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ON THE COVER
Read Vegas Seven right side up and then flip it over and start again with Seven Nights, featuring after-dark entertainment and the week’s nightlife happenings.
SPRING EPICUREAN GUIDE 2017 Photography and hand stitching CIERRA PEDRO
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SEVEN NIGHTS Nora’s Italian Cuisine’s Black Moth Martini Photography ANTHONY MAIR
TABLE OF CONTENTS
MARCH 23–29, 2017 TO DO
SPACES & PLACES
11 24/7
34 Away Message: Primm
BY SHANNON MILLER
BY LISSA TOWNSEND RODGERS
14 Winter Is Coming
35 Back in Time
What to do around the clock.
Enjoying a lo-fi staycation.
The music from Game of Thrones live at MGM Grand.
Springs Preserve’s Boomtown 1905 makes old Las Vegas new.
BY JESSIE O’BRIEN
BY LISSA TOWNSEND RODGERS
PLUS: The
Deal
CONVERSATIONS
FEATURE
37 What Makes a
16 Pizza, Rising
Retailers and restaurant owners on success and failure in DTLV.
Downtown Business Work?
Vegas scions of pie share on their journeys to the upper crust. BY ROBERT SPUHLER
24 Spring Epicurean Guide
To all things food, wine, beer, spirits and fun. BY MARISA FINETTI & XANIA WOODMAN
TASTE
27 Say Cheese!
Plantone’s Italian Market’s fresh mozzarella.
BY JESSIE O’BRIEN
38 What the People Need
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto wants to hear her constituents’ stories.
Boomtown 1905 at Springs Preserve
BY LISSA TOWNSEND RODGERS
40 Lucky 7
The restaurant dish we wish we could make at home.
OUR SITES TO SEE
BY WENDOH STAFF PLUS: Ask
a Native
BY MARISA FINETTI
FLIP SIDE
SOCIAL INFLUENCE
What to do after dark.
Seven Nights
VegasSeven.com Watch: Jacob Banks Unleashes a “Monster” Recently on his way to SXSW, the rising U.K. singer stopped by Las Vegas for an intimate concert. Watch highlights from his performance at vegasseven.com/jacobbanks.
BY KIMBERLY DE LA CRUZ
31 Will They Stay or Will They Go?
Seven questions on the chance of a Raiders relocation. BY TYLER BISCHOFF
32 Start Your Engines
RuPaul’s Drag Race returns. BY ERIC DIESEL
A Community of Support American Foundation for Suicide Prevention brings stigmas to light. BY SHANNON MILLER
PHOTO BY KRYSTAL RAMIREZ
33 The Nuclear Zombie Rises Is Yucca Mountain coming back to life? BY MICHAEL GREEN
Savor the Flavor A journey to the earthy, fatty, salty side of cocktails. BY XANIA WOODMAN
The Party Starter What to do now that it’s officially pool season. BY KIMBERLY DE LA CRUZ & ZAUNI TANIL
Making It Rain Cash Cash ups the ante. BY JASON R. LATHAM
DTLV.com Creative Writing Frank Johnson, an emerging poet from Las Vegas, braids his hip-hop roots into the landscape of his work, which explores the impossibility of defining oneself while in transience. Go to DTLV.com to read the site’s first piece of poetry.
RunRebs.com Shooters Wanted Without improved shooting, UNLV’s offense may struggle again in 2017–18.
SpyOnVegas.com The Hookup Find upcoming events, see highlights from the hottest parties, meet the DJs and more.
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PHOTO OF THE WEEK
Photography CIERRA PEDRO Staff photograhper Krystal Ramirez poses in Vegas Seven’s Spring Epicurean jacket.
APRIL 21
MARCH 31-APRIL1 FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE • JAKE OWEN • LEE BRICE COLE SWINDELL • DUSTIN LYNCH • BIG & RICH BROTHERS OSBORNE • CHRIS LANE • BRETT YOUNG MADDIE & TAE • WILLIAM MICHAEL MORGAN DYLAN SCOTT • TUCKER BEATHARD
JUNE 2
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ON SALE FRIDAY, MARCH 24
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Ryan T. Doherty | Justin Weniger President Michael Skenandore Chief Financial Officer Sim Salzman Vice President, Marketing and Events Keith White Creative Director Sherwin Yumul Graphic Designer Javon Isaac Technical Director Herbert Akinyele Controller Jane Weigel
Letters and Story Ideas Comments@VegasSeven.com Advertising Sales@VegasSeven.com Distribution Distribution@VegasSeven.com
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Mandalay Bay Ticket Office 702.632.7580 mandalaybay.com 800.745.3000 ticketmaster.com
VEGAS SEVEN 701 Bridger Avenue, Las Vegas, NV 89101 702-798-7000 Vegas Seven is distributed each Thursday throughout Southern Nevada. © 2017 Vegas Seven, LLC. Reproduction in whole or in part without the permission of Vegas Seven, LLC is prohibited.
Publisher
Michael Skenandore Editorial EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Melinda Sheckells MANAGING EDITOR
Genevie Durano SENIOR EDITOR, LIFESTYLE
Jessi C. Acuña ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Mark Adams EDITOR AT LARGE
Lissa Townsend Rodgers EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
Shannon Miller EDITORIAL INTERNS
Daphne-Jayne Corrales, Heather Peterson Senior Contributing Editor Xania Woodman (Beverage) Contributing Editors Michael Green (Politics), David G. Schwartz (Gaming/Hospitality) Art CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Benjamin Ward SENIOR DESIGNER
Cierra Pedro STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Krystal Ramirez VegasSeven.com DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL CONTENT
Zoneil Maharaj EDITOR, DTLV.COM
Jessie O’Brien WEB EDITOR
Amber Sampson CONTRIBUTING WRITER, RUNREBS.COM
Tyler Bischoff Production/Distribution DIRECTOR OF PRODUCTION/DISTRIBUTION
Marc Barrington ADVERTISING MANAGER
Jimmy Bearse Sales BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
Christy Corda DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL SALES
Nicole Scherer ACCOUNT MANAGER
Brittany Quintana ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE
Robyn Weiss, Matt Iles DIRECTOR OF SALES, BILLBOARD DIVISION
John Tobin
TO DO
What to do around the clock in Las Vegas Dadan
By Shannon Miller
THURSDAY 23
Join thousands of Nevadans crowdfunding their favorite organizations on Nevada’s Big Give day. All day, nvbiggive.razoo.com
PHOTO BY TAK ASHI OK AMOTO
It’s Front Porch Thursday at Big Dog’s Draft House, this week featuring local singer-songwriter Nick Mattera, who can boast opening for Better Than Ezra and Cheap Trick. 7 p.m., 4543 N. Rancho Dr., facebook.com/bigdogsdrafthouse The Nevada Women’s Film Festival returns this weekend with screenings, special guests and panels focused on the fair representation of women in the film industry. Today, the festival kicks off with a discussion on diversity and inclusion, followed by a special screening of The Track. 6 p.m., $12, venues vary, nwffest.com FRIDAY 24
It’s time for an adventure under the sea at Huntsman Entertainment’s production of Disney’s The Little Mermaid at Henderson Pavilion. 7:30 p.m., $20–$25, 200 S. Green Valley Pkwy., facebook.com/cityofhenderson
Ghost World graphic novelist-turned-screenwriter Daniel Clowes’ second screen adaptation, Wilson, starring Woody Harrelson, opens in theaters today. Theaters and times vary, fandango.com Enjoy An Evening with Vince Gill & Lyle Lovett featuring solo and duo performances showcasing the country stars’ musical versatility. 7:30 p.m., $30–$99, The Smith Center, thesmithcenter.com Guantanamo Baywatch, a crass mishmash of
surf and garage rock, brings its irreverence to The Bunkhouse Saloon, with support from the Van Der Rohe and Thee Swank Bastards. 9 p.m., $10, bunkhousedowntown.com SATURDAY 25
Dadan, meaning “drumming men” in Japanese, gives a performance of Japanese folk art and music called Kodo, centered around the powerful, rhythmic beats of Taiko drums. 7:30 p.m., $29–$99, The Smith Center, thesmithcenter.com
To raise awareness and money to benefit underprivileged seniors, elderly, disabled and their care-
givers, the Independent Senior Foundation holds a Motorcycle and Hot Rod Contest with music, gourmet food trucks, vendors, tattoo artists and guests Welder Up from Discovery Channel TV show Vegas Rat Rods. 11 a.m.–6 p.m., Eastern Canyon Plaza, 8695 S. Eastern Ave., $10. Vegas Indoor Skydiving celebrates its 35th anniversary with the Tunnel Jam competition to benefit Three Square Food Bank. Attendees who donate a bag of nonperishable food can enjoy live music, food, the chance to win raffle prizes, and the best flyers facing off in the 22-foot-tall flight chamber. Noon, competition at 5 p.m., threesquare.org 9th Island Cultural Club of Las Vegas showcases Hawaiian and Polynesian culture with Mahalo Luau. Savor traditional dishes like Kalua pig and poi while enjoying dance and music performances. 4 p.m., adults $45, ages 5–13 $20, ages 4 and under free, Sammy Davis Jr. Festival Plaza, 720 Twin Lakes Dr., 9thiccoflv.org In Our Heads About Our Hair screens at the Women’s Empowerment Conference. Join the conversation, elevated by skilled facilitators and speakers, about health and wellness, family and self sufficiency. 9 a.m., West Las Vegas Library Theatre, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd., artslasvegas.org
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24/7
TO DO
THE DEAL BY ANTHONY CURTIS
Dinner and a Show, Dollar Blackjack and a Hot Tea Happy Hour
Wilson
SUNDAY 26
TUESDAY 28
The ancient Moche inhabited the area that is now Peru from 100–800 CE. Thanks to artwork found on pottery made by Moche peoples, Valley of Fire offers Moche Toss—a game somewhat like skeet-shooting. Learn about the game from a World Atlatl Association member’s re-created tools. 11 a.m., Atlatl Rock picnic area at Valley of Fire State Park, parks.nv.gov/events
Learn from expert instructors how to increase your efficiency and reduce the impact of your running or walking style in REI Boca Park’s Chi Running class. 7 p.m., 710 S. Rampart Blvd., rei.com/stores/las-vegas-boca-park
It should be an interesting night at the Double Down Saloon with Biffers, a punk rock band from Livorno, Italy, and Uberschall at midnight. 10 p.m., 4640 Paradise Rd., doubledownsaloon.com MONDAY 27
NYC-based Japanese action-comic punk band Peelander-Z brings their talents and antics to Beauty Bar with support from Illicitor, Time Crashers and Easter Teeth. 8 p.m., $10, 517 Fremont St., beautybarlv.com Don’t forget to stop and smell the flowers! Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens’ Japanese-inspired display is here for spring, featuring a 35-foot Kabuki figure, traditional tea house, golden temple and 80,000 flowers. 24 hours, bellagio.com
The late, great Debbie Reynolds plays the titular character in Unsinkable Molly Brown, which screens today at Clark County Library’s Tuesday Afternoon at the Bijou series. 1 p.m., Clark County Library, 1401 E. Flamingo Rd., lvccld.org Learn how to hone your wardrobe and make heads turn from the most highly sought-after fashion illustrator/ luxury project designer working today. Dallas Shaw’s The Way She Wears It: The Ultimate Insider’s Guide to Revealing Your Personal Style hits shelves today. $12.99, harpercollins.com WEDNESDAY 29
Aid for AIDS of Nevada and House of Blues host Beatles vs. Stones, featuring six sets from the iconic groups of rock and roll history. 7 p.m., $12, inside Mandalay Bay, houseofblues.com/lasvegas
Enjoy half-priced bottles and glasses of Oregon wine while creating a masterpiece at Wine and Canvas. You’ll be lakeside right by the Fountains of Bellagio, so try not to get distracted by water shooting over 400 feet into the air. 6:30 p.m., $35, inside Bellagio, wineandcanvas.com Take the opportunity to enlighten yourself at Cuba and the United States: Does Engaging Our Adversaries Work? Brookings Scholar Theodore Piccone will
discuss the pros and cons of the Obama administration’s strategy. 6–7 p.m., Greenspun Hall Auditorium, UNLV, unlv.edu Looking for more stuff to do? Go to vegasseven. com/calendar.
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Anthony Curtis is the publisher of the Las Vegas Advisor and LasVegasAdvisor.com.
PHOTO BY COLE EVELEV
WHERE CAN YOU GET LAS VEGAS’ BEST prime rib deal? While there are lots of candidates, the choice turns out to be pretty easy. In fact, one casino offers what I’d rank as the top two choices for a complete prime rib dinner in bargain territory. It’s Sarah’s Kitchen at Klondike Sunset, where an $8.99 special that comes with choice of potato and vegetable is served daily from 4–11 p.m. Better yet is the $12.99 option, which is bigger and also includes soup or salad, served from 11 a.m. until it’s gone. No microwaves here; the prime rib is cut to order right off the roast. And if you really want something to talk about, Sarah’s Kitchen periodically serves a $5.55 45-ounce prime rib dinner, also with the vegetable and choice of potato from 3–11 p.m. that I’d match against almost anything in town for $10 or less. Old-timers may remember when dinner shows were the thing. From time to time, casinos make an effort to combine meals and entertainment—the combo rarely comes off, but it works just fine at the Golden Nugget, where there’s a brandnew show-and-buffet deal for just $46.45 after all taxes and fees. The Nugget’s buffet is underrated, with peel-and-eat shrimp, a big carving station and a grade A dessert lineup headlined by its famous bread pudding. Have dinner, then catch Frankie Moreno and his 10-piece backing band, a show that’s worth the price by itself. Purchased individually, the combo costs about $60, so it’s a significant saving for a very cool night out. Speaking of cool, when was the last time you played $1 blackjack? Hooters is dealing a single $1 minimum game 24/7. This is a bad game rules-wise, with naturals paying even money, as opposed to the traditional 3-2, on bets of $5 or less. But really, who cares? You’ll lose less on a $1 game with bad rules than on most $10 games with good ones, so have at it—if you can get a seat. Earn 300 points ($100 coin-in) on Thursdays at the Palms and get a free Brenden Theatres movie ticket. You have to earn the points on a Thursday, but the ticket is valid anytime. Earn and redeem 2,000 same-day points ($2,000 coin-in) at Suncoast and get a comped movie and dinner at SC Prime Steakhouse & Bar. Get a movie and a buffet or an entrée at The Game, its sportsbook, for 1,000 points. Moving from the casinos to the bars, join the players club at Mr. G’s on East Desert Inn and get your first $50 in losses refunded. Take your shot and, if you lose $50, it goes back on your machine in free play immediately. Finally, chalk up some creativity points for Lucky Dragon, which has initiated Tea Tuesdays. It’s a happy hour for tea drinkers, with 50 percent off exotic blends offered in Cha Garden near registration. The deal runs from 9 a.m.–11 p.m. Drive carefully. 7
TO DO
again lent her legendary pipes to the House of Mouse for “How Does a Moment Last Forever,” one of the original songs included on the recent release’s soundtrack. Before you hear the track while watching the credits roll, read on for Dion’s thoughts on the song, family time at Disney theme parks and more.
By Mark Adams Photography Denise Truscello
Did your kids see the movie yet? Not yet … but I can’t wait to see it again with them.
An Exclusive Chat With Céline Dion on Her New Beauty and the Beast song
D
isney’s “tale as old as time” is back in theaters this week with the live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast. Las Vegas headliner Céline Dion recorded the animated movie’s titular song for the original soundtrack in 1991, and it became one of her signature hits. Now, 26 years later, Dion has
What do they think when they hear you in a film? Well, actually, when [16-year-old] R.C. was 2 or 3 years old, he was getting pretty emotional when he heard my voice. I couldn’t sing around the house. My [6-yearold] twins are the same. And now, every time they hear a girl sing, they look at me and ask: “Is that you singing?” I don’t know if it is because they do not want me to be in the room when they listen to me. … So they ask, and every time I answer “Yes, it’s me” … or, “No, it’s not.” It’s interesting. … They are so wonderful. Both Nel-
son and Eddy play instruments— they play piano. They have great voices, and I think Nelson will be a singer. Since the first song became so iconic, was there any pressure about replicating or not replicating the past? At first, yes, absolutely. … I am still very much in love with my first “Beauty and the Beast.” It put me where I am today. It was such an iconic moment, still is and will be for the rest of my life. When I heard they were doing Beauty and the Beast again, I asked myself why. But then I saw the new version with real characters, and it was totally another type of feeling. So I really didn’t feel any pressure, in a way, because it was not the same song. And I am now very honored to be part of this. We’ve seen that you enjoy lots of Disney theme-park time with your family. What’s your favorite ride? Every single one of them! When I go to Disney with my family, I reconnect with the child in me. Who doesn’t?
Winter Is Coming to MGM
By Jessie O’Brien
The Red Wedding wouldn’t have had the impact it had without Ramin Djawadi, the man behind the music of HBO’s Game of Thrones. Djawadi, who has also composed scores for HBO’s Westworld and a handful of films, makes his music a character itself, adding both weight and ease to brutal battles and dramatic scenes alike. Now, years in the making, the Game of Thrones Live Concert Experience stops at MGM Grand Garden Arena on March 25. The show will feature music from all six seasons of the hit program performed by a live orchestra—including a few songs by Djawadi himself—that takes the audience on a trip through Westeros, from King’s Landing to north of the Wall. When you write the music for Game of Thrones, you don’t have the completed scene, you’re just going off a conversation or an idea. What is your approach like? We talk, and then based on what the [writers] envision, I try to put [those emotions] into the music and then find the right notes and tone. Then, once I have the visual in front of me, I can obviously tweak it. … I can let the music flow first, and then we can deal with adjusting it to the actual picture. If I have the visual, even if it’s not at the actual length yet. For example, a battle scene might be six minutes long and then they trim it down to four minutes—I’ll just let the visual run in the background. I don’t try to be too specific about it, but I try to capture the overall mood of the scene. I like to work like that a lot. So much of the music is fundamental to the storytelling in GOT, adding extra layers and a lot of stress at times. Do you like torturing people? What’s fun with Game of Thrones is that you never know what’s going to happen next, right? It’s fun to do the scene with the music where you can kind of—torturing people is a funny way to say it—mislead people or lead people. Sometimes you write the music so that people really are guided [toward what] they should know, but then it’s fun to do the opposite, too. “Light of the Seven,” the piece from last season’s trial scene, really stands out. It has more than 21 million listens on Spotify. Why do you think people gravitated toward that song? In the six seasons of Game of
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Thrones, we never used piano before, so just the fact that the instrumentation changed so dramatically alerted everybody right away. The length of the piece, the way it builds, there was just something haunting about it. Also, because there was so little dialogue, the music really had to carry that scene. People really associate that piece of music with the powerful scene, which is also one of my favorite scenes of the show. How slowly [the incident] builds—there are very few instruments that come in, one by one, until it finally climaxes with the orchestra at the end—people just connect with that emotionally. What kind of unusual instruments can we expect to see at the concert? [One is] called the hammered dulcimer. I use that a lot for Arya’s scene. It’s during a piece called “Needle” that I’ll be playing [it] myself. It’s a stringed instrument. It’s kind of hard to describe. We have a Wildling horn that’s 12 feet long. That will be really interesting to see. … That’s what’s exciting about this concert—people will be seeing instruments that are not [commonly used] in an orchestra. People will hear the sound they might have heard throughout the entire show and on the soundtrack, but they don’t necessarily know what the instrument looks like. I think that will be nice.
Pictured: Ramin Djawadi Game of Thrones Live Concert Experience March 25, 8 p.m., $40–$100, MGM Grand Garden Arena, mgmgrand.com
800.274.5825 | thed.com | 301 Fremont Street | Las Vegas, NV 89101
Pizza, Rising
FIVE LAS VEGAS SCIONS OF PIE SHARE THEIR JOURNEY TO THE UPPER CRUST By Robert Spuhler
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Photography Anthony Mair
The crust is too dense.
That is the consensus that John Arena and Vincent Rotolo have come to on the back patio of Downtown’s Evel Pie, where Rotolo works. They’re testing gluten-free pizza crusts for a competition Rotolo is planning to enter, and the first specimen—while perfectly fluffy to the untrained eye (namely, mine)—has been deemed lacking. Arena, the cofounder of Metro Pizza, examines the rectangular pie, as the two pizzaiolos go back and forth on possible solutions: more or less oil? What’s the temperature of the starter—the flour, yeast and water mix from which dough is created? This is the mad-scientist part of pizza making, the stuff that comes long before the pie is sliced up and served on plates. It’s the moment that turns someone who makes pizza into an evangelist for what Rotolo calls “the most shared food of all time.” And, in a way, it’s the element that best mirrors the journey of both the cook and the pizza itself: ceaselessly striving to hit a living, constantly shifting idea of “perfection,” measured against both the present and the past.
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Everyone grows up around pizza.
It’s the Friday-night dinner treat toward which a family works, the balm that soothes a tough Little League baseball loss, the go-to date night, the sustenance that fuels collegiate all-nighters. But the paths to the other side of the pizza counter—to becoming the cook rather than the customer—are as varied as the styles of pie. For some, pizza is in their bloodline. Arena made his first pizza almost 50 years ago, at age 13, in his parents’ pizzeria. Tony Gemignani, owner of Pizza Rock and one of the industry’s leading names, started in his brother’s restaurant in 1991. But not everyone has a direct family connection. For Chris Palmeri, the journey to opening his Naked City Pizza began when MGM Grand brought him to Las Vegas from Buffalo, New York, to help open Diego, the resort’s since-departed upscale Mexican restaurant. He quickly ascended to executive chef, but the big-business life wasn’t for him. So he ended up where so many other Las Vegas residents go when they’re frustrated by work: Dino’s. But instead of drinking away his sorrows, he would sling hot dogs in the parking lot to the drunks and drunks-to-be of the local institution. “I decided I didn’t want to work for a corporation anymore,” he says. “What can I do that I don’t think is being done out here? It wasn’t going to be a fine-dining experience. So we started with hot dogs. And [then] a pizzeria was obtainable. [Buffalo-style of pizza, with a thicker crust and cup-and-char pepperoni] wasn’t really represented out here, so I thought it was kind of a unique thing we could do.” Years of sweat equity and one life-changing appearance on Guy Fieri’s Diners, Drive Ins and Dives later (“The night before we were on the show we did $600, and the night after we did $3,000”), Palmeri has four locations, including Naked City Tavern, where his signature Buffalo-style sheets sit side by side with sandwiches, chicken wings and experiments such as duck confit lasagna. Rotolo, too, jumped from fine dining to pizza, working first at Bellagio’s Le Cirque and Circo. But while the white-cloth world was a great introduction to Las Vegas, pizza remained his passion, dating back to his first pie at John’s of Bleecker Street, a Greenwich Village institution since 1929. Rotolo consumed every pizza blog and YouTube video, bought his own oven at the annual International Pizza Expo and spent (and continues to spend) years perfecting his dough. “There’s a powerful connection between pizza and the people who have come in and out of your lives at different times,” he says. “Whether it’s that thing your mom made, or that dinner to celebrate a special day— it’s that deep.” That connection may best be explained by his search for the perfect gluten-free crust. It started with a girl, her Celiac disease and Rotolo’s attempts to share his love of pizza with her. “We started having these ‘dinner parties,’ but it was just us, pretending all of our friends were coming,” he says of his dough’s test runs. “She moved to Europe, and I kept trying, on my own, to make a great gluten-free pizza, in a way to stay closer to her. And the better it came out, the closer I was, and it would help me think about her and not be sad.” He pauses for a moment to compose himself. “If you care deeply about what you’re creating, whether it’s for someone you love or for your own creative process, it’s going to be special.”
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* * * * * The standou t visual in Metro Pizza is a
wall-size map of the United States, with area landmarks (Mount Rushmore, a San Francisco street car, the Pentagon) and illustrated food-based avatars (apples in Washington, bread in the heartland), a kid-friendly compliment to a pizzeria seemingly custom-designed to appeal to the entire family. Downtown, the eye-catching feature of Pizza Rock is a lifesize long-haul truck cab that doubles as a DJ booth. The aesthetics of Arena’s and Gemignani’s places might be different, but each has taken what they share—a passion for the art of pizza—around the world, bringing a wealth of knowledge gleaned from competitions and other pizzerias back to their kitchens. For Gemignani, that travel has led to a packed trophy case. Of 12 World Pizza Championship titles, he won the first in pizza acrobatics (think dough tossing) in 1995. In 2007, he became the first American to ever win the World Championship Pizza Maker title in Naples, Italy. Winning accolades and participating in competitions around the world served a dual purpose for the Northern Californian. Any sort of press can help an independent pizzeria stand out in a crowded field, of course, but it also helped him expand his menu; the Las Vegas Pizza Rock locations’ menu includes Neapolitan, New York, Detroit, Chicago tavern and Sicilian styles, among others.
This page, from left: Metro Pizza co-founders, co-owners and cousins John Arena and Sam Facchini, and Metro chef/partner Chris Decker. Opposite page: Naked City Pizza’s Chris Palmeri. Opening page: Yukon Pizza’s Alex White.
“It’s all about personal growth,” Gemignani says. “It’s all about how you adapt, how to make it better. Sometimes in our day-to-day lives, we aren’t challenged. It makes me want to do better. When I come back from competitions, you’ll see things change on our menu from those moments.” For Arena, who has a closetful of T-shirts from pizzerias as far away as São Paulo, Brazil, every trip is a chance both to learn and to spread his passion for the food. That not only introduces him to unique ideas, but also to unique characters, like the one he met at an anonymous pizzeria in the South. “I was about to leave, and [the owner] said, ‘Before you go, I want to do something for you,’” Arena says. “And he pulled a guitar off the wall, and he started singing a song he had written about what his pizzeria meant to him. It practically brought a tear to my eye. … And it reminded me that’s what a pizzeria is: It’s a way to express who they really are.” And when that knowledge comes back to Las Vegas, it gets spread around. Unlike the culture of secrecy that has long been associated with pizza makers—secret dough recipes, secret ingredients—the diversity of the city’s pizzerias has allowed an open sharing of ideas, tips and thoughts. “We’re keepers of the flame, not preservers of the ashes,” Arena says. “I look at it as a relay race. The people who came before passed us a torch, but it’s not our job to run in place. It’s to run forward and pass it on to the next generation.”
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* * * * * Google Maps can’t quite take you to the
end of the world. The closest it will get you is St. Rose Parkway, and from there you navigate yourself down some poorly (or un-) paved roads, the last one dead-ending right before BLM land. That’s where Alex White has set up his folding table for the moment. Toppings are arranged in Tupperware containers; a plastic bin is filled with pizza dough, measured out into single-serving balls; and an Italian wood-fire oven capable of reaching 900 degrees and cooking a Neapolitan-style pizza in 90 seconds flat is heated and ready to work. “Welcome to the end of the world,” he says. “This is the most elaborate start to a kidnapping ever,” I reply. This is Yukon Pizza, a combination of a century-plus-old sourdough starter, the very modern idea of mobile eateries and the passion of White, its 28-year-old proprietor. It begins, as all pizza does, with the starter, which has been in his family since 1897. White can trace the geographic path his family has taken through the generations in that dough: from the Yukon, to Anchorage, to Seattle and eventually down to California and, now, the Nevada desert. “My dad handed me a Mason jar with a starter when I left for college, essentially like, ‘Here’s the family heirloom,’” White says. A concern such as White’s may be a model for the next steps in the pizza world: How can high-quality establishments make their products more available to a populace in love with delivery? With Yukon, White is looking to do so by bringing the means of production to the customer; he will work his first wedding in April (in conjunction with Victoria Hogan’s FloraPop pop-up wedding company), bringing his nearly decade-long obsession with creating the perfect Neapolitan to a couple’s perfect day. The idea of taking this passion for pizza out of the restaurant and to the people is no surprise. The cliché of calling a new phone app the Uber for any service underlines the modern obsession with convenience. Gemignani says that cap-
Evel Pie 508 Fremont St., evelpie.com; Instagram: @evelpie Metro Pizza Multiple locations, metropizza.com; Instagram: @metropizzalv Naked City Pizza Multiple locations, nakedcitylv.com; Instagram: @nakedcitylv Pizza Rock 201 N. 3rd St., Green Valley Ranch Resort & Spa, Palace Station Hotel & Casino, pizzarocklasvegas. com; Instagram: @pizzarocklv Yukon Pizza Mobile, yukonpizza.com; Instagram: @ yukonpizza This page: Yukon Pizza’s Alex White. Opposite page: Evel Pie’s Vincent Rotolo. Previous page: A pie in progress at Tony Gemignani’s Pizza Rock
italizing on app-tracking features may be behind the next round of innovation, with pizza kitchens on wheels serving up on-demand slices. “You would know where that mobile guy is, and as it’s getting delivered to you, it’s being made within the car or truck itself,” he says. There’s some evidence to suggest that delivery-pizza fans may be willing to embrace a better pie, too. Pizza Hut’s samestore sales fell by 2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016. Domino’s falls below the customer satisfaction benchmark in the yearly study conducted by the American Customer Satisfaction Index. And in nearly every other restaurant category, the trend is toward quality, whether it is better ingredients or more innovative recipes. “It’s the same thing as the other artisanal crafts—cheese, beer,” Palmeri says. “People are sick of eating mass-produced food. Now you’re seeing all these pizzerias with not only great dough, but people getting creative with it. That’s starting to be appreciated.” * * * * * Creativity is what spurs on back-porch
tasting sessions such as the one Arena and Rotolo are having Downtown at Evel Pie. Rotolo asked me to return after our first discussion to try out a gluten-free pizza, topped with mushrooms and vegan cheese; two of these three attributes would have been considered silly a decade ago. The resulting pie has little in common with the greasy personal pan pizzas from the Pizza Hut of my childhood. The crust is light-years away from the crackerlike “gluten free” options offered by the major chains; it is raised and fluffy, but crispy on the bottom, almost Sicilian style. The faux-cheese is surprisingly, almost impossibly, creamy. But the idea of sitting outside at a picnic table, enjoying a slice with friends, is the same as it was during my formative years. “It takes you back to a place when things were a little more simple for you,” Gemignani said a few days earlier. “The older you get, you want to get those feelings back.” 7
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Spring Epicurean Calendar
By Marisa Finetti and Xania V. Woodman
YOUR COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO ALL THINGS
FOOD, WINE, BEER, SPIRITS and
FUN!
Whether or not you play a professional role in the food and beverage industry, there is so much to see, taste and learn at the Nightclub & Bar Convention and Trade Show. By day you’ll want to cruise the floor at the Las Vegas Convention Center to discover emerging brands and trends. By night, it’s all about the networking events and parties. And throughout, seminars and panel discussions put you in the room with the experts, including BarMagic’s Tobin Ellis, Herbs & Rye’s Nectaly Mendoza and Other Mama chef Dan Krohmer. This year’s keynote speakers include Hakkasan Group CEO Neil Moffitt and RumChata creator Thomas Maas, among others. The annual Shake It Up Classic and Flair bartending competition is also always a highlight! Feeling overwhelmed by all the possibilities? There are four focused itinerary tracks you can opt into: bar, nightlife, beer and mixology. Passes start at $129, ncbshow.com
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March 30–April 1
Some things get better with age, namely wine, and Las Vegas knows how to celebrate each year with UNLVino, a buzzy three days with something for every palate. Begin with bubbles at The Venetian, where a variety of Champagnes and sparkling wines take center stage at Bubble-Licious ($100 in advance; $125 at the door). Guests will enjoy small plates from The Venetian and The Palazzo’s outstanding collection of restaurants. Sake lovers can head to Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa for Sake Fever ($75 in advance; $100 at the door), which is hosted poolside and highlights the ultimate polished beverage plus Japanese spirits and cocktails. Cuisine from some of the city’s top restaurants will complement the libations. Finally, the Grand Tasting ($100 in advance; $125 at the door) at Paris Las Vegas is UNLVino’s signature event that delights guests with an illustrious display of premium beverages, live entertainment and cuisine from UNLV’s culinary students and celebrated Las Vegas restaurants. UNLVino’s motto is “Take a sip for scholarship,” with millions of dollars raised since its inception in 1974—yet another thing that gets better with age. unlvtickets.com
UNLVINO COURTESY; SAKE FEVER BY JEAN PHILLIPS
March 27–29
Opposite page: UNLVino’s Grand Tasting and Sake Fever. This page: Vegas Uncork’d and the Great Vegas Festival of Beer.
April 7–8
Make the most of the temperate Las Vegas spring weather with Motley Brews’ Great Vegas Festival of Beer. The two-day affair, created by founder Brian Chapin, kicks off on April 7 with a brandnew Mad Craft Experience. The mini fest-within-a-fest will bring together chefs, brewers and bartenders for a competition to find the best experimental beer, beer cocktail, beer blend and specialty beer, as well as beer-friendly cuisine. Then, on April 8, the Grand Tasting will welcome an estimated 10,000 people to the heart of Downtown to taste more than 500 beers from more than 100 breweries, including 18 locals. Be sure to stop by the PT’s Brewing Co. tent to try the official festival beer, a pale ale by head brewer Dave Otto. Culinary partners provide the beer-friendly eats to keep you in top tasting form. 3 p.m., $75 Mad Craft, $40 Grand Tasting, $55 Early Entry at 2 p.m. ($80/$50/$60 at the door), greatvegasbeer.com
May 25
VEGAS UNCORK’D BY DAVID BECKER; GREAT VEGAS FESTIVAL OF BEER COURTESY OF MOTLEY BREWS
April 27–30
An incredible weekend of food, wine and spirits, Vegas Uncork’d returns with a world-class lineup for its 11th year. Renowned chefs, master sommeliers and mixologists come together to showcase one of the nation’s finest epicurean festivals. New and notable events include a 25th anniversary celebration of Spago. Acknowledged as the spark that ignited the city’s culinary phenomenon, Wolfgang Puck will serve his favorite dishes and Spago classics. The event will begin with a premium cocktail reception followed by a seated lunch in the dining room. Experience a taste of Spain with culinary pioneer José Andrés. The chef will prepare lobster paella over the live fire pit in a dish-and-tell session and share his favorite stories behind the unique restaurant’s menu items, such as José’s Taco (a slice of jamón Ibérico de bellota topped with oscietra caviar and gold flakes) and coca con erizos de mar (crusty Spanish cristal bread topped with sea urchin). Grazers can do so in the best way possible with chefs Alain Ducasse, Charlie Palmer, Michael Mina, Julian Serrano, Shawn McClain, Roy Ellamar, Akira Back, the Voltaggio brothers and more. Picnic in The Park is an elevated experience with creative twists on classic picnic dishes. It’s also a great opportunity to break away from the formal white linen and silver, and feed your inner child with social activities from board games and shuffleboard to Ping-Pong and corn hole. A perennial favorite is the Grand Tasting, where a staggering variety of signature dishes are prepared by some of the world’s most celebrated chefs. Set within the five-acre Garden of the Gods Pool Oasis at Caesars Palace, the Grand Tasting will welcome more than 50 chefs and over 100 of the best wines and spirits from around the world. Times, locations and prices vary, vegasuncorked.com
March 31
At the inaugural Vegas Food Expo, you can taste and learn all about a new type of raisin being grown in the Mojave Desert, from-scratch soy and Worcestershire sauces from Kentucky, premium-grade sea salt from the Philippines and even brewed 100 percent cacao chocolate that’s richer than hot chocolate and provides long-lasting energy like coffee. It sounds almost too good to be true! These and other unique purveyors of specialty foods will showcase their passion at this entirely new kind of food convention. Listen to presentations, network and meet food-and-beverage providers to get an insider’s understanding of how they operate. $50, Gold Coast Hotel & Casino, vegasfoodexpo.com
Supporting a good cause never tasted so good, as the Las Vegas Epicurean Affair returns to The Palazzo pool deck for a sumptuous soirée featuring 70 restaurants and nightclubs from around the city, along with a selection of libations. Past participants have included AquaKnox, B&B Ristorante, B&B Burger & Beer, Carlo’s Bakery, Carnevino Italian Steakhouse, Delmonico Steakhouse, Lagasse’s Stadium, Lavo Italian Restaurant, Morels French Steakhouse & Bistro, Otto Enoteca Pizzeria, SushiSamba, Table 10 and Tao Asian Bistro, to name a few. Event proceeds will support the Nevada Restaurant Association’s educational and scholarship programs, including ProStart, a national high school culinary skill and restaurant management program. Tickets are available at any Venetian or Palazzo box office. Tickets start at $110, palazzo.com 7 Discover a bountiful buffet of even more epicurean events at VegasSeven.com/ 2017SpringEpicureanCalendar.
April 5–8
Set aside plenty of time to savor the whiskey tasting that just gets better with age. The Universal Whisky Experience takes over Encore at Wynn Las Vegas for four days of whiskey master classes, Whisky Speed Dating, Super Pours, networking and pairing dinners. Various ticket packages afford access to additional luxury amenities and gatherings. But if you can attend only one day, be sure to make it to The Nth at 6:30 p.m. on April 7. The Encore ballroom will be flush with whiskey brands and educators as well as a few select Cognacs, plus hors d’oeuvres and cigars. All Nth guests at any ticket level are also invited to celebrate the 40-plusyear career of whisky icon Richard Paterson with a special tasting in the Chairman’s Salon. Dress smart for the smartest brown-spirits fest of the season! $545 Connoisseur ticket, $2,995 High Roller ticket, universalwhiskyexperience.com
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Say Cheese!
PLANTONE’S CAN TAKE THE HEAT WHEN MAKING FRESH MOZZARELLA By Marisa Finetti Photography Krystal Ramirez
Bare hands in 170-degree water continues to be the way old-world fresh mozzarella is made. At Plantone’s Italian Market (8680 W. Warm Springs Rd., plantonesitalian.com), owner Glenn Plantone’s team uses both a stainless steel paddle and hands to roll the cheese into the soft, white delicacy capable of producing a state of perfect culinary bliss. Situated near the corner of Warm Springs Road and Durango Drive, Plantone’s is fast becoming the place for affordable and delicious Italian subs, pizzas and pastas, where the demand is so high that fresh mozzarella can be made up to three times daily. The process of making these balls of gastronomical nirvana is not terribly complicated, says Plantone’s consultant Tony Figurelli, as long as you have the two basic ingredients: quality curds and passion. He has been devoted to the success of Plantone’s since its conception and has worked hand in hand with Glenn to procure the best ingredients. And the staff at Plantone’s has mastered the technique of making artisanal mozzarella—a few of them even earned their stripes in their home country of Italy. 27
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THE PROCESS Curd arrives at Plantone’s in blocks the size of shoe boxes. After crumbling the curd into small, uniform pieces, they are placed into a large bowl, where hot, briny water is slowly added. Using a paddle, the curds are submerged into the heated water and begin to cook and change their consistency from crumbled pieces to a melded lumpy mass. As the water begins to cool, additional hot water is added to temper the cheese. “See how it’s starting to come together? But it’s not there yet,” says Figurelli, as Raffaele Tommasini, originally from Naples, demonstrates the process, lifting the paddle to stretch the curds and examining the texture until it reaches perfection. “The saltwater goes into the cheese, giving it the flavor.” Raffaele then continues to immerse the curds in the hot water, eventually resulting in a softened, almost taffylike, silky mozzarella, a sign that it’s ready for the next step. Then, placing his bare hands into the hot water, he lifts and stretches the cheese, submerging it repeatedly to keep it supple, warm and malleable. Using his palms in a cupping motion, he creates the most perfect ball, the 4-ounce egg-size ovolini.
Clockwise from far left: From curds to finished product, fresh mozzarella is the star in Plantone’s offerings.
HEAVENLY INDULGENCE Mozzarella’s name derives from the Italian verb “mozzare,” meaning “to cut off,” from the pinching action used to separate the curds into smaller pieces. After the mozzarella balls are prepared, they are kept in water to retain freshness. Plantone’s produces approximately 20 pounds of fresh mozzarella each day. Naturally, it’s best to eat it as soon as it is made. Delicious just as it is or with a bit of salt and pepper and good-quality extra virgin olive oil, it’s a heavenly indulgence, especially while still warm. The delicate, milky and salty flavor is the classic accompaniment to many of the dishes at Plantone’s. Insalata caprese is one of the most beloved ways of eating fresh mozzarella, which is served with sliced tomatoes and basil. The Angry Sicilian, Plantone’s best-selling sandwich, also includes the mozzarella, along with prosciutto di Parma, capicola, soppressata, mortadella, roasted red pepper, tomato, red wine vinegar, EVOO and oregano. Most of Plantone’s pizzas are topped with housemade mozzarella, such as Mama’s Margherita, Paulie’s Pesto Chicken and Pizza Verdure al Rosti, which is layered with roasted eggplant, zucchini, squash, onion, tomato and basil pesto. Turns out one of the most important steps to good mozzarella happens to be the easiest. Buon appetito! 7
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NORTH LOCATION GRAND OPENING
CHARITY EVENT BENEFITING NEVADA BURN FOUNDATION SATURDAY, MARCH 25 8:00 AM - 10:30 AM Sponsored by
6592 N Decatur Blvd, Unit D145 | North Las Vegas NV | 702.331.3172
FREE WORKOUT | LIVE MUSIC | FREE COFFEE
DONATIONS APPRECIATED
SOCIAL INFLUENCE
WILL THEY STAY OR WILL THEY GO? By Tyler Bischoff Photography Tony Gonzales
Seven questions about the chances of a Raiders relocation to Las Vegas Las Vegas is on the verge of landing an National Football League team. The Raiders could be skipping out on Oakland and coming to a brandnew stadium in Sin City. Here’s what you need to know about the team’s potential relocation. 1. When will the NFL vote on the Raiders’ move to Las Vegas? The NFL owners are scheduled to meet March 26-29 in Phoenix. This could finally be the moment that the relocation vote makes the agenda. But the $750 million in public funding provided by Nevada doesn’t expire until April 2018, so the NFL can take its time deciding on the team’s future. Raiders owner Mark Davis will need 24 of the 32 owners to vote in favor to move his team to Southern Nevada.
2. Will the NFL owners approve? All signs point to yes. But nothing is final in the NFL until the official vote happens. The city has ponied up a record amount in public funding through an increase to the hotel room tax. That’s something the NFL doesn’t want to turn down. Meanwhile, Oakland has been working on a new stadium plan with a third-party group led by former NFL player Ronnie Lott, despite the NFL’s desire to eliminate third parties from these types of deals. 3. When will the Raiders come to town? According to the timeline presented at Southern Nevada Tourism and Infrastructure Committee meetings, the stadium would be ready for the 2020 season. They have options to extend their lease at Oakland Coliseum for the 2017 and 2018 seasons. That opens the door for a possible one-year stay in 2019 at Sam Boyd Stadium, the current home of UNLV football.
4. Where will the new stadium be? The Raiders are expected to push for it to be built on the west side of I-15 across from Mandalay Bay. The Bali Hai golf course south of Mandalay Bay remains a possible location, while Mayor Carolyn Goodman continues to tout Cashman Center as a cheaper alternative. 5. How much will it cost? There is no hard number, but projected costs say $1.9 billion. Since Davis doesn’t have an expendable $1 billion, he’ll be taking out loans: The NFL will provide a low-interest loan of $200 million and Bank of America is expected to pitch in for casino magnate Sheldon Adelson’s withdrawn $650 million contribution—earlier this year the team presented a lease proposal to the Las Vegas Stadium Authority without his knowledge or involvement, which instigated his back out. The remaining costs will come from the revenue of season ticket holders.
6. Can the Raiders pay off all these loans? This is the question for the NFL to consider. If Davis defaults on his loans, the NFL would likely have to bail him out and find a new owner. It all comes down to how much money the Raiders make off the stadium. During the SNTIC meetings— when Adelson was still involved— the developers were expecting it to generate $22 million annually. That means more than 40 years to pay off $1 billion. 7. Will the stadium create a positive economic impact? This is the question for Las Vegas. For the public money to be worthwhile, the stadium needs to attract new visitors. New being the key word. A tourist deciding to see a Raiders game rather than gamble on the Strip won’t be generating new economic activity, because they were already planning to spend the money. 7
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If you simply cannot hear the
words “lip-synch for your life” soon enough, then relax your curls, dahling. Just in the fraying-hem nick of time, RuPaul’s Drag Race returns for its ninth season on March 24. With Ru’s Emmy firmly clutched in exquisitely manicured hand and a switch of network from Logo to VH1, will this most outlandish of competition reality TV shows updo the ante with even shadier shade and ever-more epic catfights? Here is our quick-change rundown to getting your life… What to watch for: We’ve already seen the first episode teaser where RuPaul presents the girls with no less than drag empress Lady Gaga, but expect real tears to flow if—as indicated by the worst-kept secret in the drag-o-sphere—Ru graciously Shangelas last year’s Miss Congeniality, Cynthia Lee Fontaine, back into the folds of her motherly gown. Can Cucu parlay last year’s emergency exit into a strut to the top three?
Start Your
By Eric Diesel
Engines!
Local girls, London ladies and lip synching for your life: RuPaul’s Drag Race returns Who to watch for: This year Ru vrooms her first Euro-racer around the track: London’s true-school classics queen Charlie Hides. Peppermint is another drag legend—is it her time to light up the room for a crown like her NYC sister Bianca Del Rio? Maybe, but the T is that this
year’s fiercest competitor is another New York City girl: Aja, a club kid from the Manhattan-adjacent borough of Brooklyn, who has already slain us with the razor-sharp style of her drapes on the premiere carpet. Dare we hope: For a First Lady challenge as bizarre as the election
year during which it was filmed, perhaps with Katya presiding from deep within a K-hole as Melania? They could settle the teams via the impartial voting process of pocketbook scramble, and fill the stage with a pillbox of Jackies versus a squadron of Mary Todds. It wouldn’t be the first time that drag provided entertainment as outrage as therapy. Local girls: In previous seasons, Derek Barry and Coco Montrese brought Vegas Strip glamour and fierce lip-syncing chops to Ru’s runway. This year, Kimora Blac and Farrah Moan will bring the muchness that hallmarks Sin City drag to our television screens. Is it finally time for these beacons of neon nightlife to streetwalk over the competition? Tune in Fridays to find out. And don’t worry about your own sashay: The show lasts just long enough for you to dry your manicure and tease your weave before you are out the door onto your own catwalk, huntie. 7
SUICIDE. It may be an uncomfortable topic, but it’s time we start DO GOOD
A Community of Support
Nevada’s chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention brings suicide stigmas to light By Shannon Miller
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talking about it. It’s the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S. And in Nevada, it ranks eighth, making it responsible for nearly three times as many deaths as homicide each year. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention aims to break the silence. With a goal of reducing the national suicide rate (currently 13.26 per 100,000 people) by 20 percent by 2025, AFSP’s work includes research, legislative advocacy, education and support groups in all 50 states to empower individuals to detect and prevent suicide. One way the organization helps to raise awareness is through its community walks. Designed to encourage those affected by suicide to talk about their struggles and to lean on AFSP and its community for support, the volunteer-run Nevada chapter hosts an Out of the Darkness Community Walk on March 25 at Craig Ranch Regional Park. “Coming to the walk and seeing the amount of people who have been affected by [suicide] and knowing that you are not alone opens more than your eyes; it opens your heart,” says Ashley Ellison, AFSP board member and field advocate. In addition to the 3K walk, there will be a silent auction, remembrance tent for people to bring pictures of their loved ones, resource tables and an Honor Bead ceremony.
POLITICS
SOCIAL INFLUENCE
By Michael Green
The Nuclear Zombie Rises ONCE THOUGHT DEAD, IS YUCCA MOUNTAIN COMING BACK TO LIFE?
I
f you’re a fan of The Walking Dead, you must love Yucca Mountain. It keeps coming back. In the new budget submitted by President Donald Trump, we can’t afford the National Endowments for the Humanities and the Arts, or to take care of the poor and sick, but we can afford $120 million to get the licensing back on track for a nuclear waste dump about 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. Sen. Dean Heller’s response was the reverse Bart Simpson: He had a cow. “As has been stated in the past, Yucca is dead and this reckless proposal will not revive it,” he said. “Washington needs to understand what Nevada has been saying for years: We will not be the nation’s nuclear waste dump. This project was ill-conceived from the beginning and has already flushed billions of taxpayer dollars down the drain.” Yucca Mountain was conceived in the early 1980s, when Ronald Reagan was president, his close friend Paul Laxalt was a U.S. senator from Nevada and Democrats had a lot more power in Washington. Nevada was one of three finalists for the dump, and, in 1987, the “Screw Nevada” bill made ours the only site under consideration. Wielding the screwdriver was Bennett Johnston, a Louisiana Democrat.
Washington needs to understand what Nevada has been saying for years: We will not be the nation’s nuclear waste dump. In Nevada’s 1982 election, Republican Chic Hecht defeated four-term Democrat Howard Cannon, then one of the Senate’s senior members. After Laxalt’s term ended in 1987, Nevada had two freshmen in the Senate. I once had the chance to ask Cannon what would have happened if he had still been in the Senate when Johnston introduced his bill. He replied, “He wouldn’t have. I had too much seniority.” I asked, “But what if he had?” Cannon said, “I would have made Louisiana disappear.” So it was and sometimes still is: Seniority and power count in the Senate. Some Democrats truly opposed the dump, but Harry Reid settled all opinions. By 1999, he was assistant minority leader and, with Reid heading the Senate Democrats with a Democratic president, the dump had as much of a chance of becoming reality as I do of being mistaken for Lady Gaga. Reid’s successor, Catherine Cortez Masto, doesn’t have his power—not yet, anyway—
and can’t be blamed for Yucca Mountain’s revival. Nor can the House delegation: The three Southern Nevadans—including Dina Titus, who literally wrote the book on atomic testing—blistered the administration. Should Heller be blamed? No. And yes. The no is simple enough: He opposes Yucca Mountain. If he had his druthers, this wouldn’t have happened. But there’s a lesson in all of this—including, to be fair, for Cortez Masto. The question is whether those involved will learn from it. Heller didn’t endorse Trump (nor did Gov. Brian Sandoval, Heller’s close friend, critic of the GOP “health care” plan and possible object of administration scorn here). Heller criticized Trump’s misogyny, Mexican-bashing and attack on Sen. John McCain. But he never said exactly how he voted in the presidential election—just that he wouldn’t vote for Hillary Clinton, had no intentions of voting for Trump, could go for none of the above … and might change his mind on Election Day. So, he waffled. It’s worth remembering that in 2000, when Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore said he wouldn’t support the nuclear dump, Nevada Republicans led the charge to get George W. Bush to say his decision would be based on “sound science.” Two years later, his administration said it didn’t matter, it was going forward with the dump. The Nevada Republicans who supported Bush in 2000 still won their next elections, and one of them, Senator John Ensign, found it impossible to get any fellow Senate Republicans to join him in opposing the dump. So, this might not hurt Heller, especially if Yucca disappears from the final bill and Heller wrongly gets to claim credit. But it should. After his election-year dance, he has voted down the line with Trump—including voting to confirm Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin after filleting him during a committee hearing. He can continue to raise questions about the Obamacare repeal and claim bipartisanship, but this is the record he’ll have to live with. Cortez Masto may have learned something, too. Seeking confirmation as secretary of a department he once said he wanted to eliminate if he could remember what it was called, Rick Perry wouldn’t tell her where he stood, just that he would “work very closely” with her on the nuclear dump issue. She may have seen the wisdom of Psalm 146 instructing to “put not your trust in princes,” or, perhaps, the Trump administration. The ultimate irony is that Laxalt’s grandson, the state attorney general, says he’ll sue the administration over Yucca Mountain. Adam Laxalt’s biggest supporter, Sheldon Adelson, gave millions to the Trump campaign. We could use some of that money to pay the outside attorneys Laxalt will hire to fight the dump. 7 Michael Green is an associate professor of history at UNLV.
Honor Beads are necklaces, each color-coded to signify the wearer’s relationship with suicide, whether he or she has lost a loved one or struggled with it themselves. “Seeing another person wearing a red honor bead and knowing that they too have lost a spouse/partner helped me feel less isolated and know that someone else understood my pain,” says AFSP board member Knachell Kellogg. “It was also a place I didn’t have to hide. Suicide could be spoken about without shame.” AFSP Nevada has hosted these community walks for the past five years. Last year, the walk raised $70,000, with half of the proceeds going to the organization’s national programs and the other half going directly to the Nevada chapter, helping fund programs such as its Mental Health First Aid Training course, suicide prevention for college students and LGBTQ people, and family therapy workshops. The healing process of dealing with suicide may be a long road. The support of AFSP and its community gives people a place to grieve, and helps bring the challenges of living with suicide to light. AFSP Nevada’s Out of the Darkness Community Walk, registration starts at 9 a.m., walk at 10:30 a.m., Craig Ranch Regional Park, 628 W. Craig Rd., North Las Vegas, afsp.org/vegas
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SPACES & PLACES
AWAY MESSAGE
Primm may not be Strip proper, but it’s a close, affordable getaway with some recently revamped amenities
y a C y a t S i F o L
T
Fashion Outlets Las Vegas; gyro from Mad Greek Cafe; Bonnie and Clyde car display at Whiskey Pete’s; Seven Magic Mountains
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odgers wns e n d R o T a s is L y B ro Cierra Pe d Photography
he staycation—is it really worth it? Even for a hotel across town, you still have to pack. Sure, you save on gas money or airfare, but by the time you ante up for parking and resort fees, have you really saved much? And yeah, someone else makes your bed, but you’re still looking at the same skyline. However, Primm is far enough for a full vibe change—nothing but desert and sky beyond the parking lots—but close enough that you can drive there in a single playlist or podcast and even stop to take in the Seven Magic Mountains on the way. You have your choice of three hotels: Primm Valley, Buffalo Bill’s and Whiskey Pete’s. The latter recently revamped their rooms for a sleeker, more modern look, but the joint’s real draw is also Primm’s most significant landmark: Bonnie and Clyde’s Death Car, the ’34 Ford in which the famed criminal lovebirds met their bloody demise. The sheer number of bullet holes in the car is shocking, and their death-trip romance is epitomized by the realization that every bullet that hit her had to go through him first. So, what to do on your Primm staycay? Shop, for one. Fashion Outlets Las Vegas in Primm has the usual round of shops, and outlet prices mean you can buy that Cole Haan bag or pair of Converse and have something left over for a few pairs of earrings at Claire’s Boutique. Or, if you need your beautification to go a little deeper, The Spa at Primm offers a full menu of services, from a Swedish massage to a seaweed body wrap. They’re as good as what you’d get on the Strip, but cost a bit less, and the facility isn’t crawling with tourists, so you can have that Jacuzzi and sauna (almost) all to yourself. As far as dining, you’ll see familiar names, but it’s Denny’s and Carl’s Jr., not Wolfgang Puck and José Andrés. Still, the Mad Greek Cafe can hook you up with everything from a falafel to the pastrami-slathered Onassis sandwich. Leeli Pot in the Outlet Mall offers lighter Asian fare and, of course, there’s Original Pancake House for a Dutch Baby breakfast—hey, it’s still a vacation, so go ahead and do that full-tilt sugar-carb boogie! Nightlife ain’t what it is on the Strip but you wanted a change of pace. There are gaming tables and cover bands, or you can drive about 20 minutes up to the Pioneer Saloon, the 100-year-old bar at the top of a hill in Goodsprings that still has bullet holes in the wall. Have a bourbon or a burger or both, listen to the jukebox and watch for the ghosts of miners and movie stars before heading back to your hotel. Tomorrow you can go back to the big town but, tonight, it’s low-profile and lo-fi in Primm. 7
Back in Time
SPRINGS PRESERVE’S BOOMTOWN 1905 MAKES OLD LAS VEGAS NEW
CLOCKWISE FROM RIGHT: Arizona Club, Lincoln Hotel; train station waiting area; children’s room; movie posters at Majestic Theatre; exterior of First State Bank; food pantry at mercantile. Boomtown 1905 Springs Preserve 333 S. Valley View Blvd. Open daily from 9 a.m.–5 p.m. $10/$19 for Nevada/non-Nevada residents and $5/$11 for Nevada/non-Nevada resident children 5–17. springspreserve.org Instagram: @springspreserve
By Lissa Townsend Rodgers Photography Krystal Ramirez When we think of Springs Preserve, we think of a celebration of nature—botanical gardens and butterfly habitats, hiking trails and tortoise homes. But the newest attraction, Boomtown 1905, looks at what settlers built on Nevada’s landscape, rather than what they found. “We decided to re-create this whole early Las Vegas town site,” says Aaron Micallef, exhibits curator at Springs Preserve. “We are interpreting 1905 to 1920, which was a period of transition for Las Vegas. The railroad arrives, electricity is there, we start seeing vehicles, like cars, but you also still have horses and wagons. It’s a weird time.” To get to the site, visitors hop on a tram, which rolls about a quarter-mile down the road and over a century back in time to a block-long version of old Las Vegas, featuring the old Majestic Theatre, the Lincoln Hotel (which is still standing on Main Street as the Victory Hotel) and the notorious Arizona Club. There’s also a slightly scaled-down train depot and a cluster of bona fide railroad cottages, which were relocated from Downtown. Boomtown 1905 is more than the buildings: The interiors also feature historical detail. Bottles of “whiskey” line the bar at the Arizona Club, and authentically labeled cans of Campbell’s Soup and Quaker Oats fill the shelves in the mercantile. “We found the labels in the public domain and reprinted them. It saved us a lot of money,” Micallef notes. Schedules hang on the office wall in the train station, while meticulously re-created movie posters for vintage Charlie Chaplin flicks and Hazards of Helen serials adorn the Majestic Theatre. “Some of the series were filmed here in the Las Vegas Valley,” he says. “What was great about Helen was she did her own stunts. She jumped off that bridge onto a moving train.” Included amidst the buildings are railroad relics, real photos of old Las Vegas and displays about local figures such as John S. Park and Southwestern legends like slave–turned–cowboy– turned–train conductor Nat Love. The site also encourages exhibit interaction: You can weigh out the replicas of gold and silver on the bank’s scale, try on clothes in the mercantile or spin the roulette wheel in the Arizona Club. As much as Las Vegas may have grown over the last 100 years, Boomtown 1905 brings us back to its roots. 7
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GET REFRESHED FREE ENTRY To reserve your private cabana, email citruscabanas@downtowngrand.com
CONVERSATIONS
What Makes a Downtown Business Work? Retail and restaurant owners weigh in on what makes a successful venture in DTLV By Jessie O’Brien Illustration Spencer Olsen
W
alk past the Arts Factory on Charleston Boulevard and you’ll see empty rooms where toy stores and boutiques once lived. Between Sixth and Seventh streets on Carson Street, only two of four establishments are operating. But interest in Downtown remains, and new ventures try to make it where other shops and restaurants before them could not. No easy answer exists for what makes a Downtown venture work—deep pockets? Savvy business sense? Pure luck?—but it’s a question entrepreneurs, chefs and owners continue to ask. For Cory Harwell, who owns restaurants around the country, including the popular Carson Kitchen on Sixth and Carson Streets, it’s all about the story. “You have to have some soul,” he says. Harwell says Carson Kitchen’s success depends on more than late chef Kerry Simon’s name recognition—their tale is told through a twist on familiar food and obscure bites, as well as a communal atmosphere. “If you have an impulse to open up a business Downtown and expect people to walk in, it’s not going to work,” Harwell says. But an original concept and quality product do not guarantee a bustling space, either. Chef Bradley Manchester of Glutton, a highly rated restaurant on review and travel sites, almost had all the right ingredients but still saw its doors close in December. Manchester says one mistake was the name: People thought Glutton signified large, unhealthy portions, when in reality, it was small, locally sourced entrées. And while weekend diners would most likely wait during the brunch and dinner rush, Glutton couldn’t maintain that consistency throughout the week. This could be because there are simply not enough people living in the area. Limited residential housing is an often discussed topic. A common criticism of Downtown Project—a $350 million revitalization undertaking intended “to transform Downtown Las Vegas into the most community-focused large city in the world,” according to its Facebook page—is that the staff poured their energy and resources into tech, retail, bars and restaurants before filling up the neighborhood with people to patronize them. The original investment was slated as a five-year plan. Now in its fifth year, DTP is no longer operating under a set timeline.
DTP executive vice president of operations Michael Downs says that if they could go back in a time machine, they would make residential options a focal point sooner. They are in the middle of building Fremont9, a 231-unit complex with 15,000 square feet of retail space near Fremont and Ninth Streets. “Having Fremont9 opening up in December [2017] is probably two years too late,” he says. Yet plenty of other businesses have survived without residents in the area. Retro Vegas was the first antiques shop to open on South Main Street nine years ago. The area is now home to other shops selling vintage furniture and novelty knickknacks. Co-owner Bill Johnson says that although they have an online presence, they mainly rely on walk-in purchases. The same goes for Institution 18b, a streetwear store that opened a year and a half ago on an island of vacant warehouses and auto shops. To owner Wil Eddins, the worst part of owning a retail store near Main Street north of Charleston Boulevard is that nobody else has followed suit. To get people in the doors, Institution 18b hosts events such as product launches and First Friday parties, and “it’s social media, really,” Eddins says. “That’s how people know what’s going on.” It’s a sentiment Downs
echoes as being a main contributor to thriving DTP businesses such as VegeNation. “People who leverage social media have been successful,” Downs says. “I think [chef] Donald [Lemperle] from VegeNation is a really great example.” The vegan restaurant hired a creative director who manages their social media and plans food pop-ups and yoga events. Scroll through their Instagram account, and you’ll see posts almost every hour during the day. This is something Manchester said he wished he’d done for Glutton, but their “shoestring budget” didn’t allow for it. More than creative marketing and a strong social media presence, Eddins says, “Have real money or you’re not going to last.” Johnson says businesses should understand that they won’t have a paycheck for a couple of years—sage advice that applies to entrepreneurs regardless of location. But even with the challenges, there is one thing these business owners have in common: They all want to be Downtown. Eddins says that even though there are still no other retailers near Institution 18b, he wouldn’t change his decision to be there. “I still want to be in the Arts District because of what it is,” he says. “Having a unique space was always what I wanted.” 7
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CONVERSATIONS
What The People Need
Senator Catherine Cortez Masto wants to hear her constituents’ stories. And tell them By Lissa Townsend Rodgers
Catherine Cortez Masto made history in more ways than one when she was elected U.S. senator in 2016. She was the first woman to represent Nevada as a senator as well as the only Latina in the Senate, period; hers was also part of a series of victories that placed Nevada firmly in the “blue” electoral column. Born in Las Vegas, Cortez Masto was a civil attorney in our city and spent two years as a criminal prosecutor for the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington, D.C., before returning to Nevada to serve two terms as state attorney general. She recently spoke to Vegas Seven about the issues that concern her constituents, the importance of bipartisanship and our state’s “beautifully diverse” future. [Comments have been edited for length and clarity.] Caption goes here
As the Chinese proverb says, may you live—and become senator—in interesting times. It’s exciting, it’s challenging, it’s stressful. There is a lot happening now. Many of my senior senators have said, “It’s not usually like this.” But I’m here, and there’s a lot at stake. … I’m a fighter, and I’m ready to take on any fight to protect Nevadans. People and the politicians who represent them face a lot of issues, but health care, immigration and jobs top the list … At the end of the day, my biggest concern is [this is] a state where we’ve agreed to facilitate … health care exchanges and expanded Medicaid so that now [almost] 400,000 Nevadans, including children and women, have health care that they’ve never had before. The president is taking that away from them, as well as [more than] 20 million Americans across the country. That’s not how this should start. It should be: We keep what works and fix what doesn’t. This is a big fight: For me, it’s continuing to tell the story of Nevadans who are going to be impacted if this Affordable Care Act is repealed. I’ll be the first to say we have a broken immigration system. The solution to that is passing comprehensive immigration reform. The solution is not issuing executive orders that engage in mass deportations or engage in travel bans. The first bill that I introduced was to rescind President Trump’s executive order engaging in that mass deportation. That is not the solution. I hear from Nevadans all the time on this issue—and it’s not just the hardworking families that are going to be torn apart and are living in fear right now, but it’s the business community. I’ve had business owners bring their concerns to me about how this mass deportation is going to affect their business and the men and women that they work with and have become friends with. If we really want to go down the path of growing the economy, which we should, because it creates jobs and that ought to be our major focus, then we should be passing comprehensive immigration reform. The studies have
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ASK A NATIVE
shown that if we had just passed the bipartisan version that passed out of the Senate [in 2013], it would have reduced our deficit, it would have added [about $700 billion] to our gross domestic product, and it would have given similar support to our economy in Nevada. So there are benefits to going down this path if we do it the right way. I’m hopeful that we will continue down the path of fighting for working families. They are struggling, and it’s time we focused and put the efforts into helping them succeed, whether it’s getting them the tax breaks instead of the big corporations or giving them a livable wage or fighting for their health care or an education system that works for their kids. I am concerned that we have an administration now [that is] saying they want to do that, but instead are exploiting the very people they want to help. The new federal resistance to state-passed marijuana laws is a symptom of a larger problem … In this particular issue, I do support states’ rights to make this decision. I will continue [to do this] as a United States senator, as I have the ability to weigh in. I will support [those] states, particularly Nevada. We’ve made the decision as a state, and it should be respected. There is hypocrisy where, in one breath, you have some folks here in D.C. saying, “We’ve got to support states’ rights and give them these opportunities.” But when politically it goes against what they support, then it’s just the opposite. While some legislators have been less than enthusiastic about constituent engagement lately, Cortez Masto finds it essential … I had the opportunity to be home for a week’s recess, so I spent it traveling around the state. I met with immigrants, I met with undocumented families and DREAMers [Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors], I met with the business community, the small business community, chambers both north and south—they’re all supportive of passing comprehensive immigration reform. I’ve always said I’m going to be the voice for the people of Nevada, so it’s important for me to not only get around the state, but for my staff as well. The staff in Nevada and the staff here in Washington, D.C., need to have that connection and be on the phone regularly with constituents who call in or email or send letters. They need to be interacting with them and being my eyes and ears out there in Nevada as well. Bipartisanship is not dead, at least not in Nevada … Obviously [on] Yucca Mountain, we’re allies both here on the congressional delegation as well as back in Nevada. It’s a conversation I’ve had with the governor; we will continue to fight against storing nuclear waste on Yucca Mountain. And the Affordable Care Act—Governor Sandoval is the one who made the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange and expanded Medicaid. Neither one of us wants to see any of those people who now have insurance for the first time lose [it]. Part of it is finding that common ground with colleagues, whether they’re Rs or Ds, and working to find solutions to issues that our constituents are dealing with. I will always reach across the aisle to talk with my colleagues, introduce myself and see if there are issues where we can find common ground to work together. That’s Nevada traditionally and that’s how I’ve always operated. It’s about putting the best interests of the people in the state ahead of your own political interests. There are many in Nevada that get it and operate in that manner. Looking ahead for the Silver State … I can tell you Nevada has become beautifully diverse. I don’t think that’s going to change, [and it] will have an impact on what it looks like in the next election cycle and thereafter. People don’t realize that, aside from the large and growing Latino population and our strong and vibrant African-American population, we have the fastest-growing Asian and Pacific Islander population in the country. Those demographics are going to have a reflection on what Nevada looks like in the future. 7
“It’s about putting the best interests of the people in the state ahead of your own political interests.”
CONVERSATIONS
What’s in a Name? By James P. Reza
Should we rename McCarran International Airport?
A
ccording to some lawmakers (and at least one UNLV history professor), the answer is yes. Why? Because Nevada Senator Pat McCarran is said to have demonstrated racist and anti-Semitic views. I’m not about to parse accusations leveled against someone who died more than six decades ago, but I’ll wager that my Thanksgiving dinner convo with McCarran would have been limited to sports and the fine art of turkey carving. Before being elected senator, McCarran served on the Nevada Supreme Court from 1913–1918. During his time in Washington (Democrat, 1933– 1954), McCarran witnessed the global rise of both communism and fascism, the events leading to World War II and the eventual end of that conflict. His record demonstrates a not-unusual alignment against communism on the world stage, but he went as far as to side with fascist leaders of European countries that he felt would stop its march. It all seems rather removed from today’s world, where most young voters seem more concerned with employment or environmental disasters than communism or nuclear annihilation. But there are some parallels. McCarran was one of the sponsors of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, which codified and restricted immigration. Speaking to Congress in support of the bill, McCarran said, “I take no issue with those who would praise the contributions ... to our society by people of many races, of varied creeds and colors. America is indeed a joining together of many streams which go to form a mighty river which we call the American way. However, we have in the United States today hard-core, indigestible blocs which have not become integrated into the American way of life, but which, on the contrary are its deadly enemies.” McCarran’s views are stunningly familiar to those espoused by our current president. So, should McCarran Airport be renamed? I’m too conflicted to say. Applying modern social norms to historical figures without context is flawed, and often there is no context in a place’s name. We don’t name landmarks after people to point out their personal flaws. If that were the case, would the Washington Monument be built in 2017? The 21st-century trend of revisiting proper names reinforces both sides’ tendency to politicize everything. It’s easy to excuse the ideas of the past and say all humans are flawed; it’s more meaningful to examine how the change of social attitudes has accelerated alongside global interconnectivity. So rename if you must. But let’s not replace one human’s name with another. In fact, let’s depoliticize the process and simply stop naming public places after people altogether. One thing we can all agree on is that every one of us is offensive to someone. Have a question or comment about Las Vegas past, present or future? Send them to askanative@ vegasseven.com
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CONVERSATIONS
LUCKY NO. 7
We asked the WENDOH Media staff:
What’s one restaurant dish you wish you could make at home? Photography Krystal Ramirez
Japanese Curry Zen’s chicken katsu curry. It all comes down to the sauce. I’ve tried several times to duplicate it, but I can never get it to taste just right. –Matt Iles, account executive
I wish I can make homemade pho. It takes time and patience to make the broth—both of which I’m in short supply—so it’s just easier to go to Chinatown and get a bowl. –Genevie Durano, managing editor Doritos Cheesy Gordita Crunch at Taco Bell. I don’t know what drugs they put in there, but it’s got me coming back for more! –Adam Smith, Life is Beautiful production coordinator
The Spicy Rigatoni Vodka pasta from Carbone. I wish I could come home every day to a big vat of it on the stove and eat bowls and bowls on my every whim. It is creamy, hot and bold—I also wouldn’t mind having chef Mario Carbone on speed dial to replenish as the supply dwindles. –Melinda Sheckells, editor-in-chief
Oh, would that I could make a pasty crust as flaky as that at Cornish Pasty Co.! The Chicken Greek pasty is a particular weakness. –Xania Woodman, senior contributing editor, beverage
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Oysters and Pearls from The French Laundry, because my older brother has never had it, which gives me a one up on him in our culinary competition. Everything is a competition with siblings, even dining! –Sim Salzman, chief financial officer
During Life is Beautiful Music and Art Festival, STK served sliders in the VIP area. I wish I could recreate them every weekend! –Ellie Morrissey, digital marketing manager
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