Younger generations might not know much about Liberace, who reigned as the world’s highest-paid performer for more than two decades. Jonathan Warren, chairman of the Liberace Foundation for Performing and Creative Arts, says they’re missing a huge piece of Las Vegas’ lexicon.
Władziu Valentino Liberace first arrived in Las Vegas in 1944, working as a pianist. His rise to fame, which included TV and several films, predated the Rat Pack and the French showgirl productions that made early Las Vegas an entertainment destination. It has even been posited that he invented the Vegas residency with his shows at the Riviera during the 1950s.
