Wedding Information

On September 23, 1953, the London Daily Herald proclaimed Las Vegas as the “Wedding Capital of the World.” Since the 1930s, Nevada has maintained lenient marriage and divorce laws, which at the time, attracted tourism into the state, helping local economies through the Great Depression. Today, there are about 100 wedding chapels throughout Las Vegas. The wedding industry, as of 2022, employs about 18,000 people and generates nearly $2.5 billion in annual economic impact. Couples traveling to Las Vegas looking to get married might lodge at one of the many roadside motels and tie the knot at the property’s on-site chapel, such as the Ali Baba Wedding Center & Motel which was once located near Harry Reid International Airport.

The early history of design on the Las Vegas Strip begins with casual Western themes. Casinos commonly incorporated exposed wooden roof beams, wagon wheel chandeliers, stereotypical Native American designs, and cowboys into their aesthetics. In the 1940s, the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce designed “Vegas Vic” as a mascot intended to promote the city as a western town. “Vic” appeared in print on billboards, and on a variety of souvenirs illustrating the city’s western mystique. His most visible and enduring representation, however, is the 40-foot tall “Vegas Vic” sign still located on Fremont Street. This design was a departure from the recurrent typefaces of neon signs, embodying the welcoming human form of a cowboy with the uncanny ability to talk and wave his arm.

Another human shaped sign in Las Vegas was designed by artist Charles Barnard in 1980 – “Vegas Vickie.” Featuring a 25-foot tall neon cowgirl design, a form fitting fringed outfit, and a motorized leg kicking skyward, “Vickie” was first installed atop the façade of the Glitter Gulch Casino on Fremont Street, just feet away from her counterpart, “Vegas Vic.” The couple were even wed in 1994, in an event celebrating the creation of the Fremont Street Experience in downtown Las Vegas, a pedestrian-only zone that encompasses many classic hotels and casinos under an LED canopy. In 2017, “Vegas Vickie” was removed from the area, in anticipation of construction and renovation projects. Today, a meticulously restored “Vegas Vickie” greets patrons at her namesake lounge inside the Circa Hotel & Casino, the former site of the Glitter Gulch, where “Vickie” once stood.