Eunice Claxton was born in 1942 in Tallulah, Louisiana. When she was ten years old, she and her mother moved to Las Vegas, Nevada for a few years. She attended the Westside Elementary School in Las Vegas, but she finished her education in Reno, Nevada. She lived in Reno until 1974 when she returned to Las Vegas. Claxton worked in a number of different establishments. She worked as a change girl at the Desert Inn and as a cocktail waitress at the Dunes Hotel. She also worked at clubs such as the Cover and the El Morocco.

Isadore Washington was born in Tallulah, Louisiana, the son of Isadore Washington, Sr., and Destelle Washington. His father came out to Las Vegas, Nevada in the 1930s to work on Hoover Dam, and the family followed in 1942 when Isadore was eight years old. His mother worked at the El Rancho and Last Frontier Hotels, the Shaw Apartments and Harrison boarding house on the Westside where black entertainers were expected to stay. Washington recalls playing with Wayne Newton when they were children and life on the Westside where he attended the Westside School.

Julie Kano, was born and raised in Ootsu city in Shiga Prefecture, Japan. Wanting to experience life outside her town of 600 people, Julie migrated to Los Angeles and enrolled at Cal State Northridge to become a social worker. She did not complete her studies, but she did meet and marry her first husband and gave birth to her son. She arrived in Las Vegas in 2000 and now handles the business end of the restaurant Makino.