The Desert Inn was a Paradise, Nevada, hotel/casino that operated from April 24, 1950, to August 28, 2000. Designed by noted New York architect Jac Lessman, it was the fifth resort to open on the Las Vegas Strip. The property included an 18-hole golf course. Locals nicknamed the resort "The D.I." or just "D.I."
The original name was Wilbur Clark's Desert Inn. Wilbur Clark originally began building the resort, but when he ran out of money, the Cleveland mob led by Moe Dalitz took over the construction. Clark became the public frontman of the resort while Dalitz remained quietly in the background as the principal owner. The resort would eventually be renamed Desert Inn, and was affectionally called the "DI" by Las Vegas locals and regular guests.
The Desert Inn’s most famous guest, businessman Howard Hughes, arrived on Thanksgiving Day 1966, renting the hotel's entire top two floors. After staying past his initial ten-day reservation, he was asked to leave in December so that the resort could accommodate the high rollers who had been promised those suites. Instead of leaving, Hughes decided to start negotiations to buy the Desert Inn. On March 1, 1967, Hughes purchased the resort from Dalitz for around $13 million. This purchase was the first of many Las Vegas resort purchases by Hughes.
Almost every major star of the last fifty years played at the Desert Inn. Its famous "crystal showroom" hosted Liberace, Frank Sinatra, Noël Coward, Ted Lewis, Joe E. Lewis, Bobby Darin, Dean Martin, Tony Bennett, Paul Anka, Neil Sedaka, Dionne Warwick, Louise Mandrell, Wayne Newton, Barry Manilow, Cher, Tina Turner, and more. Comics and variety acts like Myron Cohen, Pat Cooper, Martin and Lewis, Bob Newhart, Don Rickles, The Smothers Brothers, Roseanne Barr, Garry Shandling, Buddy Hackett, and Rich Little all worked the Desert Inn along with thousands of others.
On October 23, 2001, the main tower of the Desert Inn was demolished to make room for a mega resort. The remaining towers, The Palm and St. Andrews towers, were used as a small museum to display an art collection and as offices. It was closed due to poor ticket sales. The Palms and St. Andrews Tower were the last towers and they were imploded on November 16, 2004. The Palms tower was seven years old at the time.
Note: This cache was placed in Jonathan Dickinson State Park as part of Cacheapalooza 7, with the permission of Martin Morse, Park Service Specialist. If you park anywhere in JDSP, make sure all your tires are off the road and you are not blocking any gates.