The Creation of the Las Vegas Image: a Case Study of Harvey Diederich
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UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations 1-1-1999 The creation of the Las Vegas image: A case study of Harvey Diederich Leta Lafay Ver Hulst University of Nevada, Las Vegas Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/rtds Repository Citation Ver Hulst, Leta Lafay, "The creation of the Las Vegas image: A case study of Harvey Diederich" (1999). UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations. 1094. http://dx.doi.org/10.25669/rk8l-qh7c This Thesis is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by Digital Scholarship@UNLV with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Thesis in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. 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THE CREATION OF THE LAS VEGAS IMAGE: A CASE STUDY OF HARVEY DIEDERICH by Leta Lafay Ver Hulst Bachelor of Science California State Polytechnic University, Pomona 1984 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts Degree Hank Greenspan School of Communication Studies Greenspun College of Urban Affairs Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas August 1999 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number 1398002 Copyright 1999 by Ver Hulst, Leta Lafay All rights reserved. UMI UMI Microform 1398002 Copyright 2000 by Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Copyright by Leta Lafay Ver Hulst 1999 Ali Rights Reserved Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Thesis Approval UNiy The Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas July 28 ■ 19 99 The Thesis prepared by Leta VerHulst___ Entitled The Creation of the Las Vegas Image; A Biography o f Harvey Dlerlch is approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of M.A. Communication Studies _________________ hix c Examination Committee Chair Dean o f the Graduate College Examination Committee Member Examination Committee Member Graduate Coile^ Faculty Representatioe U Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABSTRACT The Creation of The Las Vegas Image: a Biography of Harvey Diederich by Leta Lafay Ver Hulst Dr. Barbara L. Cloud, Examination Committee Chair Professor, Hank Greenspun School of Communication Studies and Associate Provost for Academic Affairs University of Nevada, Las Vegas The Creation o f the Las Vegas Image: A Biography o f Harvey Diederich focuses on the 35-year Las Vegas career of publicist Harvey Diederich, which centers on major hotels, including the Last Frontier, Hacienda, Tropicana, MGM Grand and others. Following Diederich’s career provides a unique history of Las Vegas, as well as insights into the fields of promotions, public relations, advertising and marketing. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS With appreciation to Dr. Barbara Cloud, and all the Committee members for their time, experience and patience. Thank you to my husband Ron for his moral and technical support. And to Harvey Diederich, without whom this thesis would not have been possible, my endless gratitude. ui Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT......................................................................................................................iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS................................................................................................ iv CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION....................................................................................... 1 Las Vegas: Early Growth .......................................................................................... 2 CHAPTER 2 BOMBS AND BIKINIS ............................................................................14 CHAPTER 3 GOLF AND GRAFT................................................................................. 28 CHAPTER 4 SHEIKS AND CHANGES....................................................................... 41 CHAPTER 5 ETHICS AND IMAGES........................................................................... 54 Limitations and Suggestions for Future Research .................................................... 59 APPENDIX..................................................................................................................... 62 BIBLIOGRAPHY......................................................................................................... 116 VITA ............................................................................................................................. 119 IV Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Daniel Boorstin states in his book. The Image, that America has created the “thicket of unreality which stands between us and the facts of life.”' Boorstin believes that each individual provides the market and demand for illusions and that we want to believe these illusions. Boorstin classifies the extravagant expectations by 1) what the world holds and 2) our power to shape the world: “The making of the illusions which flood our experience has become the business of America, some of its most honest and most necessary and most respectable business.’^ Boorstin was referring not only to public relations and advertising, but to all activities that “purport to inform and comfort, improve, educate and elevate us.”^ Las Vegas lives by the illusions held about it, and it is a city that, at least since the 1930s, has been active in shaping those illusions. This stutty will document the development of the Las Vegas image by examining the career and contributions of Harvey Diederich, long-time Las Vegas publicist, public relations practitioner, and marketing and advertising executive. Diederich's rationale for, selection of and utilization of the [traditional or nontraditional] tools of communication, including press and media relations provides the focus of study. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Las Vegas; Early Growth The rapid growth of Las Vegas as both a tourist destination and a community is directly related to the development of the image of Las Vegas. People like Diederich and the communication tools they used provide significant contributions to this end. Even though Nevada was the last state to outlaw gambling in 1909 and the first state subsequently to legalize gambling in 1931, Las Vegas city fathers were more concerned with the divorce laws than reinstating gambling/ and throughout most of the 1930s, gambling remained a sideline for Las Vegas.^ But the eighth wonder of the world, as Boulder Dam was then billed, “began to funnel a torrent of tourists”^ to the Las Vegas Valley. Las Vegas leaders envisioned their town as a Nevada Palm Springs.^ Alan Hess, in his book Viva Las Vegas, observes, “They began to promote their characteristic western identity, the desert scenery, a social mix of laissez-faire government and neighborly hospitality embodied in speedy divorces