Best of Las Vegas -- Las Vegas Review Journal

Thanks for 20 great years

Best of Las Vegas poll celebrates milestone with winners and more winners

There's just something special about being mayor of Las Vegas. The lights. The glamour. Hobnobbing with the rich and famous. Being rich and famous.

And, of course, figuring out how to pull downtown off the ropes.

Sure, the county commissioners may have the fancy-schmancy Strip to brag about as well as its bundle of tax dollars.

But you don't see any of them wiping the floor with the competition in the annual Best of Las Vegas poll. No sir, this year's edition of discriminating picks by Review-Journal readers belongs to Mayor Oscar Goodman. He owns it. Lock, stock and martini.

In this special 20th anniversary of Best of Las Vegas, Goodman cleaned up as Favorite Male Las Vegan, Most Colorful Character -- we defy anyone to argue with that -- and Best Local Politician.

And that's not all, curious readers picked the mayor as the Las Vegan You'd Like to Know More About. Despite all this praise, readers even chose Goodman as Most Unappreciated Las Vegan. What, you want another category for him to win?

Goodman's hot hand is likely to continue if Jan Jones' experience with the poll is any indication. The former mayor has been a top Best of Las Vegas pick for most of the past decade as Favorite Female Las Vegan. She does it again this year.

There were 1,301 ballots cast this year, down disappointingly from last year's total of 2,651 but better than that first poll 20 years ago when we wouldn't even admit how many we received, fudging by claiming "hundreds." (For you numbers crunchers, our best year was 3,962 ballots in 1998.)

To make this edition special, we offer a look back at each of our major categories and how they have changed. They reflect how the city has grown and, perhaps, matured. The poll itself has grown, from just 50 categories in that first list to 200 today. It's doubtful we'll ever mature, though.

Review-Journal columnists throw in their views of this unique city and celebrities continue to add spice to the mix.

A few new categories were added this year, too. The Stratosphere was chosen Best Las Vegas Landmark and it is hard to miss. Readers chose to pack a basket for Sunset Park as Best Picnic Spot. GameWorks had top score in Best Place to Go If You're Under 21. The Hard Rock Hotel won fans as Best Place to Spot Celebrities. Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area captured Best Place to Spot Wildlife of a different sort.

And only in Vegas would a median be considered Best Public Landscaping, but that's the Strip for you.

As for other dominant winners, if buildings were mayors the Bellagio would rule. The Italian-themed hotel picked up Best Strip Hotel, Best Architecture, Best Lounge, Best Showroom, Best Hotel Lobby, Best Poker Room, Best Valet Parking, Best Art Gallery, Best Attraction (the dancing fountains), Best Production Show ("O") and Best Place to Go When Price is No Object (again for "O"). Most hotels try to discourage their guests from leaving, apparently the strategy is working at Bellagio.

The University of Nevada, Las Vegas Rebel football team and their coach, John Robinson, were honored by R-J readers for the tremendous comeback they've made -- from doormat to bowl-game winner -- in just two years.

And if the Nielsen ratings aren't enough to please CBS, network executives are bound to be excited to see their new show "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" a winner for Best Use of Las Vegas in TV or Movies.

In the ever-quirky Best of the Worst category, readers made odd choices for Worst Place to Take Visitors. No. 1 was Fremont Street; No. 2 was the Strip. Where are they going to take their visitors when they come to Las Vegas anyway? Are they going to sit at home watching videos? Oh, that's why there are so many people at Hoover Dam.

And while we tell people every year that this is just a fun, nonscientific poll (remember, only 1,301 responded), there always are those who take it too seriously. The ones who order their employees to vote a certain way or sweeten the pot by bribing them with a free show or other goodie.

We reward such behavior in kind. We catch you cheating, we pitch you right out of the contest. We hope you will spend your time in the corner thinking about your behavior and how much better it would be if you were a good sport. Better luck next year. Well, it always worked when Mom said it.

But enough of the bad-cop stuff. Here's the really good news for Pete Lexis of Las Vegas. You're the winner of our Best of Las Vegas drawing for a night on the town. Have a great time and keep that pencil sharp for the next edition of Best of Las Vegas.

Back to the index

Best of Las Vegas is a product of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, under the direction of features editor Frank Fertado and assistant features editor Patricia Morgan. It is written by reporters Carol Cling, Doug Elfman, Peter O¹Connell, Sonya Padgett, John Przybys, Heidi Knapp Rinella, Mike Weatherford, Ken White and Joan Whitely. It also includes columns by Norm Clarke, Cling, Joe Hawk, John L. Smith, Steve Sebelius and Weatherford. The cover is illustrated by Jim Day. Photography is by Barbara Allen, Steve Andrascik, Amy Beth Bennett, K.M. Cannon, Ralph Fountain, John Gurzinski, Clint Karlsen, Jim Laurie, Craig L. Moran, Jeff Scheid, Gary Thompson, Denise Truscello and Christine H. Wetzel. Also contributing to the project is copy editor Chuck Pollet.


	Las Vegas rang in 2001 with a gigantic fireworks display that lit up the Strip. This year heralds the 20th edition of Best of Las Vegas.




	A Look Back Carol Cling Joe Hawk Mike Weatherford Norm Clarke Steve Sebelius John L. Smith Back to index