Elaine Wynn, the woman who built a Las Vegas casino empire alongside her husband, Steve, has died at 82.
Wynn died Monday after battling a “brief illness,” a family spokesperson told the Nevada Independent.
“We are all deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Elaine Wynn, and send our condolences to her daughters, grandchildren, and her many close friends,” Wynn Resorts said in a statement on Tuesday. “Her many talents and special touches are indelibly imprinted on the company and still evident throughout our resorts.”
The Wynns co-founded Mirage Resorts in 1976, eventually selling the company to MGM for $4.4 billion in 2000. After that, the Wynns founded Wynn Resorts and built two more mega-resorts, the Wynn and the Encore, on the Las Vegas Strip.
While Steve Wynn was known as the eclectic billionaire, Elaine was considered the grounding force in their relationship. When Steve tried to put a dolphin habitat in the couple’s backyard, Elaine convinced him to move it to the Mirage instead.
“She’s very supportive when he gets a bit crazed and impatient,” lighting designer Patrick Woodroffe told the New York Times in 2006. “She’s much more centered — well, she is his center.”
Born April 28, 1942, in New York, Elaine Pascal was raised in Miami and first met Steve Wynn on a blind date in 1961. They married for the first time in 1963 and moved to Las Vegas in 1967, when Steve bought a share of the Frontier Hotel.
The Wynns were often credited with transforming Las Vegas, with Steve considered a visionary for building two of the early mega-resorts, the Mirage and the Bellagio.
The couple divorced in 1986 but remarried in 1991. At the second wedding reception, Steve told the guests, “We regret to inform you, the divorce did not work out.”
After 19 more years together, the couple split again in 2010 — reportedly one of the most expensive divorces in American history. However, their relationship remained cordial afterward.
Throughout her time in Las Vegas, Elaine Wynn poured significant time and money into charitable causes in the city. Her biggest focus was Communities in Schools, a program focused on keeping grade-school children from dropping out.
In addition to Steve, she’s survived by their two daughters, Kevyn and Gillian, and seven grandchildren.
“She was a tireless advocate for Las Vegas, for children and their education, and for the arts,” Wynn Resorts said. “We’re grateful that the enduring sense of philanthropy she instilled in our company continues to this day.”