When Kenneth Fong was born November 11 1955, the family lived in a modest home on 20th and Stewart in Las Vegas, Nevada. When he entered third-grade, his parents moved his family to a newer subdivision near Rancho and West Charleston Avenue: the Scotch 80s. Their new custom home on Silver Avenue reflected Asian architecture and the family’s Chinese cultural heritage.
Lois Goodall was born July 18, 1938 in Odessa, Missouri to a father who was a farmer and a teacher mother. Goodall went to college to become a teacher, and her freshman year met a young sophomore gentleman by the name of Pat Goodall. They married and while Goodall attended graduate school at the University of Missouri, she taught fifth grade.
Born December 10, 1929, Carmella Antoinette Rickman lived in the Washington, D.C. area for much of her professional career as a burlesque dancer. Her promotional material claimed she was discovered while working as a hostess at a restaurant. She used the stage name Carmella: The Sophia Loren of Berlesk. Under her agent, Sol Goodman, she performed in Washington D.C. and travelled extensively for engagements along the east coast. She also performed internationally in Panama and Canada.
William Carl Geagley was a civilian observer at the Nevada Test Site during Operation Plumbbob from June 8, 1957 to June 30, 1957. Born July 21, 1890, Geagley graduated from Michigan State College in 1913 with a B.S. in Sciences and Agriculture. A high school science and agriculture teacher, he later worked as a chemical researcher and Chief of the Clinical Laboratory Division of the Michigan Department of Agriculture. In the 1950s he was appointed as a regional Civil Defense Coordinator for the Lansing, MI area.
Musician Hyman Gold was born in Cleveland, Ohio on August 26, 1914. A cellist since the age of twelve, Gold attended the Cleveland Institute of Music. He performed with many major symphonies and opera companies throughout the country. He was president of the Gold 'N' Cello Recording Company and performed on many albums.
Dell Ray Rhodes was born February 26, 1947 and was raised in Louisiana. When her grandmother fell ill in 1950, Rhodes’ mother wanted to nurse her and made a temporary visit to Las Vegas, Nevada. She remained, and this is how three-year-old Rhodes came to live in the Las Vegas area. The family resided on the Westside where she attended Westside Elementary School, Madison Elementary School, Jim Bridger Middle School, and graduated from Rancho High School. Rhodes married young and worked a variety of jobs between the births of her seven children.
Louis Wiener, Sr. ( -1946) was a tailor and prominent community member in Las Vegas, Nevada during the 1930s and 1940s. He moved to Las Vegas from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1931 and established a tailor shop on Fremont Street. Wiener died of a heart attack in 1946. His son was prominent attorney Louis Wiener, Jr.
Wiener, Jr., Louis. Interview, 1990 February 23. Transcript. OH-01974. Oral History Research Center, Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.