STINKIER for 194!!!

Check it out. STINKIER for 194 on Scrabble thanks to landing a bingo on two triple-word scores in one move AND having the K (a 5-pt letter) on the double-letter score. That K alone is worth 60 points.

Yes, this is what I do when I'm sick. This opponent was pretty annoyed by losing 545-333 and challenged me again. In that round, I got a bingo with ZENITHS for 97 points and won 402-247.

I play, as I've said before, on the game through the Internet Scrabble Club.

Monte Carlo to reopen Feb 15

I'm sick today -- very uncomfortable -- but I woke from my afternoon sleep and found this in my email box just a couple minutes ago. Three things of interest below:

* Nothing like a profitable holiday weekend to get them moving, huh? Although they are missing Chinese New Year. Whatever.
* Apparently they've taken advantage of the misfortune (and insurance money?) to do more extensive remodeling of those 500 upper rooms. Smart.
* Not sure why they'd delay opening the buffet and brew pub if they're opening 2,500 rooms. Weird.

MONTE CARLO HOTEL TO REOPEN FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15

Round-the-Clock Effort Will Have Hotel Ready

To Welcome Customers for Presidents’ Day Weekend

Las Vegas, February 8, 2008 -- MGM MIRAGE (NYSE: MGM) announced today that the Monte Carlo Hotel will reopen its doors for customers on Friday, February 15.

Monte Carlo President and COO Anton Nikodemus announced the news, saying, “After what can only be described as an incredible effort by the best team of employees and contractors in the business, the Monte Carlo family will be in place February 15 to welcome guests for Presidents’ Day weekend.”

Monte Carlo plans to open with no fewer than 1,200 guest rooms available and management anticipates an additional 1,300 rooms will become available by February 22. The remaining 500 rooms in Monte Carlo’s normal 3,000-room inventory are located on the upper floors and will remain out of service while undergoing more extensive redesign.

The majority of guest services will open on February 15, including the Monte Carlo Casino, meeting and convention facilities, the wedding chapel and the Spa & Salon Monte Carlo. All food and beverage outlets will open on the 15^th, with the exception of the buffet and the Monte Carlo Brew Pub, which will open as business demands, but no later than the 22^nd. Most retail outlets will open February 15, with all opening no later than the 22^nd.

Master Magician Lance Burton will resume his long-running show February 15, in the 1,200-seat Lance Burton Theater.

Remediation work continues both inside and outside the hotel, which was evacuated and temporarily closed January 25, after a fire damaged portions of the building’s exterior façade. Clark County firefighters, supported by emergency personnel from around the valley, quickly extinguished the blaze. Fire suppression efforts caused water damage to a number of guest rooms and suites.

Approximately 5,000 guests and 1,000 employees were safely evacuated from the hotel with no serious injuries. Preliminary results of the Clark County Fire Department’s investigation have determined that welding activity on the hotel roof started the fire. A total damage figure has not yet been determined.

“Monte Carlo President Anton Nikodemus and the entire Monte Carlo team are to be commended for their tireless efforts,” said Bobby Baldwin, President and CEO of CityCenter and Chief Design and Construction Officer for MGM MIRAGE. “Without the leadership, dedication and perseverance of these individuals, along with the professional support of the entire MGM MIRAGE family, this rapid turnaround would not have been possible. This accomplishment is no less than a testament to their commitment – both to our customers and to one another. ”

Getting Scooped Right And Left

Kudos to Mike Weatherford for breaking the big story about Roseanne Barr setting up as a headliner at the Sahara in today's Review-Journal. It woulda been nice if that lovely Sahara PR contact who was so helpful about the really expensive, unlisted suites at the property had clued me in, but -- as I text-messaged back to a friend today -- you can't win 'em all.

Which, of course, brings us to Cher. Yes, I've known for at least two weeks now that the big Cher reveal was coming today. But I've got something really cool going on with the Bette show that I can't talk about yet, so I didn't see the point of jumping the gun and pissing someone off (as I did by beating everyone to the Bette punch way back when) on a story (Cher) that everyone knew was coming forEVER. Heck, even the press release today acknowledged that it was hardly news with this opening line:

The legendary Cher today confirmed a long-lived rumor that she will headline in Las Vegas at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace beginning May 6.

Robin Leach has some terrific coverage of the Cher announcement on his blog, but I am baffled by his exuberant claim that: "Ticket sales immediately caused a buying frenzy when they went on sale this morning at 7 a.m. (THURS)—some 100-minutes before her West Coast breakfast-time announcement on ABC-TV’s Good Morning America program. Some buyers were backed up waiting on the Internet as long as 30-minutes. As an unabashed fan, I snagged my four ducats by 7:05 a.m. for the front-level orchestra on her premiere night!"

To me, that all defies logic for Vegas, where there really is no such thing as a genuine blitz on tickets for a show that will be on about 100 times a year for three years, especially when people have to consult not only Ticketmaster but their travel agents before buying. To confirm my suspicion, I just went to the Caesars website for the show and was able to buy (though I did not) sixth-row-center seats for opening night. So maybe GMA produced a bunch of traffic that slowed the site, but so far as I can tell there are no sellouts to speak of.

All that said, I've no doubt Cher will do great business. Look at those costumes! They're ALL Vegas. And, more importantly, is there any question with a lineup of Cher, Bette and Elton John that the Colosseum is officially the gay Radio City Musical Hall?

New Live Show TONIGHT - with Wolfgang Puck!

Thanks for all your patience! We'll be back in the saddle tonight at 7 pm PT with a fresh episode of "The Strip" featuring my chat with WOLFGANG PUCK as well as the interview I did a few weeks ago with Frankie Avalon. Yes, it's a SUPERSIZED episode of "The Strip," so pull up a chair, grab a drink (to chug when Miles cusses) and listen LIVE at LVROCKS.COM.

Or, be that way and wait for the podcast which, because you're all so nice, will be posted on Wednesday this week instead of Thursday to make up for being away. Aren't we great?