Steve Wynn came to Las Vegas to live in 1967 and worked as a slot and keno manager in the early days. In 1971 he was able to negotiate a land deal with Howard Hughes and Caesar's Palace that gave him his start in the casino business and allowed him to purchase the Golden Nugget Hotel in downtown Las Vegas. With a lot of work and determination the Golden Nugget became profitable in the late 70's allowing Wynn to build another Golden Nugget in Atlantic City in 1980. Hotel Vegas

In 1989, Steve Wynn built the Mirage Hotel & Casino , which was the first major hotel built in some years along the strip. He was able to build the mirage after a number of financing deals that saw him sell the Golden Nugget in Atlantic City. Steve Wynn brought tremendous vision to the Mirage and made it the flagship at the time for the strip hotels overtaking Caesar's and the Flamingo hotels nearby. With these moves and others later on, Steve Wynn literally transformed Las Vegas and raised the bar for all other hotels and casinos to follow! Hotel Vegas