Fresno is a long way from the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas. But the two cities have a surprising number of connections. Today on KVPR’s Central Valley Roots, how Fresno helped create the Las Vegas we know today.
Thomas Hull opened the very first casino resort on the Las Vegas Strip in April 1941 – the El Rancho. With a rustic Spanish theme and a neon clad windmill, the Las Vegas property was modeled after another El Rancho that opened a few years before – the one in Fresno. It was at the corner of Olive Avenue and Golden State, across from Roeding Park. It was later razed and replaced by a K-Mart.
Then in 1954, Warren Bayley opened what he claimed was the world’s largest motor hotel, the Fresno Hacienda. It was located at U.S. Route 99 and Clinton Avenue. It featured a hall for conventions and concerts, and a mermaid lounge, complete with underwater performances and cocktails. Stars like Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole headlined the Fresno Hacienda stage. It was the mother hotel in a chain that eventually included Bakersfield, Indio and starting in 1956, Las Vegas. Located at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip, the Hacienda was one of the first Vegas properties to cater to families. Today it’s the site of Mandalay Bay.
But the Fresno-Las Vegas connection doesn’t stop there. Fresno born Del Webb’s construction corporation wound up building many of the city’s hotels and casinos, and owned the Sahara and The Mint. Then there was Kirk Kerkorian. Born in Fresno to an Armenian family, he made a fortune in the air charter business, and turned it into a casino and entertainment empire. Kerkorian bought the Flamingo, and then went on to build the International Hotel and two different versions of the MGM Grand. He founded the company that is now MGM Resorts International.
