Dancing Waters was Las Vegas Strip's pioneering fountain show, debuting at the Royal Nevada Hotel in 1955, predating the famous Bellagio fountains by decades. Unlike today's free shows, Dancing Waters was a paid headlining act at the Crown Room theater.

German engineer Otto Przystawik and impresario Hans Hasslach created this innovative water spectacle. The system cost $250,000 ($5.8 million today) and featured five fountains controlled by a complex console with 400 switches connecting to 10,000 feet of wiring. The show propelled 4,000 jet streams up to 50 feet high using nineteen 50-horsepower engines.

The attraction gained initial fame at the 1952 West German Industrial Exposition before drawing 1.5 million visitors during an eight-week run at Radio City Music Hall in 1953.

Despite being dubbed "the Home of the Dancing Waters," the Royal Nevada struggled financially and closed permanently after three years. The property later became the Stardust Auditorium before being imploded in 2006. Resorts World now occupies the site.

Dancing Waters continued touring various venues, including the 1964 New York World's Fair, Universal Studios, Sea World, and Hershey Park. Liberace incorporated the show in his 1978-79 Las Vegas Hilton residency.

The show found a permanent home at Disneyland Hotel in 1970, later replaced by "Waltzing Waters" in 1992. Today, Otto's grandson Michael continues the family legacy with a fountain show called Liquid Fireworks.

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