Gloria Dea, first Las Vegas magician, dead at 100
foxnews.comGloria Dea, the first magician to perform on the Las Vegas Strip in the 1940s, has died. She was 100. Dea, who was born Gloria Metzner in Oakland, California, died Saturday in hospice care at her residence in Las Vegas, the director of clinical services for Valley Hospice confirmed with the Associated Press.
Not only did she have a career in Sin City, Dea also performed on the silver screen with starring roles alongside Buster Crabbe in "King of the Congo." A memorial is being planned in her honor at a later date.
Dea was 19 when she performed at El Rancho Vegas on May 14, 1941. The iconic hotel was the first on the strip, and drew legendary performers and stars alike, including Eartha Kitt, Jon and Sondra Steele, and Abbott and Costello.
Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward celebrated their wedding reception at El Rancho. Dea's show at the Roundup Room was the first recorded appearance by a magician in Las Vegas, the Review-Journal reported. "There was no Strip, really, in those days," Dea told the newspaper in August when she turned 100. "We had the Last Frontier and the El Rancho Vegas.They had just started building the Flamingo." She added, "I also danced.
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