David G. Schwartz
Gaming historian
Affiliate professor, Department of History
Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs
Expertise: History of Gambling, Gaming Statistics, Casino Surveillance and Security, Gaming Technology, Casinos and Social Media
Biography
David G. Schwartz is a gaming historian. Currently serving as UNLV's associate vice provost for faculty affairs, Schwartz was the longtime former director of the Center for Gaming Research at UNLV, a hub for scholarly analysis of gambling and gaming issues. The center is part of University Libraries and boasts the largest repository of English-language materials on gambling and has an unparalleled repository of books, journals, and primary materials for gaming research. The center also maintains casino corporate archives including the Harrah’s Entertainment, MGM Resorts, and Boyd Gaming Corporate Archives, gaming-related manuscript collections such as the Sands, New Frontier, and Binion’s Horseshoe collections, and a growing number of collections obtained under the Problem Gambling Pioneers initiative, which collects and preserves the papers of the pioneers of the problem gambling treatment and advocacy movement.
In addition to his work at UNLV, Schwartz is an active consultant. As vice president of research and analytics for Santo Gaming he assists the Las Vegas-based gaming management and consulting firm with a range of projects.
Schwartz is the author of three books about gambling, including Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling, Suburban Xanadu: The Casino Resort on the Las Vegas Strip and Beyond, and Cutting the Wire: Gaming Prohibition and the Internet. He currently writes the biweekly Green Felt Journal column for Vegas Seven magazine and was named gaming and hospitality editor of Vegas Seven.
Education
- Ph.D., American History, University of California, Los Angeles
- M.A., American History, University of Pennsylvania
- B.A., Anthropology and History, University of Pennsylvania
Related Links
David G. Schwartz In The News
CDC Gaming Reports, Inc.
June 16, 2020
Las Vegas threw open its doors to visitors again on June 4, and those who came streaming into the city’s hotels and casinos were greeted with a whole new set of health protocols. Temperature checks, hand-sanitizing stations, plexiglass between players at gaming tables and six-foot social-distancing markings throughout properties reminded everyone of the evolving “new normal.”
Travel Weekly
June 16, 2020
Face masks were a big part of the plan; they were worn by all employees and offered to all guests. At Caesars Palace, even the statues were wearing them.
Sports Illustrated
June 8, 2020
Casinos are working feverishly towards making guests feel they are not at risk when they travel back to properties with newly implemented safety measures. Among all these new features, there is one important change blatantly missing: prohibiting smoking.
FIRST PERSON SCHOLAR
June 3, 2020
As a Western set in a post-apocalyptic Mohave, Fallout: New Vegas demonstrates that the big questions that drive Western history are durable and malleable enough to survive even the (fictional) nuclear demise of the United States itself.
Articles Featuring David G. Schwartz
Campus NewsJuly 2, 2020
A collection of news stories featuring the people and programs of UNLV.
Campus NewsJune 11, 2020
A collection of stories featuring UNLV’s continued flexibility and adaptability in the face of COVID-19.
Campus NewsMay 20, 2020
A collection of news stories highlighting the staff and students of UNLV who exemplify what it means to be a Rebel, even from home.
Campus NewsApril 9, 2020
A collection of news stories highlighting UNLV’s response to COVID-19 and faculty experts who have helped the community make sense of the pandemic and its impact to daily life.