LOST VEGAS: Nudes on Ice

Posted on: October 23, 2024, 11:15h. 

Last updated on: October 24, 2024, 07:27h.

Corey Levitan Read More

Expertise: Commercial Gaming, Entertainment, Expert Insight, Las Vegas, Restaurants, Las Vegas Myths.

Nipples and ice aren’t a popular pairing, at least not in public. But topless female ice-skaters once glided over an iced-over showroom stage at the Aladdin, and two decades later, in a 1988 revival at the Plaza downtown.

Yes, the name was false advertising. Full nudity is illegal in Nevada wherever alcohol is served, which is pretty much everywhere. Also, the “eye-filling spectacular” (as the Aladdin’s marquee trumpeted) featured only two scenes with topless ice skating. The rest was the kind with tops.

Still, there were usually no complaints about a titillation shortage.

The show was the brainchild of British former dancer Bill Moore and his partner, George Arnold, an ice skater who came to Las Vegas to skate at the El Cortez in the 1950s. (In his prime, Arnold was called “Fred Astaire on Ice” because he performed in top hat and tails and his trademark was a skating tap dance.)

The ‘…On Ice’ Age

Moore and Arnold produced their first show, “Rhythm on Ice,” at the El Cortez in 1960. Two years later, they decided that, since they were in Vegas, they may as well take better advantage of the talent pool.

“Ecstasy on Ice,” which ran for three years at the old Thunderbird, marked the official debut of the topless ice skater.

Some of its stars were professional skaters, but most weren’t. Not surprisingly, audience members couldn’t seem to notice the difference.

This led the pair to a bigger but lamer production, “Rome Swings,” a variety show starring Andy Williams that opened Caesars Palace’s Circus Maximum showroom in 1966.

By 1968, Moore and Arnold got back to their specialty — but hit on a better name for it.

“Nudes” on ice was brazenly more descriptive than “Ecstasy,” even if it was only a (top) half-truth. (In response, its cast members affectionately took to calling it “Boobs on Cubes.”)

The show played for only one year at the Aladdin’s Bagdad Theatre, 1968, but made a lasting cultural impression — even among people who just drove by the marquee on the Strip.

Overexposed

Moore and Arnold had quite a few successful follow-up shows. “Fantasy on Ice” played to packed and chilly crowds at the Hacienda Hotel starting in 1977, followed by “Spice on Ice.” A variety show called “City Lites” ran from 1980 to 1994 at the Flamingo Hilton. It also featured topless ice skaters.

At the same time, the pair also produced “Bal du Moulin Rouge” at the Las Vegas Hilton, which featured musical productions built around headliners Charo and, beginning in 1982, Suzanne Somers.

But none of their shows hit like “Nudes on Ice.” So the pair brought it back for a 1988 revival at the Plaza (then called the Union Plaza).

Twenty years after the original, “Nudes on Ice” was even more popular. It got name-checked by the sitcoms “Murphy Brown” and “Alf,” and David Letterman enjoyed asking female guests of his late-night talk show whether they had either seen the show or performed in it. (Different times.)

The production was only supposed to play the Plaza for 12 weeks but lasted 18 months.

Today, “Nudes on Ice” is nearly forgotten. In fact, if you Google the name, one of the first suggested links is for a search on Pornhub.

Or at least it is for us.

“Lost Vegas” is an occasional Casino.org series spotlighting Las Vegas’ forgotten history. Click here to read other entries in the series. Think you know a good Vegas story lost to history? Email corey@casino.org.