Kevin D. Kinsey

Moulin Rouge Hotel Photograph courtesy of Las Vegas Historic Preservation Commission Moulin Rouge Performer Sammy Davis, Jr. Photograph by Oliver F. Atkins Photograph courtesy of the Atkins Collection, George Mason University Libraries

Promoters of the Moulin Rouge Hotel called it “the nation’s first major interracial hotel.” Until the hotel’s opening on May 24, 1955, black entertainers performing in Las Vegas were denied access to casino and hotel dining areas and were forced to seek overnight accommodations in black boarding houses. Black tourism was non-existent. Nevada Assembly bills designed to bar discrimination in public places had failed, the last by only one vote. So a diverse group of investors took a different tactic. They developed plans for an integrated hotel in a prime location–a site between the predominately white area of the Strip and the largely black west side. The result was a hotel integrated at all levels, from employees to patrons to entertainers.

The Moulin Rouge consists of two stuccoed buildings which housed a hotel, casino, and a theater. Many original features survive, including its large neon sign, styled in cursive writing reading “Moulin Rouge,” and colorful murals depicting dancers and fancy cars.

Opening night was a gala affair hosted by Joe Louis and featuring performances by The Platters and flashy chorus-line routines. Within the next few months the hotel attracted such performers as Louis Armstrong, George Burns, Nat King Cole, Jack Benny, Frank Sinatra, and Sammy Davis, Jr. Initially, the night spot became so popular, a 2:30 a.m. “third show” was added.

Although the Moulin Rouge closed in October 1955, its short life had a lasting impact. When civil rights activists scheduled a march on March 26, 1960, to protest racial discrimination in Las Vegas resorts, hotel owners, city and state officials, and Nevada Governor Grant Sawyer hurriedly set up a meeting with NAACP president, Dr. James McMillan and other black leaders at the Moulin Rouge. Most of the hotel owners agreed to integrate their establishments, and the planned march was canceled.

The Moulin Rouge Hotel in Las Vegas is located at 900 West Bonanza Road. It is being renovated and not open to the public by the Moulin Rouge Development Corp and the Genesis Group Intenational as a joint venture.

The property was a setting for the filming of the movie “Casino.”