Atomic Tourism is relatively unknown outside of the United States and is a subject of disbelief for those who discover it. Here, Dr John Wills of the School of History explains the phenomenon of Atomic Tourism and the role it played in putting Las Vegas on the map. He said:
‘On the morning of 28 May 1957, a giant mushroom cloud rose into the Nevadan sky. Soldiers watched as US Air Force pilots flew directly into the cloud. Codenamed ‘Boltzmann,’ the 12 kiloton atomic blast marked the beginning of Operation Plumbbob, the longest series of atmospheric nuclear tests ever held in the continental USA. Stretching to a record 24 detonations, Plumbbob entailed a wide range of civilian, scientific and military projects spaced out across four months. By the end of the season, thousands of troops had trudged across radioactive hot zones as part of their training, around 1,200 pigs had been used for biomedical experiments, and 58,000 kilocuries of radioiodine had entered the atmosphere.
‘The Boltzmann mushroom cloud initially blew north, toward Tonopah, but radioactive fallout soon drifted across San Francisco, Los Angeles and even Portland. Like most atomic blasts, Boltzmann could be seen from Las Vegas, just 65 miles south of the test site.
‘Las Vegas in the 1950s was a booming city, thanks largely to mob money, big name shows, and new ‘themed’ casinos. Initial wariness over military activities at Nevada Test Site in the early 1950s had mostly dissipated, thanks to a combination of official reassurance, employment prospects, and business opportunities. Locals adjusted to living in a new Atomic City. At the Flamingo Hotel, journalists formed the “Ancient and Honorable Society of Atom Bomb Watchers” in April 1952, pledging to “keep forever the secrets” of the A-Bomb, as well as their own evening activities in Sin City, with a group password of “cimota” (“atomic” backwards). Tourists flocked to Vegas not just for the prize fights and gambling opportunities, but to watch the “atomic firework display” go off at sunset from the (relative) safety of hotel poolsides. Casinos such as Binion’s Horseshoe held atomic pool parties, whereby guests partied into the night, then raised their glasses as a mushroom cloud exploded in the distance.
‘Although the exact origin is unknown, Atomic Liquors on Fremont Street was certainly one of the first places to sell the Atomic Cocktail, while the Flamingo Casino’s beauty parlour provided mushroom-type hairstyles. In May 1952, Las Vegas dancer Candyce King became the first in a series of Atomic Pin-Ups’ when she entertained troops at the Last Frontier Hotel and gained the epithet “Miss Atomic Blast”. Sin City appropriated the bomb for its own thriving entertainment culture, turning atomic testing into a vehicle of profit, amusement and excess.
‘By the time of the Plumbbob test series, the peak of atmospheric testing, nuclear tourism in Vegas had lived its crescendo. Atomic Pin-Up Lee Merlin was photographed at the Sands Hotel in May 1957 to celebrate the new series, sporting a swimsuit with a giant fluffy cotton mushroom cloud (the design of the modern bikini owes its inspiration to the atomic bomb). However, study of local newspapers reveals a growing skepticism over the need for new tests, and rising fear over the consequences of atmospheric radiation for the region. Las Vegans were fast falling out of love with all things atomic. Within a few years, the United States and Soviet Union had signed a treaty banning all above-ground atomic testing. The radiation and the cocktails nonetheless lingered.’
Dr John Wills is Reader in American History and Culture for Kent’s School of History, and author of six books including Conservation Fallout: Nuclear Protest at Diablo Canyon (2006) and most recently Gamer Nation: Video Games and American Culture (2019). He is currently working on a new project on atomic culture in Nevada.
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