Oral history interview with Allard Roen conducted by David G. Schwartz on October 31, 2003 for the UNLV University Libraries Oral History Collection. In this interview, Roen talks about the history of the Desert Inn Hotel, the Desert Inn Country Club, and the Desert Inn Golf Course and Tournament of Champions. He shares numerous stories and anecdotes about Las Vegas, Nevada casino-hotel figures, including Cecil Simmons, Morris "Moe" Dalitz, Wilbur Clark, and Howard Hughes. He also talks about the formation of the Nevada Resort Association, property development, and negotiating with labor unions and construction companies, including his 1960 work with the NAACP's James McMillan to eliminate racial segregation at the Desert Inn and Stardust hotels.
Archival Collection
Archival Component
Oral history interview with Vincent Iokimo Souza conducted by Cecilia Winchell and Stefani Evans on June 21, 2022 as part of the Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Souza describes how his early childhood was spent deeply immersed in Hawaiian culture and tradition. He credits his early educators for inspiring his commitment to Hawaiian culture, which he continues to cultivate to this day. Souza earned his degree from the University of Hawaii while also working for a travel company. After college, Souza continued in the travel industry and started his own company in 2002. In 2008, he joined his parents and younger sister in Las Vegas, Nevada. While in Las Vegas, Souza worked for Terry Fator and managed his tours around the world. Souza discusses how he is re-embracing his Hawaiian heritage by engaging in various community activities around the Las Vegas valley. Throughout the interview, Souza touches on many topics ranging from discrimination, to Sam Boyd's connection to Hawaii, and what Souza wants people to know about Hawaii.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Rhonda Mushkin conducted by Barbara Tabach on October 23, 2018 for the Southern Nevada Jewish Heritage Project. In this interview, Mushkin discusses her upbringing in Las Vegas, Nevada. She talks about her parents’ move to Las Vegas in the early 1950s, being original members of Temple Beth Sholom Las Vegas, and their retail clothing store businesses. Mushkin remembers attending Hebrew school, graduating from Clark High School, and going to Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles, California. Later, Mushkin discusses her work as a divorce lawyer in Las Vegas, and being a founder for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) women's golf team. Lastly, Mushkin talks about the impact that Steve Wynn had on the growth of Las Vegas.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Robert Fisher conducted by Barbara Tabach on January 08, 2015 for the Southern Nevada Jewish Heritage Project. In this interview, Fisher discusses his childhood in Minnesota, and the large role Judaism played in his upbringing. He speaks at length about his involvement with United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism over the years, including as regional director of the United Synagogue Youth Far West Region, which took him from Minnesota to California. He talks about his time in Los Angeles, California, and later, about his life in Las Vegas, Nevada, including his broadcasting career as well as involvement with Midbar Kodesh Temple.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Nathaniel Barlow conducted by Claytee D. White on May 14, 2013 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: A Collaborative Oral History Project. Barlow begins the interview by sharing his experiences growing up in rural Louisiana and shares how he ended up moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1962 as a teenage boy. Barlow shares his views and experiences of Las Vegas at that time, sharing the ways the town has changed and talks about the economic opportunities that were available to him when he moved to Las Vegas. He shares his views on the history of the unions and union leaders in Las Vegas during the times he was a member of the Teamsters Local 881 and later the Culinary Workers Union Local 226. Barlow also talks about the Selective Service Draft for the Vietnam War and his experiences with that. He recalls the history of Las Vegas' historic Westside and shares his roles in the area's history.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Rae Von Dornum conducted by Vicki Evans on October 01, 1973 and October 04, 1973 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Dornum speaks about living in Las Vegas, Nevada in 1921. She also discusses gambling, recreational activities, and details above ground atomic testing. Dornum lastly talks about changes in Southern Nevada.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Charles Payson Rosetta conducted by John Reade in approximately 1972 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Rosetta discusses moving to Las Vegas, Nevada from Massachusetts. Rosetta later discusses golfing and his career in the hotel business. Lastly, Rosetta describes his employment under Wayne Newton including Newton's horse breeding ranch.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Dorothy Wright conducted by Claytee Wright on April 23, 2015 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Wright opens her interview by discussing her parents and their upbringings. She then describes her father's time in the Marines during World War II and his death a few years later. Wright then talks about her stepfather and her family's move to Las Vegas, Nevada for her stepfather's job at the Nevada Test Site. Wright describes moving away from Las Vegas to attend college in Washington and, returning to Las Vegas in 1968. She talks about attending the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, working for the Nevada Humanities Committee, and active African American civic groups in the 1970s. Wright ends the interview highlighting some of the major Las Vegas projects she wrote grants for including the Neon Museum and the Welcome to Las Vegas Sign.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Rosemary O’Brien conducted by Susan Caruso-Vaughan on September 25, 2001 for the Public School Principalship Oral History Project. In this interview, O’Brien reflects upon her experience as an administrator with Nevada’s Nye County School District. She discusses her experience at Round Mountain Elementary School, and her experiences living in a Nevada mining town. She discusses her approach to school administration and programs that she implemented in the school, and compares working in the Nye County School District to working in the Clark County School District.
Archival Collection