Sheldon, the one that I think you are refering to as "the first El Rancho" was actually El Rancho Vegas, opened by Thomas Hull in 1941. "The second El Rancho" opened in 1948 as The Thunderbird, then in 1977 as Silverbird, finally in 1982 as El Rancho. That was its final "incarnation," closing for good in 1992.

Kerry