Resorts World’s Stardust Sign is Absolutely Glorious
The surprises just keep on coming at Resorts World, the newest casino megaresort on the Las Vegas Strip.
Resorts World, which opened June 24, 2021, recently installed a sign that’s an homage to the classic Stardust casino.
The Stardust sign replica has special significance at Resorts World, because the new hotel was built on the former Stardust site.
Considered one of the worst days in history of Las Vegas, The Stardust closed on Nov. 1, 2006. Stardust was imploded on March 13, 2007, to make way for Echelon Place, a project abandoned in 2008 due to the Turkish lira plunging in value or whatever. We are a Las Vegas blog, not a historian.
Stardust lives on, however, both in our heart and at Resorts World!
As with most things in Las Vegas, the sign is even better when it’s lit. Take a look.
We sort of went into Googie star shock, actually.
Googie stars are, of course, stars designed in the Googie style of art. The futurist art, inspired by the Space Age, was used extensively from the 1950s to the 1970s, and made its mark in Las Vegas.
The iconic “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign was influenced by the Googie architectural style, as was the La Concha motel lobby (now the visitors center for the Neon Museum).
The original Stardust sign, though, was the most Googie thing, ever, and we fell in love with it during our first visit to Las Vegas.
The new Stardust sign replica at Resorts World does a solid job of rekindling that love.
The original Stardust sign cost $500,000 and was designed by Paul Miller of Ad-Art. The roadside wonder was installed in 1968.
The six figures-plus Stardust sign was made for Resorts World by a company called Kevin Barry Art Advisory. The L.A.-based company “is a collaborative team of advisors and artists that curate, create, and implement visual storytelling for global clients.”
And the story of the Stardust is a great story to tell.
Among its star turns, Stardust was featured in the movie “Casino,” although in the film it was called The Tangiers.
Stardust was also the setting of a spectacularly bizarre TV series, “The Frank Rosenthal Show,” hosted by mobster “Lefty” Rosenthal. Check out some weird facts about a colorful dude.
The Stardust was mobbed up until the Boyd family bought it in 1985.
But back to the Stardust sign!
The Stardust sign at Resorts World has 1,500 LED lights and boasts more than a mile of wiring.
At 2,800 pounds, the sign was a bear to transport and had to be disassembled for installation.
The sign is located near the Las Vegas Blvd. entrance to the resort and sits near Red Tail sports lounge and Fuhu restaurant, or Venue Fuhu as they call it at Resorts World. It’s an area the resort has dubbed The District.
The sign is surrounded by stanchions at the moment, but it sounds like Resorts World is having the pedestal revamped to decrease the chances of boneheads climbing on or otherwise mucking with this beautiful artwork.
There’s a lot of great art throughout Resorts World, but the Stardust sign is a highlight.
It’s a wonderful hat tip to Las Vegas history, and a reminder our modern casinos stand on the shoulders of giants.
If you’re a true Stardust fan, you’ll also want to check out another piece of Stardust-inspired art near the Starbucks.
The Stardust sign at Resorts World is open to the public and free to view.
Of course, you can see pieces of the original Stardust sign at downtown’s Neon Museum.
If that’s still not enough to satisfy your Stardust itch, you can literally touch history by playing slot machines from the Stardust at the Orleans casino. Orleans is owned by the aforementioned Boyd Gaming. The company also has a social casino app that uses Stardust branding.
Another fun fact: Resorts World saved about 100 trees from the Stardust. No, really. They’re planted all around Resorts World, and some are said to be a century old.
Stardust lives on! Big thanks to Resorts World for the eye candy, the photo op and the memories.
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