Tuesday, Nov. 26, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.
The Hacienda opened May 5, 1956 (Cinco de Mayo). It opened without a casino/gaming license (fully equipped casino area but no dealers, no gamblers) because we couldn't get Carson City to grant us a license.
The Las Vegas SUN newspaper, dated Aug. 24, 1956, reported: Hacienda gaming license still unapproved because "Tax Commission Thinks Vegas Gambling Economy Due to Bust."
Descendants of Nostradamous, they weren't!
Also for your history file: You write the Hacienda "did enjoy popularity because of its proximity to McCarran Airport, just two miles away.;;
Well, that's just a small part of the story. We were very successful because we originated the very popular Champagne Flites out of Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco on daily scheduled "Evening in Las Vegas" package deals. We owned two Lockheed Constellations and one DC-4 equipped with a piano bar with Dick Winslow at the 88 keys to entertain passengers on their trip to Las Vegas.
Our flights were so successful, we had to add additional rooms at the same time the Royal Nevada was going borke, the Dunes went bankrupt and the Desert Spa on the Strip disappeared.
And my last constructive addition to your article is my plea to give more dignity to the original neon logo sign that greeted everyone coming to Las Vegas on the original Los Angeles highway that passed our front door.
You called this now enshrined neon sign: "... a neon cowboy atop a horse. ..."
Ed, that hurt! We always referred to it as "The Hacienda Caballero Astride His Palomino"!
Dick Taylor
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