Don Rickles is a legend in the comedy world as well as the gaming world. He has been performing in Las Vegas for more than 40 years, and he is a constant draw, bringing in a mix of young and old alike.

From the time he got his start—the legendary story of meeting Frank Sinatra at the Fontainebleau in Florida and telling him “I just saw your movie, The Pride and the Passion, and I want to tell you the cannon’s acting was great,” as well as “Make yourself at home, Frank. Hit somebody.”—he has never pulled any punches, making fun of anyone and anything.

It’s caused some people to classify him as an insult comic, but that isn’t entirely accurate. Instead, his nickname of Mr. Warmth is definitely more fitting.

When you first started performing in Las Vegas, the city truly was an entertainment mecca with performers like yourself, Frank Sinatra and Wayne Newton. How has that scene changed in the last 40 years?

There are not as many personalities that they’re using, it’s mostly big productions. From my day, the only difference was you had one kind of boss—they say mob but it wasn’t, it was gamblers that ran the place—so you had more of a personal relationship. Today it’s big corporate stuff so you don’t have the same one-on-one, “Hello, Don. How are you feeling?” kind of relationship. As time marches on, everybody has a different department but they still treat you good. The only difference is that at one time if you said you wanted to have a cocktail party, you just called the boss and he said fine. Today you have to get two rubber stamps.

It used to be that people got dressed up when they were going to see a show. These days, people wear flip-flops and shorts. Does that bother you?

No. That’s what pays the rent. Some of these guys in the flip-flops drop $100,000 in the casino playing keno or whatever the hell they play.

Times have changed. In my days, it was kind of nice. In Florida they came in in fur coats and jackets and ties. It was the same thing in Vegas. But, as time marched on, another generation moved up and they came in and dressed the way they feel and spent a lot of money and that’s all the casino is really interested in. I imagine if you came in in your underwear, that would be pushing it.

Have you found the PC movement has put any limits on what you feel comfortable saying on stage?

I’ve been doing this for almost 50 years now and I’m still hanging in there. I don’t sit around and worry about what this one thinks or what that one thinks. All I know is that I’ve been coming back to Vegas for 45 years so I’m doing something right. They show up to see me and I’ve never been mean spirited and as far as politically incorrect, I do what I do, but I do it in the sense that people enjoy it.

Is there any subject that is off limits?

I don’t know. It’s according to who is in the audience. If the pope came in, might make a crack at him. I’ve had people who have lost an arm or a leg or something, and if they’re good sports I will have a little bit of fun with them. I have no fear about different people. Anybody who comes to see me is not somebody who is either Hitler’s son or has a brain tumor and is going to die in 20 minutes.

And people know that if they’re going to see Don Rickles, everyone in the audience is fair game.

Absolutely.

The story about your first interaction with Frank Sinatra has been told a number of times, and it makes it sound like you were really taking a big risk talking to the Chairman like you did. Were you concerned he would take it the wrong way?

I knew Frank Sinatra’s reputation and I knew that he knew of me, whatever I do I believe in, and I knew it was funny, and in my heart and soul I knew he would laugh. So I did it and the joke came around the world. I think Eskimos in Alaska are talking about it. The place I did it keeps changing—I’ve heard Ethiopia for crying out loud. But it became a classic kind of remark for him and we were friends and it was great.

You’ve never pulled any punches. Has anyone taken something you said the wrong way?

I’m sure. I always say when you stand on the stage and you sell yourself you’re not going to please everybody. You could be the funniest guy in the world but if they don’t like your personality, you’re dead. They’re not going to respond as well. You can’t please everyone is the name of the game. Even Bob Hope, God rest his soul, I’m sure some people—very few people—said they don’t like Bob Hope. It’s not because he wasn’t a great man, but maybe it just didn’t appeal to them. I use Bob as an example because he was such a giant. Even Frank Sinatra, there are people who could find him rude or something like that. That’s the way it is when you sell yourself.

What has been the key to your longevity?

I think being different. I tell young people if they ever ask me—and I don’t sit in judgement of anybody—if you’re different, I think it’s a big help. I was always different and went through a great deal of rejection when I was a young man. But I kept at it and kept building on it and believed in it. There were a lot of setbacks in my career when I first started doing what I do, but I realized it was part of my personality and I belong on stage and it belongs with me. I continued and thank God I’m successful.

There is a romantic vision of Las Vegas in the ‘50s and ‘60s. Do you think Las Vegas is as glamourous as it used to be?

Definitely so. In my beginning it was great fun but it was strictly for gamblers. Today you’ve got families and big organizations. We didn’t have that in those days. We relied on the gamblers. They were great; it was a great time. But it is different today. You have all these big casinos, and you have these situations for children, playgrounds for them to have fun in and, you know, the care centers for the kids while the mother and father go see shows. It’s so modern; it’s really a big difference.

My day, the so-called mob-controlled days were wonderful because they treated acts royally. Today we are treated very nicely, but we don’t have that one-on-one relationship. It’s apples and oranges. Today, Vegas is at the top of its game. In the days of the so-called gamblers of my time, it was at the top of its game because we knew of nothing else. For that time it was really damn good.

Don Rickles plays the Orleans Showroom March 20-22 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $82.50, $99 and $110.

By Greg Jones

Greg Jones is managing editor of Casino Connection Nevada, as well as associate editor of Global Gaming Business magazine.

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