#s. frasher

[lizanneyoung97]

BOOK REVIEW: BUBBLE, BUBBLE, TOIL, AND CUDDLE BY S. FRASHER

⭐⭐⭐⭐

I am continuing to read through this fun set of novellas, except I didn’t realize this one left off on a cliffhanger. While I only have to wait a month to find out what happens next, I will be anxiously waiting to find out what happens to Evie.

Like the previous two I’ve read, these novellas have been perfect as I feel ready for fall but it’s still super hot here in AZ. There’s just something about looking for an ancient artifact on the grounds of a school of magical people that has me ready to drink apple cider and turn on a fake fireplace. 

Evie’s situation feels exactly like something anyone with a well-connected mother would be thrust into. She handles it like a pro though, and doesn’t let it impact her self-worth, which is great to see. I can’t wait to see how she continues to navigate it when the next part of her story releases in a month.

[kwebtv]

From the Golden Age of Television

Series Premiere

The Gene Autry Show - Head for Texas - CBS - July 23, 1950

Western

Running Time: 30 minutes

Written by Dwight Cummins

Produced by Armand Schaefer

Directed by Frank McDonald

Stars

Gene Autry 

Pat Buttram as Pat Jensen

Barbara Stanley as Sandy Dawson

Ben Welden as "Baldy" Carter

George J. Lewis as Rod Benton

House Peters Jr. as Lou Phelps

Ray Bennett as Sheriff Connors

Jim Frasher as Billy Stone

[wnternght]

𝟺𝟹. 𝙵𝚘𝚛 𝙲𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚗'𝚜 𝚂𝚊𝚔𝚎 — 𝚂. 𝙵𝚛𝚊𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚛

➻ ★★★★☆ + ♥︎

[vintagelasvegas]

KENO-AM station at today's 2780 Las Vegas Blvd S. – c. 1950

The first successful radio station in Las Vegas was KENO, founded by Las Vegas promotions pioneer Maxwell Kelch. KENO went on air 11/1/40, broadcasting from their original studio on the grounds of The Meadows resort. Operations moved in '41 to a new, standalone building adjacent to El Rancho Vegas, to the south of the resort.

Kelch sold the station to a group of employees in '55. The partnership sold the station in '57 to a group headed by Gordon B. Sherwood. The station moved in '60, months prior to a fire that closed El Rancho Vegas. KENO is now the oldest radio station in Las Vegas, broadcasting in Spanish since the 2000s.

2780 Las Vegas Blvd S. timeline.

'41: KENO station built by El Rancho Vegas.

'60: Bought by Bank of Nevada, converted into a bank branch. In later years it is First National Bank.

'69: Warehouse built behind the bank, location used in Vega$ television series in ‘78-‘81.

'81: Geri Rosenthal withdraws cash and jewelry with police escort at the bank branch, fictionalized in the film Casino.

'84: Bank branch closes.

'86: Bought by Arby’s Village LLC.

'87: Former bank and warehouse demolished, replaced by Arby's restaurant.

'88: Guinness World of Records Museum opens in a new building behind Arby's.

2004: SMK Inc. buys the property. Arby's and the museum demolished in the following years.

2007: Current building completed.

Headline photo: Kodachrome, Vintage Las Vegas collection.

Undated. Manis Collection (PH-00100), UNLV Special Collections & Archives.

El Rancho Vegas with a sign for KENO radio. Photo by Frasher Fotos.

The 2007 building, seen from the back parking area.

Sources: Station KENO to go on air early September. Review-Journal, 7/31/40; K.J. Evans. The Original Live Wire. 1st100.com (archived); Henry Brean. Community activist Laura Belle Kelch dies. Review-Journal, 7/13/2004; George Apfel. KENO-AM 1460. gapfel.com (archived).

[wondereads]

Weekly Reading Update (12/15/24)

Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir (★★★★★)

A good indicator of a good twist is that when you do catch on, you're kicking yourself for not figuring it out sooner. Tamsyn Muir does that in every book of this series, but it was such a kick in the pants this time around. I spent the last 100-200 pages of this book absolutely freaking out and pacing around my room. The character work in this book was really the stand-out between Nona, Camilla, Palamedes, and Pyrrha. I was also overjoyed to see the return of a beloved character (I thought maybe she Came Back Wrong but she's just having some weird quarter-life crisis). It was incredibly interesting to get some more context about the world, both before the Houses and outside them. I was utterly devastated by everything that happened in the last 50 pages and the only reason I didn't leave this mortal coil upon finishing was because I need to read Alecto.

More under the cut

The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik (★★★★★)

Oh, Naomi Novik, you are cruel. It's truly a miracle that I made it the whole year it took for The Golden Enclaves to come out when I read this for the first time. Anyway, I feel like ADE and TGE sometimes overshadow this one, ADE because it's the first and introduces us to so many beloved characters and TGE because it's insane, but this one is probably my favorite in terms of El and Orion's relationship. They are such fumbling teenagers (made infinitely worse by their magical whatnot), and it's adorable. This is also the book that really makes you feel for the Scholomance itself. As readers, we're told it's alive to some extent, but this is the book where it truly becomes its own entity or character. This was just as fun the second time around, and I grabbed some great evidence for my thesis.

For She Is Wrath by Emily Varga (★★★☆☆.5)

This book reverses what often happens; it has a bit of a weak beginning and end but the middle is just amazing. When Dani is enacting her revenge, the tension is high, the backstory is juicy, and her strengths get their moment to shine. The mystery of what is going on with the magic is great, and her tension with the love interest, Mazin, is quite well done. The beginning is a little contrived (really, of all the places to just dig into?) but moves quickly. I found the ending incredibly rushed; with the scope of Dani's goals, I really thought this was going to be a series, but it doesn't seem like it. The last ~20% or so is just jam-packed with every possible thing the characters can do, major moments getting barely more than 5 pages each. This book hovers at just under 400 pages, and I think extending it to around 450 just for more space in the climax would do wonders.

Kushiel's Dart by Jacqueline Carey (CR 30%)

Even if I haven't made much progress, the politics of this story continue to draw me in. This is what a political fantasy should be: me flipping back to the cast of characters every five pages to check who's related to who. Jokes aside, I am genuinely enjoying myself. I continue to find Phedre a delightful protagonist, and I'm really interested in what this is all building up to. Also, I think the main love interest was just introduced, and their dynamic is entertaining so far!

Witchbound by Sable Cross (DNF) and Daughter of Truth by S. Frasher (DNF)

I'm just putting these together because I DNF'd them both pretty early in for the same reason: bad writing. As it turns out, metaphors and pretty language don't automatically make your writing good; you have to be able to string a coherent sentence together for that. Once the poor writing made itself known a couple times, I knew it wasn't going to get any better.

[goatilocks666]

Rerecording of early 80's demo tunes from German frashers on clear vinyl. 'Witching Metal' is an absolute punk/d-beat hoot.

[route22ny]

Scenes from Scotty’s Castle in Death Valley, California in the 1930s by Burton Frasher.  The bottom postcard shows Walter Scott (aka Death Valley Scotty) with Albert and Bessie Johnson relaxing inside “Scotty’s Castle.”  Burton Frasher was befriended by Scotty and the Johnsons, and was one of the few photographers allowed to take photos of the castle’s interior. Frasher’s photos were later used to restore the buildings interior to its original décor. The expansive mansion was built in the 1920’s by the wealthy Johnsons, who were content to let the flamboyant Scotty attach his name to their vacation home.  Top & bottom photos from the online Frashers Fotos archive; interior photo from the collection of Chris Frasher.

[lizanneyoung97]

BOOK REVIEW: THE LEGEND OF CAMP WYVERN BY S. FRASHER

⭐⭐⭐⭐

After reading For Coven’s Sake, I wanted to check out some of the author’s other novellas, and the summer camp one felt like a perfect pick as summer comes to a close. 

This one featured an already established romantic pairing, which was fun, but also gave a bit more insight into the world the author has created. It was great to see the other species present and the different dynamics at play, especially in terms of the approach between species coming together and those arguing for species to stay separate. Also, is it really a mythic summer camp if there isn’t an appearance from a wyvern? 

[lizanneyoung97]

BOOK REVIEW: FOR COVEN'S SAKE BY S. FRASHER

⭐⭐⭐⭐

I am ready for fall, and this novella gave me a little sprinkle of it to tide me over until September. 

Aurora is a fun character to follow, and the world she’s in is even better. The concept of a university that serves both magical and non-magical people in Salem is just the kind of thing I like reading about. Something about the MMC Finn gave me Hardin from After vibes in a good way, and it was nice to read a story of this nature where there wasn’t a horrible third act twist. This was just a happy story with a bit of magic and mystery. 

[vintagelasvegas]

Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas (1946-)

The original casino was built from the ground up, except for the “Fine Liquors” section (far right) the former Martin-Ferron building, 123 Fremont. Photo: 1946, by Burton Frasher Sr.

Timeline

'45: Golden Nugget announced. The casino will replace the E. W. Griffith building, and also occupy the Martin-Ferron building, 123 Fremont. (RJ 8/3/45)

'46: Aug. 30, Golden Nugget opens. Guy McAfee, Tony Lucey & partners. (RJ 8/27/46, RJ 8/31/46)

'48: Rooftop sign constructed by YESCO in Sep. Golden Nugget expands into the Eagles lodge, 117 Fremont, later extending the “Lounge/Saloon” marquee, with the “Eagles Bldg” still visible in through '55. (RJ 9/24/48)

'50: Jul. 1, Golden Nugget reorganizes as a private corporation, with McAfee as president and GM. (RJ 7/11/50)

'56: Marquee remodel circa early '56. Attraction boards mounted on the sides of the building by Fall ’56.

'60: McAffee dies, B. Blaine becomes president of the corp.

'61: Apr., Facade remodel with bullnose corner and neon exterior, by YESCO.

'68: Expansion into former Lucky Casino, 115 Fremont, in Fall.

'69: Expansion into former Nevada Club, 111-113 Fremont, some time after Sep.

'71: Expansion info former California Club, 101-105 Fremont. Bullnose sign on Fremont & 1st installed in Mar.

'73: Steve Wynn becomes president. (RJ 8/2/73)

'77: First hotel. Golden Nugget Rooming House, aka Gold tower, started 6/76, and begins opening 5/77. 19 floors, 576 rooms. Parking garage addition on Casino Center & Carson. (RJ 10/3/76, RJ 5/22/77)

'78: Golden Nugget vacates 101 Fremont after lease is ended. 101 Fremont becomes Friendly Club, a separate entity, until '83. (RJ 2/24/78)

'80: Golden Nugget Inc. public stock sale.

'83: “Casino” on bullnose sign on Fremont & Casino Center covered with electronic display.

‘83: Golden Nugget expands back to 101 Fremont and demolishes the original Mesquite Grocer on the corner of Fremont & 1st; expansion on South 1st to Carson includes the former New Thomas Building, 107-111 S. 1st St.

'84: Spa tower, an extension of the Rooming House tower. 18 floors, with two showrooms, 23 duplex townhouses and four deluxe 2-bedroom apartments. (RJ 5/25/84)

'84: Facade remodel in Oct-Nov; Rooftop sign removed early Dec. (RJ 10/24/84, RJ 11/27/84, RJ 12/30/84)

'86: South/Carson tower. 17-floor, 816 rooms, Carson between 1st & Casino Center. The second half of the tower with 500 rooms is completed circa '87/88, making a total of 1930 room. (RJ 1/28/86)

'89: Golden Nugget Inc. changes name to Mirage Resorts.

'00: Mirage Resorts sold to MGM Mirage.

'03: Golden Nugget sold to Poster Financial Group.

'05: Golden Nugget sold to Landry’s Inc.

'07: New construction expands Golden Nugget across South 1st St.

'09: Rush tower completed.

Photos of Golden Nugget, Las Vegas

[vintagelasvegas]

Western Union, 107 Fremont St - 1942, 1943

Western Union occupied the ground floor of the Morse Building since the time it opened 6/29, until the Nevada Club expanded into the space in ‘57. (Western Union relocated to 113 S 2nd.) Photos: July 1942 by Ivan Dmitri, and 1943 by Burton Frasher Sr. 

[vintagelasvegas]

Las Vegas Greyhound Bus Depot – 1946, 1956, 1970s

Union Pacific built the Streamline Moderne station at 110 S. Main St, matching the train depot. It opened early in ‘45. The building was expanded and remodeled in ‘56 – the second photo is the same building as the first, after the remodel.

The station was replaced with Plaza Hotel, where a new bus station was built into the base of the parking garage. Greyhound had a 50 year lease, which they ended a year early, closing in 2020. 

Black & white postcard by Burton Frasher Sr. “Bus Depot Expansion Underway.” Review-Journal, 12/15/55. “Bus Terminal, Restaurant Open Monday.” Review-Journal, 4/22/56.

[route22ny]

The Hill Top Restaurant & Cafe on Route 66 in Kingman, Arizona sometime in the 1930s.  Might this be the predecessor of the Hill Top Motel in Kingman, seen in this earlier post?  In Route 66′s post-WWII heyday it’s not inconceivable that a restaurant might add a motel, trying to cash in on the postwar boom along the Mother Road.

Photo by Burton Frasher for one of his Frasher’s Fotos postcards, from the archive of the Pomona Public Library.