The Sands was iconic in many ways - not only was the architectural vision of it a groundbreaker in hotel/casino structure. It was an original - and change is always inevitable, but its legacy of one of the first to build along what would become "the Las Vegas Strip." Thank you for making this video and for the historical research that you have included with it - a dedication that some either ignore or make up their own version of the stories. 😊
🎭I love everything about the fifties and the sixties...When women dressed like women and men dressed like men...Bring back the good old days🎭 Tku for this
Good comment @arjay777! There was a Judy Collins that opened the Sands with Danny Thomas but not the folk singer J.C. of today that is pictured in the video! Judy Collins was her stage name given to her by Louella Parsons. Judy worked with Jimmy McHugh the songwriter and Judy Collins was a version of Jimmy's mother's name. Judy did a lot of work including singing at the White House Correspondents Dinner when Eisenhower was president and Nixon was VP. I have a newspaper photo of the Sands' marquee with her name listed along with Danny Thomas' name. She was a beautiful and talented woman who passed away a year ago at the age of 97. How do I know all this? She was my mother!!!
Good effort on documenting the incredible history of the Sands Hotel. Anne Hodgdon's comments add many missing realities to the story. The Sands put food on my young plate for many years as my father worked in the casino since its opening, becoming friends with both Jack Entratter and Carl Cohen. I worked there in the late 60s as a lifeguard at both the Paradise and Aqueduct pools. So much fun, so many legends, so many stories. It would have been nice if you had mentioned the Carl Cohen - Frank Sinatra teeth removal episode but perhaps for a later edit. Frank, being out of line as usual ate his teeth for lunch, courtesy of Carl Cohen. Part of the legend, and it's true!
Was there when mirage opened n i went across the steet n went to the sands bar. Great night. May 1989. Was there at.night.when sammy passed n all the light s.went out on the street down below on the strip. For ten min. For sammmmy
I love your videos but I especially love that you add these signs showing who's performing. Of course I know the rat pack but then I see a bunch of names that i've never heard of and assume most people today never heard of either. I like to Google them
I made my first visit to Vegas in 1989 and stayed at the Hacienda. (Replaced by Mandalay Bay around 1999 or so) It still had a few mob guys working there at the time. I never stayed at the Sands, but I played there a few times. The Sands, Trop, the Riv and Sahara were my stomping grounds back then. Lots of good times with basically free or super low-cost meals, shows, etc...( like a steak and eggs breakfast 24/7 for $1.99 if you did not have a comp, which you got back then by asking the pit boss) The first two shows I saw out there were Redd Fox at the Hacienda and Buddy Hackett (don't recall which casino, but likely the Trop or Caesars). To this day, they were the funniest shows I have ever been to. I had lost about $1200 (a crap load of money to a GI back then) and I recall laughing for hours at each of them, making the sting of the loss not feel so bad. On another trip, they were building the Luxor, and I was amazed at the scope of it as I walked past it. (Based on my visit to Vegas last year, I may very well be around to see this one closed down as well - nowhere near the beauty it was when it opened.) Yes sir - Vegas was much better back then. I wish I would have been around to visit it in the mid-sixties. (Course, that would likely mean I would be dead by now, but heck, it just may be worth it!!)
A little bit of facts to help your video. My father, Danny Thomas, was THE original and very first headliner ever to appear at the Cops Room in the Sands. It was during his late night performance that the rat pack would appear on stage to join him after filming during the day. My father was the only one of the group contracted to be there. Although my father could not be in the film ocean's 11 due to restrictions of time Sinatra still make sure that my father's name appeared in the movie as a cameo. In one scene Sinatra can be seen leaning against a light post with the Marquee of the Sands in the backdrop and on that Marquee is my father's name, Danny Thomas. The sands casino was owned by Meyer lansky and the Copa Room in the Sands was owned by the head of all Mafia families, Frank Costello. And now you know the rest of the story
You asked for corrections or comments. My name is Anne Hodgdon. My Great Uncle Jake Freedman, from Houston, was the founder and owner of the Sands, with other minority shareholders, until his death in 1958 following unsuccessful heart surgery involving his aorta. My Aunt Sadie Freedman inherited all his shares, and it was she who sold Frank Sinatra the 20% he'd been yearning for, but Uncle Jake wouldn't sell it to him. Uncle Jake's reason was that he knew Frank was fronting for another mobster (Sam Giancana) whom he felt was trouble. I could go on and on, but I'm really disappointed that you didn't do your homework. Nowhere do you mention him, which surprised me because his name shows up everywhere whenever the Sands history is mentioned! In fact, where you should have mentioned him (he's in a number of your photos, wearing his signature white cowboy hat, you instead chose to mention Meyer Lansky, et al....(the Mob out of Florida and Kentucky) putting up money. In fact, that is not true. Indeed, there was mob influence and financial backing, but not those guys. The Mob which was involved with the Sands was known as the "Jewish Mafia" and I won't name names, but it's all been reported everywhere, and you missed it all. Another mistake you've made is that Jack Entratter was not the "Manager" of the Sands. He was recruited from the Copacabana by my Uncle Jake, that's true, because of his close relationships with some of the country's top talent gleaned while he booked them there. The day the hotel opened, he was Uncle Jake's Vice President in charge of Entertainment. Carl Cohen was its VP in charge of Gaming. When Uncle Jake died, Jack was the appropriate person to be made President of the Sands, replacing Jake Freedman. The video was fun, but much of Ocean's Eleven was filmed at the Sahara, with some at the Sands. I know because as a young girl, I watched them film almost daily. BTW, Oceans Eleven was not the first movie shot at the Sands. The first one was "Meet Me In Las Vegas" with Cyd Charisse. My uncle is in the opening scenes, welcoming people to his hotel. Thanks for listening!
In the first 12 seconds you say 1952 to 1966. I think you meant 1996. And Judy Collins opening night? Impossible. She was 13 years old and living in Denver. I knew one of the early Copa Girls, Valerie Allen. She worked there 1954 and 1955. Became an actress. Bek Nelson and Linda Lawson were two other early Copa Girls. Nelson was brought out by Entratter from the Copacabana in New York.
The Sands was iconic in many ways - not only was the architectural vision of it a groundbreaker in hotel/casino structure. It was an original - and change is always inevitable, but its legacy of one of the first to build along what would become "the Las Vegas Strip." Thank you for making this video and for the historical research that you have included with it - a dedication that some either ignore or make up their own version of the stories. 😊
🎭I love everything about the fifties and the sixties...When women dressed like women and men dressed like men...Bring back the good old days🎭 Tku for this
Good comment @arjay777! There was a Judy Collins that opened the Sands with Danny Thomas but not the folk singer J.C. of today that is pictured in the video! Judy Collins was her stage name given to her by Louella Parsons. Judy worked with Jimmy McHugh the songwriter and Judy Collins was a version of Jimmy's mother's name. Judy did a lot of work including singing at the White House Correspondents Dinner when Eisenhower was president and Nixon was VP. I have a newspaper photo of the Sands' marquee with her name listed along with Danny Thomas' name. She was a beautiful and talented woman who passed away a year ago at the age of 97. How do I know all this? She was my mother!!!
Boy!; I would have given almost anything to get a piece of history at that auction.😃🍷 Cheers.
Great video. Been looking for something like this! Keep up the great work
Thanks, will do!
Brings back wonderful memories...
Good effort on documenting the incredible history of the Sands Hotel. Anne Hodgdon's comments add many missing realities to the story. The Sands put food on my young plate for many years as my father worked in the casino since its opening, becoming friends with both Jack Entratter and Carl Cohen. I worked there in the late 60s as a lifeguard at both the Paradise and Aqueduct pools. So much fun, so many legends, so many stories. It would have been nice if you had mentioned the Carl Cohen - Frank Sinatra teeth removal episode but perhaps for a later edit. Frank, being out of line as usual ate his teeth for lunch, courtesy of Carl Cohen. Part of the legend, and it's true!
Thank you! It means a lot.
I didn't know that, that's interesting, thank you!
Was there when mirage opened n i went across the steet n went to the sands bar. Great night. May 1989. Was there at.night.when sammy passed n all the light s.went out on the street down below on the strip. For ten min. For sammmmy
Oh, they had the best deli right next to the sports book.
I love your videos but I especially love that you add these signs showing who's performing. Of course I know the rat pack but then I see a bunch of names that i've never heard of and assume most people today never heard of either. I like to Google them
I made my first visit to Vegas in 1989 and stayed at the Hacienda. (Replaced by Mandalay Bay around 1999 or so)
It still had a few mob guys working there at the time.
I never stayed at the Sands, but I played there a few times. The Sands, Trop, the Riv and Sahara were my stomping grounds back then.
Lots of good times with basically free or super low-cost meals, shows, etc...( like a steak and eggs breakfast 24/7 for $1.99 if you did not have a comp, which you got back then by asking the pit boss)
The first two shows I saw out there were Redd Fox at the Hacienda and Buddy Hackett (don't recall which casino, but likely the Trop or Caesars).
To this day, they were the funniest shows I have ever been to. I had lost about $1200 (a crap load of money to a GI back then) and I recall laughing for hours at each of them, making the sting of the loss not feel so bad.
On another trip, they were building the Luxor, and I was amazed at the scope of it as I walked past it. (Based on my visit to Vegas last year, I may very well be around to see this one closed down as well - nowhere near the beauty it was when it opened.)
Yes sir - Vegas was much better back then. I wish I would have been around to visit it in the mid-sixties. (Course, that would likely mean I would be dead by now, but heck, it just may be worth it!!)
Amazing stuff. You should have like 500K subs!
Thank you! One day hopefully.
When the Sands casino was torn down Vegas began to lose its charm
A little bit of facts to help your video.
My father, Danny Thomas, was THE original and very first headliner ever to appear at the Cops Room in the Sands.
It was during his late night performance that the rat pack would appear on stage to join him after filming during the day. My father was the only one of the group contracted to be there.
Although my father could not be in the film ocean's 11 due to restrictions of time Sinatra still make sure that my father's name appeared in the movie as a cameo.
In one scene Sinatra can be seen leaning against a light post with the Marquee of the Sands in the backdrop and on that Marquee is my father's name, Danny Thomas.
The sands casino was owned by Meyer lansky and the Copa Room in the Sands was owned by the head of all Mafia families, Frank Costello.
And now you know the rest of the story
Interesting video! You should do one about the Tropicana.
I’ll put it onto the list of things to do for the future
Everyone loves the recreation; gambling bling bling, and beautiful scenery of desert sands. We can build a waterway to Vegas. I’d bring my boat.
I never got 😪 to go there. My life was turning into shit during those years 😢
You asked for corrections or comments. My name is Anne Hodgdon. My Great Uncle Jake Freedman, from Houston, was the founder and owner of the Sands, with other minority shareholders, until his death in 1958 following unsuccessful heart surgery involving his aorta. My Aunt Sadie Freedman inherited all his shares, and it was she who sold Frank Sinatra the 20% he'd been yearning for, but Uncle Jake wouldn't sell it to him. Uncle Jake's reason was that he knew Frank was fronting for another mobster (Sam Giancana) whom he felt was trouble. I could go on and on, but I'm really disappointed that you didn't do your homework. Nowhere do you mention him, which surprised me because his name shows up everywhere whenever the Sands history is mentioned! In fact, where you should have mentioned him (he's in a number of your photos, wearing his signature white cowboy hat, you instead chose to mention Meyer Lansky, et al....(the Mob out of Florida and Kentucky) putting up money. In fact, that is not true. Indeed, there was mob influence and financial backing, but not those guys. The Mob which was involved with the Sands was known as the "Jewish Mafia" and I won't name names, but it's all been reported everywhere, and you missed it all. Another mistake you've made is that Jack Entratter was not the "Manager" of the Sands. He was recruited from the Copacabana by my Uncle Jake, that's true, because of his close relationships with some of the country's top talent gleaned while he booked them there. The day the hotel opened, he was Uncle Jake's Vice President in charge of Entertainment. Carl Cohen was its VP in charge of Gaming. When Uncle Jake died, Jack was the appropriate person to be made President of the Sands, replacing Jake Freedman. The video was fun, but much of Ocean's Eleven was filmed at the Sahara, with some at the Sands. I know because as a young girl, I watched them film almost daily. BTW, Oceans Eleven was not the first movie shot at the Sands. The first one was "Meet Me In Las Vegas" with Cyd Charisse. My uncle is in the opening scenes, welcoming people to his hotel. Thanks for listening!
Thank you for the information!!
I've spotted Jake in Meet Me in Las Vegas. When Dan Dailey pulls up in front and says Hi Jake and they shake hands.
Those are great updates Anne. YOU Know the truth!
I wish I could have experienced this hotel/casino
What happened to the time capsules?
In the first 12 seconds you say 1952 to 1966. I think you meant 1996. And Judy Collins opening night? Impossible. She was 13 years old and living in Denver. I knew one of the early Copa Girls, Valerie Allen. She worked there 1954 and 1955. Became an actress. Bek Nelson and Linda Lawson were two other early Copa Girls. Nelson was brought out by Entratter from the Copacabana in New York.
Everything was better in the 20th century
Good comment
if you go to all that effort to preserve sands history and its artifacts why did they demolish it?
Drink a coffee and have a red bull next time. You sound really tired and lethargic. Needs more energy.
Thanks for the feedback.