Call it the town that Frank built.
Although he wasn’t the one to envision Las Vegas–Hollywood gangster Bugsy Siegel is credited with that particular desert dream–the glittery city certainly wouldn’t exist as it is today without Frank Sinatra.
Sinatra’s status as Vegas’ patron saint may only be rivaled by Elvis Presley. His 60-year association with the gambling town began in 1941, when he performed there with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra. A decade later he made his solo debut at the Desert Inn, and his career took off. On any given night during the 60s you might’ve caught Ol’ Blue Eyes and his famed Rat Pack pals Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop performing on stage and partying in the casinos until the wee hours of the morning.
Sinatra continued to perform live there throughout his career, staging his final performance at the Desert Inn. When he cashed in his chips in 1998, the entire Strip mourned by dimming its millions of neon lights in silent tribute to The Voice that helped build Vegas.
So it was only appropriate that Las Vegas turned to the Chairman of the Board for inspiration, after the catastrophic events of Sept. 11 sent tourism into a tailspin across America and the gambling mecca faced what could have been the biggest tourism drop-off in history.
Of course, Sinatra isn’t around to take matters into his own hands, having moved on to the big board meeting in the sky in 1998.
But thanks to a never-before-released Sinatra song, “It’s Time For You,” Ol’ Blue Eyes’ resonant voice is able to reach out and remind folks that, in the wake of the World Trade Center tragedy, Las Vegas offers the ultimate escape.
The song was initially commissioned by Chrysler and recorded in July of 1980 but was never used in any commercials. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority learned of the song and wanted to use in a post-9/11 tourism campaign, but the final go-ahead had to come from Sinatra’s daughter Tina.
“I really had to put myself in his shoes,” Tina says. “The call came not even 14 days after the 11th…Off the cuff, I said I didn’t think this was appropriate.” Despite her initial reticence, Tina quickly reconsidered, realizing that if his country and its lifestyles, livelihoods and liberties were endangered, her father would be center stage in the fight for freedom.
Ultimately, Tina and her sister Nancy agreed to license the song–with one special caveat: all the licensing proceeds would, on behalf of the Frank Sinatra Foundation, be donated to benefit the Twin Towers Fund.
The 30-second ad spot that resulted featured Sinatra singing the jaunty tune over a montage of the city’s lavish landscape complete with familiar icons and glittery performers.
The results were respectful, fun and-like most Sinatra efforts-hit the jackpot. In the weeks following the attacks, Las Vegas’ visitor volume rose each weekend from 60 percent the first weekend following the tragedy to 75 percent the second weekend to a whopping 93 percent in subsequent weekends.
And Sinatra hadn’t just inspired tourists to forget their fears and jump on a plane to Vegas–within days of the ad’s debut a plethora of the city’s most successful contemporary entertainers wanted to get into the act.
A second commercial united Strip stars Wayne Newton, Siegfried & Roy, Rita Rudner, David Brenner, the Blue Man Group, celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck, the casts of ‘O’, Mystere, Jubilee and Le Femme, the pirates of Treasure Island and the knights of Excalibur to sing along with the Chairman. And recently new ad spots featuring outtakes from the recording sessions–watch Roy mangle the tune to Siegfried’s amusement–have begun airing.
In gratitude the state of Nevada has officially designating Dec. 12–the singer’s 86th birthday–“Frank Sinatra Day,” with Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman proclaiming that Sinatra epitomized “the best of Las Vegas style and cool.” As part of the celebration, Las Vegas Strip hotel-casinos will display “Happy Birthday Frank” on their marquees, the Bellagio fountains and the Fremont Street Experience will play musical tributes and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is releasing a CD that features “It’s Time for You.”
It seems that by putting its chips on an established sure bet, Las Vegas has discovered that luck doesn’t necessarily come in the form of a lady. It was the Chairman who blew on this set of dice.
