A new era of mega-resorts began with the opening of the Mirage Hotel-Casino in 1989. A player named Elmer christened the casino with the first jackpot win at the Mirage a few days after its opening, on November 24, 1989. A whopping $4.6 million jackpot was won by him at the Las Vegas casino’s opening.
The 76-year-old retiree had borrowed $20 from his ex-wife to feed a $1 video slot machine at the new casino in Las Vegas that had just opened its doors when he hit a huge jackpot win for $4.6 million. In less than 9 hours after The Mirage, the (now renowned) hotel-casino located on the las-vegan strip, opened for business, Elmer had hit the big one and all it took was 90-minutes on the slot machine that led to his impressive big win.
During the game, Elmer had spent $80 of his own money that he had brought with him to play, he then borrowed $20 more from Florence, his former wife. So without Florence, that jackpot may not have even been possible. When asked the question regarding whether he would remarry his ex-wife after the big win, the Las Vegas man had mentioned that she wouldn’t have him. When his ex-wife overheard this she stated “He said that, not me.”. Although they had divorced 13 years ago, they still remain best friends.
Megabucks jackpots are linked to slot machines in dozens of Nevada casinos to accumulate huge jackpots, and the $4.6 million jackpot on Friday was the largest payout in Las Vegas history, though it did not exceed Reno’s record of $6.8 million.
At noon Wednesday, the $630 million Mirage Hotel opened its doors. In the gaming and entertainment capital, a $2.5 billion building boom has been sparked by the 3,049-room hotel.