♪ >>> VEGAS IS BIG. IT'S AN EXPERIENCE. YOU KNOW WHAT I'M SAYING? FROM THE MOMENT YOU WALK IN. >> VEGAS IS BOLD. >> SAMMY WAS THE MOST DANGEROUS OF THEM ALL, BECAUSE HE LITERALLY COULD DO ALL OF IT IN SPADES. ♪ WITHOUT A CARE ♪ >> VEGAS IS SEXY. >> I LIKE LAS VEGAS WHEN PEOPLE GOT DRESSED UP AND WALKED THROUGH THE CASINO IN THEIR FURS AND STUFF. I'M STILL STUCK THERE. >> MY ULTIMATE GOAL IN LIFE IN COMEDY WAS TO WORK LAS VEGAS. >> I REALLY HAVE TO GIVE LAS VEGAS ACCOLADES. BECAUSE YEARS AGO, IT WAS A VERY DIFFERENT PLACE. >> LET'S JUST CUT BACK TO THE FACT THAT AS PERFORMERS, IF YOU GO BACK TO THE EARLY, EARLY DAYS, WE COULDN'T WALK THROUGH THE CASINOS, WE COULDN'T STAY AT THE HOTELS. WE HAD TO WALK THROUGH THE KITCHEN. >> WE'VE GOT PEOPLE WHO COME FROM TEXAS AND THE SOUTH, AND THEY'LL BE UPSET, WE DON'T WANT TO INTEGRATE, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH. >> FRANK TOLD THEM, IF THEY CAN'T STAY HERE, I'M NOT PLAYING HERE ANYMORE, EVER. THERE IS A RESURGENCE IN LAS VEGAS NOW, AND I'M VERY HAPPY ABOUT THAT. VEGAS IS A PLACE THAT PARTIES WANT TO PLAY NOW. >> EVEN IN LAS VEGAS, ALWAYS BET ON BLACK. >> THAT'S IT, LET'S GET IT HOT. >> KEEP THIS PG, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. >> I WANT THE CULTURAL SIDE OF IT, I WANT THE BUSINESS, I WANT THE LEGACY. EAT IT WHILE IT'S HOT BECAUSE I'M NOT GOING TO BE HERE FOREVER. >> "SOUL OF A NATION" PRESENTS "BLACK IN VEGAS." ♪ >> BACK IN THE '40s AND '50s, LAS VEGAS WAS THIS NEWLY BORN ENTERTAINMENT METROPOLIS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT. >> THE NIGHTTIME IT LET UP, IT WAS JUST WONDERFUL. IT WAS LIKE BEING AT DISNEYLAND FOR THE FIRST TIME. >> AND TALENT COMES TO PLAY IN LAS VEGAS. FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. SO YOU HAD CACTUSES, YOU HAD TUMBLEWEEDS, YOU HAD HEAT. >> NOW YOU HAD THE BURLESQUE SHOWS. >> GLAMOR IN LAS VEGAS, YOU DON'T DO ANYWHERE ELSE. >> SEQUINS, FEATHER, BIG LIGHTS. IT WAS BRIGHT, IT WAS VIBRANT. EVERYTHING WAS BIG. >> ANYBODY THAT WAS ANYBODY IN SHOW BUSINESS WAS IN VEGAS. >> SAMMY DAVIS JR. STARTED COMING HERE EARLY ON. >> RARE FOOTAGE FROM 1988, WE HEAR SAMMY TALK ABOUT HIS EXPERIENCES IN LAS VEGAS. >> YOU WERE EITHER A GOOD ACT OR A BAD ACT. YOUR EITHER GOT THE JOB BECAUSE YOU DID WELL, AND AS AN OPENING ACT WHICH WE WERE FOR YEARS, YOU KNOW, OUT HERE -- BUT YOU COULDN'T GET A ROOM WHILE YOU WERE WORKING. NO, YOU COULD WORK THE PLACE. WE COULDN'T EVEN EAT IN THE PLACE. >> IMAGINE DRIVING UP TO THE FRONT OF THE CASINO AND YOUR NAME IS IN LIGHTS AND YOU CAN'T WALK THROUGH THE FRONT DOOR. YOU HAVE TO GO AROUND THE BACK. BECAUSE YOU'RE BLACK. BUT IT'S LIKE, THAT'S MY NAME, I'M PERFORMING HERE TONIGHT. >> THEY HAD TO LEAVE OUT THROUGH THE BACKDOOR. THEY COULDN'T EVEN STAY OVER THERE IN BETWEEN SHOWS. >> HOW CRAZY IT WAS THAT THESE GREAT ENTERTAINERS COULD SELL OUT THE SHOWROOM, HELP THE CASINO BE SUCCESSFUL BECAUSE OF THOSE PEOPLE, YET COULDN'T STAY THERE, COULDN'T GAMBLE, COULDN'T HAVE FAMILY COME SEE THE SHOW? >> WE HAVE SEGREGATION. IT IS NOT JUST IN LAS VEGAS. IT IS THE AMERICAN WAY OF LIFE AT THAT TIME. OUR CLIENTELE COMING HERE TO SPEND THE BIG BUCKS ARE COMING FROM MISSISSIPPI, THEY'RE COMING FROM TEXAS, AND YOU DON'T WANT TO OFFEND THEM. YOU DON'T WANT TO LOSE THOSE DOLLARS. >> PREJUDICE ITSELF WAS NOTHING NEW TO ME. NOT BEING ABLE TO STAY IN THE HOTELS, EVEN THE POPULAR ONES, BACK IN THOSE DAYS WHEN I FIRST STARTED TO TRAVEL. IT WASN'T A SURPRISE OR A SHOCK TO ME. >> WHAT IT WOULD BE LIKE TO LEAVE THE STRIP AT NIGHT WITH ALL THE LIGHTS ON, AND THIS WAS ALL DARK EXCEPT FOR AN OCCASIONAL MOTEL. GET IN THE CAR, COME OVER TO THE WEST SIDE. >> THE WEST SIDE IS THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY THAT IS ACROSS THE TRACKS FROM THE DOWNTOWN AREA. >> WHERE WOULD YOU SAY WHEN YOU CAME HERE? >> ON THE WEST SIDE. ALL THE BLACK PERFORMERS STAYED. BILLY X, THOSE BROTHERS. ANYBODY THAT WAS APPEARING HERE AS THE TOWN GREW, WE WERE FORCED TO BE TOGETHER. AND WE HAD -- THERE WAS A CAMARADERIE ABOUT THEM. THERE WAS A CAMARADERIE, ALMOST LIKE BEING IN THE ARMY. HALF THE FUN OF BEING IN THE ARMY IS TO BITCH ABOUT IT. SAME THING ABOUT THE CONDITIONS. >> SAMMY DIDN'T LIKE THAT. NAT KING COLE DIDN'T LIKE IT. LENA HORNE, THEY DIDN'T LIKE IT, OF COURSE. BECAUSE THEY COULD ENTERTAIN IN NEW YORK AND LOS ANGELES, AND THEY COULD STAY IN PLACES LIKE BLACK-OWNED HOTELS. BUT IN LAS VEGAS, THEY HAD TO STAY AT A BOARDING HOUSE. >> TOTAL INCONVENIENCE. YOU HAD AN 8:00 SHOW, YOU'RE THE OPENING ACT. YOU'D HAVE TO LEAVE THE WEST SIDE AT 6:00, GET HERE BY QUARTER TO 7:00 OR SOMETHING. >> SAMMY BECAME TIGHT WITH FRANK SINATRA. SEE, FRANK SINATRA WAS THE MAN IN LAS VEGAS WHEN SAMMY STARTED PLAYING THERE. AND HE SAID, FRANK WENT TO THE HOTEL AND TOLD THEM, "IF THEY CAN'T STAY HERE, I'M NOT PLAYING HERE ANYMORE, EVER." >> THE WEST SIDE OF LAS VEGAS BECAME THIS COMMUNITY OF BLACK FREEDOM. BLACK LIBERATION. >> YOU WANT TO GO OUT ON A FRIDAY NIGHT? YOU WOULD GO TO ONE OF THE SMALLER ENTERTAINMENT VENUES ON JACKSON AVENUE OR "D" STREET OR "E" STREET. >> IT WAS A SMALL-KNIT COMMUNITY. YOU KNEW EVERYBODY. COMMUNITY RALLIED. HELP, THE ██- IF YOU WERE DOING SOMETHING YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO BE DOING IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, THEY WOULD CALL YOUR PARENTS THEN YOUR PARENTS WOULD TALK TO YOU. SO IT WAS PROTECTION, IT WAS SECURITY, IT WAS ADMIRATION. >> WE DON'T THINK OF LAS VEGAS BEING A SEGREGATED CITY BECAUSE WE DON'T THINK OF LAS VEGAS POLITICALLY. >> WE'VE DEFINITELY SEEN THE VIDEOS OF THE JIM CROW SOUTH. YOU ALSO DON'T NECESSARILY THINK ABOUT THAT IN THE WEST. AND THERE WAS A REASON THAT LAS VEGAS WAS CALLED THE MISSISSIPPI OF THE WEST. ♪ >> I WAS IN BUFFALO, NEW YORK, WHEN PEARL BAILEY TOLD US THAT, "YOU HAVE TO GO TO LAS VEGAS, THAT'S WHERE YOU NEED TO GO." SO WE FLEW OUT. THEY HAD LIMOUSINES WAITING FOR US. AND THEN WE THOUGHT WE WERE GOING TO THE STRIP. THAT'S WHERE WE THOUGHT THE HOTEL WAS. WE PASSED BY THE STRIP. IT KEPT GETTIN DARKER AND DARKER, LEAVING THE LIGHTS. WE SAW THE MOULIN ROUGE, AND IT WAS BEAUTIFUL. >> CHEFS HAD BEEN BROUGHT IN FROM CITIES AROUND THE COUNTRY. >> YOU HAD WAITERS IN TUXEDOS WEARING WHITE GLOVES. YOU LAD CAB CALLAWAY, ALL THOSE BEAUTIFUL DANCERS. YOU HAD THE BEST 21 DEALERS. >> THE UNIFORMS. IT WAS POSH. >> WE LOOKED LIKE LENA HORNE OUT THERE ON THE STAGE. >> THEY BUILT THE MOULIN ROUGE IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY SO THAT THEY COULD MAKE IT AN INTEGRATED HOTEL CASINO NAMED THE MOULIN ROUGE AFTER THE MOULIN ROUGE IN PARIS. THE DECORATIONS, THE WALLPAPER, IS THE SAME AS THE MOULIN ROUGE IN PARIS. THOSE OWNERS ARE NOT CIVIL RIGHTS PEOPLE. THOSE OWNERS ARE GOOD BUSINESSMEN, AND THEY KNOW THAT THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY HAS MONEY. >> THE MUOULIN ROUGE WAS THE CENTER OF BLACK CULTURE. EVEN THOUGH THE ENTERTAINERS AND MUSICIANS WERE PLAYING IN THE CASINOS, THEY COULDN'T CELEBRATE IN THE CASINOS. >> SO THE MOULIN ROUGE IS IN BUSINESS, AND IT IS DOING WONDERFUL BUSINESS. STANDING ROOM ONLY FOR OPENING NIGHT. WE HAVE THESE BEAUTIFUL SHOWGIRLS, AND THEY ARE WELL TRAVELED. SO IT'S THAT INTERNATIONAL FLAIR THAT YOU HAVE IN THIS LOCATION ON THE WEST SIDE. >> WE WAS THE ONLY ONES THAT DID A LATE SHOW, A 2:30 SHOW, ON THE STRIP. THEY JUST DID AN 8:00 SHOW AND A SO EVERYBODY WAS THERE. >> A PLETHORA OF ARTISTS CAME TO THE MOULIN ROUGE DURING THAT TIME. GEORGE BURNS, DEAN MARTIN, FRANK SINATRA, YOU NAME IT, EVERYBODY WANTED TO TAKE IN THIS CULTURE. >> EVEN THOUGH THEY MIGHT HAVE SIMILAR SHOWS ON THE STRIP, THEY WASN'T AS HOT, AS FAST, AS EXCITING AS OURS. >> THE MUOULIN ROUGE GIRLS MADE THE COVER OF "LIFE" MAGAZINE. JUST SO PROUD THAT WE MADE IT. >> INTEGRATION AT THE MOULIN ROUGE SHOWED THAT WE CAN DWELL TOGETHER. WE CAN COME TOGETHER IN HARMONY. >> SO THE MOULIN ROUGE OPENED IN MAY OF 1955. AND ABOUT 5 1/2 OR 6 MONTHS LATER, THE MOULINROUGE CLOSES. >> IN LAS VEGAS, ONLY COLOR IS GREEN. WHEN YOU'RE COMPETING AND TAKING CUSTOMERS AWAY FROM THE MAIN SHOWROOMS, THEY'LL FIND A WAY TO HANDLE IT AND CLOSE YOU DOWN. GREEN IS WHAT SHUT THE MOULIN ROUGE DOWN. >> THE IMPACT THAT THE MOULIN ROUGE WAS MAKING, IT REALLY WAS A THREAT TO THE SEGREGATED HOTELS IN LAS VEGAS. THE ONLY PIECE LEFT STANDING OF THE MOULIN ROUGE CAN BE FOUND AT THE NEON MUSEUM IN LAS VEGAS. BLACK ENTERTAINERS AND BLACK WORKERS IN VEGAS WERE BACK TO THE REALITY THAT THE MISSISSIPPI OF THE WEST EXISTED AGAIN. AND THE FIGHT WAS NOW ON AGAIN, AND IT WASN'T GOING TO BE AN EASY FIGHT. >> SAMMY DAVIS JR. DID NOT LIKE THE KIND OF LIFE THAT HE HAD TO LIVE IN LAS VEGAS DURING SEGREGATION. NOBODY LIKED THAT LIFE. IT WAS A SLAP IN THE FACE. >> HE SPOKE OUT, AND THERE WERE OTHER PEOPLE THAT WORKED IN THE COMMUNITY THAT WERE ACTIVISTS. >> WE'VE ALL SEEN THAT SCENE OF INTRODUCING DOROTHY DANDRIDGE. HALLE BERRY PLAYING HER GOES TO THE POOL, PUTS HER TOE IN THE POOL BECAUSE SHE WANTS TO DO WHAT EVERYBODY ELSE IS ALLOWED TO DO. >> I HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY. >> NO. I'M NOT HAPPY AT ALL. >> ALL THE WHITE PEOPLE GOT OUT OF THE POOL. THE MANAGER OF THE HOTEL CAME AND TOLD HER SHE HA TO LEAVE THE HOTEL BECAUSE SHE WAS NOT ALLOWED TO GET IN SO SWIM. THEY DRAINED THE SWIMMING POOL BECAUSE SHE HAD BEEN IN IT. >> BLACK PERFORMERS HAVE HAD TO FACE THE EXTREMITIES OF DISCRIMINATION. AND YOU WANT EQUALITY, BUT THEY WANT YOU TO KNOW YOU'RE NOT LIKE US. >> AND A LOT OF BLACK ENTERTAINERS USED THOSE VOICES FOR THE BETTERMENT OF THE BLACK COMMUNITY. THEIR VOICE COULD BE HEARD WHEN OTHER VOICES COULD NOT. >> THE BLACK MUSICIANS WHO -- AND SINGERS AND ENTERTAINERS WHO WERE A BIG PART OF THE ECONOMY OF LAS VEGAS BUT WEREN'T GIVEN THE RESPECT, WEREN'T GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE A BIGGER PART OF THE COMMUNITY, ONE BY ONE TOOK A STAND. >> THEY BROUGHT THEIR ACTIVISM TO THE STAGE. AND WHILE THEY WERE THERE SHOWCASING THEIR ART, THEY INFORMED AND MADE THE AUDIENCES AWARE OF THE CHALLENGES THEY WERE FACING IN LAS VEGAS.