The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is celebrating the city’s recovery from the worst mass shooting in U.S. history by reviving its now iconic “What Happens Here, Stays Here” ad campaign.
The new campaign, available in three languages to enhance its global reach, depicts a man who travels from the past to visit Las Vegas in 2018, where he dances, drinks and celebrates before he is transported back to his own time.
“Our visitors are saying they want their Las Vegas back,” said Cathy Tull, senior vice president of marketing for the LVCVA.
The agency shelved the slogan in the aftermath of the October 1 shooting on the Strip that took 58 lives and wounded more than 500 at an outdoor music festival.
“What Happens Here” debuted on national TV in 2003 with a lighthearted message of escapism and naughty adult behavior that has grown in the 15 years since its creation into one of the most popular advertising pitches of all time―even entering the popular lexicon and inspiring hit movies like “The Hangover”. But it was deemed inappropriate in the wake of the shooting and was replaced with a more somber message of unity and recovery symbolized by the hashtag #Vegasstrong.
Casino operators followed suit, notably MGM Resorts International, which just before the tragedy had launched an elaborate and suitably irreverent TV and social media campaign called “Welcome to the Show” then quickly pulled it from circulation.
The “What Happens Here” spots with their now-famous coda were created by Las Vegas-based ad agency R&R Partners.
