Essie Lee Jones got married to Charles Jones in 1969 in Tallulah, Louisiana. Jones came to Las Vegas in 1969, and held positions at several hotels on the Strip. She went to the Culinary Union hall and procured a job as a maid at the Stardust during graveyard shift, and eventually as a bus girl in the Palm Room. Jones then worked at the Frontier for fourteen years.
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Harriett Thornton Hicks was born June 8, 1913,in Parowan, Utah; the thirteenth child of 14. She tells of her pioneer family who dwelled in two log cabins—one for cooking and one for sleeping. In 1931, she moved to Las Vegas to join two older sisters who had relocated here. She was picked up at the train by young Charles Hicks, who was a friend of her sisters. Charles had a car and offered to provide transportation. Within three years, the two were married. She quit her drug store job to raise a family and he worked for the railroad, the only business at the time in Las Vegas. At the age of 96, Harriett recalls a range of community milestones, such as the Boulder Dam, the news of Pearl Harbor bombing, Fremont Street, the Biltmore Hotel, and how to live in a city with mob influences.
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Oral history interview with Burton Cohen conducted by Claytee White on January 09, 2009 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Burt reflects on the positions he held in numerous famous Las Vegas, Nevada Strip casinos, the celebrities he hired and befriended, and offers a unique look at the behind the scenes marketing and entertainment strategies that he helmed. He shares stories of becoming entrenched in casino operations and his reflections of union experiences.
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