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| November 19, 2007 | NEWEST - PRIOR WEEK - ARCHIVES |
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| "It's The Norm" - Las Vegas Entertainment Events | |
RICH LITTLE & THE DA VINCI EXPERIENCE
As many of you may be aware, I was honored to be one of the pallbearers for my friend of more than 40 years, Robert Goulet. The last 26 years, off-and-on, I was proud to work for him and his wife, Vera. The past three weeks were hard on everyone involved, from Vera to the doctors in Las Vegas such as Dr. Tali Arik, who was not only Goulet's doctor but a personal friend. The medical staff in Los Angeles, headed up by another long-time personal friend, Dr. David Kipper, kept holding out hope for that precious lung that never arrived.
It was a major loss to the world, for those who loved his music and voice. His two sons, Michael and Christopher and daughter Nicolette were strong through the ordeal and God bless them. Vera was as strong as I ever saw her, and she produced one of the finest funerals I've ever attended. Robert's wonderful grandkids, Solange Goulet-Fowler and Jordan Goulet, are great examples of the future for the name Goulet. Don Cherry, a veteran entertainer, golfer and resident of Las Vegas, said it as plainly as anyone when he called me: "I've attended many celebrity and political funerals over the years, but this one for Robert was the finest I have ever attended." Robert Goulet, November 26, 1933-October 30, 2007. God how I will miss you Robaire! One of Goulet's long time friends, they knew each other in Canada, Rich Little, is now firmly ensconced at the Golden Nugget, downtown. They held a media / VIP night recently and all I can report is that Rich Little is as good as ever (I use this a lot, but it is true in Rich's case): He gets better each year, just like a fine bottle of French wine. There is not an impressionist alive that can touch Little when he does the five presidents: Bush, Clinton, Bush, Reagan and Ford. His bit with celebrities as contestants is a classic, where he does a run of about 10 prominent entertainers running from Jimmy Stewart to Paul Lynde. When he does James Cagney, well you just know he's actually there. We really loved his impressions of the Rat Pack guys - Frank, Sammy and Dino. |
What makes Rich's impressions so real is that, in most cases, he knew, met or entertained the people he does. That's a big difference. I would say that Danny Gans and Gordie Brown (Brown was part of Little's show at the Sahara a few years ago) are great, but they have to bow to Rich Little, when it comes to naming the best impressionist alive today. So, when you are sitting at home thinking of going out to a movie or thinking of taking in a show, think of downtown and the Rich Little show at the Golden Nugget. Show times are 7 p.m. Thursday through Sunday, with tickets starting at $39 plus. For reservations call the Golden Nugget or 1-866-946-5336. Prior to Goulet's sudden illness, this writer along with many others took in "The Da Vinci Experience" exhibit in Henderson. The exhibit is located at the Henderson Events Plaza in the Water Street District. Leonardo da Vinci was an artist, architect, designer, engineer, philosopher, scientist and inventor: He was, without question, the archetypal Renaissance man. More than 60 of da Vinci's amazing inventions and most famous paintings are on display, and what a remarkable display it is too. All of the replicas in the exhibit were designed from Leonardo's notebooks, which contained more than 14,000 pages of notes and drawings. It is truly worthy of a visit. The Da Vinci Experience is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. For ticket prices and further information call 267-4849. THIS AND THAT QUICKLY: Mary Wilson of the Supremes, a resident of our little village, just returned from a very emotional trip to Sri Lanka and other locations in Asia, on behalf of the Humpty-Dumpty Organization. The organization continues the work of Princess Diana in bringing awareness of the bomb and landmine situation that still exists in areas of the world. Ms. Wilson performed a benefit concert and ended up exploding a bunch of bombs and mines that had been cleared from nearby schools. What a lady... Nelson Sardelli, who this writer has known for up-teen years, sent me a proud papa note about daughter, Giovanna Sardelli. The bottom line is that this talented lady (she no longer can be bounced on his lap) recently received some rave reviews for her direction of an off-Broadway production of a BBC inspired teleplay, "The Leopard & the Fox." The play is about the overthrow of Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto of Pakistan by the military in 1977-rather timely huh?... Dave Gonzales, who we met while dining at the Strip House at Planet Hollywood, has been officially named General Manager of the restaurant owned by The Glazier Group... A new show titled "Mexican Divas" is in the Empire Ballroom, 3765 Las Vegas Blvd. (across from the Monte Carlo Hotel). It stars "Alba" and features Andres Arturo with a cast of 30 entertainers, all from Mexico. Show times are Thursday through Sunday 8:30 p.m. with an additional 10:30 p.m. show on Friday and Saturday... Well, gang, that's about it for this week. I'm outa here!
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