Resorts Casino Hotel changed its theme and decor to depict the opulence of the days just before the Depression. All over town, menus feature specials that pay homage to the refined Nucky and his love of fine dining.
And now, competing companies offer trolley tours that are attracting tourists and locals interested in the history of Atlantic City during Nucky's Prohibition-era reign.
"Old Atlantic City still exists, but you really have to look for it," said Rich Francesco, 37, of Galloway Township, who plays Nucky as raconteur during a 70-minute loop around town aboard a purple-and-beige trolley operated by the Academy Bus Co.
"Some things are still there, but some things you have to visualize in your mind's eye. And look for the ghosts, because they're there, too," Francesco said.
For $15, riders can hop on and off Academy's "Nucky's Way" trolleys all day during their seven runs Sundays through Thursdays and eight on Fridays and Saturdays. The four-mile course begins and ends at the Walk retail complex on Michigan Avenue, and includes stops at four casinos and Gardner's Basin.
The "Roaring '20s Tour" offered by the Great American Trolley Co. is a more formal, four-hour presentation given only on Thursdays. It costs $25 and includes lunch at the Irish Pub.
As Academy's tour wound through various neighborhoods, Francesco - who also works as a chef and was steeped in local lore by his history-loving father - wove nuggets about the town's past into a script that depicted Nucky's disappointment at not being acknowledged as one of the city's great citizens.
