Frank Sinatra at the Dunes

As they tear down, update, reestablish, redefine, whatever the word, do any of you remember seeing Frank as a headliner? Maybe not even see the show but the sign. I do and I%26#39;m a young 42 y/o man.

It%26#39;s so unfortunate, to me, to see all the older places come down in favor of condo%26#39;s and 5+ star properties.

I just miss the ';old'; Vegas sometimes.

Frank Sinatra at the Dunes

Hey DrVegas,

I saw Frank. It was back when most of the big shows were dinner shows. We sat with ladies and gents who were all dressed to the ';nines';. We dined on prime rib with plenty of wine and visited with our table mates. Frank took the stage and after thunderous applause from the admiring diners, then he pulled up a stool and took a relaxed postue, You could hear a pin drop as her began to sing. The crowd was truely struck with awe.

He moved from one number to the next as smoothly and as sweetly

as honey. His presence on stage was that of total command of the audience and he was such a gentleman.

I am so glad that I did see him. I walked away thinking:

smooth,

controlled,

elegant

and the very essence of cool

I still have my ticket stubs

Frank Sinatra at the Dunes

saw him many times. a great entertainer. in his personal life he was far from a ';fine young man';. don%26#39;t confuse good singing with good living. i saw many shows with him sols and the ';rat pack';. great evenings.

if the public wanted places where we had to dress for dinner and a show, and pay the appropriate costs they would still be in business. we don%26#39;t - too many want to wear shorts to a 5.00 cheap cut of steak. personal chocie is fine, these choices have spurred the proliferation of the condos and megaresorts. bottom line is money for the stockholders and private owners.

DrVegas

I couldn%26#39;t agree with you more. I have learned to accept the fact that LV is constantly reinventing itself and I will adjust to the change- not better, not worse, just different. However, it does make me sad to see so many of the older casinos come down. I don%26#39;t go back as far as you do but I remember the Dunes, Sands, Landmark, DI (I loved that hotel), Hacienda and many many more. I even miss some of the not-so-great ones- Maxim, Bourbon Street, tiny smoke-free Silver City and even creepy Vegas World. They gave the Vegas some soul or character that is sometimes missing in the newer hotels/casinos. I%26#39;ve watched at about 12 hotels being build over the years- and those are the ones on the strip-I%26#39;m not counting the off strip ones. I said my good-byes to the Stardust, Riviera and Frontier in August. Heck, the crummy old Frontier even gave me a Royal Flush on that trip.

We are just going to have to enjoy what is left of the ';old'; Vegas while we can and then explore the ';new'; Vegas together- heck, if we have no other alternative (and I do believe there will always be an alternative ) we can always split the cost!

Now I think I am going to cry!!

I always have 3-4 Sinatra songs on my mp3 player to listen to when I%26#39;m headed west to Vegas. The two just seemed to fit together perfectly. One of my favorite postcards that I found on eBay shows Bally%26#39;s at night simply with the name ';Sinatra'; on the marquee. I, too, am going to pay my respects to the north end on next month%26#39;s trip. Although I swung a comp at MGM, I still fear the day when the average Joe tourist will think that $189 a night is a deal. Seems like we%26#39;re headed that way as the old joints come tumblin%26#39; down.

Unfortunately I never got to experience Frank at the Dunes (or even see the Dunes), but I did have the pleasure of seeing him with my Mom in the 4th row at Harborlights on the Boston waterfront on a gorgeous early September evening. The following January he gave his last concert in Japan. Frank was ';on'; the night I saw him, the previous evening he had sat up drinking Jack and Coke all night in the lobby of the Colonnade Hotel in Boston, Frank%26#39;s Boston homebase (you can book his suite) with Marvin Hagler and he came out the next day and gave us everything he had, including ';My Way';, which by that point he had pretty much stopped performing due to its level of difficulty. I can only watch the tapes of what he was like back in the day, you%26#39;re very lucky.

colonnadehotel.com/accommodations/…

now called the conductor%26#39;s suite

i miss the dunes too. it was a little stale but the south tower rooms were good. that hot dog area wafted all through the casino though.

I have seen 2 out of the 3 must see entertainers:

michael jordan play basketball.

rolling stones in concert.

no Frank, though.

When my parents took us to Vegas as children in the 50s and 60s, and went out for the evening (leaving us tucked in under the eyes of an Aunt or Grandma)...

They loved Buddy Hackett at the Sahara. Later it was Elvis or Don Rickles.

They thought Ol%26#39; Blue Eyes was a hood, Dino was a lush, and Sammy, well, he was before his time.

I later had the opportunity to see Frank many times, including in Vegas, but it was sad to listen as his pipes gradually give way over time (but not his on-stage charisma).

It makes a fine analogy for the old vs new Vegas situation.

Just as the old headliners aged and passed away to be replaced by modern, hi-tech shows and a new generation of star performers; so must the old properties, aging and not so luxurious any more, be replaced by modern, multi-dimensional casinos.

Is it better now than before? That is a good question, but it was absolutely necessary to allow the evolution to take place.