Latest
Seven Questions
Jamie Masada
The Laugh Factory founder on his new club at the Tropicana, the evolution of comedy and George Carlin’s genius
April 12th, 2012
Jamie Masada opened the Laugh Factory in 1979 with the promise to pay comedians a respectable rate, and soon his venue became one of L.A.’s most iconic comedy clubs. On April 9, Masada officially took over Brad Garrett’s former space at the Tropicana, opening a new Laugh Factory outpost, complete with a Comedy Walk of Fame and Stand-Up Comedy Interactive Museum. Read more »
The Latest Thought
Downtown, Unbuttoned
The city wanted to keep the homeless from sleeping in a downtown plaza. So it ruined the plaza.
April 12th, 2012
Earlier this year, the city affixed more than 200 hard white plastic “buttons” onto the benches of the corridor and the planters of the adjacent plaza. Against the sandstone benches and mauve planters, the white buttons look ludicrous. They’re normally used as roadway traffic devices. Needless to say, roadway traffic devices are neither an intelligent solution to homelessness nor a way to craft quality public space. Read more »
The Week
The Rising, the Falling and the Forgotten
April 12th, 2012
Each day, another piece of this new era falls into place—choice bits of history are preserved, others destroyed, and new contexts arise. If you stand here at the fenced-off Motel 6, next to faded racks of porn and across the street from the bustling Beat coffeehouse, you feel like you’re right in the thick of history—of this modernizing, or post-modernizing, of downtown. Read more »
Politics
It’s Time for an Annual Legislature
April 12th, 2012
State Sen. Richard “Tick” Segerblom is the fourth generation of his family to serve in the Nevada Legislature, and thus the fourth generation to meet every other year in Carson City. He says that needs to change: We need annual sessions. Wait. It’s not more government he’s looking for; it’s better government. And he’s already working on a way to make it a reality. Read more »
Religion
Silver State, Promised Land
April 12th, 2012
The Jewish contribution to Nevada history is legendary, but it didn’t begin and end with wiseguys like Bugsy Siegel and Moe Dalitz. As Jews in Nevada, an hourlong documentary airing at 7 p.m. April 15 on Vegas PBS, shows, the Jewish role here spans 150 years, from Silver King Adolph Sutro to Las Vegas Sands Chairman Sheldon Adelson. Read more »
Sports
Keeping Their Heads in the Game
April 12th, 2012
As a member of UNLV’s training staff since 1984 and director of athletic training since 1999, Kyle Wilson has seen enough to know that “killing the head” is serious business—and that prevention and quick diagnosis of concussions are among the most important issues in sports medicine today. Wilson and his staff now perform cognitive and balance tests on UNLV’s nearly 500 student-athletes before each team’s season so that if one of them suffers a head injury, trainers can determine the severity of it. Read more »
Vegas Tech
Tracky: the Tie That Binds
April 12th, 2012
You have to admire the chutzpah of local startup Tracky. Most startups try to reach new markets by creating unique products, but Tracky, created by Las Vegas entrepreneurs David and Jennifer Gosse, instead tackles a highly competitive market head-on by creating another site for managing shared projects. Read more »
Community
Phast Cars!
April 12th, 2012
Some people organize car shows because they dig cars, and some do it for the recognition. Frank Miranda, the eponymous owner of Phat Phrank’s Mexican restaurant, is putting one together to increase the peace. Read more »
Politics
Teen Wisdom
April 12th, 2012
Ward 6 City Councilman Steve Ross is looking to put a different spin on the notion of the youth council. Ross serves on the Las Vegas City Council’s School-Safety Action Committee, which has members from the police and fire departments, teachers, and parks and recreation employees. The committee discusses graffiti, drugs, education and crime. Read more »
The Deal
Downtown, down Sunset and presidential pizza
April 12th, 2012
Things continue to change for the better downtown, with the latest improvement being the switch from Fitzgeralds to The D. With the name change will come lots of upgrades, and already in place is the cool Longbar on the first floor. Read more »
