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Rosemary Tall Dehart oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03611

Abstract

Oral history interview with Rosemary Tall Dehart conducted by Brigid Kelly on November 14, 2002 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. Dehart opens her interview by discussing her upbringing in Wellingborough, England. She goes on to describe her dance career and receiving an offer to become a member of the Bluebell Girls dance troupe. Dehart talks about performing in Paris, France for shows and movie dance segments. She then discusses traveling from Paris to Las Vegas, Nevada to perform at the Stardust Hotel. Dehart describes the treatment of different types of entertainers and the choreography style of Donn Arden. She then discusses returning to the Stardust later in life to work as a roulette dealer. Dehart ends her interview with a discussion of advice for young dancers and why she chose to settle in Las Vegas.

Archival Collection

Carole Rae oral history interview

Identifier

OH-01525

Abstract

Oral history interview with Carole Rae conducted by Claytee D. White on March 6, 2007 for the UNLV @ 50 Oral History Project. In this interview, Rae mainly discusses her accomplishment of founding the dance department at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). She begins the interview by discussing her earlier years, and mentions that one of her main hobbies was sewing and not dancing. She also states that she was not an art major during her undergraduate years and was surprised when dance eventually became her career. Rae explains how she became a dance instructor and describes her specializations in different forms of dance, such as Spanish dance and ballet.

Archival Collection

Estelle and Julia Elliott oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03821

Abstract

Oral history interview with Estelle and Julia Elliott conducted by Vanessa Concepcion and Stefani Evans on December 2, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project.

Twins Estrellita "Estelle" and Julieta "Julia" Elliott share their personal histories growing up in Cebu City, Philippines with their grandparents. They discuss moving to the United States to live with their parents after the death of their grandfather, and how they preserved their "tricultural" Castilian Spanish, Filipino, and American identities. After graduating from Stevens College, an art and academic school in Missouri, Estelle recounts marrying her husband and moving to Las Vegas where she gave birth to her daughter. Julia shares how she followed Estelle a few years later to Las Vegas, and the two women share their experiences as entertainers on the Las Vegas Strip. Both Estelle and Julia joined Minsky's Burlesque before becoming a permanent act in Siegfried and Roy's show at the Frontier Hotel. They also discuss their performances with Kirby VanBurch at the Aladdin's Abracadabra Show, dancing at the Playboy Mansion, and how Siegfried and Roy helped to diversify Las Vegas entertainment by incorporating dancers and performers of color, like the King Charles Troupe, into their shows.

Archival Collection

Louise Randall Lawler oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03797

Abstract

Oral history interview with Louise Randall Lawler conducted by Claytee D. White on September 25, 2021 for African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project.

Louise Randall Lawler discusses her early years in Las Vegas, her family history, and her experience as Rancho High School's first Black cheerleader. She talks about her cheer experience at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, her teaching career for the Clark County School District at Rancho High School and Valley High School, her time dancing with Redd Foxx, and her bartending career at the Imperial Palace Hotel and Casino.

Archival Collection

Margie Llorente Gonzales oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03804

Abstract

Oral history interview with Marietta "Margie" Llorente Gonzales conducted by Cecilia Winchell, Vanessa Concepcion, and Stefani Evans on November 1 and 22, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Margie Llorente-Gonzales discusses her upbringing in Manila, the Philippines and her family history within the country, recalling the lives of her parents, grandparents, and great grandparents. She talks about her childhood, educational pursuits, and courtship with her husband in the Philippines. Margie shares how she and her husband immigrated to the United States, how she adapted to her new life as an immigrant dependent on her extended family, and how she and her husband came to settle in Las Vegas. She talks about her artistic pursuits in the forms of dance choreography and performing, scriptwriting, broadcasting, and publishing newsletters. Margie also discusses her employment at McCarran Airport and her political activism, canvassing, and committee work in the Philippines and the United States.

Archival Collection

Liz Elliot Lieberman Papers

Identifier

MS-00827

Abstract

The Liz Elliott Lieberman Papers are comprised of materials from approximately 1970 to 1989 documenting Lieberman's career as a dancer in Reno and Las Vegas, Nevada performing in shows such as Hello, Hollywood, Hello at the MGM Grand Reno, Zing at Harrah's Reno, and EFX at the MGM Grand Las Vegas. The collection includes a scrapbook, newspaper clippings, and ephemera documenting her work in Hello, Hollywood Hello. Other materials include newspaper clippings, ephemera, and photographs from Zing and EFX.

Archival Collection

Corinne Entratter Sidney, Charlotte Nort, Mary Neivans, Judy Jones, and Joy Blaine Garner oral history interview

Identifier

OH-01899

Abstract

Oral history interview with Corinne Entratter Sidney, Charlotte Nort, Mary Neivans, Joy Blaine Garner, and Judy Jones conducted by Su Kim Chung on January 11, 2014 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Sidney, Nort, Neivans, Garner, and Jones discuss their early lives and recall their memories as members of the Copa Girls at the Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. They describe the audition process to become a Copa Girl, showgirl costumes, and the choreography that was created for their performances. The group recalls performing along famous singers, including Frank Sinatra, and the entertainment in Las Vegas during the 1950s and 1960s.

Archival Collection

Linda Spinks Alverson oral history interview

Identifier

OH-01748

Abstract

Oral history interview with Linda Spinks Alverson conducted by Nancy Hardy on August 15, 2003 for the UNLV University Libraries Oral History Collection. In this interview, Alverson discusses her early life in Isleworth, England and early interests in dancing. She talks about becoming a part of the Bluebell girls in Paris, France at the Lido and showgirl performing across the world. Alverson remembers moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in in 1972, performing at the Stardust Hotel in the Lido de Paris, Hallelujah Hollywood!, Jubilee!, and Casino de Paris shows. Lastly, Alverson talks about the end of her career in dancing, transitioning into other fields of work, and becoming a cocktail server.

Archival Collection

Heather Victorson oral history interview

Identifier

OH-01877

Abstract

Oral history interview with Heather Victorson conducted by Nancy Hardy on June 26, 2003 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Victorson discusses her early life in Nairobi, Kenya and London, England. She remembers being enrolled into the Royal Ballet School, and her experience dancing in show productions for the Royal Ballet Company. Victorson talks about winning a dancing audition that required her to move to Las Vegas, Nevada, dancing in the Lido de Paris show at the Stardust, and wearing showgirl costumes. Victorson describes lounge shows, working topless for the first time, and dancing in Vive les Girls. Lastly, Victorson discusses the future of Las Vegas dance shows.

Archival Collection

Karen Carmichael oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03652

Abstract

Oral history interview with Karen Carmichael conducted by Stefani Evans on December 9, 2019 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project.

In this oral history Carmichael discusses the world of professional dancing in the 1970s through the 1990s. She discusses her start in the industry and a variety of Las Vegas shows she participated in including: the Union Plaza Can Can, the American Dream Festival, Dasin’ Dirdy, and Babes Ahoy. She also goes into great detail behind her vision for Skyline, her adagio act, and the many celebrities she encountered throughout her career.

Carmichael also discusses her second career in jewelry design, and her experiences working with art galleries on the Las Vegas strip. She details the experiences of starting off at traveling art festivals, working her way up to award winning designs, and the art of jewelry photography. She also discusses the process of researching and publishing history for her book. She ends the interview with a discussion of what it means to be an artist and role of creativity in her life and those around her. She also discusses the ways in which others such as Betty Francisco, Hedy Jo Star, Debbie Reynolds and Sammy Davis Jr. had shaped her life.

Archival Collection