On March 16, 1975, David P. Wiser interviewed former hair dresser and dealer, Darlene Kelly (born December 1st, 1942 in San Francisco, California) in the collector’s home in Las Vegas, Nevada. The two discuss how Kelly first arrived in Las Vegas, as well as her occupational history. Kelly goes on to describe the Stewart Ranch, as well as the social environment of the forties and fifties in Southern Nevada.
Oral history interview with Patricia Bryan conducted by Stephen Kulifay on February 20, 1979 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview Patricia Bryan discusses her education at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Northwestern and her move to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1947. Bryan also discusses her family’s involvement in the soda bottling industry and eventual involvement in real estate. She goes on to describe a wide range of topics including the first hotel properties in the city, the entertainers at the time, minority communities, the railroad, shopping, and housing. She also discusses the popularity of Las Vegas, with a focus on tourists and gaming. Digital audio and transcript available.
Louise Lorenzi Fountain was born Nov. 14, 1913 in La Belle, Missouri to David Lorenzi, a French immigrant, and Julia Travese. Her younger years were devoted to helping her father develop and manage Lorenzi Lake Park, which he built and opened in 1926.
Marion D. Bennett, Sr. was born May 31, 1933 in Greenville, South Carolina to a family of eleven. He graduated from Sterling High School and went on to Morris Brown College. After graduating in 1957, he later matriculated at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia where he received a Master of Divinity in 1960. Reverend Bennett came to Las Vegas, Nevada on July 7, 1960 to be the pastor of the Zion United Methodist Church. Reverend Bennett fought hard to get the Equal Rights Commission established in Nevada.