Steve Wynn recalls building The Mirage at Neon Museum fundraiser in Las Vegas

Former casino executive Steve Wynn spoke about the creation of The Mirage and its effect on Las Vegas at a public event at the Golden Nugget on October 22. The 84-year-old addressed an audience of 600 for nearly two hours, as reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The appearance was organized by the Neon Museum as part of its annual "Reflections of The Mirage" Duck Duck Shed celebration, and it helped raise money for the museum's historical preservation work. The museum had announced in July that Wynn would take part, and it has also saved artifacts from the old resort.

The Mirage opened in November 1989 and cost about $630 million, a very large investment at the time. Wynn said there were doubts over whether the property could earn enough to cover its operating costs, but it turned profitable almost immediately. He recalled that tens of thousands of visitors came on opening day and that the facilities were full. Its 3,044 hotel rooms, large-scale entertainment and elaborate attractions helped set expectations for later projects and encouraged further investment on the Strip through the 1990s.

Wynn also described how assembling the land nearly derailed the plan. One remaining parcel belonged to Grace Hayes, a former actress who would not sell the house she had shared with her late husband, screenwriter Robert Hopkins. Howard Hughes had earlier tried and failed to buy it. Wynn eventually showed her a model of the development and persuaded her to reconsider. Hayes reportedly received $2 million for her house and the neighboring property, and Wynn also arranged a luxury suite for her at the Golden Nugget for the rest of her life. Construction began in 1986.

The resort's signature volcano came about after lighting designer David Hersey flagged a technical problem with lighting a waterfall, according to Wynn. The attraction, with its simulated eruptions of fire and water, became a trademark, alongside the illusionists Siegfried & Roy and a dolphin habitat that drew school groups. The Mirage closed in July 2024 and is being replaced by a Hard Rock-branded resort with a guitar-shaped hotel tower.

The event also revived discussion of Wynn's exit from the industry. He resigned as chairman and chief executive of Wynn Resorts in 2018 amid allegations of sexual misconduct, which he denies. In 2019, Nevada gaming regulators fined Wynn Resorts $20 million over its handling of complaints involving him.