Archive for May, 2010

There’s a new show in town, folks, and its downtown at Hennessey’s Tavern, 425 Fremont Street (actually corner of Fremont & Las Vegas Blvd. South). “Only You,” starring Derek David, opened earlier this month and has been receiving rave reviews from fellow scribes. I personally have not been downtown to see it for myself, but plan on seeing it soon.

David, a 40-year member of the Platters, is trying to revive the true dinner show, by inviting everyone to take a trip down memory lane with some of the biggest hit makers to ever perform on a stage in the ‘50s and ‘60s. Besides Derek, “Only You” will showcase some of the most popular music and, hopefully, dazzle audiences with such hits as “The Great Pretender,” “What Becomes of a Broken Heart,” “Twilight Time” and, of course, the title song, “Only You.”
“It’s our hope that the resurrection of soulful music from some of the best singers in Las Vegas will become a regular stop for residents and visitors alike,” David said.

“Only You” showcases a number of singers. Besides David, there will be Rheda K. Solo of the Marvelettes, Arnold Parker of the Platters, Terrance Forsythe, Donald Pinkney and pianist Paul Badia. Choreography was designed by Papote Varet, with the showroom and costumes designed by Executive producer, Rita Bliss.

A three-course dinner is served at 6:30 p.m. with the show start set for 8:00 p.m. nightly (dark on Tuesdays).  Tickets start at $39.95, plus fees, for general admission, and $69.95, plus fees, for VIP seating. Call 702-382-4421 for reservations.

Keeping with Downtown, “The Fremont Street Experience,” is gearing up to get pretty groovy with its “Summer of the ‘70s” promotion. The music and culture from the decade of the 1970s will return to downtown this summer with a festival and free concert series. The 102-day promotion will kick off Memorial Day Weekend and run through Labor Day Weekend.

“This year, as a follow-up to last year’s successful ‘Summer of ’69’ which drew record nightly crowds to the downtown area, we decided to move to the next decade and focus on the ‘70s,” Jeff Victor, president of the Fremont Street Experience, said. “Throughout this summer, we will present headliners and tribute bands who will bring back the diverse music of the decade.”

Some of those groups are disco diva Gloria Gaynor, who will be performing the opening weekend, followed on June 5 by glam rockers, “Sweet,” during the Vegas Cruise car show weekend. Some of the other groups booked are: The Little River Band, Blue Oyster Cult and Jefferson Starship, who will rock on Sept. 4, (Las Vegas is one of the groups’ stops during its 40th anniversary tour). There will also be an Ultimate Elvis Weekend, with a contest, on July 23-24, to find the best Elvis in Las Vegas.

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Earlier this month officials from the M Resort Spa Casino and Cox Communications announced an agreement to televise the M Resorts innovative new cooking show, “Martini Time with Chef Tina Martini.” The show airs on Cox 96 in Southern Nevada three times a day, two days a week. Check you cable guide for time and days.

If you remember, we wrote a review on Ms. Martini in a column a while back and, at that time, I thought it just might end up as a real live TV show. Ms. Martini is known as the “naturopathic chef,” with her unique ability to connect and educate people on the nutritional value of food we eat.  Chef Tina will continue to perform her regular live shows, Thursday-Sunday at Noon and 4 p.m. in the custom cooking studio inside the Studio B Buffet. For ticket information call (800) 745-3000.

Cedar City residents, and actors from around the globe, are in the final stage of preparations for the forthcoming Utah Shakespearean Festival, which gets underway the end of June and runs through Oct. 23. A special announcement was made earlier this month at a press conference held in Salt Lake City, that two long-time Utah Festival actors and directors were named as joint artistic directors for the Tony Award-winning theatre company: David Ivers and Brian Vaughn were given the honors after working as actors and directors for more than fifteen years.

Ivers comes to Utah from the Denver Center Theatre Company in Colorado, where he spent nine seasons as a resident artist. Vaughn is coming from the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, where he has been a member of the resident acting company since 1997. The two men take over the organization, which has been previously managed by two associate artistic directors, Kathleen F, Conlin, and J.R. Sullivan, in addition to R. Scott Phillips, who will continue to serve as executive director.

Well, gang, another week of news. I’m outa here!

After two-and-a-half years of planning, a group, consisting of more than 4,000 volunteers and 1,900 participants, pulled off the inaugural Ford Ironman St. George Triathlon two weeks ago, Sunday, May 1, in St. George, Utah.

Unfortunately, a lot of Las Vegas residents (those who do not read running magazines, etc.,) would loved to have known about it, as it would’ve made for a nice outing—but of course the local newspapers didn’t seem to think it important enough to use even a short blurb.

Fortunately, for you readers, I have an old friend (not in age mind you) who mentioned that she had worked as one of the volunteers. I, of course (the old—yes in age—reporter in me), got interested and, with her help, gathered some information for all of us to read.

It all started with a spark of an idea between a small group of public officials and a few die-hard runners who live in St. George. The city already holds an Annual Marathon, which will be celebrating its 34th year this October. I didn’t know about that event either. Geeze, maybe the St. George Chamber of Commerce should look into hiring a Las Vegas publicist to get the word out on its special events. Just a random thought.

So, anyhow, contact was made with the Ford sponsored Ironman organization, and, after lengthy negotiations and many visits to St. George, a contract was signed, sealed and delivered. The contract calls for the Triathlon to be held the first weekend of May, for the next three or five years, depending on the response from competitors and the city. It would also be a qualifying race for 72 slots to the Ford Ironman World Championship, taking place on Oct. 9, 2010 in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

The professional athletes lined up at the start line at 6:50 a.m. followed at about 7 a.m. for age group competitors. The early morning start temperature was a cool 48 degrees, and the race ended under a sunny afternoon in the mid-70s. The first leg of the three events was a 2.4-mile swim in the Sandy Hollow Reserve, which, according to various sources, was an excellent venue, offering perfect swimming conditions. This was followed (after a change of clothing in special tents, with volunteers assisting) by the 112-mile bike portion. That would kill the normal human being (at least me for sure), with another change of clothing at the end, for the final 26.2-mile run. Each portion of the overall race has a specific cutoff time, with 17 hours allowed to finish.

A total purse of $50,000 (well worth shooting for), was evenly split between the professional men and women.

The winner in the professional men’s division was Austria’s Michael Weiss. Weiss made history, becoming the first Austrian male to win an Ironman with an overall time of 8:40:08. Ben Hoffman, of Durango, Colorado, finished approximately 11 minutes later for second, followed by third place finisher, Australian Chris McDonald.

Canada’s Heather Wurtele was victorious in the women’s division, taking an early lead from Ironman titleholders Kate Major and Gina Crawford, and pulling away to win with a time of 9:35:26. Wurtele maintained differential of about 10 minutes or more throughout the bike and run events. Caitlin Snow, a pre-race favorite, clocked the day’s fastest marathon split, 3:10:15, taking herself from fifth to third place by the end of the race, with a time of 10:07:26. Meredith Kessler of San Francisco, Calif., turned in a time of 9:46:58 to capture second place.

According to city officials, the weekend event meant a boost to the St. George economy of $1.4 million. Now, just imagine, how much more it would raise and mean to the community, if we only knew about it in advance.

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Well, gang, as you probably know, I am a poor, starving artist as well as a writer. This weekend, I will be attending the Grand Opening of a new Art Gallery in Boulder City, Nevada.  “The Corner Galley,” 1325 Arizona Street, is right across the street from the Beer Brewery. It’s really a quaint little gallery and, according to the owner, Mrs. Chris Frausto, has 26 artists exhibiting their works. I will have three of my favorite bronze sculptures on display (and for sale). The ribbon-cutting ceremony took place yesterday (Thursday). The Gallery will officially open Sunday, May 16, from 1-8 p.m., with the artist reception from 5-8 p.m. I will be there, that’s for sure, and I hope many of you, my readers and friends, will stop by and take a look.

Just a quick word about the passing of one of the great entertainers of our time, and a beautiful person inside and out. Ms. Lena Horne was 92 years young when the Man upstairs called for her to join His choir.  I first met Ms. Horne in 1960, when I accompanied Joe Louis to a meeting, in the Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles, with Sugar Ray Robinson (a multiple boxing champion of the ‘40s,’50s and ‘60s). We were going to promote a fight for Robinson that year. Ms. Horne was visiting Robinson and his wife, at the time. She was absolutely stunning and so soft spoken. I saw her a few times after that, including in 1977, when she appeared at Caesars Palace, where she shared the stage with the great Harry Belafonte. I remember, to this very moment, how beautiful Ms. Horne was on that huge stage. She had on a magnificent red gown, and a single spotlight highlighted her as she stood stage left (if you are facing the stage) and Belafonte was way over at stage right, with a single spot on him. I can’t remember the song they sang, but it was majestic. What a grand lady!

Will be attending the Connie Francis/Dionne Warwick performance next weekend, May 21-23, at the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel. Last time I saw Ms. Warwick, she was downtown at the Golden Nugget when Steve Wynn owned the casino. Haven’t seen Ms. Francis in years. Looking forward to the show.

Well, gang, that’s all there is for this week. I’m outa here!

A long time friend of this writer has branched off from previous connections, and decided to start making money for herself, by doing it the old fashioned way: opening her own business.

“Why work hard for someone else, when you can put the same amount of effort in your own business, and very possibly improve your output to the satisfaction of everyone?” Eileen Goldman, owner of a new destination management company, said.

Bookitinvegas.com is Goldman’s new company, and it’s the only destination company dedicated solely to booking social and corporate events in Las Vegas, according to Eileen.  From corporations to businesses of all sizes, high school and college sporting events, and families or social groups of 10 people or more, Bookitinvegas.com has been designed to be the place to go when the destination is Las Vegas.

Possessing a worldwide clientele, Goldman’s new company has the ability to arrange a wide array of events: From corporate meetings to group meetings, team builders, company retreats, convention/trade shows to wedding and anniversaries. I would venture to say, if you wanted to hold a gathering of old friends, with a special theme that called for igloo, Bookitinvegas.com could arrange it. In other words, you name it and they’ll come up with a solution.

Prior to opening her own business earlier this year, Eileen worked for 12 years on the property side, booking accommodations for individual Las Vegas Hotels, and, in so doing, she met and became friends with some of the top agents in her field, and promised herself, that if she ever opened her own agency, she would surround herself with only the best workers she knew. This she has accomplished.

“My staff and I know just about everything there is to know about Las Vegas, having collectively lived and worked here for more than 27 years. We all live, work and play in our town, and we draw upon our intimate relationship with the shakers and movers of this great city and our own expertise,” Goldman said. “We are literally a one-stop shopping center for our clients!”

Bookitinvegas.com has a full-service entertainment division that offers everything from the flamboyant to the elegant, and everything in-between. You name the entertainer or the entertainment, and Goldman’s staff will go to the ends of the earth to meet your request. For more information go to: www.bookitinvegas.com or e-mail to info@bookitinvegas.com or call 702-938-2665.

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Another friend of this writer, and one funny dude, is stand up comedian Manny Oliveira, who is currently headlining at the Comedy Stop inside the Sahara Hotel through Sunday.  Hal Spear and Joe DeLion share the bill.  Anyhow, Manny informed me the other evening, that he will soon mount his own “One Man Show,” in a 380-seat theater in Atlanta, Georgia. The title of the show, which indicates how this guy’s brain works, is: “I’m The Man You Meet Before You Meet The Man You Marry.” According to Oliveira, it’s a story about being middle aged, single and hip. I think it’s perfect casting! The schedule calls for it to have a World Premier at the 14^th Street Playhouse in late Fall or early 2011. The Comedy Stop continues to bring in three top headliners from every corner of the globe every week, changing every Monday. Showtime is 9 p.m. nightly with tickets priced from $24.95. Call 702-737-2878 for more information or reservations.

Went to Hooters Hotel & Casino on Tropicana the other evening to watch an entertainer I’ve known for more than 35 years, Pete Willcox, who does a fabulous job of bringing the music of Elvis Presley back to life for a good 90 minutes, in Hooters’ showroom. At one time, back in the ‘70s, Willcox was one of two (in my opinion only gang) of the hottest Elvis impersonators on the face of the earth. No kidding! Johnny Harra was the other one. And guess what? They both worked for this writer at the old Silverbird. Well, the trip to Hooters was well worth it, as Pete did not disappoint anyone that I could see. He admitted to being 68 years-young, and looks terrific on stage. He has a tight-knit four piece band with two lovely backup singers giving him full support. What I really enjoyed about watching this particular entertainer, is that he wastes very little time talking (he does tell a short story or two, but basically he knows everyone is there to hear the music of Elvis). And, gang, if you close your eyes and listen to the singer, you will swear it’s the original. Pete does all the songs you come to expect, plus a couple, had Elvis lived, he would have surely recorded. The closer is the one which always gets to me and most of those who knew Elvis: “An American Trilogy.” Showtime is Wednesday through Sunday at 7:30 p.m. with tickets priced at $24.95.

Well, gang, that’s about it for this week. I’m outa here!