On February 26, 1979, Christina Oda interviewed Toshiyuki “George” Goto (born 1922 in Huntington Beach, California) about his life in Nevada. Goto first talks about his move to Nevada in 1951 before talking about his family, church activities, politics, and recreational activities. He then discusses the building, economic, and environmental changes in Las Vegas. Goto later talks in depth about his profession in landscaping, including the work he completed for some of the hotels and resorts built on the Las Vegas Strip. The latter part of the interview includes discussion about Goto’s Japanese ancestry and his perceptions as a minority when first moving to and living in Las Vegas. The interview’s conclusion covers the topics of social activities and Goto’s organization of a local chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League.
On March 1, 1987, Hank Baran interviewed John Graves (born February 21st, 1938 in San Diego, California). This interview covers the gaming industry overall, and also highlights, women in gaming, more specifically. Mr. Graves also discusses the hotels on the Las Vegas Strip, McCarran Airfield, and golfing in Southern Nevada.
On February 21, 1980, Andrew Bannister interviewed Vincent “Vince” Hart (born on July 7, 1945 in Jerusalem, Palestine) in Hart’s office about his experience with youth soccer, both as a coach and as a player. Hart discusses his family background and his residential history in the United Kingdom and the United States before explaining the development of the men’s soccer team at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He describes his impact on the program and his hopes for future student athletes. The two then delve into a discussion of the fundamentals of soccer and different strategies that are commonly used. They then conclude with a brief description of Vince’s experiences with meeting a variety of professional soccer players at the Las Vegas Stadium.
On March 8, 1975, John Neal interviews Ruth Hazard (birthdate unknown, 67 years old) in her home about her memory of how Southern Nevada has changed economically. Hazard goes in-depth about her knowledge of municipal politics and her husband’s friendships with a number of Nevadan politicians. Hazard also briefly talks about her fascination with the above-ground atomic tests, speakeasies during Prohibition, and local anxieties about Las Vegas “losing its identity.”
From the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas, OH-00822. On March 10, 1981, Joseph L. Erb interviewed Ruth E. Hazard (born June 25th, 1907 in Marshall, Michigan) in Las Vegas, Nevada. At the time of the interview, Ruth had lived in Nevada for over forty years. Ruth discusses living and working in Las Vegas and Carson City, Nevada. She also covers various subjects including: the atomic tests and the growth of the hotel industry.
On March 27, 1977, collector Jeff Crampton interviewed accountant, Ruth E. Hazard (born June 25th, 1907 in Marshall, Michigan) in Las Vegas, Nevada. The interview takes place at the collector’s home and offers an overview of life in early Las Vegas from 1931 to 1977. The interview concludes with a discussion on local atomic testing.
On February 12, 1975, collector Laura Bell interviewed her neighbor, plant mechanic foreman, Neil H. Holmes (born on November 16th, 1897 in Chicopee, Kansas) in the collector’s home in Boulder City, Nevada. This interview covers the construction of Boulder (Hoover) Dam. During this interview Neil also discusses local living conditions in 1931.
Jillian Hrushowy arrived in Las Vegas in 1959 as part of a company hired to appear at the El Rancho Vegas Hotel in a production called La Nouvelle Eve. She has remained here (other than three short-term contracts in Reno, Nevada) until present day. She is now the production manager for Legends in Concert at the Imperial Palace Hotel. She was an only child, born in Rhodesia to English parents and raised in a home with servants and tutors. Her mother exposed her to the arts at an early age. Jillian took dancing lessons from the age of three years until she began dancing professionally. When she was fifteen years old, both parents agreed it was time for her to leave Rhodesia and finish her education in England. Living alone was difficult and lonely, but it afforded her a wealth of opportunities otherwise unavailable. She worked as a dancer in small, local productions while still in high school. When only eighteen, she got a job dancing in La Nouvelle Eve in Paris which eventually came to Las Vegas. This interview focuses on the years from Jillian’s arrival in 1959 until she retired from dancing in 1979. It follows her transitions from dancer, to principal dancer to production manager. [The first twenty minutes of the tape is warped and the text is garbled. The transcriber has lightly edited the transcript.]
On November 6, 1974, collector Jay Brewer interviewed Madeline Taylor Knighten (born July 7th, 1907 in Chanute, Kansas) at her home in Boulder City, Nevada. In the interview, Madeline Taylor Knighten discusses her life in the early days of Boulder City, Nevada. She also speaks about her husband’s work in the Green Hut Café, as well as in diamond drilling.