What happens in Vegas ... well, you know the rest. However here are 24 realities about Sin City you likely haven't heard.
1. Many of Vegas' renowned hotels aren't technically located in the city of Las Vegas. A good part of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the renowned "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign-- are really situated in an unincorporated township called Paradise, Nevada.
2. One attraction that is within Las Vegas city limits: Vegas Vic, the large neon cowboy that commands downtown's famed Fremont Street. It's the largest mechanical neon check in the world.
3. More than 41 million visitors cycle through Sin City each year ...
4. ... So it's a great thing the town boasts 14 of the world's 20 greatest hotels.
5. There's so much property for tourists to make the most of, it would take an individual 288 years to invest a night in every hotel room in the city.
6. There's a secret city underneath the city. Miles of tunnels-- originally developed to secure the desert town from flash floods-- home hundreds of homeless residents.
7. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Casino got its name from creator-- and famous mobster-- Bugsy Siegel's sweetheart. Actress Virginia Hill went by the nickname "The Flamingo" since of her red hair and long, thin legs.
8. In the mid-20th century, Las Vegas had its own set of inequitable Jim Crow laws, which-- with the exception of low-wage service jobs-- kept African Americans out of the growing city's gambling establishments and hotels. Even famous performers like Louis Armstrong and Nat King Cole were required to get in and leave the places in which they were performing through back doors and side entrances. In 1952, acting legend Sammy Davis Jr. took a dip in the whites-only pool at the New Frontier Hotel & Gambling Establishment. Later on, the supervisor had it drained pipes.
9. In May 1955, the Moulin Rouge made history when it became the city's first interracial casino. Legendary boxer Joe Louis, a part owner, stated, "This isn't really the opening of a Las Vegas hotel. It's history."
10. In the 1950s and early 1960s, Las Vegas was understood for placing on a various kind of program. At the Nevada Test Site, just 65 miles northwest of the city, the U.S. Department of Energy would test nuclear devices. Las Vegas' Chamber of Commerce saw a moneymaking opportunity, and decided to distribute calendars marketing detonation times and option watching areas.
11. Legendary recluse Howard Hughes explored the strip's Desert Inn on Thanksgiving Day 1966, renting the whole leading 2 floorings. He was asked to leave when he overstayed his 10-day booking. Rather, he began negotiations to buy the 715-room spot. His purchase was complete three months later.
FedEx creator Frederick W. Smith conserved the shipment business with a journey to Vegas. In 1974-- 3 years after he developed the business-- the Yale grad took the venture's last $5,000 and turned it into $32,000 with a weekend of blackjack.
13. Do not disrupt: Vegas has more unlisted telephone number than any other city in the United States.
Nevada law specifies that video slot devices should pay back a minimum of 75 percent of the cash deposited on average. (Though it's worth noting that in New Jersey, home to gambling capital Atlantic City, it's 83 percent.).
15. It takes approximately 10 minutes to capture a marital relationship license at the bureau in downtown Las Vegas, which is open every day from 8 a.m. up until midnight. Not surprising that some 10,000 couples wed in the city monthly.
More than 60,000 pounds of the shellfish are consumed in the city each day. That's greater than the rest of the country-- combined.
17. The half-scale model of the Eiffel Tower, situated outside Paris Las Vegas, was initially planned to be full-size, however due to the close distance of the airport-- simply three miles-- it had to be shrunk down. On the other hand, the Luxor Las Vegas' Sphinx is in fact bigger than the original Fantastic Sphinx of Giza.
18. At 50 tons, the bronze lion outside the MGM Grand Hotel is thought to be the biggest bronze sculpture in the western hemisphere.
19. The distinct gold color of the windows at the Mirage Hotel comes from actual gold dust.
20. There are 3933 guest rooms at Bellagio Las Vegas-- more than the number of locals in the city of Bellagio, Italy.
21. Not into casinos? The city also includes a heavy devices playground where construction enthusiasts can drive around bulldozers for enjoyable.
22. Prior to his death in 2009, Michael Jackson was looking into doing a Vegas residency. He prepared to market it with a 50-foot robot-likeness of himself that would stroll the Nevada desert.
At Vegas diner Heart Attack Grill, waitresses dress in nurses garb and clients can buy an 8000-calorie quadruple bypass hamburger with a side of flatliner french fries. In 2013, one of the area's routine customers passed away ... from an obvious heart attack.
24. From deep space, the Las Vegas Strip appears as the brightest area on Earth. Who cares if it's not in fact in Las Vegas?
Many of Vegas' renowned hotels aren't technically situated in the city of Las Vegas. A great portion of the Las Vegas Strip-- and the famed "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" indication-- are in fact situated in an unincorporated area called Paradise, Nevada.
One tourist attraction that is within Las Vegas city limits: Vegas Vic, the oversized neon cowboy that presides over downtown's famed Fremont Street. The strip's Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Gambling establishment got its name from creator-- and famous mobster-- Bugsy Siegel's sweetheart. In the mid-20th century, Las Vegas had its own set of inequitable Jim Crow see here laws, which-- with the exception of low-wage service tasks-- kept African Americans out of the growing city's hotels and casinos.