Wayne's return not a danke deal
On this, Harrah’s executive Don Marrandino and I can agree: Wayne Newton is “a heavy cat.” That’s how Marrandino so adroitly describes the Wayner, using the flattering term of heavy, even though Newton’s weight is an up-and-down issue (he’s pretty slim these days; check out the photo spread of him in the new issue of Las Vegas Life magazine for evidence).
Rather, the Wayner is heavy in the metaphysical sense. He carries the institutional weight and power shared only by living legends.
And on this, we can also agree: Wayne Newton needs to return to something close to full health if he’s to return to active duty onstage, at Harrah’s or anywhere else. Of course, the Wayner is not there. I wrote the above-mentioned story about Newton for the current issue of LVL and interviewed Newton on November 5, when he was still attempting to recover from a condition he described as pneumonia, which of course now is being reported as a viral infection of the heart. At that point Newton had already backed out of six one-nighters in Canada and New York state. During our 90-minute chat he was clearly suffering after his exhaustive stint on Dancing With the Stars, where the judges probably did him a favor by bouncing him in the third week, given his labored performances and advancing health problems. In that interview he spoke in detail of his chronic asthma, recurring bouts with pneumonia and that he felt particularly weakened from the experience.
Even so, Newton was expecting to fulfill the remainder of his contract with Harrah’s Entertainment and close the year in the Harrah’s showroom. What Marrandino was not aware of -- and what few people outside of Newton’s family and physicians knew about – was the extent of Newton’s physical problems. He was scheduled to open at Harrah’s on Thursday, November 15. According to Marrandino’s recollection, Newton called him on Wednesday, November 14 (by which time Newton’s decision to cancel had already been reported by Alicia Jacobs on KVBC Channel 3 and by Norm Clarke in the R-J). “We had the advertising up, the equipment moved in, rooms booked, expecting a six-week run,” Marrandino said earlier this week in a phone interview. “But you gotta believe him when he says his heart isn’t well.” When asked if he would rather have heard about the severity of Newton’s health issues earlier – say, before the stage equipment was being hauled into the theater – Marrandino said, “Absolutely.”
Marrandino also noted that, “Wayne is a friend of all of ours. He’s a legend.” But the resort exec has a tough call to make. Newton has not signed a contract to perform at Harrah’s (or the Flamingo, which Marrandino also operates) next year. Marrandino says he makes these determinations the same way a football coach determines who does and doesn’t take the field. “You assess the person’s performance, you look at performances and judge from those, but honestly, we’ve been in damage-control mode ever since this happened.”
With no performances to go on.
I don’t mind allowing that I am concerned about the Wayner. I have been close to him and his family for nearly 10 years. I hear a lot of stuff about Wayne, good and bad, people talking about him in the same way they spoke of Sinatra and his powerful personality. But the Wayner has always treated me well and we’ve had some great interviews, great moments, over the years.
The other day a person who has known Newton far longer than I have spoke of watching Newton struggle, his chest heaving, during an appearance on Dancing With the Stars. This person said it was clear Wayne was not healthy and was attempting to will his way through the performance. By the end, this person was crying.
Heavy.
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The N-word lives on, at least in the world of stand-up comedy, where it is owned by black comics. I took in Def Comedy Jam and Chris Rock’s show at the Comedy Festival over the weekend, and every comic who performed used the term freely and unapologetically. As Rock said, “We gonna say (N-word) whenever we want. Y’all have enough advantages over us. Tell ya what, we’ll trade ya the ability to scream (N-word) for the ability to control interest rates, any day!” He also said, “When I heard they was trying to ban (N-word), I bought me 800 shares of ‘coon’! I was going to get me some ‘jigaboo,’ too, but they was all snapped up!”
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Another comedic moment: During Rock’s performance (which was outstanding, loaded with fresh material), I had my tape recorder confiscated by a crack member of the Colosseum usher staff. This is an actual microcassette recorder I use to tape interviews and events (such as comedy shows) so I properly quote the subject of my story. I neglected to read, retain or even understand the sign out front that informs the public that recording devices are not allowed. That goes for reporters using such devices as part of their jobs, but evidently doesn’t apply to the scores of handhelds in the showroom that are also equipped to record. It’s a ridiculous rule, but I’m a pro. I’ll get over it (huff-huff).
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Loosely constructed observations from the opening gala of Planet Hollywood on Saturday night: Though it is about two years later than originally announced, the hotel’s renovation is a vast improvement from the old Aladdin. It’s a classier look, with an interior design similar to Red Rock Resort (we must really like chandeliers in this city) and a lot easier to move through the casino floor … Barbra Streisand didn’t break a sweat but didn’t have to; she sounded good but did complain of a cold. Was she actually paid $2.5 million for 30 minutes? Did I hear that right? … Later, at the ballroom party attended by, oh, a couple thousand VIPS, Earth Wind & Fire kept the night moving and many revelers didn’t tumble home until sunrise … Gene Simmons ran into me. Really, near the dessert buffet. Slammed right into my back and said, “Oh, excuse me.” Yeah, watch it, smart guy … There is a difference in how Planet Hollywood Chief Robert Earl and Palms owner George Maloof behave around celebrities. Earl is positively giddy; Maloof is aloof. Whatever works … You know a good way to upgrade your seats at a Streisand show? Start dancing! That’s what my pal and colleague Elizabeth Foyt and her date, Neal Carmona, did during, “The Way We Were.” The couple were seated far off stage right, closer to the back row than the front, when an usher spotted them swaying to the classic number and led them up front ... I’ve heard that Jon Stewart’s performance at the Theatre for the Performing Arts was flat and uninspired, in part because the audience didn’t appreciate his left-leaning material. The next night, opening for Streisand, Kevin Pollack played to an indifferent audience with middle-of-the-fairway jokes. His spot-on Christopher Walken and Alan Arkin impressions failed to move the meter in a theater and event not built for comics, lefty or otherwise.
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The Patriots are favored by 23 ½ points, at home, Sunday over the Eagles. It is not quite the highest point spread in history. In 1976 the defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers were 24-point favorites over the expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as MGM Mirage Race and Sports Book Director Robert Walker tells Sports Illustrated. The Steelers won that game, 42-0.
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Vegas moment: One of these over-inflated, supplement-enhanced bodybuilders at the Juice Bar counter asks, “Can I get a little monkey?” He was trying to order an energy shake called Going Ape, amid snickers and a response from the young woman at the counter, “I don’t know. Can you?”
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Peter Max will appear at the Art of Peter Max Gallery at the Forum Shops at Caesars on Friday at 5 p.m. to unveil his new 6-foot-tall portrait of the Statue of Liberty. Max, never lacking for exposure, painted the cover of Newsweek’s ode to 1968 a couple of weeks ago.
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Another note about Newsweek: Vegas received a sideways arrow in its Conventional Wisdom Watch feature after last week's Democratic debate, saying, "Good news: Sin City hosts Dems debate. Bad news: What happened there didn't stay there." The really bad news is TWO trite Vegas terms in a single item. Down arrow for you!
In security: During a recent visit to the World Market Center for an installment of Johnny on the Spot, me and able-bodied videographer Sean Hellwig were led by WMC spokesman Andrew Maiden to the 15th floor of Building C. That’s one off the top, and where Ashley Furniture rents the entire floor. So Sean started recording what those of us in the video-news-entertainment industry call “B-roll” of the vast Ashley showroom when a guy carrying either a handgun or tape measure ordered him to stop. That’s because, at the highest level of the furniture industry, it’s not uncommon for rival companies to steal designs by shooting couches and such.
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PL8 in my head: YEAIML8 on a silver Mercedes Benz CLK 320.
Fabulous Las Vegas appears at this Web site. John Katsilometes, who also hosts Our Metropolis, a weekly issues and affairs show, each Tuesday at 6 p.m. on KUNV 91.5-FM, can be reached at 990-7720, 812-9812 or at [email protected].