Rothman, Hal, 1958-2007

Hal Rothman (1958-2007) was an author and a history professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). He was born August 11, 1958 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and arrived at UNLV in 1992. Rothman focused his scholarship on Las Vegas and wrote or edited over a dozen books on the American West, such as Neon Metropolis: How Las Vegas Started the Twenty-First Century (2002). He appeared on television and radio programs and wrote columns for the Las Vegas Sun and other newspapers across the country. From 2002 to 2005, Rothman was chair of the UNLV history department. In 2004 he received the Harry Reid Silver State Research Award and was inducted into the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame, and in 2006 UNLV named him a distinguished professor. Rothman was also involved in founding Midbar Kodesh Temple, a conservative Jewish synagogue in Henderson, Nevada.