Leaving Las Vegas

This is a shot from the plane as I left Las Vegas this afternoon. I left some cash there too.

This is the Eifel Tower at the Paris Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. The tower is a 1/2 scale, 540 foot replica of the one in Paris France.

This is the famous marquis for the Stardust Hotel and Casino which is due to be closed three weeks from today (November 1st). The Stardust opened on July 2, 1958 at a cost of $10 million. It had 1,065 rooms that rented for $6.00 a day.

The roadside sign was freestanding with a circle constraining an amorphous cloud of cosmic dust circled by an orbit ring and covered in dancing stars. The hotel's name was nestled in a galactic cloud. Subsidiary signs marked out the domain of the Stardust at secondary entrances. Lacking the Desert Inn's lawn and fountain, or the Riviera's dramatic front drive, the front of the Stardust was a parking lot with a sign.

The Stardust will be demolished after closing to make way for Echelon Place, a $4 billion complex featuring 140,000 square feet of casino space, 5.300 rooms, and 25 restaurants and bars. The grand opening is set for 2010.