Yoxen begins her interview by discussing how she first arrived in Las Vegas, Nevada to work for the U.S. State Department in the 1950s. She then describes her childhood in Alabama, competing in the Miss America pageant, and her life in Miami, Florida. Yoxen also discusses living in North Africa and Berlin, Germany while working for the State Department as a clerk. She then talks about moving around with her sister and her family, and eventually coming to Las Vegas. She describes what Las Vegas was like in the 1950s. Yoxen ends her interview with a discussion on her family, her husband's work, and their recreational activities.
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On March 20, 1977, Jackie Ogden interviewed Irene Doty (born 1914 in Dangerfield, Texas) about her life in Southern Nevada. Doty first talks about the first casino properties and restaurants in Las Vegas along with some of the other businesses and operations of the area. She also describes some of her experiences as a justice of the peace, conditions during World War II, and the clothing fashion of the time. Doty also talks about some of her experiences in Goodsprings, Nevada, and about her experiences as a juror and potential juror in several murder trials. The interview concludes with a discussion on housing development and gambling in Las Vegas.
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Emilio Muscelli was in his mid-80s when he sat for this oral history interview. With a thick Italian accent he recalled his career as a Las Vegas maitre d' that spanned decades of Strip history. Emilio arrived in America in 1948, landed a job at the Copacabana in New York City. His boss was Jack Entratter, who brought Emilio to Las Vegas when he opened the Sands in 1952. Over the decades he has witnessed the ups and downs of Las Vegas economy and has befriended many celebrities along the way. He reminisces during this interview about his friendship with singer Bobby Darin, actor Cary Grant and meeting a laundry list of others. He fondly speaks of those he worked for and their contribution to the growth of Las Vegas.
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Born in 1939, Sharon Maurer-Schwartz’s life experiences have traversed a groundbreaking era: she’s a female, Jewish and a married to a Protestant lesbian. This oral history reveals what it has been like for her as she explored her Judaism and recognized her personal identity. Her Judaic foundation began in the Reconstructionist movement in Indianapolis, Indiana. She has never wavered from her religious identity, though she has belonged to various types of synagogues. She and Ande (Edna) Rice, who also participates in this interview, were legally married in California in 2008, but have been together since the 1980s. They raised Sharon’s daughter Julie, pursued careers and moved to Las Vegas in 1999. Ande is a Protestant and the topic of blended religious couples is discussed. Sharon is devoted to her life coaching business – Growth Unlimited – and to helping others.
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Twenty years after her birth in Utah in 1924, Marie Horseley met and married her husband who was an engineer for the Union Pacific Railroad. They settled in Las Vegas, his home town and soon purchased a home for $9800 in the new John S. Park neighborhood. Sixty years later Marie, twice a widow, remains in the home. Up the street four doors, one of her granddaughters lives with her three children. Marie recalls the new housing development that appealed to railroad workers. The roads were dirt and there were no streetlights, but soon a community blossomed. Marie is a self-described quiet resident; her life was about raising her three daughters and being a member of the LDS church. However, she knew everyone on her street no matter their religious affiliation. Today the businesses are gone. Homes have changed appearances over the years as owners have changed. Ethnic diversity is apparent and the sense of community closeness has slipped away for her. Yet she loves her place there, feels safe and secure. When asked about the ides of John S. Park being designated a historic district, she is not all that wowed by the idea of restrictions that might be included in that. Nevertheless, she has no intention of relocating from the comfort of the place she has called home all these years.
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Interview with Morris "Moe" Dalitz by Brenda Baxter, on several dates in late 1977 to early 1978. In this interview, Dalitz talks about his business and career endeavors before coming to Las Vegas, which included a laundry service and military service. Dalitz partnered with Wilbur Clark and became a successful hotel and casino owner in Las Vegas, as well as a real estate developer with properties including the Boulevard Mall and Sunrise Hospital.
Moe Dalitz was born in Boston in 1899, and soon after his family moved to Detroit, Michigan and where his father started a linen supply company. In 1930, during Prohibition, Moe moved to Cleveland, Ohio and he became involved with the then-illegal liquor business. At the age of 41, Dalitz enlisted in the Army and was stationed at Governors Island. Moe was put in charge of laundries and dry cleaning because of his experience in the laundry business. He played an important role in creating mobile laundry units that were used in the front lines in North Africa. His ingenuity won him a non-combatant award for his "unusual interest, ingenuity and talents" applied during his service. At the end of war, Moe returned to Cleveland, where his partners were successfully carrying on their business. It was then that they decided to go into the casino-nightclub business, opening nightclubs in Ohio and Kentucky. A couple years later, Moe and his partners met Wilbur Clark and agreed to finance his inactive project in Las Vegas. Thus, in 1950, the Desert Inn Hotel and Casino opened, and Moe Dalitz ushered in a new era for the city. Moe and partners continued to elevate the sophistication of the Strip when they acquired the operating lease to, and later part ownership of, the Stardust Hotel and Casino. Moe was instrumental in bringing the French Lido de Paris show to the Stardust, which was considered the most spectacular nightclub show produced in Las Vegas at its time. In addition to his gaming industry ventures, Moe engaged in significant real estate development, along with partners Allard Roen, Merv Adelson and Irwin Molasky. Their projects included Sunrise Hospital, The Boulevard Mall and Las Vegas Country Club as well as La Costa Resort and Spa in California. At the time of the interview, Moe was involved with the construction of a downtown hotel and casino. Moe Dalitz was the recipient of the Humanitarian Award from the American Cancer Research Center, and supported the Variety Club and the Home of the Good Shepard, amongst other charities.
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Interview with Irving Kirshbaum by Cheryl Rogers on February 23, 1979. In this interview, Kirshbaum discusses the Riviera Hotel where he began working in 1955. He also talks about the landscape of the Las Vegas Strip in the 1950s, and the state of gambling, comps, customer service, and dealer training. The interviewer asks about the treatment of minorities at the Riviera, and in Las Vegas generally, and the effect of corporate ownership on casinos.
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