Claudine Williams, the first woman to run a Las Vegas Strip Casino and considered one of the pioneers who shaped the gaming industry and Las Vegas, died Wednesday after a long illness. She was 88. She was born on March 17, 1921, to Robert and Hazel Williams in Mansfield, DeSoto Parish, La. She was raised by her grandmother in nearby Logansport and Shreveport.
Williams operated the Holiday Inn-Holiday Casino on the Strip until the property was sold to Harrah's in the 1980s and renamed Harrah's Las Vegas. Even then, Williams maintained an office at the resort and advised company executives, including retired chairman Phil Satre and current CEO Gary Loveman.
In the 1980s, she served as chairwoman of the board for the American Bank of Commerce and she was president of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, the first woman to hold that position. She represented the motel industry on the board of directors of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, just one of the 28 different boards and commissions she served on in her career.
"The greatest gratification I get is helping out people that are trying to make something of their life," Williams told interviewer Joanne Goodwin in UNLV's Las Vegas Woman Oral History Project.
Williams came to Las Vegas in 1965 with her husband, Shelby, a long-time Texas entrepreneur. They bought the Silver Slipper casino on the Strip and operated it for several years until selling the small gambling hall in 1969 to billionaire Howard Hughes, who was living across the street atop the Desert Inn.
Williams told Goodwin that she and her husband took the profits from the Silver Slipper sale and purchased land across the Strip from Caesars Palace for the Holiday Casino, which was adjacent to Holiday Inn.
"Everybody thought we were crazy," Williams told Goodwin. "They said, 'You're going to try to compete with Caesars Palace?' And I said, 'No, there's a lot of people that would rather be in a family-run place than over at Caesars Palace.' " Williams said she and her husband ran the Holiday Casino "like a Mom and Pop business."
After Shelby Williams' death in 1977, Claudine Williams emerged as president and general manager of the Holiday, a first in Nevada for a woman. She sold 40 percent of the casino to Harrah's in 1979 and her remaining ownership in 1983. But she was given the title of chairman of the property.
When she was 12 years old, she worked as a waitress in a restaurant that catered to oil-field workers. She took her first casino job when she was 15, dealing cards at a private club in Bossier Parish that offered gambling. A few years later, she moved her mother to Houston, worked two jobs at restaurants that offered gambling, and met Shelby Williams, a sports book writer. World War II broke out and Shelby enlisted in the U.S. Navy. Claudine Williams, then 20, opened several restaurants that offered gambling.
She had publicly stated that her only regret in life was dropping out of school.
Despite having only a ninth-grade education and competing in what was at the time an almost exclusively male-dominated industry, her achievements were remarkable.
Her male counterparts respected her. Upon learning og her passing Jack Binion said "Listen, she was the real deal, She lived the business. She started in the gambling business when she was 15. Some of the old time guys in the business couldn't change with the times, but she did. Claudine was a really good friend and a super person. I'm really going to miss her."
Published Las Vegas Review Journal and Las Vegas Sun May 2009
∼MAY 15, 2009 12 AM PT
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Claudine Williams, a leading figure in the Nevada gambling industry and the first woman to manage a major Las Vegas Strip casino, has died. She was 88.
Harrah's Entertainment officials said Williams died Wednesday in Las Vegas after a long illness.
"Claudine was a remarkable woman whose grace, tenacity, intellect, integrity, work ethic and community involvement propelled her to the chairmanship of Harrah's Las Vegas and to service on a wide range of business, charitable and community service organizations," Harrah's Chief Executive Gary Loveman said in a letter to company employees.
"Despite having only a ninth-grade education and competing in what was at the time an almost exclusively male-dominated industry, Claudine's achievements were remarkable."
In 1992, Williams was the first woman inducted into the American Gaming Assn.'s Gaming Hall of Fame.
Williams was born in 1921 in Mansfield, La., and moved as a teenager to Texas, where she met her husband, Shelby Williams. They bought the Silver Slipper casino on the Las Vegas Strip in the early 1960s and sold it several years later to billionaire Howard Hughes.
The couple bought property across from Caesars Palace and opened the riverboat-themed Holiday Casino adjacent to the Holiday Inn. After Shelby Williams died in 1977, Claudine Williams emerged as president and general manager of the Holiday.
She sold 40% of the casino in 1979 to Holiday Inns Inc., then the parent company of Harrah's Entertainment, which -- by then spun off -- bought her remaining interest in 1983.
Williams retained the title of chairman of the renamed Harrah's Las Vegas, the company's first casino in town.
Harrah's, then based in Reno, and now in Las Vegas and privately held, owns or operates more than 50 casinos, including eight in Las Vegas. Its revenue in 2008 was $9.4 billion.
Williams served on more than two dozen boards and commissions over the years, including the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, and contributed millions of dollars to charities and to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. A new campus dormitory was named for her in 1989.
Williams is survived by a son, Michael Shelby Williams of New York; a stepson, Scott Noe; and a stepdaughter, Susan Noe of Houston.
Los Angeles Times
Williams operated the Holiday Inn-Holiday Casino on the Strip until the property was sold to Harrah's in the 1980s and renamed Harrah's Las Vegas. Even then, Williams maintained an office at the resort and advised company executives, including retired chairman Phil Satre and current CEO Gary Loveman.
In the 1980s, she served as chairwoman of the board for the American Bank of Commerce and she was president of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, the first woman to hold that position. She represented the motel industry on the board of directors of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, just one of the 28 different boards and commissions she served on in her career.
"The greatest gratification I get is helping out people that are trying to make something of their life," Williams told interviewer Joanne Goodwin in UNLV's Las Vegas Woman Oral History Project.
Williams came to Las Vegas in 1965 with her husband, Shelby, a long-time Texas entrepreneur. They bought the Silver Slipper casino on the Strip and operated it for several years until selling the small gambling hall in 1969 to billionaire Howard Hughes, who was living across the street atop the Desert Inn.
Williams told Goodwin that she and her husband took the profits from the Silver Slipper sale and purchased land across the Strip from Caesars Palace for the Holiday Casino, which was adjacent to Holiday Inn.
"Everybody thought we were crazy," Williams told Goodwin. "They said, 'You're going to try to compete with Caesars Palace?' And I said, 'No, there's a lot of people that would rather be in a family-run place than over at Caesars Palace.' " Williams said she and her husband ran the Holiday Casino "like a Mom and Pop business."
After Shelby Williams' death in 1977, Claudine Williams emerged as president and general manager of the Holiday, a first in Nevada for a woman. She sold 40 percent of the casino to Harrah's in 1979 and her remaining ownership in 1983. But she was given the title of chairman of the property.
When she was 12 years old, she worked as a waitress in a restaurant that catered to oil-field workers. She took her first casino job when she was 15, dealing cards at a private club in Bossier Parish that offered gambling. A few years later, she moved her mother to Houston, worked two jobs at restaurants that offered gambling, and met Shelby Williams, a sports book writer. World War II broke out and Shelby enlisted in the U.S. Navy. Claudine Williams, then 20, opened several restaurants that offered gambling.
She had publicly stated that her only regret in life was dropping out of school.
Despite having only a ninth-grade education and competing in what was at the time an almost exclusively male-dominated industry, her achievements were remarkable.
Her male counterparts respected her. Upon learning og her passing Jack Binion said "Listen, she was the real deal, She lived the business. She started in the gambling business when she was 15. Some of the old time guys in the business couldn't change with the times, but she did. Claudine was a really good friend and a super person. I'm really going to miss her."
Published Las Vegas Review Journal and Las Vegas Sun May 2009
∼MAY 15, 2009 12 AM PT
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Claudine Williams, a leading figure in the Nevada gambling industry and the first woman to manage a major Las Vegas Strip casino, has died. She was 88.
Harrah's Entertainment officials said Williams died Wednesday in Las Vegas after a long illness.
"Claudine was a remarkable woman whose grace, tenacity, intellect, integrity, work ethic and community involvement propelled her to the chairmanship of Harrah's Las Vegas and to service on a wide range of business, charitable and community service organizations," Harrah's Chief Executive Gary Loveman said in a letter to company employees.
"Despite having only a ninth-grade education and competing in what was at the time an almost exclusively male-dominated industry, Claudine's achievements were remarkable."
In 1992, Williams was the first woman inducted into the American Gaming Assn.'s Gaming Hall of Fame.
Williams was born in 1921 in Mansfield, La., and moved as a teenager to Texas, where she met her husband, Shelby Williams. They bought the Silver Slipper casino on the Las Vegas Strip in the early 1960s and sold it several years later to billionaire Howard Hughes.
The couple bought property across from Caesars Palace and opened the riverboat-themed Holiday Casino adjacent to the Holiday Inn. After Shelby Williams died in 1977, Claudine Williams emerged as president and general manager of the Holiday.
She sold 40% of the casino in 1979 to Holiday Inns Inc., then the parent company of Harrah's Entertainment, which -- by then spun off -- bought her remaining interest in 1983.
Williams retained the title of chairman of the renamed Harrah's Las Vegas, the company's first casino in town.
Harrah's, then based in Reno, and now in Las Vegas and privately held, owns or operates more than 50 casinos, including eight in Las Vegas. Its revenue in 2008 was $9.4 billion.
Williams served on more than two dozen boards and commissions over the years, including the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, and contributed millions of dollars to charities and to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. A new campus dormitory was named for her in 1989.
Williams is survived by a son, Michael Shelby Williams of New York; a stepson, Scott Noe; and a stepdaughter, Susan Noe of Houston.
Los Angeles Times
Claudine Williams, the first woman to run a Las Vegas Strip Casino and considered one of the pioneers who shaped the gaming industry and Las Vegas, died Wednesday after a long illness. She was 88. She was born on March 17, 1921, to Robert and Hazel Williams in Mansfield, DeSoto Parish, La. She was raised by her grandmother in nearby Logansport and Shreveport.
Williams operated the Holiday Inn-Holiday Casino on the Strip until the property was sold to Harrah's in the 1980s and renamed Harrah's Las Vegas. Even then, Williams maintained an office at the resort and advised company executives, including retired chairman Phil Satre and current CEO Gary Loveman.
In the 1980s, she served as chairwoman of the board for the American Bank of Commerce and she was president of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, the first woman to hold that position. She represented the motel industry on the board of directors of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, just one of the 28 different boards and commissions she served on in her career.
"The greatest gratification I get is helping out people that are trying to make something of their life," Williams told interviewer Joanne Goodwin in UNLV's Las Vegas Woman Oral History Project.
Williams came to Las Vegas in 1965 with her husband, Shelby, a long-time Texas entrepreneur. They bought the Silver Slipper casino on the Strip and operated it for several years until selling the small gambling hall in 1969 to billionaire Howard Hughes, who was living across the street atop the Desert Inn.
Williams told Goodwin that she and her husband took the profits from the Silver Slipper sale and purchased land across the Strip from Caesars Palace for the Holiday Casino, which was adjacent to Holiday Inn.
"Everybody thought we were crazy," Williams told Goodwin. "They said, 'You're going to try to compete with Caesars Palace?' And I said, 'No, there's a lot of people that would rather be in a family-run place than over at Caesars Palace.' " Williams said she and her husband ran the Holiday Casino "like a Mom and Pop business."
After Shelby Williams' death in 1977, Claudine Williams emerged as president and general manager of the Holiday, a first in Nevada for a woman. She sold 40 percent of the casino to Harrah's in 1979 and her remaining ownership in 1983. But she was given the title of chairman of the property.
When she was 12 years old, she worked as a waitress in a restaurant that catered to oil-field workers. She took her first casino job when she was 15, dealing cards at a private club in Bossier Parish that offered gambling. A few years later, she moved her mother to Houston, worked two jobs at restaurants that offered gambling, and met Shelby Williams, a sports book writer. World War II broke out and Shelby enlisted in the U.S. Navy. Claudine Williams, then 20, opened several restaurants that offered gambling.
She had publicly stated that her only regret in life was dropping out of school.
Despite having only a ninth-grade education and competing in what was at the time an almost exclusively male-dominated industry, her achievements were remarkable.
Her male counterparts respected her. Upon learning og her passing Jack Binion said "Listen, she was the real deal, She lived the business. She started in the gambling business when she was 15. Some of the old time guys in the business couldn't change with the times, but she did. Claudine was a really good friend and a super person. I'm really going to miss her."
Published Las Vegas Review Journal and Las Vegas Sun May 2009
∼MAY 15, 2009 12 AM PT
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Claudine Williams, a leading figure in the Nevada gambling industry and the first woman to manage a major Las Vegas Strip casino, has died. She was 88.
Harrah's Entertainment officials said Williams died Wednesday in Las Vegas after a long illness.
"Claudine was a remarkable woman whose grace, tenacity, intellect, integrity, work ethic and community involvement propelled her to the chairmanship of Harrah's Las Vegas and to service on a wide range of business, charitable and community service organizations," Harrah's Chief Executive Gary Loveman said in a letter to company employees.
"Despite having only a ninth-grade education and competing in what was at the time an almost exclusively male-dominated industry, Claudine's achievements were remarkable."
In 1992, Williams was the first woman inducted into the American Gaming Assn.'s Gaming Hall of Fame.
Williams was born in 1921 in Mansfield, La., and moved as a teenager to Texas, where she met her husband, Shelby Williams. They bought the Silver Slipper casino on the Las Vegas Strip in the early 1960s and sold it several years later to billionaire Howard Hughes.
The couple bought property across from Caesars Palace and opened the riverboat-themed Holiday Casino adjacent to the Holiday Inn. After Shelby Williams died in 1977, Claudine Williams emerged as president and general manager of the Holiday.
She sold 40% of the casino in 1979 to Holiday Inns Inc., then the parent company of Harrah's Entertainment, which -- by then spun off -- bought her remaining interest in 1983.
Williams retained the title of chairman of the renamed Harrah's Las Vegas, the company's first casino in town.
Harrah's, then based in Reno, and now in Las Vegas and privately held, owns or operates more than 50 casinos, including eight in Las Vegas. Its revenue in 2008 was $9.4 billion.
Williams served on more than two dozen boards and commissions over the years, including the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, and contributed millions of dollars to charities and to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. A new campus dormitory was named for her in 1989.
Williams is survived by a son, Michael Shelby Williams of New York; a stepson, Scott Noe; and a stepdaughter, Susan Noe of Houston.
Los Angeles Times
Williams operated the Holiday Inn-Holiday Casino on the Strip until the property was sold to Harrah's in the 1980s and renamed Harrah's Las Vegas. Even then, Williams maintained an office at the resort and advised company executives, including retired chairman Phil Satre and current CEO Gary Loveman.
In the 1980s, she served as chairwoman of the board for the American Bank of Commerce and she was president of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, the first woman to hold that position. She represented the motel industry on the board of directors of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, just one of the 28 different boards and commissions she served on in her career.
"The greatest gratification I get is helping out people that are trying to make something of their life," Williams told interviewer Joanne Goodwin in UNLV's Las Vegas Woman Oral History Project.
Williams came to Las Vegas in 1965 with her husband, Shelby, a long-time Texas entrepreneur. They bought the Silver Slipper casino on the Strip and operated it for several years until selling the small gambling hall in 1969 to billionaire Howard Hughes, who was living across the street atop the Desert Inn.
Williams told Goodwin that she and her husband took the profits from the Silver Slipper sale and purchased land across the Strip from Caesars Palace for the Holiday Casino, which was adjacent to Holiday Inn.
"Everybody thought we were crazy," Williams told Goodwin. "They said, 'You're going to try to compete with Caesars Palace?' And I said, 'No, there's a lot of people that would rather be in a family-run place than over at Caesars Palace.' " Williams said she and her husband ran the Holiday Casino "like a Mom and Pop business."
After Shelby Williams' death in 1977, Claudine Williams emerged as president and general manager of the Holiday, a first in Nevada for a woman. She sold 40 percent of the casino to Harrah's in 1979 and her remaining ownership in 1983. But she was given the title of chairman of the property.
When she was 12 years old, she worked as a waitress in a restaurant that catered to oil-field workers. She took her first casino job when she was 15, dealing cards at a private club in Bossier Parish that offered gambling. A few years later, she moved her mother to Houston, worked two jobs at restaurants that offered gambling, and met Shelby Williams, a sports book writer. World War II broke out and Shelby enlisted in the U.S. Navy. Claudine Williams, then 20, opened several restaurants that offered gambling.
She had publicly stated that her only regret in life was dropping out of school.
Despite having only a ninth-grade education and competing in what was at the time an almost exclusively male-dominated industry, her achievements were remarkable.
Her male counterparts respected her. Upon learning og her passing Jack Binion said "Listen, she was the real deal, She lived the business. She started in the gambling business when she was 15. Some of the old time guys in the business couldn't change with the times, but she did. Claudine was a really good friend and a super person. I'm really going to miss her."
Published Las Vegas Review Journal and Las Vegas Sun May 2009
∼MAY 15, 2009 12 AM PT
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Claudine Williams, a leading figure in the Nevada gambling industry and the first woman to manage a major Las Vegas Strip casino, has died. She was 88.
Harrah's Entertainment officials said Williams died Wednesday in Las Vegas after a long illness.
"Claudine was a remarkable woman whose grace, tenacity, intellect, integrity, work ethic and community involvement propelled her to the chairmanship of Harrah's Las Vegas and to service on a wide range of business, charitable and community service organizations," Harrah's Chief Executive Gary Loveman said in a letter to company employees.
"Despite having only a ninth-grade education and competing in what was at the time an almost exclusively male-dominated industry, Claudine's achievements were remarkable."
In 1992, Williams was the first woman inducted into the American Gaming Assn.'s Gaming Hall of Fame.
Williams was born in 1921 in Mansfield, La., and moved as a teenager to Texas, where she met her husband, Shelby Williams. They bought the Silver Slipper casino on the Las Vegas Strip in the early 1960s and sold it several years later to billionaire Howard Hughes.
The couple bought property across from Caesars Palace and opened the riverboat-themed Holiday Casino adjacent to the Holiday Inn. After Shelby Williams died in 1977, Claudine Williams emerged as president and general manager of the Holiday.
She sold 40% of the casino in 1979 to Holiday Inns Inc., then the parent company of Harrah's Entertainment, which -- by then spun off -- bought her remaining interest in 1983.
Williams retained the title of chairman of the renamed Harrah's Las Vegas, the company's first casino in town.
Harrah's, then based in Reno, and now in Las Vegas and privately held, owns or operates more than 50 casinos, including eight in Las Vegas. Its revenue in 2008 was $9.4 billion.
Williams served on more than two dozen boards and commissions over the years, including the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, and contributed millions of dollars to charities and to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. A new campus dormitory was named for her in 1989.
Williams is survived by a son, Michael Shelby Williams of New York; a stepson, Scott Noe; and a stepdaughter, Susan Noe of Houston.
Los Angeles Times
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