Showgirls: The Saga Continues

Sometimes great opportunities and chance meetings just come out of the blue and today was one of those days. Remember how I have been working in the archives cataloging several of the museum’s showgirl’s pieces? Well as luck would have it, today I had most of the pieces out on the work table as I merrily sewed labels onto each piece. While working in the afternoon I had the opportunity to meet with Lisa and what a rare treat it was!

    Lisa is working on a book for Arcadia, a publishing company that produces picture books of Las Vegas. Her current project is to compile photographs and information for their latest book: one on the history of showgirls in Las Vegas. It was her lucky day because I had a smorgasbord of showgirls pieces already out and ready for her to look at. What are the chances? 

    After taking a few pictures of some pieces (I even made it into one of the pictures - I could be in a book, I'd be famous ! :) ) I had a chance to find out a little more about how she does that she does. As we all know, the job market, especially for history majors, is a little hard. Even within academia, the pickings can be kind of slim. Lisa suggested other avenues for employement such as teaching (she teaches at CSN) or publishing. She actually works a few jobs as she both teaches, takes pictures for Arcadia's book, and is working on writing her own book on Las Vegas showgirls. She is quite a talented woman.

    Although it sounds like several books are coming out of the woodwork about showgirls, it is a neat experience in academia that we can all share our knowledge together. I discussed my experiences seeing Grant Phillipo’s showgirl collection as well as my knowledge from working on our exhibit and spending some time in the UNLV special collections archives. She likewise gave me names of other sources she has referenced, such as previous showgirls she has interviewed. It is a great network if you can find people to talk to and make some connections.

    One of the last great treasures that Lisa bestowed upon me was some advise about being published. Especially if you want to succeed in the history profession or want to go on for the PhD, you need some experience and  publications on your CV. THe more you can cram on that baby the better. Lisa told me about a book on deceased Nevada women that is coming together right now. To be included you just need to write a 800 word essay on a woman in Nevada. Opportunities abound it just depends on who you know and what you can find out about.