Las Vegas Online Entertainment Guide

The Weather:
The sun shines in Las Vegas an average of 315 days a year! Las Vegas has the least rain and lowest humidity of any metropolitan area in the United States! The average rainfall per year is 4.19 inches and the average temperature is 66.3 degrees! For monthly temperature averages go to: http://www.lvol.com/lvoleg/hist/weather.html

The Airport:
In 1948 the average number of flights scheduled each day in and out of the airport in Las Vegas was 12. In 1998 there were over 850 flights per day fly in and out of McCarran International Airport. Nearly 34,000,000 people passed through McCarran International in 1999. http://www.mccarran.com

The Resorts:
In 1941 the first luxury resort, The El Rancho Vegas (not the currently shuttered El Rancho) opened on the strip, with 65 rooms, and grew quickly to 125. The El Rancho Vegas had a steakhouse, a showroom, and a swimming pool with luxurious landscaping. Las Vegas is now home to 16 of the 20 largest hotels in the world. The Ambassador City Jomtlen in Thailand is the only hotel in the world with more rooms with 5,100. Following is a list of the top ten Hotels in Las Vegas' by quantity of rooms:

1. MGM Grand - 5,005 (+ 29 "high roller suites")
2. Luxor - 4,474
3. Excalibur - 4,032
4. Circus Circus - 3,900
5. Flamingo Hilton - 3,642
6. Mandalay Bay- 3,401
7. Las Vegas Hilton - 3,174
8. The Mirage - 3,049
9. The Bellagio - 3,018
10. The Monte Carlo - 3,014

Weddings:
Over 100,000 marriage licenses are issued in Las Vegas each year. Over 2,300 marriage licenses were issued in the four days preceding Valentines Day 1999. For wedding information: http://www.lvol.com/lvoleg/other/wed/index.html

The Fremont Street Experience:
The "Experience" includes a 100-ft. high, 1,500-ft. long (3 city blocks) space frame canopy. The light show in the sky is performed nightly with over 2.1 million lights run by over 32 computers. http://www.vegasexperience.com Mark your calendars for April 14th and 15th 2000 I will be performing 'Mime' http://www.expage.com/page/garythemime along with stilt walkers, showgirls, BIG head characters, jugglers and more at the Fremont St. Experience Mardi Gras celebration!

Did you know this about the Luxor?:
There is enough room to stack 9 Boeing 747's in the atrium of the pyramid shaped hotel. The atrium is the largest in the world with 29,000,000 cubic feet of space. There are over eleven acres of smoke colored glass on the outside of the pyramid.

Those famous Shrimp Cocktails:
In 1959 the Golden Nugget Downtown introduced the shrimp cocktail to Las Vegas. To date they have served over 27,000,000 shrimp cocktails. That is an equivalent of 6,750,000 pounds of shrimp.

Nellis Air Force Base:
The Thunderbirds, the US Airforce's famous precision flying team, has been based in Las Vegas since 1956.

The Local Economy:
Las Vegas has the fastest growing economy of any city in the US. In 1993 over 51,000 new jobs were created in 12 months due to the opening of the MGM Grand, the Luxor and Treasure Island. 1999 rivaled 1993 with nearly 25,000 jobs created by the opening of the new resorts, including the Venetian, Paris, and Mandalay Bay, and with the anticipated growth to include nearly 30,000 "other" jobs.

Buffets:
Las Vegas is famous for it's inexpensive and overwhelming buffets. The major buffets average 12,000 guests per day; therefore, each of these major buffets serves more than 4,000,000 meals a year! http://www.a2zlasvegas.com/food/buf-list.php3

Production shows:
The "Jubilee" at Bally's Hotel cost over $10,000,000 to produce. There are over 100 performers making it the largest production show in Las Vegas. The "Jubilee" showgirls share over 1,000 costumes that cost over $3.5 million to manufacture. The cast uses over 1,500 pairs of tights per year, and uses over 325 wigs made from real human hair.

Here is some more interesting "stuff"!

What's-On Magazine offers some great information and valuable coupons. Visit
their web site at: http://www.ilovevegas.com
When in Vegas be sure to pick up a free copy of What's-On!

Not Vegas related, but interesting!:
There's a company called RadioFreeCash.com that pays you to listen to the radio on your computer... and not only do they pay you, but they also pay you for the referrals who you bring to their community. This could mean serious cash for you, especially if you get in early.
You've probably all heard of AllAdvantage and all the money people are making because they got in early. Well, radiofreecash.com is even better, because all you have to do is listen to the radio, which frees you up to do other stuff, like surf the net, get Vegas info. pay the bills, email friends - whatever! They realize that your time is valuable, and they know that paying you for it is the best way to get you to listen - they are effectively starting a revolution in radio, and you should get in early - I did, and you can too!
Just go to their website and sign up! Go to radiofreecash.com using the link below so I get credit for having referred you!! http://www.radiofreecash.com/home.asp?ref=vgvegas

The NASCAR Café opens at the Sahara Hotel on March 2nd, 2000. http://www.nascarcafe.com
The famous lounge band FUNNESSE will perform at the grand opening of the Café and for at least 2 weeks. Stop by and tell 'Crazy Ray' I sent ya! Visit the FUNNESSE web site at: http://www.expage.com/page/FUNNESSE
The "Speed" Roller coaster at the NASCAR Café is almost complete (will open
in April).
For photos of the under construction Speed coaster go to: http://www.vegaspix.com/vp-strip/sahara/roller.html

Visit my own links and photos pages (photos of various Vegas sites updated each week) at: http://www.expage.com/page/vegas2k

Visit the Las Vegas Online Entertainment Guide for all of the latest and up to date Hotel, show, and entertainment information at: http://www.LVOL.com

Visit the LasVegasTalk.com Discussion Board for valuable assistance and information! Do you have questions related to your upcoming Vegas trip? Would you like to attend a LasVegasTalk meet? http://www.lasvegastalk.com

LAS VEGAS! There's no place like it anywhere in the world!

We love this town!

As always, I greatly appreciate your feedback, questions and comments! E-mail me!

See you soon in Fabulous Las Vegas!

Your Vegas Connection,

Gary Jacobson

With contacts in all facets of the hospitality, construction, entertainment, and convention industries, Gary Jacobson gives you an inside look at Las Vegas, as it was, as it is, and as it will be!!! Be sure to check back here every 2 weeks for a new column.
Do you have a question about Las Vegas that you would like to see Gary answer in this column? Email your question to Gary at: VGVEGAS@aol.com