For forty years, the huge dance floor at Walled Lake Casino drew people who drove there for entertainment. The word "casino" originally meant a large building for civic or entertainment activities, and early automobiles let city dwellers reach this distant pleasure spot after it was built in 1925. As the Roaring Twenties gave way to the Great Depression in the 1930s, it became even more popular, featuring music by Benny Goodman, Louis Armstrong, and Guy Lombardo, while live radio broadcasts spread its fame nationwide. The dance hall closed during World War II because gasoline rationing reduced the number of patrons driving to Walled Lake. Dancing later continued there with performers such as Chuck Berry, the Four Seasons, and Stevie Wonder until the building burned down in 1965.