All About Americana: First Look Inside Original Models & Rediscovery of Original Tracts

Americana Homes ad appearing in the 12/01/63 Review Journal

We've known that Americana Homes was behind the houses built on Seneca Lane, Seneca Circle, and on Ottawa Drive between Spencer and Algonquin (first shown here in 2011); however, recent research unveils a bit more information and confirms a few facts that show Americana Homes built more of Paradise Palms than originally thought.  These ads individually confirm that at various times Americana had model homes at Spencer and Ottawa, Spencer and Twain, Tioga and Geronimo and at Cherokee and Spencer, establishing that Americana was the builder behind the Maricopa Way cul-de-sac and the Tioga/Geronimo Way ‘island’.

The article below from February 1964 announces Americana Homes had bought 31 lots, including the last 9 lots available on the Stardust Championship Golf Course.  Those 9 lots were individually spread out along Ottawa Drive, Pueblo Way and Tioga Way. The remaining 22 lots indicated in the article comprise the Maricopa Way cul-de-sac, the first six lots on the west side of Spencer Street north of Cherokee, and the first four lots at the southwest corner of Cherokee and Spencer. 

 

02/22/64

Americana announced a second sales office opening in Paradise Palms, eventually located on the west side of Tioga Way between Geronimo and Cochise.  Home buyers were offered a range of tract and semi-custom home options with sixteen different elevations to pick from.  Home sales were so robust in 1964 that Americana had begun offering fully-furnished models for sale, including the original models on Ottawa Drive just west of Spencer.  A second model was constructed and furnished at the northwest corner of Twain and Spencer, which was sold by the fall of that year.  The 1964 Americana Homes weren’t cheap either – priced between $31,200 and $40,950, translating into $235,100 to $308,500 in 2013 dollars - meant that original buyers were willing to pay a premium for Paradise Palms. 

 

Second Americana Sales Office Opening, 03/08/64

Former Americana Model & Sales Office, northwest corner of Twain & Spencer 49 years later - home still retains the original wood shake roof

Americana Homes Ad 3/15/64 - Models at Twain & Spencer and at Tioga Way

This second article from August 1964 indicates that the home located on the southwest corner of Cherokee and Spencer was the newest Americana model, a home which had the distinction of once hosting the French Colony for a cocktail & swim party.  Current aerial imagery indicates that the unique pool with built-in snack tables described in the article is still intact and in existence.   We also learn from this article that Marshall Secrest was the owner and founder of Americana Homes, and that his prior building activity had been exclusively limited to California.   The remaining following images offer rare glimpses inside the Americana Models and the handiwork of interior designer C. Tony Pereria.

If you still can’t get enough Americana, our friend Jack LeVine at Very Vintage Vegas has a beautifully preserved and intact Americana Homes Plan A2, The Devonshire, for sale on Seneca Lane.  Check out these great images of that home here.

08/16/64

Later Americana Homes Ad - Models at Cherokee & Spencer 06/28/64

Sketch of Americana Home, 05/17/64

Well-preserved 1964 Americana home located on Spencer Street, just north of Cherokee.  Home is mirror-image of sketch above, still boasting original five-panel garage door as depicted in builder’s rendering. 

5/24/64 - Check out that couch!

Typical Americana Homes streamlined fireplace & original wood paneling 49 years after construction, similar to photo above (photo courtesy Jack LeVine)

Americana Homes Model Bedroom as it appeared 3/22/64

Americana Homes Model Kitchen as it appeared 2/09/64

Preserved Americana Kitchen 49 years later - even boasts original kitchen light fixtures (photo courtesy Jack LeVine)

August 2013 Historic 'Hoods Bowling Challenge: Paradise Palms vs. Huntridge

A sea of Palmers on the lanes

Once again the Paradise Palmers banded together in the dungeon of Sam’s Town to defeat our neighbors to the north, the Huntridgians.  More Palmers than ever showed up for event and we even got meet new neighbors Tina and Deborah who made their inaugural appearance.  We got off to a late start, hoping that more Huntridgians would show, but after 45 minutes we realized that only three chose to represent their ‘hood.  In our standard challenge format, two games were played, multiple beer pitchers were downed, and plates of healthy bowling alley food appeared.  Despite all these plusses, somehow Huntridge took control, and it was too late for the Palmers.  Final score:  Paradise Palms 113.4, Huntridge 117.2.  Good job Huntridge, don’t let it happen again. 

Mid Century Modern Paint Colors – Revisioned for Paradise Palms

Paradise Palms is moving back towards a new direction in mid century modern paint colors and color execution.  Recent trends indicate that Paradise Palms homeowners are moving away from simple monochromatic one or two-color beige paint jobs and incorporating more complex schemes which highlight and accentuate architectural detail, with a retro-inspired twist.  As envisioned by original developers, color once again is becoming keynote to the community and brighter, more era-appropriate hues are once again appearing on these homes.  Check out these retro color-inspired homes that have cropped up over the past few years in Paradise Palms Las Vegas:

Clockwise from top left, four mid century modern re-visioned color schemes:  Three-color Palmer & Krisel Model 6C utilizing warm-hued greys & orange accents; Three-color first-generation Paradise Palms Palmer & Krisel Plan 1 utilizing a cool-hued charcoal body, white trim and bright yellow accents under the eaves; Three-color Paradise Palms ranch-home featuring a solid light tan-body, mineral-orange accents and white highlights; Three-color Palmer & Krisel Model 4A utilizing a solid-white body and two accent colors of blue and green.

Clockwise from top left, four retro-inspired mid century modern color schemes on classic Krisels:  Four-color Palmer & Krisel Model 11A featuring a warm-toned two-color grey body, white accents and mineral-orange doors; Three-color first-generation Paradise Palms Palmer & Krisel Plan 1 utilizing a cool-toned grey body, cool-toned light grey champagne bubble block accent color and mid-century green trim; Three-color Palmer & Krisel Model 3B featuring a light-green body, soft yellow trim and a red accent door (out of photo); Four-color Palmer & Krisel Model 6A featuring a sun-gold body, warm-toned grey and charcoal accents on the shadow block and turquoise doors.

Clockwise from top left, five mid century modern paint color schemes in Paradise Palms:  Three-color first-generation Paradise Palms Palmer & Krisel Model 1 with a solid-white body and two accent colors of green and orange; Three-color Paradise Palms contemporary home featuring a solid-white body with coral-pink and light-blue accents; Three-color Miranti Homes Monterey Model showcasing a warm-toned grey body, black trim and red accents; Four-color Palmer & Krisel Model 4A displaying a warmed-toned grey body, dark gray and charcoal fence colors and an orange accent door; Four-color Paradise Palms contemporary ranch home featuring a warm-toned grey body, grey and charcoal trim colors and blue accent doors.

Paradise Homes at Paradise Palms Newspaper Ads

Throughout 1962 to early 1964 Paradise Homes filled the Las Vegas Review and Las Vegas Sun with weekly ads promoting their products at Paradise Palms.  These ads typically featured beautifully-detailed hand renderings of either a Palmer & Krisel-designed home elevation or an outside lifestyle scene featuring swimming pools, cocktail parties or the Stardust Championship Golf Course and Country Club.  Paradise Palms was boastfully marketed as an active community, where “the living is more fun”, and described as “the most attractive area in Las Vegas,” and “the most glamorous and completely planned community in Nevada.” 

Some of the other fun pieces of information contained within these ads reveal that Paradise Homes presented Paradise Homes Theater every Thursday night at 9:30 on KSHO-TV Channel 13 and the fact that ads had to advertise prospective buyers to “drive out” to the models at 1825 East Desert Inn Road (at Seneca Drive).  Other interesting notes are that by 1963, in order to distinguish the Paradise Homes models from the other builders that had made their way into Paradise Palms are that the ads begun to advertise Paradise Homes as “The Original Planners, Builders and Developers of Paradise Palms.”  Also that year, on a technical note, the model home sales office phone number prefix had changed from REgent 5-9411 to 735-9411, a prefix which is still in use to this day for land lines in the area. 

The final ad shown here gives a sneak preview of typical mid to late 1964 ads, which featured more generic images, such as this family of four admiring a billboard (written in a distinctly exceptional mid-sixties font), an image which will repeated a few more times in upcoming posts. Also noteworthy is the fact that potential home buyers could simply trade in their existing home for a better life in Paradise Palms.   

12/04/62

10/20/63

10/20/63

10/20/63

02/02/64

August Las Vegas National Golf Social

August 16^th marked the second to last Las Vegas National Golf Social for the 2013 season.  As a thank you to Coy, Rocky, Donna and the rest of the Las Vegas National Staff for all they do for our community, we presented them with a commemorative Paradise Palms Plaque, engraved with the following:

“With sincerest thanks to the Las Vegas National Golf Course for carrying on the spirit of Las Vegas' Rat Pack days. Your hospitality, friendship and generosity exemplifies what great neighbors are. With much appreciation, The Residents of Paradise Palms”

Thank you Las Vegas National Golf Club for being such a great centerpiece to our neighborhood!

Paradise Palms - In veggie form!

Thanks Coy!

August 1962: Paradise Palms in Full Swing

Nine months after its official Grand Opening, construction in Paradise Palms was in full swing.  Over 200 homes had been sold at a rate of five homes per week, generating $6,000,000 in sales – the equivalent of $46.3 Million in 2013 dollars.  Featured in these August 1962 Las Vegas Review Journal features were the development team – Irwin Molasky, Merv Adelson and Harry Lahr, the principles of Paradise Homes, Dan Palmer and Bill Krisel, the architects who gave Paradise Palms it’s signature look and C. Tony Pereira, the interior designer behind both the Palmer & Krisel-designed Paradise Homes models and the Americana models.  Members of the construction team were also highlighted, including all the support staff of Paradise Homes, as well as former major league baseball player Donald O’Flaherty, the original recreation director of Paradise Palms, and standing in the shadow of the signature folded-plate covered walkway of the Stardust Country Club is Head Golf Pro Bob Wagner.  Even the cleverly-named Paradise Homes Folks Wagon got a mention.

The second page of this article features three couples who helped with the day to day community operations.  The image of Pat and Ed Raybon of Paradise Homes is taken against a backdrop of pristine decorative concrete block, while in the background of the photograph of Mary and Walt Seegers is a fuzzy rendering of what appears to be the Clubhouse of the Stardust Country Club.  These images offer a significant historical look at the team of people who helped shape the beginnings of Paradise Palms.    

August 26, 1962

August 26, 1962

Paradise Palms Advertises Grand Opening of the Plan-O-Ramic Exhibit Center

By November of 1961 the first unit of Paradise Palms was sold out.  Models were moved to the Plan-O-Ramic Exhibit Center, and nine fully furnished homes were available for previewing on the north sides of Seneca Drive and Nahattan Way.  Featured at the exhibit center was a full-scale three-dimensional model of Paradise Palms, full color renderings of the 22 models available as well as a construction materials display.  These Las Vegas Review-Journal ads from 1961 highlight Paradise Palms' most prominent architects, Dan Palmer and Bill Krisel, as well as the Stardust Golf Club & Championship Golf Course.  Ruby Thomas Elementary School hadn't been built yet at these ads promised safe bus delivery of children to the Paradise Valley Elementary School, now known as the UNLV Paradise Campus, located on the southeast corner of Tropicana Avenue and Paradise Road.  The home prices of $20,650 to $33,500 translates $161,266 to $261,618 in 2013 dollars.  The last ad notes, "Set amid the park-like fairways of the Stardust Championship Golf Course, and with the various designs in perfect compliment, (the homes) become the showplaces of all Nevada."

November 2, 1961

November 2, 1961 

November 10, 1961