VEGAS WORLD MEMORIES

Ahhhhh, . . . fond memories, indeed !

As DonDiego recalls his first wife and he took advantage of Mr. Stupak's offer on multiple occasions in the 1980s. The first time was in response to an add on the back of Parade Magazine in the El Paso newspaper. Later offers were proffered directly via mail from Mr. Stupak, the "Polish Maverick" himself.

His spouse and DonDiego would take advantage of every detail of the program, . . . usually turning the $200 in "casino action chips" into about $100 cash at the blackjack table, where the even-money bet stipulation meant blackjacks also paid even-money, . . . playing the $400 "special" slot-tokens into the specified machines usually resulted in about $30 cash, . . . collecting all the "gifts", . . . and seeing all the "free shows" too. As DonDiego recalls there was also a bottle of wine bearing the Bob Stupak label on the table in the room upon arrival, . . . or perhaps DonDiego was a really special guest.

DonDiego also recalls the offer to participate in ownership of the Stratosphere Tower Corporation. He thought it would be cool, . . . but, nonetheless, declined the offer. The corporation eventually went bankrupt.

Las Vegas was more fun back then.

Link


The above link is a sentimental journey about Vegas World authored by a guy named Matt. He recounts the good ole days of how he and his buddies took advantage of the offerings of the promotions at Vegas World. He illustrates how they strategized playing the non-negotiable chips on craps and I believe they won money. He then tells how Vegas World later doubled the offer giving $800 in non-negotiable gaming chips and $200 in slot play, etc. This link has been posted on these boards in the past but it's an interesting read for those who might not have seen it yet.

Stupak wanted to build a themed hotel and casino that looked like the Titantic from the outside. There would also be a theatre that looked like a huge iceberg.

How symbolic this project was of Stupak and Thank God it never got pass the zoning commission.

Who among us doesn't yearn to play crapless craps while being constantly reminded of their great uncle and aunt's floating corpses?

I was there in 93, my first trip. Had to love the mirrors, the mix of cheesiness, kitsch and vague danger in the casino and surrounding area. The generally accepted consensus was that the "special" slots returned about 10%. Nobody even believes they had 10-6 (yes 10-6) Jacks or Better. Sure don't remember any pool though. Anyone have any pics of the inside?

I can still see those colored bubble tubes in my mind, to this day. They to me were one of the "signature" features that made this place so tacky.

As far as the million dollar display, I read elsewhere that under the pile of 5's and 10's was a check for $9XX,000, which brought the "value" to $1 million. That is pure Stupak.

I never stayed there, but regularly took advantage of a promotion for players where you paid $2-3 to register for a program that gave you free chips, and slot play, given in pieces after 15-25 minute increments. You had to go back to the promotions booth within 5 minutes +/- of that increment to get the next reward, and the old ladies in the booth enforced those times like their lives depended on it. We had it timed so that we would walk over to IHOP for breakfast during the longest increment of the program, so the 2 or so hours of hanging around wasn't really that imposing. It was a average $25 profit for each of us every time, and the only risk was the $2-3 registration fee.

I remember the 10/6 jacks or better at Vegas World.

I never stayed there, but it brings back fond memories of my first hand pay. I won $100 on a nickle machine

Never stayed there either. kinda cool!