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Displaying results 292601 - 292610 of 293926

Wendell Phillips Williams oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03800

Abstract

Oral history interview with Wendell Phillips Williams conducted by Claytee D. White on October 4, 2021 for African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project.

Wendell Phillips Williams discusses his childhood and education in Louisiana before moving to Las Vegas in 1977. Williams talks of his time teaching for the Clark County School District (CCSD), his radio program "Straight Talk" on KCEP's Power 88.1 radio station, the Crystal Apple Award he received as an educator from CCSD, and how he started the now-longest standing Martin Luther King Jr. parade in the United States. Williams shares his passion for Black history and education as well as the bills he championed as a Nevada State Assemblyman from 1987-2001. He also discusses the historical details of how Madison Elementary School was rebuilt and became the Wendell Phillips Williams Elementary School in 2002.

Archival Collection

Tom Hawley oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03791

Abstract

Oral history interview with Tom Hawley conducted by Claytee D. White and Su Kim Chung on September 21, 2021 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project.

Tom Hawley was born in Las Vegas, New Mexico, but found home in Las Vegas, Nevada where his father worked as a professional musician. A local historian and TV reporter from a helicopter, Hawley reported the traffic and contributed local stories of great interest. After radio and TV jobs in the mid-1980s, Tom began reporting in 1988 and joined the News 3 team in 1995. Outside of the workplace, he enjoyed classical music and hiking. He played with the Henderson Symphony where his instrument was the string bass. Hiking has taken him to the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro and to the apex of Mount Charleston. Three weeks after the conclusion of this interview, Tom Hawley passed away after his battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 60 years old.

Subjects discussed include: Star Policy; Production Shows; KUNV; Bob Stoldal; Henderson Symphony.

Archival Collection

Emmy Kasten oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03744

Abstract

Oral history interview with Emmy Kasten conducted by Kristel Peralta, Ayrton Yamaguchi, and Stefani Evans on March 17, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project.

Emmy Kasten discusses her Filipino heritage, her family, and her previous employment working in various industries including acting and broadcasting, marketing, philanthropy, writing, and event production. Emmy shares how she and her husband and children moved to Las Vegas in 2016 after her parents moved to the city a decade earlier, and she discusses her current professional pursuits as a board member of the Miss Asian North America Organization (MANAO) and the Las Vegas Fashion Council.

Subjects discussed include: University of California, Irvine (UCI); KTLA Morning News; Red Bull Music Academy; Rock Star Gaming; Filipino foods; Vegas Magazine; and anti-Asian discrimination.

Archival Collection

Mach and Arlene Manuel oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03787

Abstract

Oral history interview with Mach and Arlene Manuel conducted by Kristel Peralta and Stefani Evans on June 28, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project.

Mach and Arlene Manuel share the story of their overseas courtship and how they came to be together in the United States. Arlene was raised in the Philippines while Mach was born and raised in San Diego, California. Mach describes his visit to the Philippines as an adult when he began to connect more to his Filipino heritage. The couple shares how they dated for 13 years before Arlene moved to San Diego, and how the Manuel family came to live in Las Vegas in 2017 to pursue Arlene's nursing career. Arlene and Mach talk about cultural differences and discrimination, emigration and diversity, religion and identity, and Filipino food, among other topics.

Subjects discussed include: Manila, Philippines; discrimination of class; and anti-Asian hate.

Archival Collection

Maila Aganon oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03779

Abstract

Oral history interview with Maila Aganon conducted by Kristel Peralta, Cecilia Winchell, and Stefani Evans on June 10, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project.

Maila Aganon discusses her childhood, family upbringing, and immigration to the United States from the Philippines when she was a college student. She shares how her parents moved to Las Vegas first and Maila followed a decade later, investing in real estate and eventually taking up permanent residence. Maila talks about her employment history with Allstate Insurance, Bank of America, AAA, Caesars Entertainment, and finally Aon as a Senior Vice President. She also shares her thoughts on the growth of Las Vegas and the growth of the Asian community and cultural influence within the city.

Subjects discussed include: anti-Asian violence; Filipino grocery stores; Filipino foods; remote work.

Archival Collection

Robert List oral history interviews

Identifier

OH-03633

Abstract

Oral history interviews with Robert List conducted by Claytee D. White on December 10, 2018, January 11, 2019, May 3, 2019, May 7, 2019, and June 12, 2019 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Robert List, former Governor of Nevada and Nevada Attorney General, recounts his early life and his summers spent on a family ranch in Northern Nevada. List details moving to Carson City in 1951, eventually practicing law, and recounts various experiences leading up to his political career. He elaborates on the events that happened during and after his term, including his involvement in an operation to clear the Mob out of many Las Vegas, Nevada hotels, such as the Tropicana, the Stardust, and the Riviera. List explains how his term helped Las Vegas move away from the influence of organized crime.

Archival Collection

Michelle DiTondo oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03807

Abstract

Oral history interview with Michelle DiTondo conducted by Vanessa Concepcion on November 9, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project.

Michelle talks about her parents' experiences living in Osaka, Japan during the war, and the circumstances of her move as a child to Nellis Air Force base in 1972. She discusses living in North Las Vegas and her experiences being part of an air force family. Michelle shares stories of her life on the base and her interactions with other air force families. She also talks about her Japanese culture, foods she has cooked with her mother and brother, celebrating cultural events in light of the pandemic, and her career history including her most recent role working at MGM Resorts International.

Subjects discussed include: Air Force Base; NCO Club; AAPI Scholarship Fund; Taiko Drums.

Archival Collection

Helen Yu oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03834

Abstract

Oral history interview with Helen Yu conducted by Andrew Yu on December 1, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project.

Helen Yu discusses her upbringing in Seoul, South Korea, her grandfather's immigration to the United States in the late 1970s, and her family's decision to follow him to Portland, Oregon in 1984. She shares her family's history and their experiences during the Korean War, including what life was like both in North and South Korea at that time. Helen Yu discusses her undergraduate education at the University of Oregon studying graphic design and her graduate education at Ewha Womans University College of Art and Design in South Korea. She shares her thoughts having both a Korean American and Asian American identity, her marriage and two wedding ceremonies to her Korean husband, and her family's move to Las Vegas, Nevada in 2001. Helen Yu concludes with a discussion of her event planning work which led to her current role as the Operations Manager at the Emerald at Queensridge in Las Vegas.

Archival Collection

Rodel Fuentes oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03836

Abstract

Oral history interview with Rodel Fuentes conducted by Tracy Fuentes on December 4, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project.

Rodel Fuentes tells stories of his upbringing in Manila, Philippines, where he was raised in a shared family home amongst his parents, siblings, aunts, and uncles. He talks about his parents' immigration to the United States and how he later joined them in Los Angeles, California where he met and married his wife. Rodel Fuentes shares the couple's decision to move to Las Vegas, Nevada, his work at Dunn Edwards paint company, and how he became a licensed general contractor and real estate agent where he now owns his own company. Rodel Fuentes discusses his thoughts on Las Vegas' diversity, affordability, restaurants, and Asian community. He also talks about experiencing anti-Asian hate, worsened by misconceptions and discrimination that came from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Archival Collection

Claude, Buddy, and Skip Trenier oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03347

Abstract

Oral history interview with Claude, Buddy, and Skip Trenier conducted by Betty Rosenthal on March 10, 1978 for the UNLV University Libraries Oral History Collection.

In this interview, Claude, Buddy, and Skip Trenier, members of the musical group "The Treniers", discuss their experiences performing on the Las Vegas Strip as Black men. They share their group's history playing music at the Flamingo Hotel and Casino and other establishments in Las Vegas, Nevada beginning in 1948. Their discussion covers not only their performing careers but also their experiences with desegregation, racism, and discrimination in the city of Las Vegas.

Claude, Buddy, and Skip Trenier share their accounts of both being a popular act in Las Vegas, requested by out-of-towners from New York and Chicago, and also how they were nearly fired for refusing to play music when noticing customers of color being treated unfairly at their shows. The trio talk about how they could not enter casinos from the front entrance, how most casinos did not formally desegregate until after 1960, and how there were very few Black entertainers, musicians, or dancers during the mid-20th century with a few notable exceptions including Sammy Davis Jr.

Archival Collection