The two-night, three-hour documentary “Las Vegas: An Unconventional Story” on “American Experience” (8 p.m., PBS) puts a thoughtful spin on the media’s unending fascination with the Gambling Mecca. “Vegas” offers great archival footage and some thoughtful interviews with experts and authors, including casino mogul Steve Wynn, “Wiseguy” author Nick Pileggi and architecture critic Paul Goldberger.

“Las Vegas” mixes a chronological history of the city with personal vignettes of contemporary residents. Both threads emphasize the point that Americans see the city as a place of escape and reinvention. It’s not just a case of “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” but those who move to Vegas often shed their old habits, friends and even identities. Whether you consider Las Vegas a place to follow your dream or lose your soul seems entirely up to you.

Night one traces the city’s history from its days as a dusty vice den for construction workers and miners; its discovery and development by mobsters from the East Coast and the Midwest; and its heyday as the capital of nightclub entertainment, culminating with the 1960 film “Ocean’s 11,” shot on location in the city’s casinos. Footage shows the Rat Pack cast performing before a glittering audience of show business swells, businessmen and gangsters. All interviewed here consider this the high-water mark of the city’s first “golden” age.

Along the way we’re reminded how the military tested atomic bombs in the Nevada desert right outside of Las Vegas throughout the 1950s. Rather than complain, the city’s boosters turned the nuclear blasts into a tourist attraction, playing host to viewing parties and even bathing beauty contests with a mushroom cloud theme. Now that’s what I call a boomtown!

Tuesday night follows the city’s fall and rise; the apparent expulsion of mobster elements, Howard Hughes’ casino-buying spree; the threat from expansion of gambling into other states, and finally, the advent of huge showcase hotels like Steve Wynn’s Mirage which emphasize spectacle and entertainment over gambling.

While many of the experts opine that Las Vegas provides a mirror of American culture, the documentary offers few glimpses of the city’s tourist clientele. It takes a former showgirl (now working as the “mother” in a dormitory for strippers) to offer a critical note. She longs for the day when folks attended shows in tuxedos and furs. “Now,” she observes wistfully, “they come in shorts and sneakers.”

Tonight’s other highlights

¢ Michael mulls marriage on “Arrested Development” (7 p.m., Fox).

¢ A hunting enthusiast walks a mile in a vegan’s Birkenstocks on “Wife Swap” (7 p.m., ABC).

¢ Colin Firth stars in the 1995 miniseries adaptation of “Pride & Prejudice” (7 p.m., Biography).

¢ The Eagles play host to the Cowboys on “Monday Night Football” (8 p.m., ABC).

¢ A surprising visitor on “Prison Break” (8 p.m., Fox).

¢ A toxic divorce on “CSI: Miami” (9 p.m., CBS).