinos. Speaking about Las Vegas, frontman Brandon Flowers has suggested he “romanticises” the area, noting “I live with the ghosts of Elvis and Frank Sinatra. It seems so glamorous. They were American men who don’t exist anymore.”

Benny Binion

Another casino entrepreneur success story, Benny Binion owned a string of casinos in Las Vegas. While he perhaps wasn’t a particularly law abiding citizen (Wikipedia cites a variety of crimes he’s committed, including allegedly killing an unarmed man), Binion made a name for himself as “the vanguard of Las Vegas casinos” and owned the Binion’s Horseshoe Casino. While his children have perhaps strayed considerably off the straight and narrow, Benny Binion is remembered as a legend of Las Vegas, just like the aforementioned Elvis and Sinatra.

MIT Blackjack Team

In 2002, Ben Mezrich authored Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions, a book which charts the success of the MIT blackjack card counters, who made a living beating Vegas casinos. While Mezrich’s tale is a little loose with the facts, there really was an MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Blackjack Team which did head to Las Vegas and successfully card counted its way to profit. While the MIT Blackjack Team has since disbanded, there are now countless other teams who head to Vegas in an attempt to break the casinos, just like the MIT team. A movie, entitled 21, has also been made about them.