Richard Steele became interested in professional boxing at a young age when he was introduced to world champion boxers Chalky Wright and Sugar Ray Robinson. He trained at Hoover Street Gym in South Central, Los Angeles, with trainer Eddie Futch. Richard joined and boxed for the United States Marine Corps and became Marine Corps Middleweight Champion in 1963. Born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1944 Richard and his family moved to Los Angeles, California in the early 1950s. His father was a bartender and his mother was an elevator operator. During the interview Richard’s daughter Zakeisha Steele-Jones discusses the various job titles her father has held, including professional actor and campus police officer. Most notably, Richard was the second Black professional referee in both Los Angeles, California, and Las Vegas, Nevada. A profound interview heralding key character traits, such as, perseverance, resilience, strength, and determination, Richard recalls being personally invited by Nelson Mandela to referee the WBC Convention in South Africa. Some of Richard’s most memorable title fights to date include, the Hearns and Hagler fight, Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns, and four Mike Tyson fights. Zakeisha also interjects that her father currently manages and owns a boxing gym where he trains and mentors young Black and Hispanic aspiring boxing champions and referees.
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This collection is unprocessed; see the access note for additional information. The Robert Scott Hooper Photographs (approximately 1960-2019) consist of photographic negatives, positives, prints, Polaroids, 16mm films, videos, business records, correspondence, drawings, and ephemera. The collection was created by prolific photographer Robert Scott Hooper and his longtime business partner and wife, Theresa Holmes. The couple's life and business was based in Las Vegas, Nevada. Hooper's work focused on the female form, encompassing many areas of interest including sexual entertainment, modeling, pornography, and Las Vegas entertainment. Hooper was a contributing photographer with Playboy and Vegas Visitor magazines. Hooper also photographed many celebrities, Las Vegas production shows, notable events like hotel implosions, and the development of the Las Vegas Strip, including early time-lapse work on the Luxor Hotel and Casino and The Venetian. This collection also includes business records, model contracts, and correspondence.
Archival Collection
The Fayle Family Photographs depict the Fayle Family in Southern Nevada and California from 1888 to 1990. The photographs primarily include family photographs of Leonard Fayle, Anna Louise Trapnell Fayle, Leonard Fayle’s parents George Fayle and Jean Henderson Fayle, Leonard Fayle’s siblings George Arthur Fayle and Jean Nevada Fayle, and Leonard and Anna Fayle’s children Jane and Edward Fayle. The photographs also depict the Nevada towns of Las Vegas, Goodsprings, and Jean, including railroad operations, mining, milling, and hauling freight. The collection includes a leather-bound photograph album containing images of the Fayle Family and the Yount Family.
Archival Collection
The Edith Giles Barcus Family Papers document the lives and work of three related individuals who lived in Goldfield, Nevada: noted mining engineer Edwin S. Giles who settled in Goldfield in 1907, his daughter Edith Giles who was raised in Goldfield, and Clyde Barcus, also a mining engineer, who came to Goldfield in 1923 and married Edith Giles soon thereafter. The papers date from 1848 to 1979 and document the business and personal lives of two generations of the Giles-Barcus family in Goldfield and Las Vegas, Nevada. The collection includes: property, commercial, financial, and mining records; mining and engineering reports; notes on minerals; correspondence; and photographs of the family, Goldfield, and travel shots of the western United States.
Archival Collection
The Fayle Family Papers (1895-1998) document the family's personal and business interests in Goodsprings, Nevada and Las Vegas, Nevada. The collection contains mining documents, business records, and photographs from Leonard Fayle’s work with the Las Vegas Valley Water District, where he documented reservoirs, dams, and both abandoned and functioning mines. The photographs also include family members, vacations, and Southern Nevada fraternal organization pictures.
Archival Collection
Jarmilla McMillan-Arnold’s father, Dr. James B. McMillan, was the first black dentist in the state of Nevada. Dr. McMillan’s colleagues consisted of Dr. West, the first black medical doctor in the state, and Dr. Ice, the first black surgeon in Nevada. This interview highlights and archives the solid foundation upon which Nevada’s black community was built. Jarmilla recalls early memories of growing up as the daughter of Las Vegas NAACP president Dr. McMillan. She was born in Detroit, Michigan, to a Caucasian and Indian mother who was a professional dancer. Jarmilla’s parents separated when she was very young and as a result she was raised by her paternal grandmother who owned a restaurant in Pontiac, Michigan. Jarmilla describes her grandmother as being well-known and highly regarded in the community where she maintained her business. Jarmilla attended Catholic schools in Detroit, Pontiac, and Las Vegas. Having moved to Las Vegas with her father, Jarmilla’s narrative offers keen insigh
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