Las Vegas shot glasses. Las Vegas key chains. Little plastic cowboy hats with the ace of spades stuck in the brim.
Snow domes with a pair of red dice floating inside.
Workers are mass-producing the city's image, preparing it to be distributed to gift shops up and down the Strip. But it's more than that. Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles offers a three-credit class on Las Vegas. The world's most prominent newspapers and magazines have poured oceans of ink into analyzing Las Vegas. Pundits are trying to make sense of the shift from a city once solely known for sin to a hot spot for business, religious and residential life.