Milton Prell (September 6, 1905 – June 2, 1974) was a hotel owner and developer most notable for his projects in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, Nevada.

Early life

Prell was born to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family in Saint Louis, Missouri; as a young man he moved to Los Angeles, California. He was good friends with

Colonel Tom Parker Colonel Thomas Andrew Parker (born Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk; June 26, 1909 January 21, 1997) was a Dutch people, Dutch talent manager and concert promoter, best known as the manager of Elvis Presley. Parker was born in the Netherlands and Il ...

, best known as the manager of

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

. Elvis married Priscilla in Prell's apartment at Las Vegas' Aladdin hotel-casino in a private wedding shielded from the media. Prell was married to Devorah Zion on July 9, 1945; they had one child, Sheila Prell (Sonenshine).

Career

Prell started in the gambling business with a "bingo palace" in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Prell ordered that the prizes were to be given honestly to the players and word got out that the place was to be trusted. The bingo palace thrived. Prell was an automobile salesman and later a successful jewelry salesman in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. In 1937, he moved to

Butte, Montana Butte ( ) is a consolidated city-county and the county seat of Silver Bow County, Montana, United States. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of Butte-Silver Bow. The city covers , and, according to the 2 ...

, where he opened the 30 Club. Prell and his family eventually relocated to Las Vegas in 1945, with plans to open a small hotel there. Prell's first project in Las Vegas was Club Bingo, opened on the

Las Vegas Strip The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas city limits ...

in 1947. Prell later opened the $5.5 million Sahara hotel-casino on the property in 1952. Called "The Jewel in the Desert" by Prell, the Sahara had a Moroccan theme with statues of camels standing in front of the hotel. Prell sold the Sahara to

Del Webb Delbert Eugene "Del" Webb (May 17, 1899 – July 4, 1974) was an American real-estate developer and a co-owner of the New York Yankees baseball club. He founded and developed the retirement community of Sun City, Arizona, which was built by his ...

in 1961. In 1965, Prell bought the Aladdin hotel-casino from the Indiana-based Cook Brothers Trusts for $10.25 million on the Las Vegas Strip. The place had been failing and Prell remodeled it and added an

Arabian Nights ''One Thousand and One Nights'' (, ), is a collection of Middle Eastern folktales compiled in the Arabic language during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as ''The Arabian Nights'', from the first English-language edition () ...

theme; it opened in 1966. Prell had added restaurants, a lounge, a 500-seat showroom and a

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, tee box, a #Fairway and rough, fairway, the #Fairway and rough, rough and other hazard (golf), hazards, and ...

.''Las Vegas Sun''
At the same time, Prell's brother-in-law sold his mattress business so Prell could purchase The Mint Hotel and Casino on

Fremont Street Fremont Street is a street in Downtown Las Vegas, downtown Las Vegas, Nevada that is the second-most famous street in both the Las Vegas Valley and in the state of Nevada, after the Las Vegas Strip. It is named in honor of explorer and politicia ...

. Prell promised his brother-in-law a job and made him the manager.

Illness and death

Some time later, Prell suffered a stroke. Prell needed to use a wheelchair much of the time, but continued to walk with two canes through the casino to his office each morning. The Aladdin's profits were dropping and eventually he could not keep up and the Aladdin was sold. He died in 1974.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prell, Milton 1905 births 1974 deaths Businesspeople from St. Louis Businesspeople from the Las Vegas Valley American casino industry businesspeople 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American businesspeople American businesspeople in real estate