SUPERSTAR SECRETS FROM A $100-MILLION MAN, TOMMY LEE CONFIRMS NEW MOTLEY CRUE WORLD TOUR AND STEVE-O WINDS UP IN JAIL
Thanks to Kanye West, Ben Roethlisberger, Tommy Lee, Steve-O and Sarah Jessica Parker, LUXE LIFE is crumbling under the weight of so many superstar secrets and headlines we just have to kick off today’s column with a gem-filled grab bag of goodies.
*No wonder Big Ben Roethlisberger of the Pittsburgh Steelers was playing $8,000 blackjack hands at the Playboy Club for three consecutive nights at the Palms—He’s just signed an eight-year extension worth a whopping $102 million, making him one of the NFL’s highest-paid players!
*Hours after a series of madcap antics at the Rio resort’s new McFadden’s Irish saloon, professional crazy man and Jackass actor Steve-O returned to Hollywood and was promptly thrown into jail by LAPD officers who arrested him on drug charges. Apparently his next-door neighbor in their apartment building called the cops when Steve-O reportedly vandalized and punched holes into their common wall. Drugs were allegedly discovered on the MTV star by investigating police officers—they took him away in the police cruiser. At the Rio he turned up shirtless and jumped atop a 100-foot bar with 20 women to dance and drink. He unhinged a light fixture and used the bare bulb not only to spotlight the screaming crowd but also held it to his bare chest.
He unsuccessfully tried to balance a chair on his chin, but toppled backwards off the bar and broke the ceiling light. After a stint in the DJ booth and waving his white towel in circles, he grabbed a bar stool, hoisted it over his head and tried to break it as he threw it to the floor.
*I’ve been vindicated by tattooed drummer Tommy Lee. Remember a few weeks back I reported that Vince Neil told me at his birthday party that Motley Crue had signed an unprecedented massive $100 million deal with the Live Nation entertainment conglomerate to produce three new albums and travel three new world tours over the next ten-years.
Nikki Sixx promptly blogged that it was totally untrue, and heavy metal reports leapt all over me bashing my story. Tommy has just sprung to my defense and revealed the first world-tour will kick off on July 4 and will coincide with the July 8 release of their new album The Dirt—their 9th studio effort and first since 2000’s New Tattoo. It’s based on their Dirt band memoir published in 2001, and even Nikki Sixx now admits the ten-songs completed to-date are some of the better songs they’ve performed in years and, “the chemistry in the studio and writing is unbelievable.” Nice to find out I was right all along! Just love to know why Nikki denied it so strongly in the first place! The truth will come out!
*Adding to the all-out glitter and glamour of closing night, next Thursday, at the ShoWest movie convention at Bally’s and Paris casino-hotels, will be Sex in the City star Sarah Jessica Parker. The blonde-tressed actress will be presented with the inaugural Vanguard Award. Sarah Jessica produces and stars in the movie adaptation of the hit HBO TV series, which will be released May 30, and also in Smart People opening on April 11 after its Sundance film festival showcase. Now we’ll find out if she’s left stranded at the altar or finally gets married—or is it all a dream?
*Grammy-award winning artist Kanye West will kick off this year’s Summer Concert Series at the Red Rock resort casino on April 25. His Glow in the Dark tour with rapper Lupe Fiasco and funk-rock group N.E.R.D. with Pharrell Williams was in jeopardy there for a moment because, following his four Grammy wins, production requirements grew, but Red Rock officials gave the go-ahead for a new temporary outdoor venue to be built!
*Race & Sports book director Johnny Avello at the Wynn resort and country club has an uncanny knack over 20-years of proving right with his odds on winners. He’s just turned his predictions on the new Dancing with the Stars series starting Monday the week after next, and he doesn’t give our Rio headliner, Penn Jillette, a shot. Johnny says Penn only has a 30 to 1 shot at winning but he likes Priscilla Presley’s chances at 6 to 1.
However, he favors Kristi Yamaguchi to win at four to one odds. Poker playing actress Shannon Elizabeth better stick to the card skills she exhibited all weekend at Caesars because Avello says she’s only a 12 to 1 favorite. Avello’s predictions are derived from a combination of odds-making formulas, research, reading and networking with people in the business. They are created for entertainment purposes only and are not wagered on.