Tale of Two Cities: Rising and Falling in Vegas

March 20, 2009— -- Only in Las Vegas would Elvis be a leading economic indicator. But the recession has hit Sin City hard, and like a casino cooler -- the guy who can stop a lucky streak dead in its tracks -- it has brought hardship and misery to people like Jesse Garon.

Garon, also known as "The King," makes his living as an Elvis impersonator. And even Elvis hasn't been immune from the downturn in the Las Vegas economy.

Garon always knew that he had a calling.

"When I got out of high school, I had a choice. It was either Elvis or college," Garon said.

He chose Elvis and had been making a very nice six-figure-income impersonating his idol.

Garon ever refers to himself as "we," meaning him and, well, you know, Elvis.

"We bought a pink Cadillac," Garon said, "and we started taking people to get married and we got so busy, man, we was up to like 30 weddings a week, and it was very very, very, very lucrative and very fun.

When he first came to Vegas "it was booming everywhere. There was growth everywhere. Every hotel on the Strip was building, and there was 20 Elvises at any time."

Garon got himself a swanky house complete with replica Graceland gates. But then came the heartbreak.

In just the past few months, in a city that lives and dies on tourism, 340 groups have canceled meetings in Las Vegas. That's about 111,000 visitors; 230,000 room nights; and $131 million in nongaming revenues, all gone.

The Tropicana has filed for bankruptcy. MGM Mirage is in danger of defaulting on a loan.

All 10 categories in the Southern Nevada Index of Leading Economic Indicators, a forecast of Las Vegas' economy through June 1, declined in February. Many fell by double digits from last year's levels.

Some 11,000 construction jobs disappeared faster than water in the sand. The Las Vegas jobless rate reached 10 percent in January.