Harvey Allen grew up poor in Philadelphia. After taking singing lessons at the Artie Singer Vocal School, he got jobs singing in night clubs up and down the east coast. He also took acting classes in New York and performed at the Copa Club. In the 1950s, he moved to Las Vegas and auditioned for Jack Entratter at the Sands Hotel and Casino where he performed with numerous entertainers including Lena Horne, Louis Armstrong, Tallulah Bankhead and Robert Merrill. Allen's accomplishments include attending and obtaining a degree in telecommunications and film from San Diego State and a Master's degree from UNLV. He worked for the American Society of Composer, Authors and Publishers. Harvey recalls working on a segregated strip and the opening of the first integrated casino in Las Vegas, The Moulin Rouge. Twice he moved from Las Vegas but always returned. He implemented National Reading Week for the State Department of Education and was the emcee for Sunrise Hospital Cancer Survivors Week. In addition to hosting a popular talk show on KDON radio, he hosted the "All-Nighters Club Convention", taught classes at UNLV tor 31 years and wrote a column in Maturity Today. Now Harvey is at a different stage of his life. He and his wife are active in running their public relations agency, enjoying their garden, taking great photographs and spending time together in their fabulous home in Anthem.

The Bowers Mansion was built in 1863 by Lemuel "Sandy" Bowers and his wife, Eilley Orrum Bowers, and is a prime example of the homes built in Nevada by the new millionaires of the Comstock Lode mining boom. The mansion, designed by J. Neely Johnson, a builder and ex-governor of California, combined Georgian Revival and Italianate architectural styles. It was modeled after a design conceived by Eilley based on her recollection of elegant buildings in her native Scotland. Following the death of Sandy Bowers in 1868, Eilley fell on hard financial times. She generated income by renting out rooms in the mansion and hosting parties and picnics on the grounds. The mansion hosted a ball for the women's suffrage movement and was the location of the annual Miner's Ball. The period of 1873–75 was the height of the mansion's popularity. However, this was not enough to overcome Eilley's debts and she finally lost her home to foreclosure in 1876. The mansion was abandoned by the time Henry Riter acquired it and operated it as a resort until 1946. The building is currently owned and operated by the Washoe County Parks Department. Some 500 Nevada families have donated period furniture housed in the mansion. The park blends the historical site with recreational facilities such as a spring-fed swimming pool, picnic areas, and a playground. The Bowers Mansion is located in Washoe Valley, within the Bowers Mansion Regional Park at 4005 Old U.S. Highway 395 North, North Washoe Valley, Nevada.