Before big-box shopping became interchangeable, Las Vegas had Wonder World.
For locals growing up here in the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s, it was one of those places where practically everything lived under one roof. Clothes, hardware, sporting goods, shoes, pharmacy, automotive supplies, and whatever else happened to be on the list. With locations around the valley, Wonder World became part of the everyday Las Vegas routine.
It also had the kind of personality local stores used to have. Holiday crowds gathered in the parking lot while Santa arrived on a fire truck and tossed prize-filled Ping-Pong balls to hundreds of kids. Carl’s Donuts got its Las Vegas start inside the Decatur location. Even Elvis reportedly did some after-hours shopping there.
Wonder World eventually disappeared as national chains changed the way Las Vegas shopped.
But for a generation of locals, WOW still means something.
