Las Vegas Weekly

July 2, 2009 · 10:46 AM

Strip Scribbles: A sneak peek at the new What Happens in Vegas ad

By Robin Leach

The Strip.

Photo: Tom Donoghue/www.donoghuephotography.com

For a sneak peek of the hilarious new What Happens in Vegas television commercial debuting next week, click on the preview below courtesy of YouTube:

Now I know why all those out-of-towners keep coming to Las Vegas for all the excitement the likes of which they’d never even dream of back home!

*“Misfit of Magic” magician Ed Alonzo, who created illusions and special stage effects for Michael Jackson’s This Is It concert run, tells me he is rejoining the Britney Spears Circus Tour in Paris tomorrow for the European stretch and then 22 U.S. cities this fall, including two nights here in Las Vegas in September. Rumors grow that This Is It will be restructured and restaged this year. Click HERE for our story posted Tuesday.

Photo: Scott Harrison/Retna/www.harrisonphotos.com

Marlee Matlin and Shannon Elizabeth at Marlee's book signing in Borders at Town Square.

*Actress Marlee Matlin signed copies of her book I’ll Scream Later at the Borders in Town Square, and fellow Dancing With the Stars alumnus actress Shannon Elizabeth dropped by for a reunion and to surprise fans.

*The Venetian and Palazzo executives are getting ready to fly to Singapore for next Wednesday’s formal ceremony for their new Marina Bay Sands Hotel Tower in Singapore. The three towers will include more than 2,500 rooms and suites, but Chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson is most excited about the large Sky Park at the top. It will feature three swimming pools, landscaped gardens and restaurants and bars. There’s also an Arts and Exhibition museum and 1.25 million square feet of convention space on the property.

*Seven men singing in their birthday suits? Yep, they go stark naked in the hilarious Naked Boys Singing at the Onyx Theater. Only the piano player is clothed! A fourth weekly show has been added because of the standing-room-only crowds. Audiences come from every walk of life, but it’s a particular favorite for girls’ nights out and bachelorette parties.

Photo: Hard Rock Hotel

Quinton "Rampage" Jackson puts on a gun show at Body English in the Hard Rock Hotel.

Photo: Denise Truscello/WireImage

Holly Madison with friends at the Peepshow cast party in Planet Hollywood.

Photo: Scott Harrison/Retna/www.harrisonphotos.com

Vanilla Ice at Rok Vegas in New York-New York.

Star surveillance

MMA fighter Quinton “Rampage” Jackson was at Ghostbar in the Palms with three friends enjoying the scene at a VIP table with mixed drinks. … If you were up bright and early this morning, you could have watched Holly Madison play weather girl on our local NBC station. Yes, it was a 6 a.m. call for the Peepshow star. Was KVBC entertainment reporter Alicia Jacobs there to welcome her?! … Vanilla Ice performed his chart-topping hits including “Ice Ice Baby” to fans at Rok Vegas in New York-New York. Ice proved his party boy image by spraying the crowd with water and running through the dance floor to mingle. He’ll be back this holiday weekend with MC Hammer for a show at Wet Republic in MGM on Saturday for the Fourth of July BBQ!

Photo: Courtesy

Playground Club.

Photo: Courtesy

Playground Club.

Reporter’s notebook

I told you some 10 days ago about the new entertainment complex Playground that includes a restaurant, a concert venue, a nightclub and a topless adult cabaret all under one roof. Here are first-look photos inside the palace of pleasure. … My pal Nico Santucci has opened the second of his Capo’s speakeasy restaurants here. This one is Capo’s Italian Steakhouse on Sahara and comes complete with a hidden entrance with a buzzer for the manager to slide open a tiny panel to check you out before entering. Look behind that large painting of Al Capone to see if you can get the private 10-seat roulette room to open up! Business at the mob-themed restaurant is already going … great guns! OK, now you can groan! … To celebrate today’s opening of my pal Gerry Shlesinger’s new Ciao Ciao Apizza Angelato, an “old school New York pizza joint,” he’s giving away free gelato servings through midnight Saturday. Gerry, who owns Della Spiga at the Forum Shops in Caesars Palace, spent months in Italy, Chicago, New York and New Haven, Conn., (that’s where Julia Roberts filmed Mystic Pizza back in 1988, and the city has been a hotbed of pizza ever since) researching gelato and the flame-fired, thin-crust, aged-dough Neapolitan-style pizza cooked at 850 degrees. Said Gerry: “Pizza is the No. 1 food in America, and we’ve turned this into a fun dining experience complete with 22 HD TV screens and memorabilia and celebrity photos of VIPizza enthusiasts Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Marlon Brando, Jackie Gleason, Lucille Ball and the Sopranos characters on the walls.”

Photo: Erik Kabik/Retna/www.erikkabikphoto.com

Scott Weiland and his bandmates.

Photo: Denise Truscello

Kathy Griffin.

*Two big events on the calendar today worthy of special note that start the Fourth of July holiday weekend early with a bang! Stone Temple Pilots are out on their first national tour in eight years, and their exhilarating live show is at The Rogue Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel. … And comedienne and My Life on the D-List star Kathy Griffin receives her very own wax figure at Madame Tussauds in The Venetian. Kathy will be immortalized alongside Madonna, Britney Spears, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley. The unveiling is at 7 p.m., and Kathy will stick around for a reception and fan photos with the two of them.

Photo: Erik Kabik/Retna/www.erikkabikphoto.com

Doyle Brunson.

Tonight’s tips

To celebrate the 40 years that legendary card king Doyle Brunson has played in the World Series of Poker, he’ll host a party at Blush in the Wynn, with Nicky Hilton, Annie Duke, Mickey Rourke, Jack Binion, Phil Ivey, Phil Hellmuth and Kevin Connolly, among others, going all-in for him. … It’s the official opening of the new Bambu Bar at Mandalay Bay’s beach walk. The signature drink will be the Build Your Own Bloody Mary with a choice of 40 ingredients. … CineVegas’ From the Vault screenings continue at Clark County Library with Happy Birthday, Harris Malden, which premiered at the 2008 festival.

Photo: TVT

Jay-Z.

Tomorrow’s teases

It’s the ultimate invasion of megastars for the biggest entertainment lineup of the year! Jay-Z goes head-to-head with Jamie Foxx, and LeBron James arrives to host a day-and-night party, plus Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington takes part in a dice-with-death magic stunt on the Strip with magician Steve Wyrick.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

Follow Robin Leach on Twitter HERE.

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— From Vegas Deluxe

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