Portrait of a Showgirl

When this movie originally aired on television in May of 1982, I was just wrapping up my freshman year at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, majoring in Hotel Administration. At that time, not even the most forward thinking of the professors running the program at that time could have ever guessed the massive growth/changes that would occur in the city over the next 30 years.

The Las Vegas of 1982 is barely recognizable in the context of today's city. Many, maybe most, of the big hotels of that time are now gone, replaced by mega-resorts. Caesar's Palace, where most of the action in this movie is set, was easily the class of the town at that time, and while it remains one of the better resorts, it is clearly not the number 1 place in town. Even the slot machines kicking out coins with a jangle is largely a thing of the past--they have been replaced with debit/credit card readers that take your money almost without your realizing it! Like many Vegas old-timers, I miss the city that is portrayed in this movie. It was a smaller town and much greater attention was paid to the individual visitor. That said, the boom we experienced for almost 30 years made many wealthy people.

As a movie, this isn't half bad. Watching reminded me why I once had a crush on Lesley Anne Warren. Tony Curtis (who lived here for many, many years) is his usual charming self, and Rita Moreno is up to her normal high standards as an actress.

If you are a longtime Las Vegan, someone who has gone there over a period of many years, or just curious to see what the old town was once like, catch this movie. It's a pretty good way to spend a couple of hours.