He purchased The El Cortez hotel for $600,000 and later sold it for a $166,000 profit. Siegel, who held a largest interest in the racing publication Trans America Wire, was drawn to Las Vegas in 1945 by his interest in legalized gambling and off-track betting. But he soon ran out of money due to the high cost of materials immediately after the war. Wilkerson had wanted to recreate the Sunset Strip in Las Vegas, with a European style hotel with luxuious rooms, a spa, health club, showroom, golf course, nightclub and upscale restaurant. Siegel and his New York “partners” had invested $1 million in a property already under construction by Billy Wilkerson, owner of the Hollywood Reporter as well as some very popular nightclubs in the Sunset Strip. The casino lost $300,000 in the first week of operation. And because gamblers had no rooms at the hotel, they took their winnings and gambled elsewhere.
Bad weather kept many other Hollywood guests from arriving. The grand opening of the Flamingo Hotel, however, was a flop. Some of infamous gangster Benjamin 'Bugsy' Siegel’s Hollywood friends, including actors George Raft, George Sanders, Sonny Tufts and George Jessel were in attendance. Well-known singer and comedian Jimmy Durante headlined the night's entertainment, with music by Cuban band leader Xavier Cugat. Mobster Bugsy Siegel opens the glitzy Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada on December 26, 1946.
