Oral history interview with Kochy Tang conducted by Kristel Peralta, Vanessa Concepcion, and Stefani Evans on May 26, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Kochy gives a family history of her parents and how they both came to practice medicine; her father served in a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital during the Korean War and later practiced alternative medicine alongside Kochy's mother in San Francisco and Reno. Kochy shares her educational and employment path pursuing osteopathic medicine and how, with the help of Tony Marnell, she was able to open her pratice within the M Resort and Casino. She discusses her work as a Doctor of Osteopathy (D.O.) and the relationships she has built within the Las Vegas medical community.
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Oral history interview with Count Guido Roberto Deiro conducted by David G. Schwartz on January 30, 2002 and November 22, 2017 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Deiro gives his personal recollections of living in Las Vegas, Nevada, including his father’s career, his upbringing, and fondest memories of the city.
Archival Collection
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.
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Oral history interviews with James Dean Leavitt conducted by Claytee D. White on September 27 and October 4, 2022 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Leavitt recalls his role in establishing a medical school at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), now known as Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine. Leavitt was elected to the Board of Regents in 2004 while Jim Rogers was interim Chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE), and he suggested the creation of an ad hoc committee Health Science Center Committee. In 2009, Leavitt became Chairman of the Board of Regents, Dan Klaich became Chancellor, and in the following year, Dr. Mark Doubrava joined the board. In May 2014, the planning dean was hired, Dr. Barbara Atkinson, and the UNLV School of Medicine was officially established on August 22, 2014.
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Oral history interviews of Westside School alumni conducted by Claytee D. White on March 20, March 29, April 27, and June 22, 2010 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project.
Alumni of the Historic Westside School of Las Vegas, also known as the Las Vegas Grammar School, gathered in 2010 to celebrate the official registration of the school as a historic site in the city. These alumni discussed their education, what they remember of the school, their teachers, and what life was like in Las Vegas at that time.
The individuals interviewed are: Jackie Y. Brantley, Eugene Buford, Margaret (Addison) Coleman, Regina Cone, Shirley Edmond, Frank Harris, Otis Harris, Tisha Harris, Willie B. (Jones) Jackson, Jerry Neal, Sadie Marie Prentiss, Calvin Wallace Jr., Nathaniel Whaley, and Cleophis Williams.
Archival Collection
Oral history interviews with Will Vicuna conducted by Stefani Evans on June 23 and July 3, 2023 for Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In the first interview, Vicuna goes into detail about his family's history, and his parents' life in Quezon, Philippines. When his brother sent Will a postcard of the newly opened Hilton Hotel and Casino, Will decided he would move to Las Vegas as soon as he completed his psychology degree in 1970. He concludes the first interview discussing his employment at the Hilton and the Flamingo Hilton, his 1972 marriage, and his 1973 UNLV graduation in Hotel Administration. In the second interview, Vicuna talks about his wife, Felicidad, who graduated from University of Santo Tomas (UST) in Manila in Medical Technology. He shares details about her career, and then talks about his own career in hospitality, working in a number of Las Vegas hotels including the Hilton and Flamingo Hilton, Palace Station, Peppermill Mesquite, and the Golden Eagle in Pahrump. Throughout the interviews, Vicuna discusses family reunions in Las Vegas, shopping for Filipino food, and eating at various restaurants around town. Digital audio available; no transcript available.
Archival Collection
Oral history interviews with James Dean Leavitt conducted by Claytee D. White on September 27 and October 4, 2022 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Leavitt recalls his role in establishing a medical school at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), now known as Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine. Leavitt was elected to the Board of Regents in 2004 while Jim Rogers was interim Chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE), and he suggested the creation of an ad hoc committee Health Science Center Committee. In 2009, Leavitt became Chairman of the Board of Regents, Dan Klaich became Chancellor, and in the following year, Dr. Mark Doubrava joined the board. In May 2014, the planning dean was hired, Dr. Barbara Atkinson, and the UNLV School of Medicine was officially established on August 22, 2014.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Hamed Ahmady conducted by Stefani Evans on March 22, 2023 for the Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Interviewed by Stefani Evans. Culinary Union Local 226 organizer Hamed Ahmady recalls his childhood as the oldest of six children in Mazar-e Sharif in northern Afghanistan. As an child, he remembers hearing about the September 11, 2001 attack in New York while living in a Taliban-controlled city on a television connected to a concealed antenna that received signals from Uzbekistan. He recalls how, one month after he graduated high school, he became an translator for the U.S. Army, which he did for more than four years. He talks about securing his Special Immigrant Visa (SIV); landing in Los Angeles, California in 2013 and moving his family to the United States; and supporting his siblings and parents in Afghanistan. He also discusses relocating his family from California to Las Vegas, Nevada in 2018, finding a mosque community, and working with Culinary Union Local 226.
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Oral history interview with Robert Kim conducted by Kristel Peralta, Cecilia Winchell, Ayrton Yamaguchi, and Vanessa Concepcion on March 05, 2021 for the Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Kim describes his career in law. He talks about his Korean roots, the model minority myth, and experiencing racial discrimination. Lastly, Kim discusses the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community, his involvement with the Asian Bar Association of Las Vegas, and the importance of electing Asian Americans into political positions.
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Oral history interview with Will Provance conducted by David Schwartz on July 14, 2016 for the Slot Operations Oral History Project. Provance discusses his various roles in the gaming industry the difference between managing slot machines in his earlier positions and video lottery terminals (VLTs) in his current position in Ohio. He also discusses what he believes makes a good slot floor and how slot operations has changed since he started in the industry.
Archival Collection