Key Takeaways
Legendary Las Vegas headliner Ann-Margret was given an honorary doctoral degree by UNLV this weekend. It is one of many Las Vegas-linked honors she has received over the decades as an actress, singer, and dancer.
Legendary performer Ann-Margret stands with UNLV President Keith E. Whitfield as she receives an honorary degree from the school. She became a Las Vegas headliner in the 1960s. (Image: UNLV via Twitter)UNLV President Keith E. Whitfield presented her with the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree in a well-attended ceremony held at the campus’ Thomas Mack Center on Saturday.
She recalled to the many graduates and their families how she was in her first year in college when the lure of Las Vegas led her to pack her bags and leave dorms and classrooms behind.
I did one year at Northwestern,” she said. “But I worked really hard that one year.”
For many years, Las Vegas and the Strip have played a key role in her life.
Started at the DunesBack in 1960, she performed with some fellow Northwestern students at the lounge at the Dunes Hotel. The group was called the Suttletones.
She soon was back in Vegas, when she appeared in George Burns’ Christmas show in the Congo Room at the Sahara Hotel and Casino.
She quickly got signed by Hollywood studios to appear in such movies as Pocketful of Miracles, State Fair, and Bye Bye Birdie.
