Silver Slipper (Las Vegas)
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The Silver Slipper was a casino 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
Winchester, Nevada Winchester is an unincorporated town and census-designated place (CDP) in Clark County, Nevada, United States that contains part of the Las Vegas Strip. It is one of a number of CDPs in the unincorporated urbanized area directly south of Las ...
. It opened on September 1, 1950. It was built just north of the
Frontier A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. Australia The term "frontier" was frequently used in colonial Australia in the meaning of country that borders the unknown or uncivilised, th ...
hotel-casino, and they both shared the same ownership, although the Silver Slipper's gaming operations were later leased out. Businessman
Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American Aerospace engineering, aerospace engineer, business magnate, film producer, and investor. He was The World's Billionaires, one of the richest and most influential peo ...
leased the casino from 1968 until his death in 1976. The Silver Slipper closed on November 28, 1988, amid an ownership change. It was demolished shortly thereafter to become a parking lot for the Frontier, with plans to eventually rebuild the Silver Slipper as a high-rise hotel and casino, although this did not pan out. The Frontier was demolished in 2007, for another resort project that was ultimately canceled as well. The Frontier and Silver Slipper sites remain vacant as of 2024. The Silver Slipper was known for its neon slipper, which was preserved after the casino's closure. It stands 12 feet and features more than 900 bulbs. The slipper was installed along North Las Vegas Boulevard in 2009.


History


Early years

The Silver Slipper was built as part of the Last Frontier Village, a western-themed attraction at the
Hotel Last Frontier The New Frontier (formerly Hotel Last Frontier and The Frontier) was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The property began as a casino and dance club known as Pair O' Dice, opened in 1931. It was sold in 1941, and inc ...
. The Silver Slipper, built just north of the Frontier hotel, opened on September 1, 1950. It was originally known as the Golden Slipper. Shortly after opening, the Golden Nugget hotel-casino threatened to sue the Golden Slipper, alleging similarities in design and name. The Golden Slipper agreed to stop using the name, and was rebranded the Silver Slipper by the end of 1950, having bought the rights to that name from a bar and casino located on
Boulder Highway State Route 582 (SR 582) is a major highway in the Las Vegas Valley. The highway is the former route of U.S. Route 93 (US 93) and US 95 (and, historically, US 466) before they were moved to the current freeway alignment sh ...
. The Silver Slipper was a two-story, Old West-themed casino. It featured various games, including a
Big Six wheel The Big Six wheel (also known simply as The Big Six, the Wheel of Fortune, or the Big Wheel) is an unequal gambling, game of chance, played using a large vertical wheel that can be spun. Since 13 May 2002, it can be played legally in licensed ca ...
,
craps Craps is a dice game in which players gambling, bet on the outcomes of the roll of a pair of dice. Players can wager money against each other (playing "street craps") or against a bank ("casino craps"). Because it requires little equipment, " ...
, Farobank,
poker Poker is a family of Card game#Comparing games, comparing card games in which Card player, players betting (poker), wager over which poker hand, hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, with varying rules i ...
, and
roulette Roulette (named after the French language, French word meaning "little wheel") is a casino game which was likely developed from the Italy, Italian game Biribi. In the game, a player may choose to place a bet on a single number, various grouping ...
. A convention hall, located on the second floor, was the largest in the state. The casino would later become known for featuring a collection of artwork by Julian Ritter. The Silver Slipper was originally operated by the Frontier ownership group, before being leased out in 1956. In April 1964, the casino became the first in Nevada to be shut down on cheating charges. Agents of the
Nevada Gaming Control Board The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB or SGCB), also known as the State Gaming Control Board, is a Nevada state governmental agency involved in the regulation of gaming and law enforcement of Nevada gaming laws throughout the state, along with th ...
raided the Silver Slipper for using "flat" dice. Although its table games were shut down, the state allowed the slot machines to continue operating. The casino was closed entirely on May 8, 1964, by the
Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting Taxation in the United States, U.S. federal taxes and administerin ...
(IRS), which alleged that $70,000 in taxes were owed. Later that month, the
Nevada Gaming Commission The Nevada Gaming Commission is a Nevada state governmental agency involved in the regulation of casinos throughout the state, along with the Nevada Gaming Control Board. In 1959, the Nevada Gaming Commission ("Commission") was created by the ...
found the casino's management guilty of using flat dice and revoked their gaming license. The Silver Slipper entered foreclosure in January 1965, but plans by the IRS to sell it were halted after the Frontier owners filed suit, noting that they owned the land and structure. Shelam Inc., a group led by local gambler Sam Diamond, soon took over the casino's lease, reopening the property on October 20, 1965. A $500,000 expansion project was underway in 1966. It included exterior remodeling and a larger casino. The project was designed by Martin Stern Jr. and Homer Rissman.


Hughes involvement and later years

Businessman
Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American Aerospace engineering, aerospace engineer, business magnate, film producer, and investor. He was The World's Billionaires, one of the richest and most influential peo ...
took over the Silver Slipper's gaming operations in 1968, leasing the rights from Shelam for $5.3 million. Hughes had also purchased the Frontier by that point. The Silver Slipper was the only casino that Hughes held personally; the others were owned by
Hughes Tool Company Hughes Tool Company was an American manufacturer of drill bits. Founded in 1908, it was merged into Baker Hughes Incorporated in 1987. History The company was established in December 1908 as Sharp-Hughes Tool Company when Howard R. Hughes ...
, which later became
Summa Corporation Summa Corporation was a holding company for the business interests of Howard Hughes after he sold the tool division of Hughes Tool Company in 1972. Its holdings included casino hotels, aviation businesses, and television channels. After Hughes's d ...
. Because his company had government contracts, it could not donate to political candidates. Hughes instead withdrew funds from the Silver Slipper for political contributions. In 1970, the Silver Slipper became the first casino 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 ...
to hire female table dealers. Summa Corporation attempted to buy the Silver Slipper out of its lease in 1973. However, the ownership group (the former Frontier owners) contended that the option to purchase was assigned to Hughes only, not his company. The group also stated that a $100,000 payment, one of the conditions on the option, was never made. The owners later stated that the purchase option applied to Shelam and should not have been transferred to another lessee. Litigation ensued starting in 1974, when the owners filed a suit against Hughes, alleging he was behind on a year's worth of rent. They sought to evict Hughes and take control of the Silver Slipper. Hughes died in 1976, and Summa ultimately took ownership of the casino. In its final years, the casino employed approximately 600 workers. In December 1987, Summa agreed to sell the Frontier and the Silver Slipper – the last of Hughes' Las Vegas gaming properties – to casino owner Margaret Elardi. Summa continued operating the Silver Slipper until its closure on November 28, 1988, at which point Elardi took over the property. Demolition was underway the following month. Elardi redeveloped the land as a parking lot for the Frontier, and planned to eventually construct a new Silver Slipper on the site, in the form of a high-rise hotel-casino. However, this project did not pan out. The Frontier would be sold several times, and eventually demolished in 2007, for a new resort project that would also be canceled. As of 2024, the Frontier and Silver Slipper sites remain vacant; the latter is still under the ownership of the Elardi family.


Signage

The casino was known for having a large, rotating neon slipper, designed by Jack Larsen Sr. and manufactured by
YESCO YESCO is a manufacturer of electric signs based in Salt Lake City, founded by Thomas Young in 1920. The company provides design, fabrication, installation and maintenance of signs. Many notable sign projects have been produced by YESCO, inc ...
. It is 12 feet high and includes 900 bulbs, with an additional 80 built into a bow that covers the toe area. The slipper was installed in 1954 or 1955, originally on the casino rooftop. The casino is briefly featured in the 1957 film ''
The Amazing Colossal Man ''The Amazing Colossal Man'' (also known as ''The Colossal Man'') is a 1957 American black-and-white science fiction film from American International Pictures. Produced and directed by Bert I. Gordon, it stars Glenn Langan, Cathy Downs, Willi ...
'', in which a man grows to gargantuan height and travels through Las Vegas, at one point dismantling the slipper. In 1965, the slipper was moved to a sign directly alongside the Strip.


Myths

In 1968, Hughes was living in a penthouse at his
Desert Inn The Desert Inn, also known as the D.I., was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, which operated from April 24, 1950, to August 28, 2000. Designed by architect Hugh Taylor and interior design by Jac Lessman, it was the ...
resort, located across the street. Persistent, false stories claim that Hughes took over the Silver Slipper specifically because of its neon slipper. These stories originated with a 1967 article by columnist Earl Wilson, who wrote: Another story is that the reclusive Hughes was paranoid about photographers hiding in the toe area of the slipper in order to snap photos of him in his penthouse. As such, he purportedly wanted the slipper's rotating mechanism disabled and had it filled with concrete. In reality, Hughes had kept his drapes closed at all times, which would have prevented any bright lights or photographers from bothering him. Hughes himself never wrote of the neon slipper in his extensive archive of memos, and concrete was never found in the rotating mechanism.


Preservation

After the casino closed, the slipper was acquired by the city's
Neon Museum The Neon Museum in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, features signs from old casinos and other businesses displayed outdoors on . Efforts to establish a neon sign museum were underway in the late 1980s, but stalled due to a lack of resources. On ...
for preservation. At some point during its years in storage, singer
Wayne Newton Carson Wayne Newton (born April 3, 1942), also known as Mr. Las Vegas, is an American singer and actor. One of the most popular singers in the United States from the mid-to-late 20th century, Newton remains one of the best-known entertainers in ...
posed with the slipper for a promotional shoot. One of his feet broke through the toe area of the slipper as he stepped onto it, a result of its age. In 2009, the slipper was installed on a
median The median of a set of numbers is the value separating the higher half from the lower half of a Sample (statistics), data sample, a statistical population, population, or a probability distribution. For a data set, it may be thought of as the “ ...
along North Las Vegas Boulevard, in front of the Neon Museum. The slipper had undergone restoration, which included new wiring and paint, as well as repair work to the toe area. In 2018, the museum changed the slipper's sole and insole paint from red to blue, matching the original color scheme according to early photographs. Another sign, a neon arch that read "free parking", was also preserved after the casino's closure. It was purchased by the Exchange Club casino in Beatty, Nevada, and was relocated there to mark its parking lot, before being toppled by strong wind in 2018.


Live entertainment

Comedian
Hank Henry Hank Henry (July 9, 1906 – March 31, 1981) was an American comedian, known for his stage work on the Las Vegas Strip for decades. He was also a film and television actor. Henry got his start in American burlesque and was the comic to straightm ...
was a frequent entertainer at the Silver Slipper during the 1950s. Transgender singer
Christine Jorgensen Christine Jorgensen (; May 30, 1926 – May 3, 1989) was an American actress, singer, recording artist, and transgender activist. A trans woman, she was the first person to become widely known in the United States for having Sex reassignment ...
also performed there in 1955. Other entertainers included singers
Fifi D'Orsay Fifi D'Orsay (born Marie-Rose Angelina Yvonne Lussier; April 16, 1904 – December 2, 1983) was a Canadian-American actress and singer. Early life Fifi D'Orsay was born Marie-Rose Angelina Yvonne Lussier in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, to a fathe ...
,
Nellie Lutcher Nellie Rose Lutcher (October 15, 1912 – June 8, 2007) was an American R&B and jazz singer and pianist, who gained prominence in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Lutcher was most recognizable for her diction and exaggerated pronunciation a ...
and
Rusty Draper Farrell Haliday "Rusty" Draper (January 25, 1923 – March 28, 2003) was an American country and pop singer and radio and TV host who achieved his greatest success in the 1950s. Biography Born in Kirksville, Missouri, United States, and nick ...
, and comedians
Billy Gilbert William Gilbert Barron (September 12, 1894 – September 23, 1971), known professionally as Billy Gilbert, was an American actor and comedian. He was known for his comic sneeze routines. He appeared in over 200 feature films, short subjects a ...
and
Buster Keaton Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. He is best known for his silent films during the 1920s, in which he performed physical comedy and inventive stunts. He frequently ...
. A weekly boxing series, ''Strip Fight of the Week'', took place at the Silver Slipper from the 1960s to 1982. A 400-seat showroom, the Gaiety Theatre, opened on August 3, 1966. Another venue, the Red Garter Lounge, was also added. The casino hosted several
burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.
shows, including ''
Minsky's Burlesque Minsky's Burlesque refers to the brand of American burlesque presented by four sons of Louis and Ethel Minsky: Abraham 'Abe' Bennett Minsky (1880–1949), Michael William 'Billy' Minsky (1887–1932), Herbert Kay Minsky (1891–1959), and Morton M ...
'' (1965–1967), and ''Wonderful World of Burlesque'' (1968–1973).
Drag queen A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses Drag (entertainment), drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate Femininity, female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have ...
Kenny Kerr opened a show, titled ''Boy-lesque'', at the theater in 1977. It featured a variety of female impersonators, including Kerr, who portrayed singers such as
Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand ( ; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress, songwriter, producer, and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success across multiple fields of entertainment, being the ...
and
Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...
. The show was a hit for the Silver Slipper, and continued running for the next 11 years, up until the casino's closure.


References

{{Las Vegas casinos Defunct casinos in the Las Vegas Valley Casinos completed in 1950 1988 disestablishments in Nevada Las Vegas Strip 1950 establishments in Nevada Buildings and structures demolished in 1988