Robert Pilkington Advertisement

The catacombs of ancient Rome served as houses of worship for Jews and Christians. When surveyed by Pierre-Emmanuel Bruneseau and his staff in the early 1800's, the sewers of Paris yielded gold, jewels and relics of the French revolution. A slave trade thrived in underground chambers along Portland, Oregon's waterfront and thousands of street people lived in the subway and train tunnels of New York City in the 1980s and '90s.

The storm drains of Las Vegas have uncovered a subculture of individuals that have chosen, either voluntarily or involuntarily, to live in the darkness beneath the City of Lights.

Armed with a flashlight, tape recorder and expandable baton, Las Vegas City Life writer and Editor Matt O'Brien literally stumbled upon a city beneath the city. Why would anyone risk life and limb to get answers to many of the questions and speculations of the Vegas drainage system?

"Beneath the Neon: Life and Death in the Tunnels of Las Vegas," is the culmination of O'Brien's four-year adventure into the amazing labyrinth of flood control avenues that lie underground beneath what has become the playground of the stars.

O'Brien didn't find any treasures but he did follow the footsteps of a psycho killer in the uncharted underworld.

He two-steps under the MGM Grand at three in the morning and chases the ghosts of Benny Binion, Bugsy Siegel, Elvis, Frank Sinatra and Howard Hughes. He learned how to make meth and that art is most beautiful where it is least expected. O'Brien soon discovered that many of the rumors about gigantic reptiles and other unspeakable creatures were just that.

O'Brien was born in Washington, D.C., and raised in the Atlanta area. He is an eleven-year resident of Las Vegas. Much of his fiction has been published; Red Rock Review, In the Shadow of the Strip (a collection of short stories) and other literary journals. His non-fiction has been published in several magazines and newspapers, including Las Vegas Life and the Las Vegas Review Journal. Stephens Press is the publisher of "Beneath the Neon."

Robert Pilkington is also an editor. He proudly puts out a monthly publication called the Veteran's Business Directory. The directory is dedicated to the "Homeland Heroes" (a nonprofit corporation whose purpose is to promote veteran-owned businesses and businesses that support veterans, the troops and the families) and honors those who are "serving those who have served."

He also owns and operates My Paralegal. He is a six-year naval veteran as well as a college graduate with a degree in business administration.

Pilkington has won several awards in training, negotiations, management, legal writing and editing. After growing tired of "companies making millions of dollars only to be laid off," Pilkington entered into the preparation of legal documents preparation. He has been doing this for six years.

Pilkington has had two books published: "The Complete Crohn's Handbook: A Complete Guide for the Crohn's Disease Patient" and "The Boys from D.I.R.T."

Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammatory disease of the intestines. It primarily causes ulcerations of the small and large intestines but can affect the digestive system anywhere from the mouth down.

Pilkington's book is based on his own trials and tribulations in becoming sick, being improperly diagnosed, then learning about the disease and how to control it and keep it in remission. The book provides information on medications, treatments, nutrition, vitamins and herbal relief. It was released on March 5, 2003, his father's 76th birthday, as a present to him.

"The Boys from D.I.R.T." is based on the first days of the Korean War. It is a fictional account about six Marines and their inability to "fit in" in the mold of what the U.S. Marines consider their ideal. The six Marines take a "joke" and play out a farce on the press, then take it to Korea and use it to deter the initial Chinese Army invasion into North Korea.

Both of these accomplished writers will be available at the Author Extravaganza from 10 a.m. to 4 p. m. Saturday, March 29 at the Pahrump Community library.