Oral history interview with Chris Lee conducted by Cecelia Winchell and Stefani Evans on December 14, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Judge Chris Lee reflects on the lives of his parents, their occupations and experiences during the Korean War, and his family's decision to immigrate from Incheon, South Korea to Las Vegas. He recalls memories from his childhood visiting family in Korea, Korean traditions and food, his educational pursuits, and the livelihood of his parents after immigrating. Chris also shares details of his employment history as Deputy District Attorney for the Clark County District Attorney's Office, as Deputy Secretary of State for Southern Nevada, as the first Asian American elected to the Clark County Justice Court bench, and presently as Judge in Department 1 of the North Las Vegas Municipal Court.
Binder containing the proposal for the Xanadu resort, including conceptual sketches, pictures of mockups, and detailed proposal documents. Unbuilt project. Page 75 of proposal is missing. Stamped or labeled on back of photos: "Photography by Julius Shulman. P.O. Box 46206 Los Angeles, California 90046." Julius Shulman, photographer.
Oral history interview with Yeon-Kyung (Mar) Chung conducted by Emilee Caivin on November 10, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Yeon-Kyung (Mar) Chung talks about her upbringing in Korea and her educational history, studying Spanish abroad in Spain and Italy before earning her graduate degree in Latin American Studies from the University of Texas, Austin. Mar Chung talks about her move to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1999 to enroll at the College of Southern Nevada and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas to pursue pharmaceutical studies like her parents. She talks about her experience as a single mother, her path to citizenship in the United States, and the Las Vegas Asian American community. Mar Chung also reflects on differences between how she was raised compared to the upbringing of her two children.
Information about the Blue Angel Motel that sits at 2110 Fremont St. Site address: 2110 Fremont St Sign owner: Bartsas Mary 22 LLC Sign details: Motel was originally constructed c. 1956. Sits on a 2.54 acre site. Property was later changed to Club 2110, but now is vacant. Sign condition: Unknown - Angel is being repaired by City Centennial Commision and YESCO, and will believed to be placed on medium of Fremont and Charleston once restored. 4 - Arches were repainted at unknown time from original blue to a deep forest green, "Blue Angel" was removed and "Night Club" was put up in blue angels place. "Motel" wording on flag portions of the sign was painted over and replaced with "Club 2110". doesn't have any form of lighting, appears to be in decent condition. Sign form: Angel - Sculpted Pole Sign/ Monument Sign, Arches: Pole sign with protruding arches on either side. Originally the left side arch would have rested on the Blue Angel motel building, but when it was torn down so was the connection, so it is free hanging off the pole support system. Sign-specific description: Angel: Pole sign with sculpture of Angel on top. Was internally illuminated, her skin, hair, halow, pole, wand, used to illuminate. Two flag signs hung off of angel pedestal, one read "Motel" other would read "Blue Angel" on opposite sides of the pole. Would of glowed with blue neon. Arches: Repainted by new owner: Arcs protruding on either side of the pole with the words "Night" and "Club" on each other arches. There are flag like components going down the pole support with stars on the opposite side of each component. Slight directional tool of the flags that point downwards to the ground. The stars do not have any lighting system of their own (no neon or bulbs). Each flag component is double sided with painted on graphics. Sign - type of display: Neon, and internally illuminated plastic Sign - media: Steel, fiberglass Sign animation: Possible rotation of the angel? Sign environment: The property is surrounded by other motels, shopping centers and gas stations Sign manufacturer: YESCO Sign designer: Betty Willis Sign architect of record: C. 1956 Sign - date of installation: C. 1956 Sign - date of redesign/move: Angel - 2014 repaint, 2017 refurbishment, c. 2014 repaint of arches Sign - thematic influences: Believed that angel was modeled after Marilyn Monroe Sign - artistic significance: 1950s pop culture themes - Marilyn Monroe and Disney-esque angel Survey - research locations: Motel site, www.roadarch.com, UNLV photo collections, assessor's website Surveyor: Danny Jacobs Survey - date completed: 2017-08-12 Sign keywords: Sculptural; Neon; Steel; Fiberglass; Pole sign; Internally illuminated; Incandescent
Information about the Neonopolis sign that sits at 450 Fremont St. Site address: 450 Fremont St Sign owner: Rohit Joshi leases the building from Wirrulla USA Inc. Sign details: This building was originally constructed in 2001 as a retail store center. This location currently holds a Denny's, a vintage toy store, the Telemundo station office and an international food market. This location also held a movie theater until 2009. Sign condition: 4.5- Sign still in relatively new looking condition Sign form: Entrance sign Sign-specific description: Above the main entrance way into the mall there are the letter "NEONOPOLIS" in plastic back lit signs. Each letter has a lime green border with white strip and then purple for the main color of the block letters. The letter "O" in "polis" is actually an orbit shape that is orange and purple to double as the "O". Portions of the building have neon tubes, some illuminating blue and others are purple, green, red and yellow. There are also different colored shapes of neon spread throughout the building such as yellow triangle as well as orbits showcasing red and yellow neon tubing. Many of the companies in this location have their own signs as well. Sign - type of display: Plastic back lit sign and neon Sign - media: Plastic and steel Sign - non-neon treatments: Plastic back lit portion Sign environment: This property is on Fremont in between 4th St. and Las Vegas Blvd. Right in front on the building is the Slotzilla machine where people get onto the zipline. Sign - date of installation: 2002 Sign - date of redesign/move: When the movie theater portion of this location closed in 2009 part of the signage was taken down and in recent years with different companies settling in there have added their own signs. Sign - thematic influences: The name and the theme of this location being neonopolis showcases the downtown neon vibe particularly since there is a wide variety of neon display surrounding this property. Sign - artistic significance: Showcasing the different designs with neon shows how true of an art it still is, particularly with the triangle designs and the orbits Survey - research locations: Asessors page, https://neonjoshiassociate.wixsite.com/mysite-1 Neonopolis website, https://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/food/neonopolis-theaters-to-go-dark-thursday-night/ Review Journal article discussing the closure of their movie theater, https://lasvegassun.com/news/2002/may/03/long-awaited-neonopolis-opens-in-downtown-vegas/ Las Vegas Sun article talking about their opening in 2002 Survey - research notes: There used to be an 18 theater movie theater located there which shut down in 2009 and was renovated into clubs, the most recent one to open is called the Nerd. Surveyor: Emily Fellmer Survey - date completed: 2017-09-08 Sign keywords: Plastic; Backlit; Neon; Steel; Fascia
Oral history interview with Carl Esteban conducted by William Bailey on December 2, 2022 for the Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Esteban recalls growing up in Salinas, California in a predominantly Asian community before relocating with family to Las Vegas, Nevada in 2002. As a first generation Filipino America, Esteban's mother sacrificed her life in the Philippines to become the sole person in her family to immigrate to America. Esteban received his degree in Special Education and is currently pursuing to a master's degree in the same field. Esteban is currently a special education educator at the Yvonne Atkinson-Gates Center in North Las Vegas. Throughout the interview, Esteban discusses a wide range of topics spanning from his family migration story, his early childhood, his Filipino identity, Asian stereotypes as the model minority, and how his mentors helped shape him into the person he is today.