Roosevelt Toston was born May 7, 1942 and raised in Epps, Louisiana, He moved to Las Vegas, Nevada at the age of 15 to live with his brother after his father's death. He graduated from Las Vegas High School and the first jobs he held were at the Fremont Hotel and the Nevada Test Site.

Adele Baratz (née Salton) was born in New Jersey on August 11, 1926 and her family moved to Las Vegas, Nevada when she was two years old. Her father sold bootlegger supplies and later owned and operated Al’s Bar, a popular place to drink among Union Pacific Railroad workers. For two summers, Baratz worked as a messenger and in the rationing department of the Gunnery School at the Las Vegas Army Airfield.