Search Results
Billie Mae Polson Photograph Collection
Identifier
Abstract
The Billie Mae Polson Photograph Collection, approximately 1948 to 1978, consists of fifty-one color postcards from Las Vegas, Nevada, the Hoover Dam, and surrounding areas. Also included in the collection are original black-and-white and color photographs of the Valley of Fire Nevada State Park, an Easter parade in Las Vegas, and the Las Vegas 5th Street School prior to demolition. There are also ten negatives included in this collection that correspond with select postcards and the photographs from the Valley of Fire Nevada State Park.
Archival Collection
Business interviews
Level of Description
Archival Collection
Collection Name: Lincy Institute "Perspectives from the COVID-19 Pandemic" Oral History Project
Box/Folder: N/A
Archival Component
Las Vegas African American Community Conversations round table interviews
Identifier
Abstract
The Las Vegas African American Community Conversations is a four-part conversation with local Las Vegans. The first part of the round table is moderated by Trisha Geran with a central theme of "Migration, Work and Community Emergence." The panelists discuss the early history of the African American community in Las Vegas, Nevada. They also discuss how and why their families moved to Las Vegas, most citing the economic opportunities as a major factor. The participants share their personal histories and family histories building up the African American community in downtown Las Vegas and the Westside. The second part of the round table is moderated by Sonya Horsford with a central theme of "Education, Economy, and Integration." The panelists discuss the Clark County School District pre- and post-integration. They discuss the hardships of the Sixth Grade Center Integration Plan on the African American community as well as discussing the differences in the school facilities. The round table participants also discuss the social services and social programs and the history of those programs from the African American perspective. They also discuss civic involvement and the various civic groups started by the panelists, and share discrimination they faced.
The third part of the round table is moderated by Claytee D. White with a central theme of "Civil Rights and Entertainment." The panelists discuss the racism and segregation present in Las Vegas and discuss how African American community leaders worked to integrate African Americans into the Las Vegas community. They discuss the 1969 riots in detail, and discuss African American entertainers and the entertainment industry. They share personal experiences working in the entertainment industry and discuss the importance of the local unions, such as the Culinary Workers Union Local 226, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 720, and their contributions to the unions. The fourth and final part of the round table is moderated by Rachel Anderson with a central theme of the "Early African American Legal Community." The panelists discuss the foundations of the professional legal community in Las Vegas, noting the contributions of Charles Keller, Dr. William Bailey, and the Reverend Marion Bennett as driving forces for civil rights activism in Las Vegas. They share their experiences growing up in Las Vegas facing discrimination and segregation. Lastly, they share the changes they have seen and how both the legal and African African communities have grown.
Archival Collection
Ligouri, Steven, 1962-
Steven Ligouri was born February 22, 1962 and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada. He’s an artist whose creations can be enjoyed at such places as the Hoover Dam, where his famous High Scaler sculptor sits comfortably. Ligouri began mastering his trade making jewelry with assistance of his father, Bruno Ligouri, who owned a turquoise shop in Boulder City, Nevada.
Person
Bruns, Josephine C., 1914-1998
Josephine Bruns was born December 22, 1914 in Las Vegas, Nevada. After graduating from Las Vegas High School, she worked at the LDS Business College in Salt Lake City, Utah before moving back to Las Vegas. Bruns also held a job as a stewardess before marrying her husband in 1949. She passed away March 04, 1998.
Person
Geri Cox and Ginny Decker on welfare myths (1 of 6), 1971 June 29
Level of Description
Archival Collection
Collection Name: Mollie Gregory Collection of Oral Histories
Box/Folder: Digital File 00, Box 01
Archival Component
Transcript of interview with Marla Letizia by Barbara Tabach, August 26, 2015
Date
Archival Collection
Description
In this interview, Letizia discusses her career, and breaking gender barriers in both broadcasting as well as in advertising. She also talks about how her family ended up settling in Las Vegas, and the evolution of her relationship with Judaism from childhood to adulthood, eventually leading to her leadership roles with Congregation Ner Tamid as well as Jewish Federation, where she is on the Board of Directors.
Marla R. Letizia is the founder of Big Traffic Mobile Billboards in Las Vegas, Nevada. The company operates mobile billboard advertising trucks and employs brand ambassadors to carry WOBI? walking billboards for retail, gaming, and entertainment clients such as Caesars entertainment, Tropicana, and Cirque Du Soleil. Letizia founded Big Traffic in 2001 after leaving a successful broadcast journalism career to raise her two children. She met her husband, Tom Letizia, while working at KLAS-TV Channel 8 as an assistant production manager. She later became the first female director of live television news broadcasts in Las Vegas at Channel 8. She also developed a TV show called "Las Vegas Turnaround" and a syndicated production called "The Parenting Network." Letizia grew up in Las Vegas, and is a former president of Congregation Ner Tamid and a founding member of the board of trustees of the Meadows School in Las Vegas. In this interview, Letizia discusses her career, and breaking gender barriers in both broadcasting as well as in advertising. She also talks about how her family ended up settling in Las Vegas, and the evolution of her relationship with Judaism from childhood to adulthood, eventually leading to her leadership roles with Congregation Ner Tamid as well as Jewish Federation, where she is on the Board of Directors.
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