Question of the Day - 09 October 2024

We saved this question for today, as the Tropicana's two hotel towers were imploded early this morning.

The creator of the 4,000-square-foot stained-glass dome that graced the ceiling of the Tropicana's table-game pit for many decades was Los Angeles-based Judson Studios.

Founded by the painter and professor William Lees Judson in 1897, Judson Studios is now run by William Judson's great-great grandson. Judson claims to be the oldest family-run stained-glass company in America (and we believe them). JUDSON: Innovation in Stained Glass, published in 2020, is a beautiful 240-page coffee-table history of the family and company. 

In 1979, Ramada, which had just bought the property, paid Judson $200,000 to design, manufacture, and install the stained-glass dome as part of its multi-million-dollar renovation of the Trop, which included the five-acre water park that was revolutionary at the time. It was not only Judson's largest job up until that date (after 82 years in business), it was also the largest stained-glass barrel dome in the world at the time. 

And yes, it was just one of the jobs Judson was doing in Las Vegas in those days. Several smaller projects are lost to history (though the 30-foot Tiffany-style stained-glass mural, The Garden of Earthly Delights, at Barbary Coast wasn't one of them; it among other Las Vegas stained-glass works was produced by Las Vegas-based Perkins & Son Stained-Glass Studio).

Judson also installed the stained-glass domed ceiling at the Palace Court restaurant at Caesars Palace, the iconic French restaurant that, when it opened in 1975, was the fanciest (most expensive) eatery in the city; it closed in 2000. Luckily, the stained-glass dome remains and now graces the ceiling above the rotunda in the 4,000-square-foot, three-bedroom, butler-served Neptune Villa at Caesars. You can see it here; click on View Photos in the bottom right-hand corner of the banner and scroll through till you arrive at number 14. 

David Judson, the fifth-generation president of Judson Studios, told 8NewsNow that the only other stained glass that Judson Studios produced and remains in Las Vegas is at the former home of Siegfried and Roy. 

As for the future of the Trop's 107-by-35 foot barrel dome, it's been moved to storage and awaits a plan that hasn't been announced. It would be great to see it at whatever casino is built on the Tropicana property.