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(Sorry, out of stock...SOLD for $25.00) An original pre-fire 1975 MGM Grand Hotel Ashtray...a piece of Las Vegas history can be yours. This 30+ year old glass ashtray with the MGM "Leo the Lion" logo in brown, in perfect condition. The MGM Grand opened as one of Las Vegas's first megaresorts on December 5, 1973. It was the largest hotel in the world at its opening and would remain so for several years. When the hotel was built, it set a new standard of size and luxury in Las Vegas, and is considered to have made the biggest impact on Las Vegas until the construction of Steve Wynn's Mirage Hotel in the late 1980s. The hotel had a movie theme to reflect Kirk Kerkorian's interest in movies from his ownership of MGM and the hotels use of MGM in its name. The hotel was designed by architect Martin Stern, Jr. It featured many amenities, including numerous entertainment options. It offered live Jai Alai for betting and a large shopping arcade with numerous shops and restaurants. It was also one of the strip's most popular entertainment destinations. It featured two large theaters: The Zeigfeld Stage and the Celebrity Room. The Zeigfield regularly featured productions by famed Las Vegas choreographer Donn Arden including the long running Jubilee! and Hallelujah Hollywood. The Celebrity Room hosted such acts as The Carpenters and Barry Manilow. It suffered a fire that started in a casino restaurant and traveled up into the hotel, killing 87 guests on November 21, 1980. It was rebuilt in only eight months with the remodel adding a tower which opened in 1981. The tower had been in construction at the time of the fire, but was unscathed by the fire. The fire made such an impact on hotel safety that it led to the implementation of fire safety improvements worldwide. As an interesting aside, in 1985, the MGM Grand was the setting for the fictional boxing match between Apollo Creed and Ivan Drago for the movie Rocky IV. This original pre-fire ashtray is a wonderful Las Vegas rarity...don't gamble on another collector picking it up! Oops, too late. Out of stock.
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