Victor Drai

Victor Drai (born July 25, 1947) is a Franco-American nightclub owner, entrepreneur and film producer. Drai rose to prominence in the 1980s, producing the movies The Woman in Red and Weekend at Bernie's, before leaving the industry to open a string of high-profile restaurants and nightclubs.

Drai was born in Casablanca, Morocco, to Jewish parents. He dropped out of school at 14 to move to Paris, France, with his family. In 1968, he launched a ready-to-wear line called Vicadam, which featured velvet jeans.

In 1974, Drai met Jacqueline Bisset on a non-stop flight from Los Angeles to Paris and the two began a transatlantic relationship. Drai sold the fashion line and relocated to the United States to be with Bisset and began a new business flipping Beverly Hills mansions.

In 1982, Drai and then-girlfriend Kelly Le Brock traveled to Paris where they saw the movie Pardon Mon Affaire. With the help of David Begelman, Drai produced a remake titled The Woman in Red which was released in 1984. It starred Le Brock and Gene Wilder, who adapted the script from the original. Based on that movie's success, Drai then produced a series of comedies including another French remake, The Man with One Red Shoe (1985), and Weekend at Bernie's (1989).

In 1993, after the birth of his first child with second wife Loryn Locklin, Drai made the decision to open a restaurant, which he felt would be a more family-friendly career. He contracted French chef Claude Segal, who'd replaced Wolfgang Puck at the upscale restaurant Ma Maison in 1985. With Segal, he opened the restaurant Drai's in the L'Ermitage Beverly Hills hotel and it quickly became an iconic success.

In 1995, Drai decided to open a second Drai's in Las Vegas. A couple years later, he started an afterhours club, "That started everything,” Drai stated. In December 2013, he opened a steakhouse on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles called Rare by Drai's.

Drai owned a now-closed venue in March 2010, Drai's Hollywood; a rooftop restaurant, pool, and nightclub at the W Hotel in Hollywood.

In 1997, Drai opened Drai’s restaurant on the Las Vegas Strip. Two years later, Drai added a nightclub to the restaurant, re-branding it Drai’s After Hours. In Vegas Seven's 2012 Nightclub Awards, Drai's After Hours won "Best Place to Disappear". He currently operates Drai’s After Hours nightclub at The Cromwell Las Vegas.

In 2007, Drai took over La Bete at Wynn Las Vegas and re-branded it Tryst. It has a 90-foot waterfall and lake in the middle of the club. In 2012, Vegas Seven's Nightclub Awards awarded Tryst "Best Place to Impress". In 2013, Tryst placed #8 in the Top 100 Nightclub & Bar Roster for Nightclub & Bar Magazine.

Drai opened XS nightclub at Encore Las Vegas in 2008. In 2010, XS won Nightclub & Bar Awards for "New Club of the Year" and "Mega-Club of the Year. " In 2013, Nightclub & Bar Magazine awarded XS the "Mega-Club of the Year. " Technomic, the Chicago-based hospitality market research firm that partners with Nightclub & Bar magazine on The Top 100, named XS number one nightclub in the nation for 2010. In 2010, Drai was bought out of his managing partnership at Steve Wynn's Tryst and XS to pursue other endeavors.

Drai opened his latest Las Vegas club project, Drai’s Beach Club & Nightclub, on Memorial Day Weekend 2014, at The Cromwell Las Vegas. This 65,000-square-foot venue has a party pool and an indoor/outdoor club spread out over two levels on top of the new Cromwell Hotel.

Drai is one of sixteen Professionals listed in the Nightclub Hall Of Fame