I Mean, God Forbid We Should Make a Mistake and Forget to Smile: Shooting Scorsese’s Casino in Las Vegas, De Niro and Pesci Visit Crazy Girls
On social media and online communities dedicated to Las Vegas, Martin Scorsese’s 1995 movie Casino receives ongoing recognition. On Twitter for example, people often reference some of the film’s famous lines. For example, the word “jagoff,” which is used by the character Nicky Santoro played by Joe Pesci, is often used. There is also a meme of the film’s protagonist, Ace Rothstein played by actor Robert De Niro, that people like to post.
Stories about Casino are often discussed by fans of Las Vegas. Here is one you might not have heard.
The casino scenes for the picture were shot at the Riviera Hotel and Casino. At that time, the female revue Crazy Girls had their show at the resort. One evening, Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci went to see a performance of the burlesque production. The photo above was taken on that evening, as the actors posed with two of the women who starred in Crazy Girls.
Director and choreographer of Crazy Girls, Jennifer Aleman shared with us that a few of the dancers from the show were actually in the movie Casino as well.
If you ever wondered about what Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci did in Las Vegas while not shooting Casino, you now know that they took in one of the Entertainment Capital of the World’s most famous shows.
If you would like to hear more stories about Casino and the real-life events surrounding the film, you can check out our CYInterview with former mobster turned government witness, the late Frank Cullotta. He served as a technical advisor on the movie. You can see that CYInterview by clicking here.
As for Crazy Girls, we should know in the coming weeks where America’s longest-running burlesque show will make its new home in Las Vegas. We anxiously await that news. It is a terrific production. Oh, and when you see the show, you smile automatically!