Tom Gorman

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New recycling facility doubles region’s ability to divert trash from landfill: Thursday, Nov. 12, 2015; Slowly but surely over the years, Southern Nevadans have learned to recycle much of their trash, to the point where the region’s primary waste disposal company, Republic Services, couldn’t handle it all and had to send recyclables to its desert landfill instead. The company has now caught up ...
Summer camp fund helps kids escape stress: Sunday, May 24, 2015; Ask about his first summer camp and Victor Diaz starts talking about food. Lots of food. He was 10 years old, in fifth grade, and was forging an unforgettable memory of spending a week in the mountains. This summer, he is heading back into the mountains — as a 52-year-old — to watch over some 50 Las Vegas children ages 8 to 14 who are about to experience their first camp. They are one of several groups of local adolescents and teenagers who, thanks to the support of Sun readers, have been selected to ...
Bee competitors leave us spellbound: Sunday, March 8, 2015; Nevada’s 36 best middle-school spellers will gather at 10 a.m. March 14 at Bishop Gorman High School to determine who will represent the state at the National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., in May ...
In today’s other big game, Las Vegas player sure to lick opponents: Sunday, Feb. 1, 2015; It’s the 11th annual "Puppy Bowl," when 50-some immature canines from shelters and rescue organizations across the country trump the billion-dollar NFL with their own brand of frolicking, frisky cuteness, held in check ...
Unlimited vacation? Some companies letting workers come and go as needed: Sunday, Feb. 1, 2015; But "a lot of people like having actual allotted vacation time so you don’t have to guess what’s OK to take," said an HR exec with a prominent Las Vegas company ...
Prayers for the new year: Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014; Faith leaders offer their hopes for Las Vegas in the new year.
Trying to pick out that perfect holiday card for clients: Sunday, Dec. 7, 2014; Do you order custom cards that show your logo and maybe a photo of key personnel — or the entire office in Santa hats? Do you purchase cards off the shelf or from your stationery supplier? Or — and this alternative can win you praise or ridicule — do you blast out e-cards?
It’s party time at the office: Sunday, Nov. 16, 2014; With holiday season approaching, companies share ideas about how to throw an appropriate celebration ...
Facing a crunch, new plant will double Southern Nevada’s recycling capacity: Expansion will also allow Republic Services to process more types of reusable material -- which in turn should encourage greater residential recycling; Thursday, Nov. 6, 2014; One of the challenges in building momentum for recycling in Southern Nevada has been a chokepoint at the receiving end of all those milk cartons, pizza boxes and ...
Help wanted: Good worker for fun-sounding job: Sunday, Oct. 19, 2014; Despite the swagger that a great job title can bring at a high school reunion, a local team manager said recruiters aren’t impressed by titles.
Why killer bees get a bad rap: Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014; They’re known as killer bees, a moniker that works well for big-screen horror flicks but does an injustice to the insects that play a vital role in agriculture and have been fighting for their own survival in recent years. Long before Africanized honey bees arrived in Nevada in 1997, their bad rap preceded them
Animal Foundation pursuing new strategy to avoid euthanasia of stray cats: Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2014; In its effort to stop euthanizing three out of four stray cats brought into its shelter, the Animal Foundation is favoring a new strategy: Collect stray cats, spay or neuter them, vaccinate them, then ...
Small businesses rise with perseverance, passion: Sunday, Aug. 17, 2014; Challenges of working for yourself can come from any direction, so those who succeed need the right personality, idea and education. It's not for everyone, but when it works, it's worth all the trouble ...
Why Southern Nevada stinks at recycling: Sunday, Aug. 3, 2014; With an unmotivated public, complacent public officials and a garbage company in love with its landfill, Southern Nevada continues to lag in recycling. We look at what other communities...
Moral of the story: Care about kids: Sunday, June 8, 2014; Steve and Caroline Lakes started reading to elementary school children eight years ago as part of a volunteer program associated with National Reading Week. They’ve come every month since.
Meet the man who saved a Metro Police officer’s life: Sunday, April 13, 2014; Mike Elgas was at Jack in the Box for a quick breakfast the day he helped save a police officer’s life. Elgas, 48, watched with concern as a belligerent customer refused to quiet down, prompting the restaurant manager to call 911. An officer arrived and, according to all accounts, politely asked the customer to go outside. The customer, who appeared intoxicated, walked outside. The officer said he was free to go. But the customer instead got in the officer’s face ...
CSN’s master of tailor-made teaching: Sunday, March 30, 2014; The College of Southern Nevada has one of the best history teachers in the country ...
Hints of autonomy for community colleges?: Sunday, March 9, 2014; Over decades, some Nevada politicians, education leaders and consultants have argued that Nevada’s four community colleges shouldn’t report to the state’s Board of Regents, which oversees UNLV and UNR, but rather be allowed to operate independently, perhaps with each individual college governed within its own community.
Running for president, really?: Sunday, Feb. 23, 2014; This is how easy it is to launch a campaign for public office: Kerry Bowers, a Henderson retiree after 30 years in the Air Force, has never before sought election to anything. Now he wants to be elected president of the United States.
Why a 6 1/2-pound baby girl is pulling Neal Smatresk away from UNLV: Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2013; Neal Smatresk seemed firmly planted as the president of UNLV, with several ambitious projects on his plate, a good salary and the backing of students, regents and the community. And then a little girl was born in Texas.
A day-by-day peek behind the scenes of the Mount Charleston fire: Friday, July 12, 2013; Now 12 days old, the Mount Charleston fire has consumed more than brush, trees and structures. It's also consumed the news in the Las Vegas Valley. Take a look back at the story of the fire, as seen through the eyes of firefighters, support personnel, residents who have been chased from their homes — and one who dared to stay despite a mandatory evacuation order.
Growing old(er) gracefully: What to see at the AARP convention: Friday, May 31, 2013; This is my future as an aging baby boomer, if the AARP’s “Life@50+” gathering at the Las Vegas Convention Center through Saturday is any indicator. I will be going on cruises (or maybe Amtrak tours). I will turn my savings over to financial planners while at the same time learning how to be a smart coupon collector.
Probe of fatal mortar shell blast resurrects memories of weapon's shadowy past: In Vietnam War and more recent conflicts, booby-trapped 60mm mortar rounds were salted in enemy ranks and exploded in firing tube; Wednesday, March 27, 2013; The probe into what caused a 60mm mortar round to misfire during a training exercise at the Hawthorne Army Depot, killing seven Marines and injuring eight, has entered its second week, with the Marine Corps still banning use of the weaponry with a shadowy past. Military investigators have identified and removed from circulation the lot from which the shell came. The shell detonated prematurely March 18 as the Marines, being prepared for oversees deployment, huddled around for instruction on its use.
Town of Hawthorne has long taken military's ammunition repository under its protective wing: Wednesday, March 20, 2013; Three weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, then-Los Angeles Times national correspondent Tom Gorman visited the small town of Hawthorne to profile the home of what was said to be the largest ammunition and ordnance repository in the world. On Monday, an explosion during a live-fire training exercise there killed eight Marines, bringing the Hawthorne Army Depot back into a spotlight it prefers to deflect.
Commissioner, women's shelter call ad for Guns N' Roses concerts 'inappropriate': Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2012; A Clark County commissioner said she regrets the commission’s decision to temporarily rename Paradise Road to “Paradise City Road” to promote Guns N’ Roses concerts.
He's got the voice, but needs a chance: Down on his luck singer dreams of returning to big stage; Saturday, Oct. 27, 2012; It’s open-mic night at the Tap House, where singers and musicians gather on their nights off to jam and perform for a loyal, if eclectic, base of fans. A skinny guy with a drawn face and shoulder-length hair approaches the mic. He’s 56 but you can’t tell unless you get up close to him.
Anti-Defamation League warned: Arab Spring will take much longer: At annual American Heritage dinner, MGM Resorts International and its president and CEO, Jim Murren, are honored for aggressive efforts to diversify its management ranks.; Friday, Oct. 19, 2012; In an otherwise-upbeat celebration of workplace diversity and efforts to reduce hate and bullying among young people, an Anti-Defamation League banquet audience Thursday night listened as a former State Department expert on foreign policy cautioned against expectations that governments in the Middle East may be transformed anytime soon.
No need to go to London to try your hand at an Olympic sport: Friday, Aug. 3, 2012; So you’re watching the Olympics and thinking that some of the sports might be fun to try. Maybe not the pole vault or the pentathlon or synchronized swimming but hey, you say, I can get my hands on a bow and arrow or a badminton racket. Fencing? Bring it on, Zorro! And if you’re burned out on Strip entertainment, maybe you’d enjoy watching dressage.
Random photo of the week: Wednesday, July 11, 2012; Submitted by Tom Gorman.
Google issues false warning about the security of Sun’s website: Sunday, May 13, 2012; Google scared Sun readers from visiting stories on our homepage, displaying a screen that warned that the page had been blocked. Rest assured that the security we employ is state-of-the-art, and for good reason.
Town hall meeting for valley's Hispanics will contribute to national agenda: Friday, Feb. 24, 2012; Chances are pretty good you’ve never heard of Glenn Llopis. Brimming with enthusiasm, he’s coming to Las Vegas to rally the valley’s Hispanic residents. Not for President Barack Obama, and not for any of the Republican presidential candidates. Not on behalf of any politicians, actually. Llopis wants to stir Hispanics to rally for themselves.
Fate of 'Godfather' script, not sold to 'Pawn Stars,' has surprise ending: Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012; Al Ruddy, who produced the blockbuster movie “The Godfather," was more than happy to help a Las Vegas charity sell a leather-bound, studio copy of the screenplay, which he had signed and which had somehow landed in one of the charity’s donation bins.
At UNLV basketball games, they call him Tiny, and that big kid can dance: Friday, Feb. 10, 2012; On game day at Thomas & Mack, he’s the standout, coming in at 6-foot-1 and 400 pounds and collecting some of the loudest cheers by the final buzzer. He can’t dunk like Mike Moser or drain 3-pointers like Chace Stanback. But man, can he dance.
After turning down $500 from ‘Pawn Stars,’ charity lands $12,000 for ‘Godfather’ movie script: Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012; A copy of “The Godfather” screenplay that landed in a charity donation bin, and for which the fellows of “Pawn Stars” offered $500, sold at auction Thursday for more money than anyone expected: $12,000.
The next offer, she won’t refuse: Auction of ‘Godfather’ screenplay will fetch thousands of dollars for Catholic Charities after 'Pawn Stars' offer was rejected; Monday, Feb. 6, 2012; Last summer, Diane Hutton was offered $500 by the fellows on the cable TV show “Pawn Stars” for a leather-bound copy of the screenplay for the blockbuster 1972 movie “The Godfather.”
‘Chicks with Guns’: Photographing women who love their weapons: Friday, Feb. 3, 2012; A landscape artist-turned-portait photographer, Lindsay McCrum enjoys exploring gender-based stereotypes. She has photographed young boys playing in military costumes with toy guns and young girls dressing up in their mothers’ fancy clothes.
On being Elvis — at a Vegas porn convention: Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2012; For a few hours, I was the King of Porn. As I walked around the Adult Entertainment Expo, porn industry members took my picture. Starlets posed with me, holding me tightly. Some of them caressed my shoulders and ran their fingers through my hair. This, because I was wearing an Elvis costume. Best $100 I ever spent. I know that what happens in Vegas is supposed to stay in Vegas. But with the kind of attention this old man got from women with indescribable figures, I’m telling the world!
Rodeo fans hitting Cowboy Christmas for a little retail therapy: Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011; The wide open plains may provide a sublime holiday experience. But if cowboys real and faux are on the hunt for holiday gifts, they’ll be heading to the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Fierce and smart: White Magic is a bull to watch: Thursday, Dec. 1, 2011; Meet White Magic, the baddest buckin’ bull at the rodeo.
When a business model needs a makeover: Monday, Oct. 24, 2011; Businesswoman Yvonne Rodriguez got badly bruised in the boutique clothing business, so she’s turning to the business of beauty.
The business of beauty: In an ugly economy, executive savvy is essential in the beauty industry; Monday, Oct. 24, 2011; Listen to Kat Toussaint talk about the beauty business, and you wonder why she isn’t leading a 300-level practicum in how to survive the recession in a business that relies on discretionary spending. Successful stylists speak the language of entrepreneurs. And the stylists and others who aren’t smart businesspeople? Hair today, gone tomorrow.
After snubbing 'Pawn Stars,' charity gets bigger offers for 'Godfather' screenplay: Thursday, Oct. 6, 2011; When the folks at the cable TV show “Pawn Stars” examined a leather-bound copy of “The Godfather” screenplay, they concluded it was autographed by Al Pacino and offered to buy it from Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada for $500.
Church charity, 'Pawn Stars' wrangle over value of a copy of 'Godfather' screenplay: The Al Pacino-autographed copy of the screenplay found its way into church thrift store; Tuesday, July 19, 2011; Diane Hutton, who runs one of the largest thrift store operations in town, ended up on the hit cable TV show “Pawn Stars” because she didn't judge a book by its cover. A while back she was explaining to one of the workers in the warehouse at Catholic Charities how to spot valuable books.
Postal Service: Whew, we finally found the mailbox keys: Wednesday, June 22, 2011; The U.S. Postal Service promises to deliver mail despite rain, sleet or dark of night. But nobody mentioned someone losing the keys to the community mailboxes.
Shakespeare's 'Merchant of Venice' feels more like 'Merchant of Vegas': Friday, June 17, 2011; The moment they take their seats for “The Merchant of Venice” and see the craps table onstage, theatergoers realize they are about to boldly go where no Shakespeare play has been set before — Las Vegas.
Las Vegas can market its good side: Sunday, May 15, 2011; To an outsider, it might seem that Las Vegas is in the throes of an identity crisis, shaken to our roots, betrayed by an economy that had always been faithful to us. We’re struggling to recover and regroup and wondering whether, and how, we need to redefine ourselves.
In marketing Las Vegas, have we sold our community short?: The “Vegas, baby!” image of our city is incomplete. Imagine a marketing campaign that captures why our city is like no place on Earth. But if we start selling who we really are, would anyone buy it?; Monday, May 9, 2011; To an outsider, it might seem that Las Vegas is in the throes of an identity crisis, shaken to our roots, betrayed by an economy that had always been faithful to us. And now we’re struggling to recover and regroup and wondering whether, and how, we need to redefine ourselves. These cynics might now be chortling at our misery, at how our grand, greedy plan went south and that we had it coming.
Nevada's first Five Guys Burgers and Fries debuts in Henderson: Friday, March 4, 2011; President Obama is a fan. Are you?
Historian: Modern presidents losing bully pulpit: Thursday, Oct. 21, 2010; Doris Kearns Goodwin, the Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and presidential author, wonders whether modern presidents have lost their bully pulpit to the noise of the fractious media and Internet bloggers.
Ruvo Center architect’s form helps direct focus on a cure: Tuesday, April 6, 2010; In his audacious campaign to find a cure for Alzheimer’s disease, businessman Larry Ruvo is about ready to check off another milestone. 1) Establish a foundation to raise money for a world-class research and outpatient treatment center, check.