The Stardust of Yesterday: Reflections on a Las Vegas Legend

While other casino-hotels came and went on the Las Vegas Strip, the Stardust stood steadfast through tremendous change, enduring for almost 50 years. Opening in Las Vegas' ingénue era of boom-or-bust development, it was the dream of bootlegging and gambling figure Tony Cornero, who died suddenly - some say suspiciously - just as the world's largest hotel and casino at the time was about to open. The Stardust's future would include an era immortalized in Nicholas Pileggi's Casino and the movie of the same name, and eventual legitimacy as part of modern corporate-run Las Vegas. Lavishly illustrated with archival photos and memorabilia, the legend will live on through The Stardust of Yesterday.