by Norm Johnson Send Me E-mail

Like many of you, I watched the final weeks of "America's Got Talent." The selection of the final 10 didn't thrill me too much, but thank God, when they got down to the final five, they got it right!

The final five consisted of "Nuttin' But Stringz," two brothers who play the heck out of their violins; Queen Emily, a soul singer from California; Neal E. Boyd, an opera singer; Donald Braswell, a baritone who judge Sharon Osbourne compared to the late Robert Goulet, and Eli Mattson, a pianist - singer.

Boyd, an insurance-salesman from Sikeston, MO, was the eventual winner. Boyd was voted upon by the viewing audience, with the three judges, Osbourne, Piers Morgan and David Hasselhoff not playing a part in the final selection. I personally was rooting for either Boyd or Braswell to take home the $1 million and was personally delighted with the final vote.

The one thing this writer didn't approve of was watching 4-year-old singer, Kaitlyn Maher, (she was cute) making it all the way to the final 10. That was emotional voting by the viewing audience and the judges, which is the one thing I find wrong in the voting procedure. Some very good talent was cast aside for the little girl. That was wrong, but what will be will be! You can bet that the little tot will be back next year and will probably, once again, make it deep into the competition. What was amazing about this particular youngster, however, was her poise and learning the words to a variety of songs. Heck, I barely can remember the words to "Happy Birthday!"

Tonight (Friday, Oct. 17) Boyd and other members of the cast of "America's Got Talent" will be appearing at the MGM Grand Garden. Terry Fator, who took home the top honors last year, and recently signed a huge contract with the Mirage (after making his Las Vegas debut at the Las Vegas Hilton), will be the special guest star. The cast will consist of the final five (not confirmed) and previous finalists from the first two years. Exact names were not available at time of this writing.

Ticket prices range from $39.50 to $99.50. For further information or reservations call (702) 891-7777.

"Minus 5," the first permanent ice lounge in the United States, has opened at Mandalay Place, adjacent to Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. The 2,000 square-foot "Minus 5 Experience" welcomed its first patrons with an "Elvis sighting," the unveiling of a life-sized ice sculpture of The King, complete with guitar. "Minus 5" opened its doors to the frigid 23 degrees Fahrenheit (or true to its name "minus 5" Celsius), while the temperature outside was topping out above 90 degrees.

Guests are invited to come in from the Las Vegas heat and don Minus 5-issued parkas and booties (and hat if requested) over their T-shirts, shorts and flip-flops. That's when the arctic experience begins, as you enter the ethereal blue and white world of the shimmering lounge. Guests are promptly served an "ice glass," filled with exotic vodka-based cocktails, then guided to ice couches where they can enjoy, what is literally the coolest lounge in Las Vegas.

Admission to the ice lounge is $30 and includes a cocktail.

THIS AND THAT QUICKLY: "Sin City Kitties," a new topless revue, produced by Glenn Medas and directed by Michael Chambers (they also produce "Sin City Heat" in the Shimmer Lounge at the Hilton Hotel), will make its media debut next Friday in Whiskey Pete's 300-seat showroom at Primm, Nevada. We'll review the show in one of our next columns... Don't forget to head out to the Henderson Events Plaza tonight (Friday) to catch actress, singer, Katey Sagal (Married... With Children) in a free show beginning at 8 p.m. Of course, that's if you're not going to the MGM Grand to catch the other show previously mentioned above... Country singer, Travis Tritt, has been inked to perform in the Tiffany Theater at the Tropicana Hotel, Dec, 5-6 with tickets priced as low as $60... Pianist Philip Fortenberry, associate music director of "Jersey Boys," will perform a 45-minute cabaret concert, titled "Libarace and Me," this coming Tuesday (Oct 21st in the new Liberace Cabaret at the museum on East Tropicana. Showtime is set for 1 p.m... The special screening of "Who Will Stand," set for yesterday (Thursday), was forced to re-schedule for this coming Thursday, Oct 23rd. at Dream Vision Studios, 6705 S. Eastern Ave. at 6 p.m... NASCAR Champion and Las Vegas resident, Kurt Busch, raised more than $25,000 this week at the Kurt Busch Charity Poker Tournament, held inside the Sierra Gold ultra tavern on south Jones. All the proceeds will be donated to the Victory Junction Gang Camp, whose mission is to enrich the lives of children with chronic medical conditions or serious illnesses...

Well, gang, that's about it for yet another exciting week.

I'm outa here!

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