Location and history
The Luxor is located on the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip, opposite the McCarran International Airport. The resort is flanked by the Mandalay Bay to the south and by the Excalibur to the north; all three are connected by free express and local trams. All three properties were built by Circus Circus Enterprises, which later became Mandalay Resort Group.
When it opened on October 15, 1993, the pyramid was the tallest building on the strip; it cost $375 million to build. A theater and two additional hotel towers totaling 2,000 rooms were added in 1998 for $675 million. In June 2004, the Mandalay Resort Group was purchased by MGM Mirage, adding this hotel to its vast array of properties on the "Strip".
When the resort opened, it featured a more heavily Egyptian-themed interior, including a river that encircled the casino with a ferry that would carry guests to their inclinator core at the corners of the pyramid. The ride was then turned into a river ride that passed by many pieces of ancient artwork after people complained that the ferry service took too long. Most of the ancient Egypt theme and the river ride were taken away as part of a campaign to tailor the property towards more upscale tastes in 1995. According to the unofficial, albeit popular, ghost story, the Nile River attraction was removed because guests kept seeing ghosts of the three workers killed during the Luxor's construction whenever the river passed through dark tunnels.
The resort has been home to some popular entertainment attractions in the Las Vegas area. The main level featured the nightclub, RA, which closed indefinitely on July 22, 2006. From 2000 to 2005, the Luxor Theatre was the home of the enormously popular performance-art show Blue Man Group, which has since moved to The Venetian. On February 15, 2006, the main theatre became the home of the musical Hairspray which ran until 2006.
In 2006, MGM-Mirage began renovating Luxor. Rooms in the East and West Towers have been refurnished. Two upscale restaurants, Isis and Sacred Sea Room, closed. The RA nightclub, which had previously been one of the most successful in the city but had been seeing reduced attendance in recent years, was shuttered. Replacing it is the Las Vegas branch of LAX, a Los Angeles nightclub, which opened on August 31, 2007, in an event hosted by Britney Spears. Also advertised yet unopened is a restaurant named Aspen 702.
Illusionist Criss Angel signed a deal in 2006 to film episodes of his TV series Mindfreak at the hotel. Angel currently has a production office and store in the Luxor. In 2008, Criss Angel will star in a new magic-themed Cirque du Soleil production at Luxor.
2007 explosion incident
On May 7, 2007, the Luxor Hotel parking garage was the site of a vehicle explosion which killed one of its employees. Local authorities believe the victim, who worked in a business inside the hotel, was the target for this killing. The hotel was not evacuated, and the parking structure where the explosion occurred suffered no damages. Investigations into this incident are ongoing. The explosion is believed to be caused by a homemade bomb.
Design:
The light of the Luxor
The Luxor is among the most recognizable hotels on the strip because of its striking design. Designed by renowned hotel architect Veldon Simpson, the main portion of the hotel is a 350-foot-high (106 meters), 30-story pyramid of black glass (in comparison, the Great Pyramid of Giza tops out at 450 ft, or 138 m). The hotel is marked by a large obelisk with the name of the property in lighted letters, while the porte-cochere travels underneath a massive recreation of the Great Sphinx of Giza.
The tip of the pyramid contains a fixed-position spotlight that points directly upward – it is the brightest beam in the world, and is visible from anywhere in the Las Vegas valley at night, and can be seen at flight level from above Los Angeles, California, over 275 miles (440 km) away. At ground level, on clear nights, the beam could also be seen as far south as Laughlin and even as far north as Mesquite or Beatty. It is directly straight ahead on US-93 in Arizona, north of Kingman, before reaching the Hoover Dam. In the spring, the bright light attracts huge numbers of moths into the light beam, creating a phenomenon that has been likened to snow. Light is generated using 39 Xenon lamps of 7 kilowatts each. The hourly cost, including lamps, electricity, and repairs, is US$53. The total light output is rated at 41.5 gigacandela, or 30.2 billion lumens.
Usage in popular culture
This destination hotel is commonly viewed as one of the finest examples of 1990s Postmodern architecture, and appeared on the cover of renowned architecture scholar James Steele's book Architecture Today.
A copy of the Luxor, named "The Camel's Toe", appeared in the Las Venturas area of the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
A portion of the 1998 music video "Gettin' Jiggy With It" by Will Smith was shot in the foyer of the hotel.
Criss Angel Mindfreak Season Three was filmed at the Luxor, and Criss Angel is currently living in his own penthouse suite right under the light. He also has his own Official Mindfreak merchandise store and production studio. He also "levitated" 500 feet above the famous light.
Some stunts on Fear Factor were held at the Luxor, including sliding down the exterior.
The hotel also appeared prominently in the 1996 film Mars Attacks!.
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