"In 1968, American architects Robert Venturi, Denise Scott Brown, and Steven Izenour joined together with students from Yale University and took on Las Vegas as a subject of research. The group spent three weeks in libraries, four days in Los Angeles, and ten days in Las Vegas. The research led to the 1972 publication of the seminal architectural theory treatise Learning from Las Vegas. Photography and film were employed equally within as means of argumentation and representation. The original material has since been stored in the archives of Venturi, Scott Brown & Associates in Philadelphia. The firm has now opened up its archives and made the photographs available." --Book Jacket.

The transformations of the Strip—from the fake Wild West to neon signs twenty stories high to “starchitecture”—and how they mirror America itself. The Las Vegas Strip has impersonated the Wild West, with saloon doors and wagon wheels; it has decked itself out in midcentury modern sleekness. It has illuminated itself with twenty-story-high neon signs, then junked them. After that came Disney-like theme parks featuring castles and pirates, followed by replicas of Venetian canals, New York skyscrapers, and the Eiffel Tower. (It might be noted that forty-two million people visited Las Vegas in 2015—ten million more than visited the real Paris.) More recently, the Strip decided to get classy, with casinos designed by famous architects and zillion-dollar collections of art. Las Vegas became the “implosion capital of the world” as developers, driven by competition, got rid of the old to make way for the new—offering a non-metaphorical definition of “creative destruction.” In The Strip, Stefan Al examines the many transformations of the Las Vegas Strip, arguing that they mirror transformations in America itself. The Strip is not, as popularly supposed, a display of architectural freaks but representative of architectural trends and a record of social, cultural, and economic change. Al tells two parallel stories. He describes the feverish competition of Las Vegas developers to build the snazziest, most tourist-grabbing casinos and resorts—with a cast of characters including the mobster Bugsy Siegel, the eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes, and the would-be political kingmaker Sheldon Adelson. And he views the Strip in a larger social context, showing that it has not only reflected trends but also magnified them and sometimes even initiated them. Generously illustrated with stunning color images throughout, The Strip traces the many metamorphoses of a city that offers a vivid projection of the American dream.

The #1 New York Times bestselling author returns with this candid, humorous, and captivating memoir chronicling her journey toward reinvention and self-acceptance. When you've come out the other side of the bizarre, twisted world of the Playboy mansion, where do you land? If you're Holly Madison . . . there's no place like Las Vegas! After making the sudden decision to reclaim her life, Holly broke free from the sheltered, deceptive confines of the mansion (which meant exiting a hit television show) and was determined to start her life over . . . from scratch. Without the security of a job or relationship, she set out to reinvent herself on no one's terms but her own. Deciding to roll the dice and begin again in the glamorous and dreamlike city of Las Vegas, Holly quickly realized that while she may have left her past in the rearview mirror, the labels and stereotypes that came from it weren't so quick to leave her. With a fierce commitment to take charge of her own narrative, Holly dives headfirst into a journey of self-discovery. After a whirlwind stint on Dancing with the Stars, she snags the coveted lead role in the Strip's hottest new burlesque spectacular and lands a reality series spotlighting her new life as a single woman. If her own television show and dream job as a showgirl weren't enough to keep her busy, Holly explores the decadent, exclusive inner-world of Sin City, navigating it's social and dating scene with humor and heart. When it comes to romance, she is met with an eclectic cast of characters, from fame hounds to long distance loves to the occasional celebrity and more than one tabloid mishap. In this reflective, heartwarming memoir, Holly learns that each dating disaster holds an important, and in some cases difficult to face, lesson about herself. The Vegas Diaries is a comedy of errors, set against the glitz and glamour of the dazzling Vegas strip. Through the wild and crazy experiences on one young woman's quest to "have it all," Holly faces her fears, anxieties, and insecurities to discover that her journey to self-sufficiency is also her path to healing. Letting go of trying to prove herself to others, Holly finally gains the courage to confront her past-and in the process finds the life and love she deserves.

Private investigator Jack Morgan is on the hunt for a murderer in Las Vegas-and the murder ring he uncovers is unlike anything he's ever seen. Las Vegas is a city of contradictions: seedy and glamorous, secretive and wild, Vegas attracts people of all kinds-especially those with a secret to hide, or a life to leave behind. It's the perfect location for Lester Olsen's lucrative business. He gets to treat gorgeous, young women to five-star restaurants, splashy shows, and limo rides-and then he teaches them how to kill. Private Jack Morgan spends most of his time in Los Angeles, where his top investigation firm has its headquarters. But a hunt for two criminals leads him to the city of sin-and to a murder ring that is more seductively threatening than anything he's witnessed before. Chilling and marvelous, Private Vegas brings James Patterson's Private series to a sensational new level.

A fun and instructive guide to the most popular men's hairstyles of the 20th century The Barber Book is a fun guide to the most popular men's hairstyles of the 20th century, including quirky line drawings to achieve the 'total look' and instructions on how to cut each style. Packed with information this smart handbook uses quirky illustrations and vintage photographs to explore the most popular hairstyles of the 20th century from the undercut and the afro to the classic Madison Avenue look. With a focus on personalities, culture and fashions and cultural events that inspired each look, the book opens with an illustrated introduction exploring the most popular styles of the 1940s, 50s and 60s through archival photography. The book includes a brand new directory of the world's finest barber shops.

The host of a national weekly television talk show Las Vegas tonight writes about the stories of spiritual journeys of people living in Las Vegas.