By HANNAH STRANDBERG
A DREAMY DEPICTION OF THE 1953 FLAMINGO HOTEL AND CASINO ILLUMINATED AT SUNSET.
Photography courtesy of PETER MORUZZI
In 1941, the completion of Thomas Hull’s El Rancho Vegas along Highway 91 delivered the first blazing drop of casino glamour to Nevada soil. Followed by the Last Frontier, the lucrative hotel-casinos sparked mogul Billy Wilkerson to build the ultra-modern Flamingo Hotel and Casino. And thus the Las Vegas strip began its journey to stardom. In his book, Greetings from Las Vegas, Peter Moruzzi discusses the architectural transformation of Las Vegas from a bare highway to a Midcentury Modern paradise.