Sands Casino Rat Pack

The “Rat Pack” will forever be associated with Las Vegas.

We decided to learn more about this merry band of miscreants, and quickly realized there’s a lot we didn’t know. Some of these Rat Pack facts might surprise you, too.

1. Originally, the Rat Pack was a group of friends centered around the group’s leader, Humphrey Bogart. The original members included Errol Flynn, Nat King Cole, Mickey Rooney, Jerry Lewis and Cesar Romero.

In “Casablanca,” Humphrey Bogart wore platform shoes so he wouldn’t have to look up to Ingrid Bergman.

2. Nobody’s sure where the “Rat Pack” name came from, but most attribute it to Lauren Bacall. Bogart and Bacall lived in a neighborhood called Holmby Hills, so their house and the original group were sometimes called the Holmby Hills Rat Pack.

3. The original rat pack had a coat of arms, a rat gnawing on a human hand. The group’s motto was “Never rat on a rat.”

4. Later, the name was used for a variation of the group with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop. The group didn’t call itself the Rat Pack, though. They used “The Summit” or “The Clan.”

The Rat Pack: Live at the Sands, a CD released in 2001, features Martin, Sinatra and Davis in a live performance at the hotel recorded in September 1963. Live at the Sands is an album featuring Mary Wilson, formerly of The Supremes. If you are looking for or enjoy detailed, interesting accounts of the famed Rat Pack and learning more of the role that the Sands played as the premier draw for both tourists and for the entertainers who added to the panache of the destination, this book is an essential addition to your library.

‎Peter Lawford and ‎Joey Bishop are the ones you don’t recognize.

Sands Casino Rat Package

5. The Rat Pack had several “associate” members, called “Rat Pack Mascots,” including Marilyn Monroe, Angie Dickinson, Shirley MacLaine, Lauren Bacall, Juliet Prowse and Judy Garland.

6. The Copa Room at the Sands was considered the “home” of the Rat Pack. The Sands was opened in 1952 and was imploded in 1996. The Venetian now stands on the former site of the Sands.

Members of the 'Rat Pack,' from left, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., and Joey Bishop, perform at the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas Jan. AP He was a member of one of the most. Sands Casino Las Vegas Sinatra Rat Pack $25 Chip Poker. $9.99 + $3.95 shipping. 2 Sands Hotel Las Vegas Ink Pens from 1960's Rat Pack & 1970's Hughes Never Used. Here's what the plaque says: 'The legendary photo of the Rat Pack, with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford, and Joey Bishop, was taken at this spot in 1960 adjacent to the Las Vegas Strip. In the early 1960s, the five stars were headliners at the famed Copa Room inside the Sands Hotel.

7. In Las Vegas, when a member of the Rat Pack would be scheduled for a performance, the rest of the Rat Pack would turn up for an impromptu show. The multi-talented performers sold out almost all of their appearances, and visitors would stream into Las Vegas, often sleeping in their cars if they couldn’t find rooms. Hotel-casino marquees were known to tease the Rat Pack’s appearances. For example, the Sands marquee read: “Dean Martin, Maybe Frank, Maybe Sammy.”

8. Peter Lawford was John F. Kennedy’s brother-in-law. Kennedy would sometimes hang out with the Rat Pack in Vegas, and when they did, they referred to themselves as the “Jack Pack.” A falling out between Sinatra and the Kennedys about Sinatra’s links to the mob got Peter Lawford booted from the group.

9. Frank Sinatra once ordered 300 Bloody Marys from room service for a Rat Pack party.

10. Dean Martin’s son, Dean Paul Martin, died in a plane crash in 1987 on the San Gorgonio Mountain in California. Frank Sinatra’s mother, Dolly, was killed in a plane crash 10 years earlier on the exact same mountain.

Sands Casino Rat Packages

Dean Martin’s real name was Dino Paul Crocetti. He changed it to Dino Martini, then to Dean Martin. Martin only read one book in his lifetime, “Black Beauty.”

11. Among the Rat Pack, Sammy Davis Jr.’s nickname was “Smokey.” While not commonly known, he was an accomplished quick-draw artist. When Davis was denied entry into the Copacabana, Sinatra used his clout to ensure he got in the next time. When Davis wasn’t allowed to stay in the Las Vegas hotel where he was performing, Sinatra helped Davis sidestep the racist practices so prevalent in Las Vegas at the time.

12. Rat Pack member Dean Martin would often deal blackjack at Las Vegas casinos.

13. The first movie all five Rat Pack members appeared in together was “Ocean’s Eleven.” It was released in 1960. Frank Sinatra played Danny Ocean.

That’s right, they “blew all the lights in Las Vegas.” We’ll wait.

14. The Rat Pack recorded five live albums together, including “The Rat Pack Live at the Sands” in 1960.

15. The last time Sinatra, Martin and Davis would appear in a movie together was “Cannonball Run II.”

Sands Casino Rat Pack

Now you know! Have any fun Rat Pack trivia? We’d love to hear it.