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UNLV History 117: Nevada History Photograph Collection
Identifier
PH-00054
Abstract
The UNLV History 117: Nevada History Photograph Collection contains photographic prints, negatives, and slides of Las Vegas and Boulder City, Nevada between approximately 1900 and 1959. These images were collected by students for University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) professor Ralph Roske’s class, History 117: Nevada History. The images primarily depict Las Vegas in the 1950s with people posing in front of and inside the El Rancho Vegas and the Last Frontier Village, including Eleanor Roosevelt, Joe E. Lewis, and Paul Newman. Earlier photographs from the 1920s include businesses, such as fireproofing stores, and significant individuals such as Ed W. Clark. Lastly, it contains two photographs of the Boulder City Airport.
Archival Collection
Las Vegas Fire & Rescue History, 1905-2005: commemorative book
Date
2005 (year approximate)
Archival Collection
Description
Cherina Kleven appears on pages 43, 46, 55, 56, and 70.
Mixed Content
Photograph of filming of "Meet Me in Las Vegas," Sands Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada, circa 1955-1956
Date
1955 to 1956
Description
Filming of the motion picture "Meet Me in Las Vegas" outside of the Sands Hotel. Handwritten description on the back of the photograph: "Cyd Charisse, Roy Rowland, Jim Backus, Dan Dailey, Rob't Bronner, Wm Riley (R)." Rowland was the film's director.
Image
Photographs of Girls of Glitter Gulch signs, Las Vegas (Nev.), June 24, 2016
Date
2016-06-24 to 2017-09-17
Description
The famed Vegas Vickie sign advertising the now permanently closed Girls of Glitter Gulch adult entertainment club sits at 20 Fremont Street at the Fremont Street Experience. Information about the sign is available in the Southern Nevada Neon Survery Data Sheet.
Site address: 20 Fremont St
Sign owner: Derek and Greg Stevens
Sign details: Glitter Gulch is next to the Golden Goose. This now closed property has a long history in Las Vegas. In 1959, the Fortune Club was where the Glitter Gulch would soon replace it. For the history of the Golden Goose: Herb Pastor bought the Mecca Club from Sylvia Sioratta in 1974 then opened up the Golden Goose soon after. Mr. Reed's was the property that sat next to the Golden Goose at this time; however, that then became Bob Stupak's Glitter in 1980. In 1981, Pastor ended up buying the Glitter Gulch. In 1991, Pastor merged both of these properties into a strip club. Both of these properties ultimate closed in the summer of 2016. The signage was taken down in 2017.
Sign condition: Vegas Vickie has been taken down and half the Glitter Gulch sign was also taken down.
Sign form: Blade and sculptural sign
Sign-specific description: Perched atop the signage for the Glitter Gulch is Las Vegas favorite girl, Vegas Vickie. She is dressed up in cowgirl attire and kicking her leg out onto Fremont Street. She is painted so you can see all her details in the day and she is a channeled sign lined with neon tubes that matches her paint so you can see her at night as well. She sits on top of a very geometric piece of gold (like a golden nugget) that shines brightly and dotted with incandescent light bulbs. The "Glitter Gulch" letters are open channeled, lined with neon tubes that glow red at night, and filled with neon tubes that glow blue at night and oscillate as well. During the day these letters are a bold white font and instead of a dot for the "I" it is a four point star. Underneath the golden nugget like structure of the sign is a bunch of silver coins lined with neon tubes.
Sign - type of display: Neon, incandescent, back lit
Sign - media: Steel, plastic, fiberglass
Sign - non-neon treatments: Fiberglass and back lit plastic
Sign animation: Neon in Glitter Gulch text oscillates
Sign environment: These signs sit in the midst of the excitement on Fremont Street Experience. Some of the other properties that sit near them are Binion's, Golden Gate Hotel & Casino, and the Plaza Hotel & Casino.
Sign manufacturer: Ad Art
Sign designer: Jack Dubois and Charles Barnard of Ad Art
Sign - date of installation: 1980
Sign - date of redesign/move: Vegas Vickie was taken down in 2017 for restoration and may return back to Fremont after.
Sign - thematic influences: Both of the Glitter Gulch and Golden Goose signs are extremely iconic signs in Las Vegas history and combine elements that are typically used in signage throughout the city, such as: sculptural signage and signs that have a dominant theme for the property. Vegas Vickie being a part of the signage for the Glitter Gulch also gives some indication that this property is a gentleman's club. They are elaborately designed to draw people's attention to these businesses, which many other signs throughout the city aim to do as well.
Sign - artistic significance: These signs are significant because the design of them is elaborate and they are excellent examples of signs that use sculpture/image to help convey the theme of the property. They are also crafted in such an excellent manner and filled with numerous details.
Survey - research locations: Fox news website http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/31783315/d-las-vegas-owner-buys-3-more-fremont-properties , Vintage Las Vegas website http://vintagelasvegas.com/search/glitter+gulch, Review Journal Article https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/casinos-gaming/mermaids-la-bayou-and-glitter-gulch-come-to-a-close-on-fremont-photos/
Surveyor: Lauren Vaccaro
Survey - date completed: 2017-09-17
Sign keywords: Blade; Sculptural; Neon; Incandescent; Backlit; Plastic; Oscillating; Steel
Site address: 20 Fremont St
Sign owner: Derek and Greg Stevens
Sign details: Glitter Gulch is next to the Golden Goose. This now closed property has a long history in Las Vegas. In 1959, the Fortune Club was where the Glitter Gulch would soon replace it. For the history of the Golden Goose: Herb Pastor bought the Mecca Club from Sylvia Sioratta in 1974 then opened up the Golden Goose soon after. Mr. Reed's was the property that sat next to the Golden Goose at this time; however, that then became Bob Stupak's Glitter in 1980. In 1981, Pastor ended up buying the Glitter Gulch. In 1991, Pastor merged both of these properties into a strip club. Both of these properties ultimate closed in the summer of 2016. The signage was taken down in 2017.
Sign condition: Vegas Vickie has been taken down and half the Glitter Gulch sign was also taken down.
Sign form: Blade and sculptural sign
Sign-specific description: Perched atop the signage for the Glitter Gulch is Las Vegas favorite girl, Vegas Vickie. She is dressed up in cowgirl attire and kicking her leg out onto Fremont Street. She is painted so you can see all her details in the day and she is a channeled sign lined with neon tubes that matches her paint so you can see her at night as well. She sits on top of a very geometric piece of gold (like a golden nugget) that shines brightly and dotted with incandescent light bulbs. The "Glitter Gulch" letters are open channeled, lined with neon tubes that glow red at night, and filled with neon tubes that glow blue at night and oscillate as well. During the day these letters are a bold white font and instead of a dot for the "I" it is a four point star. Underneath the golden nugget like structure of the sign is a bunch of silver coins lined with neon tubes.
Sign - type of display: Neon, incandescent, back lit
Sign - media: Steel, plastic, fiberglass
Sign - non-neon treatments: Fiberglass and back lit plastic
Sign animation: Neon in Glitter Gulch text oscillates
Sign environment: These signs sit in the midst of the excitement on Fremont Street Experience. Some of the other properties that sit near them are Binion's, Golden Gate Hotel & Casino, and the Plaza Hotel & Casino.
Sign manufacturer: Ad Art
Sign designer: Jack Dubois and Charles Barnard of Ad Art
Sign - date of installation: 1980
Sign - date of redesign/move: Vegas Vickie was taken down in 2017 for restoration and may return back to Fremont after.
Sign - thematic influences: Both of the Glitter Gulch and Golden Goose signs are extremely iconic signs in Las Vegas history and combine elements that are typically used in signage throughout the city, such as: sculptural signage and signs that have a dominant theme for the property. Vegas Vickie being a part of the signage for the Glitter Gulch also gives some indication that this property is a gentleman's club. They are elaborately designed to draw people's attention to these businesses, which many other signs throughout the city aim to do as well.
Sign - artistic significance: These signs are significant because the design of them is elaborate and they are excellent examples of signs that use sculpture/image to help convey the theme of the property. They are also crafted in such an excellent manner and filled with numerous details.
Survey - research locations: Fox news website http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/31783315/d-las-vegas-owner-buys-3-more-fremont-properties , Vintage Las Vegas website http://vintagelasvegas.com/search/glitter+gulch, Review Journal Article https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/casinos-gaming/mermaids-la-bayou-and-glitter-gulch-come-to-a-close-on-fremont-photos/
Surveyor: Lauren Vaccaro
Survey - date completed: 2017-09-17
Sign keywords: Blade; Sculptural; Neon; Incandescent; Backlit; Plastic; Oscillating; Steel
Mixed Content
Photographs of Golden Goose sign, Las Vegas (Nev.), June 24, 2016
Date
2016-06-24 to 2017-09-17
Description
A sign for the permanently closed Golden Goose Gentlemen's Club sits at the Fremont Street Experience. Information about the sign is available in the Southern Nevada Neon Survery Data Sheet.
Sign owner: Derek and Greg Stevens
Sign details: The Golden Goose is next to Glitter Gulch. This now closed property has a long history in Las Vegas. In 1959, the Fortune Club was where the Glitter Gulch would soon replace it. For the history of the Golden Goose: Herb Pastor bought the Mecca Club from Sylvia Sioratta in 1974 then opened up the Golden Goose soon after. Mr. Reed's was the property that sat next to the Golden Goose at this time; however, that then became Bob Stupak's Glitter in 1980. In 1981, Pastor ended up buying the Glitter Gulch. In 1991, Pastor merged both of these properties into a strip club. Both of these properties ultimate closed in the summer of 2016. The signage was taken down in 2017.
Sign condition: 3, the Golden Goose signage is still on Fremont Street and in good condition.
Sign form: Blade and sculptural sign
Sign-specific description: Perched atop the signage for the Golden Goose is a sculptural goose made out of fiberglass wearing a brown cowboy hat and red scarf around its neck with white polka dots all over it. In its right hand it hold a golden egg covered in incandescent light bulbs, which looks just like the eggs surrounding the bottom of the goose. Under the goose and the eggs surrounding it is a base that has a yellow border on the top and bottom of it and yellow incandescent light bulbs lining these lines. In the center is an orange band. The main portion of the signage for the Golden Goose is an interesting organic shape in a red/brown color that curves inward at in the middle top of the sign and in the middle side of the sign that faces Fremont. The edge of the sign that faces Fremont Street is lined with ten golden eggs that look just like the ones surrounding the goose; however, these vary in size and do not line all the way down the entire sign. This edge of the sign also has red incandescent light bulbs covering it. Each side of the sign is lined with a yellow line that outlines the sign and incandescent light bulbs are part of that line as well. "Golden Goose" is in a stylish mustard yellow font with made up of open channel letters filled with incandescent light bulbs. This sign is also lined with neon tubes that run up and down the sign and oscillate at night.
Sign - type of display: Neon, incandescent, back lit
Sign - media: Steel, plastic, fiberglass
Sign - non-neon treatments: Fiberglass and back lit plastic
Sign animation: Neon tubes lining the Golden Goose sign oscillate.
Sign environment: These signs sit in the midst of the excitement on Fremont Street Experience. Some of the other properties that sit near them are Binion's, Golden Gate Hotel & Casino, and the Plaza Hotel & Casino.
Sign - date of installation: About 1974
Sign - date of redesign/move: The Golden Goose sign was removed from Fremont in 2017.
Sign - thematic influences: Both of the Golden Goose and Glitter Gulch signs are extremely iconic signs in Las Vegas history and combine elements that are typically used in signage throughout the city, such as: sculptural signage and signs that have a dominant theme for the property. The signage for the Golden Goose features a sculpture of a goose to drive the theme of the property to motorists and pedestrians. They are elaborately designed to draw people's attention to these businesses, which many other signs throughout the city aim to do as well.
Sign - artistic significance: These sign are significant because the design of them is elaborate and they are excellent examples of signs that use sculpture/image to help convey the theme of the property. They are also crafted in such an excellent manner and filled with numerous details.
Survey - research locations: Fox news website http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/31783315/d-las-vegas-owner-buys-3-more-fremont-properties , Vintage Las Vegas website http://vintagelasvegas.com/search/glitter+gulch, Review Journal Article https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/casinos-gaming/mermaids-la-bayou-and-glitter-gulch-come-to-a-close-on-fremont-photos/
Surveyor: Lauren Vaccaro
Survey - date completed: 2017-09-17
Sign keywords: Blade; Sculptural; Neon; Incandescent; Backlit; Plastic; Oscillating; Steel; Fiberglass
Sign owner: Derek and Greg Stevens
Sign details: The Golden Goose is next to Glitter Gulch. This now closed property has a long history in Las Vegas. In 1959, the Fortune Club was where the Glitter Gulch would soon replace it. For the history of the Golden Goose: Herb Pastor bought the Mecca Club from Sylvia Sioratta in 1974 then opened up the Golden Goose soon after. Mr. Reed's was the property that sat next to the Golden Goose at this time; however, that then became Bob Stupak's Glitter in 1980. In 1981, Pastor ended up buying the Glitter Gulch. In 1991, Pastor merged both of these properties into a strip club. Both of these properties ultimate closed in the summer of 2016. The signage was taken down in 2017.
Sign condition: 3, the Golden Goose signage is still on Fremont Street and in good condition.
Sign form: Blade and sculptural sign
Sign-specific description: Perched atop the signage for the Golden Goose is a sculptural goose made out of fiberglass wearing a brown cowboy hat and red scarf around its neck with white polka dots all over it. In its right hand it hold a golden egg covered in incandescent light bulbs, which looks just like the eggs surrounding the bottom of the goose. Under the goose and the eggs surrounding it is a base that has a yellow border on the top and bottom of it and yellow incandescent light bulbs lining these lines. In the center is an orange band. The main portion of the signage for the Golden Goose is an interesting organic shape in a red/brown color that curves inward at in the middle top of the sign and in the middle side of the sign that faces Fremont. The edge of the sign that faces Fremont Street is lined with ten golden eggs that look just like the ones surrounding the goose; however, these vary in size and do not line all the way down the entire sign. This edge of the sign also has red incandescent light bulbs covering it. Each side of the sign is lined with a yellow line that outlines the sign and incandescent light bulbs are part of that line as well. "Golden Goose" is in a stylish mustard yellow font with made up of open channel letters filled with incandescent light bulbs. This sign is also lined with neon tubes that run up and down the sign and oscillate at night.
Sign - type of display: Neon, incandescent, back lit
Sign - media: Steel, plastic, fiberglass
Sign - non-neon treatments: Fiberglass and back lit plastic
Sign animation: Neon tubes lining the Golden Goose sign oscillate.
Sign environment: These signs sit in the midst of the excitement on Fremont Street Experience. Some of the other properties that sit near them are Binion's, Golden Gate Hotel & Casino, and the Plaza Hotel & Casino.
Sign - date of installation: About 1974
Sign - date of redesign/move: The Golden Goose sign was removed from Fremont in 2017.
Sign - thematic influences: Both of the Golden Goose and Glitter Gulch signs are extremely iconic signs in Las Vegas history and combine elements that are typically used in signage throughout the city, such as: sculptural signage and signs that have a dominant theme for the property. The signage for the Golden Goose features a sculpture of a goose to drive the theme of the property to motorists and pedestrians. They are elaborately designed to draw people's attention to these businesses, which many other signs throughout the city aim to do as well.
Sign - artistic significance: These sign are significant because the design of them is elaborate and they are excellent examples of signs that use sculpture/image to help convey the theme of the property. They are also crafted in such an excellent manner and filled with numerous details.
Survey - research locations: Fox news website http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/31783315/d-las-vegas-owner-buys-3-more-fremont-properties , Vintage Las Vegas website http://vintagelasvegas.com/search/glitter+gulch, Review Journal Article https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/casinos-gaming/mermaids-la-bayou-and-glitter-gulch-come-to-a-close-on-fremont-photos/
Surveyor: Lauren Vaccaro
Survey - date completed: 2017-09-17
Sign keywords: Blade; Sculptural; Neon; Incandescent; Backlit; Plastic; Oscillating; Steel; Fiberglass
Mixed Content
Map of downtown Las Vegas, Nevada, circa 1952-1955
Date
1952 to 1955
Description
Title in upper left and right margins: Las Vegas, Nevada. Identifies business tenants in the downtown area and includes property valuations, measurements, addresses, etc. Cadastral map. Oriented with north to the lower right.Text, illustrations, aerial photos, and ancillary map of the Las Vegas Strip on verso. Cataloger has determined date of map to be between 1952 and 1955 because the Sahara and the Sands Casinos are shown on the verso of the map, and they both opened in 1952, but the Riviera and the Dunes opened in 1955, and they are not shown on the map. Also, the Hotel Last Frontier is shown on the verso of the map, and its name was changed to New Frontier in 1955. Note: Many of the property names and addresses are erroneous when compared to Las Vegas business directories from the same period.
Image
Photograph of Harold Minsky and showgirls, Chicago (Ill.), 1970-1979
Date
1970 to 1979
Description
Harold Minsky poses with six showgirls at the Playboy Hotel. The dancers are wearing rhinestone bikini-style costumes and large feathered headdresses. The Knickerbocker has gone through several incarnations since it opened in 1927. Legend has it that in the 1930s the hotel housed a casino frequented by Al Capone. During World War II and the Korean War, US Armed Forces officers would fill the property's hallways and play cards in the Officer's Club. In 1952, Richard Nixon was nominated Vice President during the Republican National Convention held in the hotel. Finally, in the 1970s it became the Playboy Hotel, owned by Hugh Hefner. Site Name: Playboy Hotel (Chicago, Ill.) Street Address: 163 East Walton Place
Image
Costume design drawings, yellow, red, blue and black costumes with wild cat motifs, Las Vegas, 1984
Date
1984
Description
Costume designs for Siegfried and Roy.
Costume Details: Baggy yellow trousers with oversized yellow tunic-style top with a lion head on front, oversized teal collar and cuffs and teal sash; black oversized knee-length tunic-style top with a tiger head on front, with yellow sash; both costumes have tasseled black slippers. Red robe with tiger and leopard motifs on the sleeves, tied with a gold tasseled rope belt, baggy red trousers knotted at the ankles; dark blue robe with a black panther motif on the left sleeve and side, tied with a gold tasseled rope belt, with black trousers and boots.
Show Name: Siegfried & Roy
Site Name: Frontier Hotel and Casino
Costume Details: Baggy yellow trousers with oversized yellow tunic-style top with a lion head on front, oversized teal collar and cuffs and teal sash; black oversized knee-length tunic-style top with a tiger head on front, with yellow sash; both costumes have tasseled black slippers. Red robe with tiger and leopard motifs on the sleeves, tied with a gold tasseled rope belt, baggy red trousers knotted at the ankles; dark blue robe with a black panther motif on the left sleeve and side, tied with a gold tasseled rope belt, with black trousers and boots.
Show Name: Siegfried & Roy
Site Name: Frontier Hotel and Casino
Image
Postcard of the International Hotel (Las Vegas), circa 1969
Date
1969 to 1971
Description
Artist's rendering of the International Hotel. Transcribed from original: "Las Vegas International, Nevada. One is at a loss for words to describe this new $60,000,000 hotel rising up 30 stories above the Las Vegas landscape. It will have the world's largest Casino, Nevada's largest pool, and the world's largest convention facilities for a resort hotel. The main showroom will seat 1600 people for the Dinner Show and 2000 for the Cocktail Show. Copyright Ferris H. Scott, Santa Ana, Calif., Western Resort Publications, 1320 N. Broadway, Santa Ana, Calif." Note: The International Hotel was sold in 1970 and renamed the Las Vegas Hilton in 1971.
Site Name: International Hotel
Address: 3000 Paradise Road
Image
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