|
Mapes Hotel
The Mapes Hotel was a hotel and casino located in Downtown Reno, Nevada, next to the Truckee River on Virginia Street. It was built in 1947 and opened on December 17 of that year. It was the first skyscraper built in the Western United States since the start of World War II. Built in a distinctive Art Deco style, the hotel was a unique high-rise built to combine a hotel and casino, providing the prototype for modern hotel/casinos. History When it opened in 1947, the 12-story Mapes Hotel was the tallest building in Nevada until the 1956 opening of the Fremont Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Owned by the Mapes family, the hotel quickly became, for most of the 1950s and 1960s, the premier hotel in Reno. Many celebrities of that era stayed there, including Marilyn Monroe, Montgomery Clift and Clark Gable during the filming of '' The Misfits''; U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy, who over a drink in the Lamplighter bar at the bottom floor of the hotel, admitted to a reporter that he did n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, in the Truckee River valley, on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada, it is about northeast of Lake Tahoe. Known as "The Biggest Little City in the World", Reno is the List of United States cities by population, 78th most populous city in the United States, the List of cities in Nevada, third most populous city in Nevada, and the most populous in Nevada outside the Las Vegas Valley. The city had a population of 264,165 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city is named after Civil War Union major general Jesse L. Reno, who was killed in action during the American Civil War at the Battle of South Mountain, on Fox's Gap. Reno is part of the Reno, NV Metropolitan Statistical Area, Reno–Sparks metropolitan area, the second-m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Venona Project
The Venona project was a United States counterintelligence program initiated during World War II by the United States Army's Signal Intelligence Service and later absorbed by the National Security Agency (NSA), that ran from February 1, 1943, until October 1, 1980. It was intended to decrypt messages transmitted by the intelligence agencies of the Soviet Union (e.g. the NKVD, the KGB, and the GRU). Initiated when the Soviet Union was an ally of the US, the program continued during the Cold War, when the Soviet Union was considered an enemy. During the 37-year duration of the Venona project, the Signal Intelligence Service decrypted and translated approximately 3,000 messages. The signals intelligence yield included discovery of the Cambridge Five espionage ring in the United Kingdom, and also of Soviet espionage of the Manhattan Project in the US, known as Project Enormous. Some of the espionage was undertaken to support the Soviet atomic bomb project. The Venona project remai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
California Split
''California Split'' is a 1974 American comedy-drama film directed by Robert Altman and starring Elliott Gould and George Segal as a pair of gamblers. It was the first non- Cinerama film to use eight-track stereo sound. Plot In Los Angeles, a friendship blossoms between Bill Denny and Charlie Waters, fueled by their shared passion for gambling. The connection solidifies after a card player, whose winnings they have acquired, subjects them to a violent assault and robbery. Charlie, a wisecracking joker residing with two prostitutes, emerges as a seasoned gambler perpetually seeking the next big score. His wagers span poker, horse racing, boxing, and any opportunity offering odds. Initially, Bill is not as deeply entrenched in the gambling world. By day, he dabbles in work at a magazine, sidestepping his boss. Nevertheless, he is well on his way to succumbing to a full-fledged gaming addiction. As the two men traverse Charlie's home, Bill's office, seedy bars, card rooms, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mustang Ranch
The Mustang Ranch is a brothel in Storey County, Nevada, about east of Reno. Under the past and original owner Joe Conforte, Mustang Ranch Brothel, the precursor to Mustang Ranch, became Nevada's first licensed brothel in 1971. This eventually led to the legalization of brothels in 10 of 17 counties in the state. Mustang Ranch opened to the public in 1971 and was America's largest brothel with , and the most profitable. The Mustang Ranch was forfeited to the federal government in 1999 following Conforte's convictions for tax fraud, racketeering and other crimes. The Mustang Ranch was auctioned off by the United States government on eBay. Lance Gilman’s bid was the last bid for $145,100 and he reopened the Mustang Ranch 5 miles away. Operation The courtesans lived on the ranch during their entire shift, which lasted from several days to several weeks. In the early 1970s, the women were lingerie clad. Conforte claimed in 1971 that the age range of the working girls was 18 t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joe Conforte
Joseph Conforte (December 10, 1925 – March 4, 2019) was an Italian-born legal brothel owner, professional boxing promoter, restaurateur, and philanthropist. Known primarily for owning and operating the Mustang Ranch in Sparks, Nevada, he fled from the United States to Brazil in order to evade the FBI and lived there for the rest of his life. Early life Born in Italy, Conforte was the original owner of the Mustang Ranch and a prominent advocate for legal prostitution, becoming a fixture in Sparks, Nevada. He was married to Sally Conforte (née Burgess). Conforte was born Giuseppe Christophe Conforte in Augusta, Sicily, December 10, 1925, the youngest of one brother and three sisters. His birth date is often mistaken as January 6, 1926. His mother died when he was five. Giuseppe traveled to Ellis Island on the ''Rex'' steamship in December 1937. Giuseppe was given the name Joseph by immigration services. Conforte's father Agostino ran a small produce shop in the Dorchest ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walter Matthau
Walter John Matthau ( Matthow; ; October 1, 1920 – July 1, 2000) was an American actor, known for his "hangdog face" and for playing world-weary characters. He starred in 10 films alongside his real-life friend Jack Lemmon, including '' The Odd Couple'' (1968) and ''Grumpy Old Men'' (1993). ''The New York Times'' called this "one of Hollywood's most successful pairings". Among other accolades, he was an Academy Award, a two-time BAFTA Award, and two-time Tony Award winner. On Broadway, Matthau originated the role of Oscar Madison in '' The Odd Couple'' by playwright Neil Simon, for which he received a Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Play in 1965, his second after '' A Shot in the Dark'' in 1962. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the Billy Wilder film ''The Fortune Cookie'' (1966), with further Best Actor nominations for '' Kotch'' (1971) and ''The Sunshine Boys'' (1975). He gained further recognition for his portrayal of the c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jack Carson
John Elmer Carson (October 27, 1910 – January 2, 1963), known as Jack Carson, was a Canadian-born American film actor. Carson often played the role of comedic friend in films of the 1940s and 1950s, including '' The Strawberry Blonde'' (1941) with James Cagney and '' Arsenic and Old Lace'' (1944) with Cary Grant. He appeared in such dramas as '' Mildred Pierce'' (1945), ''A Star is Born'' (1954), and ''Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'' (1958). He worked for RKO and MGM (where he was cast opposite Myrna Loy and William Powell in '' Love Crazy'', 1941), but most of his notable work was for Warner Bros. Early years Carson was born on October 27, 1910, in Carman, Manitoba, to Elmer and Elsa Carson (née Brunke). He was the younger brother of actor Robert Carson (1909–1979). His father was an executive with an insurance company. In 1914, the family moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which he reportedly regarded as his hometown. He attended high school at Hartford School (Milwaukee) a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bonanza
''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 12, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 431 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running Western, the second-longest-running Western series on American network television (behind CBS's '' Gunsmoke''), and one of the longest-running, live-action American series. The show continues to air in syndication. The show is set in the 1860s and centers on the wealthy Cartwright family, who live in the vicinity of Virginia City, Nevada, bordering Lake Tahoe. The series initially starred Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Dan Blocker and Michael Landon and later featured (at various times) Guy Williams, David Canary, Mitch Vogel and Tim Matheson. The show is known for presenting pressing moral dilemmas. The title "Bonanza" is a term used by miners in regard to a large vein or deposit of silver ore, from Spanish ''bonanza'' (rich ore body) and commonly refers to the 1859 revelation o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Racial Segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of people into race (human classification), racial or other Ethnicity, ethnic groups in daily life. Segregation can involve the spatial separation of the races, and mandatory use of different institutions, such as schools and hospitals by people of different races. Specifically, it may be applied to activities such as eating in restaurants, drinking from water fountains, using public toilets, attending schools, going to movie theaters, riding buses, renting or purchasing homes, renting hotel rooms, going to supermarkets, or attending places of worship. In addition, segregation often allows close contact between members of different racial or ethnic groups in social hierarchy, hierarchical situations, such as allowing a person of one race to work as a servant for a member of another race. Racial segregation has generally been outlawed worldwide. Segregation is defined by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance as "the act by w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sammy Davis Jr
Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, actor, comedian, dancer, and musician. At age two, Davis began his career in Vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the Will Mastin Trio, which toured nationally, and his film career began in 1933. After military service, Davis returned to the trio and became a sensation following key nightclub performances at Ciro's (in West Hollywood) in 1951, including one after the 23rd Academy Awards, Academy Awards ceremony. With the trio, he became a recording artist. In 1954, at the age of 29, he lost his left eye in a car accident. Several years later, he converted to Judaism, finding commonalities between the oppression experienced both by black Americans and Jewish communities.Sammy Davis Jr. Biography Biography.com. Retrieve ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Milton Berle
Milton Berle (born Mendel Berlinger; ; July 12, 1908 – March 27, 2002) was an American actor and comedian. His career as an entertainer spanned over eight decades, first in silent films and on stage as a child actor, then in radio, movies and television. As the host of NBC's '' Texaco Star Theatre'' (1948–1953), he was the first major American television star and was known to millions of viewers as "Uncle Miltie" and "Mr. Television" during the first Golden Age of Television. He was honored with two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his work in both radio and TV. Early life Milton Berle was born into a Jewish family in a five-story walkup in the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan. His given name was Mendel Berlinger, but he chose Milton Berle as his professional name when he was 16. His father, Moses Berlinger (1872–1938), was of German-Jewish descent and worked as a paint and varnish salesman. His mother, Sarah (Sadie) Glantz Berlinger (1877–1954), who was of Poli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jimmy Durante
James Francis Durante ( , ; February 10, 1893 – January 29, 1980) was an American comedian, actor, singer, and pianist. His distinctive gravelly speech, Lower East Side New York accent, accent, comic language-butchery, jazz-influenced songs, and prominent nose helped make him one of the United States' most familiar and popular personalities of the 1920s through the 1970s. He often referred to his nose as ''the schnozzola'' (Italianization of the American Yiddish slang word ''schnoz'', meaning "big nose"), and the word became his nickname. Early life Childhood Durante was born on the Lower East Side of New York City. He was the youngest of four children born to Rosa (née Lentino) and Bartolomeo Durante, both immigrants from Salerno, Campania, Italy. Bartolomeo was a barber. Durante served as an Altar server#Altar servers in the Catholic Church, altar boy at St. Malachy Roman Catholic Church, known as the Actor's Chapel. Early career Durante dropped out of school in seven ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
