Friday, February 17, 2023 – The Bay Room at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco was packed for the all-day Writing for Hollywood Summit at the annual San Francisco Writers Conference. I was there on scholarship thanks to the Napa Valley branch of the California Writers Club. The audience was a mix of creatives. Some hadn’t…
A little bit of news… but not too much.
In 1951, the glamorous singer/dancer Marilu Norden registered at the Pyramid Lake Ranch to wait out her six weeks for a “quickie” divorce. The Pyramid Lake was 34 miles north of Reno in Sutcliffe, a location that was remote then and still is today. Other notables who stayed on the Pyramid Lake for a…
It’s just an old tin ashtray, but the stories it could tell… When fellow Reno divorce ranch history buff, Jerry Garrity, spotted this old tin ashtray from the Del Monte Dude and Guest Ranch in an antiques bazaar in Reno, he knew if anyone would love to have it, that would be me. Indeed, just…
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Dick Wolf preps American Babylon Dick Wolf (Law & Order) is prepping a new series, American Babylon, a period drama chronicling the story of the creation of Las Vegas. The series is inspired by the book, The Money and the Power: The Making of Las Vegas and Its Hold on America by Sally Denton & Roger Morris.…
Thank you, Johnny D. Boggs, Editor, for including Bill’s obituary in ROUNDUP, MAGAZINE OF WESTERN WRITERS OF AMERICA (February 2020) ________ Click on the link below to read… “Wrangler, writer Bill McGee was genuine cowboy” by Sandra V. McGee for Roundup, Feb 2020 More Feature Stories by Sandra V. McGee
Whose lips had sipped from these champagne coupes (saucers) from the Mapes estate in Reno? Fellow Reno history buffs Deb Geraghty and James Stavena found a dozen of these vintage glasses in a Reno antiques shop and – most thankfully – sent two to Bill and me. One evening, as we sipped Manhattans from the…
Thank you, Johnny D. Boggs, Editor, for including my story in ROUNDUP, MAGAZINE OF WESTERN WRITERS OF AMERICA (October 2018) Click on the link below to read… “Nevada As A Place To Split” by Sandra McGee More Feature Stories by Sandra V. McGee
The Golden Age of Divorce on the Dude Ranches of Nevada Bill and Sandra McGee provide commentary for this podcast hosted by Sean Braswell of THE THREAD on OZY.com. (Air date: 4/2/2018) READ The Golden Age of Divorce on the Dude Ranches of Nevada LISTEN to the podcast with commentary by Bill and Sandra McGee. Scroll…
Carson City, Wed, May 18 – Signing a copy of THE DIVORCE SEEKERS for Randi Hunewill, the great-granddaughter of Neill Hakes West who owned the TH Ranch in Sutcliffe, Nevada, about 30 miles outside of Reno near Pyramid Lake . In 1929, the “TH” was the first ranch in Nevada to take in paying dudes. …
Reno’s divorce history is now captured on one website thanks to researchers and historians at the University of Nevada, Special Collections. Responsible for the ambitious site titled Illuminating Reno’s Divorce Industry, are Donnelyn Curtis, head of Special Collections; Mella Harmon, Reno divorce historian; and Alicia Barber, Reno historian. The website covers Reno’s divorce history in…
Divorce ranch novel by bestselling author Deb Caletti The Secrets She Keeps. Deb Caletti scores another bestseller with her new novel set on a Reno divorce ranch in 1951. Deb Caletti on writing her divorce ranch novel: “FOR BILL AND SANDRA, DIVORCE RANCH ROYALTY! I owe a debt of gratitude to Bill…
Reno Historical App An online project by the Historic Reno Preservation Society The Reno Historical app is a free app that allows you to explore the people, places, and moments that have shaped the city’s history. Learn about the history of Reno through map-based, multimedia presentations, use social media to share your stories, and experience…
Dateline: Las Vegas, Nevada, June 25-29, 2013 – Hundreds of the country’s top Western writers gathered at the Riviera Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas for the Western Writers of America 60th Annual Convention. Western novelists, historians, screenwriters, songwriters, and the agents and editors who represent them, enjoyed five days of Western camaraderie and networking.…
In 2012, I was researching the key phrase divorce ranches on the Internet and found an interesting story in the New York Times: “Quick Getaways at the Divorce Hotel” (5/27/2012). A Netherlands entrepreneur, Jim Halfens, came up with the idea… a place where a couple checks in on a Friday, married, and checks out on a…
Novelist Lily Tuck stayed on the Donner Trail Ranch in Verdi in 1970 to get a six-week divorce …she never expected to have a wonderful time. Click on the link below to read… “On Her Own” by Lily Tuck, Vogue Magazine, June 2012 Related Posts “The Six Week Cure” by Priya Jain for…
Tales from Reno’s Divorce Ranches on KNPR Bill McGee was interviewed by Dave Becker for “State of Nevada” on KNPR, Nevada Public Radio, March 1, 2011. He was a member of a panel of people who were part of the divorce ranch experience. PROGRAM NOTES: Back in the 1930s and 40s, Nevada was one…
The Reno divorce ranch era gets the attention of the younger generation in BUST Magazine. “The Six-Week Cure” by Priya Jain (BUST Magazine, December/January 2010) when Reno ‘divorce ranches’ helped unhappily married women start new lives” by Priya Jain Related Posts “Betty Goes Reno” by Priya Jain for Slate.com Lily Tuck for Vogue Magazine Feature Stories…
When the curtain fell on the third season of Mad Men, Betty Draper, our favorite housewife in distress, was on her way to Reno to get a divorce. Writer Priya Jain was curious. Why did Betty Draper go to Reno and what was a divorce ranch? The result: “Betty Goes Reno: A visit to…
Sisters Tell Tales from a Divorce Ranch on Nevada Public Radio Beth Ward and her sister, Robbie McBride, grew up on what was known as a “divorce ranch” in Reno, Nevada. Women could live on a divorce ranch for six weeks to establish residency, then file for divorce in a Nevada court. Spoiler: These…
Thank you, Meghan Saar, Editor, for including my story in TRUE WEST Magazine (June 2010) Click on the link below to read… “The Divorce Seekers – An old-time wrangler recalls Reno, the ‘city of broken vows’, through his days at the Flying M.E. ranch” by Sandra V. McGee …
Dateline: Oklahoma City, OK, June 19, 2009 – The Western Writers of America took center stage at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City for a Mega-Book Signing on Friday, June 19, 2009. More than 70 Western authors participated in the event set up in the magnificent Sam Noble Special Events Center.…
Thank you to the National Automobile Museum, Harrah Collection, for including my stories in PRECIOUS METAL (June 2005) Click on the link below to read… “Nevada As A Place To Split Is A Legend Of Our Time” “The Cowboy’s Saddle” More Feature Stories by Sandra V. McGee …