You asked for it, you got. Based on feedback from you, my YouTube viewers and podcast listeners, you seem to like the little updates more than single topic podcasts. I agree. They are more timely, they can be more informative for the Vegas Tourist heading this way soon. Throw in an occasional interview, maybe a guest co-host and of course, my always popular unbias commentary. (cough-cough)
Here it Is. Mondays with Mark
Welcome to the first edition of Mondays with Mark. Although the posting of the episodes and the title for YouTube will be Mondays with Mark, the podcast version will stay “The Vegas Tourist Podcast”. Helps with the continuity as well as the numbering for iTunes!
[arve url=”https://youtu.be/UqX1YrFRN-o” thumbnail=”9924″ title=”The first episode of Mondays with Mark – The Vegas Tourist” /]It’s Tuesday
I know, its called Mondays with Mark and I will try my best to get them out each and every Monday. If you know me or have followed the blog for very long, you know I don’t exactly have the best record on keeping to a publishing schedule. So occasionally one may not be posted on Monday! They will be weekly and they will be current Las Vegas updates. Plus maybe a couple of occasions non-Vegas updates as well.
I can promise you that 90% of them will be under 10 minutes. Easy to consume, to read, to listen to and to move on from.
Valentines Day 2019
Valentine’s day 2019 marked the 7th Anniversary for The Mob Museum in Downtown Las Vegas! They officially opened on February 14, 2012. Their official name is The National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement.
The Mob Museum is dedicated to featuring the artifacts, stories, and history of organized crime in the United States, and Las Vegas in particular. It does an equally good job of covering the Law Enforcement side of the Mob world. What they did to try and stop the crimes and criminals. So it’s not just about the bad guys, it shows that the good guys do win!
The museum is housed in the former Las Vegas Post Office and Courthouse, which was built in 1933 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Inside the three floors are active and informative exhibits including the actual wall, brick by gunshot hole brick from the St. Valentines Day Massacre Wall, Al Capones pistol, an electric chair. On the second floor courtroom, which was the location of one of fourteen national Kefauver Committee hearings to expose organized crime held in 1950 and 1951 and many more. Is where they focus on Las Vega and the mob.
And now they have added an underground “Speakeasy” bar for an added mob flair!
The Stratosphere re-brands
The Stratosphere has always been known by locals and frequent visitor’s as simply “The Strat. Now the new owners have made that the new name of the place. Now it is simply called THE STRAT, Hotel, Casino and Skypod. The property was purchased in 2017 by Golden Gaming (who also own the PT’S here in Vegas) and has been totally renovated since the beginning of last year.
SkyPod??
The “Skypod” refers to anything at the top of the Strat’s tower, including the revolving Top of the World restaurant, 107 SkyLounge and the rides: Sky Jump, Big Shot, Insanity and X-Scream. And now there is talk about a “Skywalk” feature. A glass deck you will be able to walk out on to that overhangs the “pod”
Plans have been approved with the City for a deck that would extend out from the building with glass flooring to see all the way down to the Strip. The permit mentions “glass platforms and connection to supports,” “glass exterior walls and barrier walls” and “cable ties and actual connections to plates/supports.” From the drawings, it looks similar to the Skywalk at the West Rim of the Grand Canyon
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Whiskey Licker Bar and Hotel Apache
Downtown Las Vegas is gaining another bar and 81 more hotel rooms. The historic Binions Casino has announced plans to open Whiskey Licker Up and Down along with a boutique hotel named the Hotel Apache.
Whiskey Licker Up will be a full-service saloon with a rotating bar as its centerpiece. The new bar and restaurant will be 6,500 square-feet and located on the second floor on the the southwest corner of Binion’s, just above the existing Whiskey Licker Bar. The new venue will feature drinks, food, dancing, live entertainment and a mechanical bull. They’re hoping to open by this summer.
On the opposite corner, Hotel Apache will open. Hotel Apache pays homage to its past. What is the original Binions started out as Hotel Apache and it opened in 1932. Benny Binion bought it in 1951 and renamed and expanded it as Binions Horseshoe. The new boutique hotel will have vintage-style furniture to keep the old Vegas vibe intact with modern amenities like flat screens and USB ports!
It’s long been said the old hotel was haunted, so go figure, that may make for some interesting marketing points!!
The main tower, the original “Mint Casino hotel” will remain closed for the foreseeable future. All the rooms were closed a decade ago, mostly blamed on the bad economy. The mint tower was closed due to land lease issues with the family’s who still own the land the hotel tower sits on. Talk about old Vegas style business deals!
“Legends in Concert” Opens at Tropicana
What is now the longest running Show on the Las Vegas Strip has moved. “Legends in Concert” first opened in 1983 at the Imperial Palace. Legends then moved to Harrah’s in 2009 before spending the past 5 years at the Flamingo.
Their new home at Tropicana Las Vegas is the Legends in Concert Theater. The four acts that will open the new show are Frank Sinatra (Brian Duprey), Elvis Presley (Cody Slaughter), Lady Gaga (Tierney Allen) and Whitney Houston (Jazmine Katrina). Legends will perform 6 days a week with Sunday being dark.
Well, that’s this weeks roundup…
Hope you enjoyed this new feature -please let me know your thoughts in the comments.
Look forward to this every Monday and of course, can catch the audio version as a podcast thru all the usual podcast services.
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