For many years now, the phrase “What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas,” has moved along from an advertising slogan to allure tourists to a cliche for situation comedies in Hollywood. There have been more than enough celebrities who have found their way into this famed desert city, married, then unmarried, to attest there is actually little truth to the phrase. If not careful with your own reputation, even here, you might find yourself in need of a Las Vegas lawyer.
In the case of quick marriages, most people are aware of Britney Spears’ fast and furious arrangement to tie the knot to Jason Allen Alexander (admittedly fewer people may recall the groom) at the Little White Wedding Chapel on the Strip, just about a half mile past the Stratosphere Hotel.
Not only does what happen here not stay in Vegas, this little chapel offers the opportunity for those not invited to your wedding to watch it on Internet through the chapel’s webcam!
As one of Vegas’ most famous sites, it has drawn in celebrities left and right, from Hollywood legends such as Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward in the 1950s, Judy Garland and Mark Herron, Frank Sinatra and Mia Farrow in the 1960s, to more recent celebrities such as British Journalist Charlie Brooker and British television presenter Konnie Huq in 2010.
The chapel with its own Drive-Thru Tunnel of Vows began in 1951, and has since married close to 800,000 couples, which keeps its staff of around ten ministers busy. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, there were 133,000 U.S. marriages in February of 2006, and 269 of those were held on a single day at the Little White Wedding Chapel -Valentine’s Day. There’s no quick way to determine how many of these weddings lasted; however, a glance at Nevada statistics, approximately 120,000 people get married each year there, and about 12,000 are divorced each year.
Of course, there’s a reason Nevada has one of the highest rates of marriage in the United States: It’s easy to do.
In Nevada, people older than 16 may get married (however, if the parties are 16 and 17 years old, they still need permission from their parents); the Nevada law doesn’t require a blood test nor a waiting period for a license, and the fee is relatively cheap. It’s possible to get a marriage license in about ten minutes and to have a wedding ceremony in about 15 minutes. The offices for marriage licenses have longer hours than most states, too (some as long as 8 a.m. to Midnight, Monday through Sunday, and that includes holidays).
Combining marriage with gambling and entertainment can create some interesting situations, such as the Britney Spears wedding; with any luck, though, most marriages will add to your reputation instead of diminish it, and you won’t have to be searching for books on Vegas Law in order to seek an equally quick divorce or annulment.
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