The Thunderbird Hotel operated from September 2, 1948 to July 6, 1992, and was the fourth resort to open on the Las Vegas Strip. For the last 15 years of its existence, it changed names twice, first as the Silverbird in 1977, and then the El Rancho in 1982, borrowing the name of the very first resort that opened on the Strip.

The Thunderbird has the distinction of being the resort where singer Rosemary Clooney made her first appearance in Las Vegas in 1951 Harry Belafonte was Clooneys opening act.

Opera stars such as James Melton and Dorothy Warrensjold also graced the showroom stage. The Dinner Show cost $4 back then. The Late Show had a two drink minimum with drinks under a $1.

Judy Garland made her final Vegas appearance in 1965 at the Thunderbird

Rex Allen and the Sons of the Pioneers made history one night. Allen performed with his horse "Coco". On this particular night, Coco violated the rule of all animal acts- all over the stage, the stage was table-top height and the incident occurred during the dinner show. The Lighting Director, Bob Ogle, quickly killed the stage lights and threw a spot on Rawlings. While pianist Fritz Becker began to play, stage hands frantically tried to clean the mess up.

The Lounge at the Thunderbird was the Pow-Wow Room and boasted a small stage, bar and fireplace making for an intimate place to enjoy some great music.
Howard Hughes was often spotted in the showroom, usually arriving after the show had started.

Nat King Cole began performing there in 1948. Unlike other hotels, where the performers had to go through the kitchen to reach the stage, the Thunderbird was designed so that the performers didn't have to take such a circuitous route.

The Thunderbird also had the first semi-nude Ice Show on the Strip. George Arnold, a well-known skater, was tapped to produce the show. "When I was asked to come out here from New York and produce the Ice Show, I had never seen a nude ice show before." he recalled in a 1979 interview. "I actually had to ask my father and mother for permission to produce the show, Ecstasy on Ice. The show ran for over three years.

In 1963, producer Monte Proser announced that he had exclusive rights from Rogers and Hammerstein to produce their musicals in Las Vegas. He opened with a Flower Drum Song starring Jack Soo. It was the first time an abridged version of the musical had been produced. It was deemed a success and South Pacific with Mitzi Gaynor was produced later.

In 1965 continuing the musical theater theme MADAME came to the Silverbird directly from Londons West end staring Delphi Lawrence, while at the same time topless revue PARDON MY CAN CAN at 2.30 am.

Production show FEMININE TOUCH played in the 1970's

Famed South African tribal musical IPI TOMBI played in the 1970's

On July 6, 1992, the resort permanently closed its doors. Like many other legendary resorts, it became a throwback to the old days and could not compete with newer resorts.

For eight years the building lay vacant while developers competed with one another for the land. Among the proposed projects included a casino called Starship Orion where the resort would be shaped like a huge starship, and for several years the marquee claimed that "Countryland USA" would be coming soon. During the time of the hotel-casino's closing and the implosion, there were local rumors of the building being haunted by ghosts. KVBC News 3 of Las Vegas did an investigation into the hauntings and discovered that most of the structure was rotten, with a handful of operating slot machines and some rooms totally renovated and maintained. This report led to the State of Nevada ordering Turnberry Associates to consider a purchase of the property. In 2000 the land was purchased by Turnberry Associates, and on October 3, 2000, the old resort was imploded.

The Turnberry Place condominium complex now stands on the site.
This land is now slated to be the site for the $2.8 billion Fontainebleau Resort.

If you have any information about the history of entertainment at this property please do contact us, we aim to update this section of the site as frequently as possible so that we can ensure as accurate as possible correct historic information.