Casino Gaming History and News

This week marks the 24^th anniversary of the implosion of the Landmark Hotel and Casino. The demolition occurred on November 7^th 1995. In honor of this once great Las Vegas resort and casino, we have added our entire collection of Landmark Hotel and Casino chips to the website this week for you to purchase. You can see them all below.

Before we get to that though, I want to take you through some of the history of the Landmark. For starters, the long process to get the tower and resort finished was a long battle and challenge that went on for many years. Reportedly, the project took over 5000 hours of legal work and resolving 40 lawsuits before the place opened. 200,000 hours were spent getting this project finished. At the time, it was the tallest building in the state.

In 1968, the Landmark would find some financial stability when billionaire Howard Hughes stepped in to purchase it for over 17 million dollars. The deal was finalized in 1969 and that gave the businessman his sixth Las Vegas resort.

Eight years after the project started, the Landmark opened on July 1, 1969. Celebrities including Dean Martin, Cary Grant and Tony Bennett were in attendance. For the press that was there covering the opening, they said the atmosphere was like a Hollywood movie premiere. In the first week of operation, the resort reportedly lost five million dollars. In 1978, when the resort was sold to someone else, it reportedly had lost up to 15 million dollars at that point.

Over the years until it finally closed in 1990, it seems there were many people who had different visions for the Landmark and attempted to buy it. Many of those ventures were not successful. The implosion of the Landmark was featured in the movie Mars Attacks. In the Elvis Presley Movie Leaving Las Vegas, the Landmark is also seen.

Just put online this week, we are showing you our entire collection of Landmark chips you can purchase clicking the picture below:

Additionally, if anyone is interested in this pair of Landmark dice, send me an email to marketing@spinettis.com. I’d be glad to assist. The pair is $15.

   

This week, we are putting a new collection of chips from the La Rue Hotel and Casino on our website for you to purchase. We have also added some new Sahara chips. However, we will talk about those later.

For starters, we are going to tell you about the La Rue Restaurant and Casino that was opened in the 1950s on the Las Vegas Strip. The other name for it was also Club La Rue. Where the Venetian is located today, is where the La Rue was originally located at 3355 Las Vegas Blvd S.

The original visionary for the project was a man by the name of Billy Wilkerson. He wanted to combine fine dining and casino gaming. Mr. Wilkerson was an avid gambler and wanted to have his addiction cured by owning his own casino where he would wager money. It was a three-table game casino according to the book Hollywood Godfather: The Life and Crimes of Billy Wilkerson. Those three table games were blackjack, craps, and roulette. Another famous story in that book is that Club La Rue lost close to $500,000 from their casino action. Some may also know Mr. Wilkerson as the original developer of the Flamingo.

In 1951, a man by the name of Jeff Freedman purchased the property due to reportedly Wilkerson’s crime syndicate connections. Freedman’s dream was to construct the most glamorous hotel in all of Las Vegas. What the La Rue did for Las Vegas, was become the beginning of the formation of the famous Sands Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip in that area. The phone number for the place was 5278. Reportedly, there are no pictures of the La Rue. If anyone somehow has one, please send it along. I would love to see it.

Below you can find each chip from our new collection of La Rue chips for purchase. You can do so by clicking the picture of each chip.

New Casino Chips from the Sahara Las Vegas:

Recently, the new chips from the Sahara Las Vegas Hotel and Casino were released. If you are interested in purchasing the $1, $5 or $25 chip, you can do clicking the picture below. All chips are in excellent condition.

New Video on Nevada Club Home Poker Chips:

This week, Spinettis employee Oscar did a video on our 15-gram Nevada Club brass home game poker chips. You can watch the video below to learn about them:

If you are interested in purchasing any, you can do so clicking the picture below:

This week, I wanted to dive into two Las Vegas casinos from the past. It has also been a little while since we have done a Las Vegas History Series.

This year at Spinettis, there has been interest from numerous customers regarding Sans Souci collector chips. To start, it was located at 3320 Las Vegas Blvd S in the area where The Mirage is today. It was opened from 1957 to 1963. One thing it was known for was its ability to feed 2000 people a day in its dining hall that had 160 seats. The place was also known for having a variety of music acts that performed every day.

There were also two different shows by the names of Midnight in Havana and Midnight in Paris that headlined at different times. An entertainment venue by the name of Round Room showcased burlesque comedy. The resort advertised itself as The Jewel of the Strip.

Focusing on the casino gaming, one thing I learned doing research is that in 1958 there was 25 cent blackjack and the craps table had a $500 limit. As far as the hotel goes, there were 100 rooms and apartments that advertised a telephone in each room. Reportedly, the casino closed in 1960. What I gathered from the history of the resort is that one of its big marketing draws was offering a variety of music.

In 1963, the name of the resort would be changed to the famous Castaways. Below you can find our collection of chips from Sans Souci. You can purchase each one clicking the picture:

The second Las Vegas casino we are going to tell you about today is Vacation Village. It opened in 1990. Located south of where Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino is today, two words to define the history of Vacation Village would be chaotic and drama. There was a fire on the property during construction in 1989. Financial challenges also are part of the resort and casino’s history. Bankruptcy occurred numerous times during its existence.

The property had just over 300 rooms and a 15,000 casino square foot floor. Reportedly, gaming was primarily slots and some table games. Coming and leaving Vegas on a vacation, it would be the first or last casino that you would end up seeing before the airport. So why did the place close? According to RGT Online, there were shortcomings from management and growing competition in the local gaming market. The resort closed in 2002 and was demolished in 2004. Below you can see our chips and card decks for sale from Vacation Village. You can purchase each clicking the picture:

Case of 2017 WSOP Cards Are Now for Sale:

We just wanted to let everyone know that cases of 2017 WSOP cards are now available for sale. We have them available in black or red for $350 and a mixed box for $375. Click the appropriate picture below to purchase:

In the past, we’ve told you about numerous cities in Nevada and their casino history. This week, we are going to tell you about Tonopah, Nevada and show you our casino chip collection from there.

Tonopah, Nevada is located between the cities of Las Vegas and Reno. It is an unincorporated town. In the early 1900s, a prominent poker player by the name of George Wingfield would be instrumental in the town becoming what it is today. He would make investments in mining and banking in Tonopah. The founder of the town was a man by the name of Jim Butler. Today, the population of Tonopah is a few thousand people.

Like other cities in Nevada, Tonopah also had casino gaming. Now, we are going to discuss a few of those casinos in the town.

First, we are going to talk about the historic Mizpah Hotel. Originally, founded in 1907, it was considered one of the first high-end hotels in the state of Nevada. At the time, the hotel cost was $200,000. It had an electric elevator, hot and cold water and many other things that made it unique. In the 1940s, casino gaming came to Mizpah. During its period, of casino gaming, there was roulette, craps, blackjack, craps and slot machines. The hotel was closed in 1999. It remained closed until 2011. Today, the Mizpah Club Casino is adjacent to the hotel. There are slots and table games. You can see a picture below:

One other casino we want to tell you about is Tonopah Station. It is still opened. It opened in 2002. It bills itself as having the only in-house casino in its hotel in the city. It is 24 hours. It has slot machines and blackjack. The dining hall has a great lunch and dinner menu with most entrees under $10. There is also an RV Park that has 20 parking spaces. You can also see a picture of that resort below:

This week, we are displaying our entire chip collection from Tonopah. You can purchase any of these chips clicking the picture:

It is now time for another update of new items and merchandise we got back in stock at Spinettis Gaming Supplies.

How about this cool Las Vegas neck pillow? It can be purchased in either pink or blue for $13.95 clicking the picture below:

We have gotten in a new quantity of all of our Dunes commemorative chips. We have a good quantity of every denomination. You can purchase clicking the photo below:

These cool Las Vegas jumbo-sized playing cards are only $3.95:

Here’s a cool Las Vegas bottle opener magnet for $4:

We have all 3 crap stick sizes in stock again. You can purchase either the 36, 42 or 48 clicking the correct photo below:

36-inch craps stick:

42-inch craps stick:

48-inch craps stick:

Speaking of Craps, we have the black diamond rubber for sale again for $69.95. We also have the green as well.

We also got in a new quantity of our acrylic and wood dice boats. They are both $15. Click the picture below to purchase either:

We have a new style of transparent poker size card deck boxes that are great quality for $1.50 each:

We have some new roulette chips up from the Klondike Hotel and Casino in Henderson, Nevada. You can purchase each chip clicking the picture:

Finally, we have a new style of Copag playing cards called Neo Culture. They are bridge size standard. You can purchase them clicking the photo below:

In the past, we have told you about other cities in Nevada and some of their casinos. This week, we are going to tell you about Elko, Nevada and some of its casinos and chips. For starters, the city has a population of around 20,000. Elko is considered to be The Heart of Northeast Nevada. The town is comprised of ranchers, gold miners and a tourist industry that provides all kinds of jobs.

We are first going to talk about the Commercial Casino in Elko. What’s interesting about this place, is that it was originally a hotel built in the 1860s called Humboldt Lodging House. In 1941, it was renamed Commercial. What makes Commercial Casino stand out is that it has a gigantic polar bear outside the front of the casino. You can actually see a picture below. According to its website and Chip Guide, it only has slot machines in the casino today. At one point, it did have table games. See a picture of the place today below:

Second, in 1972, Red Lion Hotel and Casino opened its doors. Today, it claims to have the only live poker room in the city of Elko, Nevada. The 17,000 square foot casino offers blackjack, craps, roulette and three-card poker. To draw people in, there are slot tournament opportunities for seniors on Sunday. They also offer low odd minimum games starting at $5. Some customers were even offered a $20 free slot play.

Finally, one other casino in Elko, Nevada that we are going to focus on is Stockmen’s Casino. It originally opened in 1944. It has over 150 slot machines and several table games including blackjack and three-card poker. A restaurant at Stockmen’s called the Coffee Shop has everything on the menu for below $20. A 10-ounce New York Steak is $14.99. You can see a picture of it below:

What did we learn in our research about Elko? There are a lot of older and historic buildings. Like other cities in Nevada, Elko has its casinos and they are worth visiting at least once in a lifetime if you are ever in that part of the state.

Below you can find our entire chip collection from all the casinos we mentioned above and some others below. You can purchase each chip clicking the picture:

No Inventory Alerts Feature on Spinettis website:

If you are in need of an item that is out of stock on our website, you can now put your email address on the product that is out of stock. We will email you when it comes back in stock. See a photo below of that example. This is a brand new feature.

Earlier this month, the Hooters Las Vegas Hotel and Casino became the Oyo Hotel and Casino. Looking back at the history of the Hooters in Las Vegas, this resort was located just right off the strip next to the Tropicana Hotel and Casino and across the street from the MGM Grand.

It was 2006 and Super Bowl weekend when the Hooters Las Vegas Hotel and Casino officially opened its doors. Reportedly, former Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino was in attendance and Gene Simmons of KISS.

The casino resort prior to it was called Hotel San Remo. Hooters would end up investing 190 million dollars to make the hotel and casino a more appealing place to stay. They would end up making the hotel rooms bigger. With that effort, the resort actually decreased to just under 700 hotel rooms.  The casino gaming floor was also increased to 35,000 square feet.

Over the years, starting in 2009, there were reports of financial issues at the resort due to declining revenue. When Canyon Capital sold the resort to Trinity Resorts in 2015, there were plans to rename the hotel, but they decided they wanted to keep the Hooters brand.

One of the marketing ploys that Hooters had, was that they offered $1 blackjack. The table was always full. It was no doubt a good place to practice your blackjack game. People could really make $1 bets on a hand. However, there was usually a waiting line to get a seat.

This year, the property was sold to Oyo Hotels and Homes alongside an investment firm for $135 million dollars. Though the name change, the Hooters restaurant is planning to stay at the Oyo Hotel and Casino. They are planning to do a reported 20-million-dollar renovation to the property that started this week.

With a new casino comes new chips. Below you can find the new Oyo Hotel and Casino chips for purchase. They are right off the table from the first evening. You can purchase either the $1, $5, or $25 chip clicking each picture below:

If you need to add any of the Hooters $1 chips to your collection, we have those now obsolete chips below. Those can be purchased clicking each picture.

Finally, if you would like a casino card deck from Hooters Las Vegas, we also have those. You can purchase clicking the picture as well below:

Though not Vegas related, we also have some Hooters decks for sale from Southland Park, Washington that are brand new you can also purchase either color clicking the pictures if you like everything Hooters:

This week, we are going to take you back to an earlier time on the Las Vegas Strip. We are going to focus on the Boardwalk Hotel and Casino.

Besides New York New York, there was also another New York state-themed resort on the Las Vegas Strip at one point. Boardwalk Hotel and Casino was a Coney Island-themed resort. Unfortunately, the wooden roller coaster from 1906, was not rideable at the Las Vegas resort.

With 653 rooms, it was one of the smaller hotels on the Las Vegas Strip.

It all started back in the mid-1960s when there was an idea to build a Holiday Inn Hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. What started as just over 100 rooms, became over 600 by the end. There was one additional expansion at the end of the 1960s. The next one wouldn’t come to 1985. A fun fact, a former owner of the Pioneer Club, Norbert Jansen, opened a gift shop there called Holiday Gifts. Many people knew the hotel during this era as the Holiday Inn South Strip. In 1985, it was renamed to the Viscount Hotel.

By 1989, the name of the resort was changed to Boardwalk Hotel and Casino. Boardwalk had various table games that had $3 limits and slot machines. The carnival exterior of the building was built in the mid-1990s. Some of the things that drew people into the Boardwalk Hotel and Casino included a 24-hour buffet, which was the only one on the Las Vegas Strip. It was called the 24 Hour Surf Buffet. There were also 99 cent margaritas.

In 2000, what is now known today as MGM Resorts International, acquired the Boardwalk Hotel and Casino.

One piece of the Boardwalk Hotel and Casino that still exists today on the Las Vegas Strip is a Prince tribute show by the name of Purple Reign. It is currently at the Tropicana Hotel and Casino. The show at Boardwalk was performed in a room called The Lighthouse Showroom.

According to a news article, the last roll of the dice thrown at the Boardwalk Hotel and Casino landed on the number seven. It was reportedly thrown by a gentleman from Switzerland who had spent many vacations at the Boardwalk Hotel and Casino over the years. The casino closed in 2006 and the implosion took place the same year.

Find below our chip collection, cards and dice from there: 

Our Boardwalk Hotel and Casino Chips:

Brand New Boardwalk Hotel and Casino Decks:

Our brand-new Aristocrat Boardwalk Hotel and Casino decks are only $3. Click the picture to purchase below.

Used Decks:

We also have used decks for $2.50 you can purchase clicking the picture below:

Brand New Sticks of Dice from Boardwalk:

We have a limited quantity of brand new, never used sticks of dice from Boardwalk as well. You can purchase clicking the picture below. They are $16.95 each.