“As an entertainer and human being, I’ve benefited greatly from the trail blazed by the likes of Sammy Davis Jr., Lena Horne and Pearl Bailey, all friends of mine – the challenges they overcame demonstrate that talent alone is not the key to longevity in Las Vegas. As Beyond the Glimmering Lights skillfully documents, passion and perseverance are essential traits. I am profoundly grateful for the high standards set by these amazing role models.”
- Wayne Newton, Entertainer, aka: Mr. Las Vegas
“African American residents and entertainers should be recognized for the travails they endured while developing our great city. Geran has integrated the history of Las Vegas into her aunt Mac’s story, from the men who worked on the big construction projects to the entertainers who suffered the indignities of entering the back doors of casinos where they were performing as stars in the lunges. There is a rich, colorful and very moving story here – one that Trish Geran is uniquely qualified to tell.”
- Mayor Oscar B. Goodman
Las Vegas, Nevada
“It’s important everyone know that it simply was not easy trying to make it in the city some took to calling the Mississippi of the West.
- Ruth Brown
Entertainer, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductee
“Beyond the Glimmering Lights gives a panoramic view of how Sammy Davis, Jr., Josephine Baker, and others were not just entertainers – they were movers and shakers who made important contributions to the human rights movement. God knows that these activists helped put the glitter in Las Vegas.”
- Reverend Al Sharpton
Human Rights Activist, Founder and CEO of National Action Network (NAN)
“In 1943, only the bravest and most discontented of black Americans would leave their home for unknown territory. Trish Geran’s Aunt Magnolia was one. Armed with a Bible and a handgun, Aunt Mac journeyed from her home state of Mississippi to he bright lights of Las Vegas, rumored to be a place of opportunity. What Aunt Mac found there is the personal family history and part investigative journalism, Trish Geran has utilized her experience and training as a documentarian to describe to describe both the successes and setbacks of the Vegas black community’s effort to join in the glittery success of the Entertainment Capital of the World. It will surely earn a place in any complete history of the United States.”
- Jim Marrs
Investigative journalist and author, The Terror Conspiracy and Crossfire
“Ms. Geran demonstrates unequivocally that in grasping the lessons of their past, people make a major advance in the struggle to determine their future. This is why philosophers have said that those who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat their mistakes.”
- Dr. Lige Dailey, Jr.
Author, History is a Weapon!
“Trish Geran has put a passionate, personal perspective on a story of real interest to anyone wanting to know the real Las Vegas. An important book on an important subject.”
- Charles Fleming
Author, The Ivory Coast and After Havana
“Part oral history, part family saga, this book offers a rare glimpse of the African American experience in Las Vegas, including its early 20th century history and the breaking of the entertainment color line.”
- The NAACP Crisis Magazine Book Reviews
“Trish Geran has done the community a great service by writing Beyond the Glimmering Lights – The Pride and Perseverance of African Americans in Las Vegas, which documents the struggle for civil rights in a community once called “the Mississippi of the West.”
- John L. Smith
Las Vegas-Review Journal columnist and author Running Scared: The Life & Treacherous Times of Las Vegas Casino King Steve Wynn
“Geran succeeds in sketching out the African American experience preceding Aunt Mac’s arrival, including the construction of Hoover Dam and the work done at the Basic Magnesium Plant during World War II. Beyond reminds us how far the city has come in undermining legalized racism. There’s still work to be done, but Beyond the Glimmering Lights shows us the winning path and introduces the people who paved it.”
- Jarret Keene
Las Vegas City Life
“Trish Geran takes a very personal look at a little-known segment of Las Vegas history and the foundational role played by black Americans. Part history, part self-discovery, Beyond the Glimmering Lights, follows the departure of a young black woman in Forties Mississippi who, in search of a better life, ultimately changes the destiny of her family and perhaps a city.”
- Cateland White
What’s On Magazine