Oral history interviews with Myrna Williams conducted by Suzanne Becker and Joanne L. Goodwin on April 16, 2008, April 21, 2008, and June 15, 2009 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. Williams begins her interview discussing her family and their performance background. Williams then discusses moving to Las Vegas, Nevada from New York with her young family. Williams describes her involvement with the local Democratic party and work on election campaigns. She also talks about her work to create a legitimate social work program at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). Williams also describes her ten year tenure on the Nevada State Assembly and her time on the Clark County Commission. Lastly, she talks about her community activism in the Public Education Foundation and Anti-Defamation League.
Myrna Williams was born in Chicago in 1929. Her brother was the singer Mel Tormé, so the family moved to Hollywood when she was ten because her brother was under contract with MGM. Shortly after Myrna turned 21, she moved to New York to work for Decca Records. She met the jazz drummer David Williams, whom she married. Myrna, David, and their daughter Indy moved to Las Vegas in 1959. Myrna got involved in politics, and was elected to the Nevada State Assembly and to the Clark County Commission. She also taught in the University of Nevada, Las Vegas' department of social work for eleven years. Myrna is also a member of numerous community organizations and sits on the board of the Public Education Foundation and the Anti-Defamation League. Her greatest accomplishment in her opinion is the development of the Cambridge Recreation Center, a community center that houses a skate park and a pool, as well as programming that focuses on at risk youth. In 2007 it was designated as the Myrna Tormé Community Campus.
L-R: Myrna Williams (Las Vegas) and Jan Tyler (Utah) Women's Conference Chair listening to Gloria Steinem at the Nevada Women's Conference that was held in Las Vegas in 1977. Site Name: Las Vegas Convention Center
Nevada politician Myrna (Torme) Williams speaks at a University Library Society event in the Special Collections Reading Room in the James Dickinson Library, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Nevada Senator Jean Ford stands by (at left). Site Name: University of Nevada, Las Vegas
L-R: Dr. Reuben Zucker, Judge John McGroarty, Nevada politician Myrna (Torme) Williams at the WE CAN "Love Ya Child" benefit at the Union Plaza Hotel, Las Vegas. WE CAN (Working to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect) was a chapter of the National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse (later Prevent Child Abuse America). Site Name: Union Plaza Hotel and Casino (Las Vegas, Nev.) Street Address: 1 South Main Street