UNLV's Hall of Fame: Celebrating Luminaries in the Arts
Presented by Cox
About the Hall of Fame
The College of Fine Arts Hall of Fame at UNLV was founded in 2003 to honor distinguished individuals and organizations that have made a profound impact on the arts, including visual and performing arts and/or architecture, in Las Vegas and around the world.
We are pleased to announce our 2022 Hall of Fame gala will take place on campus in April. We ask guests attending our event to comply with the following UNLV guidelines for campus visitors.
2022 Inductees and Award Recipients
Hall of Fame Inductees
Dionne Warwick
Iconic Female Vocalist
Dionne Warwick is a six-time Grammy Award-winning music legend who has earned more than 75 charted hit songs and sold over 100 million records. Discovered by Burt Bacharach and Hal David in 1961, she went on to record 18 consecutive Top 100 singles. She continues to share her incomparable singing talents with her adoring fans.
Cynthia Gregory
Legendary Prima Ballerina
Cynthia Gregory is recognized as one of the world’s greatest ballerinas and one whom Rudolf Nureyev described as, “America’s prima ballerina assoluta.” Trained on the West Coast, she moved to New York City in 1965 to join the American Ballet Theater where she quickly established herself as a major ballerina. After dancing for 26 years, she now focuses on sharing her experience, expertise, inspiration and love for the art of dance.
Paul Anka
Acclaimed Songwriter and Entertainer
At an early age, Paul Anka knew he was born to entertain. He was the youngest to ever perform at the Copacabana. In addition, he is the most prolific and versatile songwriter of any generation. He is the only artist to have a CD on the Billboard Top 100 chart for seven consecutive decades, and he continues to wow audiences with his artistry.
Michael Tylo (posthumous)
Actor and Educator
Michael Tylo had a long and distinguished stage and screen career. Best known for his starring role on Guiding Light as Quinton Chamberlain, he also starred in All My Children, The Young & Restless, and other made for television series. In 2003, he devoted his time to teaching as a visiting professor in theatre and film at UNLV, serving as assistant dean for the College of Fine Arts, and most recently taught acting for UNLV’s film department.
Dean's Medal Recipients
Fawn Douglas
Artist and Activist
Fawn Douglas is an Indigenous American “artivist” and an enrolled member of the Las Vegas Paiute Tribe. Within her art-making and activism, she tells stories to remember her past and to ensure that the stories of Indigenous peoples are heard in the present. She is currently working on her MFA degree with the Department of Art at UNLV.
Dave Loeb
Musical Artist and Educator
David Loeb is director of the Division of Jazz and Commercial Music and a professor of music at UNLV’s College of Fine Arts School of Music. A pianist, musical director, conductor, composer, and arranger, he has performed with many headliners on the Las Vegas Strip. Under his direction, UNLV Jazz students have won 33 DownBeat Student Music Awards since 2010, and been invited to perform at the acclaimed Monterey Jazz Festival.
Kenny Rampton
Trumpeter and Jazz Musician
Kenny Rampton, NYC-based trumpet player, arranger, and composer, is a full-time member of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis and is the man behind the iconic sound of the trumpet on the television show Sesame Street.
College of Fine Arts Alumna of the Year
Cooper Rust
Founder, Artists for Africa
Cooper Rust earned her BFA in Dance and BA in History from UNLV in 2013 while dancing for Nevada Ballet Theatre. After graduating, a working trip to Kenya in 2012 inspired her to create a non-profit organization to support arts education in East Africa. Today, Artists for Africa serves over 1,200 Kenyan children. There, she inspires students through her love of the arts.
Thanks to our Hall of Fame Sponsors
Information
Event Attendance
Cocktail Reception + Dinner - $150
(Early bird pricing ends on March 3, 2022)
Cocktail Reception + Dinner - $200
(Regular pricing starting on March 4, 2022)
Sponsor a Student - $200
Parking
Free Parking is available in the multi-level Cottage Grove Parking Structure next to the UNLV Performing Arts Center.
Limited Faculty/staff discounts available. Contact Suzette Dacuag at suzette.dacuag@unlv.edu.
Inspiring the Students
The College of Fine Arts at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, has become a leader in preparing students for careers in the arts. Our students have gone on to become award-winning producers and directors; they have danced on Broadway and on the stages of some of the most extraordinary shows in the world; and they have designed award-winning resorts, golf courses, and gaming properties. Their success can be attributed to their talent, excellent faculty, and the firsthand experience they received while studying in a city such as Las Vegas.
Many of our students have been inspired by, and learned much from, generous artists who have given so much of their time – persons such as Tony Curtis, Phyllis McGuire, Vince Falcone, Matt Damon, Anthony Zuiker, and other individuals who have taken time out of their demanding schedules to teach UNLV students.
It is only fitting that the UNLV College of Fine Arts establish the College of Fine Arts Hall of Fame at UNLV to honor those people who have contributed to the arts in Southern Nevada.
Past Inductees
- 2021 Inductees — Ann-Margret, Dave Hickey,
Mac King, Scott “Carrot Top” Thompson, Dean's Medal recipients; Justin Favela, Candy Schneider, College of Fine Arts Alumnus of the Year; Giovanna Sardelli, Sush Machida, Las Vegas Newcomer Award; Brian Newman
- 2020 Inductees – Postponed to 2021 due to COVID-19
- 2019 Inductees — Carolyn Goodman, Oscar Goodman, Ronald Husband, Frankie Moreno; John Katsilometes, Santa Fe & The Fat City Horns, Dean's Medal recipients; Michael Del Gatto, AIA '96 and '99, 2018 College of Fine Arts Alumnus of the Year
- 2018 Inductees — Denise Scott Brown, Dale Chihuly, Leslie Jackson Chihuly, Guy Laliberté, Myron Martin, Claudette Robinson; Dr. Harvey Allen Godorov, William Lowman Dean's Medal recipients; Tim Bavington '90 MFA, 2017 College of Fine Arts Alumnus of the Year
- 2017 Inductees — Lance Burton, Matthew Gray Gubler, Willie Harris; Carol Channing, Debbie Reynolds, Dean's Medal recipients; George Grove '01, 2016 College of Fine Arts Alumnus of the Year
- 2016 Inductees — Marlena Shaw, Hugh Taylor, Johnny Thompson; Patrick Duffy, Dean's Medal recipient; Danielle Kelly '07, 2015 College of Fine Arts Alumna of the Year
- 2015 Inductees — Keith G. Boman, M.D., Gary Nelson, Paul Curtis Steelman; Jack A. Rappaport, Dean’s Medal recipient; Joe Aldridge ‘79, 2014 College of Fine Arts Alumnus of the Year
- 2014 Inductees — Tim Bavington, Sue Kim, Joe Williams (posthumously); June T. Brennan, Dean’s Medal recipient; Ronnie Vannucci '11, 2013 College of Fine Arts Alumnus of the Year
- 2013 Inductees — Vincent Falcone, Joel Bergman, Jeanette Farmer; Robin & Danny Greenspun, Dean’s Medal recipients; Eric Whitacre ’95, 2012 College of Fine Arts Alumnus of the Year
- 2012 Inductees — Penn & Teller, George Garlock, Peter Foy (posthumously); Edward D. Smith, Dean’s Medal recipient; David Howryla ’97, ’00, 2011 College of Fine Arts Alumnus of the Year
- 2011 Inductees — Danny Gans (posthumously), Roger Thomas, The Rainbow Company Youth Theatre; Thomas Schoeman, Dean’s Medal recipient
- 2009 Inductees — Bernice Fischer, Lorraine Hunt-Bono, Liberace (posthumously), Siegfried & Roy, William E. Snyder FAIA
- 2008 Inductees — Robert Goulet (posthumously), Clint Holmes, Tony Marnell, Vassili Sulich, The Killers
- 2007 Inductees — Nancy Houssels, Rich Little, Thomas Schoeman, Anthony Zuiker
- 2006 Inductees — Frederic Apcar, Mary Healy Hayes, John Klai II, Wayne Newton
- 2005 Inductees — Phyllis McGuire
- 2004 Inductee — Tony Curtis
- 2003 Inductee — George Sidney
Nomination Form
Who would you like to see in the College of Fine Arts Hall of Fame next year? Nominate your choice for the 2023 Hall of Fame Award! For details and a nomination form contact:
Suzette Dacuag
College of Fine Arts
UNLV
4505 S. Maryland Parkway, Box 455013
Las Vegas, NV 89154-5013
Phone: 702-895-5676
Email: suzette.dacuag@unlv.edu
Contact
Diane Zapach
Jennifer Vaughan
Suzette Dacuag
Shahab Zargari
Click to view photo gallery of the 18th Hall of Fame at UNLV