Living The Vida Vegas

🎰 I’ve been to a LOT of incredible Las Vegas events over the years. But THIS? Holy shit. What a night! Thank you @NeonMuseum 🤩 STEVE WYNN. In person. At the Golden Nugget. Telling the stories behind The Mirage and how it changed Las Vegas forever. I’m still processing it all. Beyond amazing. Thursday night, October 22, The Neon Museum presented Reflections of The Mirage: A Conversation with Steve Wynn. And what a conversation! The stories. The personalities. The enormous financial risks. The vision. The sheer audacity of building a $650 MILLION resort when nothing remotely like it had been attempted in Las Vegas. And Wynn was VERY much Wynn. Funny, sharp, opinionated, passionate, and remembering details from nearly 40 years ago like they happened yesterday. The man can tell a story! Five quotes that really stuck with me: 💬 “Suppose what you see with your eyes doesn’t match what you know should be there.” The thinking behind The Mirage. Wynn looked at the existing Strip and imagined something entirely different. Not a better version of what was already there. Something nobody had seen before. 💬 “Any fool can make something cheaper.” Classic Steve Wynn! Forget competing on price. Create something extraordinary, something people will travel across the world to experience. 💬 “It couldn’t just be cash registers connected to cash registers connected to cash registers.” I LOVED this one! He wasn’t building another casino with a hotel attached. The Mirage had to be a destination, an experience, a place with a soul. 💬 “Not one inch of neon ever.” Yes, Steve Wynn talking about his hotel designs at an event presented by THE NEON MUSEUM. The irony was delicious! 😂 💬 “At noon on November 22nd, 1989, modern Las Vegas was born.” His words about the opening of The Mirage. And when you consider everything that came afterward, it’s hard to argue with the impact. What made this evening so extraordinary was hearing these stories directly from the man who helped reshape Las Vegas. The decisions, the people, the doubts, the money, and the little details that never make it into the history books. And his philosophy on hospitality? Still incredibly relevant today. I could have listened all night. I’m also incredibly proud that TravelZork Travel and TravelZork were among the sponsors of this special event, in honor of Mark Wojtowicz Jr. of 360 Vegas. That made an already unforgettable evening even more meaningful. Amazing night. BEYOND. 🤑 Just a sneak peek. I have SO much more to share. More soon via @TravelZork!

Today is the 21st of September.