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Stella Kalaoram oral history interview: transcript
Oral history interview with Stella Kalaoram conducted by Kristel Peralta and Cecilia Winchell on August 2, 2021 for Reflections: The Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander Oral History Project. Stella Kalaoram discusses her childhood in Singapore, the occupations and ethnic diversity of her family, and the four languages she speaks: English, Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil. She shares her immigration journey to the United States with her husband, from Singapore to San Bernardino, California in 1990, and their move to Las Vegas in 2000. Stella also shares her employment experiences as a dental assistant, a housekeeper for the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Casino, and as a shop steward for the Culinary Workers Union. She also talks about contracting COVID-19 and her hospital experience, her family's differing religious faiths, and her translation work to empower the Asian-American community. Subjects discussed include: insurance benefits; Volunteer Organizer (VO); mask mandates; vaccine hesitancy; food traditions; language barriers; Baba and Nyonya cultures.
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Transcript of interview with Nancy Houssels by Claytee D. White, March 19, 2014
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Photograph of Dean Martin and celebrity audience, Sands Hotel Copa Room, Las Vegas, March 6, 1957
Dean Martin onstage for his debut as a single star in the Sands Copa Room, March 6, 1957. Seated in front of the stage are producer Jack Entratter (with striped tie), Lucille Ball (with fur stole), Jack Benny (applauding), Desi Arnaz (in profile) and Debbie Reynolds (wearing pearl necklace); seated at the far right in front of the stage is Phil Harris (with cigarette).
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Photograph of Dean Martin with celebrities stage-side, Las Vegas, March 6, 1957
Dean Martin's opening at the Sands Hotel Copa Room in Las Vegas. Producer Jack Entratter (with striped tie), Jack Benny, Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, and Debbie Reynolds (wearing pearl necklace) are in the audience in front of the stage.
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Photograph of Jay Sarno and unidentified entertainers, Circus Circus, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 26, 1972
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Photograph of Sands Hotel's 11th anniversary celebration, Las Vegas, December 1963
Celebrities at the Sands Hotel's 11th anniversary celebration in December 1963. From left to right in the front row: Jack Entratter, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Frank Sinatra, Gary Morton. In the back row are Danny Thomas and Lucille Ball.
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Photograph of Peter Lawford performing at the Sands Hotel, Las Vegas, circa 1960
Peter Lawford performing at the Sands, in the late 1950s to early 1960s. Seated in the front of the stage are several celebrities, including Marilyn Monroe, Eddie Fisher, Elizabeth Taylor, Dean Martin, and his wife, Jeanne Martin.
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Photograph of Jack Entratter, Lauren Bacall, Frank Sinatra, and Kim Novak celebrating Bacall's birthday, Sands Hotel, Las Vegas, circa 1950s
Lauren Bacall cutting her birthday cake with the help of Frank Sinatra. Pictured from left to right are: Jack Entratter, Lauren "Betty" Bacall, Frank Sinatra, and Kim Novak. The inscription on Bacall's cake is "Happy Birthday Betty Queen Mother."
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