• Author Sessions 
• 10:00 am -4:00 pm  My co-author, Carey Burke, and I will be part of the Author Sessions.  We will be selling copies of our book, "Las Vegas: 1905-1965" so come by and get your autographed copy!  I will also have copies of my DVD, "The Story of Classic Las Vegas" for sale.  By buying on Saturday, you can save up to $11.00 when you buy both!  Time: 10:00 am

Time: 11:00 am

If you missed last night's "Untold Stories" about Howard Hughes, you should probably kick yourself.  It was a great evening of history, memories and stories.  Geoff Schumacher, Paul Winn and Robert McCaffery were wonderful.  We heard about Hughes' early years, in Hollywood as well as his time in Las Vegas prior to 1966.

We heard about his almost tragic crash in Beverly Hills and how that could have been avoided.  Also, the topic of the flying boat, aka the Spruce Goose, and the effort to keep it from getting sliced up to nine different museums.

And lastly, about Hughes in Las Vegas in the mid to late 1960s.  His relationship with Hank Greenspun, with Robert Maheu, his casino buying spree and more.

"Untold Stories" is the only monthly series that each month focuses on a different historic Las Vegas topic.  Each month, men and women who helped build Las Vegas, who helped make our history and who watched our town grow from a dusty railroad town to the Entertainment Capital of the World, come out to share their stories and memories.

If you aren't there, you should be because it is history, living history, at its finest.  You won't hear these stories anywhere else.  You won't get the chance anywhere else, to talk with them first hand, to see the memorabilia that they bring.

So, come on, what are you waiting for?

Join us the first Thursday of each month (dark in January) at the Springs Preserve for "Untold Stories" and find out more about the place we all call home.

You won't be disappointed!

On Thursday, November 5th, "Untold Stories" will take a look at Howard Hughes.

The enigmatic millionaire is best known for his buying spree of Las Vegas hotels in the mid-1960s.  We will take a look at Hughes not only in that era but an earlier era, when he used to visit Las Vegas, hang out with locals and drop by the showrooms and casinos of the day.

Panelists include:

Geoff Schumacher, author of "Howard Hughes: Power, Paranoia and Palace Intrigue"

Paul Winn, who worked for Hughes and later Summa Corp.

Robert McCaffrey, who knew Hughes in his aviation days:  http://theaviatorhh.com/

Thursday, November 5th

Las Vegas Springs Preserve

Desert Learning Center

6:30 pm

Admission $9 (new, lower price) (Discounts available if you buy a three series pass)

We hope to see you there!

From our pals at the City of Las Vegas Historic Preservation Office comes this news:

We think it's wonderful that some of the signs in the Neon Boneyard are being restored and being put back into action!

Kudos to everyone involved!

We hope to see you there!

The Vegas Valley Book Festival begins later this week! 

A Celebration of the Written, Spoken and Illustrated Word

The Vegas Valley Book Festival, the largest literature event in Las Vegas, will be held November 4 – 8, 2009, with most events taking place at the historic Fifth Street School downtown. Now in its eighth year, this annual community festival was founded on the simple premise of bringing together those who write books and those who love to read them. The five-day festival is presented by the City of Las Vegas Office of Cultural Affairs, Las Vegas-Clark County Library District, Nevada Humanities and the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

• November 4, 2009
  • The Art of Presentation
    Reception at 6:00 pm Fifth Street School Auditorium at 7:00 pm
     Time: 7:00 pm



• November 5, 2009
  • Opening Keynote Address
    Opening Keynote Address
    Time: 7:00 pm
    Kay Ryan, the Poet Laureate of the United States, presents the opening keynote address

• November 6, 2009
  • Sin City Sonneteer Spectacle
    “The Sin City Sonneteer Spectacle” will be a literary pageant - on wheels - with stops at select art galleries and bars downtown. Listen to and observe the finest word warriors in Vegas as they share their celebrated verse with the masses. at 6:00 pm
    Time:
  • 6:00 pm

 

• November 7, 2009
  • Author Sessions 
  • 10:00 am -4:00 pm  My co-author, Carey Burke, and I will be part of the Author Sessions.  We will be selling copies of our book, "Las Vegas: 1905-1965" so come by and get your autographed copy!  I will also have copies of my DVD, "The Story of Classic Las Vegas" for sale.  By buying on Saturday, you can save up to $11.00 when you buy both!
  • Target Childrens Book Festival
    Time: 10:00 am
  • Comics Festival
    Time: 11:00 am
• • Las Vegas Writes Presents
  • Time: 4:00 pm
    Vu Tran will read the seventh and final chapter of the collaborative serial e-novel. Contributing authors include Lee Barnes, John Irsfeld, Brian Rouff, Leah Bailly, John L. Smith, Constance Ford, and Vu Tran. Session facilitated by Geoff Schumacher.
  • Amelias Long Journey
    Time: 7:00 pm
  • Author and Columnist John L. Smith presents a reading from his new book, "Amelia's Long Journey".  The book is about his young daughter's struggle with cancer and how that struggle affects and inspires not only her family but those around her as well.
  • Clark County Library, Flamingo Branch.
• November 8, 2009
  • Author Sessions
  • 10:00-4:00 pm  Emphasis on Cookbooks!
  • 11:15 am:
  • Geoff Schumacher, journalist and author, Michael Green, historian, Lorraine Hunt-Bono,  and Jack Sheehan, author and humorist. From Bugsy Siegel and Benny Binion to Howard Hughes and Steve Wynn, eccentric and visionary characters populate Las Vegas history — and this panel of local experts will break down who among them was truly important and who was just colorful.
  • Closing Keynote Address 
  •  Time: 7:00 pm
  • E.L. Doctrow, one of the most respected authors of our time, will be delivering the closing Keynote Address.