Lights Dimmed In Las Vegas
- A: Erica Johnson of the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority replies, “The lights on the Strip were not dimmed to honor Sheldon Adelson. Several resorts incorporated a photo of Mr. Adelson into their marquee programming as a tribute.” A photo of that is below.
- Answer 1 of 5: For only the 9th time in history. TURN OUT THE LIGHTS The movement to have the lights dimmed on the Strip to honor former UNLV basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian would place him in select company. The gesture has been done only eight times in.
The lights of the Las Vegas Strip are expected to dim this week for deceased University of Nevada, Las Vegas basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian.
The tradition of dimming the lights on the Vegas Strip isnot a new one. Before the October 1 memorial of the tragic Las Vegas shooting,the community and casinos along the Las Vegas Strip have historically dimmedthe lights in honor of Las Vegas ‘royalty’ who have passed away.
The Las Vegas Strip boasts one of the most awesomespectacles of lighting in the world. Its flashing casino marquees and neonbeacons beckon gamblers from around the world to visit fabulous Las Vegas. Thedimming of the Strip is the ultimate Las Vegas tribute, usually reserved for majorheadliners in Vegas, thus contributing to the overall image of Las Vegas as theultimate show town.
The Rat Pack
The famous group of swinging, crooning, jesting party catsknown as theRat Pack are legends in Las Vegas lore. Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, andSammy Davis Jr. made up the Rat Pack, and their Las Vegas appearances spelledunprecedented casino fortunes whenever they were in town. The Strip lights weredimmed on May 15, 1998 in honor of Frank Sinatra, the day after his death. OnDecember 28, 1995, the Strip went dark three days after the death of DeanMartin. The first member of the Rat Pack to pass away was Sammy Davis Jr. TheStrip went dark on the evening of his death on May 16, 1990.
Dead Presidents
The Strip also dimmed for three minutes on June 11, 2004, inmemory of President Ronald Reagan. Long before Reagan’s term as president, hewas an actor and Vegas headliner in 1954 for a show called The Last Frontier. Theonly other president honored with a Strip dimming was President John F.Kennedy, who was assassinated November 22, 1963. Las Vegas lights dimmed inremembrance.
More LegendaryHeadliners
The Light Vegas
Don Rickles was a legendary comedian whose sharp tonguelashed out with witty insults to anyone who caught his attention. He was aregular Vegas headliner for years, and Johnny Carson nicknamed him “Mr.Warmth.” When Don Rickles died on April 6, 2017 at age 90, the Strip lightsdimmed in fitting tribute to Rickles. His face flashed all over Las Vegasscreens and marquees. Another legendary comedian honored by a Strip dimming wasGeorge Burns, who died on March 9, 1996 at the ripe old age of 100. And in 1977,Las Vegas dimmed the lights after the death of the most famous Vegas celebrityof them all, the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley.
Global Memorials
The Strip has also gone dark on December 1 for several yearsin remembrance of World Aids Day.The longest period the lights have been dimmed on the Las Vegas Strip is 60minutes. Since 2009, on the last Saturday in March, the Strip has gone dark forEarth Hour to raise awareness of climate change. Imagine the massive scale of thelights on the Las Vegas Strip; over four miles of dense Strip lighting,suddenly gone dark for one hour.
Three days after 9/11, several Las Vegas casinos dimmedtheir lights all night long in memorial of the tragic event. The Flamingo,Bally’s, Caesar’s Palace, Paris Las Vegas, and the Las Vegas Hiltonparticipated in the dimming of lights. Other casinos joined in the memorialevent by suspending all casino play for an entire minute.
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The late UNLV coach Jerry Tarkanian is getting an honor afforded to less than a dozen people in history. On Wednesday night, after the Runnin’ Rebels’ game against Boise State finishes, the lights of the Las Vegas strip will dim to pay tribute to the coach who put Vegas on the college basketball map.
Tark’s UNLV teams embodied the the city’s eventual slogan — “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” — so it’s only natural that he’s sent off with a classic desert tribute. Tark, who died last week at age 84, was a throwback — a great sporting character everybody had a favorite story or quote about.
Dimming Lights On Las Vegas Strip
Mine: “I always like to get transfers, especially from the Pac-10. They already have their cars paid for.”
Tark’s 1991 Rebels were defending national champions and one of the most dominant teams in college basketball history. The Larry Johnson-led squad is still the last since the 1976 Indiana Hoosiers to enter the Final Four with an undefeated record, but a shock loss to Duke ended hopes of a back-to-back title and a historic undefeated season. In those two years, Tark’s Rebels won 13 tournament games. In the 23 years since, the Rebs have three tournament victories.
Other people to get the honor of a dimmed Vegas strip are Elvis Presley, Rat Packers Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr., Vegas staple George Burns and Presidents John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan. (The strip has been darkened for other events, such as 9/11.)
Lights Dimmed In Las Vegas N
What’s happening Wednesday is a tremendous honor, but it’s too bad they couldn’t turn the wattage up on all the neon, brightening the city like Tark did when he was the NCAA’s lone wolf out in Vegas for 19 years. Or they could have draped a white, terry cloth towel over the city, if only for a moment.