Razing Riviera casino will level part of Vegas' mobster past

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Riviera Hotel and Casino — the Las Vegas Strip's first high-rise that was as famous for its mobster ties as its Hollywood personification of Sin City's mobster past — will officially exit the scene on Tuesday with a cinematic implosion, complete with fireworks.

The Flamingo has been completely rebuilt at its original location, but the Tropicana still has pieces of its original building, making it the last true mob structure on the Strip, said Michael Green, Nevada historian and a professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Gambling profits were skimmed to send back home to pay for their gangs' illegal enterprises involving illegal betting, drugs, prostitution, murders and everything else.

Three of the most famous movies ever filmed in Las Vegas used the Riviera as a backdrop, including the Rat Pack's original 1960 "Ocean's 11," the 1971 James Bond film "Diamonds Are Forever" and "Casino," the 1995 movie based on real-life Vegas mobsters Frank Rosenthal and Anthony Spilotro during their 1970s heyday at the Stardust.