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Transcript of interview with Jonathan Sparer by Stefani Evans and Claytee White, August 29, 2016
Date
2016-08-29
Archival Collection
Description
Jonathan “Jon” Sparer of Las Vegas, Nevada, is a retired architect who is active in the local Jewish and LGBTQ communities. He grew up on Long Island, New York, in the hamlet of Woodmere, where his father was an importer. After graduating in Architecture from Ohio State University in 1977 Jon moved to Los Angeles, California, where he worked first with architect Jack Chernoff, then with architect Bob Barnett until 1981, when he accompanied his future wife and college classmate who worked for Martin Stern to Las Vegas. Stern sent her to open a field office to supervise the reconstruction of the MGM Grand after it burned in November 1980. Once in Las Vegas, Jon began working for architect Homer Rissman on Steve Wynn’s future project, The Mirage. Although Jon switched firms, he continued working on The Mirage and other Wynn projects with Marnell Corrao, where he would stay until 2001. Ironically, Jon’s original supervisor at Marnell Corrao was his future husband, architect John R. Klai II; Klai’s subordinate in turn was Jon’s Spring Valley neighbor. After Jon left Marnell in 2001, he became a founding principal architect at YWS Design & Architecture. Although he has retired from full-time architecture, Jon has since designed the Temple for Congregation Ner Tamid (pictured above) and The Center (Las Vegas's gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer community center). Jon remains active in the AIA Las Vegas Chapter as the incoming president as well as serving as a board member for Jewish Family Services Agency and The Center.
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Neeley, Pearl Francis
Alternate Names
Annie Pearl Francis Neeley
Pearl Francis Neeley was a teacher in rural Nevada during the 1920s, where she taught in various schools throughout Lincoln, Nye, and White Pine counties. She was born on July 27, 1901 in Eagle Valley, Nevada, to Selina Corilla Hammond and David Francis.
Person
Gertrude and Roosevelt Toston Photograph Collection
Identifier
PH-00376
Abstract
The Gertrude and Roosevelt Toston Photograph Collection is comprised of digital surrogates of photographic prints, slides, and ephemera documenting Gertrude and Roosevelt Toston's lives in Las Vegas, Nevada from 1958 to 2002. The collection mainly documents Roosevelt Toston's career as a newscaster for KLAS-TV and Gertrude Toston's involvement with the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. Other images in this collection include photographs of Roosevelt Toston's childhood home in Epps, Louisiana and photographs of Gertrude Toston with her stepfather, Reverend Leo A. Johnson.
Archival Collection
Gregory T. H. Lee oral history interview: transcript
Date
2020-12-01
Archival Collection
Description
Oral history interview with Gregory T. H. Lee conducted by Stefani Evans, Ayrton Yamaguchi, Cecilia Winchell, and Kristel Marie Peralta on December 1, 2020 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Gregory discusses his birth in Honolulu, Hawai'i, his upbringing in San Francisco, California, his education from Harvard University, and his moving to Las Vegas in 1988 with his family. He shares how his parents, Doris Shoong Lee and Ted Lee, purchased a casino on East Sahara Avenue and renamed it the Eureka before Gregory left Las Vegas to earn his Juris Doctorate degree from USC Gould School of Law. He talks about his employment history related to law and the joint venture with his parents to open Eureka's sister property in Mesquite, Nevada. Gregory also discusses his Chinese and Japanese heritage, the Hawaiian culture, and his current affairs as well as his take on current events and discrimination in the United States, with particular regard to Black Lives Matter and COVID-19. Subjects discussed include: Kyushu, Japan and "China virus."
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Siegel, Bugsy, 1906-1947
Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel (1906-1947) was a well-known Las Vegas, Nevada casino investor and manager, most famously associated with the Flamingo and organized crime. Born Benjamin Siegelbaum in Brooklyn, New York on February 28, 1906, Siegel formed the Bug and Meyer Mob with Meyer Lansky while he was still a teenager. Later, Siegel was a founding member and chief operator of "Murder, Inc.," an organized crime "enforcement" group.
Person