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Photograph of Mayor Oran K. Gragson, his wife Bonnie with Gene Kelly, circa 1960s

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Download pho017982.tif (image/tiff; 21.4 MB)

Information

Date

1960 to 1969

Description

Las Vegas Mayor Oran K. Gragson, his wife Bonnie with film star Gene Kelly. Pictured L-R: Gene Kelly, Mrs. Bonnie Gragson, and Mayor Oran K. Gragson. The location where the photograph was taken is unknown. Oran Kenneth Gragson (February 14, 1911 – October 7, 2002) was an American businessman and politician. He was the longest-serving mayor of Las Vegas, Nevada, from 1959 to 1975. Gragson, a member of the Republican Party, was a small business owner who was elected Mayor on a reform platform against police corruption and for equal opportunity for people of all socio-economic and racial categories. Gragson died in a Las Vegas hospice on October 7, 2002, at the age of 91. The Oran K. Gragson Elementary School located at 555 N. Honolulu Street, Las Vegas, NV 89110 was named in his honor. Eugene Curran "Gene" Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American dancer, actor, singer, film director, producer and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style, his good looks, and the likeable characters that he played on screen. Best known today for his performances in films such as An American in Paris (1951), Anchors Aweigh (1945), and Singin' in the Rain (1952), he was a dominant force in musical films until they fell out of fashion in the late 1950s. His many innovations transformed the Hollywood musical and he is credited with almost single-handedly making the ballet form commercially acceptable to film audiences. Kelly received an Academy Honorary Award in 1952 for his career achievements. He later received lifetime achievement awards in the Kennedy Center Honors (1982), and from the Screen Actors Guild and American Film Institute. In 1999, the American Film Institute also numbered him 15th in their Greatest Male Stars of All Time list.

Digital ID

pho017982

Physical Identifier

0310_0041
    Details

    Citation

    pho017982. Oran K. Gragson Photographs. PH-00310. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada. http://n2t.net/ark:/62930/d12f7jv4c.

    Rights

    This material is made available to facilitate private study, scholarship, or research. It may be protected by copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity rights, or other interests not owned by UNLV. Users are responsible for determining whether permissions are necessary from rights owners for any intended use and for obtaining all required permissions. Acknowledgement of the UNLV University Libraries is requested. For more information, please see the UNLV Special Collections policies on reproduction and use (https://www.library.unlv.edu/speccol/research_and_services/reproductions) or contact us at special.collections@unlv.edu.

    Standardized Rights Statement

    Digital Provenance

    Digitized materials: physical originals can be viewed in Special Collections and Archives reading room

    Extent

    4114 x 5448 pixels
    13.713 x 18.16 inches
    22,444,532 bytes

    Language

    English

    Publisher

    University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Libraries

    Format

    image/tiff