Misplaced Pages

#416583

37-594: El Cortez or El Cortez Hotel may refer to: Places El Cortez (Las Vegas) , also known as El Cortez Hotel and Casino , in Las Vegas, Nevada, opened in 1941 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) El Cortez (Reno) , also known as El Cortez Hotel , in Reno, Nevada, opened in 1931, NRHP-listed El Cortez (San Diego) , also known as El Cortez Hotel ,

74-410: A $ 17 million upgrade was unveiled that would feature a 12.5-million LED display and more color combinations than the original display, which was composed of incandescent lighting . The initial $ 70 million investment and the continued improvements have resulted in successful and ongoing downtown redevelopment. The City of Las Vegas and the downtown casinos have benefited as more than 60% of visitors to

111-466: A 12.5-million LED display and more color combinations than the original display. The old control system was replaced by a central control room using 10 computers. The 2019 upgrade features over 49.2 million LEDs with on-demand diagnostics through Watchfire Sign's proprietary digital signage software, which runs in sync with the Viva Vision canopy control software. Several casino/hotels are located on

148-639: A former hotel in San Diego, California, NRHP-listed Other El Cortez (film) , a film released in 2006, starring Lou Diamond Phillips Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title El Cortez . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=El_Cortez&oldid=1009582415 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description

185-484: A launch tower with over-sized dice, a martini glass, a pink flamingo, simulated video reels, a giant arm and two 37-foot-tall showgirls. One of the towers also bears a "Welcome to Fabulous Downtown Las Vegas" sign . Created when Fremont Street was closed permanently to vehicular traffic in September 1994. When the light and sound shows are not being presented, music is played throughout the mall. Nightly free entertainment

222-519: A separate corporation, responsible for financing, developing, and managing the Fremont Street Experience. It was the second Las Vegas project of architect Jon Jerde , whose firm was paid approximately $ 900,000 by the City of Las Vegas to create a show concept for the downtown area. Jerde's design included a floating sky parade which was to be suspended from the canopy. The concept was accepted by

259-509: A two-percent increase on room tax for most downtown hotels. The Las Vegas Redevelopment Agency also agreed to provide approximately $ 27.6 million to build a parking garage and pay for street improvements. The city wanted the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority to pay a remaining $ 6 million for the project. On September 7, 1994, a five-block section of Fremont Street was closed to automobile traffic for good, and groundbreaking

296-439: Is a 12-story, slot machine-inspired zip line attraction. SlotZilla offers "flyers" two levels of lines, the lower "Zipline" (77 feet up) and upper "Zoomline" (114 feet up). The lower lines travel halfway down the Fremont Street Experience pedestrian mall. The upper lines go the entire length of the mall (1,750 feet). Guests on the upper "Zoomline" travel prone, or "superhero-style". SlotZilla cost $ 17 million to construct and features

333-582: Is also provided, on three stages throughout the mall. A parking plaza is located at the eastern end of Fremont Street, owned and operated by Fremont Street Experience. The parking structure has roughly 1,430 spaces. Neonopolis is a shopping complex which operates independently from Fremont Street Experience. It is located at the end of the FSE pedestrian mall, where Las Vegas Boulevard South meets Fremont Street. The initial display contained about 2.1 million lightbulbs controlled by 32 computers located in kiosks on

370-475: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages El Cortez (Las Vegas) Marion Hicks and J.C. Grayson built El Cortez, downtown Las Vegas' first major resort, for $ 245,000. El Cortez opened on November 7, 1941. The location at 6th Street and Fremont was originally considered too far from downtown, but it quickly became so profitable that Bugsy Siegel , Meyer Lansky , Gus Greenbaum and Moe Sedway bought

407-434: Is one of the few casinos to have never changed its exterior façade in Las Vegas, retaining the same signage and ranch-themed architecture for over seventy years. Jackie Gaughan's son Michael Gaughan ran the sports and race book in the current casino under the name South Point Race and Sports Book during the late 2000s, but the sports book is now run by Station Casinos . El Cortez has undergone several renovations, with

SECTION 10

#1732851164417

444-423: Is the world's largest video screen. Originally, nearly 2.1 million incandescent lights were housed in the canopy. With the completion of a 2004 upgrade, more than 12 million LED lamps illuminate the overhead canopy. On December 31, 2019, a more advanced digital canopy was unveiled. Manufactured by Watchfire Signs, a Danville, Illinois-based company, the newest Viva Vision display is seven times brighter and four times

481-537: The Pavilion Rooms were added after the hotel was purchased by Jackie Gaughan . Another 15-story tower addition was opened in 1984. The 64-room Cabana Suites were completed in the former Ogden House in 2009, bringing the total room count to its current 364. Gaughan, a casino owner and operator since the early 1950s, lived in El Cortez's tower penthouse and was known to be on the casino floor almost daily. The property

518-446: The City of Las Vegas embraced the show concept. Kozlowski's concept was to use a combination of four colored light bulbs per "light" which allowed a full spectrum of colors. The Young Electric Sign Company assisted in creating the test panels and in the final installation. After the Fremont Street Experience opened, the light bulbs were checked nightly to ensure that all were functioning properly. To accomplish this massive undertaking,

555-399: The Fremont Street Experience as well as the City of Las Vegas. Ultimately Jerde's sky parade concept was scrapped, but the architectural design for the canopy was carried through. The local architect of record , Mary Kozlowski Architect Inc., cited the following as problems with Jerde's sky parade concept: A new concept for the show was necessary quickly as funds were already available and

592-558: The Minneapolis City Council, "in the palm of his hand." These files further allege that Kid Cann was involved with Bugsy Siegel in the running of the El Cortez Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. John Kell (J. Kell) Houssels Sr. (1895–1979) had originally opened the 59-room hotel and casino before the sale to the major organized crime figures. Houssels purchased the hotel back from Siegel's group in 1946 for $ 766,000. In 1963,

629-438: The boulevard to the hotel's main entrance on 6th Street. El Cortez is also well known in the casino industry as the most prominent "break-in house" for new table-game dealers to get experience before moving onto bigger properties. The separate hotel in the back, the 100-room Ogden House, has been completely renovated into the 64-suite Cabana Suites . In 2008, Jackie Gaughan sold El Cortez and its properties to Kenny Epstein. Over

666-403: The change "comes after careful consideration and decades of trying to accommodate minors in a property that is focused primarily on gaming and popular casino bars". Since the early 2020s, the El Cortez has had a novelty following online on YouTube and other streaming platforms, as it is one of the few Las Vegas casinos to allow players to stream their live table play to online audiences. In

703-619: The display screen. Fremont Street had Las Vegas' first hotel (the Hotel Nevada in 1906, present day Golden Gate ), first telephone (1907), first paved street (1925), first Nevada gaming license — issued to the Northern Club at 15 E. Fremont St, first traffic light, first elevator (the Apache Hotel in 1932), and the first high-rise (the Fremont Hotel in 1956). The Horseshoe was

740-562: The downtown area are lured by the overhead light show and stage shows and stay to enjoy the attractions of the nearby casinos. A $ 32 million renovation of the video screen began in May 2019 and was scheduled to conclude six months later. New LED lights would make the screen four times the resolution and seven times brighter than before. The upgrade was designed and constructed by the Illinois-based Watchfire Signs. Also in development

777-472: The first casino to install carpeting, while the Golden Nugget was the first structure designed from the ground up to be a casino. For many years, the western end of Fremont Street was the area most commonly portrayed whenever producers wanted to display the lights of Las Vegas. The large number of neon signs earned the area the nickname "Glitter Gulch". By 1992, 80 percent of the Las Vegas casino market

SECTION 20

#1732851164417

814-449: The first five floors of the hotel tower. Additional hotel remodeling was underway in 2019. El Cortez includes a restaurant, Siegel's 1941, which features memorabilia from Siegel. In 2021, as part of a $ 25M renovation project, the El Cortez opened up a high-limit room. Effective April 1, 2022, El Cortez became a 21-and-over property, prohibiting minors from all areas including the hotel and restaurants. The property's general manager said

851-502: The latest major remodeling completed in 2006. New carpet, marble flooring, gaming machines, refurbished guest rooms and an upgraded kitchen for the restaurant were added. Although only a block away from the Fremont Street Experience , the hotel is part of the newly created Fremont East section of downtown. It has also created a main entrance off Las Vegas Boulevard (5th Street) by opening a block-long pedestrian walkway from

888-400: The length of the canopy was divided into panels. Each panel was checked by separately turning on each of the four colored light bulbs. A maintenance worker on a lift would then replace any bulbs that were out. The most expensive bulb cost nearly $ 15 to replace. The canopy was expected to cost $ 63 million. Downtown casino owners pledged $ 18 million to help pay for the project, and they supported

925-553: The lights on all of the buildings, including the casinos, under the canopy. Before each show, one bidirectional street that crosses the Experience is blocked off for safety reasons. Concerts, usually free, are also held on three stages. The venue has become a major tourist attraction for downtown Las Vegas, and is also the location of the SlotZilla zip line attraction and the city's annual New Year's Eve party, complete with fireworks on

962-441: The mall. The sound system, using speakers suspended over the mall, was rated at 350,000 watts . Displaying images that looked "real" took some innovation. New techniques were developed to make these curved, low-resolution images viewable from the ground. One adjustment was to move images slowly across the display to prevent blurring. The 2001 upgrade to the sound system raised the power to 555,000 watts. The 2004 upgrade features

999-453: The next decade, Epstein and his business partners put more than $ 50 million of renovations into the property. Gaughan continued to live at the casino and still played poker in the poker room until his death on March 12, 2014. As of 2013, it was the oldest continuously operating casino in Las Vegas. In March 2019, El Cortez was closed by police for several hours following a shooting. In 2018, renovation work took place on 73 rooms located on

1036-407: The overall schedule was set. The concept for the show as it now exists was conceived by architect Mary Kozlowski who had grown up in Las Vegas and knew and loved Fremont Street. It was a light show on the underside of the canopy — the world's largest and most spectacular. Peter Smith, executive vice-president of Atlandia Design, recognized the beauty and practicality of the concept. Jerde, FSE and

1073-471: The property in 1945 from J. Kell Houssels for $ 600,000. In 1942, FBI documents described Isadore Blumenfeld , alias Kid Cann , as the, "recognized leader of graft and racketeering in Minneapolis ". They added that Blumenfeld was, "known to have corrupted City and County officials... and has been known to harbor criminals of various types." The same files also report that Kid Cann often boasted that he had

1110-420: The resolution of the previous LED version. With over 49 million energy-efficient LEDs and a brightness of 5,000 Nits, the new canopy can operate shows during daylight hours. Within the canopy itself are 220 speakers powered by 550,000 watts of amplification. Light and sound shows are presented daily beginning at 6:00 p.m. through 2:00 a.m. on the Viva Vision video screen. SlotZilla at Fremont Street Experience

1147-442: The summer of 2024, El Cortez will undergo a $ 20 million renovation of its casino, adding a high-limit slot room, two new bars, a new restaurant and a Starbucks coffee shop. The existing casino floor will be renovated, adding 10,000 square feet of casino space. Fremont Street Experience The Fremont Street Experience ( FSE ) is a pedestrian mall and attraction in downtown Las Vegas , Nevada . The FSE occupies

El Cortez - Misplaced Pages Continue

1184-426: The westernmost five blocks of Fremont Street , including the area known for years as " Glitter Gulch ", and portions of some other adjacent streets. The central attraction is a barrel vault canopy , 90 ft (27 m) high at the peak and four blocks, or approximately 1,375 ft (419 m), in length. While Las Vegas is known for never turning the outside casino lights off, each show begins by turning off

1221-482: Was a smartphone app that would allow visitors to choose the next song to be played on Fremont Street, and would also allow them to watch the canopy show on their phone. In November 2019, plans were announced for a new LED sign, 27 feet by 14 feet, that would show images of Fremont Street throughout its history. The sign, part of the $ 32 million renovation, would be built on the east side of Main Street and Fremont Street, and

1258-515: Was expected to be operational the following month. Work on the canopy video display was concluded as of December 2019, with the official unveiling scheduled for New Year's Eve. The LED display "canopy" that encompasses the Viva Vision show runs along the Fremont Street Experience promenade from Main Street to Fourth Street. Holding the canopy aloft are 16 columns, each weighing 26,000 pounds and can hold up 400,000 pounds, and 43,000 struts. The canopy, comprising 130,000 square feet of display space

1295-572: Was held on December 31, 1995. In 1996, a horse-and-rider neon sign from the Hacienda hotel-casino was placed at the FSE's east entrance, at the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Fremont Street. It was added by the Neon Museum . Permanent stages were added in the early 2000s, eliminating the need to bring in temporary stages for every event. The sound system was upgraded in June 2001. On June 14, 2004,

1332-526: Was held on September 16. After that, the digging up of the street and the installation of the support poles continued into December. On February 15, 1995, the space frames were brought in and the roof began to take shape. The last piece was installed in July 1995. The official public preview was held in conjunction with the Nevada Symphony . The light show was opened on December 14, 1995. The first New Year's party

1369-526: Was on the Las Vegas Strip . Downtown Las Vegas hotels and casinos sought to build an attraction that would lure more visitors to their businesses. After Paramount Pictures head Stanley Jaffe refused to approve a proposal to build a life-sized Starship Enterprise , the Fremont Street Experience was chosen as the project. FSE, LLC is a cooperative venture, owned and operated by a group of downtown hotel/casino companies (comprising eight hotel/casinos) as

#416583