Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Volcano’s creator to be inducted into Gaming Hall of Fame

Mirage volano

Ethan Miller

New Gaming Hall of Fame inductee Don Brinkerhoff created the volcano at the Mirage, erupting March 18, 2001.

If the success of Las Vegas can be attributed to the spectacular escapism of the megaresorts, then Don Brinkerhoff can claim at least some of the credit for the city’s growth.

Brinkerhoff, a landscape architect and founder of Lifescapes International, created the exploding volcano in front of the Mirage, which opened in 1989, arguably the Strip’s first modern megaresort.

The volcano was the first of several projects Brinkerhoff did for Steve Wynn. He built dozens for other resort companies on the Strip and around the world.

For his work, Brinkerhoff, along with four other gaming industry leaders, will be inducted into the Gaming Hall of Fame on Wednesday at an invitation-only event as part of the Global Gaming Expo.

The other inductees include gaming technology executive John Acres; Lyle Berman, cofounder of Grand Casinos Inc.; Redenia Gilliam-Mosee, the first African-American woman vice president in the casino industry; and Indian gaming pioneer Richard A. “Skip” Hayward, who was involved with the development of Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut.

There have been 90 inductees since the American Gaming Association created the honor in 1989 to recognize people “who have distinguished themselves through significant contributions to the industry.”

Initially, Hall of Fame members were primarily casino owners and executives. But the list grew to include entertainers, politicians and even celebrity chefs.

Brinkerhoff said he’s excited about the award because “it means people have noticed our work, and we all depend on acknowledgement for our satisfaction.”

But he said the award is also somewhat bittersweet because of the recent death of architect Joel Bergman.

Bergman, who died Aug. 24 at the age of 80, designed both the Mirage and Treasure Island.

“We’d done many projects together over the years, both when he was with Steve and later when he was on his own,” Brinkerhoff said.

“At that time, in 1986, the people that were with Steve were Joel, Brad Friedmutter, and Roger Thomas and DeRuyter O. Butler. These are all guys that started with Steve, and some of them moved on … certainly to higher positions and we’ve enjoyed success.”

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