Lucky you! During my first trip to Vegas I missed out on visiting all those Iconic Casinos due to having domestic problems with a crazy-ass Girl Friend. In fact that trip was so bad I did not go back to Vegas until 17 -18 years later.
Wow! I know all about bad Vegas trips, but can't imagine one so bad that it would keep me away that long! Other than that, I have fond memories of the Dunes, also.
Wow, that's incredible. I was there in '83, wish I had a piece of memorabilia, matches, chips, something. At any rate, check out the interesting history of the Dunes and others on this blog: http://classiclasvegas.squarespace.com/a-brief-history-of-the-strip/?currentPage=24.