Las Vegas (TV series)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Las Vegas | |
|---|---|
Las Vegas title sequence |
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| Format | Crime, Dramedy |
| Created by | Gary Scott Thompson |
| Starring | James Caan (2003-2007) Josh Duhamel Vanessa Marcil James Lesure Molly Sims Tom Selleck (2007-) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 98 (List of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Running time | 41-45 min (per episode) |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC |
| Picture format | 480i (SDTV), 1080i (HDTV) |
| Original run | September 22, 2003 – present |
| External links | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
Las Vegas is a dramatic comedy television series about a team of people working in the fictional Montecito Resort and Casino in Las Vegas — dealing with issues that arise within the working environment, ranging from valet parking and restaurant management to casino security. The show debuted on September 22, 2003 on NBC, immediately following the popular Fear Factor series. It also airs in over 70 countries.
The show uses the style of camera work popularized by CSI and usually has several parallel storylines running during the show, switching among them as the show progresses[citation needed].
Contents |
The series originally centered around Ed Deline (James Caan), a strict ex-CIA officer who went from Head of Security to becoming President of Operations of the Montecito, whose job is to run the day-to-day operations of the casino. Following his departure from the series in Season 5, former Marine Danny McCoy (Josh Duhamel), Ed's former protege, has become the Montecito's new President of Operations. Other characters that work with McCoy include current Head of Security and Surveillance, and former Head Valet, Mike Cannon (James Lesure) who plays an integral role in investigations due to his engineering degree from MIT. Danny's childhood friend and ex-fiancée, Mary Connell (Nikki Cox), worked at the Montecito as a Hotel Manager until leaving in the fifth season. Sam Marquez (Vanessa Marcil), a manipulative businesswoman who is considered the best casino host in Las Vegas, has only one interest: to get high rollers to play at the casino. Ed's daughter Delinda Deline (Molly Sims) serves as the Entertainment Manager, and runs all the food and beverages in the casino. She is currently dating Danny again after previously having a romantic connection with him early in the first season.
- A.J. Cooper, (Tom Selleck), the new owner of the Montecito as of 2007. He is a former Marine and cattle farmer from Wyoming who stirs things up at the casino. It is said his net worth is about $2 billion. On his first day, he allowed a doctor to avoid jail for cheating by making him lose his winnings back and promising not to return to Las Vegas again. In "Run Cooper Run," we find out that Cooper was a Black Ops Marine sent to fight in Vietnam, involved in a battle in which 50-75 Marines fought off an attack of 350 Vietcongs, and awarded a Bronze Star for his work in Vietnam.
- Danny McCoy, (Josh Duhamel), He was initially Ed's apprentice, punching bag, second son, and best friend who was later promoted to Head of Security. After the resignation of Ed in 2005, Danny was made President of Operations of the Montecito Resort & Casino for a brief period. However, following Ed's return, Danny was given his old position. He was born and raised in Las Vegas. Towards the end of Season two, his father Larry McCoy (John Terry) died and he inherited his construction company, McCoy Construction, and house, which he sold to purchase his current apartment. Establishing shots suggest his apartment is in the Turnberry Towers. He is a former Marine, with guerrilla training and counter intelligence training. He was recalled into military service at the end of Season one. In Season two, he was awarded the Silver Star after he called in an air-strike over his unit and himself when they were ambushed and overrun. It is implied that only he survived the air strike. He is currently living with his girlfriend, Delinda, who is pregnant with their child. He was involved in an on-and-off relationship with his childhood friend, Mary. At one point, the two were even (technically) engaged. The show was narrated by this character for the first few episodes. In Season 5, Danny finally gets Ed's job and is now President of Operations for the casino.
- Mike Cannon, (James Lesure), an engineer (with a both undergraduate and graduate degrees from MIT in Mechanical Engineering) who worked as head valet for the first Season, but was then recruited by Ed Deline to the security department to help during Danny's military absence. He stayed on as security personnel despite being paid less than his job as a valet and cured his claustrophobia in the end of season one. Mike and Danny are best friends. In Season 5, when Danny accepts the job as the President of Operations for the Casino, Mike is promoted to Head of Security and Surveillance.
- Samantha Jane "Sam" Marquez, (Vanessa Marcil), the self-proclaimed best Casino Host in Las Vegas, lives in a Montecito suite. She is portrayed as a ruthless business person whose sole interest is to get high rollers to play at the Montecito. However, in the Season four episode, The Burning Bedouin, she reveals that she is only cold and jaded because everyone expects of (her) (in Las Vegas), and that underneath it all, (she is) weak and pathetic like everyone else. She was married to billionaire Casey Manning, whom she was estranged from for seven years prior to a divorce. She was also involved in an on-and-off relationship with Detective Woody Hoyt from Crossing Jordan, which currently seems to be off based on the events from Season four episode, "History of Violins". From "The Burning Bedouin", it is seen that she is currently in love with and waiting for Jeremy, the man who first brought her to Las Vegas from Austin, Texas. Following the death of her ex-husband Casey in a freak fishing accident, she is the latest former owner of the Montecito Resort & Casino. She owned the Montecito for a week, until A.J. Cooper bought the Montecito by paying off the back taxes. A.J. fired Sam when she was rude to the son of his ranch manager. After Delinda intervened, Sam and Cooper worked things out over a milk shake, bowling, beers, and cigars. Cooper agreed to rehire Sam.
- Delinda Deline, (Molly Sims), Ed's daughter and the entertainment manager/manager of all the food and beverage outlets in the Montecito: Mystique club, the former Wolfgang restaurant, Opus bar, and the Bella Petto Pool Bar. She is Danny's current girlfriend after a long and complicated romantic history with him: they were involved briefly for the first three episodes of the first Season before calling it off; and towards the end of Season three, she almost marries Derek, an old college flame, before leaving him the night before the wedding for Danny. She is currently living with Danny and is pregnant with their child.
- Mitch (Mitch Longley), a regular member of the Surveillance team, Mitch, like the actor who plays him, is paraplegic and uses a wheelchair. This does not stop him from being a valuable member of the security team.
- Piper Nielsen (Camille Guaty), the new concierge of the Montecito introduced in season 5. She frequently socializes with both Sam and Delinda. In the episode "The Glass is Always Cleaner," she was arrested at a rave party with Sam and had to be bailed out by Mike. In the first episode she appears, she states she is just 22 years old.
- Polly (Suzanne Whang), a manicurist in at the Montecito's spa, who has recently formed a friendship with A.J. Cooper. Polly is always open about discussing her sexual experience, telling her clients all about her boyfriend's "magic fingers," which don't go in the front or the back but in between. Sam once gave Ed a full body massage from Polly for Christmas, in which Polly attempted to give Ed a happy ending.
- Sarasvati Kumar (Lakshmi Manchu), the 'numbers expert' on the surveillance team, also the love interest of Frank (Sylvester Stallone), and later Mike (2004-2006).
- Ed Deline (2003-2007), (James Caan), Former President of Operations and Head of Security of the Montecito Resort & Casino, and also a former member of the Board of Directors. Deline was, at one point, the main character of the series, portrayed as a loving husband and father, as well as a father figure to his employees, especially Danny. Nevertheless, he is a tough man and doesn't hesitate to use violence to get what he wants. As the former Director of Counter Intelligence for the CIA, his past has come back to haunt him in several occasions, most recently during his daughter's wedding in "Father of the Bride Redux." Ed is currently wanted by the Las Vegas police for killing Mary Connell's father. He has gone into hiding.
- Mary Connell (2003-2007), (Nikki Cox), the Special Events Director at the casino. In the first few episodes of the show, her exact role at the Montecito is unclear; her role was rewritten in later episodes to clarify her job title and status. A Las Vegas native, her father abused her when she was young. In the fourth season, she helps her step-mother and half-sisters testify against him - a case which was lost. In the episode "Bare Chested in the Park", she was shown purchasing a revolver to shoot her father in the following episode. She was involved in an on-and-off relationship with Danny, who later proposed to her in Season two - a proposal which she rejected. Mary is right now in hiding from the law for the murder of her father.
- Jillian Deline, (2003-2007) (Cheryl Ladd), Ed's wife. Jillian has been expressing growing resentment of Ed's time on the job, and appears to become extremely frustrated near the end of season 4, straining their relationship. In Season 3, it was revealed Jillian used to be a model when she was younger.
- Nessa Holt (2003-2005), (Marsha Thomason), "The Ice Queen." Former head pit boss of the Montecito, thought to be the best in Las Vegas. She was born in Manchester, England, but has a shady past due to her father's connections with Ed Deline. She was raised by Ed and Jillian for some years. When the third season started, she had left Las Vegas and been given a new identity to be able to live with her father and long-lost sister.
- Monica Mancuso (2005), (Lara Flynn Boyle), Former owner of the Montecito. She was portrayed as a self-centered, bull-headed autocrat, although she helped Danny, Mike and Ed on some occasions. In the first episode of Season three, it was revealed that at age 25, she married an 83-year-old billionaire and upon his death at 93, she inherited his fortune, using it to purchase the Montecito and various other casinos. Determined to prove that she was more than just a woman who inherited money, she was determined to make the Montecito a success. In the Season three episode "Mothwoman", she dies in a freak accident: a gust of wind blows her off the roof of the Montecito, and she plummets to the ground below. Because this character was generally disliked by the other characters in the series, and typically was portrayed as a buffoon, her death was constructed mostly for humor. She was blown off the roof of the building and down the strip into a shoe store at the Wynn. Casino employees disposed of her ashes by flushing them down the toilet in her suite at the Montecito.
- Casey Manning (2005-2007), (Dean Cain), A shrewd and cunning businessman, Sam's ex-husband and former owner of the Montecito Resort & Casino. In the Season four episode "Bare Chested in the Park", his character was killed off in a fishing accident: a giant squid enveloped him off the coast of New Zealand. The autopsy revealed traces of botulinum toxin in his blood - hinting that he was probably poisoned prior to the accident.
- Alec Baldwin, as Jack Keller, an ex-CIA employee and ex-colleague of Ed, in episodes 12 and 32.
- Jean-Claude Van Damme, as himself (who was also killed off in this episode) in episode 15 of Season one.
- Rachel Leigh Cook, as Penny Posin (a real estate agent selling Danny's father's house)
- Brian Austin Green, as Connor Mills, episode 14
- Jill Hennessy, as Dr. Jordan Cavanaugh of Crossing Jordan in several crossover episodes.
- Dennis Hopper, as Jon Castille, manager of the Montecito's sister casino in New Orleans, LA, in the episode "New Orleans" (1x16).
- Jon Lovitz, as Fred Puterbaugh in episodes 14, 25 and 46.
- Christian Kane, as Bob in the episode 20 "The Strange Life of Bob".
- Dominic Keating, as Anthony Demby in the episode 12 "Bait and Switch".
- Jerry O'Connell, as Detective Woody Hoyt of Crossing Jordan in several crossover episodes. He was involved in an on-and-off relationship with Sam.
- Ethan Phillips, as Gabe Labrador "Nice Guy Gabe" in "Double Down Triple Threat" - episode 50 of Season three.
- Sylvester Stallone, as Frank in episodes 35 and 41 of Season two.
Las Vegas is set in the same universe as fellow NBC series Crossing Jordan. In the season 2 episode "Double Down, Triple Threat", a case brought Jordan Cavanaugh (Jill Hennessy) and Det. Woody Hoyt (Jerry O'Connell) to Las Vegas. Woody and Sam got very well acquainted and maintained a long-distance relationship. However, based on events that happened in Season 4 episode "History of Violins", the relationship seems to be off. As of the end of Season 4, O'Connell has appeared in a total of five episodes of Las Vegas. Vanessa Marcil has also appeared as Sam in two Crossing Jordan episodes. The crossover is in part due to the fact that Las Vegas was on during Crossing Jordan's usual time during the fall since the producers of Crossing Jordan decided not to shoot any episodes while their star Jill Hennessy was pregnant.
| Name | Region 1 | Region 2 | Region 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season One | January 4, 2005 | March 14, 2005 |
November 28, 2005 |
| Season Two | September 13, 2005 | December 5, 2005 |
November 28, 2005 |
| Season Three | September 12, 2006 | November 30, 2006 | November 15, 2006 |
| Season Four | September 11, 2007 | November 22, 2007 | December 5, 2007 |
| Season Five | TBA | TBA | TBA |
The show had aired at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on Mondays since September 22, 2003, but was moved to Friday nights at 9:00 p.m. following Deal or No Deal in March 2006. This move has been attributed to reports that the NFL won't allow NBC to air ads for the show during NBC's broadcast of Sunday Night Football.[citation needed] This caused some doubts about the future of the show, as Friday nights are known for its low ratings. The 5th Season Premiere had a 5.8/11 rating for the first half and a 6.1/11 during the second.
The show has four complete seasons, all of them are available on DVD. The show was renewed for a fifth season on February 27, 2007.[1] On March 2, 2007, it was announced that James Caan and Nikki Cox would be leaving the series. Caan's departure is because he wants to return to acting in feature films, while Cox's departure seems to stem from budget cuts.[2] Tom Selleck replaced James Caan as head boss in season 5.
- The location of the fictional Montecito has changed from season to season. Some of the first episodes were taped at the Mandalay Bay which is located south of the intersection of Tropicana and the Vegas Strip (next to Luxor). (They closed down the strip on at least one occasion at that block to film a car scene...) Because of its similarity to Mandalay Bay, many of the show visuals place the Montecito at the far southern end of The Strip, albeit usually across the street from Mandalay Bay on the airport side of Las Vegas Boulevard. The exact location and rotation of the building seems to vary a lot within this area, indeed the CGI zoom shots of the building exterior in the season two episode, "Montecito Lancers", shows the building in three slightly differing locations for three different shots.
- In Season 5, the Montecito seems to have the consistent location across from Mandalay Bay.
- Many of Mandalay Bay's interiors and exteriors (including its wave pool) have been used as Montecito exteriors, although (according to the Internet Movie Database) the actual set of Montecito is located at Culver Studios, in Culver City, California, so the interiors are a replica of the Mandalay Bay. These studios are where 'Gone with the Wind' was filmed. The Season 3 set of 'Las Vegas' has been said to be the biggest set for a TV show ever.
- During the first season of the show, many of the Montecito's suites overlooked various parts of the middle part of the Strip, placing the hotel near where the Venetian, Flamingo, or Mirage are currently, before the more consistent location at the southern end of the Strip was finalized.
- In Season 3, Ed Deline's office appears to be in the middle of the strip, overlooking Harrah's, Caesar's Palace, the Mirage, and the Venetian, which puts the Montecito near where Treasure Island is located. This is inconsistent with the flyover shots of the Montecito, which would place Ed's office over 2 miles away. Closer examination of the window scene shows that the Mirage's marquee over their driveway has been edited to read "Montecito".
- In season 4, episode 2 (around min 34) there is a scene in Ed Deline's office where again we can see an overview of The Mirage and Caesar's Palace. Again it's a confirmation that Ed Deline's office would be where Treasure Island is located.
- According to an episode that originally aired in December 2005, the Montecito is located about 1.5 miles from the Wynn Las Vegas. It's possible that this distance is in a straight line ("as the crow flies", if you will) as opposed to a reference to actual driving distance. This distance is inconsistent with long shots that place the Montecito near the airport and Mandalay Bay, but is in line with Season 3 visual references noted above.
- Other episodes show aerial shots of the Montecito that make it appear to be situated at the corner of Giles St. and Reno Ave., about half a mile from Mandalay Bay.
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- Different theme songs have been used, depending on where, how or when the show is viewed. In Australia, Portugal, UK, Netherlands and other countries the theme song is Let It Ride by Charlie Clouser and Jon Ingoldsby while in other countries, such as the USA and Canada, the theme song is A Little Less Conversation (the Junkie XL mix) by Elvis Presley. For the American DVD as well as the episodes available for viewing on NBC's website, the Clouser song is used. With the exception of the pilot episode on the American DVDs.
- This is James Caan's first TV series as a regular cast member.
- Don Johnson was considered for Ed Deline.
- Critics claimed that the show wouldn't last a season. It was the only show that year to be renewed for a second season by NBC.
- A novel, "High Stakes Game" by Jeff Mariotte, tells what occurred between the season two finale and the season three premiere when the casino was destroyed and rebuilt and the characters briefly went their separate ways.
- In one of the third season episodes, a commercial director asks Ed Deline about the character Sonny Corleone from The Godfather, to which Ed replies "Never seen it". This was of particular humor because James Caan who plays Ed Deline also played the Sonny Corleone character.
- In one of the episodes of season four, Ed travels to Morocco under the name of "Alan Trahern." This is a reference to the movie El Dorado in which James Caan played a character called "Mississippi" whose real name was Alan Trahern.
- Las Vegas may also exist in the same fictional universe as other NBC shows in addition to Crossing Jordan. In the Heroes episodes "Collision" and "Hiros", Hiro, Ando, Nathan, and Niki all stay at the Montecito (although the show was clearly just using the set as the Hotel and Casino in Heroes was owned by Mr. Linderman) In the episode "Distractions" Ando and Hiro wear badges that match the logos seen on Las Vegas. In the Las Vegas episode "The Story of Owe" (which first aired on Friday, November 10, 2006), Mary mentions to Mike that Dunder Mifflin (from The Office) had booked rooms at the Montecito for a convention, and that security would have to be beefed up.
- Four of the cast members appeared on the December 1, 2006 episode of 1 vs. 100: Josh Duhamel, Nikki Cox, James Lesure, and Molly Sims. All were eliminated without winning any money for charity.
- ^ NBC bets on renewing 'LAS VEGAS' for a fifth high-rolling season 2007-08. TheFutonCritic.com. Retrieved on 2007-02-27.
- ^ James Caan, Nikki Cox Leaving "Las Vegas". TVFodder.com. Retrieved on 2007-03-02.
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