1980’s. 3 photos of punk shows, by Jerry Russo, owner of the Hair Zoo. click here

1986-08-24 “Far out looks, close shaves.” Las Vegas Review Journal.
(The Hair Zoo was the first combined business and cultural center in downtown Las Vegas.)

1980’s Hair Zoo flyers after it moved from downtown to 1605 E. Sahara.

1987-02 “New rooms for Newsroom.” Las Vegas Arts Alive. by Lea Deane. (In 1986, Lenadams Dorris opened the Newsroom at 5^th Street and Fremont.
It was downtown’s first art/coffee shop. It signaled impending disaster for downtown. A prompt application of urban renewal led to its eviction. The Newsroom moved to Maryland Parkway in 1987, the first art coffee shop there.)

1990 Vintage Madness flyer. 918 S. 4^th Street. (Alan Clancy’s Vintage Madness clothing store advertised a back space for rent that later became Enigma Garden Café. Clancy was the first person to suggest that 4^th Street could become the Vegas version of LA’s Melrose.)

1991-04-13 Flyers for What? coffeehouse, 1647 E. Charleston.

1992-03-15 Flyers for Deni Pasion’s Pasion Hair Salon. Deni met little support for her cultural efforts and left Vegas for success in Miami.

1984-09-13 “Orphaned items fill LV merchant’s shelves.” Las Vegas Review Journal. by Treva Zeller. (Bill Rogers Camera Repair had multiple downtown locations including adjacent to Enigma Garden Café. (Photos by Bill Rogers: Steve Johnson diving off the Charleston Underpass.)

1993 flyer for Enigma Garden Café, 918 ¼ S. 4^th Street.

1994-11-10 “Sunshine on the Strip.” New Times Las Vegas. by Kimberly Coon. (Inimitable raconteur Rick Hooper’s Sunshine Daydream, a Rainbow Family outpost on Fifth Street.)

1995-04-10 “Daydream believers.” Las Vegas Sun. by Brad Talbutt.
(Rick Hooper financed Sunshine Daydream by selling a psychedelic toy at Lollapalooza. His typical audience had never met a hard sell before. Rick learned his skills in a Fremont Street casino.)

1995-02-21 “Sunshine Daydream faces dark nightmare.” Las Vegas Review Journal. by Carol Huang. (Redevelopment destroys the dream. Sunshine Daydream's former location had streets routed over it not once but twice. After twenty years, the first configuration was discovered to be a failure and then corrected.)

1996-10-17 “Let liberty ring at Liberty Café.” Inside White Cross Drugs at 5^th Street and Oakey. Las Vegas City Life. by Lenadams Dorris.

2005-04-18 Liberty Café filming notice. Lucky You, with Robert Duvall and Drew Barrymore. 2007.

1997-06-05 “Sip of culture: coffeehouse culture scene keeps percolating in Las Vegas.” Las Vegas City Life. by Mike Weatherford. (The Attic on Main Street, Borders Books, Enigma Garden Café.)

1997-06-05 “Nobody’s glad you came.” Las Vegas City Life. by Night Crawler.
(Everyone gets good reviews. Dino’s gets the worst bar review of all time without its business being notably affected.)

1997-09-25 “Nuclear power.” Atomic Liquor review. Las Vegas City Life. by Night Crawler.

2007-05-17 “Frankie sent me. What’s good for Ol’ Blue eyes is good for the gander.” Las Vegas Weekly. by Matthew Scott Hunter. (Atomic Liquors.)

2012-06-12 “Atomic Liquor returns. New owners plan to renovate, add music venue and theater.” Las Vegas City Life. by Kristy Totten.

1997-11-20 “Not-so-new age: Bertae Specialties has been open for 52 years. Call it old school new age.” Las Vegas City Life. by Andrew Kiraly. (For thirty years, the odd and the occult had one public Vegas showcase. They burned Indian incense, a different perfume than Catholic frankincense. It was a signal.)

1998-08-23 “Failed restaurant an example of storm clouds that linger in climate of redevelopment.” Las Vegas Sun. by Steve Kanigher. (For no clear reason, Frogeez, a perfectly good restaurant, is destroyed by the city.)

1998-11-30 “Making way for Neonopolis: a downtown market that has seen its surroundings and clientele change over 23 years, closes shop today.” Las Vegas Review Journal. by Peter O’Connell.

2001-09-07 “Thrill ride derailed by commission: City Council will have final say on proposed Stratosphere coaster.” Las Vegas Review Journal. by Jan Moller.

2001-04-29 "Stratosphere coaster could be beginning of end for downtown." Las Vegas Review Journal. by John L. Smith.

2003-02-27 “Strip mau: a battle over urban renewal brews in Commercial Center.” Las Vegas Mercury. by Andrew Kiraly.

2007-08-16 “She’s nails: can a renegade spa owner initiate a full makeover of the aging district at Commercial Center? Or is it blight?” Las Vegas Weekly. by John Katsilometes.

2003-11-23 “Holsum…from loaves to lofts: LaPour Partners to convert neon-lighted downtown bakery into arts center with residential components.” Las Vegas Review Journal. by Nick Haley. (Developed by Jeff LaPour, designed by H. Stephen Jackson.)

2003-12-05 “A bookies mecca: a new bookstore offers a literary oasis for those with more on their minds than the usual glamor. But, just in case, the casinos are but a short walk away.” Los Angeles Times. by Sharon Boorstin. (The Reading Room inside Mandalay Bay.)

2006-08-13 “Off the Strip, bring on the bacon martini.” Los Angeles Times. by Ricard Abowitz. (Champagnes Café, Art Bar, The Dispensary, Double Down saloon, Divebar.)

2007-03-30 “New life for Tod: renovations, new management just the beginning for longtime Strip property.” Las Vegas Sun. by Kristen Peterson.

2007-10-11 “Too ‘downtown’ for your critic.” “He complained about the carpet. Yep, the carpet.” Letter to Las Vegas City Life.
(Fine snark by Freddie Maatouk, VP, the Plaza.)

2008-03-26 “Whole-hog cottage industry: under US 95, brothers create a world of unique homes.” Las Vegas Sun. by Kristen Peterson.
(The first gentrification of downtown apartments. 7^th Street next to US 95. Joe Clark and Sharon Logan previously crafted an art gallery from a garage, which later became Enigma Garden Café. The apartments were later destroyed to make room for future urban renewal.)

2008-09-22 “Bree Blumstein: General manager of the Beauty Bar.” Las Vegas Sun. by Sam Skolnik.

1998-05-24 “Local shop gets major exposure with ad during ‘Seinfeld’.” Las Vegas Sun. by Al Gibes.
(The Attic is featured in an ad for Visa which runs during Seinfeld’s finale. It is the most prestigious ad on TV. The Attic’s business booms.)

2012-02-23 “Empty Attic: What does the demise of a downtown institution say about downtown?” Las Vegas City Life. by Gigi Generaux.

2012-06-03 “Think you’re working hard for the American dream? Think again.” Las Vegas Review Journal. by John L. Smith.
(All-Star Donuts near 5th Street and Oakey. 16 hours a day, 7 days a week. Across his parking lot, Olympic Garden received a city grant for an improved neon sign. I suggested that Jimmy Ly might apply for a similar grant to replace his torn awning. He said no. His business was small. If he made such a request, he would get in trouble.)

2012-04-19 “To boldly not go: how one man robbed Vegas of the Starship Enterprise.” Las Vegas Weekly. by Erin Ryan.

1986-11-20 “Principle architect of change, Thomas Graham builds a vision.” Las Vegas Review Journal. by Lynn Feuerbach.
(Designing the Downtown Transportation Center, in 2010 replaced by the new Downtown Transportation Center.)

2000-12-28 “Goodman smiles: mans a shovel.” Las Vegas City Life. by Tony Illia. (Breaking ground for L’Octaine, on Fifth Street, a mixed use commercial and residential project.)