Red Skelton - Live & Unedited from the Nugget Hotel in Sparks, Nevada! Plus a special bonus footage - The Pledge of Allegiance recited by Red Skelton! Authorized by the Red Skelton Estate! With the rise of Nevada casino entertainment in the 50's and 60's, Red Skelton enjoyed great success playing to rooms of adoring fans in Las Vegas. He was one of the most popular comedians of the time, and when not in the television studio, could be counted on to be performing on the strip. During those years, Red became friends with John Ascuaga. A protege of Bill Harrah of Harrah's Casino fame, Ascuaga opened his own casino in northern Nevada, in the growing area of Reno and Lake Tahoe. The Nugget, as he called it, was actually in Sparks. At the time, Sparks was a town with two other small casinos and not much else, except for sweeping views of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Sparks railroad station, which brought fun-seekers from Northern California practically to the doorstep of the Nugget.  Back in Las Vegas, Red had begun to chafe at the time limits casino owners had placed upon their performers. He loved to perform, and would routinely go on for two hours, without an opening act! When told to trim his act to one hour or even 45 minutes, he balked, and when John Ascuaga offered him all the time he wanted, Red began to play the Nugget rooms. In time, Red performed almost exclusively in the Reno-Tahoe-Sparks area of northern Nevada. Here is Red Skelton at the Nugget Hotel and Casino on August 5, 1980. It is one of his last taped engagements on stage, and is a wonderful performance, incorporating all that made Red such a beloved and popular comedian.