The MGM Grand housed two entertainment venues: the Ziegfeld Stage and the Celebrity Room. Past Performances – MGM Grand and Casino (1973 – 1986) / Ballys (1986 – present) A new MGM Grand was opened in 1993 (see below). The hotel was sold to Bally’s in 1986 and rebranded.
The hotel reopened 8 months after the fire, and after spending $50 million on upgraded fire protection equipment including sprinklers, a detection system, and a smoke removal ventilation system. The showroom was damaged by smoke, but the Colortran Channel Track 2 lighting console survived.
85 lives were lost, many due to smoke inhalation as the hotel towers acted as chimneys to fill all floors with poisonous smoke and fumes from the burning decorative plastics. It was damaged in a huge fire in November 1980 which led to higher safety standards for fire protection across Las Vegas. The MGM Grand Hotel and Casino (now Bally’s Las Vegas) was opened in December 1973. Two Las Vegas hotels have been known as the MGM Grand.
