<<The historic Boulder Hotel/museum closed on July 11 due to lack of funding. Reports of a generous quarter million dollar gift will allow it to reopen.>>>

I hope it wasn't from: Ex-NBA star Antoine Walker!

LOL

Stratosphere is offering weddings on 9-9-09 for $99. They did the same thing last year on 8-8-08.

New owners of the Tropicana don't really own it? They bought the property out of bankruptcy, but the owner has failed to release the brand name, Tropicana. OTOH, they are willing to sell the name rights to the new owners.

Posters all over town says, Join Harrah's rewards club and get $5 of free gaming. Often, an adjacent Hooters ad says $100.

Local crime down more than 25% from last year. Even car theft is down 19%.

Prive and another leased space club in Planet Hollywood have been operating under a temporary liquor license that will not be renewed after it expires this week.

35 days of 100+ degrees so far. This last week had monsoonal flow that lowered temps a little. 100s are back for now. The yearly average is 73 days of 100+ according to one source.

Unlucky Lady. The Lady Luck is being smacked with a wrecking ball. At least one unmaintained building out back. The Lady Luck closed in 2006 and the new owner promised major positive changes that were not followed up on. Recently, Mayor Oscar got onto the owners for having an eyesore and urged inspectors to look for code violations. There was a sweetheart deal where the city could give the owners city owned land around the Mob Museum if construction was started by December. Is the current demolition a way to clean up the eyesore or early phases of making the Lady Luck a boutique destination? BTW, no word on any improvements to the old casino area or the two main towers.

From the "It takes a license to drive a textmobile, but anyone can roll the dice in raising kids." department, an innocent 8 year old crossing the street was caught in the middle of a gang shoot out.
Also, a 4 year old shot and killed his 2 year old sister.
As a follow up to the 5 year old that shot himself in the head while dad sat next to him the car at the drugstore drive thru, the father has a few skeletons. He does have a string of previous arrests. When he was evicted from their previous home 5 months ago, they left a huge mess of the house and lawn. Neighbors say the father was difficult to get along with and had "concerns". And oh by the way, they left 4 pit bulls in the back yard when they moved. The man's career as a hip-hop DJ will be put on hold as he faces charges related to the death of his son.

From the "Celebrity Overdose" department, UGLY rumors of moving Neverland Ranch to Vegas. Someone please make this rumor go away.

"Prive and another leased space club in Planet Hollywood have been operating under a temporary liquor license that will not be renewed after it expires this week."

JMT, interesting to note that there is no sign of the Prive closing down as of Thursday midnight. In fact there are three posters in the casino at the base of the escalators leading up to the night-club advertising forthcoming "celebrity" parties and an after-party for the upcoming GI Joe premiere that will be appearing there.

Looks like someone is not taking this too seriously or they have some unannounced agreement with the powers that be in the works, or maybe some legal shenanigans underway..

I believe that the Games Commission/Liquor Commission is a tough cookie to argue with, but time will tell I guess.

All the high class night clubs are watching closely because they could be next in line to suffer possible consequences,

And I believe that Mr Wynn is in some form of discussion with the company who "owns' and manages XS and Tryst within the Wynn complex. Have you heard what that is all about?

Have you seen the XS operation? Very beautiful inside that joint and it opens up to the outdoor pool at the rear of the Encore. A spectacular setting.

Interesting to note that many nicely suited Wynn security guards are lined up every twenty feet or so up and down that hallway leading to the XS nightclub. I don't know why so many "guards" are needed there and all I see them doing is just keeping everyone moving along. You cannot congregate there unless you are standing politely in line waiting to enter the club.

I think we'll be seeing a lot of big management changes along the Strip these next few months.

Steve Wyrick has filed law suit against a pyrotechnic company in regards to a stunt that went terribly long out on the Las Vegas Strip on July 4. The explosions and flashes went off earlier than anticipated and one assistant was sent to the hospital for burns. Steve was not injured.

Donnie and Marie just signed a deal to keep playing at The Flamingo through Oct 2012.

Vinnie Favorito said he recently signed a 3 year deal with the Flamingo.

The Consumer Electronics Show is downsizing. In it's peak, exhibitors were complaining of too many lookers and the venues were spread out all over the city. This January, CES will be only at the Convention Center and the LV Hilton. In this day and age where a new product can get internet publicity, the "need" for a convention to showcase a new product has been reduced greatly. The "porn convention" which just happened to be at the same time and share the Sands Expo venue with CES will be alone at the Sands.

#8 child drowning this year. A 2 year old in Henderson drowned while parents were busy not being parents.

Only 1 police involved shooting reported by Metro. 'Tis the 11th of the year. An officer shot himself "in his lower extremities" at a practice range. No word on why the officer was practicing shooting himself in his lower extremities.

Only 1 report of loose tiger roaming the neighborhood this week. The owner was taking the white tiger for a walk and "something spooked it", so it ran. The tiger was captured later than night. 3 tigers, 2 panthers, and 1 lion live on the property. A warning on the front fence of the property says, "Beware of Dog".

The Hoover Dam bypass bridge reached a milestone. The Arizona and Nevada sides are connected to each other. This is the structure part which is an arch that will be below the roadway when completed. Concrete is poured and set all the way across except for about 6 or 7 feet in the center that will be gradually filled in. The forms are set and metal is in place connected the two sections. When completed late in 2010, getting through will be much faster than crossing the dam. There will also be a pedestrian walkway across the bridge that promises a breathtaking view of the dam and the river. The $240 million project is on budget.

As reported, Prive, the nightclub in Planet Hollywood lost it's temporary liquor license and was forced to close. The Florida owner used a loophole that would allow Prive and one other nightclub to stay open during appeals. The county denied that particular loophole. The doors remain closed, even as Planet Hollywood offered to operate it. There will be more discussions today, 04AUG09,

The Hard Rock opened it's new tower on Friday with over 500 rooms and lots of convention space. This is part of the expansion plans that included the new Joint. By the end of the year, the casino will undergo a major expansion and the pool area will double in size. Another new tower "appears" about ready.

Lots of jobs here for "industry" workers, believe it or not. It seems there are job fairs every week or two. Currently hiring in July include McCarran Airport, Allegiant Air, old Hard Rock with new hotel tower, new Hard Rock Cafe on the strip, Planet Hollywood Towers, Luxor, and various operations in City Center. Even Kohl's is ready to hire over 400 people.

Sapphire, the topless pool at the Rio shut down. Rio and Harrah's asked Metro to check their topless pool for integrity. Metro found lots of prostitution and drug sales. Rio tried requiring tops for a day or two and then shut the whole thing down.

Las Vegas has lost 38% of it's millionaires since the economic downturn. The source was FOX 5 news.

Nevada Supreme Court is hearing from lawyers representing OJ Simpson and CJ Stewart requesting bail while they await Supreme Court appeals. A decision could take hours or weeks.

The media is on a tear (again) to put pressure on the Las Vegas Zoo and force it to close or do MAJOR work.

LA City Council wants a Cirque show and may load $30 million modify the Kodak Theater to house a permanent show.

Mob Museum news today. I'll be downtown to investigate.

<<Only 1 report of loose tiger roaming the neighborhood this week. >>

This gave me a great laugh - thanks - I needed it!

For what it's worth, I really enjoy reading these headlines. Thanks!

Green limos at City Center? The 26 limousines serving the resorts at City Center will be powered by CNG. Compressed Natural Gas is supposed to produce about 90% less greenhouse gas than gasoline models.

The LA city council approved improvements to the Kodak Theater in preperation for a Cirque show. While the city council is willing to loan the money, the US government must approve the loan, because it is their money. We probably have a show they could borrow.

Bally's sports book has been remodeled and will reopen later this month.

The owners of Prive and Living Room at the Planet Hollywood have requested a delay in their appeal for a liquor license while they "reorganize". The next meeting will be on Aug 18. Prive and Living Room will remain closed.

IED explodes in north Las Vegas. An Improvised Explosive Device exploded on a construction vehicle late Tuesday night. No word of threats against the company or anyone in the area. Police are puzzled but investigating and the Feds are very interested too. It is the 3rd pipe bomb of the year.

Elvis arrives for City Center. The 75 members of the Elvis themed Cirque began arriving in Las Vegas on Saturday, greeted by other Cirque cast members from up and down the strip.

Does it seem like you hear a lot of ambulance sirens in Las Vegas? Here's a clue. A study of emergency responses to 911 calls found alleged "super users" One person was transported in an ambulance to the hospital 57 times in a six month period. Another made 22 trips in 30 days. There were 277 people singled out that that took 2100 trips in the last six months of 2008. The stats bring up amazing numbers such as over 50% are involved with drugs and/or alcohol, 39% were homeless, and more than 60% were underinsured. Most of the $1.8 million of ambulance charges went unpaid. Were the people really sick? 90% had stable vital signs and 95% were alert enough to identify themselves and describe their "issues". It just goes on and on, and includes the dangers of lights and sirens as well as deaths and injuries from accidents of the ambulance and the public who overreacts or under-reacts to emergency vehicles.

Ever been to the Ruth's Chris steakhouse on Flamingo, near the Palms hotel. It was a famous hangout since it was open 'till 3am. It served it's last meal on Sunday night and is now closed down. The owner will continue to pay rent a while longer in hopes of an economic recovery. He blames President Obama for reducing conventions and slowing his business.

The strong winds that brought us record cool weather over the weekend with 4 days below 100 degrees also brought 4 foot waves to Lake Mead. That capsized some boats and brought some drama to lake goers. Temps under 100 might happen again this coming weekend.

Harmon St closed down at the strip. It's that road between Planet Hollywood and the Harley Davidson Cafe. As part of the City Center mess, car traffic as well as pedestrians can pretend Harmon never existed. Hopefully all will be golden sometime in November. In the mean time, police are watching for jaywalkers who think that's a good place for pedestrians to cross the strip. Pedestrians should cross further up near the Bellagio or further down towards the Hawaiian Marketplace.

Binion's is on borrowed time because it sits on leased land. The current owner is holding back lease payments in hopes of renegotiating for a lower lease. The previous owner promised lease payments would be made as part of the sales deal to the current owners. Now the land owner is going to the previous owner for lease payments...since they guaranteed the lease.

You people aren't doing a good job of making the Neverland Ranch moving to Las Vegas rumor go away. I cringe at the term Neverland Station.

Holy Cow. The former Holy Cow site at the corner of Sahara and the Strip will become a combination casino/drug store. It was supposed to feature a 500 ft sign. The Las Vegas City Council approved the sign to be only 98 feet tall. It was supposed to have the worlds largest TV screen on the outside. Ah, the priorities of a good business model.

Hot rumors of rigged/bogus/fake ATMs at the Riv and Rio have been cooled down. Maybe it didn't really happen after all.

The energy crisis is being solved here in Las Vegas. Harry Reid, Bill Clinton, and Al Gore are here trying to solve the energy crisis at the National Clean Energy Summit 2.0.

Las Vegas has an entry into the new United Football League. Our UFL team is the Locomotives. Mag-Lev and Monorails were names that were suggested and rejected. Expect the nickname Locos to become popular. All we need now is a mascot.

While in town, Bill Clinton dined at Craftsteak. Wild rumors say he had a $240 Wagu NY Strip. The head chef is on record for saying he had a nice rib eye and french fries. The rumor probably had something to do with Steve Bing being there. I kinda knew who Bing was. Someone had to tie the ends together for me with Steve and Bill having similar moral values, and the irony of being in a Kerkorian property.

Las Vegas visitor numbers dropped for the sixth straight month this year. The numbers for the first half of the year are down 6.8% from the first half of last year. I'm sure that means a lot to businesses that operate on a tight margin. As I visit the tourist areas, when I see 100 people, if 6 or 7 of them are missing, I don't notice it. Gambling numbers for June are down 13%. Again, a stat only the bean counters notice.

Speeding through Pahrump. The speed limit in Pahrump is 25 mph on dirt roads and 45 on paved roads. It's the law. There are signs around town that say anywhere from 15-40. Those signs are not enforceable because those signs are illegal. You just can't post signs around town without an engineering study. And those studies were never done. The Sheriff has advised the DA to dismiss most cases. You can't drive like an idiot. But it is okay to safely drive up to 45 mph on paved roads.

The homeless tent city at Main and Owens was cleared out on Tuesday. (it's actually Foremaster Ln between Main and Las Vegas Blvd, but it would not be in the best interest of the city to say Las Vegas Blvd) It was rows and rows of small camping tents all compacted into an area near the outreach centers. It was a horrible site with drugs, dead animals, human waste, and even trash. It is my unqualified guess that it is an attempt to move the eyesore away from the newly planned corridor that will extend from the Neon Museum, down towards the Old Mormon Fort. There are huge plans to redevelop this area with bigger sidewalks, lots of neon, and make it an inviting cultural corridor. Homeless lifestyles aren't part of the plan.

Only 3 helicopters fell from the sky this week. Fortunately, only one pilot suffered a few cuts. On Wednesday, a police helicopter suffered an engine failure and made a safe landing near the intersection of Lindell and Twain. Mechanics came out and worked on it for about an hour and got it running ok again. Two days earlier, a Maverick Tours helicopter suffered a bird strike and the injured pilot landed on a bike trail near Lake Mead. And Thursday, the trifecta was reached as a Sundance Tours helicopter made an emergency landing near Lake Mead when the craft suffered a major electrical problem.

Interstate 11 to Phoenix? Officials in Las Vegas and Phoenix have chattered positively about an Interstate Highway that would connect the two cities. With the completion of the Hoover Dam bypass bridge, that proposal is a step closer to reality.

Terry Fator has a new DVD due out in the stores on Sept 1. He is actually selling it at his shows now. It will have Terry's old Michael Jackson skit that makes fun of Michael as it was recorded just hours before Michael's death. Much of the DVD is the same as in the show that will air on CMT on Aug 28.

The 20 year old rumor of the rock band KISS doing a Las Vegas production show are getting closer. This time it has a name, Kiss: Carnival of Souls. Details are sketchy, but it will have a Cirque TYPE aspect to it.

The new 1900 sq ft Pinks Hot Dogs is set to open near the southwest corner of Planet Hollywood this month. They will have a liquor license and will have indoor and outdoor seating facing the strip.

Vegas Rocks magazine celebrated it's 5th year in business. They tried to gather as many guitar players as possible to play Viva Las Vegas under the Welcome To Las Vegas sign, and get that in the Guiness Book of World Records.

Time for Las Vegas? Time Magazine is featuring Las Vegas on the cover it's latest edition that went to the news stands on Monday. You can pick up your copy now and/or catch the on line version. They are using a catch phrase Less Vegas. The tourist promoters see this as a positive because the same hotels, same restaurants, and same shows are here for less money and that seems inviting.

Louie Anderson is suing the company he works for. Louie is suing the restaurant Manchu Wok in the Excalibur, because a waiter dropped something, he slipped in it and fell. He is suing for $10,000 in damages. Louie performs his show, Larger Than Life, at the Excalibur...for now.

ESPN and World Series of Poker to be partners until 2017. ESPN currently shows about 32 hours of the event and is expected to at least match that number in coming years. The WSOP event began in July, narrowed down to the final table and will conclude in November.

Almost two weeks ago, a local man pulled his Toyota pick up truck into the Welcome To Las Vegas sign parking lot. His truck had special commemorative license plates that feature the sign. The man shot himself and died. It's a pretty open and shut case except for one thing. They can't find a next of kin. Authorities know his name, know the trailer park he lived in for over 10 years, know his job, etc. They are hoping to find his next of kin before they release his name. If no kin is found, his body will be cremated, and a snippet will be in the local paper. The coroner hopes that his life will be a bigger story than his last act.

A stealth earthquake shook northern Nevada on Sunday morning. The Nevada Seismological Laboratory reported a 4.2 quake near the Idaho line. The US Geological Survey and and a nearby Utah reporting station have no record of this quake.

Pinks Hot Dogs had a soft opening this week. The grand opening will come soon.

A coroners inquest ruled that the detective that shot a suspect last month was justified. If you've lived in this town long enough, you are jaded to assume any police shooting is justified. If you remember from my report, the report was changed from being shot point blank in the chest, to being shot in the back. The jury heard a story that the man scuffled with police, got one of their tasers, and threatened to shoot a detective with it. As the threatened detective pulled his pistol to shoot the man, the man "mysteriously" turned around just as the detective pulled the trigger. So that's what the official record will say to show the shooting was justified.

Do you watch Dancing With The Stars? Next season, which starts soon will include Las Vegas locals. Expect to see entertainer Donny Osmond and fighter Chuck Lidell in the line up.

The Prive club at Planet Hollywood has applied for a temporary 90 day liquor license and may reopen as early as this week. They claim new ownership and lots of other promises.

There have been 49 days of at least 100 degrees in this years seemingly cool summer.

Steve and Elaine's divorce is expected to be expensive. So much that they sold some stock. A lot of stock. Almost 10% of their Wynn stock. That's about 2 million shares.

Prive Nightclub and the Living Room lounge have been granted a 30 day temporary liquor license and will be able to open up as soon as inspections and verifications are completed.

The Bureau of Land Management, aka BLM, wants to raise the prices to go through Red Rock Canyon. They are accepting e-mails and letters asking guests what their opinions are. The current rates for a car is $5 and the new proposed rate would be $7. The year long option would go from $20 to $30.

Mandarin Hotel in Las Vegas already has a wrap that says We "fan symbol" Las Vegas.

Hard Rock Cafe on the strip, on schedule for a Sept 4 grand opening.

The Greek Isles foreclosure is complete. It was bought in July of 2007 with hopes to make it a boutique hotel in good financial times. But times changed and the new owners couldn't make it happen. The investors behind the previous owners have taken over and are quoted as saying, "we want to make it clear that ownership is committed to keeping the Greek Isles Hotel and Casino open for business."

Frank Caliendo just signed a 10 year deal to headline at the Monte Carlo.

Max Baer Jr's Hillbilly casino has approval in a construction project that has stalled. He is now looking at a location of closed casino in Sparks, a suburb of Reno. The Sliver Club closed down some time ago, and Max has been talking to the city fathers about the possibilities. Max has not contacted the current owner yet.

Dinner in the sky is an event where you strap in to your seat and a crane lifts you high in the sky to eat your meal with a breathtakng view. It is currently located near the Palms and is easily mobile to other locations. They were interested in moving onto the strip near the Fashion Show Mall. Steve Wynn, stepped in and used his political influence to deny the crane across from his property saying it is equal to a carnival ride.

David Copperfield still being sued for sexual assault...again. The woman says he forced himself on her multiple times. David says she is a liar. I think they are both right.

70 year old Frank Fertitta Jr died on Friday. He started his Las Vegas casino operation with the Bingo Palace, now known as Palace Station. He was one of the first in Las Vegas with the vision of full service locals casinos.

Top executives at MGM Mirage lied about the resort's finances in the past two years and dumped $91 million in stock sales that were "unusual and suspicious in timing and amount", a class action lawsuit claims.

The Clark County Inspector who "failed to properly devote the time and attention" necessary to ensure the safety of a "place of public accommodations," and lost his job 11 months ago after a botched inspection at The Rio, got his job back along with more than $97,000 in back pay. His inspection of a whistle-blowers allegations of faulty work show that he spent a total of 38 minutes at the property to do the inspection where he claims he inspected 37 rooms.

51 days of 100 or more degrees this year

No pit bull attacks, no loose tigers, no police shooting perps in the back, must be a slow week in Vegas news! LOL

There was a big stink in parking lot of the WalMart on Eastern, near Sunset.

A lady was found in the trunk of her car after being there about 2 weeks.

They do find bodies in trunks here, but it's usually in a strip club parking lot. And the body is usually someone who thinks the mob doesn't exist anymore.

Big stink.....you crack me up!
That would do it, two weeks in 100 degree summer. WOW
Probably killed the resale value on that car too!

traded in as a clunker and sent off to mexico

As summer ends the craziness of activities is slowing down. Politicians the same. The crazies are the same. The intensity is slowing.

Henderson teenager gives birth to baby in bathtub, then killed the baby. Wait, first she delivered the baby, cut the cord with sterilized scissors, then went to the store and bought baby supplies and brought them home. Then she suffocated the baby. She was afraid her parents would be mad. As if they weren't mad when she did the same thing in 2006 when she put her new born in a dumpster at The Mirage. At that time, she was set free because there was not enough evidence to show cause of death because they could not determine the cause or manner of death. The first one was believed to have been stillborn.

Boxing great Floyd Mayweather Jr goes to skating rink on Boulder Highway (yes, that skating rink) and gets in argument with people and leaves with his handlers. Shots were fired in the parking lot from his car. Smoking gun found in Floyd's house. Fingers are pointing to a handler as the trigger man.

Two illegal immigrants were found guilty of the car bomb at the Luxor that killed a man in 2007. The guilty men come from Nicaragua and Guatemala where there is no death penalty. This bombing does qualify for the death penalty, though it is unlikely to happen.

Palms shows some class. While driving to work on Saturday morning, workers were completing the marquee announcement at the Palms, which they often do about this time. On Friday, the Palms lost their resident DJ at the nightclub who survived a plane crash about a year ago, DJ AM. On Saturday night, the Palms would host a celebration of the life of Michael Jackson on what would be Michael's birthday with stars from all over the city and country. The big letters on the sign read, Thank You Mr Fertitta.

I need to visit the Sahara again. It has gone from the classiest joint on the strip, to the lonely place on the end of the strip, to the redneck capital for NASCAR, and is on it way to becoming a biker bar. I might wait until after the biker convention.

California wildfires are having a strong impact here. The smoke is horrible. Sometimes you can't see the mountains just a few miles away. Poor air quality warnings are popping up daily. It blocks the views, it stinks, and it can't be healthy. On the plus side, the sunrise views are amazing. In addition to the smoke and smell, there are tons of ash all over everything.

The cultural corridor modifications are in progress. The Bow and Arrow Motel sign from the Neon Museum is up, the Horseshoe goes up today, and the Silver Slipper is not far behind. I've read few trip reports that cover the area these signs are going in to. It's on LV Blvd, north of downtown. The long term plans call for a total of 17 signs that will come on in to the downtown area and south to Sahara.

Heidi Fliess comes to Las Vegas. Las Vegas will be quick to point out that she came to Henderson. She has opened a dog grooming business at Sandhill and Sunset. Since her laundromat has the name Dirty Laundry, she chose Dirty Dog for the dog bath. But if for some reason you are looking for the place, it still has the previous owners name on it, Little Buddy Bath.

Stuff happened and I didn't get to read the news as much as usual. I did find a few interesting tidbits.

Only one major gunfire event. A house on the lesser side of town catches fire and creates a huge blaze. Fire department responds and get shot at while trying to fight the fire. They back off and call police. Police are met with gunfire. One officer injured. The bad guy was shot dead. Of course, the story will die too even though it shouldn't.

Prive nightclub was denied a 90 day permit, forcing them to continue on the existing 30 day permit.

The two men found guilty of the car bombing at the Luxor have been sentenced to spend the rest of their lives behind bars.

Times are hard for Bette Midler. Her tickets are now showing up on my freebie list.

My favorite BBQ joint, CJ's Texas BBQ is now closed. Turns out the owner is on Florida's Most Wanted List. He was operating under an alias.

New Hard Rock Cafe opened on the Strip, near the big Coke Bottle opened on Sat. 42,000 sq ft of fun with lots of interactive screens on the walls, in the booths, and on various tables. 500 people were hired for this restaurant.

Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid is officially an idiot. Unfortunately, we've had to listen to him often as we watch local news. I understand his comment on wanting the Las Vegas newspaper LVRJ to go out of business is national news.

A book titled The Glory And The Pain which will describe the life and times of drug addict and entertainer Danny Gans is due out in October. Fans of Danny may enjoy knowing how he suffered and made people smile.

If you want proof that the Nevada Supreme Court is not stupid, OJ Simpson and CJ Stewart were denied bail while they appeal their convictions of kidnapping and armed robbery.

Heidi Fleiss stays in the news as her purchase of the dog grooming business Dirty Dog, was a dirty deal. It seems the previous owner was in the middle of a divorce, and Fleiss (and her crew of misfits) arranged a deal. The gal that sold the shop to Heidi was to get a job managing a new reality show as she was hiding the sale of the shop from her husband and the divorce court.

Undercover cops attended Rehab at the Hard Rock and busted 8 people on charges of prostitution and drugs. The reason that cops focused on Rehab is because of the number of ambulance transports from the event for drug overdose and intoxication.

Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberte will pay approx 35 million dollars to fly into space on a Russian space craft and spend time on the International Space Station. He hopes the flight will inspire his creativity.

9-9-09 was a big day for weddings, especially at 9:09pm. I had a VIP invitation to one wedding at 6pm that I attended. Mayor Oscar Goodman renewed his vows to his wife of 47 years. It was a really fun wedding on the FSE and they were married by an Elvis impersonator. The invitations said to throw rice and dice. We were also given bubbles, VIP lanyards, poker chips with wedding info, martini glasses, and other swag. Not many Nevada politicians in the media eye can claim a happy marriage.

4 casino workers at Planet Hollywood were arrested for claiming false jackpots and pocketing the money. It happened in the Planet Hollywood poker room. The only tie this week to put Harrah's in the bad news is that they are buying up debt from the Planet Hollywood and may eventually buy them out.

Out of 3 murder/suicide events this week, only one completed. 2 of the events ended in suicide chumps who survived shooting themselves after killing their female victim.

Boxing great Floyd Mayweather Jr thinks bad news is better than no news at all. He bought a Mercedes valued at a half million dollars. Actually he financed over $400,000 of it. After a year of payments of $9000+ each, he stopped paying and the car was repossessed and sold. Floyd is being sued for the outstanding balance of $167,000. He is also scheduled to fight this weekend and stands to make millions from the event.

Not to be outdone, OJ Simpson is being sued by Bruce Fromong. Now that OJ is guilty of armed robbery, Bruce claims the 4 heart attacks he suffered since then were brought on by that robbery. Fromong is seeking unspecified damages.

Back in July, Metro police raided the topless Sapphire pool at the Rio hotel and made several arrests for drugs and prostitution. The pool was shut down shortly afterwards. The local DA has dropped charges on two of the women arrested in that raid. At least 6 other women will appear in court later this month.

Fire at the Hard Rock. A small electrical fire on a second story air conditioner forced the evacuation of the Hard Rock hotel and casino on Sunday. Some guests were awaken in their hotel rooms with alarms and messages to evacuate immediately. Most people report the evacuation went smooth. Damage was minimal and only 2 people suffered minor smoke inhalation.

On Friday night, two Metro bicycle officers stopped a car on the strip. The driver was upset and decided to run over one the cops, grazing one of them with his SUV. After the police fired several shots, the car drove off and was stopped later by a Metro patrol car. Two men in their twenties were taken into custody.

Wanna be in CSI Las Vegas? You can. The MGM has an "attraction" where a staged crime is set up and you can help solve it...provided you have $30 for the first session and $26 for each session thereafter. You look at the crime scene take notes and put it all together by going to different terminals to evaluate blood spatter, analyze fibers, and get a report from the coroner. There are 3 crimes set up in the CSI Experience, set up in the MGM Grand's Studio Walk.

Charo's show at the Riv has been cancelled until she recovers from an ankle injury she suffered backstage during the MDA Telethon.

There is a big stink at the Plaza. Part of it comes from the new buffet. The other part is when Sandy Hacket, who plays Joey Bishop was fired. Sandy countered with a cease and desist letter to stop the show because he owns much of the script and is one of the co-producers.

Also on the entertainment front, Earl Turner is out of the Voices show at the Shimmer Cabaret in the Hilton. Lani Misalucha is on her own. Personally, I think Clint Holmes could just step right in and take over, but his goals are much higher than that.

Tix4Tonight has opened a 7th location in Casino Royale.

Mexican Independence Day comes as the Southpoint features Bloodless Bull Fighting. Animal rights advocates claim the bulls are stabbed and beaten.

11th Clark County victim of Swine Flu died this week. It was an otherwise healthy woman.

The gunman who opened fire in the NewYorkNewYork casino was found guilty on 51 counts, including attempted murder and battery. His public defender says the Steven Segrean is remorseful and wants closure. He was to be sentenced on Wednesday, but the defense wants time to try and get the lesser charges, including the battery charges dropped.

Heidi Fleiss got lucky and was spared prison time when she was sentenced to 3 years probation on drug charges from when she was arrested in Pahrump. In another effort to go to prison, a judge has ordered that her Dirty Dog shop be closed pending an investigation on the illegal sale of the shop to Heidi.

Children's Health Magazine rated 100 best places to raise a family. Las Vegas came in at 92.

The Melting Pot, a popular fondue restaurant that closed in the hard economic times has reopened. It is located on West Charleston.

I saw a new Hooters sign on Rainbow, south of I-215. I can only assume that it will be a typical Hooters restaurant.

With City Center nearing completion, hundreds of people are officially hired, and over ten thousand positions are up for applications and interviews. 3 of the 4 hotel complexes will open this year.

Elizabeth Halverson was a judge in Las Vegas in 2007, whose short career included, sexually harasing her staff, talking to jurors illegally, falling asleep on the bench, and humiliating her staff in a number of ways. Recognized on local TV as a moo-moo wrapped around an electric scooter with oxygen up her nose, she gained little to no public sympathy when her husband nearly beat her to death with a frying pan a year ago. The husband got 3 years, the frying pan is undergoing therapy. Anyway, Elizabeth failed to show up at least 3 times for a lawsuit filed by a former assistant charging her with defamation and other charges. She will now face monetary damages. Elizabeths countersuit was dismissed.

If you were in town and noticed a big crowd at the Venetian, It's the new Phantom convention for fans of Phantom of The Opera.


Train Wars continue. The MagLev train to Disneyland from Las Vegas got a $45 million boost from the Obama administration. This is bad news for Senator Harry Reid, who is pushing for a locomotive to Victorville Ca. Actually Harry's objective is to get a train near his hometown of Searchlight, where his family owns 2 mobile home trailers.

The expansion of the Trop is in full swing and will include 2 new restaurants. The JavaJava coffee bar is to be renamed, and a new Italian joint is now open. And for some unknown reason, the Trop is still trying to hire Wayne Newton as a headliner.

Cockfighting ring busted in Las Vegas. Over 200 roosters were taken into protective custody. The ring was busted due to the gambling, drugs, and alcohol associated with event. Apparently these busts go down every 3 or 4 months.

Hog Wild. Wanna be cool on a Harley? Meet up at Hogs and Hefers downtown on Thursday nights and ride along with your peers to the Hard Rock or Wednesday nights to Feelgoods.

The Silver Slipper sign is installed and shining bright on Las Vegas Blvd where it will be seen by more homeless than tourists. At least until the city completes modifications to the Cultural Corridor and does something with the homeless that thrive in that area north of downtown.

Speaking of doing something with the homeless, one homeless advocate pitched an idea to the city to build the first homeless community on over 600 acres, about 29 miles north of Las Vegas. Huge "pavilion style homes" would be built to house the homeless and train them to become productive members of society. Many of the homeless in town are in favor of moving out of town. I think it's a great idea. Catch me in person for details.<g>

The weather has cooled off a little and the REALLY crazy people are starting to take their meds. Expect the extremely wild stories to drop off a little.

Bike Fest kicks off on Oct 1 at The Sahara. Everything you are expecting will be there...and more. Is it a coincidence that "The Biggest Tattoo Show On Earth" will happen that same week?

Worlds largest helium balloon to fly over the strip. A 75 foot balloon was inflated on Wednesday night for a test run on a new attraction. The ballon is expected to carry 30 passengers and cost about $22. The two ton ballon called Cloud 9 will carry you about 500 feet in the air for about 10 minutes. The attraction will open to the public on Oct 3 and be located directly across from Mandalay Bay. I saw it go up to where the passengers would be about as high as the top of the Luxor pyramid, and the ballon itself was higher than the Mandalay Bay.

Wayne Newton did it. The Tropicana signed him to headline the showroom in a show called "Once Before I Go". The Trop acknowledges that Wayne isn't much of a singer these days and never was. He is an entertainer, and that's what the show is about. The show opens on October 14.

CineVegas, the local film festival started in the year 2000. After 9 years, it has become relatively popular. Due to the poor economy, they have decided to cancel the event for the year 2010.

The new Elvis themed Cirque show will not be cluttered with Elvis impersonators, except for one that gets squashed by a blue suede show.

Celine Dion is working on a plan to return to Caesars Palace on New Years Eve, 2010.

The Platters, Coasters, and Marvelettes will move from the Sahara to the Steve Wyrick Theater on Oct 12.

Rumor has it that a romantic comedy movie based on the music of Barry Manilow is in the works. Sources suggest Mandalay Bay is involved. Note, when I saw Barry's show a couple of weeks ago, there was a suspicious lack of Manilow posters, cards, and any other promo within the Hilton.

If you ever hear the name Vocal Soup playing locally, that is Susan Anton, Clint Holmes, and Domenick Allen. If you are a Nascar fan, maybe you saw them sing the National Anthem here at the Truck race on Saturday night.

Clint Holmes' wife, Kelly Clinton will present Shades Of Sinatra at the Suncoast on Oct 2-4

Pole Position Raceway, and indoor go-cart racing venue has a location next to the Palms and will soon open another track in Summerlin.

September was the hottest September on record. I woke up on Oct 1 with temps in the 50s. Buh Bye warmth.

Bobby Slayton, Rich Natole, and a Beatles tribute band have left the Tropicana.

Echelon Place got the official word that it would NOT resume construction anytime in the foreseeable future.

Fontainbleau appears to be heading to liquidation.

Metro cops shoot and kill another teenager. The teen was a high school honor student. BTW, the teenager had a choke hold on his mother and was holding a huge knife to her throat. Now mom says she wasn't in danger and cops acted too quick. Next day, same part of town, kid kills dad and mom with knife and escapes before cops arrive.

Nevada Highway Patrol is on a campaign to ticket car drivers that drive aggressive near big rig trucks.

New laws went into effect on Oct 1. Domestic partners have state legal rights. DMV fines $1000 if you move here and don't register your car in 30 days. Renters allowed 60 days notice if their property faces foreclosure. State insect, Vivid Dancer Damselfly becomes official. You can't chain your dog up for more than 14 hours per day.

City Center drops prices of condos about 30% to get people to the closing booth. I think I heard it affects all of the condos.

It really is a pleasant time for local news as the temps drop and the tempers cool down. The biggest local story is some cat mutilations which have going on for about a year have escalated.

Boy we are dumb. Las Vegas would be the dumbest city in the country if it wasn't for Fresno California, according to a recent study by The Daily Beast, which sounds like a really intellectual media. I would like to think I had something to do with this rating. Really, I would like to think that I drove the numbers down. Somehow I doubt that is the case.

Prive night club has been granted a temporary 90 day liquor license.

UFL, the newest football league has begun. The Las Vegas Locomotives defeated the California Redwoods 30-17.

It looks like Garth Brooks will come out of retirement and replace Danny Gans. Steve Wynn has been wining and dining Garth and family for the last several months, so this is not huge news. Expect the contract to be signed on Thursday.

Peepshow has taken out their live band and now use canned music.

As many have suspected, Barry Manilow will end his 5 year run at the Hilton soon. Signs, posters, and ads for his show have been disappearing for a while. There is still the wrap across the tower. Barry will end this run on Dec 30 and rumors say he is looking for another Vegas venue. The Paris hotel is the most obvious choice for his new digs. Barry lives in the Palm Springs area and flies in a private jet to and from Las Vegas for his shows. He almost never visits his HUGE top floor suite on the Hilton tower.

Nevada Public Radio, KNPR, features food talk once a month in a segment, Eat It or Beat It. This features two local food critics that visit the same restaurant and review it. Listeners are invited to weigh in via phone calls or e-mail to add to the discussion.


Wayne Newtons show, Once Before I Go, starts tomorrow. Wayne says he will change the show up for the holidays with his own Christmas Spectacular. When asked about his voice, Wayne said in part..“Frankly, I was going through real vocal problems. I was hoarse all the time. I went to UCLA and did tests. And, on a scale of 1-10 my vocal chords were burned to 9. So, it took me about two years to get back to where I could sing and didn’t sound hoarse. It was an uphill battle, but it has been won now!