With his books garnering him worldwide recognition Dean Davis is also famous for being a part of the "honorary members" group of celebrities that hung out with the Rat Pack. In doing research for this page I couldn't nail down a specific anecdote or event as to which member he actually met first, but being such a well known citizen of Las Vegas it was inevitable that he would meet this bunch of mega-stars. He probably got along with Dean Martin the best since they loved to play golf as often as they could.

During the filming of Ocean's 11, Dean described those few weeks as, "probably the coolest time I ever had in my life". As you can see from the picture above Dean had good reason to feel that way. The story goes that jazz xylophonist Red Norvo caught a 24-hour bug and was unable to make an appearance one evening. The main ballroom had "the Summit" going on and the overflow crowds were filling up the smaller lounges. The Sands management needed an act fast to cover Red's absence. Frank Sinatra convinced the owners to have Dean do an improv comedy act. He also had the backing of Red's combo band for a few musical numbers. The higher-ups agreed and Dean was contracted to perform for a single evening. In response of the good news Dean was heard to say, "Great! I'm finally getting paid for a one night stand!"

Dean’s name was placed on the marquee at dusk and was taken down by time the sun came up. As a matter of fact, it was the next morning that the famous Rat Pack group photo was shot. Dean grabbed the Sands photographer after dinner and had him snap off a few pictures. He "wanted proof" that it really happened. Click on the Sands picture to see a larger view.

The photo above was taken backstage before one of the historical Summit performances. That's Dean twirling a $5 Sands chip between his fingers. This was a trick he learned from magic enthusiast and writer of the Shadow, Walter Gibson (aka Maxwell Grant). He practiced it as an exercise to keep his fingers from stiffening up after a long day of typing. Anyway, the topic of Dean performing this trick came up right before the guys were about to walk on stage. Frank mentioned he never saw Dean do that, so he did it. If you look behind Dean Martin you'll see Joey Bishop on stage ready to start the show. Click on the picture to see a larger view.

Playboy magazine did an extensive article on the Rat Pack Summit shows and the filming of Ocean's 11. Dean's name was mentioned in the piece. Click on the picture above for a larger "more readable" view.

One of the daily rituals during filming was going to the steamroom at the Sands. The regulars each had a bathrobe with their nickname on it. Frank Sinatra was "The Pope." Dean Martin was "Dago." Sammy Davis, Jr. was "Smokey" (his robe was brown). Jack Entratter was "Jew Feet." Jerry Vale was "Golden Throat." Don Rickles was "Rhino." Vic Damone was "Little Dago," and lounge singer Freddie Bell was "Little Little Dago." Dean Davis was a part of this exclusive club and he also had a robe. Since he was a writer, embroidered over the heart was "Scribe."

Dean never smoked so whenever any of his friends came over he never had any ashtrays in the house. The first time Dean had a party, Frank Sinatra showed up and pulled out a Sands ashtray from his pocket. He heard about Dean's reputation of not having any ashtrays so he grabbed one off of a table before he left the casino for Dean's place. Dean, on the other hand, went out earlier that day and purchased some tacky Las Vegas souvenir ashtrays for the party.

Check out the Ocean's 11 web page in the Movies and Music section to find out more about Dean's relationship with the Rat Pack.