STRIP SCRIBBLES
*Wicked Whispers & Racy Rumors: which Strip entertainer is about to get hit with a litany of lawsuits from disgruntled suppliers who claim he’s months behind in his payments to them. They’re tired of the excuses and pleas to wait till the market turns better. They are so angry they plan to start the court documents flying within the next few days just for the publicity! I’m told it’s such a grand-scale mess that not even a wizard could make this disappear. … Which emboldened brash trouble-maker lambasted a hotel group and its public relations company and then had the gall an hour later to ask for four free tickets to a Strip show they also represented to give to his staff as an incentive gift. … Is it possible that one tenant at a Strip hotel has “right of review” over celebrities being booked and press releases being issued by another tenant because they’re in similar businesses and the approval gets held up until the last moment?
*Congratulations to our favorite hometown singer-entertainer, Clint Holmes, who will be honored on Sunday with the prestigious Louis Prima award.
The Prima family, and daughter Lena Prima has sanctioned the Showbiz Society to make the honor to those who have made outstanding contributions to the Las Vegas community. This year’s honoree is Clint Holmes who has been entertaining us here for 30 years. Lena will auction off her original charcoal portrait of her father and donate the profits to the Showbiz Society. Former recipients were Bill Medley and Tony Curtis, who received the very first award.
*The Vegas visit by dance partners Shannon Elizabeth and Derek Hough didn’t help them when the voting results were tallied on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars.
Video footage showed Shannon and Derek arriving at the Palms for the premiere of her new Deal movie and rehearsing their routines at George Maloof’s Pearl Theater. But viewers voted them off anyway and the contest heats up again on Monday with just three couples remaining. Remember we told you here just before the very start of the season that our bet was on Kristi Yamaguchi to win it all! So far, so good!
*Feared food critic, John Mariani, has just tipped his toque to two Vegas restaurateurs, Pierro Selvaggio of Valentinos at The Venetian and Paul Bartolotta from the Wynn as being in the top 10 of America’s best Italian food masters. In a sweeping cross-country analysis of Italian food for the Forbes Traveler magazine and MSNBC TV cable channel Mariani picked our two local heroes amongst the best.
*Katy Setterfield, who won the British One & Only TV tribute act series portraying songstress Dusty Springfield, is getting ready to move to Vegas to take up her first prize, a run in Legends of Concert at the Imperial Palace.
Millions of viewers cast votes to determine the fate of their favorite impersonator. Katy will kick off her extended contract on May 19 and promises the big hits “Son of Preacher Man,” “I Only Want top be with You” and “I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself” will be in her tribute performance.
*There’s a double birthday celebration in store for recording star Trini Lopez. When he parties at the Flamingo on May 15. it will also be the same day his Star on the Walk of Fame is unveiled here and the release of his new CD that he recorded at the Palms recording studio with my producer pal, Ron Dante!
*From the Surveillance File: Soaking in some rays at Venus Pool Club at Caesars Palace was former NFL star Junior Seau. The future Hall of Famer relaxed with friends in a lavish VIP cabana ordering up ice cold Coronas and Southern Comfort and lime shots. After a day of fun in the sun they all headed over to Social House in Treasure Island where they dined on bone-in-filet and lobsters on the outdoor patio overlooking the Strip. Also there was the dynamic song and dance duo Zowie Bowie enjoying lemongrass shrimp and lobster.
*A rare and endangered predator is making its way to the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay. No, I’m not talking about those Hollywood agents who book those B-list stars into our Vegas Strip nightclubs; I’m talking about the frightful Komodo Dragon with its 60-dagger-like serrated teeth, deadly saliva and piercing razor sharp claws.
Some reach up to 10 feet in length and can weigh up to 200 pounds. There’s less than 5,000 now remaining in the wild in Indonesia, but 75 are in human care at zoos and aquariums. The killer komodo will arrive here at the 90,560-sqaure-feet Mandalay Bay aquarium on June 20.
Now it’s time for us to be razor sharp and take a big bite out of Vegas’ weekend highlights over the next four days, as I take a quick trip south of the border down Cabo way, with what we affectionately refer to as the ROYAL ROBIN RUNDOWN:
THURS
*It’s a new Thursday Night adventure throughout the summer with a Café Concert series from starchef Wolfgang Puck at his Springs Preserve Café, which will also feature the debut of a weekly Farmers Market from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. It all kicks off this week with the Raj Rathor Quartet and the Las Vegas Youth Philharmonic. The theme is Mozart and Mojitos for May and Jazz and Juleps for June. Vendors who can “make it, bake it, sew it, grow it” will be able to show their local handmade crafts and organic produce.
*Bill Medley of the Righteous Brothers teams up with Paul Revere and the Raiders for a double-headliner yesteryear music show at the South Point for four nights ending Sunday.
*Its “Bandemonium” at the House of Blues in Mandalay Bay with no less than four groups powering the big sound: GlowB, Factory, NLT and that boys band Menudo from yesteryear’s hit charts.
*Don’t forget the starchef Epicurean Affair extravaganza around the pools and tropical gardens of the Flamingo with dozens of your favorite chefs from such hot restaurants as Alize, Aureole, Border Grill, Bradley Ogden, Cathouse, Diablos, Dos Caminos, Joes Stone Crab, Louis’s Fish Camp, Mesa Grill, Paayard Patisserie, Rao’s, Guy Savoy, Seablue, Sushi Roku and at least 20 more. Sip the drinks and taste the treats and you won’t have to worry about dinner tonight.
FRI
*New resident DJ Skribble has been signed to permanent duty at Ditch Fridays as the Palms Pool and Bungalows re-opens for a new second summer season. Upcoming, a Slip ‘n’ Slide party with Kendra Wilkinson from Hugh Hefner’s Girls Next Door, the first ever appearance of the new 2008 Playmate of the Year and an attempt to break the Guinness Book of World Record’s record for the world’s largest underwear party!
*Country legend Kenny Rogers sings those special songs of love won and lost in a three-day run at The Orleans through Sunday evening while country star George Jones appears down the I-15 at Primm’s Star of the Desert Arena.
*Puddle of Mudd kicks off the new season of “Friday Night Live” at the Hard Rock hotel pool concerts, other rock fans will be in ecstasy with The Breeders and special guest Colour Revolt at the House of Blues in Mandalay Bay while Mannheim Steamroller flattens all at the Henderson Pavilion.
*“What was I Thinking?”—How could I leave town when country star Dierks Bentley agreed to star outdoors at the Red Rock casino’s Sandbar Backyard with American Idol Season 5 finalist Bucky Covington on their “Throttle Wide Open” tour.
*Dancing with the Stars runner-up Stacy Keibler is joined by reality TV stars Michelle Rodriguez and the Ollie Girls and other celebrities for the red carpet official re-opening of the Cathouse Loungerie and restaurant at the Luxor.
*The 9th annual golf classic for the Road 2 Recovery Foundation takes place at the Bali Hai Golf Club at Mandalay Bay to support the Injured Riders Fund. Our hometown hero Carey Hart is among the motocross champions and action sports celebrities taking part.
*For comedy that cuts across all races and genders check out Steve Solomon’s show My Mother’s Italian, My father’s Jewish and I’m in Therapy up at the Suncoast through Sunday night.
SAT
*It’s the star-studded premiere of the hit Broadway musical The Jersey Boys at the new Palazzo alongside The Venetian, the incredible rags-to-riches story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. Be sure to check our top story in today’s Luxe Life posting.
*Controversial conservative talk show host Sean Hannity presents his “Freedom Concert” with Lee Greenwood in The Orleans Arena. Expect some firebrand comments at the microphone about his “state of the union.”
* The amazing motorsports and adventure facility, Club Spring Mountain opens its new $3 million clubhouse and flying club just 60 minutes from the Strip. It’s the ultimate in very expensive “big-boys toys” at its 193-acre, $13 million adult adventure playground! There are racecars, a fleet of Corvettes, sport planes, fast karts that go up to 90 mph, and a luxurious clubhouse, all surrounded by a private 3.5 mile track-road course of 20 turns and a staff of 45 will be waiting to greet and teach!
*Belanova makes the music at The Joint inside the Hard Rock, the four original members of Asia perform at the House of Blues with a late show from Lyrics Born, while Def Jam recording artist, Pittsburgh Slim, will have “girls kiss girls” at Studio 54 in MGM Grand.
*Jazz fans will go wild for the “Body Language” of Boney James at the Boulder Station as the saxophonist “Shakes It Up.”
*Maxim model Brittany McGraw will show her curves and smiles as she celebrates her 22nd birthday at the new Torrid nightclub inside the Hawaiian Tropic Zone at Planet Hollywood Resort’s Miracle Mile Shops.
SUN
*Congratulations to the Mandalay Bay cast and crew of Mamma Mia! as the show celebrates its 2,000th successful performance. It becomes the longest running Broadway musical on the Strip since its February 2003 premiere. Since then, 3,170 light bulbs have been replaced in the raked stage broken from those disco-dancing platform heels; 600 yards of spandex has been replaced; over 150,0000 sequins have been re-sewn and that signature song “Mamma Mia!” has been sung 4,600 times! As Luxe Life noted earlier this week its stay has been renewed through until April of next year.
*It’s the second weekend of Rehab, the five-season phenomenon at the Hard Rock and last week’s debut with rapper DMX beat last year’s previous records by 30 percent!
He performed his hits “Party Up In Here” and “What They Really Want” as a surprise impromptu set!
*The first ever Latin Music Awards to celebrate Cinco De Mayo weekend will be held at the Cashman Convention Center Theater with Jose Feliciano, El Chicano, Lao and other Mexican and Latin musicians.