Las Vegas is the haunting grounds of many celebrities including Redd Foxx, Liberace, Elvis, and Bugsy Seigel (1). Redd Foxx
who was best known for his show "Sanford and Son" was also one of the first black comics to play "The Las Vegas Strip."
His style of humor was very blue. When Elvis (Another Las Vegas ghost) married on May 1, 1967, he was the only entertainer
invited (2). On Oct. 11, 1991, he died of a heart attack on the set of his hit series "The Royal Family." He loved
the city of Las Vegas and was Interred at Palm Memorial Gardens, Las Vegas, Nevada, in the Devotion Section, Lawn Space 4091, 311
G (2). In fact he loved it so much that reportly he haunts and plays pranks at his old home which is located at Eastern
Ave and Rawhide St.., Las Vegas, NV 89119, 36.0899 -115.1188.
Liberace who was known for his outrageous dress and his candelabras
on his panios was a child prodigy who became a successful pianist on television and in live concerts. He opened the Las
Vegas' Riviera Casino-Hotel in 1954, he was the highest paid star in Vegas (3). In the 1970s and 1980s, he had a successful run at
Las Vegas Hilton (3). On Feb 04, 1987, he died from complications due to AIDS. He is buried in Forest Lawns in California
but his ghost continues to roam Las Vegas. He has been sighted at the casinos, he used to perform in. He is also said
to haunt The Liberace Museum which is located at 1775 East Tropicana Avenue, Las Vegas, Nevada 89119-6529 which his pianos, cars,
costumes, and jewelery can be seen. It has been reported, he sometimes plays his old pianos. His final main haunting spot
is Liberace’s Tivoli Gardens which is now called Carluccio's Tivoli Gardens Restaurant. Liberace was the person who designed
and built the restaurant. He would entertain and cook for the guest there. After his death, his ghost appears to roam
the restaurant especially near his birthday and his deathday (4) There are bottles mysteriously falling, toilet flushing
unexpectedly, and other eerie occurences (4). The location of this haunted restauramt is 1775 East Tropicana Ave., Suite 29,
Las Vegas, NV 89119.
A person who Liberace was friendly with in real life and now in the afterlife is Elvis. They have
been sighted together all over Las Vegas. Strangely, both Elvis and Liberace were twins at birth who's twin died at birth.
Elvis Presley was a grammy winning singer who also starred in several movies. Elvis Presley first appeared in Las Vegas at the
now defunct New Frontier Hotel and Casino for a four week engagement starting on April 23,1956 but he bombed and the engagement
only lasted 2 weeks (5). Elvis would film the movie 'Viva Las Vegas' (1964) with Ann-Margaret who he had an alleged affair
with. The movie was filmed in Las Vegas and the surrounding areas. Elvis was married on May 1,1967 at the Aladdin Hotel
(now Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino) in Las Vegas (2). In 1969, Elvis signed a deal to play the International Hotel
(now Las Vegas Hilton) and sold out then record 58 shows. He would continue to play there until Dec. 1976 (6). He
would stay in the penthouse suite room 3000 (6). He would die at Graceland on August 16,1977. As you know sighting of Elvis's
ghost have been seen worldwide with most being in Memphis and specifically at Graceland. But when his ghost visit Vegas, he
is maily known to stay at his penthouse suite and to take in the concerts from backstage at Las Vegas Hilton concert hall.
Bugsy
Siegal was an American gangster who ties to Las Vegas were related to the mafias attempts to control part of the casino industry.
He first purchased The El Cortez and quickly sold it for a profit (7). Then he decided to built The Pink Flamingo Hotel &
Casino ) now called Flamingo Las Vegas which was named after his girlfriend's Virginia Hills long skinny legs (7). The
cost overruns led his partners to question whether he or Hill were skimming money from the construction of the casino which eventually
led to his murder on June 20,1947 (7). It is said that his ghost still roams the casino to prove that he could successfully
run it. The ghost story might even being more complex, Warren Hull believes that the unknown shooter was Bob MacDonald
whose family had worked for Howard Hughes (8). Bob MacDonald had married socialite Betty Ann Rockwell whose family had ties
to the mafia (8). MacDonald became a drug abuser specifically cocaine and a compulsive gambler and wound up owing the mob $50,000
(8). To absolve his debt, the mob had him kill Bugsy Siegal (8). Three months after the Siegal killing; MacDonald
killed his wife and himself and in all three deaths, the weapon was a .30 caliber carbine (8). Was he wracked with guilt
over his murder of this Las Vegas mobster or did Bugsy Siegal enact his revenge from the grave.
John
Entwistle who was best known as bass guitarist in the Supergroup "The Who" died from a heart attack brought on by cocaine use in Las
Vegas on June 27, 2002 (9). He died at the Hard Rock Casino and Cafe and is said to haunted it.
Justin Pierce who starred
in the controversial movie "Kids" as Casper in 1995 and continued to acted including some episodes of "Malcolm in the Middle" was
married in Las Vegas, Nevada in 1999 (10). His body was found hanging by hotel security along with two suicide notes in the
Bellagio Las Vegas (10).
Harry James who was a very famous big band leader of the Harry James and His Music Makers. The
most famous of his leader singers was none other than Frank Sinatra. Harry James married the huge popular movie actress Betty
Grable on July 05, 1943 (11). They had a tumultous relationship and were divorced in 1965. Betty Grable died on July 02,
1973. It was said he was haunted by the memory of their lost love and on July 05, 1983, he was visited by the ghost of Betty
Grable and she told him it was time for us to be back together. He died that same day which was 3 days after the 10 year anniversary
of his former wife's death and also what would have been their 40th wedding anniversary (11). Harry James is emtombed at Eden
Vale Mausoleum, Las Vegas, Nevada (11).
The 'Motel of Death" is where several famous entertainers have died (1). Their
ghostly spirits are said to still roam the motel.
There have been quite a few famous actors who have met their demise in Las
Vegas though not sure how many are still haunting the town. Bernie Allen who was comic who did work with Redd Foxx died from
a fall on January 16, 2004 in Las Vegas, Nevada (12). Edgar Bergen who was a worldwide famous ventriloquist mainly known for
his work with his dummy named Charlie McCarthy died in Las Vegas on September 30, 1978 from kidney disease (13). One of the
more tragic deaths was the sucide of Lindsay Crosby by gunshot in Vegas on December 11, 1989 (14). He was the son of Bing Crosby. Sonny
Liston was a world champion boxer. He died at the age of 38 of apparently heart attack but some believe there might have
been more to it (15). Jimmy 'The Greek' Snyder who was a famous odds maker for NFL games died in Las Vegas on april 21, 1996
. David Strickland hung himself in a Las Vegas motel called the Oasis on March 29,1999 (16). He had been a costar
of Brooke Shields on the television comedy "Suddenly Susan."
George Lutz who died on May 8, 2006 while not a ghost but who stay
of 28 days in a house became one of the best known ghost/evil spirits movie (17). His ghost story was not in Las Vegas
but on 112 Ocean Avenue, Amityville, New York became the hit movie "The Amityville Horror."
Tiffany Sloan was a playboy centerfold
who had been in one episode of the television comedy "Married with Children." Her death in Las Vegas on November 1, 2008 was
resulted of a drug overdose which might have been a suicide (18). Norma Talmadge was a star of over 150 silent movies who died
on Christmas Eve, 1957.
Strangely, The Rat Pack members who shows and partying of the late 50s and 1960s seemed to
have left Las Vegas all together. The sighting of the ghosts of Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr., Dean Martin, and Joey Bishop
have been much nonexistent.
Other ghosts who are said to haunt the city of Las Vegas are of a more serious nature. The MGM
Grand fire killed 85 people(19). The hotel had been exempted from having a sprinkler system and had a manual alarm system (19).
The tower itself was repaired and was sold, it became Bally's Las Vegas. There have been reports of a little girl and other
guests who perished that day still haunting the old tower. Don't know the little girl's name or even if there was a little girl
in the casino that day. The new MGM Grand is said to be haunted by a man who committed suicide by jumping off it in July of
2002 (20).
The Luxor Las Vegas is reportedly haunted by either 2 or 3 construction works who died during the construction
of the hotel. I have not been able to find any details about this accident. There was death at the Luxor hotel
parking garage where a homemade bomb killed an employee of hot dog stand located in the casino (21).
The Stratosphere in Las
Vegas is said to be haunted by spirits of people who have jumped off it. The first one to jump was a 24 year old Utah man (22).
In 2002, a 16 year old native Las Vegan jumped to his death from the tower (20). In 2005, a female producer working
on filming an Elvis impersonator show leap from the 109 floor of the Stratosphere (23). In 2006, a 27 year old man from
Bristol, England jumped to his death from the tower (24).
Many of the casinos and hotels are said to haunted by people who have
killed themselves within those locations. The Four Seasons Hotel was were a 64 year old man shot himself in the head (25).
The Plaza hotel casino is where a 31 year old man killed himself (25). The body of a 32 year old Disc Jockey was found
near New York-New York hotel-casino's parking garage with a sucide note in his pocket (25). In just between the years of
1998 and 2004, over 90 people killed themselves in or near a casino or hotel property including 20 who were victims of jumps (25).
Just
35 miles south of Las Vegas in Primm is Whiskey Pete's which is said to be haunted by its namesake who was a miner and a
bootlegger. The story is that Pete MacIntyre who was gas station owner resorted to bootlegging to make ends meet and became
known as "Whiskey Pete" (26). When he died in 1933 he requested that he be buried standing up with a bottle of his whiskey
in his hands and then ironically when they were builting a bridge between Whiskey Pete's to Buffalo Bills Hotel and Casino, his
body was accidently dug up and later reburied in one of his moonshining caves (26). There is also Al Capone's bulletproof
car. The address is 100 West Primm Blvd, Primm, NV. At Terrible's Primm Valley Resort located at 31900 Primm Valley
Blvd, Primm, NV is the infamous Bonnie and Clyde Death car. It is said that Clyde Barrow still haunts it. There is also
Dutch Schultz bullet-ridden car at this casino.
The Highway of Death is Nevada 160 (Blue Diamond Highway) during the 1940 and
1950s this was the popular dumping ground of victims of fowlplay. The highway has also been the scene of many fatal car accidents
including the ex-porn star Anna Malle. There have been reports of a female ghostly presence who flags down cars but when
the cars stop she disappears.
Another haunted location is Boulder City, Nevada. On October 30, 1947 Boulder City businessmen
Dick Likens and Ersel Telford were killedin an air crash at Railroad Pass (27). Likens and Telford worked together at the O.
P. Skaggs grocery store in Boulder City which opened on September 27, 1947 at 508 Nevada Way. "Telford was part owner and Likens
managed the meat and cold storage departments" (27). On the morning of October 30, they flew in a Cessna 120 from Boulder
Airport to fly into Las Vegas on business. Likens and Telford flew back to Boulder City through Railroad Pass around 3:30 that
afternoon (27). "Part of a wing fell off the Cessna and the plane drifted nearly 3,000 feet before plunging into the ground
across from Railroad Pass Casino" (27). Likens and Telford died on impact (27). The reason why the plane crashed was due
to structural failure (27). Before this happened, Reynaldo Castelar had met Ersel Telford at Green Hut Café now
called the Coffee Cup and they worked together for several months (27). In September of 1947, Reynaldo had returned to San
Salvador to stay with his brother (27). One night, him and his brother were using a ouija board to contact spirits and
it spelled out ERESLTELFRDO; he and his brother translate part of it from Spanish to “You are.” (27). It was not until
the following June that he returned to Boulder City when he found out his friend Ersel Telford had died that he realized it was ghost
of his friend who had contacted him (27).
Is Las Vegas really haunted by ghosts of famous people and
those who were vistors or residents of this Nevada city? Who really knows!!! But, in one sense Las Vegas will always being
haunted by the casinos and celebrities who are no longer here.
Sources Cited
8. Lasvegas Daily News "I-Team: Who Killed Bugsy Siegel" 16 November 2009. Lasvegas Daily News.
26.Wikipedia contributors. "Primm, Nevada" 3 November 2009. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 4 December 2009.
