On Wednesday, September 1, 2021 Paradise Palms became the
first neighborhood in Southern Nevada to place neighborhood sign toppers above the street signs within the community. Neighbors
joined Clark County Commissioner Tick Segerblom and former County Commissioner
Chris Giunchigliani for the unveiling, which took place at the
corner of Seneca Drive and Dakota Way.
Palmers gather to watch the unveiling
The neighborhood celebrated with a large turnout for the big event, with dozens of neighbors present supporting their community. This project has been a long time in the making, stemming back to 2017 when the original portion of Paradise Palms became Clark County’s first Historic Neighborhood. It was that Historic Legislation which allows for Paradise Palms to place signage proclaiming it ‘historic.’
Commissioner Tick Segerblom, former Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani and Paradise Palms resident Dave Cornoyer welcome the Palmers to the unveiling
Chris G. scales the ladder to unveil the sign
Location of the first 27 sign toppers
The sign toppers will be placed at 27 intersections by Clark
County Public Works throughout the historic-designated portion of the community,
with work complete by mid-September. The signs will help foster neighborhood
identity, placemaking, and educate new homeowners about the presence of the
Historic District. As other portions of our community are adopted into the
Historic Overlay, additional signs will be installed.
The signs were 100% community-driven, designed by former
Paradise Palms resident Shramek Art and funded by a grass-roots community effort
utilizing donations, GoFundMe, and proceeds from our annual neighborhood
Docomomo tour. Clark County Commissioner Tick Segerblom and the Clark County
Public Works donated the labor for the installation.
Paradise Palms extends its thanks to each and every donor
who help fund the project, all the neighbors for giving such a great turnout
taking the time out of their day and work schedules to attend, Commissioner
Tick Segerblom and his staff, former Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani, Clark
County Public Works, Shramek Art for designing the signs, and Affordable
Striping for manufacturing the signs.
Paradise Palms took over the Clubhouse at Las Vegas National this weekend for a few laughs, catching up, meeting new neighbors & enjoying a few cocktails. We loved seeing everyone, and big thanks to National for being a fantastic host.
Puppeteer Wayland Flowers (11/26/1939-10/11/1988) made Paradise Palms his home base while performing in Las Vegas between 1982 and 1987, in a home on Ottawa Drive that was
once owned by the Sahara Hotel to house it's top entertainers, including Buddy Hackett.
Wayland Flowers' Las Vegas home, a modified Palmer & Krisel Model 11a on Ottawa Drive
Flowers, most notably known for his creation of the Madame
puppet, was born in Dawson, Georgia and began his career performing in gay bars
and nightclubs after moving to New York City in 1963. Shortly after arriving to New York, Flowers found
work as an assistant puppeteer on a children’s television show, where he began
to hone his craft.
In 1971, he created the off-Broadway show Kumquats, the
world’s first erotic puppet show, which marked the first on-stage appearance of
his most famous creation, Madame. Madame, who was rumored to be based on
Washington, DC gay icon Margo MacGregor, was a bawdy, grande dame with a sharp
wit and trademark cackling laugh, the alter ego of Flowers.
Flowers during his Provincetown performances
In 1972 Flowers debuted the cackling, crass, sharp-tounged Madame as a stand-alone lounge act
in Provincetown, MA, and quickly began attracting enormous crowds. ″This was an
underground act that took root and shot up out of nowhere,″ Flowers once said
in an interview. Around Provincetown, he could be seen unexpectedly
riding down Commercial St. in a convertible, Madame hanging out the side or
jumping over the windshield, screaming obscenities at passersby. Other times,
Flowers and Madame would hang their heads out of Provincetown balconies and carry
on with whomever was fortunate enough to walk by. Flowers’ sudden popularity led
to appearances in New York nightclubs. He was known as a comedian, illusionist
and puppeteer, rather than a ventriloquist. Flowers would appear on stage with
his puppets, “I’m right out there on stage beside Madame, but within two or
three minutes it seems that I disappear,” he said in an interview.
Flowers (just above Redd Foxx) on the movie poster for Norman...Is that You?
Flowers’ act began to pick up steam throughout the 1970s,
and by the mid 70s Flowers appeared on the variety show Keep on Truckin’, The
Mike Williams Show and had numerous appearances on Andy, Andy William’s mid 70’s
variety show. In 1976, he appeared in the Redd Foxx/Pearl Bailey film, Norman… Is
That You?, a film about a Los Angeles couple coming to terms with their son’s
sexuality.
Flowers was openly gay in a time when very few performers
were out, paving the way for future generations. Flowers and Madame made their
way onto Dean Martin’s Celebrity Roasts in 1977, along with becoming regular
performers on the 1977-78 Laugh In revival. In 1976, Flowers replaced Paul
Lynde as center square on Hollywood Squares, appearing with Madame, and on occasion
his other puppet creations Smedley or Macklehoney. Flowers appeared on
Hollywood Squares for the remaining four years the show ran on NBC, and
delivered the final game question of the daytime (pre-syndication) series, which was
"Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert and Strauss lived in the same place. Where
did they all live?" Madame's "comic" answer: "At the
YMCA!" Then her "serious" answer: Germany. The answer correct
answer was Austria.
By 1979 Flowers began appearing as a regular at the Casbar Theater
at the Sahara. In 1981, he debuted Madame Goes to Harlem at the Sahara, which
ran intermittently throughout the year. It was also in 1981 that Flowers and
Madame were cast in Solid Gold, appearing through 1984. In 1982, Flowers and
Madame acquired their own syndicated television show, Madame’s Place, which ran
for 150 episodes. The show, which featured racy dialog, was often broadcast after 11:00 PM due to the content, and featured a slew of well-known entertainers, including
Corey Feldman and guest appearances by fellow former Paradise Palms residents Phyliss
Diller, Debbie Reynolds and Rip Taylor.
It was during this time that Flowers acquired his Paradise Palms
home on Ottawa Drive from The Sahara Hotel, taking title (of course) as Madame,
Inc. Flowers continued his Las Vegas engagements with shows at the Sands and
Desert Inn throughout the early 1980s, and used Paradise Palms as him home base
during that time. As the showrooms on the strip began to revamp their show lineups,
Flowers’ act fell by the wayside, and in February 1987, he sold his home.
Sometime
during his appearances on Solid Gold, Flowers was diagnosed with HIV. By 1988,
he was suffering from Kaposi's sarcoma, an AIDS-related cancer. Despite
his illness, Flowers continued to perform until his sudden collapse on stage at
Harrah’s Lake Tahoe. After a final trip back home to Dawson, Georgia, Flowers
passed away in hospice care in Los Angeles on October 11, 1988. At the time of
his death, his family refused to provide any details as to the cause, and
Flowers bequeathed his estate to his manager. His beloved sidekick Madame was
interred with him in Dawson, GA.
Flowers' work continues to live on posthumously, with Madame being revived by Rick Skye in 2009, and appearing on Family Guy Season 2. Flowers was also the namesake inspiration of beloved Simpsons character Waylon Smithers.
40 years ago in May of 1981, Paradise Palms and the Sahara Nevada Country Club (present day Las Vegas National) became the center of a national news media frenzy, when it was discovered that a mallard, affectionally named Donna, had been shot with a 3-foot target arrow through her chest. The timing of this incident happened to fall during a relatively slow news period, at a time when the country was still reeling from the attempted assassination of the President two months earlier. A feel good story was much needed, and Donna filled that role.
Donna fell on the media's radar in May 1981, but neighborhood reports revealed that she had been living with an arrow lodged in her chest for almost a month. Volunteers with the Nevada Human Society began attempts to capture Donna, so that the arrow could safely be removed. While not causing her physical pain, the arrow had impacted her ability to dive down underwater for food, which began causing her to drop weight. Donna was also a mother, and along with her mate Dapper Dan, her ability to care for her ducklings was impacted.
As rescue efforts ramped up, so did Donna's elusiveness. Initially, residents and volunteers attempted to capture Donna by hand. She had a knack for fleeing at the last second. A specialty net was made, one that was wide enough, and with a long pole, that would allow rescuers to capture her without getting too close. Each time an effort was made to approach her, Donna was take flight. Rescuers began to worry about the stress the rescue attempts were causing on her wound, and became fearful that the arrow would begin to cause damage if it tore her her wound.
As Donna began to capture media attention, daily updates flooded the press
As mounting media coverage swarmed Donna's home at the pond near the 13th hole, rescuers had an idea. Paradise Palmer Aline Hunter had volunteered to take a night swim in the pond, and at the right moment, the media would simultaneously turn on their lights, lighting up the night sky, distracting Donna and allowing her to be rescued. As Aline waded into the pond, the media waited for just the right moment to flash their lights. All was going according to plan, until it was Dapper Dan who alerted Donna to the impending capture. He quacked, and Donna took off in flight again.
Donna proves elusive to rescue attempts
Finally, Humane Society volunteers hatched one last, un-glamorous plan to capture Donna. She would be fed two pieces of bread laced with sodium amytol, which had been prescribed by the chief veterinarian of wild fowl at UC Davis. Even after consuming the roofied bread, Donna still remained alert, and took nearly 15 minutes to finally settle down. But once she started to drift off near the edge of the pond, she perked up for one final escape once she saw volunteers with her much-hated net. Donna waded into the water, then, broke free and flew to the adjacent lake. Human society volunteers followed the drugged-up Donna and finally netted her.
She was still very much agitated, and rescuers quickly wrapped her in a towel and escorted her to her next journey. A helicopter was waiting on a nearby fairway, and Donna was air-evacuated to the Black Mountain Animal Hospital, where under the care of veterinarian Dr. Gary Weddle, surgery was performed and the arrow removed. Donna spent five days recovering, before she was brought back home to Paradise Palms to be reunited with her mate and ducklings. Neighbors kept a close eye on her, and were happy to report a happy ending for Donna.
Donna's capture was front page news
Donna's story inspired a children's book, T-shirts, a Donna the Duck Party thrown by Bob Stupak at Vegas World, and even North Las Vegas ceremoniously 'adopted' her. She brought a feel-good story to Las Vegas and the nation, and became one of the most memorable wildlife residents of Paradise Palms. Donna continued to live in Paradise Palms after her return, settling down in the pond adjacent to the 18th hole.
Donna inspired parties, T-shirts and real estate advertisements
As Paradise Palms approaches the end of our 60th anniversary year, we thought it'd be fun to share with you all of the original newspaper print advertisements which kicked off our community in it's first year. Groundbreaking for Paradise Palms was held in the spring of 1960, while the much-anticipated Grand Opening was held July 3, 1960. Attendance at that Ground Opening was expected to reach 1,000 in number, but the demand for new contemporary housing alongside general interest in Las Vegas' first master planned community brought out 8,000 visitors opening weekend. Pre-sales for the community were held at Ashcroft Realty, 31 E. Oakey Boulevard. Sales were robust, with 58 homes sold after opening weekend. Demand was so strong, with buyers competing for 77 available homes, that only seven unique advertisements were created. Here they are, in order of appearance in the Las Vegas Review Journal.
First advertisement for Paradise Palms appearing in the Las Vegas Review Journal, 05/15/1960
Second Paradise Palms Advertisement appearing in the Las Vegas Review Journal, 05/22/1960. Over 20 homes had already been sold a month and half before the Grand Opening.
Grand Opening, Las Vegas Review Journal, 07/03/1960.
Third Advertisement for Paradise Palms, Las Vegas Review Journal, 07/07/1960. Less than a week after grand opening, 58 homes were sold.
Fourth Advertisement for Paradise Palms, Las Vegas Review Journal, 07/17/1960
Robust sales left little housing availability, touted in the fifth advertisement for Paradise Palms, Las Vegas Review Journal, 08/28/1960.
By October 1960, another 20 homes were released for sales, as noted in the sixth advertisement for Paradise Palms appearing in the Las Vegas Review Journal, 10/20/1960
1960's seventh and final advertisement for Paradise Palms, 12/30/1960. The original Hugh Taylor homes had sold out, and this was the first appearance of a Palmer & Krisel home in Paradise Palms Advertisements. It would be another 11 months before the Palmer & Krisel homes would be available for sale in November 1961.
To spread a little cheer in 2020, our neighbor Tami had a great idea - organize a community-wide holiday decorating contest. All the neighbors had to do was decorate their home in their own creative style, and the judges would hit all 12 miles of the streets that intertwine Paradise Palms after dark looking for homes that best fit one of five categories: Most Mid Century Modern, Most Mid Century, Most Amusing, Most Over the Top and Most Peaceful. Congrats to all the winners, honorable mentions, and special thanks to Tami for organizing this fun contest. Here are the winners as chosen by our esteemed panel of volunteer community judges:
