by Norm Johnson Send Me E-mail

A few years ago this writer attended a Rich Little Show at the old Sahara Hotel. At the time Rich had a few other impressionists working with him. One of those was a young Canadian named Gordie Brown. I remember he impressed me at the time and I thought he was destined to become a star. Gordie reminded me the other evening, after his show at the Golden Nugget, that I had mentioned in my review of the show, that he shouldn't wear "Jeans" on stage. "You know you were right... and I haven't worn them on stage since," he said

Brown is not your normal impressionist. He is not a clone of say a Rich, a Babe Pier, Fred Travalena or even a Frank Gorshin. To begin with he's a wonderful stand-up comic and utilizes this ability throughout his 80 minute show. Where most impressionists rely on jokes made famous by the person they are doing, or by facial impressions or significant musical numbers pertaining to a certain celebrity, Gordie does all that and more. He creates his own jokes to go with the character.

As an example throughout the show at the Nugget Brown must do at least 40 to 50 voices, some real quick others might include a song or a lengthy impression like Henry Fonda and Katherine Hepburn in the movie "On Golden Pond." The opening number sets the mood for the entire show when he comes out in front of the seven-piece band and does a Neil Diamond medley, with a few little jokes tossed in. You know immediately you're going to have fun tonight.

Gordie goes from Diamond to a funny Randy Travis to an even funnier Willie Nelson and Julio Iglesias (which by the way just about everyone does), but he ends it with a really quick impression of Dustin Hoffman in "Rain Man," which is really a laugh getter. This is what separates him from the rest: His comedic mind! He does not waste your time either, as he quickly moves from character to character. Within the first 20 minutes you will have heard Ossie Osburn, Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Ted Koppel of "Night Line" and a drunk Billy Joel with Elton John. His Louis Armstrong, like one of his mentors (Rich Little) is without question one of the best. I used to be amazed when Rich would sit on the edge of the stage and close his show with "It's a Wonderful World" as Louie. I could go on and name everyone, but that would waste space. Needless to say the new owners of the Golden Nugget and their entertainment director Joe Leone have hit the "Mother Lode" with Gordie Brown. It couldn't happen to a nicer guy. Gordie paid his dues over the years and now deserves all the accolades and stardom he can muster.

This particular column is turning out to become a column about impressionists. Went last Saturday night to the SunCoast to see one of the nicer guys in showbiz, Bill Acosta. Like Gordie, Bill is not your normal impressionist. Where Brown has a comedic mind, Acosta has a musical mind and voice. Don't get me wrong, Bill also has a lot of comedy in his routines, but is best known for singing impressions. And of course he has one of the best acts as co-stars (he and producer / wife Jeanne Bavaro do not consider them an opening act) in the Fagan's, a brother and sister tap dancing act. These two kids (anybody younger than me can be called kids) Jay and Connie do a total of about 18 minutes of solid tap dancing spread throughout the show. And, when Acosta does his famous "Mr. Bojangles" tribute to Sammy Davis, Jr., it is Connie in top hat who performs the silent dance tribute while Bill sings. Vince Falcone, another one of the nice guys, conducts the six-piece band to perfection.

After the opening tap routine by Jay, Bill comes right out shooting from the hip with a fabulous rendition of "Swing Back to Me" followed by Neil Diamond's "Coming to America." Next is a fantastic Nat "King" Cole impression singing "Unforgettable," which in turn was followed by a 70's medley (which included Neil Sedaka and others from that era). This particular evening Bill did a very special tribute to the late Ray Charles, singing "Georgia / What I'd Say." After the Fagan segment (just a marvelous 12 minutes of tap dancing) Bill returned with another special tribute to Nancy Reagan. And there would not be a complete Bill Acosta Show without his rendition of "12 Days of Christmas," which he and Jeanne are constantly re-writing and up-dating. Throughout his some 80 plus minutes of doing impressions Bill also sings in his own natural voice, which by the way is terrific. I had been told to expect something new and when it came it was truly a wonderful surprise. Titled "Somewhere," it is a medley of songs conceived and arranged by Vinnie with orchestration by Bill Fayne (Musical Director / conductor for Clint Holmes) with Acosta singing in his own voice. The medley includes "Somewhere Out There" and "Over the Rainbow" to name just two. "We're still tweaking it in a few spots," Falcone said following the show.

So there you have it gang. Two wonderful shows with two fantastic impressionists. One you can catch nightly at the Golden Nugget, the other will be back at the SunCoast later in the year. Of course you can catch Bill Acosta in concert as he performs in cities across America.

That's it for another week. I'm outa here!

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