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MUSEUM FINDS, HIDDEN TREASURES + WHAT WE LEAVE BEHIND
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ON THE COVER
BRIAN SETZER’S ROCKABILLY RIOT
JUNE 9 8PM | 18+
JUNE 10 8PM | 18+
STEPHEN LYNCH
ONE DROP REDEMPTION
JUNE 17 7PM | 18+
JUNE
11:30AM – 4PM
TRIBUTE TO BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS
Photography KRYSTAL RAMIREZ Pictured LOCAL ARTIST MIKAYLA WHITMORE
LUNCH ONLY
*RESTRICTIONS APPLY
CRAZY DAISY BREAKFAST SPECIAL
7AM – 12PM
5PM – 1AM ALL AGES NO COVER
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JUNE 16 - 18
JUNE 16 - 17
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.
What happens in Vegas really does stay in Vegas: relics, remnants and a prosthetic leg.
$8.99 WITH FESTIVAL WRISTBAND
REGGAE ‘RASTA’ WEEKEND FOOD & BEVERAGE SPECIALS LIVE ENTERTAINMENT
JUNE 9
GRAHAM FUNKE
10PM | 21+
SEVEN NIGHTS
JUNE 10 10PM | 21+
Pictured PHOENIX
CROOKED
JUNE 23 10PM | 21+
HOUSEOFBLUES.COM/LASVEGAS @HOBLASVEGAS
The French indie-pop quartet rallies for its long-awatied album with a stop at Brooklyn Bowl.
WARREN G
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Tiki head at Sunset Park
JUNE 8–14, 2017 TO DO
11 24/7
What to do around the clock. BY JASON R. LATHAM
12 The Deal
Downtown dinner show. BY ANTHONY CURTIS
FEATURE
14 What’s Lost in the Lost and Found?
Visitors leave everything behind. BY JASON R. LATHAM
33 Bring the Pain
A new hotel survey examines guest accommodations and expectations. BY DAVID G. SCHWARTZ
SPACES & PLACES
35 Dead Ends and Dumpster Divers
Notes from the alleyways of Downtown. BY MATTHEW O’BRIEN PLUS: Songs
from the lineup
16 The Tales Behind
CONVERSATIONS
Seven museums share their most fascinating finds.
39 Ask a Native
the Treasures
Ghosts of strip clubs past.
BY LISSA TOWNSEND RODGERS
BY JAMES P. REZA
20 Remembrance
40 Music History
of Things Past
Looking to find lost Vegas. BY LISSA TOWNSEND RODGERS
From hardcore-punk frontman to Hard Rock’s memorabilia curator. BY JARETT KEENE
PLUS: Odd
discoveries at Huntridge Tavern and Rehab Beach Club
42 Lucky No. 7
TASTE
BY WENDOH STAFF
25 All the Meats
Selections from Hard Rock’s new MB Steakhouse.
SEVEN NIGHTS
What To Do After Dark
BY MELINDA SHECKELLS
Concerts, nightclubs, food and experiences.
26 Across an Ocean
BY JASON R. LATHAM
Kkulmat Kitchen bridges cultures with Korean cuisine.
[Hear This]
BY MISTI YANG
A playlist to prime for Phoenix’s Las Vegas tour date.
28 This Veggie Life
BY MARK ADAMS
BY DOREEN CHATFIELD
Island style settles in Downtown with Reggae in the Desert.
Three techniques to make the most of your veggies. PLUS: Instacart,
Sake Rok’s new vegan menu SOCIAL INFLUENCE
31 Going for the Goal
How good will our first major pro sports team be in year one? BY TYLER BISCHOFF
PHOTO BY KIN LUI
Our best places to get lost around town.
32 Go All-In for the Kids
An annual poker event helps fund organization that teaches students money matters.
[Don’t Miss]
BY NICOLE CORMIER
[Play This] A new golf game at Level Up offers a refreshed version of table service. BY ROB KACHELRIESS
[Where Are They Now] Vegas nightlife veterans try something totally different.
OUR SITES TO SEE
VegasSeven.com The ABCs of CBD There are hundreds of useful compounds in cannabis, but the compound best known for medical use is CBD (Cannabidiol). Learn more at vegasseven.com/cannabis.
DTLV.com An Erogenous Zone in the Cultural Corridor Artist Aaron Sheppard’s new mural is perfectly out of place. Find out why at DTLV.com.
RunRebs.com Marvin Menzies Beefs Up UNLV’s Schedule With a roster full of talent, UNLV is looking for highlevel opponents.
SpyOnVegas.com The Hookup Find upcoming events, see highlights from the hottest parties, meet the DJs and more.
BY ROB KACHELRIESS PLUS: Pool
parties
BY DIANA EDELMAN
June 8 –1 4, 2017 vegasseven.com
COREY FELDMAN & THE ANGELS PERFORMING HITS FROM HIS CLASSIC MOVIES AND NEW ALBUM
FRI, JUN 9
THU JUN 8 THU JUN 15 THU JUN 22 FRI JUL 7 FRI JUL 14 FRI - SUN AUG 18 - 20
RVLTN PRESENTS CIRCUIT
STÖÖKI SOUND
T PRESENTS
DAMIEN ESCOBAR
THE HEART & SOUL TOUR
PHORA
YOURS TRULY 2017 TOUR
SOB X RBE
THE YHUNG WILD NATION TOUR W/OMB PEEZY, LIL SHEIK
SHOOTER JENNINGS PSYCHO LAS VEGAS 2017
FEATURING KING DIAMOND, THE BRIAN JONESTOWN MASSACRE, ACE FREHLEY, GOJIRA, SWANS, NEUROSIS MAGMA, SLEEP, MELVINS, CARCASS + OVER 70 MORE
Photography KRYSTAL RAMIREZ Las Vegas Showgirl Museum mannequin with necklace Carol Channing wore in Thoroughly Modern Millie. Read more about the museum on page 16.
LANY
WED NOV 1
THE LANY TOUR : PART 2
WED NOV 15
BAD SUNS
POOLSIDE AT THE JBL SOUNDSTAGE
LESS THAN JAKE
W/ BUCK-O-NINE
FRI, JUL 21 THU JUL 27
TAKING BACK SUNDAY
FRI AUG 4
TURNPIKE TROUBADOURS
W/ EVERY TIME I DIE, MODERN CHEMISTRY
W/ CHARLEY CROCKETT
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
RAIDING THE ROCK VAULT PERFORMANCES SAT - WED
TICKETS ON SALE NOW HARDROCKHOTEL.COM 702.693.5583 I AXS.COM Present your local ID at the box office for NO SERVICE FEES on all Vinyl & Friday Night Live Pool Shows.
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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, DINING 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
Michaela Chesin, Katie Michaels, Ryan Vellinga, Charlotte Wall, Kiona Wilson Senior Contributing Editor Xania V. 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 Online DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL CONTENT
Zoneil Maharaj WEB EDITOR
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 Niazmand ACCOUNT MANAGERS
Brittany Quintana, Mimi Tran ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE
Robyn Weiss DIRECTOR OF SALES, BILLBOARD DIVISION
John Tobin
TO DO
What to do around the clock in Las Vegas
The Cave Singers
By Shannon Miller
THURSDAY 8
Southern California psychedelic-rock duo Mr. Elevator plays Beauty Bar with support from Las Vegas’ own psych-rock outfit Free LSD’s Badtrip and indie rockers The Van der Rohe. 8 p.m., $10, 517 Fremont St., beautybarlv.com
guitar and percussion. 7 p.m., $11–$13, Winchester Cultural Center, 3130 McLeod Dr., clarkcountynv.gov Need some Sublime in your life right now? Well, tribute act 40 oz to Freedom has that covered at Brooklyn Bowl. 6 p.m., $12–$15, at The Linq Promenade, brooklynbowl.com/las-vegas
This month, Pearl Ocean offers a special Dim Sum Tasting Menu. Choose five items from an extensive list, including Xiao Long Bao, Beef Shui Mai and chicken claws in black bean sauce. 11 a.m.–10 p.m. Mon.–Thurs., 11 a.m.–11 p.m. Fri.–Sat., 10 a.m.–10 p.m. Sun., $10, inside Lucky Dragon Hotel & Casino, luckydragonlv.com
The Health Healing Happiness conference offers speakers, chef demos, yoga and fitness classes, plus a natural health expo, at Tuscany Suites & Casino. June 9–11, times vary, passes start at $79, health-healing-happiness.com. Read more about Health Healing Happiness at vegasseven.com/healthhealing.
Viva Ska Radio brings Florida-based rumba, ska and punk band Askultura to Hard Hat Lounge, with additional tunes courtesy of local outfits Light ’Em Up, Lambs to Lions and Drunk Potheads. 8 p.m., $5, 1675 Industrial Rd., hardhatbar.com
Wynn Las Vegas property mixologist Damian Cross teaches guests to craft classic cocktails and master bar tools and techniques in the Mixology 2.0 installment of the resort’s Master Class series. Learn about the history of unique spirits, liqueurs, garnishes and syrups and enjoy cocktail tastings, snacks, take-home gifts and a cocktail connoisseur certificate. 2 p.m., $125, Andrea’s inside Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, wynnlasvegas.com
Indie-rock band the Cave Singers bring their folk/ jam sound to The Bunkhouse Saloon with the Acid Sisters, the First Sun and Spirit in the Sky. 8 p.m., $10–$12, 124 S. 11th St., bunkhousedowntown.com FRIDAY 9
Local musician Julian Tanaka is a fixture of the local jazz scene. See him play an improv concert on clarinet and saxophone, with accompaniment from keyboard,
Flo Rida might say Flamingo’s GO Pool is his house today, as 104.3 Now FM’s turntable takeover features a performance by the hip-hop artist. 9 a.m., $15, at Flamingo Las Vegas, gopoolvegas.com
Sometimes we feel powerless to make a difference. To combat that, Southern Nevada Marches Forward and Battle Born Progress present “What Can I Do?,” an expo on grassroots progressive activism featuring exhibits, crafting activities and networking opportunities. Learn about advocacy tools and methods from local organizations working for social, economic and political reform. 10 a.m.–1 p.m., Culinary Workers Union, 1630 S. Commerce St., RSVP at actionnetwork.org/events/ what-can-i-do-resistance-expo Bring a blanket, sit on the lawn and celebrate A Century of Chaplin with a few of the silent film star’s
1917 movies. 8 p.m., free, Garehime Heights Park, 3901 N. Campbell Rd., artslasvegas.org
SATURDAY 10
Just in time for summer barbecues, The Pavilion at Downtown Summerlin welcomes the Las Vegas Farmers Market. Score fresh breads and pastries, as well as local, seasonal produce. 9 a.m.–2 p.m., 1980 Festival Plaza Dr., downtownsummerlin.com
Jean-Luc Ponty is in town to show you, with his violin, what experimental jazz and jazz fusion are. 8 p.m., $25–$45, Aliante Casino Hotel and Spa, aliantegaming.com
See Take Over and Destroy at a rare live-music night at Cornish Pasty Co. with Sorxe and Dueño. 8 p.m.–2 a.m., 10 E. Charleston Blvd., cornishpastyco.com
June 8 –1 4, 2017 vegasseven.com
11
24/7
THE DEAL BY ANTHONY CURTIS
Downtown Dinner Show
Joel Sartore’s photo of a panther at a Florida zoo, featured in the National Geographic Photo Ark exhibit.
SOME THINGS THAT USED TO BE
SUNDAY 11
TUESDAY 13
Blue Man Group knows actions speak louder than words. See the group’s benefit performance, with half of ticket sales going to Grant a Gift Autism Foundation. 4 p.m., $36, inside Luxor, blueman.com/grantagift
Two sub-genres of rock face off at Hard Hat Lounge’s Emo vs. Indie Night. If crowd reaction decides the winner, we’re thinking indie has this in the bag. 9 p.m.–midnight, 1675 Industrial Rd., hardhatbar.com
The Walk With a Doc: Kids Time program allows kids to relate to physicians person-to-person. Rather than its usual location at Springs Preserve, this week it takes place at the Mount Charleston Visitor Center Gateway. Dr. Pam Greenspon will speak briefly on the benefits of being outdoors before a guided walk through mountain trails. 10 a.m., 2525 Kyle Canyon Rd., walkwithadoc.org
HELP of Southern Nevada hosts its 23rd annual Golfers’ Roundup, benefiting the nonprofit’s programs, including the Shannon West Homeless Youth Center. After the tournament, chow down on a barbecue lunch and stay for the awards, raffle and silent auction. Registration 7:30 a.m., $375 single ticket, $1,500 four-person package, Cascata Golf Course, 1 Cascata Dr., Boulder City, helpsonv.org
MONDAY 12
F.W. Murnau’s Nosferatu gets some heavy-metal treatment in the long-awaited presentation of Iron Vampyr, a project which overlays the silent film with a musical score by Steven Goldfinger. 8 p.m., $10, The Sci Fi Center, 5077 Arville St., thescificenter.com
National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore traveled to wildlife sanctuaries in 40 countries to create the photo archive that comprises the National Geographic Photo Ark exhibition. Check out the free exhibit at Mandalay Bay’s Shark Reef Aquarium. 10 a.m.–10 p.m. daily, mandalaybay.com After spending any time outside, Costa del Sur Spa & Salon’s 50-minute Cool Water Relaxation Massage should sound pretty great. A deep-tissue massage using cool water-scented lotions will surely help you unwind and re-center. 6 a.m.–8 p.m., offer valid Mon.–Fri. through June, $115, inside South Point Hotel Casino & Spa, spacostadelsur.com Bar Sake is at Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino now,
offering signature cocktails and an exceptional food menu featuring robata-grilled meat and vegetarian items such as Japanese eggplant served with sweet miso. 5 –10 p.m., westgatevegas.com
WEDNESDAY 14
The thought of taking on Wonder Woman would scare anyone, but The Bubblegum Gallery paint class makes it easy to illustrate a cartoon version of her, step by step. Supplies provided, drinks available and costumes encouraged. 6–8 p.m., Millennium Fandom Bar, 900 S. Las Vegas Blvd. Suite 140, facebook.com/thebubblegumgallery Destroy the human race! Banger Brewing hosts Teams Against Humanity, in which groups try to win the hit card game with, of course, a few twists and prizes. 6:30–8:30 p.m., 450 Fremont St. #135, facebook.com/vegaspubquiz Looking for more stuff to do? Go to vegasseven. com/calendar.
common in casinos are all but nonexistent today. For example, when’s the last time you heard someone being paged over a P.A.? Everyone has cellphones now, so pages aren’t necessary. Or what about tipping the “captain” for a better seat in the showroom? These days ushers direct you to your assigned seats. Another Vegas tradition that’s all but extinct is the dinner show. Catching a dinner show used to be an entertainment go-to, and there were lots of choices. Today there’s Tournament of Kings at Excalibur and Marriage Can Be Murder at The D. That’s it. Every so often a casino combines a show with a dinner option, but they never click—with one recent exception. The Golden Nugget has managed to crack the code by bundling the Frankie Moreno show and the property’s buffet (called The Buffet). It’s not a traditional arrangement, but the two go together seamlessly to create a showand-dinner experience that really works. I’ll break it into three components: the buffet, the show and the deal. The show starts at 8 p.m. but you have to eat first, so getting there around 6:30 is the play. Moreno is on Thursdays and Saturdays, both specialty nights in The Buffet, themed Italian and BBQ, respectively. If you have a preference, choose that day. This isn’t a Bellagio-level buffet, but it’s only one level down, featuring an excellent salad selection and decent charcuterie board, plus medium peeland-eat shrimp. One trait of the Nugget buffet has always been impressive desserts, and that’s still the case with crème brulee, delicate cream puffs and the famous Golden Nugget bread pudding that’s been Vegas’ best since Steve Wynn owned the joint. Frankie Moreno isn’t exactly the most electrifying name for a show, but don’t let that fool you. It’s a throwback to the croon-and-banter style, where a big part of the act is talking to, joking with and generally revving up the audience—and, as an A-level showman, Moreno is brilliant at it. He and his 10-piece band perform on the same stage that’s said to be the last in Vegas to host Sinatra. The whole thing comes together to create that dinner-show feeling I’ve been talking about. Now for the deal. Given the city’s average ticket price of $90-plus, Moreno’s $36 is a steal. The package is $47, so you’re getting The Buffet for just $11. Purchased separately, the combo would cost $62, so this deal saves almost $16 per person. Drinks in the showroom are a bargain, too, with beers starting at $5. The only negative is the show’s short two-days-per-week schedule, but even though it’s not being advertised, the same deal is now available for the new Clint Holmes show, playing on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. That’s four nights to choose from. Just pick one! 7 Anthony Curtis is the publisher of the Las Vegas Advisor and LasVegasAdvisor.com.
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June 8 –1 4, 2017 vegasseven.com
PHOTO BY JOEL SARTORE/NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC PHOTO ARK
TO DO
FRI, JUN 23
O N SALE TOMOR ROW!
SAT, JUL 8
FRI & SAT, DEC 8 & 9
THU, JUN 15.......................BASSRUSH MASSIVE
SAT, AUG 26.......................YESTIVAL: YES
TODD RUNDGREN & CARL PALMER’S ELP LEGACY
SAT, JUN 24 .......................MUMFORD & SONS WITH SPECIAL GUEST KEVIN GARRETT SOLD OUT
SUN, AUG 27.....................THE AUSTRALIAN PINK FLOYD SHOW
FRI, JUL 14 ..........................PRINCE ROYCE – FIVE TOUR W/ LUIS CORONEL
THE BEST SIDE OF THE MOON 2017
SAT, JUL 22.........................THIRD EYE BLIND: SUMMER GODS TOUR
FRI, SEP 15 ..........................FRANCO ESCAMILLA
WITH SPECIAL GUESTS SILVERSUN PICKUPS, OCEAN PARK STANDOFF
FRI, AUG 4..........................SLAYER
SUN, OCT 1 ........................APOCALYPTICA
WITH SPECIAL GUESTS LAMB OF GOD AND BEHEMOTH
WED, AUG 9......................PRIMUS WITH SPECIAL GUEST CLUTCH SAT, AUG 12........................BRYSON TILLER
FRI, OCT 6.........................KINGS OF LEON WITH SPECIAL GUEST DAWES
WITH H.E.R. AND METRO BOOMIN
OCT 7 - 14..........................INCUBUS
FRI – SUN ............................PSYCHO LAS VEGAS 2017 FEATURING KING DIAMOND, THE BRIAN JONESTOWN MASSACRE, ACE FREHLEY, GOJIRA, SWANS AUG 18 – 20 NEUROSIS, MAGMA, SLEEP, MELVINS, CARCASS + OVER 70 MORE
FOR VIP PACKAGES & RESERVATIONS CONTACT JOINTVIP@HRHVEGAS.COM OR 702.693.5220 AXS.COM
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888-9-AXS-TIX
PLAYS METALLICA BY FOUR CELLOS TOUR
THU, OCT 5......................R. KELLY THE AFTER PARTY TOUR
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HARDROCKHOTEL.COM/THEJOINT
WHAT’S LEFT IN THE
LOST & FOUND
By Jason Latham Photography Krystal Ramirez
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June 8 –1 4, 2017 vegasseven.com
WHETHER THEY’RE HERE FOR BUSINESS OR FOR PLEASURE, VISITORS LEAVE JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING BEHIND IN OUR CITY If you’re going to lose something here, lose it at the Las Vegas Convention Center (operated by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority). There’s a better-than-average chance that you’ll get it back. On typical days, eyeglasses and cellphones pile up inside the convention center’s security office, and the team assigned to process every lost item works 24 hours a day to get those items back in the hands of their owners. “If it shows up, we’ll contact the owner, and if they’re still in town we’ll say, ‘Come pick up your item,’” says Ray Suppe, the LVCVA’s executive director of customer safety. “If they’re out of town, we’ll mail it to them at our cost,” he adds. Phones, IDs and electronics are easiest to return. Cash too; after all, no one wants to leave a bag of money behind in Las Vegas. The security team has even gone so far as to crack open a hearing aid so they could read the serial number and have it returned to its wearer. But not everything can be identified…
CLEANING UP AFTER A BUSY CONVENTION SEASON On a table inside the security office, several months’ worth of yet-to-be-returned items are laid out for display. “The first quarter is when people lose the most stuff because that’s the busiest time of year,” remarks Suppe. “[From January] through May, we’re up to about 1,000 items.” The current stockpile includes a bag containing dozens of pairs of glasses, a pair of tablet computers, a walkie-talkie and a motorcycle jacket, as well as a camera and New York Festivals World Medal that were both found after April’s National Association of Broadcasters convention. “There’s a whole bag of those,” says Control Center Supervisor Jerri Denman-Gray. The biggest find is a drone kit left behind after this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. It has no identifiable marks, and although the team has been holding onto it past the usual 30-day limit, no one has come forward to claim it. “We’re going to hold onto it a bit longer,” says Suppe. If the owner never comes for it, the drone will be added to the list of unclaimed items the LVCVA donates to one of several charities, which, in this case, will be Opportunity Village. Eyeglasses go to the Lions Club, Denman-Gray explains, while the tablets will be sent to the Blind Center of Nevada, where they will be mined for parts. “They’ll get the materials out of them and sell the materials,” she says.
YOU SURE YOU WANT THAT BACK? On the floor of the convention center, K-9 employee Cooper is busy sniffing out the strange (and sometimes illegal) items people forget to take home. That list includes a whip. It’s unknown where it came from, but it’s definitely not from the Indiana Jones convention. “It wasn’t that kind of whip,” Denman-Gray says. People have left behind dentures “on more than one occasion,” Suppe adds. Illegal drugs have even been discovered on the floor and turned over to Las Vegas Metro Police. And suitcases can cause a stir. Some are full of toiletries and other personal items, while others, Denman-Gray explains, are empty and abandoned because the owner doesn’t want to ship or carry the extra luggage. That happens more often than you’d think at the convention center—visitors ditching their displays or materials because it RETURN RATE BY THE NUMBERS costs too much to take them home. At least they’re going to a good CASH ($1,000-$5,000) – 100% place. During the last SEMA autoELECTRONICS – 95% motive convention, exhibitors left behind tires and rims that were CELLPHONES – 95% used for product demonstrations. IDS – 85% All of it went to Opportunity Village. So who gets the whip? CREDIT CARDS – 60% “Actually, that’s still here,” Denman-Gray says with a smile.
LVCC LOST & FOUND
AT HUNTRIDGE TAVERN, LOST ITEMS PILE UP ON GRAVEYARD SHIFT Friday and Saturday nights are busy at longtime Las Vegas dive bar Huntridge Tavern. Not coincidentally, those are the nights when things get left behind. “Nine times out of 10, we know the person,” says bartender Sarah, who is sometimes tasked with keeping track of the phones, IDs and credit cards that get left on or behind the bar. Owners tend to come back for those items. What’s gone unclaimed, however, will leave you scratching your head. There’s an unopened box of Honey Nut Rollin’ Oats in the lost and found. Sarah speculates the Honey Nut Cheerios knockoff was purchased at the now-closed Save-A-Lot store in the Huntridge Shopping Center. The cereal expired last December. Someone also left behind a longboard skateboard deck. No wheels, no trucks, just the deck. This begs the question: Were those pieces missing before or after the board was brought into the bar? The lost and found bin is almost always filled with coats, Sarah says. But that’s a good thing. If you never claim that coat you left on the back of your barstool, it goes next door to Savers, the thrift store chain that partners with a number of local charities.
HOW DO YOU FORGET YOUR LEG? The mind reels at the thought of what turns up in the lost and found at Rehab Beach Club. “I’ll see people leaving the club in a towel, and when security asks for the towel back, they tell them, ‘I can’t find my pants,’” says Joe Bravo, director of nightlife and daylife for the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. In his four years, Bravo has seen his team pick up lost belongings in every category: electronics (phones and cameras), apparel (shirts, shoes and pants) and unmentionables (bachelorette party playthings). But what’s the strangest thing a person ever left behind? “A prosthetic leg,” he says. “When you leave a prosthetic leg behind, that means you probably walked in with it. How do you leave and forget your leg? It’s not like it’s a Halloween prop; this was a full-fledged prosthetic leg.” 7
June 8 –1 4, 2017 vegasseven.com
15
THE TALES BEHIND THE TREASURES
SEVEN LAS VEGAS MUSEUMS SHARE THEIR MOST FASCINATING FINDS By Lissa Townsend Rodgers Photography Krystal Ramirez
LOST & FOUND IN LAS VEGAS
NEVADA’S MUSEUMS ARE AS UNCONVENTIONAL AS THE STATE’S HISTORY. OTHER CITIES EXHIBIT OLD MASTER PAINTINGS AND HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS, BUT LAS VEGAS HAS THE STUFF PEOPLE REALLY WANT TO GAWK AT. A 25-FOOT DINOSAUR SKELETON. AN 8-FOOT YELLOW NEON DUCK. A BOB MACKIE-DESIGNED SHOWGIRL HEADDRESS. A TRICKED-OUT 1950S CAMPING TRAILER. JAYNE MANSFIELD’S PINK SOFA. AL CAPONE’S .38 PISTOL. THE BATMOBILE. HOW DID THESE ITEMS MAKE THEIR WAY TO LAS VEGAS AND INTO THE PUBLIC EYE? SEVEN LOCAL MUSEUMS SHARE SOME OF THEIR MOST INTERESTING FINDS.
THE LAS VEGAS SHOWGIRL MUSEUM lasvegasshowgirlmuseum.com The Las Vegas Showgirl Museum preserves the glamorous legacy of Las Vegas’ showgirls and entertainers with items such as gowns worn by Ann-Margret and Dionne Warwick, costumes from Enter the Night and Lido de Paris, as well as set pieces from Jubilee! “There are so many odd ways I have collected things for the museum,” says museum CEO Grant Philipo, who recalls finding a trio of elaborate, identical jeweled necklaces at a “hole-in-thewall resale store” in West Hollywood. Bought for about $25 each, they turned out to be costume pieces that Carol Channing wore in Thoroughly Modern Millie. Why three of the same necklace? Philipo explains that, “in the movie, they shot her out of a canon and they wouldn’t have shot her, so she had two stunt doubles who had to wear the same exact thing.” Another interesting item is Uncle Fester’s Egyptian sarcophagus. “When I was artistic director of the Hollywood Wax Museum, I always admired the props they had from the TV show, The Addams Family, which had also been used in many of Roger Corman’s films with Vincent Price,” he recalls. The sarcophagus was used at the Wax Museum to hold Boris Karloff’s mummy figure but “after so many decades of use, the owners of the museum decided it was old hat and ended up giving it to me.”
MOB MUSEUM
themobmuseum.org
Opposite page: Carol Channing’s necklace at the Las Vegas Showgirl Museum. This page, clockwise from above: Sarcophagus at Las Vegas Showgirl Museum, Valentine’s Day Massacre ballistic evidence at the Mob Museum, ballistics display at Mob Museum, gin bottle from Mob Museum
The Mob Museum’s collection of artifacts ranges from FBI wiretap recordings to rigged slot machines. While the museum examines crime nationwide, some items are very closely tied to Las Vegas history. “A retired FBI agent who worked in Las Vegas in the 1980s donated the handcuffs he used to arrest Tony Spilotro,” says Geoff Schumacher, senior director of content. He also points out that “construction crews found a gin bottle in a wall of the Museum building when it was being renovated” although the building was (ahem) constructed during Prohibition. Some items have taken a convoluted path to the museum’s collection, such as ballistics evidence from the 1929 St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. “The evidence was never in the possession of the Chicago Police Department or any other law enforcement agency,” Schumacher explains. “The Chicago coroner had turned over the evidence to a privately operated forensic crime lab, one of the nation’s first, for study in its investigation of the crime. When the crime lab closed a few years later, an employee kept the evidence in his garage for several decades. It was quietly transferred through a few more sets of private hands until 2015, when the museum validated the authenticity of the objects and acquired the collection.” Sometimes even the stories keep their secrets.
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LOST & FOUND IN LAS VEGAS
HOLLYWOOD CARS MUSEUM
hollywoodcarsmuseum.com
At the Hollywood Cars Museum, the only backstories most of the vehicles have are those of the films they come from. However, the Lotus Esprit submarine car from The Spy Who Loved Me carries a dramatic tale all its own. Museum manager Steve Levesque explains that the car “was sitting in a junkyard in the Bahamas and had been there since the movie was made,” then the car was “brought to Las Vegas and sent over to Rick’s Restorations. It was in very bad condition. It was basically a crate of all the parts.” Now restored, James Bond’s Lotus sits in the museum alongside a Back to the Future DeLorean and Kitt from Knight Rider. Last year, the museum also became the home of a number of Liberace’s famed cars, including a mirror-studded Rolls Royce and sparkly gold Bradley GT. “They had all of these cars in storage and needed a place to put them on display, so that’s been real nice to have,” Levesque says of the Liberace collection, which also features a few costumes and other possessions. After all, who wouldn’t want to put “Mr. Showmanship” on display, even in auto form?
NEON MUSEUM
neonmuseum.org
The Neon Museum works to preserve another aspect of our local history: the signage that documents our past in terms of economics, geography and design. Collections assistant Tracey Sprague says that “the Neon Museum would rather signs stay out on their properties. We like for the city’s signs to remain on display for the public.” But, when legendary properties like the Stardust or the Moulin Rouge meet the wrecking ball, the museum steps in to save their signs from the same fate. Of course, not every acquisition comes through an implosion. “The sudden, unexpected gifts happen quite a bit and are always a pleasant surprise. Sometimes we don’t know what properties are remodeling or closing until we hear from them,” says Sprague, pointing out the Willy & Jose’s Restaurant sign from Sam’s Town Hotel & Gambling Hall and the signage from Planet Hollywood’s Peepshow as recent additions. She also notes that the portable Bally’s neon sign the museum uses for educational lectures, “was found by a gentleman who was cleaning out his uncle’s storage unit after he passed. Nobody knew he had it.” However, Sprague also notes that there’s getting a sign and then getting it to the museum, which can become quite complicated. “We often work with local sign companies, who have to use flatbed trucks and cranes to get the signs to our Downtown location. It is not a simple matter.”
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LOST & FOUND IN LAS VEGAS
CLARK COUNTY MUSEUM clarkcounty.gov/parks/pages/
NEVADA STATE MUSEUM nvculture.org/nevadastatemuseum-
Sometimes public generosity can lead to an excess of riches. With a collection of an estimated 1 million artifacts, the Clark County Museum must often turn down proffered donations “due to storage space considerations,” explains Clark County museum system administrator Mark Hall-Patton. However, exceptions are occasionally made, as when the museum was recently offered “a badly damaged record master disc, which a hiker had found many years ago on Double Up Peak at the site of the Carole Lombard crash,” Hall-Patton explains. “We accepted it into the collection because of its tie to the incident, and it was certainly not an easy artifact to acquire.” A larger unexpected (and welcome) donation was the George Collection. “The collection consists of Paiute baskets collected by the Kiel and George families in southern Nevada in the late 19th and early 20th century, along with some bows and arrows from the time,” Hall-Patton says. “The collection was not known, as it had been moved from the Vegas area in the early 20th century, and was in storage in Arizona. There are spectacular pieces in the collection, and we are very happy to have it.” And there are certain things the museum is looking for, including photos of the stone columns at McCarran International Airport being moved from their original location on Nellis Air Force Base or ones of the re-creation of Queho’s cave at Helldorado Village. “These types of photos are probably out there, often in family photo albums,” he says, “it would be great to have at least copies in the museum system collection.”
The collection of the Nevada State Museum covers the Silver State’s history from Ichthyosaur fossils to atomic bomb videos. “Artifacts are always dropped in our laps here,” says Caroline Sakaguchi Kunioka, curator of history and collections. She points to a 1958 issue of a local African-American newspaper called The Missile recently donated by a North Las Vegas family. “The advertisements and human-interest pieces highlight something we’d love to have more of in the collection: information about the daily life of African-Americans in southern Nevada,” she says. The museum has also made discoveries within its own collection, such as a blush-colored 1940s suit that research determined was a design by celebrated Hollywood costumer Jean Louis, worn by Ginger Rogers in the 1947 film It Had to Be You. “When museums first open, they often collect in a mad rush and aren’t always aware of what they’ve accessioned,” Kunioka says. “Decades later, it’s up to interns and volunteers to perform the inventories and back research.” Some items have not only a connection to history, but a connection to other acquisitions, such as “the letters of Barbara Gates [that] are a record of her time in the Women’s Army Corps during World War II. Gates, a graduate of Las Vegas High School and relative of [Nevada Sen.] Key Pittman, was stationed in the Philippines and Dutch New Guinea,” Kunioka explains. “In 2013, the museum received a transfer of archaeological specimens from the Barrick Museum. Included were journals written by the amateur archaeologist who had done all the collecting… Marie Gates, Barbara’s mom.”
clark-county-museum.aspx
lasvegas
BURLESQUE HALL OF FAME burlesquehall.com The Burlesque Hall of Fame documents the history of burlesque and striptease through photos, posters, props and costumes from high-button chorus girl boots to Lucite stripper heels. The Hall of Fame’s collection began back in the ’60s when, according to executive director Dustin Wax, “a dancer named Jennie Lee would display a collection [of costumes] in her bar in San Pedro, California, the Sassy Lassy. As word spread, dancers would bring their costumes and literally nail them up to the wall of her bar. Which, let me tell you, is a conservator’s nightmare.” Other items were likewise not in the best of shape when acquired, such as a pair of mother-of-pearl-inlaid staves from the fans of legendary fan dancer Sally Rand. ”One of Rand’s neighbors, another performer who knew about Exotic World—our name before the museum moved to Las Vegas in 2006—found the handles in [Rand’s] trash one day and took them, wrapped them up and sent them to us. Pretty lucky break!” However, there have been items the Burlesque Hall of Fame has missed out on. “One piece that came up for auction but we were just way outbid on is Gypsy Rose Lee’s camo jacket,” he says. “Gypsy toured Vietnam in 1968 and, at each base [where] she performed, she added patches to the jacket representing the units she performed for. By the end of the tour, the whole jacket was covered with patches, with not a peek of camo to be seen.”
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THINGS PAST REMEMBRANCE OF
LOOKING CLOSELY TO FIND THE LOST VEGAS By Lissa Townsend Rodgers Photography Kin Lui
LOST & FOUND IN LAS VEGAS
THE MISSING TIKIS Today, Las Vegas has Frankie’s Tiki Room and the Golden Tiki, both places of masks and carvings and mai tais. But for many years, all of Las Vegas’ tikis seemed destined to disappear. The Tropicana’s original design was Havana mid-mod, but in 1991, it got a tiki-fied remake, with the addition of carved wooden heads, a Polynesian longhouse and a carved mask of Kalanui, the Hawaiian god of money. Rumor has it that the mask was haunted and would cause those who rubbed it to break out into a rash—but, like every other spooky Las Vegas story, you can never find someone it happened to, just someone who knows someone who has an aunt who had a friend... Regardless, the Tropicana’s tiki moment passed and the tikis with it. The retro Venus Lounge briefly occupied an outside corner of The Venetian, where its elaborately carved tiki theme was carried out to every table and chair—all of which disappeared as soon as the Venus did, likely to some casino executive’s patio. But one vintage tiki can still be found, if you know where to look. Back in the day, the Stardust’s Aku Aku was the spot to sip a Tonga Tabu Swizzle and dine on Steak Genghis Khan amid statues and palm fronds. Out front, two giant stone heads carved by legendary tiki artist Eli Hedley stood sentry, a touch of Easter Island on the Las Vegas Strip. The Aku Aku closed in 1980 and one of the heads was moved to an island in Sunset Park, where it reigns serenely over pigeons and picnickers. As to where the other head went? No one knows, of course.
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THE MANY LIVES OF THE BONANZA GIFT SHOP The self-contained strip mall that is the Bonanza Gift Shop has led many lives over the past 50-odd years. Initially, it was a number of smaller shops—a butcher shop, a liquor store, a jewelry boutique, an adult bookstore. At one end was the Money Tree casino, which had a lovely curling marquee and an actual (sort of) tree inside. Eventually, the liquor store became Honest John’s casino and the butcher shop became Centerfolds and then the Jolly Trolley Casino, known for cheeseburgers, strippers and a meat locker in the casino—which was as menacing as it was amusing, considering that the joint was reportedly mobbed up. Porn star Marilyn Chambers even performed a one-woman (naked) show there before the whole place became a gift shop, albeit one that occasionally sold vibrators and blow-up dolls. The Bonanza has been sold again, and it’s only a matter of time before it gives way to a high-rise casino or luxury condos. But, until then, amid the airbrushed T-shirts and bedazzled keychains, you can find evidence of the Bonanza’s swingin’ past: In the center of the space is a patch of worn parquet flooring, surrounded by mirrored pillars below an enormous stained-glass light fixture. Today, it holds racks of neck pillows and tote bags, but once it was full of women with Farrah Fawcett hair doing the topless hustle.
THE LAST TRACES OF THE UNITED FEDERATION OF PLANETS The Star Trek Experience combined a show museum, space-themed rides and an Enterprise bridge photo op to draw Trekkies from around the globe. The theme extended to Quark’s bar/restaurant, where a cosplaying staff served blue cocktails, as well as a gaming area. All were designed to look like a spaceship: lots of octagonal doorways, blue lowlights and silver-plastic everything. The Experience and Quark’s were closed in 2008, but the space-styled gaming area lingered for a few years. All traces of Trek have disappeared within the renovations of the Westgate, or so it would seem. But if you look a little closer at the gift shop and the liquor store, you’ll notice those pod bay doors are open to souvenir magnets and plastic-bottle vodka, while some of the blue neon and shiny chrome of the bar can still be glimpsed through the door of the timeshare center. But perhaps the most poignant reminder of the Starfleet’s glory days is at the monorail stop, where an old Star Trek logo still flashes on the wall as you glide into the station.
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MAIN STREET STATION’S MYSTERIOUS TREASURES Downtown Las Vegas may be embracing nostalgia, but no one throws it back as far as Main Street Station, where the Victorian theme is augmented by a collection of antiques. These include Winston Churchill’s elaborately carved snooker table, intricate stained glass from Lillian Russell’s mansion, a gilded chandelier from the Figaro Opera House in Paris—allegedly. The treasures were acquired by owner, Bob Snow, who opened the property as Main Street Station in 1991—only to close it about a year later. Boyd Gaming bought it and remodeled before reopening in 1996. “We have a lot of interesting and unique stuff at Main Street Station, but saying definitively where that stuff came from, that’s a little bit trickier,” says David Strow vice president of corporate communications for Boyd Gaming. “Because it went through that process of bankruptcy, there’s not a whole lot of documentation on a lot of the items. So the best we can say is we think we know what they are.” However, Main Street Station’s most famous piece of history is authentic: the graffiti-scrawled chunk of the Berlin Wall in the men’s room. “That’s probably the most unique item we have on the property,” says Strow, who notes that the Wall’s location does not necessarily make it inaccessible. “It is in the men’s restroom, but if women want to see it, all they have to do is find a security officer,” who will escort them in once the room is cleared. After all, you’re here to see history, not short stories. 7
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800.274.5825 | thed.com | 301 Fremont Street | Las Vegas, NV 89101
ONE BITE
All the Meats
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At the new MB Steakhouse in Hard Rock Hotel & Casino (hardrockhotel .com), it is impossible to resist eating everything on the menu. But desire and ability—as we all know—are two very different things. When making the hard choice about what to order, go for the 36-ounce dry-aged Tomahawk, which amply accommodates two hungry diners. Served sliced and covered in a roasted chili rub, it is packed with flavor and just enough kick. And if you are looking to take your steak game to the next level, try one of three Wagyu offerings, including a 6-ounce Miyazaki Japanese New York strip steak and a 6-ounce Imperial New York strip steak. For something on the lighter side, go with the pan-roasted Alaskan halibut, served with tomato broth and olive relish. MB, which stands for My Brothers, is the first joint venture from siblings David Morton and Michael Morton, and is the continuation of the legacy of their father, legendary restaurateur Arnie Morton.
By Melinda Sheckells Photography Jim Decker
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Kkulmat Kitchen bridges cultures with Korean cuisine
Across an Ocean When Sung Hee Choi
By Misti Yang Photography Anthony Mair
Kkulmat Kitchen Mon.–Sat. 11 a.m.–11 p.m., Sun. 5–11 p.m. 5600 Spring Mountain Rd. 10% discount with military I.D.
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landed at McCarran International Airport from South Korea in 2007, she had one bag, and she was a survivor. For anyone familiar with cancer, you know how bittersweet the word “survivor” is; it means you have beaten the often terminal disease. But Choi’s daughter, Min Mazelly, had not known her mom was fighting breast cancer. “I was here [in Las Vegas] studying. She didn’t want me to focus on her. She wanted me to focus on my life and my success,” Mazelly says. “After all the surgery and treatments, that is when she told me. I told her, ‘Mom, I am going to come and see you,’ and she said, ‘No, just wait. I’ll be there.’” Today, 10 years later, Choi, her daughter and her son-in-law, Peter Mazelly, work together at their restaurant, Kkulmat Kitchen, on Spring Mountain Road. Choi is the head chef. Peter manages the business, and Min says, “I am translating. Here’s a typical Korean [pointing to her mom]. Here’s a typical American [pointing to her husband], and I have to be the bridge between.” Choi grew up in Ulsan, South Korea, raising cows, growing rice and learning how to cook from her mom, Soon Nam. After marrying and moving to Busan (a larger city just south of Ulsan), Choi enrolled
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in cooking courses. “People told her, ‘You are good at cooking,’ but she wanted to be more professional,” Min says, translating for her mom. In South Korea, the government certifies cooks in different cuisines. To earn the certification, you have to pass a written test and a cooking test. Each cuisine has 55 dishes to master, and on exam day, the test administrators select three dishes to prepare within a time limit, like Chopped with a report card at the end. On a quest to prove her cooking talent, Choi decided to earn certifications. After earning her first certification, Choi was hired as a waitress at Kumsu Bokguk, a restaurant known for its puffer fish soup. Also known as blowfish, puffer fish contain a toxin that can kill a person if not cleaned properly. She quickly worked her way into the kitchen, where she mastered preparing the potentially lethal fish, but she still wanted to be better. She worked to earn her “National Technical Qualification” as a craftsman cook in four cuisines: Chinese, Japanese, Western and Korean. Choi says that the most difficult dish to prepare on exam day was a Korean salad because the administrators measured to check that
certain ingredients were the correct length and width. “Like a machine,” Choi says in English as she makes a chopping gesture. Choi did not come to America expecting to helm a restaurant. It was Peter’s idea. He had been saving money to open an automotive business but believed in his mother-in-law’s food enough to invest in Kkulmat—which translates to “tastes like honey”—instead. “She has really good cooking skills,” he says. The restaurant opened in January with a menu featuring “what Koreans like,” according to Choi, including stews, dumplings, stir-fried dishes and Korean fried chicken. The closest you’ll get to puffer fish is the braised monkfish. This year marks 10 cancer-free years for Choi. When asked what people should know about Kkulmat, she tells Min that she wants to give hope to those with breast cancer. “She wants people to come in and talk to her. … For her, this is extra life, so with this extra life she wants to share.” And over a dish of authentic Korean cuisine is a delicious way to start. 7
Korean Food 101
A few dishes to get you started Banchan
The chips and salsa of Korean food, these side dishes are complimentary and bottomless. They are typically vegetables, although there is the occasional fish cake or fresh omelet.
Kimchi
A spicy fermented vegetable, most often cabbage, it is the most common banchan. Kkulmat’s cabbage kimchi is homemade and featured in the kimchi dumplings and kimchi fried rice. Traditionally, kimchi is buried in the ground during the fermentation phase, but Kkulmat’s kimchi goes into a special refrigerator.
Boricha
You can ask for this tea, which is made from barley, hot or cold. The tea is free of charge and caffeine-free.
Sundubu Korean food features numerous stews and soups. For someone trying the cuisine for the first time, Choi recommends the chicken soup. “It is like chicken noodle soup,” Choi says. Sundubu is a spicy tofu soup served in a piping-hot stone bowl with rice on the side. Kkulmat serves “purple” rice, a nutritious mixture of black and white rice.
Pork Trotter and Jellyfish Salad True to its
name, pork trotter is the leg of a pig, and it tastes like delicious barbecue. Similar to the salad that had to measure up when Choi earned her Korean craftsman-cook qualification, it is served cold and tossed in a mustard vinaigrette with jellyfish and raw vegetables.
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COOK@HOME + SMALL BITES
By Doreen Chatfield
VEGGIE
THIS
LIFE
3 techniques to make the most of your veggies With the warm weather, nature’s bounty will again reward us with sweet, succulent and nutritious vegetables. To get the most out of them, you don’t need to do much more; just let your ingredients do the talking.
ROASTING
The Future of Grocery Shopping The future of grocery shopping is here! Instacart (instacart.com) is a web and smartphone app service that allows customers to shop for groceries from the comfort of their computer or phone. Whether you’re leaving work late or growing roots on your couch, Instacart can lend a hand. The app pairs the customer up with a personal shopper who is trained to select fresh, undamaged produce from multiple stores. Delivery can be scheduled as soon as two hours from placing an order, or whenever it’s convenient for you. There are exclusive coupons available and a shopping-with-friends option that come in handy for sharing groceries with roommates or planning family gettogethers. With an Instacart account, you can also can browse and save favorite recipes (with an option to add the ingredients to the order). If you’re worried about getting something that’s underripe, rotten or not the right type or amount, Instacart allows you to add notes to each item in the basket. And the communication works both ways: If the quality of the produce on the shelf is questionable, the shopper can text to verify whether to keep the item in the cart or remove it. Payment is not finalized until the moment of checkout, so customers have the flexibility to select exactly what they want. –Shannon Miller Delivery fee is $8 for deliveries less than $35, and $6 for deliveries $35 or more. Instacart partners with Albertsons, Cardenas, Petco, Smart & Final and Whole Foods throughout the Valley, with more locations to come.
Sushi Goes Vegan Who says sushi and veganism don’t go together? The latest sushi/Japanese joint to join the ranks of being vegan-friendly is Sake Rok (at The Park Vegas, sakeroklv. com). Executive chef Joe Mosconi and executive sushi chef Park Sung recently debuted a vegan menu featuring Avocado Toast Crispy Rice (crispy sushi rice with avocado, yuzu and micro shiso); Mushroom Tobanyaki (a variety of mushrooms topped with thick and creamy coconut milk); as well as grilled cauliflower with bok choy and crispy tofu in a miso vinaigrette. Other items on the new menu include vegan sushi, pickled veggies and a grilled tofu steak with grilled asparagus and roasted tomatoes. –Diana Edelman
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The easiest and most versatile way to cook vegetables, roasting is every restaurant’s go-to technique. The trick is cutting them to the same size and thickness and putting veggies with the same textures together so they cook in the same time. Put vegetables in a bowl, add enough oil to coat, and season with salt and pepper. Spread evenly on a baking sheet and roast at 425° for 10–20 minutes. The high heat will give the vegetables some good color, and the short baking time will ensure a crisp outside and a soft inside. Serve with a roast chicken. Favorites: Cauliflower and broccoli.
GRILLING This technique requires a little more skill and attention since grills can be temperamental. The vegetables need to be cut longer so they do not fall between the grates. Follow the above roasting technique of adding oil, salt and pepper. On a hot grill, place your veggies perpendicular to the grates. They take about two minutes on each side on medium-high heat. Serve immediately or save for lunchtime salads. Favorites: Zucchini, pepper and eggplant.
STIR-FRYING This is my go-to technique for a quick meal. The secret is a very hot pan and vegetables cut in small, uniform pieces. Since the process takes fewer than five minutes, prep all your ingredients before starting. With a very hot pan, add a tablespoon of oil on high heat. Add the vegetables and move around with a spatula. Don’t overfill your pan or your vegetables will end up steaming. (Your pan will sizzle when the water from the vegetables hits the hot oil.) Season with pepper and a dash of Braggs Liquid Aminos and cook for 3–5 minutes. Favorites: Asparagus, red pepper and red onion. Doreen Chatfield (doreenchatfield71@gmail.com) is a classically educated chef who received her training at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. She is a personal chef and caterer, and is currently the dietary director at Valley Hospital.
SUSPENDING GROWN MEN ABOVE HIS HEAD Barri enjoys a rich cup of coffee at his favorite diner. ”
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SOCIAL INFLUENCE
going for the
Goal How good will Las Vegas’ first major pro sports team be in year one? By Tyler Bischoff As an expansion franchise, expectations for the Vegas Golden Knights are low. In the last 25 years, the NHL has added eight new teams; none have made the playoffs or posted a winning record in their first season. While most expansion teams have avoided being the worst team in the NHL, most new teams aren’t challenging for a playoff spot. Only the 1993–1994 Florida Panthers had a shot but finished one point shy. But Golden Knights general manager George McPhee has already made a splash. He beat out other teams to sign Vadim Shipachyov of the Kontinental Hockey League in Russia. This past season for SKA St. Petersburg, Shipachyov posted 26 goals and 50 assists in 50 games. He’s a playmaking center who will deliver the style McPhee desires. “We want to be a very competitive club and at the same time be an entertaining club,” McPhee says. “We want people to fall in love with the sport. It is a beautiful game that combines a lot of skill with grit and toughness. And when it is played right, it is beautiful to watch.” Even though the Golden Knights are expected to have a stron-
ger group of defensemen than forwards, McPhee doesn’t want his team to play in a shell. “There are different ways to play the game. There are times when some people try to play too defensive. The game should never be boring,” McPhee says. Though providing an attractive skill-based product over a boring style may not be beneficial to the winning percentage in year one, it may help a community new to hockey enjoy the game more. What will turn Las Vegans away: losing as many games as possible to get the best odds for the number-one pick in the 2018 NHL Draft Lottery. McPhee is convinced he’ll get his future superstars in the entry draft, not this year’s expansion draft. But don’t expect the Golden Knights to be the worst team in the NHL next season. “Tanking doesn’t appeal to us. Never has, never will,” McPhee says. “We want to play the game right and compete and develop this team as quickly as we can.” 7 For more Golden Knights first year predictions, visit vegasseven.com/ goldenknightsyear1
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DO GOOD
Go All-In For the Kids An annual poker event helps fund organization that teaches students money matters By Diana Edelman
Illustration Charlotte Wall
The art of being fiscally responsible takes education. Fortunately, for more than 20,000 students in the Valley, the keys to financial literacy are being taught in primary schools thanks to Junior Achievement of Southern Nevada. Relying entirely on donations and grant funding, Junior Achievement operates numerous programs to help students learn everything from budget management to economic principles, and works with them to develop skills for the workplace. Schools in at-risk areas of the community are chosen with an objective to create a feeder system, which follows students from elementary through high school. On average, 80 percent or more of students that participate are living at or
below the poverty line. According to Katie Decker, principal of recipient schools Walter Bracken, Walter Long and Howard Hollingsworth elementary schools, the organization fills a critical need. “The adults from our community come in and help kids understand finances and the role they play in the future,” Decker explains. “They are exposed to different jobs and see that the community cares about them.” Business partners in finance, gaming, hospitality and legal industries volunteer their time to teach the programs. One of the bigger avenues for funding is its annual Poker Tournament, which has attracted poker hotshots such as J.J. Liu and hotel exec Bobby Baldwin. The seventh annual event takes place at
LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL
Songs From the Lineup Broods’ “Couldn’t Believe” Songs From the Lineup is a series that unpacks the musical lineup of the Life Is Beautiful Music & Art Festival through individual songs by the featured artists. Look for weekly installments at DTLV.com, right up through the festival in September.
It’s hard to forget your first
Life Is Beautiful. For three days, the festival’s footprint becomes a confetti-bombed island, on which festivalgoers are happily marooned.
Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino on June 11. Last year, the fundraiser netted $70,000. As for 2017, Junior Achievement hopes to bring in upwards of $100,000 and attract more than 200 players. The winner of the Texas Hold ‘Em tourney nets a precious seat at the World Series of Poker’s Main Event (or a $7,500 cash option). Proceeds from the event help the organization to provide programs such as Finance Park—a 12-hour teacher- led curriculum that culminates with students simulating life scenarios in which they build a one-month budget—and expand its current operations. “These programs are important because both support our mission of empowering and impacting young people,” explains Andrea Shepard, development events manager for the organization. “They teach students how to be smart with money, how to get ready for the workforce and how to think like entrepreneurs. Most importantly, it teaches them how to aspire to greater things.” According to Za’Korey Christian, a ninth-grader at Southeast Career Technical Academy, his participation in Finance Park while an eighth-grader at Pinecrest Academy was vital in providing him with a glimpse of life after school. “I learned how you [need] to put money into certain places as you get a job and pay your bills and to manage money between shopping, groceries and things like that,” says the 14-year-old. “It helped me to get where I am at now and know the basics of budgeting [as well as] learning the value of money. Now, I know the difference between needs and wants. … Learning those basic skills now can help me in the future.” Buy-ins for the Junior Achievement’s poker tournament start at $250 for 5,000 chips. Registration is open now through the day of the event. Walk-ups welcome day of the event from 11 a.m.–1 p.m. To register, visit jalasvegas.org/2017-poker-tournament
There’s something in the air, something that enhances the camaraderie and turns three-minute friendships into three-year relationships. It’s an in-the-moment feeling, an out-ofVegas vibe. And if I could bottle it into a single song, I’d use Broods’ “Couldn’t Believe” to do it. The New Zealand electro-pop duo’s career gained traction after its 2014 hit “Bridges” stormed the airwaves. Since then, Broods, comprised of brother and sister Caleb and Georgia Nott, has scooped up 10 accolades from the New Zealand Music Awards, toured with the likes of Sam Smith, Ellie Goulding and Life Is Beautiful alum Haim, and dropped a second LP called Conscious. While the whole album’s a dance-y work of pop art, “Couldn’t Believe” stands out as four minutes and four seconds of pure joy. The track holds a special place in Georgia’s heart, as it
reflects the night she got engaged. “It just needed to be a pure, happy song, uninterrupted by negativity. Most of our music has undertones of doubt or sadness, but this is full-on happy,” she told Rolling Stone Australia in 2016. The song is deceptively mellow at first, a warm-up to a chorus that explodes on impact. “And I couldn’t believe my eyes. I couldn’t believe my ears,” Georgia sings, “But I’m looking at you now, and I can’t believe we’re here.” This is the track you blast on a long road trip, the one you dance to at your buddy’s wedding. It’s what a night at Life Is Beautiful, under the stars and up against the stage, feels like. You’ll likely hear “Couldn’t Believe” when Broods takes the festival stage September 23. And as with most things, the performance is best enjoyed with friends. You’re going to want a dance partner for this one. –Amber Sampson
BROODS BY RENATA RAKSHA
SOCIAL INFLUENCE
GREEN FELT JOURNAL
SOCIAL INFLUENCE
By David G. Schwartz
Bring the Pain A new hotel survey examines guest accommodations and expectations
acation is supposed to be a fun time, a chance to get away from your everyday problems. And hotels are the cocoons that travelers return to, their homes away from home. A good hotel experience can make a vacation, and a bad one can break it. A recent Qualtrics survey reveals just what usually goes wrong and how guests react to missed expectations. While the survey is about hotels in general and not Las Vegas in particular, those who work in our city’s hospitality industry should heed its results. This year, for the first time, research and experience company Qualtrics queried more than 1,000 hotel guests to find out what worked and what didn’t during their hotel stays. Perhaps seeing the glass as half empty, the results were issued in the Hotel Pain Index. The first lesson that comes through is that housekeepers might be the most important hotel employees. Cleanliness is the first thing that 45 percent of guests notice when they walk into a room for the first time. Room size mattered much less, with only 20 percent noticing that immediately. Bed quality and the view, two major selling points, tied for the immediate attention of 5 percent of guests. By the same token, room cleanliness was by far the highest-rated response when guests were asked what was most likely to cause a positive experience at a hotel. Cleanliness got 76 percent of respondents’ votes, followed by Wi-Fi at 65 percent, a quiet room at 63 percent, free breakfast at 62 percent and free parking at 57 percent. Suffice to say that free breakfast has never been a hallmark of the Las Vegas experience, and free parking… well, you’ve heard plenty about that on the Strip. So what brings the pain? Guests said that a dirty room (66 percent), unfriendly employees (57 percent) and an uncomfortable bed (56 percent) were the most likely culprits to cause a bad hotel experience. Just over half of guests cited “unexpected fees” as a problem causer, followed by “loud neighbors.” The good news for hotels is that the top thing guests are looking for—a clean room—is well within their grasp. Given adequate staffing and support, there is no defensible reason that every room sold to the public cannot be tidy. It may be a commentary on industry practices that something most of us would consider a baseline— cleanliness—is that critical of a factor in guest happiness. People are checking into a lot of rooms they consider dirty. Likewise, “unfriendly employees” can be avoided, chiefly by training and paying them well. Most people don’t start their day planning to be cranky, but overwork and stress have a way of stifling friendliness. Investing in employees might be the best way for hotels to raise customer satisfaction. When things go wrong, they go really wrong: 13 percent of guests said that a hotel stay has driven them to tears. High expectations and high room rates apparently bring big drama, as 34 percent of respondents who stay at five-star hotels claiming that they have cried
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Perceptions are vital in hospitality. This makes it troubling that survey respondents do not generally feel they are getting value. because of hotel problems. Almost a quarter of those surveyed said that their bad experience led to a fight with their spouse or partner, with 18 percent saying it ruined their entire vacation. So are five-star hotel rooms really so filthy, noisy and unfriendly that more than a third of the time it ends in tears? Probably not. Nine percent of those surveyed claimed that they were disturbed during their hotel stay by a room that wasn’t dirty or too close to the ice machine, but haunted. Unless they were staying with Pacman or Hamlet, it’s exceedingly unlikely that they were actually plagued by ghosts. On the other hand, the Ghostbusters did get their first gig from the Sedgewick Hotel, so you never know. Seriously, though, guest perceptions are vital in hospitality. This makes it troubling that survey respondents do not, generally, feel they are getting value. When asked if they check out thinking they overpaid for their stay, 82 percent said yes, with five-star guests four times more likely to claim that they always overpay. While the perfect hotel—immaculately clean, soundproofed walls, glowing employees, super-comfortable beds, free of spectral anomalies—might not exist outside of guests’ expectations, the Qualtrics Hotel Pain Index provides a reminder for those in hospitality that many times, it’s the simple things that matter most. Give people a clean room without hidden fees or add-ons, staffed by helpful employees, and they may come back again. Unless ghosts mess it all up. 7 David G. Schwartz is the director of UNLV’s Center for Gaming Research.
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SPACES & PLACES
Dead Ends and Dumpster Divers WHEN ASKED WHY HE WANTED TO CLIMB MOUNT EVEREST,
NOTES FROM THE ALLEYWAYS OF DOWNTOWN LAS VEGAS
mountaineer George Mallory responded, “Because it’s there.” Maybe that was my motive for exploring the alleyways of Downtown Las Vegas: because they’re there. Of course, it may have also had something to do with the fact that I was there, living in the depths of this elaborate network and using it occasionally to get to Fremont East, Real Results Fitness or the Las Vegas Library. Curiosity drove me. I wanted to burn some calories. My reasons were varied, I suppose—but when the short man with a nose ring and shaved head threatened to take my trusty steed in Naked City, I questioned all of them. For three weeks, I investigated the
By MATTHEW O’BRIEN
alleyways on my bike, focusing on the oddly shaped area bounded by Sahara, Interstate 15, the 95 and Maryland Parkway. Most of these alleys trend northsouth. I biked as many of them as I could find, covering more than 20 miles. (Some of the alleys stretch nearly a mile.) I encountered things you might expect—graffiti, homeless camps, sous-chefs on smoke breaks—and things you might not—history, dazzling murals, aromatic smells. Mount your steed or rent one from the nearest Bike Share station, and ride along with me as I recap the expedition. Things didn’t end well for Mallory—it gets chilly up there at night, eh, mate?— but the Downtown alleys turned out to be much tamer than Everest.
Photography KRYSTAL RAMIREZ
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PHOTO SHOOTS
The exploration confirmed something I already suspected: A lot of photo shoots take place in the alleys (especially the easily accessible, gritty-looking one behind Le Thai and Beauty Bar). Typically, the subject is a pinup girl in high heels who couldn’t make it to the other end of the alley if a modeling contract was waiting for her. She looks uncomfortable, out of place. Not Michael Chambers Jr. Dressed in an Ecko cap, Calvin Klein T-shirt, black sweats and Nikes, he blended into the alley that juts north from El Cortez and is lined with murals left over from the Life Is Beautiful festival. It didn’t appear to be his first time in an alley. In fact, he patrols them by day as a supervisor for Acme Security. He’s also a rapper, which explains why he was gesticulating and being trailed by a small camera crew. “I’m doing a photo shoot to help promote my music and my ministry,” says Chambers, a gospel rapper who goes by the name Mike Chambers_Jr. “Going to church as long as I have, people heard my rapping and said, ‘Why don’t you put out an album,’ so that’s what I’m doing.” The album is titled Epoch Muzik. Chambers says he’s delivering the word of God over beats and doing so in a unique manner. It’s a new era, he adds. Then, before I climbed back onto my bike, he blessed me with a few bars. “I’m not a human being/ I’m a spiritual one/ Nowhere near having Nas’ tats/ But I am God’s son.”
THE CITY OF LAS VEGAS
Michael Chambers Jr. performs in the alley behind El Cortez Cabana Suites
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Last year, at a city council meeting, the City of Las Vegas unveiled its Downtown Alley Design Guidebook. The 40page document has a table of contents with chapter headings such as “Benefits to the Community,” “Alley Activation Flow Chart” and “The Alley of the Arts.” The guidebook, in short, asserts that Downtown’s alleys could be transformed into safe, vibrant “urban experiences”— parks, bike paths, dining areas, festival grounds, etc.—with the help of community partners. (Paging Tony Hsieh.) It also identifies challenges and ranks the alleys that have the most potential for “activation” (i.e., transformation). The city hoped the guidebook would spark discussion and ideas, and planning director
Tom Perrigo indicated it’s an ongoing process. The challenge is that many of the alleys serve a purpose: deliveries, utilities, garbage disposal. The plans have not yet come to fruition, he concluded, but the city is working hard to make them a reality.
DUMPSTER DIVERS
The line between “housed” and “homeless” is blurred in the alleys. Some of the bungalows, apartments and weeklies appear below code, and some of the homeless camps are cardboard Taj Mahals. During the day, when the bordering businesses are active, the camps are empty. At night, there are no vacancies. Steve, who I met behind the Jack in the Box at Main Street and Wyoming Avenue, has lived in the alleys off and on for two years. He explained their appeal. “It’s out of the public eye. People come to Vegas on vacation, and the homeless tend to get in the way of that, I guess. Here you’re out of the way and the police don’t mess with you. A lot of people get high in the alleys, too, and have sex in them. And they just throw shit everywhere.” To combat the littering and the backlash it could bring, Steve picks up trash as he makes his rounds. (“I just go wherever my feet take me.”) He says some of the business owners give food to the homeless, and some of the residents give them money. It’s disrespectful to, in return, trash the area. He feels the least he can do is help keep it clean. Leaning on his cart, which contained plastic bottles, a loaf of bread and a Texas flag (his find of the day so far), Steve told me he became homeless when he left his wife, who was an escort and did things he didn’t approve of. He has worked in construction and fast food restaurants, but he is having trouble finding a job because, among other things, he doesn’t have an ID. His goal is to get off the streets and go to seminary school. “I want to be a preacher,” he said with an ironic smile.
BUSINESS OWNERS
Most Downtown businesses use the alleys in a traditional manner (deliveries, utilities, garbage disposal), if at all. ReBAR owner Derek Stonebarger views this as a missed opportunity. He says high rents in desirable areas such as the Arts District and Fremont East oblige owners to make the most of every square
foot, and that, in his case, includes the front sidewalk and the alley. Stonebarger views the alley and the lot across from it as an extension of his bar/antique store and uses them to showcase reclaimed or recycled tables and chairs, and for pop-up events, film screenings, live music and First Friday. (A makeshift outdoor theater occupies the lot.) “One of my goals, as the newly elected Las Vegas Arts District board president, is to develop the alleys,” Stonebarger says. “I’m meeting with city officials and planners to work toward making the alley behind ReBAR, and others in the Arts District, a tier III alley, which means it would be walkable and handicap accessible, and have ample lighting.” Stonebarger hopes to name it Art Alley or Joyce Straus Art Alley, after the longtime artist and art teacher who died in 2013.
NAKED CITY
“Hey, brother. Can you spare a few dollars?” slurred the short, skinny man with a nose ring and shaved head. It was noon on a Saturday and 85 degrees. He was wearing a camouflage jacket. I squeezed the brakes at the entrance to the alley where he stood like a gatekeeper and straddled my bike. The Stratosphere loomed over my left shoulder. I patted my pockets. “Sorry,” I said. “I’m tight on money.” He took two steps toward me. “Come on, man! You can give me a few bucks.” I shrugged, then climbed back onto the bike. As I pedaled past him, he turned toward me. “What if I took your bike? You can’t come through the ’hood and not give something up.” I thought about U-turning and telling him that might be a little more difficult than he suspects, but three people were approaching from the opposite end of the alley, clutching cans concealed in paper bags. Plus, the man was clearly drunk or high. No need to escalate things, I told myself, pedaling casually. Not in a narrow alley littered with blind spots. Not when surrounded by boarded-up
buildings and sun-bleached lean-tos. Not where they say “nice bike” with lust in their voice. Here in Naked City, it’s best to keep the spokes spinning.
ART
I was born in Washington, D.C., and raised in the Atlanta area, so I’m partial to big cities. I’m inspired by their energy and edge and like getting lost in the layered landscape: skyscrapers, parking garages, parks, rail yards, underground flood channels. Alleys, of course, are a defining feature of this terrain, but most of Vegas’ are too safe and sterile to get the blood flowing. Where are the stickered, markered doors? Where are the neon signs reflected in dumpster juice? And closed, swinging gates at the entrances are a definite buzzkill. Our alleys find some stretch of redemption with their art. “Graffiti Alley” (Utah Avenue between Main and Commerce streets), the alley north of Art Square and the one behind Cornish Pasty, among others, are worth visiting at the golden hour with your smartphone or camera. However, the best alley for art is north of Ogden Avenue between Seventh and Eighth streets. It’s home to only three pieces, located at its bookends, but they’re all largescale and thought-provoking. Spanish street artist Gonzalo Borondo’s portrait of a solemn, mustached man in a loose-fitting shirt wraps around the southwest corner of the alley, splitting the subject in two. The man’s right hand rests on his chest; his left is tucked in his shirt (a la Napoleon). His arms, chest and face are dabbed red. The image, commissioned by Life Is Beautiful in 2014, reminds me of a Guantanamo detainee, but, considering the artist’s roots, could be related to the Spanish Civil War. Across the alley from Borondo’s piece is a more cheerful (at a glance) mural by Australian artist Fintan Magee. The mural, which also wraps around the corner, depicts a man and woman stretched across mountainous terrain, surrounded by rabbits. Sounds idyllic, doesn’t it? However, the man and woman are holding
up umbrellas, perhaps in preparation for some kind of environmental disaster. Martin Whatson’s 2016 Life Is Beautiful mural dresses up the alley’s north end. The centerpiece is a uniformed soldier or police officer kneeling behind a riot shield (that’s— probably not coincidentally—shaped like an iPhone). The background consists of riotous graffiti tags, which seem to be bearing down on the soldier/officer. As you turn the corner of El Cortez’s parking garage, the piece continues: a hand pulling down a gray curtain, revealing more tags. Would you rather look at a drab wall or colorful art, Whatson seems to be asking.
HISTORY
While the city and Stonebarger hope to “activate” the alleys, one local newsman and historian simply hopes they don’t disappear. When I talked to Bob Stoldal and told him I was biking the alleys, he responded, “Great idea! Use them while you can. They will be gone soon.” Stoldal went on to say he recently visited the alley south of the Fremont Street Experience between Main and First streets, looking for the old Northern Club. He said he discovered that the Northern, which received Nevada’s first gambling license and was Bugsy Siegel’s first operation in the state, had been torn down, and the alley was covered with steel plates and traffic barriers. In a subsequent conversation, Stoldal lamented the fact that the alley north of Ogden Avenue between First Street and Casino Center Boulevard, which led to the infamous red-light district Block 16 and was once the busiest alley in the city in the early 1900s, had been filled in with a parking garage. Stoldal suggested that the alleys, laid out as they were with the roads and blocks of Downtown, house a lot of history but don’t receive many preservation protections. This, combined with Downtown’s growth, makes him fear the worst. Which begs the question: What do we lose when we lose an alley? More than we can imagine. 7
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ASK A NATIVE
Ghosts of Strip Clubs Past By James P. Reza Photography Cierra Pedro
CONVERSATIONS
I’m sure there was a live-music venue where the Spearmint Rhino strip club is now. A little help?
Despite all those late nights and loud music, you are correct! Before Spearmint Rhino shimmied into the industrial center west of the Strip, it was home to a long row of auto repair garages, parts shops and supply stores, as well as the divey Hob Nob Lounge. According to stories and event listings printed in Scope magazine and UNLV’s Rebel Yell, the Nob was a joint where jazz, rock and alternative bands could “really crank it up” due to its “outof-the-way” location. But by mid-1994, live music at the location was apparently over and the listings dried up. My memory suggests that around that time, a tiny, all-nude strip club opened next door to the Hob Nob, the kind of single-stage spot where dancers had to play their own songs on the jukebox. If my memory continues to serve me well, soon after, the Hob Nob erected a glass partition between itself and the strip club in what I assume was a genius effort to skirt the rules prohibiting alcohol in all nude clubs (except the grandfathered Palomino).
Speaking of strip clubs and what they used to be... It has been said that Sapphire is so huge that it feels like a gymnasium, and for good reason. Before the strip club was opened by OG’s Pete Eliades in 2002, the building was home to the Las Vegas Sporting House, the city’s premier health club. Featuring racquetball and basketball courts, hot and cold pools, a gym and a health food diner, the Sporting House was where Las Vegas society went to stay fit and close big deals. Want more? Not too far away from the Rhino and Sapphire lies Cheetahs. Before it was made famous by Paul Verhoeven’s 1995 film Showgirls (and infamous by the Operation G-String political corruption investigation), Cheetahs was a longtime live rock and jazz nightclub called the Troubadour, booked by veteran Vegas promoter Michael Schivo. It even enjoyed a brief 1980s stint as an all-ages alternative music club under the same name before eventually going topless. Even the venerable Tommy Rocker’s, open since 1989, briefly flirted with temptation as a topless bar in 2007. Rocker was inspired by a similar transition playing out at Play It Again Sam’s, a piano bar that went topless in what is now Chinatown. But by 2009, Tommy Rocker’s was back to its standard party rock and video poker vibe, proving that even in Las Vegas, skin doesn’t always sell. Have a question or comment about Las Vegas past, present or future? Send them to askanative@vegasseven.com.
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CONVERSATIONS
Music
By Jarret Keene Photography Anthony Mair
History beau dobney transitions from hardcore-punk frontman to hard Rock hotel memorabilia curator before catching a concert at Vinyl or The Joint, you might take a moment to check out the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino’s memorabilia displays. They’re always a blast to look at, whether we’re talking the Mastodon exhibit (which includes guitars and handwritten song lyrics) or the Imagine Dragons “On Top of the World” assemblage (showcasing spacesuits and a director’s clapboard), which is a tribute to the band’s music video, itself an homage to the classic film 2001: A Space Odyssey. Indeed, the Hard Rock exhibits remind us that rock ’n’ roll is an epic story, an enduring narrative mythology. Sometimes the tales are tragic, such as Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell’s recent suicide. Mostly, though, rock confirms our appetite for musical expression. The person furthering the Hard Rock’s commitment to honoring rock history is exhibit and memorabilia coordinator Beau Dobney. He doesn’t boast a degree in museum studies, but he has years of experience playing in the Las Vegas hardcore scene, which inspired him to assemble “Lucky Punks,” a punk-themed series mounted on the walls of Mr. Lucky’s, the property’s 24-hour diner. What got the exhibit rolling? While working with Coheed and Cambria backstage, Dobney met the band’s tour manager, Pete Stahl. “I was telling him how I was procuring [items] for a sizable late ’70s to early ’80s hardcore punk display,” Dobney recalls. “My eyes lit up when [Stahl] said he was in a band on Dischord Records.” That band was Scream. Stahl then reached out to his old drummer, Dave Grohl (of Foo Fighters), to secure a floor tom, a piece from Grohl’s drum kit when he played with Scream and later with Nirvana. The display includes a sweat-smudged backstage pass for a Nirvana show at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. “Part of my goal is to give bands that haven’t enjoyed their moment in the sun the attention they’ve earned,” Dobney says, while giving Vegas Seven a tour of the exhibits. “The layman might not recognize T.S.O.L. and D.O.A., but they’re part of the fabric of early hardcore punk.” Mike Roche, a tattoo artist at Hart & Huntington, also helped Dobney. The two met backstage at a Rancid concert, where Roche revealed he plays bass in T.S.O.L. The result is the T.S.O.L. case in the “Lucky Punks” exhibit.
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“As I was procuring for this punk display,” Dobney notes, “I kept running into people who were involved in early hardcore punk.” Dobney’s new gig allows him to collaborate with second-tier yet hugely influential bands, and to tell them: “I want to display what you have left.” We head over to the Pharrell exhibit. Lit within a case adjacent to the Hard Rock Tower is the custom Nick Fouquet hat seen in Pharrell’s 2014 Grammy performance of record of the year winner “Get Lucky,” in which the artist performed with Daft Punk and Stevie Wonder. Upstairs in the admin offices, Dobney explains his trajectory: He joined the Hard Rock in 2013 as an exhibits coordinator (hired by legendary rock-memorabilia curator Warwick Stone, who left the position in December 2016), started part-time and learned the ropes. Now he does the staging, sets stuff up in cases and maintains the majority of Hard Rock memorabilia. Everything is catalogued in what looks to be two full executive suites crammed with clothes, gear and tour paraphernalia. In one corner, there’s Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Zakk Wylde’s iconic black-and-white bullseye Les Paul guitar; in another, a Liberation, a Moog strap-on keytar-style portable synthesizer. “Before, there was a big ’50s, ’60s vibe to the curation. I’m an ’80s, ’90s kid,” Dobney says. “What I’ve found is that as long as you have a story to go with it, anything can work. There are bands coming out today who need their stories told, too.” 7
CONVERSATIONS
dobney's top 5 the curator's favorite items in hrh's music memorabilia collection “The dress that [St. Vincent frontwoman] Annie Clark gave us from her tour with David Byrne. Sometimes people raise an eyebrow, but then I remind them she was asked to sub in for Kurt Cobain during Nirvana’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It’s a black and purple velvety tube dress. I’m a massive St. Vincent fan. I love that I’m able to inject the fringe and the indie stuff.” “We just put up a Chris Cornell display next to the Magic Mike [Live Las Vegas] entryway. [It centers on] a guitar from the early Hard Rock Café collection. A modified Gibson Les Paul, [the members of Soundgarden] signed it and donated it to the café in 1992. And I paired it with a print from Seattle grunge photographer Charles Peterson’s Screaming Life book. It’s crazy to think that Soundgarden formed in the mid-’80s! He’d played for years, but Cornell still had so much more music to give us.” “Oh, man, the Freddie Mercury jacket from Queen’s 1986 Magic tour, the band’s biggest and final tour with Mercury. I paired it with videos of him playing live in Budapest wearing that jacket. There’s so much good stuff on A Kind of Magic, like the Highlander film ballad “Who Wants To Live Forever?” I had three sisters growing up, and they were always introducing me to new music, and Magic was just as important to me as hair metal, New Wave, classic rock.” “Ben Weinman, lead guitarist in prog-hardcore legend
Dillinger Escape Plan, was nice enough to give us a guitar,
an ESP with a special feature that allows it to be thrown down a flight of stairs and stay in perfect tune. He signed it here with a Sharpie: ‘No great art ever comes from comfort.’ When I think of prog, I can’t think of anyone better than Dillinger, really.” “My all-time favorite piece? Probably this fiber-optic guitar from Styx, Tommy Shaw’s then state-of-the-art instrument, including 15 feet of transparent plastic fibers and light housing weighing 30-plus pounds. When we got it, it was all melted. I’d never worked on fiber optics before, much less from the 1980s. It’s quite primitive now, considering all the advancement in LEDs, but it was cutting-edge back then.”
Clockwise from top: The suit jacket Iggy Pop wore for The Idiot album cover photo shoot, a Slipknot doll, a guitar signed by the members of Skid Row.
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CONVERSATIONS
LUCKY NO. 7
We asked the Vegas Seven staff:
Where is the best place to get lost in Las Vegas? “At the intersection of Tropicana Avenue and Pecos Road, there is a Goodwill store, the Thai Room restaurant and a movie theater where tickets are never more than $3.50. I could kill an entire day by myself in this area.” –SHANNON MILLER, EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
“Red Rock National Conservation Area. There have been times when I’ve gotten geographically lost, but I’m more often lost in thought, looking at the birds and wildflowers, lizards and landscapes.” –JESSIE O’BRIEN, DTLV.COM EDITOR “Downtown. I can spend hours looking at art, eating great food, listening to good music and getting yelled at by drunk people.” –RYAN VELLINGA, EDITORIAL INTERN “99 Ranch Market in Chinatown. The smells, so foreign and pungent, stimulate the senses like nothing else. You’ll find condiments or dry goods so exotic you won’t have the first clue how to use them, but you buy them anyway. And watching little Asian ladies navigate the aisles—so single-minded in their pursuit of that bunch of basil or this specific type of curry—is pure sport.” –GENEVIE DURANO, MANAGING EDITOR/DINING
Caption goes here
“If you’re me, IKEA. Or, in a pinch, The Container Store. Or REI.” –XANIA WOODMAN, SENIOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR, BEVERAGE “In the immortal words of Joan Crawford: ‘Any dark bar.’” –LISSA TOWNSEND RODGERS, EDITOR AT LARGE “When I went to UNLV, I used to spend long breaks between classes at the Clark County Library. There’s always an event happening, and it features a great selection of graphic novels. Plus, the bona fide peace you feel is unmatchable—going there is pure joy.” –AMBER SAMPSON, WEB EDITOR
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