The statue was believed to be the largest bronze statue in the United States when it was first constructed.Ĭontact Bailey Schulz at Follow on Twitter.
The original statue was “ a cultural faux pas a significant number of Asian visitors avoided,” according to a previous Review-Journal report. The 45-foot lion sits atop a 25-foot pedestal and replaced an abstract, fiberglass version of the lion as part of a multimillion-dollar renovation project at the MGM Grand in the late 1990s. While sales have slumped a little, Las Vegas Strip leaders including MGM Resorts International MGM, Caesars Entertainment CZR, Wynn Resorts WYNN, The Venetian, and Resorts World Las Vegas will all.
The workers use baking soda and Scotch Brite pads and will seal coat the statue with a satin clear finish. This year’s cleansing started on April 5 and is expected to wrap up at the end of the month, weather permitting.Īll American Builders was contracted for the job, and six to eight workers spend eight to 10 hours each day scrubbing the lion. MGM Resorts International performs the cleaning annually, according to spokeswoman Stacy Hamilton. Workers were spotted on Tuesday cleaning the 50-ton statue, which honors the lion seen roaring at the beginning of hundreds of MGM movie openings. (Rachel Aston/Las Vegas Review-Journal) Grand’s Leo the Lion statue is getting a nearly monthlong spruce-up. Workers buff the MGM lion statue outside the MGM Grand on Tuesday, April 27, 2021, in Las Vegas.
