I hopped in front of the camera for a change to sit down with Aaron Berger, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Neon Museum. We enjoyed the 106-degree sun just outside the Neon Boneyard and mainly discussed the museum’s Duck Duck Shed and an upcoming talk with Steve Wynn.
Unlike many TravelZork readers and community members I’ve met, I’m a younger Gen X, and my Las Vegas didn’t start until The Mirage was already a classic. Bellagio, The Venetian, and Wynn were the new kids on the block. The Rat Pack Era and Elvis have never been interesting to me.
While the new casinos were the epitome of luxury and out of my price range at first, they became my favorites as I got older and could afford the finer things in Las Vegas. Three of these casinos have one thing in common – Steve Wynn.
One of my favorite projects to work on was a white paper on casino design for an architecture firm about 10 years ago. I learned a lot, and Steve Wynn and The Mirage played a big role in how I see casino design. His other casinos took steps forward in how he envisioned casinos should operate.
To say I’m looking forward to “Reflections of The Mirage: A Conversation with Steve Wynn” on Oct. 22, 2026, at the Golden Nugget would be an understatement. The discussion is already sold out, but there’s a waiting list in case seats become available.
This is right in my wheelhouse. Berger and I discussed the past, present, and potential future of casino design. Coincidentally, The Mirage will play a major role in the future, as the Hard Rock will reimagine much of the original property when it opens in a couple of years.
Wynn’s design is so impactful that he single-handedly sent me deep into parking garage layouts numerous times in my life. The amount of time I’ve spent and learned about the differences is ridiculous.
Duck Duck Shed
Steve Wynn might be the throughline for the Vegas I’ve come to know and love. He was also a segue for us to discuss Duck Duck Shed.
I went to the conference last year, and the first panel I noticed at this year’s event is on Friday at 10 a.m. Author Stefan Al’s panel is “From The Mirage to Sphere: The Evolution of the Las Vegas Strip and What’s Next.”
This is 100% Meltzer-coded, and I look forward to the discussion.
I mentioned to Berger that I attended Duck Duck Shed last year and found it to be the perfect way to take in Las Vegas history. The panels are small doses of history focused on individual topics. It’s so much better than committing hours to walking through a museum to find the 20 minutes you’re interested in.
The variety of topics covered is great. I like Vegas Strip casino design, so I can listen to those panels. Someone who loves downtown casinos, Elvis, magic, or other things that make Las Vegas such a popular vacation destination can focus on those things.
The term Duck Duck Shed is a fun design term I learned while listening to Berger introduce the event last year. The term is a nod to the book Learning from Las Vegas, the subject of a panel I saw at Duck Duck Shed last year.
In our discussion, Berger explains this saying: “A duck is a building whose physical shape tells you what the building is.” The examples he uses are Sphere and New York-New York. Movestro added Excalibur and Luxor.
After talking about it, I wondered what the newest ducks are. The Hard Rock will be one in the future because it’s shaped like a guitar.
Sheds are the opposite. These are the more generic buildings that need signs or graphic design on the building, so you know where you’re going. Think about Aria and the Cosmopolitan. The buildings don’t draw you in, it’s what’s inside that does the heavy lifting.
It’s an interesting way to look at Las Vegas.
Neon Museum Education
I didn’t plan on discussing the Neon Museum’s educational efforts, but that’s how we started and ended the talk.
We initially planned on talking to Berger inside the Neon Museum but were sent outside because children were touring the space. No big deal.
Since the kids were leaving as our chat was ending, I half jokingly asked if they offered adult education since it was so hot and I would have rather been inside. Turns out they do! If you know any older adults in Las Vegas who need to stimulate their minds, send them to this page.
The discussion lasted about 20 minutes before Berger and I started to drip sweat. The cameras also started melting, so you only have part of our talk, but it’s all the good stuff.
You can hear more from Berger in his air-conditioned office, talking to your traditional TravelZork podcast crew.
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Marc grew up on the mean streets of the South Bronx. He's the rare combination of Yankees and Jets fan which explains his often contrarian point of view. He learned about gambling at a young age working down the street from a bookie who took action on anything from the mainstream sports to the last three digits of the purse for certain horse races. Yeah, that's a thing. Today Marc is a freelance writer and social media consultant which allows him to work anywhere there's a wifi signal. This allows him to work from the sportsbook at Red Rock Resort or the food court at The Venetian where you’ll find fast and free wifi. Writing about steak, booze, gambling and Las Vegas is a tough job but somebody has to do it.