Vegas Witnesses Demolition of Last True Mob Casino the Tropicana
Las Vegas said goodbye to the Tropicana casino early Wednesday morning, bringing down the last true mob-era structure on the Strip.
Accompanied by fireworks, the implosion reduced the casino’s hotel towers to rubble in a predawn spectacle.
This marked the city’s first major implosion since 2016 as part of a project to clear land for a $1.5 billion stadium for the Oakland Athletics baseball team. The team is relocating to Sin City as part of its push to become a sports hub.
The Tropicana Las Vegas, which had operated for 67 years before closing in April, was one of the Strip’s oldest properties and a rare remnant of the city’s colorful past.
Tropicana Las Vegas hotel towers are demolished on October 9. The spectacle surrounding the end of the “Tiffany of the Strip” was accompanied by fireworks and a light show.
AP Photo/David Becker
Opening in 1957 with 300 rooms, it cost $15 million to build—a record at that time.
In its heyday, the “Tiffany of the Strip” was renowned for its luxurious design and reputation as a celebrity hangout.
The Rat Pack’s Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr. were all regulars.
Elvis Presley was also known to make appearances at the Tropicana, often catching shows or mingling with friends. Parts of his 1964 movie Viva Las Vegas and Sean Connery’s sixth James Bond film, Diamonds Are Forever, were also filmed there, adding to the building’s allure.
While the casino was famous for its glamorous atmosphere, its history also included ties to organized crime.
Italian American Mobster Frank Costello had a financial interest in the property when it opened. Weeks later, he survived an assassination attempt in New York, and a note found in his pocket revealed the Tropicana’s earnings, suggesting a deeper criminal web.
The casino became involved in a broader investigation in the 1970s, when federal authorities looked into Kansas City mobsters skimming millions from several Las Vegas casinos, including the Tropicana.
Cars drive by the Tropicana Las Vegas on March 28. The site will be used for a $1.5 billion stadium for relocating the Oakland Athletics baseball team.
AP Photo/John Locher, File
Charges related to the Tropicana resulted in multiple convictions, further cementing its place in Las Vegas lore.
The demolition followed a tradition of transforming casino implosions into public events.
“What Las Vegas has done, in classic Las Vegas style, they’ve turned many of these implosions into spectacles,” said Geoff Schumacher, historian and vice president at the Mob Museum.
This approach began in 1993 when former casino mogul Steve Wynn made the Dunes’ implosion an entertainment spectacle, broadcasting the event and staging a dramatic storyline to accompany it.
The Tropicana’s original low-rise wings had survived multiple renovations over the years, making it a rare piece of Las Vegas history amid the Strip’s rapid transformation.
The stained glass ceiling of the Tropicana Las Vegas as seen on March 28, 2007. The Flamingo remains the only Strip casino from the mob era, though it has been entirely rebuilt.
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File
Notable features, like the stained glass ceiling added in 1979, adored for its distinctive green and amber hues, became emblematic of the casino’s midcentury charm.
With the Tropicana gone, the Flamingo is the only Vegas casino remaining from the city’s mob era, though its original buildings have been rebuilt.
Fans and regulars were given a chance to say goodbye to The Tropicana before its April closure.
“Old Vegas, it’s going,” said Joe Zappulla, a New Jersey resident who visited the casino shortly before it locked its doors for good.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.