Two Historical Discussion Panels this week!

March 3, 2009

We have two historical panel discussions this week that we hope you will join us for:

On Thursday, March 5th join us as we look back at Early Families of Las Vegas.

We will shine a spotlight on the families that helped build and nuture Las Vegas from 1905 through the Great Depression.

It will be a great night of history and memories so we hope you will join us and our panelists:

Paul Carson - local historian with a great deal of knowledge on the family of Helen J. Stewart.

June Eddins - her family had a business on Fremont Street

Bill Gildner -his family arrived in the throes of the Great Depression

Don Payne - local historian

Las Vegas Springs Preserve

Desert Learning Center

7:00 pm

$12 admission

We hope to see you there!

And on Friday, March 6th as part of the Clark County Centennial monthly celebration we have organized another great panel for Mark Hall-Patton to moderate:

The women of Clark County are the focus of the next panel discussion about local history set for Friday, March 6 at 6 p.m.

The 90-minute roundtable discussion, called “Centennial Stories: Examining Our Past,” is timed to coincide with Women’s History Month and includes an opportunity for those who attend the free event to ask questions of the panelists of pioneers and historians.

The event takes place in the County Government Center Commission Chambers, 500 S. Grand Central Parkway, and is aired live and later replayed on Clark County Television (CCTV) Channel 4 and viewers are able to call in with questions. All Channel 4 programming also may be viewed live on the county Web site at www.accessclarkcounty.com.

The roundtable will feature Sue Kim-Bonifazio of the famed Kim Sisters; Dr. Joanne Goodwin, associate professor of history at UNLV and director of the UNLV Women’s Research Institute; Thalia Dondero, a former university regent and former county commissioner; and Hannah Brown, a former Delta Airlines executive and longtime resident. Moderating is county Museum Administrator Mark Hall-Patton.

Panel discussions about Clark County’s history are set for every First Friday in 2009, except in July when the event will be held Wednesday, July 1, and kicked off last month with a discussion of the history of segregation in Las Vegas.

“One of the goals of the county’s year-long commemoration of our centennial is to engage the community and celebrate our common heritage,” said Commission Chairman Rory Reid. “These monthly roundtables are a great way to do that.” 2009 marks the 100^th anniversary of the birth of Clark County, and the county is commemorating the event with a year of activities.

Roundtable discussions slated for later in the year are April 3, Clark County’s Mining History; May 1, “Architecture and Neon in Clark County”: June 5, “The History of the Strip: The Early Years”; July 1, a Wednesday, “The History of the Strip: Howard Hughes and Beyond”; August 7, “The Mob and Las Vegas”; Sept. 4, “Hispanics in Clark County”; Oct. 2, “Entertainers on the Las Vegas Strip”; Nov. 6, “Military History in Clark County”; and Dec. 4, “Marketing Las Vegas.”

Happy Birthday , Elvis

January 7, 2009

He was the King in my family. Even as a small child, I knew my parents loved Elvis. My mother not given to swooning, would swoon at the sight of him.

My dad bundled us into the old Ford station wagon and took us to the Stardust Drive-In to see Viva Las Vegas. He worked downtown at the Golden Gate as a Keno writer and when the cast and crew were shooting the race scenes on Fremont Street, he stepped outside and watched Elvis drive by in his sport car.

Just a few years later, my dad picked my mom up after her shift as a waitress in the showroom at Caesars Palace. It was still early in the night and they didn't want to go straight home. Fats Domino was playing in the lounge at the Flamingo. Right across the street. Perfect, said mom, let's go.

They hung a U-turn on Flamingo Road (you could in those days) and drove over to the Flamingo hotel. In no time they were seated at the bar listening to Fats Domino. The place was pretty lively filled with Fats fans.

Because he was with my mom (quite a striking woman in her hey-day) my dad scoped out the bar. Near my parents was a guy who had probably been drinking since the early evening.

Everyone in the lounge was enjoying Fats' set except that guy. He was from the south and didn't appreciate Fats' music, Fats' talent and most of all the color of Fats' skin.

As the set played on, the guy started to get loud and belligerent about the fact that he didn't like Fats Domino. Most of all he concentrated on the fact that Fats was black.

My dad told him a few times to shut up. They were big Fats Domino fans from way back and wanted to enjoy the show. Another guy at the end of the bar also told him to shut up. The loud mouth continued his bigoted remarks. My mom and dad had had enough. So had the man at the end of the bar. My dad told my mom to order another drink and he'd be back.

He approached the bigot and noticed that the man at the end of the bar did was doing the same. They grabbed the man and words were exchanged. I should note that my dad was in great shape. He was a well-known West Coast Judo champ at the time and took that training seriously. The other man grabbing the bigot was in good shape too.

Before my mother knew what had happened, the bigot was silenced, security was called and my dad and his new friend re-joined my mother. My mother almost fainted when she realized who the other man was. When he said "Hello ma'am" she just about lost it. Elvis bought the next round. When Fats Domino finished his set he came over to them and joined them. They drank together until the early hours of the morning sharing stories.

I have two cocktail napkins from that night with their autographs that I cherish.

In 1969, it was announced that Elvis was coming to the International Hotel in August. My mother's birthday was in August and he wanted to surprise her. He worked two jobs and saved all the extra cash he could.

He did good. We went to see Elvis Presley at the International Hotel in August that year. It was the dinner show and my dad tipped the maitre'd so that we could sit in one of those old fashioned plushy booths center stage.

My mother was in heaven. Somewhere we still the menu from that night.

In 1977, my folks were in vacation in Utah. They stopped in at a small general store and my mom heard something about Elvis on the radio in the store but not enough to understand. She went to the pay phone and called me to find out why they were talking about Elvis on the radio.

I had to tell her that Elvis had died.

Las Vegas and the Mob

August 30, 2008

The Flamingo Hotel under construction. Come learn the real history behind who actually built
this famed resort.

Las Vegas and the Mob

There's a great deal of myth that has sprung up over the years about the Mob and Las Vegas. From "Bugsy" Siegel to "Lefty Rosenthal, the stories are colorful, sometimes apocryphal but are they true?

On Thursday, Sept. 4th, Untold Stories will take a look at Las Vegas and the Mob.

Joining us for a Roundtable Discussion will be CSN History Professor Dr. Michael Green, Local historian and curator Brian Paco Alvarez, former News Bureau manager Don Payne and former FBI agent Dennis Arnoldy.

We will examine the era "when the Mob ran Vegas" and separate the myths from the facts. It should be a fascinating evening of history and stories that you don't want to miss.

Come early and enjoy the Farmer's Market or stop by enjoy some music with your wine.

The discussion begins at 7:00 pm in the Desert Learning Center.

We hope to see you there!

Untold Stories: Las Vegas and the Mob

Thursday, Sept. 4th

Las Vegas Springs Preserve

7:00 pm

Admission $12