Apr. 30--Ginny Murphy realized the power of the entertainment world when she was a volunteer secretary for the Beatles fan club in the New York area during the 1960s and rumors of Paul McCartney's death kept her home phone ringing off the hook. 

"I remember how all those girls' lives were touched by the Beatles," she said. 

As entertainment director for the Tropicana, Murphy sees the same thing happen in Las Vegas with special memories and moments created at shows here. 

That's what Murphy likes about her job, along with the challenges presented by the unpredictability of the entertainment business, she said. 

Murphy came to Las Vegas with her late husband, Tom, in 1977, having previously worked for hotels in Hawaii and Florida. 

"We both heard about this place, Las Vegas, and we said we should go. We knew the tourist industry, we knew the travel industry and we thought this would be a great place to come," she said. 

Starting with the Tropicana, Murphy worked her way up the east side of the Strip, filling out applications at every hotel. She landed a job as night auditor for food and beverage at the Sahara. 

Three months later she was doing the daily manager's report at the Aladdin and eventually followed a friend over to the Tropicana to work in payroll. 

Ramada Inns Inc. acquired the "Folies Bergere" show from a private production company when it purchased the Tropicana in 1979. Ramada was later acquired by Aztar Corp., which kept its gaming properties and spun off the hotel chain. 

Murphy, who specialized in doing payroll for the multimillion-dollar show, was transferred to the Tropicana's entertainment department as an administrative assistant. 

"Because I had a degree in theater, things kind of evolved," she said. 

Murphy progressed to entertainment coordinator, assistant entertainment director and four years ago was named entertainment director, in charge of about 150 employees, including cast members, stagehands, wardrobe and box office people. 

QUESTION: How does entertainment in Las Vegas today compare with 20 years ago? 

ANSWER: You know, Las Vegas has changed so much and entertainment has changed right along with it. Through 22 years here, the Tropicana has changed too, but our guests say they still like to come to the Tropicana because it has that old Las Vegas feel. 

"Folies Bergere" was voted the best dancers in Las Vegas. We've always been known for showgirls. Our whole icon for the Tropicana happens to be our show, which is also an icon for Las Vegas. 

Q: How has the show changed? 

A: As the marketplace changed, we learned there's a segment of the population who may not like topless shows. You know, for whatever reason ... religion, family, maybe they're here with a company and want to see a show. 

So we changed one of the shows (7:30 p.m.) and kept one (10:30 p.m.) topless. 

Q: What other kinds of entertainment do you oversee? 

A: We've got (magician) Rick Thomas in the Tiffany Theater at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m., and "Folies Bergere" at 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. every day except Thursday. That's four shows a day on one stage. Nobody else in Las Vegas does that. 

We have bands in the Celebration Lounge and a free bird show three times a day with Joe Krathwohl in the Tropics Lounge. We've also got the Comedy Stop and I handle any other live entertainment for weddings, conventions and special events. 

Q: Ever think about advancing your career in a bigger city, say New York City, where you're from? 

A: I used to think, coming from New York, this was Sin City and nobody really lived here. Where did they live? On the Strip? 

This is a great community to raise kids. People usually say that's not the case, but we have soccer and baseball and everything else. 

And Las Vegas has really been ahead of the game with child care. Everyone understands you support a 24/7 work ethic here. Everybody's in the same boat. 

Q: Is "Folies Bergere" going to run forever? 

A: We just had auditions and still had hundreds of dancers. They want to carry on the torch. Some of them were college graduates who could be nuclear physicists, but maybe they've had dance lessons since they were 4 years old and they want to go back to it. You would be surprised how many people in this town came from "Folies Bergere," entertainment directors at other hotels. 

Q: How do you like working for one of the older Las Vegas hotels? 

A: The best part is working for a hotel that really cares about its employees. It's a real family atmosphere. I lost my husband last year and I wouldn't have made it without the support of my fellow workers. 

Our guests see that too. People remember their name. It's truly a people place. At other hotels, they get lost in the crowd. 

-----To see more of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.lvrj.com. 

(c) 2001, Las Vegas Review-Journal. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.