A Little White Wedding Chapel
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A Little White Wedding Chapel is a chapel in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is notable as the site of many quick celebrity weddings; famously, the chapel offers a "Drive-Thru Tunnel of Vows" for quick, largely unplanned marriages.<ref>no byline (November 2004). "Getting Hitched in a Vegas Chapel", Cosmopolitan 237 (5): 104.</ref><ref name=Couples>McCann, Dennis (2002-02-10). "Couples in Las Vegas take chance on true love", Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, p. H1.</ref> The chapel was built and opened in 1954 by Arvid and Neva Barnhart.<ref name=Vintage>Vintage Las Vegas</ref>
Charolette Richards bought the chapel in 1981.<ref name=Vintage /> She came into the wedding business through marriage with Merle Richards, owner of Little Church of the West.<ref name=Vintage /> Merle and Charolette Richards together opened Algiers' Little Church of the West in 1968.<ref>Algiers’ Little Church of the West</ref> The couple later divorced, and Charolette went into business on her own with Little White Chapel. She has presided over the marriages of Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Mickey Rooney, Michael Jordan, Dame Joan Collins, Britney Spears, Bruce Willis and Demi Moore.<ref>Mansfield, Susan (December 1, 2004). "Elvis, Sinatra and Britney were all married there. Now the Little White Wedding Chapel is coming to Scotland", The Scotsman, p. 36.</ref> Mrs. Richards sold the chapel in 2022 to Cliff Evarts and Melody Willis-Williams.<ref>Wedding Capital of the World</ref>
Similarly named Las Vegas wedding chapels, such as The Little Church of the West, The Little Chapel by the Courthouse, and the Chapel of the Flowers are often confused with A Little White Wedding Chapel. The Little Chapel by the Courthouse was also owned by We've Only Just Begun Inc. (Charolette Richards).
Notable weddings
- Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward (January 29, 1958)<ref name=Couples />
- Judy Garland and Mark Herron (November 14, 1965)<ref>Hall, Michelle (October 18, 1998). "Hit the jackpot! Movie-set ambience, natural attractions prove gold is not all that glitters in Las Vegas", Boston Herald, p. 61.</ref><ref name=Chatter>White Wedding Chapel "Who Knew Drive Through Wedding Ceremonies Were So Romantic?", Vegas Chatter, December 28, 2010</ref>
- Frank Sinatra and Mia Farrow (July 19, 1966)<ref name=Chatter/>
- Patty Duke and Michael Tell (June 26, 1970)<ref>Eastidahonews</ref>
- Joan Collins and Peter Holm (November 3, 1985)<ref name=Why>Hatton, Spencer (November 26, 2006). "Why rent a castle when you've got the King?", Yakima Herald-Republic, p. B1.</ref>
- Bruce Willis and Demi Moore (November 21, 1987)<ref name=Why /><ref name=Chatter/>
- Michael Jordan and Juanita Vanoy (September 2, 1989)<ref name=Couples /><ref name=Chatter/>
- David Faustino and Andrea Elmer (January 24, 2000)<ref>Jones, Oliver. "Married ... With Children's David Faustino Divorcing" Template:Webarchive, People magazine, February 6, 2007</ref>
- Natalie Maines and Adrian Pasdar (June 24, 2000)<ref name=Why /><ref>"Dixie Chick Natalie Maines Weds Adrian Pasdar in Early Morning Vegas Ceremony" Template:Webarchive, NY Rock, June 26, 2000</ref><ref>"Natalie Maines Gets Hitched", CMT, June 26, 2000</ref>
- Stone Cold Steve Austin and Debra Marshall (September 13, 2000)<ref>Pinimg</ref>
- Eva Longoria and Tyler Christopher (January 20, 2002)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Britney Spears and Jason Allen Alexander (January 3, 2004)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Henry Thomas and Marie Zielcke (May 10, 2004)
- Rufus Hound and Beth Johnson (April 2007)<ref>Rufus Hound, uktv.co.uk, accessed June 4, 2011.</ref>
- Pamela Anderson and Rick Salomon (October 6, 2007)<ref name="ind">Template:Cite web</ref>
- Peaches Geldof and Max Drummey (August 5, 2008)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- Christina Milian and The-Dream (September 4, 2009)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Jordan Chan and Cherrie Ying (February 14, 2010)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- Nik Richie and Shayne Lamas (April 18, 2010)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Charlie Brooker and Konnie Huq (July 26, 2010)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Russell Peters and Monica Diaz (August 20, 2010)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Sinéad O'Connor and Barry Herridge (December 8, 2011)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Eugenia Martínez de Irujo and Narcís Rebollo Melció (November 17, 2017)<ref>La Vanguardia</ref>
- Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner (May 1, 2019)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
- David Dobrik and Lorraine Nash (May 16, 2019)<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHPrkc44oDg&t=20s (May 18, 2019)</ref>
- Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez (July 17, 2022)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In popular culture
The chapel has been featured on such TV shows as WWE Raw, Supernatural, Friends and Good Morning America.<ref>Haas, Jane Glenn (February 15, 2004). "Vegas vows 1-2-3", The Orange County Register, p. TCenter.</ref> Michael Ross and Naomi Defensor, two cast members on the 2011 season of The Real World: Las Vegas, participated in a mock wedding at the Chapel during the June 1, 2011 season finale of that series.<ref>"Leaving Las Vegas" Template:Webarchive, The Real World: Las Vegas (2011), MTV.com, Season 25, Episode 13, accessed June 4, 2011.</ref> The wedding scene depicted in the 2025 Oscar-winning film Anora was shot at A Little White Wedding Chapel in March 2023.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>