Abstract
The Johnny Eshow Haig Papers (1970-1990) are comprised of contracts, agreements, and correspondence of musician Johnny Haig, who worked as a trombone player and conductor at various hotels in Las Vegas, Nevada from 1955 until 2000. Additionally, the papers house extensive original music scores written by Haig. The papers primarily cover Haig’s later career in the 1970s and 1980s.
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Scope and Contents Note
The Johnny Eshow Haig Papers (1970-1990) are comprised of contracts, agreements, and correspondence of musician Johnny Haig, who worked as a trombone player and conductor at various hotels in Las Vegas, Nevada from 1955 until 2000. Additionally, the papers house extensive original music scores written by Haig. The papers primarily cover Haig’s later career in the 1970s and 1980s.
Access Note
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish.
Arrangement
Material is arranged alphabetically.
Biographical / Historical Note
Musician Johnny Eshow Haig was born in San Francisco, California on June 4, 1926. He had an interest in music at an early age, studied the trombone, and became a part of the San Francisco music scene by the time he was a teenager. He moved to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1955 after serving in World War II. He then dropped the “Eshow” from his name and became known as Johnny Haig. He played his trombone at the Frontier Hotel and the Dunes Hotel. He also played in the city’s relief band, the band that filled in when the regular band had nights off, led by Jack Eglash. When Eglash became the bandleader at the Sahara Hotel in 1970, Haig took over as leader of the Las Vegas relief band, backing up stars such as Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr., Tony Bennett, and Elvis Presley. In 1987 Haig became the musical director at Caesar’s Palace. He remained there until the casino closed the Circus Maximus, its original showroom, in September of 2000. Haig continued to perform and assembled a band for occasional dances and special events. He performed his final show in June 2006 and died in August 2007.
Preferred Citation
Johnny Eshow Haig Papers, 1970-1990. MS-00546. Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Acquisition Note
Materials were donated in 2002 by the Estate of Johnny Haig; accession number 2009-001.
Processing Note
Material was processed by Joyce Moore in 2002 and 2010. In 2014, as part of a legacy finding aid project, Ian M. Baldwin revised and enhanced the collection description to bring it into compliance with current professional standards. Subsequently, Ian M. Baldwin entered the data into ArchivesSpace.