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This hotel was a milestone for Las Vegas. Until it opened in 1955, the casinos in town were segregated, but when the Moulin Rouge came along it became the city's first hot spot where black and whites mingled and played. Although it seemed an instant success, drawing entertainers like Sammy Davis and the Rat Pack after their shows on The Strip, the hotel closed just a few months after it opened (the true story of why may never be known, but it is believed the mob had something to do with it). The property served at various times as low-income housing in what became a crime-ridden neighborhood and the bulk of the main casino building burned down in 2003. Today all that is left is the front wall and the famous sign. There has been talk of resurrecting it as a hotel, casino, and civil-rights site but nothing has come to pass as of this writing.
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