Gambling on a Dream Presentation and Book Signing: Dec. 8th

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If you live in Las Vegas or visiting there, I am happy to announce that I will be doing a presentation and book signing for my newly published book, Gambling on a Dream: The Classic Las Vegas Strip 1930-1955 on Saturday, December 8th at the Nevada State Museum (at the Springs Preserve).

I’ll be talking about the early days of the Las Vegas Strip when it was better known as a pot-holed. two-lane highway that connected the small town to southern California, how it began and how it grew.

It all begins at 2:00 pm and I hope to see you there!

The Midcentury Las Vegas Stage exhibit opens on Dec. 4th!

Please be sure to add this to your to-do list. You don't want to miss this terrific exhibit that looks at why Las Vegas became the Entertainment Capital of the World!

I was asked to write the text for this terrific exhibit that opens on Thursday.

Hope you will check it out!!!  

December 4, 2014 – February 14, 2015:

Mid Century Las Vegas Stage


Charleston Heights Arts Center, 800 S. Brush Street, Las Vegas, 702-229-6383
For more information, please call 702-229-1012
Free and open to the public
The new exhibit at the Charleston Heights Art Center Gallery titled The Midcentury Las Vegas Stage: Acts that Built the Entertainment Capital of the World explores both legendary and obscure stage acts from the perspective of the archives at the Las Vegas News Bureau and the Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas. Rarely seen photographs combined with video footage and stage costume tell the distinctive story of Las Vegas' original hotel lounges and showrooms.

The midcentury Las Vegas entertainment scene was extraordinary, remarkable and singularly unique to the city. The unlikely pairing of Barbra Streisand with Liberace on a 1963 Riviera bill or the arcane combination, on the Sahara stage, of film legend Mae West with 1954's Mr. America are enduring examples of why Las Vegas is known as the Entertainment Capital of the World.


About Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas
The Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas, actively engages people in understanding and celebrating Nevada’s natural and cultural heritage. The museum is one of seven managed by the Nevada Division of Museums and History, an agency of the Nevada Department of Tourism and Cultural Affairs. It is open Thursday through Monday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the
grounds of the Springs Preserve, a 180-acre cultural institution with museums, exhibits, gardens, interpretive trails, event space and more, built on the site of artesian springs that once nourished desert life. Visit the museum at 309 S. Valley View Boulevard or on Facebook. Adult admission is $9.95 and includes entrance to the Las Vegas Springs Preserve.

About Las Vegas News Bureau
For more than 65 years, the Las Vegas News Bureau has captured the sights and sounds of the world’s leading destination like no one else, and has played a unique role in promoting Las Vegas by documenting unforgettable images on film. The News Bureau was created in 1947 as part of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce’s marketing efforts to promote Las Vegas as a tourism destination. Today, the Las Vegas News Bureau plays an important role in supporting
the marketing efforts of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Remembering the Beatles at the LV Convention Center

Fifty years ago this Wednesday, the Beatles appeared onstage at the old Las Vegas Convention Center's Rotunda.  They did two shows and all these years later, those who were there still remember that night:

Two of the best PR men in Las Vegas, Herb McDonald and Stan Irwin, arranged to bring the Beatles to Las Vegas in August, 1964 to perform.

“Well, I knew (who) the Beatles (were). So I said yes, but it’s gonna be too big for just the Sahara. I’m gonna put them into the Convention Center. Milton Prell, the owner of the Sahara, says ‘Well, you’re the director. You direct’. And I said, I’m bringing in the Beatles and I’m putting them in the Convention Center. Hotel Sahara  and Stan Irwin proudly presents the Beatles. ‘You, you’ll have, you have a sign like that, I’m sure’, Mr. Prell replied.

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