The Most Beautiful People in Las Vegas

What is beauty? Who knows? We're not concerned with such ephemeral questions here; instead, we've used our highly scientific (read: not scientific at all) process to pick out 15 of the most inscrutably yet indisputably beautiful people in our city, from athletes to activists, musicians to models. They're not all your typical pin-ups, although some are. They weren't picked by a popular vote, although many are popular. We wouldn't presume to define the concept, but it's fair to say that these people represent what we think about when we think about beauty.

Harry Morton


Son of Hard Rock Hotel owner Peter Morton; vice president of development for Hard Rock Hotel; president of Pink Taco

At 25, he's young, he's rich, he cavorts with celebrities and he's in the process of franchising his restaurant named after a part of the female anatomy: Harry Morton clearly has it all. A quick online search turns up pictures of him with the likes of Tara Reid, Paris Hilton and Christina Milian, posing on red carpets and at swank parties, and he looks right at home alongside the hot young starlets. Publicist Alissa Kelly gushes: "He has gorgeous hair, a great smile, his laugh is infectious and when you're around him you feel like you are in the presence of a rock star." Plus we hear he can get you a killer room rate.

Tito Ortiz


Ultimate Fighter

We typically regard beauty as a fragile quality, delicate—needing protection. But get a load of Tito Ortiz. That jawline; those guns. He is an argument for an entirely different notion of beauty (don't snicker, kids; we mean beauty in an objective, non-gender way, a term for something that is, in purely graphic terms, pleasing to the eye), a kind of beauty that can take care of itself—definitely a kind of beauty that doesn't take shit from people who snicker at a tough guy being called beautiful. Ortiz is good-looking with an edge of menace, no question, but dig that endearing smile, that playful pose. Lets you know that although he's 14-4 in the demanding, brutal sport of mixed martial arts, the Huntington Beach Bad Boy's got a fun side. He's a velvet fist in an iron glove. Beautiful!

Jack Lafleur


Head of promotions for Body English, Rehab master and DJ

From Jack's female MySpace friends: "... an all-around humble guy and a people person. Good looks and brains make him hot!" "He's ruggedly handsome and has an amazing personality." "... his poise, intelligence, ambition, wit and humor ... the best catch in town!" "Both pleasant to the eye and a warm person." "He will help anyone out, which is rare in a 'me' kind of city. And it doesn't hurt he has the best eight-pack anywhere." "He's super humble for as hot as he is. I love his carefree approach to everything." "What makes him beautiful is that he's got all of the friendliness, the brains AND the looks!"

Monica White

2004 Maxim Hometown Hottie; co-owner of VegasPassport.com

What can you say about a devastating blonde who's likely Vegas' best-looking real-estate agent, a finalist model for the world's most successful men's magazine and co-owner of a successful VIP company; who's also a kind, genuine person; smart as a whip wielded by a Rhodes scholar; and a terrific mom—as evidenced by her son who, in 10 years or so, will likely make this list, too. Guess we just said it.

Jenn Neal (a.k.a. Jenn O. Cide)


Local Scenester

Jenn Neal, known to most of Las Vegas and the world as Jenn O. Cide, can be—at first sight —both intimidating and intriguing.

Though the 26-year-old fire-breathing Vegas native is tough enough to take on just about anyone, within her swaggering exterior is a huge heart of gold.

It's this dichotomy that has made her a photogenic underground icon. Neal has appeared on the cover of Las Vegas CityLife pointing a gun at the camera and on the pages of Tattoo Savage showing off her body modification. She refers to herself as an "Amazon"—honest, hopeful hazel eyes and an easy smile peering from the dyed-and-inked persona that Neal created for herself. A towering beauty.

Jerry Misko


Artist, co-owner of Dust Gallery

"Braces." "Scrawny." "Bad hair." This is 33-year-old Jerry Misko describing the 17-year-old Jerry Misko,

a dweeby high-schooler who would be agog that his older self had sufficiently outgrown his youthful gawkiness to land on a list like this. "I guess I'm a late-bloomer," says Misko, who hopes you don't find him vain for agreeing to talk about being handsome. "It's definitely a weird thing to talk about. I try to look nice, to dress well ..." As his voice trails off into a slightly embarrassed chuckle, let's note that, as an artist, Misko is known for paintings that zero in on details of Vegas' neon signs—that try, in other words, to hint at larger meanings by dwelling on surface details. So, really, he's okay with the surfacey nature of being singled out for his good looks.

Jada Fire


Versatile Entertainer (
www.jadafire.com)

Take a stomach flat enough to surf on, the thighs of a sprinter, calves of ballerina legs, a Cover Girl face and that illuminative seduction and what do you get? Jada Fire, that's what. Dressed up in her performance duds, she could be at home in a Moroccan restaurant or in a Cirque production. Her official titles are "talented artist, entertaining dancer and a spiritual yoga instructor." Her unofficial title should be Body Beautiful.

She's well-traveled: earned an art degree in Australia and has studied in New Zealand. Talented: adept at painting, yoga, statue-miming, body-painting and West African and Caribbean dance styles, Polynesian fire-dancing, belly dancing, burlesque pole dancing. Tough as nails: healed well after falling off a trapeze.

Nina Radetich


Channel 3 newscaster

Ugly news, pretty face.

The former goes down easier coming from the latter. It's a basic mantra of television news. If the face belongs to a solid journalist, that's a two-for-one gift, and KVBC Channel 3's 5 and 11 p.m. co-anchor, Nina Radetich, scores on both counts. Blessed with striking but not overpowering good looks framed by shoulder-length jet-black locks, she defies the vapid-bimbo syndrome for which TV news is often justly criticized, marrying attractiveness to intelligence. Though the ranks of Vegas TV news folks are riddled with hotties whose appearances seem to override their seriousness, Radetich radiates with the passion of a news professional—and that alone is beautiful, even before she hits the makeup chair.

Christina Trainor

Tryst VIP waitress, ex-TV star

An exotic blend of Korean and German, Christina went from being a cocktail waitress at the Foundation Room to being one of the stars of MTV's Real World Paris to being a cocktail waitress at Tryst. Now, some folks might see that as a failure to grab the brass ring of fame, but spend a few minutes with this tall beauty and you'll soon realize that appearing on a hit TV show means less to her than working on her GPA at UNLV, where she's studying to be a physician's assistant, and spending time with her friends and loved ones. Indeed, in a city awash with feminine beauty, it's Christina's goofy, down-to-earth qualities that put her a step above.

Cordell Stokes


Political Activist

Check the ancestry: Dad (Carl Stokes) was the first black mayor of a major city, Cleveland, and uncle (Louis Stokes), a former Ohio congressman.

Check the résumé: Programs administrator for workforce development programs at Nevada Partners (2002-2005); consultant for National Aeronautics and Space Administration (1998-2003)—ensured that NASA contracted with small and minority businesses.

Check the civic activism: Chief operating officer for Women Innovating New Growth Strategies (W.I.N.G.S Inc), a private and federally funded agency; also oversees the agency's homeless and HIV/AIDS programming.

Check the political activism: Full-time liaison to the state Democratic Party during the 2004 elections; served on Sen. John Kerry's Nevada slate; helped found the influential Caucus of African-American Nevadans; currently a political advisor to Dina Titus' gubernatorial campaign.

Check the humility: "I am now seeing the true benefits of what my deceased father, former Mayor Carl B. Stokes, and uncle, former congressman Louis Stokes [taught me, which] is that service on behalf of people is the greatest gift to mankind than anyone can give."

Check the looks, charisma, cool: The caramel complexion and build of an NBA small forward, full-figured bordering on buff. Stokes' voice is hepcat cool, and he has an everything-is-going-to-be-all-right demeanor, allowing him to take his comfort zone everywhere, from shooting pool in the 'hood to corresponding with folks like GOP kingpin Karl Rove.

Elizabeth Blau


Restaurateur

Elegant and smart, Ms. Blau is a powerhouse on the Strip with perfect cheekbones. The business savvy behind restaurants from Simon Kitchen in the Hard Rock to those in MGM, Bellagio and Wynn, Blau has been called a "restaurant industry maverick." She's a Georgetown and Cornell graduate who now runs her own restaurant consultation firm (Blau and Associates). Of her reputation as trail-blazer, Blau tells Restaurant Hospitality: "It's about passion—that's what drives me, that's what drives our associates. It's about refusing to compromise." A classic beauty.

Carey Hart

Motocross champion; owner, Hart & Huntington Tattoo Company

From the comments section on gossip website PerezHilton.com, after the announcement of Hart's marriage to pop singer Pink:

"im so bummed. hes is WAYYYYYY to hot for her." ... "I'm so jealous he is the hottest guy out there. so down to earth and sexy." ... "He is so0o0o hotttt." ... "He is far too pretty to be ruining his body with all those tattoos."... "Wish they would make a honeymoon tape that would 'accidently' get stolen. That would be sooo HOT!" ..."I'd cut off my right leg to shake Carey Hart's hand... "Carey is a gorgeous man."

Dario Herrera


Former Clark County Commissioner, present-day convict

Tall, dark and corrupt. Full-lipped and straight-nosed, with a strong chin and glamour-puss eyes, this tragic figure is still pleasant to look at even on his way out of court and into prison. You can't help but think, as you look at photos of Dario Herrera (hell, even the name is plucked from a romance novel), Too bad he picked politics and not, say, working on Heidi Fleiss' stud farm. He'll be popular behind bars.

Franky Perez


Local singer-songwriter

"I'm lucky to shower every other day," Perez laughs when told he's been designated a beautiful person. But his rugged and soulful looks, coupled with his honest, confessional songwriting, afford Perez his fair share of admirers.

He's a jeans-and-T-shirt kind of guy, but he admits to at least one moment of vanity, back when he was signed to Lava Records. "On my video shoot, I had three makeup artists," he says. "From the beginning of the day, I was being too macho, like, 'I don't need a makeup artist.' But eight hours into it, I'm going, 'I need makeup. I'm a little shiny.'"

Kate Bennett


Writer, former broadcaster

Eeeeeeasy on the ol' ocular instrumentation, she is.

It was difficult to detect in the smudgy, black-and-white photo that adorned the top of her gossip column at the Las Vegas Sun for several years—and impossible in the picture-less Tattle column she penned for this publication.

But cover-gal Kate Bennett (formerly Maddox), who spent years covering the beautiful people, is a full-fledged member of the club, which became obvious to all of Las Vegas when she segued to TV as news anchor of KTUD Channel 25's (Cable 14) nightly newscast and as entertainment reporter for KLAS Channel 8.

What's so intoxicating is the softness of her beauty that never overwhelms but gently beckons. Overt sensuality, making a grand spectacle of her looks—posing, if you will—is not her thing.

"Since I left TV about a year ago when my daughter Tess (13 months) was born, I've enjoyed not having to shellack my face with makeup every day. The words 'let myself go' come to mind. A 'beauty' moment for me of late is running a brush through my hair because I'm classing it up for a trip to Whole Foods."

Marriage and motherhood have obviously sparked an inner glow that only brightens her outer radiance.