Thomas Hull operated several California lodging establishments in the 1930s, including two motel properties that used the "El Rancho" name. Since the opening of U.S. Route 91, connecting Southern California and Las Vegas, the road had become increasingly busy with tourist traffic. Hull selected this site after scouting other locations in and around Las Vegas. The property was located at what would later become the southwest corner of
Las Vegas Boulevard and
Sahara Avenue, an area that would mark the northern end of the future
Las Vegas Strip. The property was owned by Jessie Hunt, who had tried for years to sell it, but had no luck because it was viewed as an undesirable location. Hull was not a gambler, and he initially had no plans to add a casino, until his Las Vegas friends convinced him to do so. but it had yet to begin as of November 1940; at that time, the start of construction had been delayed because of a lack of lumber during
World War II. Construction was underway in February 1941, and work proceeded on a rapid schedule. After nearly three years of planning, the El Rancho Vegas held a preview opening on April 1, 1941. It was attended by 300 businessmen from out of state. The public opening came on the evening of April 3, 1941. Bankers, businessmen, and other people from California and Nevada attended the grand opening, along with acting couple
Rex Bell and
Clara Bow. Work on the resort was still ongoing at the time of the opening, with full completion expected in six to eight weeks, in time for the busy tourist season. Landscaping was among the finishing touches, with grass and trees being planted to give the appearance of an oasis in the desert. The El Rancho Vegas offered a vacation experience to its guests. with a Spanish-style exterior and a cowboy/frontier-styled interior. El Rancho Vegas offered horseback riding, the latter located along Highway 91 to entice motorists. The resort had 65 rooms, which included kitchen facilities. and they resembled a residential subdivision, with private lawns and porches, and paved streets. a barbershop, a health club, and retailers such as clothing stores. For its
high rollers, the casino offered yacht rides on
Lake Mead. Although the El Rancho was a luxury resort, Hull did not want it to be abundantly fancy, out of fear that this would turn off locals. Hull and the El Rancho are credited with the creation of the Strip, as the property's unexpected success prompted other developers to open resorts in the vicinity, eventually transforming Highway 91 into the Strip. Such resorts would re-use the El Rancho's concept of a central casino building.
Early years During World War II, the establishment of the
Las Vegas Army Airfield and a nearby
magnesium plant helped contribute to the El Rancho's success. Shortly after the opening, Hull announced plans for an adjacent housing community. This consisted of cottage homes, built by the government as recreational space for military personnel returning overseas during World War II. These homes were eventually sold to the El Rancho Vegas after the war ended. At the end of 1941, Hull had the radio station
KENO relocated to the northeastern end of the El Rancho property, where it occupied more than an acre of land. He allowed the station to operate rent-free on the condition that it regularly promote the El Rancho as its broadcasting location. KENO operated on the site for the remainder of the 1940s. The El Rancho Vegas underwent several ownership changes. In July 1943, Hull sold the resort – along with the housing project located directly north – to Joseph W. Drown. Hull had found it difficult to operate the resort from his hometown of Los Angeles. In 1945, Clark partnered with two California businessmen, Joseph and Walter Guzzardi; they would operate the hotel and restaurant portions, while Clark would continue operating the casino. Later that year, Clark accused the Guzzardis of mishandling the resort's finances. As a result, Clark had the El Rancho Vegas placed into
receivership, with approval by judge George E. Marshall. In response, the Guzzardis filed a suit against Clark, alleging
malicious prosecution with the intent of defrauding them. They alleged that placing the resort into receivership was done in order to make the mortgage payment come due. The Guzzardis ultimately had to sell their shares to Drown at a steep loss. They also alleged that Marshall was a close friend of Clark, and that his gambling debt at the El Rancho Vegas was forgiven in exchange for approving the receivership. Marshall denied the allegations. With the resort still in receivership, Drown agreed to take over ownership again, doing so in February 1946, after the resort exited bankruptcy. It was then briefly leased to several corporations, led by Sanford Adler.
Herb McDonald, the director of entertainment and publicity for the resort, added an
all-you-can-eat buffet in 1946. The idea was conceived late one night after he laid out ingredients on a bar to make a sandwich, attracting the attention of hungry gamblers. The buffet was known at various points as the Midnight Chuck Wagon and as the Buckaroo Buffet. It proved to be a success, popularizing the buffet concept in Las Vegas that would become common in other resorts there. In 1947,
American Hotel Association named it as the nation's "ideal western hotel". At the time, the casino floor featured "the only gambling horse in the world." The horse, named Lucky Silver, would nudge chips into place on a roulette table.
Katleman family Adler's lease ended in 1948, and Drown leased the El Rancho Vegas to a different group later that year, giving them the ability to purchase the resort at the end of a 10-year lease. Adler threatened legal action, arguing that he should have been first in line for a potential purchase. The new group included Jake Katleman, who served as the casino manager, and was the principal stockholder in the El Rancho Vegas. Katleman was known to be superstitious and would sprinkle salt around gaming tables that lost money. Jake's nephew,
Beldon Katleman, booked most of the El Rancho's entertainment. In June 1950, Jake Katleman died from injuries he sustained in an automobile accident. A month after his death, plans were announced for an expansion and remodeling of the El Rancho. Beldon Katleman took over operations at the end of the year, after buying out the interests of other partners who did not share his vision for resort improvements. In 1951, Katleman began remodeling the El Rancho Vegas and updating its ambiance, with designer Tom Douglas in charge of the renovations. In 1952, three stockholders in the resort filed a federal suit, alleging that majority holders such as Beldon Katleman did not acknowledge the sale of 495 shares which were purchased by the minority holders. The shares had previously been owned by Jake Katleman until his death. The suit requested that the El Rancho Vegas be placed into receivership, although this effort was unsuccessful. despite objections from Jake Katleman's widow, Liberty, who received monthly payments from her husband's estate. She argued that Beldon Katleman's offer was too low. In 1953, a customer, John Maher, alleged that he was held under armed guard at the El Rancho Vegas, after writing $400 in bad checks. He filed charges against Katleman and the El Rancho, alleging
false imprisonment and seeking
damages of $172,000. Maher subsequently withdrew the complaint, although he later filed a $3 million suit, alleging false imprisonment and battery. His wife also filed a suit for $100,000 in damages, saying that she too was detained after arriving at the resort with $400 to have her husband released. A jury eventually ruled in Katleman's favor. In 1953, Douglas was hired again to enlarge the casino's dinner theater, as part of a $3 million modernization of the resort. Katleman had the western theme replaced with more of a French provincial style. The Round-Up Room was renamed as the Opera House, which also served food. In 1957, Katleman announced plans for an expansion the following year that would include new rooms, a cocktail lounge, and entertainment facilities. Ohio industrialist Ben Aronoff became a 50-percent partner and would invest in the resort and its expansion. Katleman would remain as the El Rancho's manager. At the time, the hotel had 211 rooms. Katleman was optimistic about the resort's future because of the imminent opening of the
Las Vegas Convention Center nearby. The El Rancho's casino was closed on February 16, 1959, for the first time in its history, The case was soon settled, and the casino reopened on February 18, 1959. However, Katleman later sued Aronoff for financial losses caused by the casino closure, and Aronoff threatened to file another writ. A judge eventually ruled in Aronoff's favor on June 15, 1960, saying that Katleman still owed him $240,000.
Fire Around 4:30 a.m. on June 17, 1960, a fire broke out in the El Rancho's main building, which contained the casino, offices, buffet, lounge, steakhouse, and the Opera House dining room and showroom. The fire began in a kitchen located next to the Opera House. From there, it spread rapidly and destroyed dressing rooms, a restaurant, and several stores in the pool area. Within 20 minutes, the fire had engulfed the theater, lounge, and restaurant. but the main building – made of wood Ultimately, the cause of the fire was never determined. The El Rancho Vegas had 400 employees who were put out of work because of the fire and closure. Immediately after the incident, Katleman was considering multiple options for reopening the resort. One possibility was to house the facilities in a giant tent. News about Katleman's rebuilding was occasionally reported over the years, but such plans never came to fruition.
Final years In 1962, Katleman engaged in a failed effort to get the adjacent San Francisco Avenue renamed after the El Rancho; the road was instead renamed
Sahara Avenue, after the
Sahara resort located across the street. During 1962,
Thunderbird resort, also located across the street, operated 88 of El Rancho Vegas's rooms under the name Thunderbird West, through a lease that extended into 1963. The following year, Alfred Hotels, Inc. announced that it had leased the hotel buildings from Katleman. Alfred Hotels planned to operate them as El Rancho Vegas Motor Inn. Refurbishments were underway at that time, including remodeling of the swimming pool. A wax museum and antique store were opened on the property in 1965, joining the motel. El Rancho Vegas struggled financially as a non-gaming motel, The cottages were then used as warehouse storage before being demolished, In mid-1978, three more buildings were moved to
Old Vegas, an Old West amusement park outside of
Henderson, Nevada. Aside from the cottages, 14
Washingtonia palm trees were also relocated in 1978, to the newly renovated
Desert Inn resort nearby.
Proposed redevelopment The El Rancho Vegas property was vacant as of 1979, Several projects were proposed for the site, but were never built. In 1993, there were plans to construct a $5 million entertainment complex that would include a
golf driving range, miniature golf courses, batting cages, and a race track. Hughes'
Summa Corporation would lease the land to the developer. A baseball stadium was also being planned for the property in 1995, as part of the All-American Family Sports Park. However,
William Bennett purchased the property from Summa Corporation later that year, for $40 million. Some preliminary foundation work had already begun for the sports park when Bennett canceled the company's lease. Real estate developer
Donald Trump also discussed a possible purchase of the land, but passed. In the late 1990s, a group planned to build a western-themed resort on the site. It would include a
Billy Bob's nightclub and a 5,000-seat arena with daily rodeo events. However, the group had difficulty raising money to build the project, and it never materialized. In 2000,
Hilton Grand Vacations announced plans to build a timeshare building on part of the property. The
Hilton Grand Vacations Club would eventually open in 2004, on 10 acres located at the southern edge of the El Rancho property. He pulled the property off the market in 2002, believing that its value would increase further in the years to come, as the north Las Vegas Strip was expected to see new development. Bennett died later in 2002, and the property was sold to
MGM Mirage in 2007. The company, partnered with
Kerzner International Resorts and
Dubai World, planned to build a
mixed-use development project with hotels and a casino, similar to MGM's
CityCenter. Construction was to begin in 2009, with the opening expected three years later. The project, sometimes referred to as CityCenter North, was canceled because of the
Great Recession. Ultimately, MGM opened its
Festival Grounds on the property in 2015. This development saw minimal success, == Entertainers and shows ==