Oral history interview with Joseph Gemma conducted by Dan Murphy on March 1, 1979 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. Gemma discusses employment opportunities, construction work, housing developments, and hotels on the Las Vegas Strip. Gemma also recalls social and environmental changes, local recreation, sports, and the importance of gambling in Nevada.
Ted R. Murray interviews legal secretary Marsha Lamb Bingham (b. 1942) in her home about growth in Alamo, Nevada and living in Las Vegas, Nevada. During the interview Bingham discusses school in Alamo, general Nevada history, Warm Springs, Nevada Legislature, Fremont, gambling, UNLV, Las Vegas 1950s and 1960s growth, The Beatles, Rock and Roll, President Kennedy’s Las Vegas visit, Landmark Hotel, Howard Hughes, The Tropicana, The Hilton, atomic testing, Helldorado, McCarran Airport, and Floyd Lamb.
Phil Tobin posing on a white horse at an unknown location. In 1931, as a freshman Assemblyman, Phil Tobin introduced a bill to legalize gambling in Nevada. A Humboldt County rancher and buckaroo, the 29-year old had no interest in gambling himself. Instead, he correctly believed legalized gambling would benefit the public and especially schools thanks to tax revenues. At the time, illicit gambling houses were thriving in Las Vegas, and with Hoover Dam slated to begin construction 40 miles away, many feared the increased Federal presence associated with the Dam construction effort would lead to a clamp-down. The measure passed. After serving out his term, Tobin returned to ranch life for good.
On March 15, 1981, Robert A. Kamp interviewed Donald (Don) L. Eckert (born 1953 in Las Vegas, Nevada) about his experiences while living in Nevada. Eckert first explains the geographical boundaries of Las Vegas when he was first born and the types of recreation in which both youth and adults would take part. Eckert then discusses the Helldorado events and how they have changed over the years before describing how the University of Nevada, Las Vegas has changed as well. The interview then shifts to the topic of Eckert’s college major, hotel management, and then to a brief discussion about the MGM fire. Eckert also talks about horse racing in Las Vegas, changes in gaming, the Basic Magnesium plant, and the development of Mount Charleston. The interview concludes with Eckert’s thoughts on the legalization of gambling in other states and how that trend relates to the future of Las Vegas.
Oral history interview with Barr Smith conducted by Melvin Smail on February 22, 1980 for the Ralph Roske Oral History Project on Early Las Vegas. In this interview, Smith discusses his personal history and the history of Las Vegas, Nevada. Smith discusses working at the Basic Magnesium plant, playing high stakes poker games with prominent gamblers like "Nick the Greek," and the casinos built on the early Las Vegas Strip. Smith also describes how Las Vegas has changed, the different forms of gambling and gaming available in the city, and life in 1940s Las Vegas.
This series, dated 2001-2009, was collected by Peter Collins and includes press coverage, interviews, and media releases about legalized gambling, as well as information dealing with casino establishment in Jersey, a British Crown dependency. The majority of the press coverage and releases relate to the United Kingdom (UK), primarily in relation to the passage of legislation and discussion regarding large casino gambling in metropolitan areas of the UK in addition to Jersey.
Archival Collection
Peter Collins Papers on International Gaming
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Collection Number: MS-00785 Collection Name: Peter Collins Papers on International Gaming Box/Folder: N/A
The Thomas Clark Professional Papers (1950-1998) contain materials from his tenure as a Professor of English at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), which are divided into two series. The gaming research series includes newspaper clippings, correspondence, brochures, bulletins and articles. Also included are book chapters, a glossary of terms used in the casino industry, and gambling guides. In the linguistics and teaching series there are research files, articles, speeches, correspondence, interviews, multimedia, workshops, and conference materials. Also included are files on graffiti, symbolism, ethnic and regional speech differences, language usage, and National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) material. Additional materials include colleague publications and cassette tapes of interviews from students in courses Clark taught at UNLV.