Oral history interview with Doris Evans conducted by Lance Kenny on March 12, 1977 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview Doris Evans discusses real estate, local hotels, early transportation, and social recreation. She also talks about nuclear testing, crime, environmental changes, and marriage and family life in Boulder City, Nevada and Las Vegas, Nevada.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Jack W. Zunino conducted by Stefani Evans and Claytee D. White on August 20, 2016 for the Building Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Zunino tells of his employment with G.C. Wallace Engineering and JMA architects before founding his own landscape architecture firm in 1989. Additionally, Zunino discusses the evolution of landscape architecture in casino design.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Junell Bowman conducted by Anna Huddleston on March 09, 2014 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Bowman begins by describing her early history as a singer in California, performing on the radio, different orchestras, and nightclubs before marrying her husband and moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1958. Bowman discusses becoming a sketch artist after managing an unsuccessful business, doing portraits and caricatures of people in the casinos, at conventions, and on the Las Vegas Strip. She talks about the celebrities and entertainers she met and did caricatures for while working at casinos like the Stardust and Riviera, and the amount of work that went into being a professional sketch artist.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Helen Early conducted by Dale Forshee on February 26, 1979 and February 27, 1979 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Early talks about some of the first businesses in Las Vegas, Nevada, the initial development of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and the early nightclubs and casinos in the city. Early also discusses her work in establishing a school for disabled children.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Brad Friedmutter conducted by David Schwartz on September 12, 2016 for the Building Las Vegas Oral History Project. Friedmutter shares how he develops his architectural projects, his philosophy of design, and the future of urban planning and casino design. He also recalls various owners and designers he has worked with: Henry Conversano, Homer Rissman, Roger Thomas, Donald Trump, Kenny Wynn, and Steve Wynn.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Willie Thompson conducted by Claytee D. White on November 25, 2019 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. In this interview, Thompson discusses his early life in Tulsa, Oklahoma and moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1995. Thompson recalls the Doolittle Senior Center, the Moulin Rouge Hotel and Casino, and his involvement in the Martin Luther King Jr. parade. Lastly, Thompson talks about volunteering with the Mirage Reading Program.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Harvey Diederich conducted by K.J. Evans on January 4, 1999 for the Las Vegas Review-Journal First 100 Oral History Project. Diederich first discusses his background and education in journalism and later discusses the relationship between the Las Vegas News Bureau and hotel/casino publicists. Diederich then discusses some of his specific projects, such as those dealing with celebrities. Diederich also mentions some of the individuals he has worked for and the various cities he has travelled to for work.
Archival Collection
Oral history interviews with Brenda J. Williams conducted by Claytee D. White on May 24, 2013 and June 10, 2013 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview, Williams discusses her personal history and life in Las Vegas, Nevada since she moved there as a child with her family during the 1940s. She describes the diversity of the Westside community she lived in, her family, and the recreational activities she participated in as a young woman. Williams talks about several careers that she has had over the course of her life, such as a telephone operator, hat shop owner, and board member for the Las Vegas Housing Authority before later transitioning to the Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Alice Key conducted by Claytee D. White on February 17 and March 24, 1997 for the Women's Research Institute of Nevada (WRIN) Las Vegas Women Oral History Project. In this interview Alice Key discusses being a chorus line dancer at the Cotton Club in Culver City, California and then moving to Las Vegas, Nevada after her dancing career ended. She then talks about working as a reporter, her involvement with the civil rights movement in Las Vegas, and creating the first all-black television show in the country: Talk of the Town.
Archival Collection
Oral history interview with Ellis Rice conducted by Claytee D. White on April 09, 2014 for the African Americans in Las Vegas: a Collaborative Oral History Project. In this interview, Rice discusses his personal history and growing up in St. Louis, Missouri during the 1960s. He describes his experiences attending Webster College in 1975 and talks about the increase of African American students at the time. Rice recalls starting his first company, African People Art Continuum (APAC) to help connect the arts and with the community. Later, he discusses the theater companies he was involved with, moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1991, and working with the West Las Vegas community to hold theater performances. Lastly, Rice talks about the music he writes and how it connects to his life story.
Archival Collection