For this answer, we enlisted our Neon Nuptials author, Ken Van Vechten. Even though, since taking on the Las Vegas wedding guidebook job, he’s personally witnessed 792 Las Vegas weddings (give or take 750 or so), this one sent him off on a heavy-duty research jag -- which is exactly the kind of questions we like, when it comes to our guest experts, that is. (When it comes to the staff writers, we like the ones that take no research whatsoever.)
So here’s what Ken has to say about a "daily double."
Different is standard when it comes to Vegas vows. In a helicopter, on a thrill ride, beside the crap table, at a drive-through window on scooters dressed as woodland creatures (yes, you read that correctly), hell, a fat guy dressed as Elvis with bad muttonchops —- is there any other kind? —- doesn’t even show up on the radar screen when it comes to being the backdrop for a neon nuptial.
So if the in-laws are locking horns even before the usual first-ever inter-familial confrontation —- who carves the holiday turkey? -— fear not. You can have your wedding and repeat it, too. Sort of.
It’s perfectly lawful and legitimate to have two big events, only one of which is an actual marriage ceremony with a license and signatures and official records and possible dire financial consequences down the road. As with a vow renewal, the second or show wedding has no legal footing; lawfully married people can’t be twice tied.
Thus, the form of Ritual Dos will largely depend on the officiate’s willingness to say the words. You see, in a town that’s gotten rich rich rich off licentiousness, some chapels and officiates have varying degrees of beliefs as to whether marriage is more of a civil contract or a religious arrangement; some, for instance, won’t perform non-binding commitment ceremonies for gays and lesbians.
Marryin’ Sam at the Little Hotbed of Connubial Bliss might be very willing to say the words, "I now pronounce you blah blah blah," even if it means nada to the state legislators (they write the laws on such stuff), while Minister Matt at the Twinkling Star Chapel and Dry Cleaner might steer more toward having you just say how glad you are to have each other and other such deep and meaningful platitudes.
Calling around to a good number of the glitzy Strip chapels and some of the independents, we learned that dual ceremonies aren’t as common as we anticipated. Renewals are big business when it comes to Vegas Weddingmart, and those happen by the boatload. But they’re almost always tied in with an anniversary, a special occasion, or just a wild-hair impulse after a night on the town.
Long-time Vegas wedding professional Kris LaBuda of the Flamingo Wedding Chapel, for example, recalls a time when a couple eloped to Vegas, then some number of months later had a "faux" ceremony with the relatives present, and the family had no clue that what they were witnessing was a fait accompli. (Good plan: You still get a haul of wedding gifts.) She’s never seen a daily double, however.
A Special Memory Wedding Chapel downtown, for another, is more than happy to "cover" for couples and even hands out novelty wedding certificates to commemorate the second-happiest day in its couples’ lives.
Since Vegas chapels love Ben Franklins almost as much as they love Cupid —- after all, you’ll pay twice for the honor of two weddings —- we suggest calling whatever places strike your fancy to see who’s willing to let you say "I do" and "I already did," in what format and at what cost.
Happy Hitchin’!
