Unger, Mike, 1947-

Mike Unger was born June 6, 1947 in Queens, New York. He spent most of his childhood in Long Island, New York, growing up in a predominantly Jewish and Italian community. As a young adult, Unger was running one of his family’s restaurants after school. When he was in high school, his family moved to Los Angeles, California to accommodate his father’s health needs, and eventually ended up in Las Vegas, Nevada by 1967. Over the next two decades, Unger worked at nine properties in the city.

Unger was one of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas’ first hotel management graduates, and started his career with Summa Corporation in its management training program at the Frontier Hotel and Casino. After a brief stint at the Airport Marina Hotel in Los Angeles in 1972, Unger returned to Las Vegas, serving in management capacities at the Aladdin Hotel and Casino, Summa Corporation headquarters and Landmark Hotel and Casino. In 1978, he joined Caesars Palace Hotel and Casino management team, and was integral in creating the city’s first large boxing events, the World Series of Tavern Pool, and the Grand Prix race. Unger also ran properties for the White Mountain Apache and Colorado River Indian Tribes in Arizona, as well as the Showboat Hotel and Casino.