Skip to main content

Search the Special Collections and Archives Portal

Search Results

Display    Results Per Page
Displaying results 7861 - 7870 of 37935

Transcript of interview with Jerome Countess and Dorothy Eisenberg by Barbara Tabach, October 28, 2014

Date

2014-10-28

Description

Interview with Jerry Countess and Dorothy Eisenberg by Barbara Tabach on October 28, 2014. Countess discusses his childhood and military life. He became involved in the United Jewish Appeal in Las Vegas and started the Jewish Reporter newspaper. Dorothy Eisenberg is also involved in the interview to discuss the Jewish Federation and the Jewish community.

Jerome Countess, known as Jerry to most, was born on December 22, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York. He grew up in the borough's Jewish neighborhood, and he developed a reputation for being a skillful handball player and a great dancer. Though he was not allowed to enlist in the U.S. Coast Guard due to colorblindness, Jerry was eventually drafted into the army during World War II. With very minimal combat training, Jerry was sent to North Africa as an infantryman, and was later stationed in Italy. After three years of service, Jerry returned home and married his childhood sweetheart, Rachel, in 1945. Using the G.I. Bill, he enrolled at New York University to study writing, though he quit just shy of graduation as his wife was expecting. After briefly working in the television broadcasting industry, Jerry landed a job with the United Jewish Appeal. In 1975, following in his desire to move west, Jerry took the job of executive director of the Combined Jewish Appeal in Las Vegas, what would soon be renamed the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas. Under his leadership, the federation started the Jewish Family Service as well as The Jewish Reporter, a monthly publication to promote engagement of the Jewish community. Jerry served as the executive director of the federation for many years, serving at the pleasure of many board members and presidents, including the first female federation president, Dorothy Eisenberg.

Text

Christian Chan oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03851

Abstract

Oral history interview with Christian Chan conducted by Cecilia Winchell, Jerwin Tiu, and Stefani Evans on May 06, 2022 for the Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Chan begins by describing her childhood in Hong Kong and later moving to San Francisco, California with her family, then to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1965. She recalls attending Sunrise Acres and Roy Martin Middle School before graduating from Valley High School as valedictorian. In college, Chan attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and graduated with a degree in engineering. After college, she found work in the Las Vegas Valley Water District and became the first woman engineer. During her five years there, she excountered subtle sexism for the first time. Chan continues the interview by describing her work while she lived in California, as well as her years internationally living in the Philippines as well as Ecuador. Throughout the interview, Chan touches on topics ranging from identity, to her impressions of the different generations, discrimination, and the growth of Las Vegas.

Archival Collection

Chris Lee oral history interview: transcript

Date

2021-12-14

Archival Collection

Description

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.

Text

Transcript of interview with Walter Dane by Ann Clark, March 11, 1978

Date

1978-03-11

Description

On March 11, 1978, Ann K. Clark interviewed her step grandfather, tire repairman Walter Dane, (born August 10th, 1914 in West Barnett, Vermont) in her, the interviewer’s, home in North Las Vegas. Also present during the interview is the interviewer’s mother, Marie Dane. Walter relocated to Indian Springs in 1930 before settling in Las Vegas in 1943. In 1968 he moved to Utah, where he resided at the time of this interview. Well-traveled, Walter discusses his many moves over the years. Ultimately, this interview covers the growth and development of the Las Vegas and Indian Springs areas.

Text

Transcript of interview with Louise Lorenzi Fountain by Claytee D. White, March 30, 2004

Date

2004-03-30

Description

Louise Lorenzi Fountain was born on Nov. 14, 1913, to David Lorenzi, a French immigrant, and Julia Travese Moore from La Belle, Missouri. Her younger years were devoted to helping her father develop and manage Lorenzi Lake Park, which was built by Lorenzi and is considered a primary landmark in the development and life of the citizens of Las Vegas. Louise Lorenzi's father has been noted as one of the 100 most influential citizens of Las Vegas by the Las Vegas Review Journal. He opened the park in 1926 with a pair of man-made lakes and a swimming pool, dance hall, band shell and other amenities. In the interview, Louise talks about her father and mother and describes Las Vegas during its early years. Louise Lorenzi married Edgar Fountain in 1936. He had hitchhiked from Georgia in search of work on the construction of Boulder Dam, now Hoover Dam. The couple left Las Vegas for 10 years and lived in Grand Coulee, Washington, where he helped build Grand Coulee Dam. After returning to Las Vegas, Louise became a full partner in several business ventures the couple started. Those included the Nevada Amusement Co., a collection of 35 coin-operated phonograph machines; Frontier Radio and Appliance Co.; and later a television sales business; partnerships in two soft-drink bottling companies and a Toyota dealership. Louise Lorenzi Fountain was active in two Methodist churches and was a member of the First Presbyterian Church. She was a charter member and regent of the Valley of Fire Chapter of The Daughters of the American Revolution. Louise Lorenzi Fountain passed away on January 29, 2006 at 92 years of age.

Text

Transcript of interview with Dr. Lonnie D. Spight by Dr. David Emerson, May 8, 2007

Date

2007-05-08

Description

Dr. Lonnie D. Spight grew up in northern Colorado, earned his bachelor's degree at Colorado State University, and his PhD at University of Nevada Reno. His interest in astronomy dates from his early years on the farm in Colorado, star-gazing in the fields at night. Before coming to UNLV, Lonnie worked for the Department of Defense on scattering cross sections and explosions. Working between Los Alamos and the Test Site, he was often in Las Vegas and had met most of the physicists at the university. He was invited midterm to take over a physics class for a faculty member who had fallen ill, and was offered a job the following fall of 1970. In the seventies when Dr. Spight arrived, the physics department was located in trailers, and the university campus was mostly desert. Lonnie served as chair of the department on several occasions, and was responsible for insisting that faculty members get involved in research, no matter how tight the budget. He worked on solar energy and far-field microwave analysis, and helped set up safety standards for the new laser technology. One of Dr. Spight's interests outside of physics is a love for classical music. He was a volunteer "Deejay" for 12 years with KNPR once it got started in 1980. Meanwhile, after 37 years with UNLV Lonnie retains his enthusiasm and love for teaching. Today he teaches quantum mechanics and hopes that one day he will be able to teach a particle physics course which ties together cosmology, the beginning of the universe, fundamental cutting edge physics, quarks, gluon plasmas, and more. He has the course materials ready to go and is looking forward to many more years at UNLV.

Text