Musician Ronald Simone of Las Vegas credits his father’s guidance and his upbringing in New Haven, Connecticut, for shaping his musical and educational aspirations. Due to its proximity to New York City and the influence of Yale University, New Haven offered its residents the finest in musical entertainment; as a result, many musical greats were from or had lived in New Haven and most Broadway shows opened at New Haven’s Shubert Theater. Born in 1935 with the gift of perfect pitch, Simone began to play the piano at a young age and could play most pieces by ear. He began playing professionally at age eight in 1943 with a weekly stint on a radio show, Kitty's Revue. Still in grade school during World War II he began touring locally with an amateur producer, who formed a show that played military bases and hospitals around Connecticut and into New York and Massachusetts. In high school Simone formed his own trio and a quartet and played piano in gin mills, illegal card rooms, and resorts in upstate New York while playing trumpet in the high school band. He joined the Musicians Union at 18 and continued to play in New York and Connecticut clubs and theaters throughout his five years at Yale. During his second year at Yale the School of Music became a graduate school, from which Ron graduated in 1958. Ron’s sister Louise married one of his Yale classmates, a drummer, and the couple moved to Las Vegas. Ron visited his sister in 1959, loved the musical opportunities he saw, transferred his Musicians Union membership, and moved to Las Vegas with his friend, violinist Joe Mack, in September 1960. After sub work and playing a lounge show at the Riviera, he spent five and a half years in the Riviera showroom, moving in 1966 to the Desert Inn, where he played piano in the exclusive Monte Carlo Room for five years for the likes of Dean Martin, Sandy Koufax, Sammy Davis Jr., and Kirk Kerkorian. From there Simone went to the Dunes, where he remained for the next nineteen years working with choreographer Ronnie Lewis and rehearsing and playing all the Casino de Paris shows, line numbers, and production numbers. In July 1989, Musicians Local 369 went on strike. Because Simone was playing the Follies Bergere at the Tropicana—the first house band to strike—he was among the first musicians to walk out. Musicians at all but three Strip hotels (Circus Circus, Riviera, and the Stardust) followed. While the musicians strike lasted nearly eight months, Simone was recruited for sanctioned sub work for the duration at the Lido de Paris show at the Stardust. After the strike ended he worked with Johnny Haig's relief band playing six nights a week at various hotels.
Interview with Corinne Entratter Sidney by Claytee White on June 5, 2007. In this interview, Sidney talks about growing up with privilege in California, where her father served as the attorney general. She attended school at UCLA and took acting classes and signed with United Artists. She met Jack Entratter in Los Angeles and moved to Las Vegas and worked as a Copa Girl. She discusses Jack Entratter's generosity and influence in town, and his style, and their lifestyle together. She mentions the likes of Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne and Sammy Davis, Jr. and her extravagant life living at the Sands. After Jack's death in 1971, she moved back to Los Angeles, returned to acting, and wrote a newspaper column. On a visit to Las Vegas with George Sidney after Sidney's wife Jane died, Corinne and George began dating and were married shortly after. They moved back to Las Vegas together for a slower pace. She describes her love of Las Vegas and its continued growth.
Corinne Sidney's life story makes for fascinating reading. She was born in 1937, the daughter of Alice Polk, former Ziegfeld showgirl, and Carl Kegley, an attorney. She attended U. of C. Berkeley, transferred to UCLA, and was spotted by a talent scout who convinced her to enter a Miss USA contest. Corinne's runner-up status in the Miss USA contest led to job offers in acting, so she decided to study acting. This, along with her childhood lessons in ballet, piano, singing, tap dance and horseback riding, led to a contract with United Artists, freelance work, television parts, and plays. Around the age of 18, Corinne met Jack Entratter. Their relationship brought her to Las Vegas, where she worked as a showgirl at the Sands for a few months, and where she married Jack a few years later. They lived a fabulous lifestyle which included travel, beautiful homes, and friendships with noted celebrities. Corinne went back to acting in Los Angeles after Jack passed away, but then segued into writing a gossip column and hosting a television show. She reconnected with an old friend (George Sidney) by writing the obituary for his wife, and within a few months they were married. The Sidney's moved back to Las Vegas, where Corinne still makes her home today.
From the Clark County Economic Opportunity Board Records -- Series I. Administrative. This folder contains memos, agendas and minutes from meetings of the Clark County Economic Opportunity Board from January 1969 through June 1969.
Oral history interview with Yvanna Cancela conducted by Monserrath Hernández and Barbara Tabach on February 27, 2020 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. Yvanna Cancela, Nevada State Senator, discusses her personal history growing up in Miami, Florida and her studies at Northwestern University. She talks of working for Senator Harry Reid's campaign in Las Vegas, which led to her organizing efforts for the Culinary Workers Union Local 226. Yvanna recalls being appointed to the Nevada State Senate in 2016 as the first female state senate majority. In addition to fulfilling her duties as the Co-Majority Whip, she worked on the Joe Biden campaign and is the Executive Director of the Citizenship Project. After this interview was conducted, Yvanna received her Juris Doctorate from the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Subjects discussed include: Miami, Florida; Nevada State Senate; The Citizenship Project.
Oral history interview with Nancy Brune conducted by Monserrath Hernandez and Rodrigo Vazquez on August 21, 2019 for the Latinx Voices of Southern Nevada Oral History Project. In this interview, Brune recalls her childhood and her experiences growing up in Austin and San Antonio, Texas to a Mexican-American father and British mother. She often identifies herself as tejana. Brune has lived in Las Vegas, Nevada since 2007 and is the Executive Director of the Kenny Guinn Center for Policy Priorities. Brune is a graduate of Harvard and has a doctoral degree from Yale University. She and her husband, Richard Boulware, who is a born and raised Las Vegan, have three children.
From the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, Theta Theta Omega Chapter Records (MS-01014) -- Chapter records file. Includes National Black Leadership Initiative on Cancer, Las Vegas coalition (NBLIC) records and program for "Nevada's First African American Wellness Conference."