VEGAS STUFF
News of the closing of the fabulous Liberace Museum brought out lots of sadness and wonder, the place has been there for over 30 years, in a location far from the Strip, and not ideal for the locals to want to go to. I was with several locals the day after the news broke, and not one of them said that they had ever visited the place. I only visited it once, the second or third year that it opened, and never again. How can there be outrage over this announcement when not many people took the time to go there, bring out of towners, and support the thing?
The location has always been the biggest drawback, in a nondescript strip mall too many blocks away from the tourist corridor. Oh, yes, they did provide a bus to transport people, but it is next to impossible to get many tourists away from the flash and excitement of the Las Vegas Strip, that road to nowhere that so many come to walk along, throw their money at, and wonder why they are out of money when they leave it.
They have talked about moving the thing closer to the Strip, or even on the Strip, but that seems to be just words without anything behind them. Now, we have 2 – count ‘em, – TWO Mob Museums (one in the Tropicana backed by the offspring of real mafioso families, and the Mayor’s pet project downtown) yet we leave the legacy of Liberace, one of the big 3 (Elvis and Sinatra are the others) in the history of Vegas, twistin’ in the wind.
I spoke to a board member who told me they saw this coming for a while, the operating expenses are just not being covered by the revenue from ticket sales and gift shop sales, so they will eventually run out of money. So, I asked “why not partner with a hotel and move into a more accessible location?”
Not possible, he claimed. I asked why, he really didn’t know, but told me they have looked into every avenue before making the painful decision to close. I find that hard to believe.
Did anyone talk to the Las Vegas Hilton? The man headlined there for years on the same stage where Elvis roamed, and I know for a fact that the hotel has a whole lot of space that might be available for Liberace and his museum. No, they have not approached the Hilton. It’s too bad that a bunch of under-achievers are running the joint, because with a little effort, I am sure there are numerous locations where this legacy can thrive even in these tough economic times. Let’s hope someone steps forward and does the right thing here.
Summer is over, as they all say, and for us, the weather has turned into bliss, 85 to 95 ever day, light breezes, blue sky and cool nights, this is the weather we all live for, it’s like a reward for enduring all those triple digit weeks of non-stop blazing heat. It will be wonderful here now until the so-called winter, when it gets a bit colder and snow begins to appear in the surrounding mountains.
We saw V- the Ultimate Variety Show again this week, it’s the 8th year that this show has been playing here, the brain child of David Saxe who came up with the idea of putting a show together made up solely of those variety and circus-type acts that usually come on in between the lavish production numbers, and the formula works.
The acts change every few weeks, so the show stays fresh and welcomes repeat viewings. Without naming any particular act, let me say they were all great, my favorite happened to be longtime show-biz veteran Russ Merlin and his audience-involved act that has to be seen to appreciate. Okay, so I did name one act…the show plays every night, twice, and usually the place is packed. Nice job, David, happy anniversary.
MISS KITTY”S JEANS TO JEWELS
This is the highlight of the fundraising calendar for many here, as Opportunity Village gets a major financial boost every year from this Western-style party on a ranch far from the glitter of the Strip. Amid horses, bulls and bales of hay, cowboys and cowgirls mixed and mingled, some danced, others drank from the saloons and all of them ate massive amounts of fine barbecue and delightful food offerings from local area restaurants.
Spotted former rock star and current actor Rex Smith, Elvis (Johnny Thompson) and of course the Godfather of Vegas, Mark Wayman who invited all of us as his guests (he brought 2 stretch limo’s full of people!) Thanks, Mark we had a blast!
A great article on the very crazy Mike Tyson, and female impersonator and Vegas star Frank Marino graces our cover…enjoy the stories this week from Norm Johnson, Les Kincaid, Jackie Brett…here on www.vegasinsidetips.com
