Question of the Day — 13 May 2010

Finding accurate information about Las Vegas movie locations has proved notoriously difficult in the past. While the Nevada Film Office is helpful, they had less information than we did when we posed your question to them.

However, we're fortunate, in that a former employee of the NFO contacted us several years ago in our publishing capacity about a book she was writing on this very subject, and we somehow managed to excavate some preliminary notes that she'd sent us, which proved most helpful with filling in some gaps in this answer.

We confess that it's been awhile since we watched the movie, so if we've missed any locations that you've spotted, let us know and we'll add them as "updates" to this answer; in the meantime, here's what we've come up with, gleaned from various sources and the farther recesses of our memory:

• Atomic Liquor: Las Vegas' oldest bar, located downtown on E. Fremont Street, was used for some of the bar scenes.

• The Peppermill Lounge: Robert De Niro apparently became so enamored of this classic slice of "old-Vegas" kitsch while filming there that he became a regular while he was in town.

• Ruth's Chris Steakhouse: It's the Paradise Road venue, not the former location on W. Flamingo, that was featured.

• La Concha: The architecturally famous motel (see QoD 10/22/2009) formerly located by the Riviera was a featured location. It's since been dismantled and transported downtown, where it will house the visitor center for the Neon Museum.

• Riviera Hotel & Casino: The Riv was the real-life casino used to double for the fictional Tangiers in the movie, which actually represented the Stardust, property of Sam 'Ace' Rothstein, the character based on Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal, played by De Niro (are you still following?).

• Landmark: Scenes were filmed in the parking lot of this off-Strip property, which was imploded later the same year the movie came out to make room for, ironically enough, the Convention Center parking lot.

• Plaza: As you mention that we referenced in a recent QoD (4/25/2010), downtown's Plaza was used for the scene where Sharon Stone and Robert De Niro argue over missing money in what was then the Center Stage restaurant, now home to Firefly.

• Other scenes: Local filming also took place on the Strip and in Valley of Fire State Park (Route 169, Overton). Other location shoots took place in Baker, Fresno, and Hanford, California.

If you're interested in the movie Casino and Las Vegas' mob history, you might like to check out our limited-edition one-of-kind posters, filmed behind the scenes on location with stars Sharon Stone, Robert De Niro, and Joe Pesci and mobster/consultant Frank Cullotta, who's autographed them all.