The coolest era in Las Vegas history began on the night of January 20th, 1960, when Dean Martin was performing onstage in the lavish Copa Room of the Sands Casino and was joined onstage by Frank Sinatra to sing “Sleep Warm.”  That same year, five entertainer friends – Martin, Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford and the comedian Joey Bishop – appeared together in Vegas-based heist film Ocean’s Eleven and became known as the Rat Pack.  (Nobody knows who came up the name, which suggests a raffish, irreverent and tightly-knit group).

Throughout the 1960s, the group would return to the Sands for a series of classic performances that would firmly establish Las Vegas as the entertainment capital of the US.  Whenever one member was booked to perform, the others would often turn up for impromptu joint show – marquees began to read DEAN MARTIN, MAYBE FRANK, MAYBE SAMMY — and the sold-out audiences would be sprinkled with Hollywood goddesses from Elizabeth Taylor, Marilyn Monroe, Lauren Bacall, Judy Garland and Angie Dickinson, as well as political aristocrats like the Kennedys (the Rat Pack members campaigned for JFK, and helped desegregate Las Vegas, refusing to appear in hotels that did not allow African-American performers).

The group’s popularity began to wane at the end of the 1960s as rock and roll gained momentum and the Rat Pack was seen as too “straight,” but nostalgia for the era has led to a revival of interest in recent years with, for example, a hit remake of Ocean’s Eleven starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Matt Damon, plus sequels Ocean’s Twelve and Thirteen.  Visitors to Las Vegas in search of the iconic Copa Room, however, will look in vain: The Sands Hotel was demolished in 1996 to make room for The Venetian.

Warren Beatty’s film Bugsy reminded the world that Las Vegas had the strangest founding father of any American city, a vicious gangster named Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel.  The handsome, sadistic Siegel rose through the ranks of the Jewish criminal underworld of New York in the 1930s to help found a mafia hit-man organization called Murder Inc.  Ordered to oversee mob affairs on the west coast, he settled in Hollywood, where he hobnobbed with celebrities and starlets.  (Incidentally, Siegel hated the nickname “Bugsy,” which the media gave him during a failed prosecution for murder, referring to his crazy and erratic behavior).

In early 1946, Siegel’s bosses ordered him to inspect a lonely outpost in the Nevada desert called Las Vegas.  Apart from a few dusty saloons that catered to workers from the nearby Hoover Dam, a Californian businessman was building a modest casino-hotel, the Flamingo.  Unexpectedly, Siegel fell in love with the idea and decided that Las Vegas could become a gambler’s paradise: He took over the Flamingo project and started pumping funds to turn it into one of the most luxurious hotels in America, a dreamlike resort with air-conditioned rooms, croupiers in white tails, swimming pools and golf courses.

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There are endless sights to see in Sin City.  On your Las Vegas vacation make sure to visit these must-see sights:

Fountains of Bellagio
The 8-acre lake comes to life multiple times a day in from of the Bellagio hotel.  Don’t miss this complimentary show of water, music and light.  It is a beautiful choreographed aquatic masterpiece.

Eiffel Tower Replica at Paris Las Vegas
Enjoy the best view of the Las Vegas strip atop the Eiffel Tower Experience.  Take a elevator 460 feet above the heart of Las Vegas to enjoy panoramic views of the valley.

Freemont Street Experience
Venture to downtown Las Vegas to experience the Viva Vision canopy light show.

Gondola Ride at the Venetian
No trip to Venice, or Las Vegas, would be complete without a Gondola ride.  Glide down the Grand Canal on a relaxing and romantic gondola ride at The Venetian.

The Forum Shops at Caesars
Get ready to shop ‘til you drop at more than 160 boutiques and shops, and dine at over 13 restaurants at The Forum Shops at Caesars.  Find all the latest fashions from the best known designers.

What other attractions are not-to-be-missed on your travels to Las Vegas?