Those who fail to remember our historic cheesecake are doomed to repeat it
I remember back in the olden days glancing over at the antique AP photo transmission machine — a device reminiscent of Thomas Edison’s first phonograph in which a needle scratched a wax disk to form sound patterns. Only this spinning disk was wrapped in photosensitive paper and a stylus scrolled down the paper emitting one dot at a time, line by line until a photograph appeared.
First, the top of the head. Then, the comely face and bare shoulders, followed by the briefest of tops, the barest of abdomens, the briefest of briefs, and, finally the shapely legs. The dateline was either a beach in Australia or a Las Vegas casino. Every newspaper had a hole to fill on one of those dreadfully gray pages in the back of the book, so why not? This was back in the day when you could still smoke in the office and there was a Society Page.
It worked. It made people think of Las Vegas in a kindly way.
If it worked then, why not now? So the local tourist touts trotted out a bevy of bikini-clad beauties on the Strip and invited the press this past week. And we went along with the gag, putting a prominent photo of the parade on the front page and couple more inside for good measure.
A few prudes took us to task, but I think most folks enjoyed the brazen nature of the self-promotion and perhaps got a bit nostalgic.
Besides, it reminded a couple of our reporters of the musical video I posted on a previous blog in which a reporter was singing the praises of how to save newspapers: “Boobs, boobs, boobs.” If it works on the Internet, why not in the paper?
So here’s a little mix and match from then and now:
Playboy personality Holly Madison leads a parade who set a record Thursday for World's Largest Bikini Parade. Photos by John Gurzinski
Miss Atomic Bomb, reportedly the winner of a 1957 beauty contest, became one of the most famous images ever used to publicize Las Vegas. In those days, nearby nuclear testing was thought to attract tourism instead of repelling it. LAS VEGAS NEWS BUREAU
"Summer in Paradise" was proclaimed Wednesday at Las Vegas' signature sign to mark the 50th anniversary of the landmark.
- It was the most famous sight gag in Las Vegas history. The late Al Freeman, director of advertising and publicity at the Sands in 1953, became obsessed with the term "floating craps game," which then meant an illegal game which constantly changed locations to avoid police raids. He set up a literal version in the Sands swimming pool, and the photo is still frequently requested 51 years later. LAS VEGAS NEWS BUREAU
Participants in the World's Largest Bikini Parade gather Thursday in front of Fashion Show mall.
Jayne Mansfield poses at the Tropicana pool in 1958. Mansfield is best remembered for sexpot roles and a sweater-girl figure but was an able singer, dancer and comedienne who loved to interact with audiences from the closer-to-the-public stages of her times. Her Las Vegas performances packed the house. LAS VEGAS NEWS BUREAU
Strip visitors ogle a parade of bikini-clad women making their way from the Wynn resort to the Fashion Show mall Thursday. The 281 women set a world record, according to a Guinness World Records representative monitoring the event. The event was designed to promote Las Vegas tourism. Playboy personality Holly Madison led the parade, and she earlier appeared with Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman and Clark County Commissioner Larry Brown to decree that summer started a month early in Southern Nevada. Photo by John Gurzinski
In 1953 the Thunderbird resort presented stars at the top of their games, as Rosemary Clooney was when she stood still long enough for a poolside photo. She had recorded her first hit and signature song, "Come On-a My House," in 1951. In 1954, she would star as Bing Crosby's love interest in "White Christmas" and record, with Crosby, the haunting title duet, which remains a perennial hit. LAS VEGAS NEWS BUREAU
