-- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com one of our roles here has always been to take away excess money from people who don't know what to do with it or can't think about a better idea of how to spend their money. in the old days, the neck -- the mechanism for doing that was you put it on a table. put that in the contest of throwing it away at a club, that is slightly more what it is. if you are talking about the center of the country? >> we might not want to think that it is?

what is the rest of the country? i don't know. they all come here. ♪

i can go to the desert, but i am not going to get there by accident. that is part of the whole experience of the desert, is that it ain't friendly. it ain't nice. it ain't good, you know. you're out here a half a mile and it doesn't matter if you are a half a mile out or 20 miles out, there is no reason to walk a mile further. you are already in infinite desolation. sin city was true. it was real. part of moving out here, you would never see the family again. i'm moving to vegas and you ain't coming to see me and i ain't coming to see you. that was the character of the city. it was the pitiful of america. it wasn't somebody that would come out here and make big bucks, it was i'm going to come out here and make a few bucks

and you ain't gonna bug me back home. in vegas, there is winners and losers. and god knows, i've been both. in a place like this, where you can lose your shirt on the unlucky turn of a card, you need a friend. and for my sins, i got ruhlman. evading every jurisdiction from cleveland, for assault, grand

theft auto and author of the french laudry cook book and soul of a chef. he washed up in vegas at just the right time. vegas was always the most unlikely of dreams. the longest of long shots, in the middle of the desert. a real, but imaginary space that keeps expanding, creeping ever larger across the waste land. back in the 40s, the 50s, it was a small town. 100,000 became 300,000, became 500,000. then a million. then 2 million. but it doesn't matter if it was five years ago or 50, the town has always ended like this. an abrupt cut and the desert wraps on the horizon. but there are comfortable dark places too. where a man can have a drink and meet like-minded sophisticates

in the west. places like this. >> it is the good stuff. that is jamison black. >> will you give me 30 of those. >> huntridge tavern. for those who have to live it, see it, the things men do day after day and night after night in a town where people are encouraged to do their worst and drink the stain away. >> this is the side of vegas i like. this side. >> because people here are cynical. >> really? >> i have a dim world view.

even more dim than me. that is hard. do you know what this whole show is about? you know there is a theme? >> no. >> this is about people who live here. when all of the meat heads come and go, they are still here. >> these people have seen every variety of human behavior. the only business model came to vegas and did really bad. >> i think it has encouraged people to be their worst. they are expected to do that. it kind of makes my skin crawl. >> really? >> not here. i'm comfortable here. >> is this a easy or a hard town to make a living? >> it depends on what you do. 25 years behind the bar and you see some strange things. >> you were born and raised here? >> yes. a third generation. >> are you an optimist or a pessimist? >> do you think the human race are good people? >> i would say roughly half of

them. >> half are going. >> half are going. >> there are probably more knuckleheads per square foot in the vegas strip than anywhere in america. >> but i'm not hanging with those people, man. >> there will be a few high-end meals here, we'll sample the other side, but there is a price. >> there is always a price with you. ♪ there are places in vegas where the available rooms are not listed on any websites,

places reserved for the whales, the night camblers -- gamblers who arrive at night by private plane. >> bobby fla probably lives like this all of the time. >> it could get dark. it could get very dark here. i honestly never thought it would have come to this. >> i was dunking fries 14 years ago. >> you've made some steps up. >> you make me feel better about all of this luxury looking back at that. >> yeah, you deserve this. >> you're right. you're right. >> you deserve this. >> into my golden years era. they don't show this in the viagra commercials. they are running down the beach with a tennis racket but they are never sitting here.

go out and kill some young people. you are like throw some bloopers in there. to victory in our time. >> you always try to comfort yourself in situations like this, thinking i'm sure there are people who are really wealthy and they are probably really miserable, they don't know the ups and downs, the happiness, the contrast and the passion that i have. but we don't know, do we? like they think every day is wonderful. >> just a little toast. >> perfect. thank you. mmm. delicious. >> perfect. >> the villa at caesar's palace.

a pad they give you if your credit line runs into the eight figures. how did i get it? i told them that wolf blitzer was coming. i said he would come any minute and he might be hungry. and they sent something up and i will live large until they figure out wolf ain't coming. i'll deal with the fallout later. but for now, we live. >> this dish is cold, caviar. everything is in layers. on the bottom is the vinaigrette and then topped with french green beans with caviar and we are finishing the dish with a caviar cebaugne. >> it is rare that i say it is too beautiful to eat.

>> i was just thinking that. and speaking of fantastically luxurious. >> this is the artichoke soup with shavings of aged cheese. >> oh, man, that is truffle. >> so this is the meat. combination of pheasant, [ inaudible ], cabbage and mushrooms. >> wow! look at this. that is beautiful. do you feel guilty eating this well? >> i do. >> you do? >> i do. >> i'm feeling guilty now, but it will pass. >> i'll follow you then. >> wow! have you ever seen anything like this? >> i've never seen anything like this anywhere. >> me either. >> and can you see the main pool from the window here. you can see the hoi polloi.

>> i was going to invite them up to for a party. >> no. >> don't they deserve a good time? i don't know. maybe not. >> not going to happen. >> we're getting back to guilt. do you feel enlightened and inspired by this meal? >> what are you asking? what are you trying to get at here. >> i'm trying to make myself feel better. i'm trying to feel like i'm down with the people. >> this guilt keeps coming back. >> you're right, i feel guilty. >> what are you doing here if you feel so guilty about it? >> i don't. i feel guilty, but i'm not feeling guilty. >> that is more to the point. now just be honest with yourself. >> right. could protect you from cancer?

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it is so easy to say i came out here because it is the land of opportunity. well that is really great. and if you are not here, why else are you here? because the good old wreck your life scenario, that is popular. but you can change about your mind about wrecking your life and now what do i do. there is a lot less self-reflection about why people are here than most other places. what a lost opportunity that is. >> sinatra and the mob are gone, but there remains a certain sentimental attachment to the way things used to be. there were rules then. and the way things were done. and when they weren't done, there was always the desert and a hole in the ground. and there were lounges, and place where a man can get a

proper plate of meatballs and spigettes, and thankfully there are still places like this. the bootlegger. momma's family has been running it for years. you have your fettucini alfredo and the blue cheese, which, believe me, you want. >> evening, ladies and gentlemen. welcome to the bootlegger. thank you very much. this is charlie shea, for miest teamed -- my esteemed father. my name is laura shea and we're your entertainment for the evening. ♪ i've got the blues ♪ i feel so lonely ♪ i would get the world if i could only

♪ make him understand ♪ oh, that surely would be grand ♪ the bootlegger has a reputation for being a locals' joint and it is. but there are out-of-towners too, sentimental fools like me. if they don't miss frank sinatra, they miss louie and geno smith. >> when i was 19, i got my first show on the strip and it was a small casino, which is not there any more now. it's been imploded for something newer, bigger and better. what i do, any way, it is part jazz, part nostalgia, but i do it with a heavy dose of nostalg nostalgia, because i'm doing the look and not just the old songs. which makes it fun for me.

♪ when you left, you broke my heart ♪ >> pick one, dean martin or frank sinatra. you get to see one of them live in a small room like this? >> frank sinatra. >> i'm going with dino. >> i've never heard anybody say anything bad about him. >> but sinatra, you would have a hard time hearing something good. there does seem to be a soundtrack to old vegas. >> a soundtrack upon check-in. does that help? >> who? me, or the imitator? >> well an expectation for the classics and while i'm here i should hear some standards. >> i don't know if there is a person place that people stay if they are sentimental about vegas because there are very few that are there. they have all been imploded. >> and with paris, you think

somebody would want to recreate vegas. i would go there. >> i would work there. ♪ baby, won't you please come home ♪ [ applause ] >> thank you very much.

. you could go see larry prima and have breakfast and then go out and watch the atomic bomb blow in the distance. that is a good time. >> was it better before or is it better now? different? >> better to talk about before. people loved having their mob stories and there is that weird romance of bad people. i don't think it actually was better. i think it was good if you were sinatra. >> penn jillet. another cog in the entertainment machine, though on a elevated level. of the acts left in vegas, his might be the biggest draw. i suggested this place because racu off the strip is where every chef said i should go. the japanese modern is known as one of the best places to eat in

vegas. casual, but pricey. pricey because of the ingredients, many from around the world. this sea urchin from santa barbara raw, that is not too far. this from spain and the fresh crab from japan. that was delicious. >> i didn't know oysters came that big. >> sake, sashimi, deep fried chicken and one of my favorites, fish collar where all of the meatiest bits hide their favors. penn has been living here and performing here for over 20 years. he knows. >> the think about magic is you cannot see it electronically. many people that come to vegas are people that see one or two live shows a year. and if you see one or two live shows, you might as well see something you can only see live.

that you can never, ever, see a magician any way but live. >> these days for better or worse, live acts, live performers are being squeezed out in favor of edm, electronic dance music. and it is the way of world. and it used to be cocaine was god' way of tell you you have too much money. now it is edm. >> i'm embarrassed i don't understand it. >> are we just old? >> i don't know. >> are am i just too duchy. >> it used to be that danny ganz was big here, they were gods. but what is the big money-draw now? this. come lords and princelings,

anoint thy self and let there be high fiving and hugging of many bros, for this is the kingdom and the power. now frolic and make it rain. >> it is crazy. just press a button and people respond. >> they do, man. >> wednesday night at the marquee. d.j. jason lima works for the house. tonight at marquee and at other clubs like it around vegas, somewhere between 8 and 10,000 people will stop by and drop a whole boat let of cash. >> it is not just coming in here and orderering a bottle and drinking it. you are getting a full-on group experience. >> the new money, the new vegas.

where the take at the big nightclubs is outpacing the take from the gambling and slots, where everybody with the right price and the right mix, can be a winner. >> after you finish work, how long does it take your adrenalin level to go down? >> at least an hour. >> what are your dreams like, man? >> sometimes i close my eyes and i still see the strobes. still got flashing. vo: this year, santa left his sleigh at home and booked his trip around the world on expedia. because now the points you earn traveling for the holidays can be donated to help the kids at st. jude children's research hospital. make your holiday travel mean even more.

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las vegas is an adult play land and that is what we intend to be. if people want to see mickey mouse, they can go 175 miles down the road and if they want to see bugsy siegal under a rock, they stay here. >> is there a place where elvis or bugsy siegal used to be? if there was, it would be this

man. oscar goodman. previous mayor. he knows where all of the bodies are buried. some of them his former clients. we meat at oscar's the steakhouse that bears his name with beef, booze and brods. >> all of my clients were nice to me because i kept them out of prison. >> did alleged mob guys know how to eat. >> my mother said two things, oscar's clients don't hurt anybody. they just kill each other. and she also said oscar's clients take us to the best restaurants. >> they knew where to go. >> they knew were to go. they were always treated right. they were always treated like kings and queens. >> did the feds hold it against you, you were just doing your job. >> they didn't see it that way. they thought i was a

consigliere. to murder somebody, they had to get my approval. >> many were not unknown to goodman. >> a lot of people say it was better place when the mob runned it. >> there were rules then. and what happens in vegas stays in vegas. there was a certain urgency to that. >> we saw that with prince harry. here is a guy having a good time and in old vegas that wouldn't have happened. there would never be a disclosure. and today in modern age, it was all over the world in moments. >> yes. >> it says something about the town that his honor served three terms as mayor. he is an unabashed booster, entrepreneur and gambler and never shy about it. >> it is unique. >> vegas is unique. but i'll tell you one thing, you

go to the airport here, everybody is smiling. they can't wait to win some money and when they leave, they smile because they want to take their money. they can take their basin sti-- basic instincts and just let it fly. i have no problem with it at all. >> when you come to vegas, you see this. the light and smoke and mirrors an the casino floors. but who manages the machines? where do they come from? behind the walls, above the winking surveillance cameras, a whole other world, manned by thousands and thousands of waiters, maintenance people, repair men, chefs, engineers, plumbers and others. they slip in and out of the

casinos almost unseen through theiren entrances, but it is these people who have seen it all. seen everything. night after night. denny has been working here since cesar's opened in 1966. he's dealt cards to everybody? >> to diana ross. sinatra. samy davis. >> sinatra was not supposed to be ameaniable at the table. >> he was fast. but those were the days. but it is nice now too. >> would you describe yourself as a degenerate gambler? >> yes. we have a two 2-year-old at home but i'll always have the gamb r gambli gambling. >> eric and erica are professional gamblers.

it is not unusual to sit down with half a million dollars. tonight, slightly lower stakes. >> bennie, how do you like my chances? >> good. >> we have the camera version of texas hold em. you play against the house. the odds, to say the least, are stacked against you. >> there is a winner. two pair. he's kugt -- cutting up over there. see how easy it is. you have this game down. >> oh, no. those are famous last word. >> let's put out a hundo and see what happens. >> i have a pair of sevens. >> i have trips. >> it is going to be pretty hard to beat. >> you're a dead man, bennie. hit that again. >> okay. two pair. a pair of duces.

two pair. a pair of tens. >> oh, no. >> a pair of kings. >> bennie? you have a full house. >> this is unbelievable. is there somebody standing behind us? >> well that works for me. >> thank you very much. >> this is a learning experience in my case. we got away from our shirts. let's not do it again. up to 30%? 45%? 60%? the answer is... up to 60% less. and that's a big reason why the u.s. is a world leader in reducing co2 emissions. take the energy quiz -- round 2. energy lives here.

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>> it is easy to help you untangle the mess but somebody has to make the mess in the first place. the call is to untangle it. untangle this. this is going to be so much fun. >> anthony bondy is an artist and a born-and-bred las vegas native. after some adventures and misadventures, he chose to live here. >> to what degree am i complicit in the worst of our city by making art that glorifies the city. i don't profit directly from what those people do. but of course, i do. because i live in the city. and that money rolls all around us. >> but how do we live with it. it is not why and where people that come from that do the

grotesque things they do, but how do we live here complicit and you have to be self-refle self-reflective about it or you just have to be high all of the time, which is another popular way of living here. >> is vegas a friendly town? >> yeah, always friendly. because that is our job. >> but i mean, to it self-? if you are a local? >> no. >> no? >> not a bit. >> this town has to respect for the people who happen to live here. in the old days, we were co-conspirators. we weren't citizens. the new power is as synonymous as the old power. no phone number, no chance. >> there is an art community in

vegas. like art, that makes all of our lives better and makes us think. granted vegas is a town designed to make you not think, to separate you from your money in as pleasurable way as possible. so pleasurable even after you limp out of town, leaking from your -- nothing in your pockets, you want to come back and do it again. reflection, not so good. >> as a resident, what are the gem rules of survival? >> don't cry about being broke. if i'm broke, more than likely it is because i threw away my money and too bad for me because i lost my money. >> don't be broke. >> this is a serve industry town? >> one of our roles here has always been to take away excess money from people who don't know what to do with it and can't think about a better idea of how to spend their money. we'll always take it. >> is that worst than before?

>> well, there are people with that kind of income who could put it so so many good uses and could think of nothing more classy than to wave it in the air and throw it away. that is the challenge. and it has always been. it is who we are. >> you are sitting in the best thai restaurant in vegas by far. one of the best in america. >> jet has been here before. an l.a. guy he came out here to do four years as chef at encore, at the wynn. he is an authority on thai food. and everybody knows about this

place. >> you go to the back of the me menu, and you order. if you come here and eat this, you are a waste. >> the owner and chef. and get this, and it is important, you don't do thai here, you do what they are good at, the food of northern thailand. >> a trick. >> literal translation, chili deep. it is a composed, room-temperature salad. how hot is a crispy rice salad with preserved pork sausage. >> this salad is hung laid with pork, curry and braised down with garlic and ginger.

>> this porridge is amazinamazi >> and that is northern love. very important dish. >> that looks really pretty. >> this is cow soy. this is the food my grandma made. >> that is perfection then. >> what i love about vegas' place is you can have shesh food and taiwan restaurant. >> a guy with a $10 million line at wynn is going to eat asian food and drop $5 million more bucks and then go home. [ normal voice ] you're right, that was really easy. i know, i told you so. on progressive.com, you can compare our progressive direct rates with our competitors' rates, so shopping is easy.

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[ inaudible ]. we want to do things in a way, because we want to be cool. no, we do it because we believe we are increasing the value of the product we are working with. you are giving you the essence. >> eve by jose andres.

tonight tucked in the back of one of his restaurants. guys making paea in a dining room. quiet, serene, a kind of magic. this is granted, a far cry from the $1 shrimp cocktail and buffets groping under the weight of a thousand cars. a bean soup with black and roasted garlic. hammon, the best. like from spain. nitro almond cup, a frozen shell made from a puree of almonds, filled with al mond fillk and caviar. >> this is working very well. my pallet is working. the desire and effect is taking hold. >> if you were a famous chef and you were lured to rivers of

green promised by vegas, it is nice if you can get yourself a play room. >> this is muscles, olives with a fum. >> he doesn't say that. >> >> i cannot with these. it is an opportunity all of the sudden, water is not water anymore. water has a body. belongs. >> the truffle egg, a jilay of truffles formed into an egg shape with an actual yolk formed in the center. >> this is the idea of what if we will be feeding our chickens truffles? with the eggs become like this.

>> with onion puree, it's cream and finished with lot more shaved white truffle. >> this is crispy chicken skin. >> sliding this off right into my face. >> and creme. this is your portion of the roasted forga and finish it with a clemen tine sauce. >> i like this. it's flavorful. >> this is your next coach. >> this is the squid in this sauce? >> yep. >> awesome. >> secreto verico? the secret cut of the iberian pig. located underneath the front shoulder. >> this is an homage of the goodness of the sea meets the goodness of the earth. you know the work that goes into creating a menu like this? hold on.

that we put the work doesn't mean it's good. when the food critics, they come and they say, the chef was not there. and i look at the food critics saying this is almost like a lack of respect. who do you think these people are? where do you think they come from? what do you think their careers are? every one of those amazing thousands of chefs, sous chefs that we have across the world, they are as good if not better than the guys that have their name on top with neon letter. to come together, even when we're apart in stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, and more, swanson® makes holiday dishes delicious!

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there is not one acre of preserved mojave desert in the city limits of las vegas. why would you preserve this? this desolation is not nurturing. we can't be here unless there's a lot of technology supporting our presence. and so there's a sense of the city versus nature. this is not our friend. >> you would think looking at the vast lakes, the canals, the fountains of vegas in the middle of a desert, the flush of 100,000 toilets, that the casinos and what they bring would constitute an obscene waste of water. and indeed water is an ever more

desperate premium as water levels in the colorado river reservoir at lake mead decrease at an alarming rate. but it ain't the casinos that are the culprits. in fact, vegas casinos are a model of water efficiency and conservation. main culprit? the all-american lawn. a little square of green. robert kern is water police. he patrols the vegas streets looking for evidence of water violations. >> saw some water in the gutter actually on both sides. this is not their day. we're in an area where there shouldn't be any watering, yet there's water here. that's what we do, we drive around looking for something like that, to give them a little educational visit. hey, you're not supposed to water today. >> so you don't wrestle them to the ground, cuff them and drag them in? >> no, we do not. although we can go to a fee. >> around how much? >> $80. >> $80. then --

>> then it doubles. >> and it keeps going? >> yeah. >> it seems a losing battle to keep your grass green. do you really need a lawn in the first place? >> well, most everyone that lives here came from the midwest or east coast and it was lush and green, and that's what vegas was 20 years ago. >> it was lush and green. >> sure. >> the city assigns watering days to control usage and also encourages xeriscaping, a landscaping style focused on drought-resistant plants and efficient irrigation. and if you don't get with the program, there's a hole out there in the desert for you. okay, not really. you get like a notice pinned to your door or something. >> but some people, they want the lawn? >> yeah. >> got to have it. >> and they can have it. just don't water on the wrong day. >> how critical is it? >> very. i mean, there's no snow on the western sierras, so we don't get any continued flow into the colorado dumping into lake mead. so unless something drastically changes, which there is no foreseeable relief in the near future.

but you've got to stay positive. >> for the first 30, 40 years of the development of the town you just couldn't conceive of what was ahead. what we had, whatever was the newest thing that was happening was so spectacular and wonderful and oh, my gosh, we reached a new eastern edge, a western, northern edge. the odds are slim to zero that we're going to extend it to yet a further horizon. it was inconceivable. so there's the thing. what does the desert do? it exceeds our ambition. >> in vegas, nothing is permanent. it constantly eats itself, tears down, builds up, expands according to no known or easily understood plan. an organic thing responding to the dark dreams of the american subconscious. come frolic, live like caesar, or make money off those who do.

drop a few moist bills in a gas station slot. see the full spectrum of human folly and commit some follies of your own. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com ♪ some time ago something crawled or slithered or grew like a fungus. something that started small, got bigger, lurched like a swamp thing out of the mud and moist earth and humid nights of the delta. then it took over the world. so, next time some smartass ferner horrified by our ham-fisted foreign policy wonders out loud what good is america, well, you can always pipe up that the blues, rock and roll, r&b and soul all came out of this place, one state, mississippi.