Retro Las Vegas- Get Back to 1962.
In the UK, we’ve never really benefited from the same casino culture as the US. With stricter gaming laws, the UK’s casino scene – while buzzing – hasn’t taken off in the same way. Of course, this isn’t just down to the laws; while America had vast stretches of Nevada desert to populate, games for ‘every man’ and newly electrified cities, here in the UK we had smaller spaces that were densely populated and a population itself split clearly into those who went to casinos (upper class high rollers) and those who went to the bookies (working class men and women).
So there’s something really attractive about the history of the American casino, and especially the electric beauty of Las Vegas and other gaming spaces like Atlantic City. It’s always seemed like Britain – especially from after the Second World War to the 1960s – was the poor cousin of America, with its nylon stockings, brightly coloured ‘New Look’ dresses and incredible race for political and geographical power, heightened by the ‘space race’ of the 60s onwards. Not only are we attracted to the fun and excitement of the casino history that we never had, but also of a glowing and glittering past that the whole country seemed to revel in. And while we know that, really, the glitz and glamour exuded by a fifties or sixties Vegas wasn’t indicative of the country as a whole, there’s something appealing about enjoying the nostalgic neon of the old Las Vegas strip.
Online casinos have gone some way to make visiting and taking part in casino gaming more democratic, allowing many more people to experience the thrill and excitement of poker, blackjack and a host of other games from the comfort of their own home. And lots of sites, too, have tried to recreate the glamour of a nostalgic American casino with their online casino counterparts, featuring traditional slots games, VIP programmes and a multitude of other benefits – all available anywhere with an internet connection and not limited by the physical building.
But American casinos, while still incredibly popular, will always have a hey-day of the fifties to the seventies. With a growing economy, the birth of the teenager and the increase in disposable income, and the push for a bright new future (both at home and out into the reaches of the globe and space), America saw the towns that had previously been home to infamous hubs of prostitution and gambling after the Gold Rush and during the Prohibition slowly morph into centres of glamour, excitement and tourism – both nationally and internationally. And now? Still as popular as ever, these gaming centres of America now work alongside online casinos and virtual gaming to provide more people than ever with access to gambling excitement: but we still are just a little bit in love with the American casino of yesterday.
