tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50545595886321818642011-05-25T00:34:34.733-07:00Balthazar E.noreply@blogger.comBlogger11100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5054559588632181864.post-90691872310354279462011-05-24T23:59:00.001-07:002011-05-25T00:34:34.746-07:001989 was quite possibly the third biggest year in the history of Las Vegas. It probably only falls behind 1944 (when Ben Siegel bought the Flamingo from Newspaper Magnate Billy Wilkerson) and 1960 (when three singers and a host of friends held "The Summit at The Sands".<br />In 1989, it was a convergengence of two events. First, Hotelier Steve Wynn financed construction of the Mirage. It wasn't even his crowning glory, but it was the Casino that put Las Vegas back on the map for the first time since the late 1960s, when the Rat Pack was quickly leaving their glory days behind and retiring to Variety Shows, Laugh-In cameos, and even appearances on Hollywood Squares - a true sign of being a has-been instead of an up and coming.<br />1989 was the rebirth of UNLV Basketball. Jerry Tarkanian (better known as 'Tark the Shark') sat on the sidelines, biting a white towel while his Rubbin' Rebels continued to dominate only their own conference, but the entire NCAA Men's Basketball scene.<br />They were a team nobody could bet against. At least, not for the time being.<br />Amidst the renaissance, there were still the hard and seedy sides of Las Vegas. Most of those were seen in penthouse suites or in the break rooms and meeting rooms where employees were taken aside and told what to do and what not-to-do. Most of those things on the not-to-do list involved those guests in the penthouse suites.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/5054559588632181864-9069187231035427946?l=lasvegaries.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Balthazar E.noreply@blogger.com0