BTS has never been mistaken for a group of desert barflies. Until Thursday night.
The K-pop sensations stopped into Pioneer Saloon in Goodsprings, the rustic watering hole on State Route 161, just west of Jean and about 40 minutes from the Strip on Interstate 15.
The troupe arrived during regular business hours on Thursday night, during an evening of country music with three bands performing. The club’s Facebook page offered a thank-you message. The bar’s owners confirmed Friday that the band visited, but declined further details.
BTS plays the first of four sold-out shows at Allegiant Stadium on Saturday and Sunday, continuing on Wednesday and Thursday.
BTS ARMY events have been organized across the city, though Thursday’s visit to Pioneer Saloon was an unbilled pop-in.
The band is set for a “special appearance” on Monday’s American Music Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena. That performance is expected to be recorded during one of the BTS’s Allegiant Stadium shows and broadcast during the live AMAs telecast. The show starts at 5 p.m. PT on CBS and Paramount+.
Pioneer Saloon dates to 1913 and is Southern Nevada’s oldest tavern. It is said Clark Gable smoked at the bar (leaving charred markings behind) as he waited for word about the death of his wife, legendary actress Carole Lombard, after a plane crash at Mount Potosi.
The Saloon is featured as the Prospector Saloon in the video game “Fallout: Las Vegas,” hosting a wildly successful “Mojave Mayhem” annual fan festival, drawing 6,000 to the site for its fourth event in November. Wayne Newton, Walton Goggins and Aaron Moten furnished the star power.
The bar has been featured in “The Mexican,” “Miss Congeniality 2,” and “Cheech & Chong’s Things are Tough All Over.”
The bar was also the setting for a scene in “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” as the Hardware Barn, but the footage didn’t make the final cut. ZZ Top’s Billy F. Gibbons and Morris Day filmed their 2022 collab, “Too Much Girl 4 Me,” at the saloon. Five Finger Death Punch and Travis Tritt (separately) have also filmed videos at Pioneer Saloon.
John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow @johnnykatson X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.