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LaVerne Ligon, B. J. Thomas, and Leonard Polk oral history interview

Identifier

OH-02924

Abstract

Oral history interview with LaVerne Ligon, B. J. Thomas, and Leonard Polk conducted by Claytee D. White on July 09, 2012 and July 18, 2012 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. Ligon, Thomas, and Polk discuss their personal early dancing careers, their varied experiences in Las Vegas, Nevada during segregation, and working for Hallelujah Hollywood at the MGM Grand Hotel.

Archival Collection

Karen Carmichael oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03652

Abstract

Oral history interview with Karen Carmichael conducted by Stefani Evans on December 9, 2019 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project.

In this oral history Carmichael discusses the world of professional dancing in the 1970s through the 1990s. She discusses her start in the industry and a variety of Las Vegas shows she participated in including: the Union Plaza Can Can, the American Dream Festival, Dasin’ Dirdy, and Babes Ahoy. She also goes into great detail behind her vision for Skyline, her adagio act, and the many celebrities she encountered throughout her career.

Carmichael also discusses her second career in jewelry design, and her experiences working with art galleries on the Las Vegas strip. She details the experiences of starting off at traveling art festivals, working her way up to award winning designs, and the art of jewelry photography. She also discusses the process of researching and publishing history for her book. She ends the interview with a discussion of what it means to be an artist and role of creativity in her life and those around her. She also discusses the ways in which others such as Betty Francisco, Hedy Jo Star, Debbie Reynolds and Sammy Davis Jr. had shaped her life.

Archival Collection

Walter Cartier Papers

Identifier

MS-01074

Abstract

The Walter Cartier Papers (1962-1998) primarily contain materials collected by Walter Cartier during his time working as company manager of Bal du Moulin Rouge at the Las Vegas Hilton in Las Vegas, Nevada. Materials include posters, show programs, and costume drawings as well as photographs, and slides of the show's opening night performance. Other images in the collection include reference photographs of performers in costumes. Other materials in this collection include show costumes designed by French costume designer, Edward Piekny, various costume designs created by Cartier, and a copy of his curriculum vitae from 1987. Programs for shows performed in 1962 at Casa Mañana Theatre in Fort Worth, Texas are also included in the collection.

Archival Collection

Donna L. Miller oral history interview

Identifier

OH-02444

Abstract

Oral history interview with Donna L. Miller conducted by Claytee D. White on July 15, 2015 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Miller begins by describing her early upbringing on her family's potato farm in Oregon before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada. She discusses attending Las Vegas High School, joining the Rhythmettes, the school's female dance group, and her experiences in the Rhythmettes, including where she performed and the team's coach, Evelyn Stuckey. Miller also briefly discusses working as a secretary at the Sahara Hotel and Casino and real estate in Las Vegas.

Archival Collection

Susan P. Slade oral history interview

Identifier

OH-02447

Abstract

Oral history interview with Susan P. Slade conducted by Claytee D. White on July 31, 2015 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Slade discusses attending Las Vegas High School in Las Vegas, Nevada and being in the Rhythmettes, the school's female dance group. Slade describes the team's operation and culture, and the different places they performed in Nevada and around the country. She talks about life in Las Vegas, the city's growth, and the communities in which she has lived throughout Las Vegas. Slade concludes the interview by presenting her scrapbook of Rhythmettes pictures and memorabilia.

Archival Collection

Scott Henry Photographs of the Las Vegas, Nevada Latinx Community

Identifier

PH-00442

Abstract

The Scott Henry Photographs of the Las Vegas, Latinx Community (approximately 1983-2000) consist of 42 photographic prints depicting members of the Latinx community in Las Vegas, Nevada. Thirty-eight of the prints were used as part of a collaborative project between Scott Henry, photographer and editor for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, and Thomas Rodriguez, a prominent member of the Latinx community in Las Vegas, for an exhibit of the Las Vegas Latinx community. Henry and Rodriguez together planned who to photograph for the exhibit. The photographs demonstrate the impact that the Latinx community has on the region's political, economic, and social growth and development. A number of the photographs show early members of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), including John Mendoza, Delia Martinez, Tom Rodriguez, Bob Agonia, Corrine Gutierrez, Nick Flores, Grace Salazar, and Gus Ramos.

Archival Collection

An Interview with Katherine M. Joseph

Identifier

OH-00979

Abstract

Oral history interview with Katherine M. Joseph conducted by Claytee D. White on October 25, 2004 and September 05, 2007 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. Joseph discusses dancing in Paris, France with Josephine Baker and working at the Moulin Rouge Hotel and Casino during its heyday. Joseph also discusses race segregation in Las Vegas, Nevada in the 1950s and of the burgeoning and bustling African-American communities and neighborhoods.

Archival Collection

Don T. Walker Photograph Collection

Identifier

PH-00280

Abstract

The Don T. Walker Photograph Collection (1900-1995) is comprised of black-and-white and color photographs taken by or belonging to Las Vegas photographer and Nevada historian Don Travis Walker. The photographs taken by Walker include ghost towns in Nevada, Arizona, and California, as well as a series on Phil Benson, editor and publisher of the Southern Nevada Times. Other items in the collection include photographs taken by other people related to the Moulin Rouge Hotel in Las Vegas, various photographs of historic sites in Nevada, and a program from the Nevada State Museum and Historical Society for its "Moulin Rouge: History in the Making" exhibition.

Archival Collection

George Lee oral history interview

Identifier

OH-03437

Abstract

Oral history interview with George Lee conducted by Stefani Evans and Su Kim Chung on February 29, 2024 for the Reflections: the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. In this interview, Lee describes his four decades of experience as a Las Vegas blackjack dealer (36 at the Four Queens Casino), after leaving behind a career in dance. Lee was selected to originate the role of "Tea" in a 1954 New York City Ballet stage production of The Nutcracker. He also danced in South Pacific at the Thunderbird, and with Carol Channing's revue at The Riviera, and a traveling production of Disney on Parade. After dancing in Alcazar de Paris at the Desert Inn Hotel in 1980, he quit dancing and went to dealer school. He worked swing shift at the Four Queens Hotel, and attended ballet classes at UNLV during the day. Lee, now 89, still works five days a week at the Four Queens. In this interview, Lee talks about ballet, typecasting, discipline, and being "ten times better." He discusses becoming a U.S. citizen in 1959 and changing his surname from Li to Lee.

Archival Collection

Rich Rizzo oral history interview

Identifier

OH-01573

Abstract

Oral history interview with Rizzo Rich conducted by Nancy Hardyl on June 19, 2003 for the UNLV University Libraries Oral History Collection. In this interview, Rich discusses the choreographing process for the Lido in Paris show in Paris, France and collaborating with the Bluebell Girls dancing troupe. He talks about working with Donn Arden, surviving the MGM Grand Hotel fire, and Las Vegas, Nevada entertainment during the 1980s. Later, Rich describes the evolution of shows in Las Vegas and working with smaller, community theaters.

Archival Collection