Vegas Field Trip, Part 2: The Spooks Are On the House

My Dark Path

Episode Summary:

My Dark Path podcast explores the fringes of history, science, and the paranormal. This episode is a continuation of the “Vegas Field Trip” where stories of eerie happenings are explored as a backdrop following different tragic and fatal events in the past.

In this conversation, Thurkettle, Townsend, and Hodur explored hotel hallways, walking the floors of casinos ranging from some of the oldest to the biggest and most glamorous. Shared in this episode are more clips recorded by the team in the very places they were discussing in the pedestrian hallways around Bally’s, on the main floor of the Luxor, or in a restaurant in Binion’s.

Episode Highlights

About today’s conversation; More experiences of Thurkettle, Townsend, and Hodur in the dark tales of Las Vegas.

• The ghosts of Benny Binion’s hotel. La Palazza Mansion; The Death House
• Ghosts from the sins of corporations; the MGM fire disaster.
• The Curse of the Luxor
• A few Celebrity ghosts.
• Zac Bagans’ Haunted Museum
• Notes:

Three storytellers, Thurkettle, Townsend, and Hodur, rendezvoused in Sin City for a special My Dark Path field trip, recording clips of discussions had in key places surrounded by stories of supernatural happenings. The first clip was recorded in The El Cortez where the supposedly haunted room, 3300, sits in the historic wing our team was exploring. One of the biggest major criminal entities who made a fortune in driving the evolution of Las Vegas was Benny Binion; his hotel tells all about its ghosts. Despite being a convicted murderer and an experienced gambling hall boss even before his initial arrival to Vegas, there is a statue of Benny in Vegas today. His story started in Texas where he was born in 1904, but couldn’t go to school due to chronic poor health. Hence, Benny got his education by accompanying his father, a horse trader, on trips throughout the wild, wild west where many fellow horse traders also gambled.

As a teenager, Benny got more involved in the gambling business till he moved to El Paso where he began bootlegging and even committed murders, but walked scot-free based on his influence. When his destructive nature attracted attention beyond his influence, he moved to Las Vegas where he set up the Binion’s Horseshoe Casino, leveraging higher stakes than other casinos to attract high rollers, as well as many other perks that transformed gambling in Vegas to what it would evolve to become today. In the end, the law caught up with Benny as he was arrested for tax evasion and lost his Nevada gaming license but "The hotel Apache", the only section of Binion’s with its name restored, is the only hotel that will openly tell you it is haunted. At the front desk, there’s a pamphlet describing its history of haunted encounters with a card to report yours; this list is on the Dark Path Website. Interestingly, most cases were reported in the same rooms or areas of the hotel, with no explanation from the hotel as to why.

Another place in the suburbs known for supernatural events is the La Palazza Mansion also known as The Death Mansion, The Devil's Mansion, and The Hell House. Located in a residential neighborhood, miles from the Las Vegas strip, it was once owned by Tony “The Ant” Spilotro, who was an enforcer for one of the deadliest gangs in Vegas. Rumored to be the place where many of Tony’s heinous acts were carried out, the house is also known for legends surrounding it like having dead bodies in the backyard and a drain in a room for spilled blood to flow out. La Palazza does not offer ghost tours but there are stories of previous owners like Chris Martinez, who led the Ghost Ad

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