Published on: February 23, 2026, 07:21h.
Updated on: February 22, 2026, 11:18h.
- The bronze replicas of the Rat Pack’s footprints at the Venetian date back to 2015, not the authentic originals
- The site of the original 1960 photograph was demolished and repaved in 1999
- Reaching the precise historical location now necessitates stepping into moving traffic lanes
One of the more charming myths surrounding Las Vegas is the misconception that the Rat Pack left their genuine footprints on the pavement outside where the Sands once stood.
Daily, visitors gaze at the picture on the plaque placed by the Venetian in March 2015, placing their shoes into the imprints, hoping to capture some of the Rat Pack’s charisma.
“Check out how tiny my feet are compared to Frank’s!” a woman remarked to her partner once.
What a sweet sentiment.
Footprints of Legend
Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford, and Joey Bishop never executed a ceremony akin to Grauman’s Chinese Theatre outside the Sands. They also never reunited at the resort to honor a 1960 publicity image or any other event.
By 1962, Lawford had departed the group, and Bishop followed two years later. Additionally, let’s reiterate—they never labeled themselves as the Rat Pack. Their moniker was The Summit.
So who was responsible for swapping perfectly usable shoes for a mark in concrete history?
No one.
Artisans from the Grand Canal Shoppes’ Regis Galerie created bronze casts of vintage men’s dress shoes, then embedded the metal into the wet cement until it aligned with the surface.
To dodge the chaos of the Strip at night, this process occurred at 3 a.m. (Even then, staff had to physically stop a few inebriated tourists from adding their own footprints beside Frank’s.)
Another One for the Journey
The plaque also helps propagate its own legend.
“The iconic photo… was captured at this spot,” it claims, later softening that claim to “the rough site.”
This cautious wording is warranted. When the Nevada Department of Transportation expanded the Strip in 1999 for better traffic flow to the Venetian, the original sidewalk at the Sands was torn out and paved anew.
If you want to stand exactly where Frank, Dean, Sammy, Peter, and Joey found themselves in 1960, you must step 12 feet west of the plaque.
This would place you in the furthest northbound lane of Las Vegas Boulevard.
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