Pictorial: Caesars' Octavius VIP Suite & Toilet

When I got the request last week to come to Caesars Palace to record a spot on this upcoming Saturday's Peter Greenberg Radio Program, I was sure there was some kind of mistake. The info indicated we'd be recording in the Marcus Aurelius Suite in the Octavius Tower, but I hadn't realized there was anything actually functioning in the otherwise gift-wrapped but empty building.

Turns out, there are three completed suites of about 11,500 square feet, each with a patio just slightly elevated from but overlooking Caesars' courtyard of pools. From what I was told while I was there, the company is in the process of completing six more such suites above and below the one I was in, but you can't rent them. They're only for VIPs.

So I took a bunch of photos, and you can either see them on Flickr with their titles/captions or here's a Flickr slideshow:

I did promise the Caesars peeps I wouldn't dwell too much on the toilet, which is why I put all of that above up front. But, umm, those toilets -- as regaled about by Oprah during commercial breaks during her taping in the Colosseum three years ago -- really is quite a thing. The seat pops up -- and warms up -- for you when you enter, and check out the remote control:


It's enough to make you say, "Holy crap!" Talk about solving a first-world problem.

Meanwhile, and perhaps tangentially related, I found this new sign by the valet door of the Augustus Tower, necessitated by the fact that Caesars now allows guests to bring their pooches, kind of oddly worded:


Just who is getting the relief? Your dog or all the other guests who are sick of hearing it yap? Just wondering.

Reviewing "Celine": A+

Yes, this is a bit late. I took some time off for some family stuff and just couldn't get motivated to post this until today. But I'm back now and feeling recharged. So here's the full review I did for The Daily, the iPad-only newspaper. For space reasons, they shrank it considerably. Also, you can see my 14-minute video report on YouTube or via The Strip Podcast, read other thoughts on the opening itself and view my Flickr slideshow from Opening Night. Enjoy.

Celine: A+
By STEVE FRIESS

Queen Celine was at the center of two performances in one as she reclaimed her throne as reigning Strip monarch. There was her new show in Caesars Palace’s gargantuan Colosseum, of course, and that was 90+ minutes of grandiose, eye-popping brilliance. And then there was the circus surrounding her long-awaited re-coronation which was as schmaltzy and over-the-top as you’d expect from Vegas.

You knew that going in, of course, because Caesars Palace had no intention of soft-pedaling the moment. For months, a 40-foot-tall banner of Celine peering over her shoulder overlooked the casino floor with the tag: “Celine’s Back.” Get it? Her back? She’s back? Yup.

Then, in February, she, her husband and her three sons, including those newborn twins, arrived at Caesars in an Escalade direct from the airport for a welcome ceremony in the main entrance through which she bestrode a carpet of rose petals and was cheered by 1,000 employees hoping she alone could revive this gambling town’s sagging fortunes. USA Today, Newsweek and both Las Vegas newspapers have all asked in different ways whether she could “save” Vegas.

That’s a lot to put on anybody’s svelte shoulders, let alone a pop star. But if performing a fantastic production show is all it takes to turn around the nation’s worst home foreclosure and unemployment rates, Celine absolutely would be the panacea. Her first pass at Vegas, that legendary run from 2003 to 2007 of “…A New Day” in the 4,000-seat, $95 million showroom built to her specifications, was an overblown affair of Cirque du Soleil-style theatrics, costumes, dancers and props that left her looking small and marginalized, almost part of the band.

“Celine,” by contrast, is a simpler, less sprawling tour de force in which she is firmly the centerpiece at all times in a succession of glittery gowns that occasionally showed perhaps a bit too much leg. The film that opens the act serves almost as a “And That’s What You Missed On (Vegas) Glee” segment, first showing her closing “…A New Day” on this very stage, then trotting the globe on tour, then snuggling with the twins, then arriving at the aforementioned Caesars welcome event. Finally, she appears in a floor-length silver dress with structured bodice, the 300-foot-wide stage seemingly shrunk by curtains and lighting as she begins belting Journey’s “Open Arms.” Just as the giddy audience got acclimated to being in her presence, the stage opens up in a chillingly effective reveal (that I won’t spoil) and suddenly she’s fronting three backup singers and a 31-piece orchestra. That earned the second of the night’s 10 standing ovations.

There are no dancers this time, just lots of black-tie musicians and one self-assured songbird whose powerful voice is, in all sincerity, a magical instrument that makes younger people understand why their parents were so in awe of Streisand. The graphical imagery serves her, but when the music stops so she can hit high notes in “All By Myself,” it’s like watching Evan Lysecek land a perfect jump. She bops between genres – some Ella Fitzgerald here, a little Janis Ian there, a Bond-song medley, a Stevie Wonder virtual duet, a Michael Jackson tribute and a French song that made her actually weep – leading to the inevitable “My Heart Will Go On” closer. (Aside to Celine: You’re not required to do that song with underwater visuals just because the song is tethered to “Titanic.” Just saying.)

The gee-whiz visuals also enhance the Legend of Celine. She is adored because she blossomed from gawky teen to beautiful icon while insisting she retains the heart of commoner, a happy-ending version of Evita or Diana. So in “Where Does My Heart Beat Now?” a dozen screens show her at various career stages – bad hair, odd makeup, ascendant star – and when she sings Billy Joel’s “Lullaby” we become privy to home movies of her boys’ milestones.

That’s where the schmaltz overflows. The opening-night crowd were die-hards, many from here native Canada, who devour each homespun morsel. In one odd moment, the crowd erupts when young Rene Charles is seen blowing out his birthday candles, as if he actually were doing so in person. That’s devotion.

She tells corny jokes, too, that her partisans devour. Of her 10-year-old, she cracks: “He loves baseball, football, basketball. He’s having a ball!” And even the softest bits of the show – she does “How Do You Keep The Music Playing” as a duet to herself, singing to a creepy, Princess Leia-esque hologram of her herself – yielded standing ovations.

As the show closed, an 11-year-old girl from Boca Raton, Fla., seated ahead of a row of journalists held her hands up together to make the shape of a heart, then kept attempting to frame Celine inside it. Her father turned around, pointed at a notebook and barked to the reviewers: “One word: Divine. Write that down. Deee-Vine!” Then he shouted his daughter’s name and insisted, “She’s next. This is the next Celine, right here.”

Their joy was so pure, it would have been unkind to disabuse him of his vision. But, as Caesars Palace and the Strip just found out, it’s safe to say there’s just one Celine. And, yes, she’s back.

#CelineReturns, Live! (Hopefully)

I'm going to attempt to broadcast some live scenes from my iPhone tonight via UStream before Celine Dion opens her show at Caesars Palace tonight and then stream her press conference after the show. You can watch whatever I do in the box below and/or check back between 5:30-7:30 pm PT and then again at about 10 p.m. PT if you want. Or follow me on Twitter and I believe UStream will Tweet when I begin broadcasting.

The dicey part is whether my MiFi will work at that fortified cave known as Caesars tonight. I'm sure there'll be WiFi available to reporters at the press event, but it's never clear how well that will work, either. So this could be a great big fail or totally cool. We shall see.

Streaming Video by Ustream.TV

The Show is UP: FOODIE FIGHT!

We don't do live interviews much on the Saturday show because they're a pain to arrange, but this week they sure did make the episode pop. Al Mancini and I had a really fun and respectful scrum, as had hoped, and Ric Guerrero from Slidin' Thru did something that's never happened before: He broke news in the Top Secret Tourist Tip of the Week. Anyhow, a good time was had by all, and now it's your turn. Find the show in the feeds for iTunes or Zune (that's free, fyi) or can click on the date below to get it to play or right-click on it to download it to listen at your leisure.

Dec. 5: Foodie Fight Three Ways...
...with Franck Savoy, Al Mancini & Ric Guerrero

By now everybody who listens to this program, reads Steve’s blog or enjoys eating out on the Strip must know about all the controversy kicked up over this little book that recently came out that names the 50 quote-unquote essential restaurants in Las Vegas. Steve had some issues, so on this show he’s invited co-author and food critic Al Mancini into the LVRocks.Com studio to hash it out on the air, live. Before we get to that, though, Steve interviewed Franck Savoy, the 31-year-old son of Guy Savoy who was just named director of restaurants at Caesars Palace. Savoy dishes about growing up in Paris as the son of the famed chef, what’s really happening at rumor-riddled Bradley Ogden and, of course, what his fast-food guilty pleasures are. And, in a special INTERVIEW edition of the Top Secret Tourist Tip of the Week, Ric Guerrero of Slidin Thru breaks some news.

In Banter: The mayor's Ferris wheel, Ruffin's Starbucks, Wynn's expo center, Rhumbar's kangaroos, Frank Marino's blood drive and other absurdities.

Links to Stuff Discussed:

Franck Savoy’s ascendancy at Caesars Palace
Steve’s Las Vegas Weekly column on the book “Eating Las Vegas”
The Slidin Thru website
VegasHappensHere.Com on Slidin’ Thru’s new brick-and-mortar store
VegasHappensHere.Com on the Bradley Ogden drama
Steve Wynn is engaged, per Robin Leach and Norm Clarke
Steve’s LA Times piece on the topless shows in Vegas
Vote for us for the Trippies
The Eating Las Vegas book site
Al Mancini’s blog, The Second Deadly Sin
The Rhumbar, Sea World and the kangaroo
News about Susan Anton in Menopause, Bobby Slayton at Hooters and Boys II Men at Flamingo
Singer Tommy Held’s website
Frank Marino’s blood drive and why Frank can’t give blood

What's Happening To Bradley Ogden at Caesars?

In my interview with the new director of restaurants for Caesars Palace this morning, I asked Franck Savoy about what’s happening to Bradley Ogden. This was the first significant food name at Caesars Palace proper -- distinct from Forum Shops, which Harrah’s does not own but where Wolfgang Puck began the food revolution in the early 1990s – and Ogden is extremely important for its proximity to the entrance the Colosseum. It’s a special, coveted location the likes of which really don’t exist anywhere else on the Vegas fancy-food scene.

Afterward, I Tweeted that Savoy said Ogden wasn’t going anywhere any time soon. This prompted a note from a fellow reporter who told me that this was not so, that Ogden himself has been open about his desire to depart.

So I figured I’d do something unusual and post this snippet of a transcript of that part of the interview. Think of it as a teaser, and tune in and join the chat at LVRocks.Com on Saturday from noon-2 p.m. to hear the entire Savoy conversation – yes, I ask his fast food preferences and whether Caesars will go vegan like Wynncore -- as well as a live debate between me and Eating Las Vegas co-author Al Mancini. And, to top it off, we’ll have a food-related, live interview edition of the Top Secret Tourist Tip of the Week that will delight guest host Amy to no end, I believe.

Anyhow, here's the Ogden stuff:

Savoy: I know there are a lot of rumors of Bradley Ogden closing next month or two months or even six months. This, I have to tell you, no. This is not true. Why this rumor occurred is that Bradley Ogden’s contract is over in two years and a half. Caesars Palace is of course obviously looking around right now for what we can do with Bradley Ogden. It might be again Bradley Ogden, it might be somebody else, but on today, this is December 3, I’m telling you that Bradley Ogden will continue until the end of his contract. It will be the same restaurant. It will be the same James Beard Award-winning restaurant. We’ve added a couple of steaks on the menu to make it more American-style cuisine and it’s doing very well, the restaurant.

I then asked about John Curtas' shredding critique of Bradley Ogden in late 2009.

Savoy: I have no idea why he said that. We just did a couple of changes in the food and beverage department (at Caesars Palace). First of all, we have a new VP. Obviously, we have a new director of restaurants, which is me. You have the current chef de cuisine of Bradley who became the assistant executive chef for Caesars Palace, Todd Williams. And we have a new chef at Bradley and we also have a new GM at Bradley and that was before the GM at Tableau at Wynn and before that GM at Alex at the Wynn. See, this is another reason I am telling you Bradley is not closing tomorrow because we put some very key staff in there.

So that's the official line, anyway. Maybe all of these changes were prompted by Ogden’s dissatisfaction? Time will tell. That's why we get these thing on the record.

FYI, the podcast version will post probably Sunday if you can’t make it to the live show. You can subscribe for free via iTunes or Zune. Also, you can listen live via your smart phones at LVRocks.Com, too, and don't have to join the chat to listen. It's more fun that way, though.

Vegas FINALLY Becomes Dog-Friendly

[UPDATE: I should note the Westin Casuarina and Trump Las Vegas also allow dogs, although neither have info on their policies easily found on their sites. Here's a link regarding the Trump chain's pet policies, though. Also, Loews Lake LV also does, but I don't count that as part of the Strip or "Vegas" per se. Also, nobody seems to like cats.]

As much as I hate economic downturns, I also love them for what they force Las Vegas to do. It was the recession of 2001-02 that kicked marketing towards gays, Latinos and women into high gear, and this desperate go-around they'll take absolutely, positively anyone.

Except, as Miles and I learned recently as we scouted out places for staycations, your dogs. The only place to go with Black and Jack would have been the Four Seasons, so we had someone watch our little guys and tested out the MGM Signature. (Our review and experience is at the top of this week's episode of The Strip.) It was very nice, but it would have been even nicer and more relaxing if I didn't have to worry that the animals were going to be freaked out by the strange lady who came by to walk and feed them. (Not even the Mandarin Oriental in Vegas permits pets despite the fact that, nationally, the chain is known for doing so. Surprising.)

Finally, though, Harrah's is changing all that. Starting today, Caesars Palace, Rio and the Imperial Palace have some pet-friendly accommodations. For $25 a night at Caesars and $20 a night at the Rio and IP -- extraordinarily good deals for anyone who has ever boarded an animal -- you can bring dogs under 50 pounds. They allow two per guest and you can walk your dogs through "designated common areas" on a leash.

What a terrific idea at a sensible price. And, according to the site, they even provide a mat, food and water dishes, disposable waste bags and dog treats as well as information about where the outdoor "relief areas" are and information on nearby vets and groomers.

Had Caesars had this two weeks ago, we almost certainly would have stayed there. As you can see, we are very attached.

This week's LVW col: Matt Goss v HN

Here's this week's very controversial column comparing the rollout of Matt Goss to that of Human Nature in Las Vegas. Enjoy. -sf

Mishegoss
Why Matt Goss could learn something
from Human Nature

By STEVE FRIESS

The act was big. Really big. Millions-of-records-sold big. But that was then and that was somewhere else and almost nobody knows about it in the United States, so the act landed in Vegas hoping that America’s entertainment crossroads would provide the introduction necessary for broader success.

That’s the setup, anyway. And in the past year, much to my fascination, we’ve seen that hand being played out in two dramatically different fashions on the Strip, with significantly different outcomes.

The Australian group Human Nature and British singer Matt Goss both largely started from zero in their career second acts after boy-band successes in their homelands. Both even found well-regarded names to stand up behind their incursions onto the Strip scene and a classic musical trope to emulate.

The results, however, have been starkly different. Human Nature is rounding the bases to their first anniversary at the Imperial Palace, having proven to be a rare smashing success during the city’s most challenging economic era. And Goss? He was bounced from the Palms after about five months during which he couldn’t quite fill a tiny lounge, only to relocate to Caesars Palace’s 160-seat Cleopatra’s Barge, which, again, he is not filling up without the help of casino comps.

So what does this tell us? The answer, dear readers, is in the Gossiness of it all.

What, perhaps you ask, is “Gossiness”? Well, nobody exactly knows, except that it is very likely in coming years to be an Urban Dictionary entry synonymous with an act that thinks it can burst on the Vegas scene and expect everyone to revere its awesomeness before it’s actually even bothered to prove its awesomeness.

Read the REST at LasVegasWeekly.Com

The POTUS Pad, Caesars v Bellagio

It's a little shocking to have to say this, but the digs MGM Mirage provided to President Obama at Bellagio last night were shoddy compared with what Harrah's provided him when he came for the Harry Reid fundraiser at Caesars Palace last May.

That time, he stayed in a Penthouse Villa that, to quote my own New York Daily News report, is "a 22,000- square-foot mansion complete with six bedrooms, eight bathrooms, two kitchens, two outdoor decks with waterfalls, a sauna and much, much more. One of the eight marble bathrooms with an over sized jacuzzi tub. ... The suite occupies the entire top floor of Caesars Palace on the Vegas strip. Bronze-swirled marble floors and pillars accent the Roman themed abode."

Here were some blogged photos of it from back then and Obama himself even remarked on it: "I thought I had a pretty nice room" while campaigning, "but now that I'm president, they upgraded me. I got the upgrade, and it's a really nice room now."

Here's that floor plan: For a bigger view, click here.

Last night, though, Obama stayed in the presidential suite at the Bellagio Spa Tower. To answer my own question from my 5 Questions post, Secret Service had him stay at Bellagio and not Aria because they don't like to have him stay at the same place where he's appearing.

Here's the floor plan:

Here's what the Bellagio site says about it:

"Our Presidential Suite will have you marveling at the 4,075-square-feet of contemporary ambience. Upon crossing a walkway suspended above a tranquil reflecting pool, you'll enter this magnificent estate. Enjoy your own solarium, verdant indoor garden and fountain, fireplace, and L-shaped bar. Two master bedrooms, private bathrooms with whirlpool tubs, steam showers, and a conference room further sophisticate this dynamic Las Vegas Suite.

In addition, your stay in the Presidential Suite entitles you to customized complimentary services including 24-hour butler attention, VIP seating for Cirque du Soleil's “O™,” VIP check-in and lounge access, reservation handling and premium seating for any of the fabulous MGM MIRAGE® restaurants, clubs and shows. For your personal staff, three 1,000 square-foot Entourage Suites are available on the same floor."

Don't think O went to see O™.

Bill Clinton: Vegas Headliner!?!

This must be a first, right?

Bill Clinton is giving a speech at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace. For money. For, so I'm told, himself. And they're selling it on Ticketmaster. When they go on sale on Feb. 1 -- at 10 a.m. for those who wish to set their clocks to this -- they'll cost $35, $45, $65, $100 and $150, with a VIP package that includes a meet-and-greet for $750.

Right about now I suspect endangered Sen. Harry Reid and U.S. Rep. Dina Titus are thinking, "What a waste!" Or, in Titus' case, "What a fucking waste." They surely wouldn't mind that dough for their own increasingly tenuous re-election bids. But, hey, the Big Dog needs to scare up some change to pay for Chelsea's wedding, I guess.

But has there ever, ever, ever been an ex-president who has given a publicly ticketed speech in a major Vegas showroom to profit...himself? Ever? For that matter, does he do these sorts of engagements in other places? Does Bill Clinton headline the La Jolla Playhouse?

The press release was just the weirdest thing. It treated this dude like this was any ole act playing a Vegas gig and ran down his greatest hits. The speech has a name -- "Embracing Our Common Humanity" -- by which in this case he must mean our common desire to come to Vegas and make off like a bandit.

Here's what the AEG peeps sent around:

LAS VEGAS, NV (January 29, 2010) – President Bill Clinton, Founder of the William J. Clinton Foundation and 42nd President of the United States, will speak at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace on Monday, February 22 at 7:30pm. President Clinton’s lecture is titled “Embracing our Common Humanity”.

The special evening event is presented by Caesars Palace and AEG Live. President Clinton served the United States for eight years during a time of unprecedented prosperity and change. Now, President Clinton is a powerful voice for progress around the world as he shares his unique insights and observations with audiences around the world. President Clinton’s public speeches describe the challenge of globalization, emphasize our growing interdependence, and point the way toward a common future based on shared goals and values.

William Jefferson Clinton was the first Democratic president in six decades to be elected twice – first in 1992 and then in 1996. Under his leadership, the country enjoyed the strongest economy in a generation and the longest economic expansion in U.S. history, including the creation of more than 22 million jobs. After leaving the White House, President Clinton established the William J. Clinton Foundation with the mission to strengthen the capacity of people in the United States and throughout the world to meet the challenges of global interdependence. The Foundation has staff and volunteers around the world working to improve lives through several initiatives, including the Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative (now the Clinton Health Access Initiative, a separate nonprofit organization) which is helping 2 million people living with HIV/AIDS access lifesaving drugs. Other initiatives -- including the Clinton Climate Initiative, the Clinton Hunter Development Initiative, and the Clinton Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative -- are applying a business-oriented approach worldwide to fight climate change and develop sustainable economic growth in Africa and Latin America. As a project of the Foundation, the Clinton Global Initiative brings together global leaders to devise and implement innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing issues. In the U.S., the Foundation is working to combat the alarming rise in childhood obesity through the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, and is helping individuals and families succeed and small businesses grow.

In addition his Foundation work, President Clinton has joined with former President George H.W. Bush three times – after the 2004 tsunami in South Asia, Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and Hurricane Ike in 2008 – to help raise money for recovery efforts. He also served as the U.N. Envoy for Tsunami Recovery, and was named U.N. Special Envoy to Haiti in 2009 to assist its people and government as they “build back better” from recent storm damages and implement their economic vision for the future.


Seriously? We need Bill Clinton's resume? They need to sell the world on how awesome he (thinks he) is? Funny it left out the part about being impeached, huh? I mean, he's only the second president in 150 or so years to have that distinction!

And who do they think will pay to line his pocket? I can see if this was a fundraiser for Haiti or something, maybe. But it's unfathomable that tourists will say, "Well, there's that awesome Cirque show at the Mirage, but oh, look! Bill Clinton is talking!" And locals rarely go down to the Strip on school nights.

If you're hot to see this one -- You are? Really? -- I strongly suggest you hold off on buying tickets. Or give a ring the day before to the local Democratic Party, where they'll surely be looking for seatfillers.

I wonder if he'll play the sax. I hear the acoustics in that place are awesome.

The Harrah's Firesale Sale

Isn't she cute? Tacky, but cute, right?

Got her for $1 a week or so ago and have been meaning to catch up on my blogging about this. Over the Dec. 18-20 weekend at Paris Las Vegas, Harrah's put out a ballroom's worth of goofy wares at ridiculous prices to sell off excess inventories of tchotkes just in time for holiday shoppers seeking bargains.

Didn't hear about it? No, well, neither did I until the day before it was over. A listener/reader in New Jersey alerted me to the Harrah's version of that Wynn Warehouse event I covered here in November. I even inquired with a Harrah's publicist who told me that the event was for employees and not open to the public. Which was weird because these signs...


...were all over the shopping esplanade at Paris. It was, indeed, open to the public and, in fact, there was a similar one the prior weekend at Caesars Palace. I'm told the next go-around will be in May and that Harrah's generally tries to do them twice a year. I'm really surprised they don't promote this more to the Vegas public; they'd bring in hoards of bargain-seeking locals who might just stay for dinner or a hand of blackjack, y'know?

I made it with 15 minutes to spare until the sale closed that Sunday, which explains why most people are in line to check out in these images.


There was lots of leftover World Series of Poker garb...


...and merchandise from Harrah's properties all over the United States.


(Vegas peeps who may wonder: Paula Deen has her name on the buffet at Harrah's Tunica.)

Yet the big theme at this sale seemed to be Bette Midler-branded stuff. Every item - T-shirts, hats, mugs, shotglasses -- yes, Tim & Michele, I got you one -- and Christmas ornaments going for 100 pennies.


In case you're wondering what kind of discounts were going on, this...


...is what some suckers/fans once paid for Bette Midler ornaments.

There were the odd, weird items, too, like seasonally-themed G-strings...


...and, uh, material for topiaries?


And apparently black people don't fancy these...


...for which they should be quite proud.

Anyhow, here's my loot, mainly stuff I picked up to put in the prize list for Trivia Question winners on The Strip Podcast. I spent a whopping $12 plus tax.


Oh, OK. I wanted the Kiss My Brass mug. And you just never know when Flamingo ashtrays are going to come back into style, do ya?

Your Sunday Reading Assignments

I've finally caught up on weeks of reading and found some stuff of Vegas relevance to recommend. Most is from today's paper, actually, but some is kind of old, but if you haven't seen it, it's new to you:

* Margo Bartlett Pesek's Trip of the Week column. In an otherwise worthless R-J travel section, Margo does a really nice job of offering some intriguing day-trip suggestions. This week's piece on wineries -- yes, wineries -- near Vegas was clip-and-save caliber.

* Henry Brean's really well-written piece today on the new critters they're finding in Snake Valley and how it intersects with Las Vegas' plan to suck water from northeastern Nevada via a really, really long pipe. Really cool, beautiful video, too, by John Locher.


Too bad the R-J's crack Web staff still hasn't figured out how to let people embed it.

* This piece by Adrienne Packer of the R-J about Clark County goons who busted and left carless a desolate 51-year-old woman for trying to make ends by picking people up at the airport. She had an ad on Craigslist offering to do all manner of chores and errands, including providing rides, and the Transportation Authority actually executed a sting. It's understandable that they need to make sure drivers picking up people at McCarran are licensed and not evil-doers, but when they realized this wasn't some big fake-cabbie ring but a nice, desperate lady, maybe they could've applied some common sense?

* Brendan Buhler, whose work I always have enjoyed but who handled the desperate publicity circus surrounding the Pink's Hot Dogs hilariously and then turned around and wrote sensitively and tastefully about how the new domestic partnership law would benefit a lesbian couple and their family.

* My Las Vegas Weekly colleague Rick Lax's really funny cover piece recently about trying to "live" at Town Center. Also, Dave McKee's profile of the classic French restaurant Le Pamplemousse for CityLife. Rick's was an idea I wish I'd thought of, McKee's was one I'd considered many times and never gotten around to doing.


* LVW food critic Max Jacobson has a piece in Gourmet this month listing seven places in Vegas worth their prices. I agree with many of his choices -- Raku, Simon and Lotus -- but am baffled by his praise of Beijing Noodle No. 9 at Caesars Palace. Having lived in China for two years, I'm here to tell you that food was bland. Also, the dining room is a little too kaladascopic for me.


Makes ya dizzy, no? Food's not that great, either.

10 Vegasish Questions For Monday

As you know, I collect images that are odd, funny or perplexing. So here's 10 head-scratching questions to start off your work week:

1. What "tram" is there now or ever was in the parking garage at Harrah's?


2. Did the rest of the word "Caesars" fall off of the Octavius Tower or did they just think, "Aw, screw it, we can't afford the rest of the name?"


3.What is this? It's immediately north of the Rio on the north side of Twain West. Never noticed it before.

4. Is this really fair warning of a spoiler?


5. How much money did the Steve Wyrick folks spend to put these Lord of the Dance ads all over town only to kill the show even before Mike Weatherford could review it?


6. Why is the Four Seasons allowing Baumann's Rare Books at the Palazzo to showcase its wares in its lobby?



7. Along the same lines, why is Beyonce on the cover of the summer issue of Caesars Player, a high-end glossy magazine for Harrah's high rollers, when she's playing this month at Wynncore?


8. Do you get it? Took me a couple of seconds.


9. Should I 'Friend' this man? Would he Friend me back?

10. Whose hair is more frou-frou-y?