Caesars Palace : The First Themed Casino in Las Vegas
“ The agglomeration of Caesars Palace and the strip as a whole approaches the spirit , if not the style of the late Roman Forum with its eclectic accumulation ” ( 51 ). The sin and simulation of the second largest tourist draw in America owes its modern existence to a man who hated being poor ( Hopkins 92 ).
Sarno ’ s notion of a themed hotel was a total concept including the costumes for the cocktail waitresses . His idea of marketing research was , “ I ’ ll do what I think is fun , and everyone else will think the same thing is fun too !” ( Sheckells 1 ). Sarno insisted there was no apostrophe in Caesars . He stated , “ I am going to create the feeling everyone that is in the hotel is a Caesar ” ( Early 71 ). The hotel construction cost nineteen million dollars . Hal Rothman ( 2002 ), author of Neon Metropolis , noted the finished edifice embodied Sarno ’ s design . “ The casino was elliptical reflecting his belief that egg-shaped structures relaxed people ” ( 18 ).
Sarno commissioned a potpourri of replicas to adorn his dream . He bought Carrara marble ; the same medium used by Michelangelo , and hired sculptors at the cost of $ 200,000 . He ordered many statues of Venus and several works depicting scenes of “ Roman military conquests and women as booty ” from companies that advertised museum quality reproductions ( Malamud & McGuthrie 255 ). His luxurious hotel-casino remains a simulacrum of ancient Rome .
Sarno created an elaborate entry garden replete with reproductions of art encouraging guests to “ leave the real world and enter this fantasy world ” ( Sheckells 1 ). “ Caesars Palace guests are meant to have passed through the other side of a movie screen in a Hollywood inspired projection of ancient Roman opulence and decadence ” ( Malamud & McGuthrie 251 ). Theming distanced guests from their everyday world , and “ concerns that might inhibit their gambling ” ( Hess 89 ).
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