A 70 year old man was flying his small private plane about 75 miles north of Las Vegas. He spotted a truck on a road that belonged to his 67 year old friend. He decided to "buzz" the truck, which means make a low pass close enough for the target to hear the buzz of the engine. Buzzing people is generally not legal but is not uncommon amongst pilots. The pilot got a little to close to the truck, smashed in the roof of the truck and the truck crashed. The plane made an emergency landing on a road. The pilot was uninjured. The driver of the truck was airlifted to a Las Vegas hospital.

Another 70 year old man was flying his SUV through the Edgewater valet area into the casino killing two and injuring several others. He is in deep trouble.

The LVAGA is having it's main competition on Feb 13 at Tommy Rockers. It will cost $5 to attend and be a spectator or $10 to be a participant. After the competition, there will be a concert by Tommy Rocker, himself. Tommy will also judge the competition. In case you didn't know, LVAGA stands for Las Vegas Air Guitar Association.

Now that Nevada has missed out on huge government grants for housing and missed out on a huge government grant for transportation, Harry Reid is getting record campaign contributions. Funny how that works.

The Happiest Mayor In The World is not happy with the President for discouraging trips to Las Vegas. Neither is Harry Reid or anyone in Nevada politics. Some of the things Oscar has said about Obama is that he is a very slow learner, is not welcome in his city, and an apology will not be accepted. Local Obama voters (bitter with buyers remorse?) are using that remark to label the mayor a racist. The Las Vegas Motor Speedway took the middle ground and wants Obama to be the Grand Marshall of the NASCAR race so that he can see how people across the country can come to Las Vegas and boost the economy everywhere.

New gang violence after school. A gang of 14-17 year olds are using strong arm robbery to get iPods, cell phones, and fancy footwear from school kids. The bad guys are use a shotgun during the robbery, then beat the kids, and get away in a big red Caddy.

Mens Health has a new report on the drunkest cities in America. The report is based on alcohol related deaths, DUI, and other drinking "issues". The top 3 cities are 1. Fresno 2. Reno and 3. Billings. Las Vegas came in at 11.

With the Super Bowl coming up, proposition bets are all the rage. Prop bets are those bets on occurrences other than who wins. Here are some examples...
How long will it take Carrie Underwood to sing the national anthem. O/U 1minute 42seconds. (O/U Over/Under)
Will there be a missed extra point? +1000
Color of Gatorade on winning coach. Yellow 1/1 Clear 7/5 Red 25/2
Number of time Archie Manning will be shown during the game O/U 4
Number of times CBS will show Burbon Street O/U 2
Will anyone from the Who smash a guitar? How many times will Kim Kardashian be shown? What color will Kim be wearing? First sideline reporter to appear after kick off.

Speaking of Super Bowl, the NFL has been especially tough on Las Vegas regarding use of their copyright words "Super Bowl" and not allowing Las Vegas to advertise during the game. With several major companies pulling out of the advertising this year, the NFL came to Las Vegas for help. Vegas told them to pound sand.

The Las Vegas Sun reported that the monorail has decided that it can not generate enough revenue to pay it's bills.

Bette Midler has left Caesars. Much of her band was from Santa Fe and the Fat City Horns which will begin performing together again at the Tropicana.

Thanks again, JMT, I gotta start reading the LVRJ more often as most of this is new to me.

I love the "pound salt" article.

I almost never use the RJ for a source. There was a time when it was okay. Nowadays, I find it a waste of my time. There are a lot of media that are too political and not newsworthy to me.

I collect rumors from people around town and then use online sources to verify them. I use Steve Dacri and the LVA for most of verification. And I watch local TV news a few days per week. Sometimes I'll see an article online and have to use my human resources to back them up. Those monthly classes at the Springs Preserve, and last years Clark County Centennial are/were excellent ways to expand my contacts list.

How old is Tommy rocker?
He might be one of those acts, see him before he's gone? LOL
Wasn't he at one time going to put up a condo project where his resturant stands?

I don't think Tommy is that old. I've seen him before, and now that we're talking about it, he is popular for singalongs, and that kinda leans towards the air guitar crowd.

Yes, he had big plans for a high rise. He decided that turning it into a gentleman's club was cheaper with higher rates of return. I haven't been in it since the conversion. He still does his act there. I can't vision him doing his thing in a strip club. Maybe the place is divided off.

His wife's retaurant, Black Mountain Grill, still gets pretty good reports as a pub with very good grub.

Construction of the new Neon Boneyard Park began on Monday. Located on LV Blvd in the Cultural Corridor, this section of road was recently designated a National Scenic Byway. The park will feature a big sign made up of parts of other neon signs from famous landmarks around the city. The museum will be closed during construction. The park should open in the summer of this year.

The Ritz Carlton at Lake Las Vegas will be shutting down in 3 months, due to a lack of tourists. About 350 employees will be laid off.

FAO Schwartz in the Forum Shops at Caesars, has closed down. The 3 level toy store with a huge trojan horse out front was a must see for many visitors and locals. No more.

State Of The State Address by the LoveGov. He says no new taxes, education "reform", and state employee layoffs.

The first child shooting of the year was a self inflicted shooting by the child of a Metro Police officer. The child shot himself twice and is in critical condition. Yes, twice. Once in the arm and once in the abdomen. No, I don't expect those numbers to be changed, but the officers testimony might change. His story now is that he put his kid to bed and the kid woke up and shot himself twice.

Rumor only...USAirways, operating 36 flights per day out of LAS will cut that number in half very soon.

The LVCVA reported 2009 attendance numbers which showed that convention attendance was down 23.9% Hotel occupancy was 81.5%, down 4.5%. Percentages will be skewed next year with the addition of rooms from City Center, Golden Nugget, Hard Rock and other towers. Interesting to me, total visitors was only down 3%.

Celine Dion will be returning to the Colosseum March 15, 2011 for a 3 year deal.

While LV tourism was only down 3%, Nevada gaming revenues were down 10%, and that's where we get our tax money.

Gilleys at the TI is hiring and will open in April. Phil Ruffin had Gilleys in the Frontier before it closed. Now that he owns the TI, he wants Gilleys back.

We have an ax murderer. A man hacked on two women and a baby with an ax. The baby died. As metro police closed in on the attacker, the man dropped the ax but attacked the officers with his bare hands. The tazer won that battle.

The National Grocers Association held it's Best Baggers contest at the Paris hotel this week. One lucky bagger from a grocery store won $10,000 as the winner. Winners are judge on several different catagories.

Cirque show, Nouvelle Experience once played in a tent behind the Mirage in a big yellow tent. That tent is now being used for government operation in the earthquake torn country of Haiti.

Thanks again, JMT. If I'm not mistaken, this is the 2nd time FAO closed down in that exact location. A few years back I had one of my favorite entertainment experiences there when two young and very aerobic guys performed their act on a gigantic piano keyboard ..... one of my top 10 favorite LV acts of all time.

Cultural District ??!! Is that the short stretch of LV Blvd immediately north of Charleston? I'm not familiar with any cultural activities happening there but the other night I did find myself looking for some shortcut to avoid ongoing construction and found myself on a new stretch of tarmac housing a restricted bus lane that looks like it will be very attractive once it is completed.

It appeared to me that they are installing some of those old but picturesque LV neon signs that were all over town so many years ago. And even trees - I think I saw trees too!

Is that the Cultural section of which you speak?? Was I actually on LV Blvd?

Now I did see a "boneyard" kind of place over there by Cashman field full of old LV neon signs .... but is it open for boneyard visitors?

I gotta get in there and shoot some photos! It would be sort of like visiting old time friends in a retirement home before they shipped off to deserving places.

And while we're in that area, have you ever visited that old, historical landmark where the old time Mormans first set camp? I gotta get there too.

In fact I gotta leave these casino confines, get some fresh air and take a good long look at all this outdoor stuff you so politely mention on occasion.

JMT, are you familiar with a LV location that is claimed to be the world's oldest rock? I've heard of it but it's a mystery to me.

My nephew practiced/rehearsed in that tent of which you speak before Steve Wynn approved that 'mysterious' Mystere opening a few years back.
Nice to see it's still in use.

Thanks again, JMT

Chimney Rock is supposed to be by Angel lake and is the oldest rock in Nevada.

Never heard any old rock stories. I'll post some stuff on development projects soon.

Did Nouvelle Experience go on a road tour after it left the Mirage?

Ed, where is Angel Lake? I asked that 'old rock' question because I climbed to the top of a great little hill in the Mountain's Edge community and at the very top there is a very nice observation 'platform' that overlooks the entire Las Vegas basin and beyond.

Whomever built it was kind enough to point out some of the historical highlighted areas in the basin such as "the Sata Fe Train" (could be the wrong name though), and the original train route, and the oldest rock in the USA (if I read that one right).

It directs your vision to a large 'mountain' about 30 miles away in a NE direction with a slight explanation about how old that "rock" actually is.

I gotta go back up there and read it again to be more specific. It does have a name but I forgot that too.

Just thought someone on here might be more attentive to what is written on observation platforms so I don't have to trek to the top once again.

Thanks, Ed. Maybe we are both referring to the same area.

Nouvelle Experience??!! Was that at the Mirage before Mystere? I am not familiar with that Cirque show in LV.

Yes will, I believe that was the show behind the Mirage before Mystere. I think it even said Nouvelle Experience across the top of the tent. It had yellow, blue and white stripes.

A bad guy and North Las Vegas Police officer got into a shootout on Saturday night. The officer was shot in the badge on his chest which stopped the bullet. The bad guy got away into an apartment complex. Blood stains suggest the bad guy was shot, however, since he got away, nobody is sure. There is no description of the bad guy.

The President who recently told you not to spend your childs college funds going to Las Vegas, just spent your childs college funds going to Las Vegas. From hours before he arrived, through the night, until he left the following afternoon, only airlines were allowed to be in the sky. Hundreds and hundreds of tour flights were cancelled. Businesses could not bring in employees on biz jets. Not even media helicopters were allowed to report on news or traffic. Thanks Obama. Once again, you've cost our local economy millions of dollars just to give props to Harry Reid.

The McCarran Airport officials are asking county commissioners for approval to set up a liquor store in the baggage claim area.

Casino Monte Lago at Lake Las Vegas will close next month due to lack of tourism.

Wayne Newton is behind on his home loan and is facing foreclosure.

Henderson police do an investigation on yet another child porn pervert. Turns out he used to work for Metro. When they arrive to find illegal porn on his computer, they find the guy installing Metro police lights and radios in his personal vehicle. Upon further review, they find lots of light bars, radios, sirens, and ammo that belonged to Metro. They also find two other current Metro employees with thousands of pieces of said contraband.

Drunk driver on Flamingo near the Gold Coast driving a pick up truck. Truck hits a car, then rear ends another car. Angry driver of second car jumps in truck and shuts it off and takes the keys. Drunk takes off running and is struck by another car going about 45mph.

<<<Drunk driver on Flamingo near the Gold Coast driving a pick up truck. Truck hits a car, then rear ends another car. Angry driver of second car jumps in truck and shuts it off and takes the keys. Drunk takes off running and is struck by another car going about 45mph.>>>
SWEET!

See, sometimes life is fair!

Movers at Wayne Newton's today. I was sorry to hear that.
I think most cities have air restrictions when the President, whoever it is, is in town. I remember that it was the same in Boise, ID when Reagan was there, and, dating myself, also with restricted air space when we lived in Atlanta.

Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin became the 43rd and 44th stars to get a star on the Las Vegas Walk Of Fame. This means their sponsors have given the company $20,000 each for a star on the sidewalks of Las Vegas Blvd. These two stars will be near the Flamingo. Frank Marino gets his second star this month because his "sponsor" popped another 20 grand.

No more late night bail from jail. Clark County will close down it's midnight shift for quick bail for late night offenders. It will be closed from midnight until 8am.

Plane crash in Reno. A small private plane ran out of gas and crashed on a Reno freeway. The pilot was the deputy chief of the Reno Fire Department.

365 bicycle vs motor vehicle accidents occurred in Las Vegas in 2009. Apparently cyclist and drivers are out to keep the pace this year.

Peep Show at the P-Ho which went dark for a month, then two, then more, is now pushed back until late April, when some say it will get pushed back again. The star of the show, Holly Maddison, is still busy sticking her mug in front of every camera that will shoot her. She even claims that she wants to run for mayor.

Hawaiian Tropic Zone at the Miracle Mile has closed.


Several moving trucks and Clark County officials showed up with paperwork at Wayne Newton's house to collect items from Wayne's property as the result of a lawsuit filed by an ex pilot of Wayne. They were not let into the property, so the papers go back to the court as unexecuted. Bruton Smith, who owns several NASCAR tracks, says Wayne owes him about 3 million dollars and wants Wayne's property seized so that he can collect. To add to Wayne's woes, his daughter is facing severe medical problems following the birth her first son. Mom and son are not doing well.

It's NASCAR weekend in Las Vegas. The 18 wheelers that carry the cars paraded down the strip on Thursday night. It was really cool, it was a lot of fun, but it was horrible conditions for taking pictures. Rain is expected for the Nationwide series race (the Danica 300) on Saturday. Sunday's Sprint Cup race looks to have much better weather.

365 bicycle vs motor vehicle accidents! Glad I only walk in vegas.

Black Gaming which owns the Casablanca and Oasis casinos in Mesquite has filed Ch 11 bankruptcy.

NASCAR came and went pretty smooth, and that's a good thing.

The child of a Metro employee that shot himself twice last month survived the wounds. Both parents are being charged for their stupidity.

The Donny and Marie show has been dark all week after Marie's 18 year old son took a death leap from his LA apartment.

The Congo Room at the Sahara has closed which makes that upstairs area past the Nascar area vacant. The buffet was there and it is closed too. The two shows that were in the room have been moved to the main showroom. The Rat Pack show is now a 5pm show. The Comedy Shop is in the Sahara Theater now too.

The bankrupt monorail has raised it rates again. That should fix things.

Dirk Authur will close his magic show at the Trop no later than Mar 12. It might be closed now. The Tropicana has been doing a lot of renovations. Perhaps this is a move to make room for something better.

Thanks again, JMT. DO you think that there is any possibility that one or more of the Strip Casinos may close up temporarily if this 'recession' continues through the present year?

And if you feel that could happen, which three Strip casinos would be first to close up shop?

Donny & Marie, what happened to the show must go on, attitude?

As for the Mono-Rail, good. I vowed not to ride it again untill it's $20 a ride. Everyone knows raising the price will make it more popular & chic.

The Cloud 9 Balloon experience across the street from the Mandalay Bay experienced severe turbulence as the balloon and the basket bounced around violently in different directions on Saturday. About 5 seconds of that ride was caught on tape and it looked pretty scary. The local media interviewed a kid known as their "chief pilot" who said everything worked fine and his passengers got a real experience. He also that said that a building inspector would come out on Sunday to inspect the ropes, the cables, and the basket. One person was taken to the hospital with minor injuries. Everyone else was shaken AND stirred. The building inspector found some bent tubes from the hard landing. Replacements must be flown in from France and installed before it can carry passengers again. It could be a while.

Andrew Kwasniewski was found dead in his Las Vegas mansion this morning. It seems he shot himself. Andrew was the head cheese at the Hard Rock resort here.

Boxing great Floyd Mayweather Jr was involved in an argument at a skating rink several months ago where someone sent him a text message wishing he would lose an upcoming match. Floyd left as his handlers tried to settle the argument with gunfire. The shooter was arrested in Chicago this week and transfered back to Las Vegas and made bail before police got to interrogate him.

Rory Reid, the son of Harry Reid, has filed paperwork to run for governor of Nevada. So did the current Luv Gov. We need a political overhaul.

Traces of snow here just a week or so from springtime, but temps are heading up fast. REAL FAST. Check our forecast.

Bellagio's conservatory has removed it's Chinese New Year decorations and is converting to a spring theme.

The Donny and Marie show was back on stage in a very sentimental comeback the day after Marie burled her son. They were doing what they do best, or at least second best, singing and performing on stage. Some claim what they do best is in Genesis 1:28 where it says be fruitful and multiply.

The world famous Earth Hour is coming up on March 27 at 8:30pm local time. I'll be at work. I wonder what airport lights will be turned off. <vbg>

It's been 6 weeks since Bette Midler walked away from the Colosseum, saw her shadow, and declared 6 more weeks of winter. In preparation for a long hard summer, gunfire is erupting all over town. Nothing you wont find in your home town, but it covers the full spectrum such as shooting strangers, shooting self, pistol whipping girlfriend then shoot her in the face, shooting at cops, etc. It's gonna be a busy summer.

The on again, off again, on again, off again, Peepshow at the P-Ho is on again. Wait 'till Harrah's finds out! They are already trying to shut down the nightclub Prive again.

Silk Road at Vdara has cut back hours and now serves only breakfast and lunch. Sage at Aria is cutting back too and will be closed on Sundays.

Nevada ranked 50th out of 50 in per capita federal funding.

Scarlett, the 21 year old First Lady of Magic, who had a long term relationship with her 67 year old manager who was married to another woman is being sued by said manager. Scarlett and the manager got into a domestic dispute and Scarlett was arrested, but they continued their relationship. Now the manager and his wife are claiming breach of contract against Scarlett for repeated physical abuse and financial improprieties. They say Scarlett forged the wife's name to take cars, money, and other assets from her. It is a very long and drawn out story fit for a movie if one of them dies. Then the sequel will be in place when the remaining parties battle for possessions. So far, everyone is alive.

Basic Food Flavors in Las Vegas has voluntarily shut down after admitting that they produced Pringles and other chips knowing that their equipment tested positive for salmonella, and were forced to initiate a recall.

More bad news for Lake Las Vegas. An orange algae has broken out that has killed over 1000 fish. If you've ever seen the lake, 1000 fish is a significant percentage. More fish will die as the algae continues to run it course and die out. Officials say there is no treatment and they must wait it out.

Mayor Oscar wants to balance the budget by firing all City employees and rehiring them under his terms. The mayor is not happy that the city unions do not want to negotiate an 8% pay cut.

The chief constable in Boulder City is in deep trouble again. A couple of weeks ago, he was arrested for driving drunk. Now he is facing many more charges with some being felonies. It seems he had a girlfriend that he ordained as an assistant constable. He gave her some guns. Since then, the two have broken up and he has been burglarizing her house, stealing a computer, some guns, and other items. This story might not be over.

The first case of the year in this town for parents murdering their own kids happened this week.

I love these posts! Thanks JMT for posting them and I look forward to many more.