Las Vegas Weekly

February 3, 2010 · 3:04 PM

Strip Scribbles: Which actress is wearing only body paint in S.I.?

By Robin Leach

Bar Refaeli was chosen to grace the cover of the 2009 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.

Photo: Sports Illustrated

The identity of this year’s cover girl bikini model on the eagerly awaited Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition will be kept top secret until next Tuesday’s unveiling, followed by three days of festivities here in Las Vegas kicking off next Wednesday. However, it won’t be a repeat of last year’s beauty Bar Refaeli. The Israeli supermodel is already on the cover of this year’s Sports Illustrated calendar, which went on sale this week. The ex-girlfriend of megastar Leonardo DiCaprio appears on the cover of the table and wall versions.

We posted a story yesterday about next Wednesday’s invasion by the swimsuit sensations for their three days of poker playing, sightseeing, touring and three extraordinary nightclub parties -- one of which features Maroon 5. Bar shot to superstardom in the modeling world after last year’s S.I. cover. She’ll definitely be featured in the new edition that is released on Tuesday.

However, I can reveal that super-hot Twilight actress Ashley Greene (Alice Cullen) will be prominently featured in the issue posing nude -- in only artistic body paint! Yep, she bares all and is not even dressed in a skimpy swimsuit. Ashley didn’t pose for the magazine but was shot in similar locations for the SoBe ads that dot the magazine. Some of the swimsuit models appearing in the editorial pages, I’m told, also will be seen partially nude and body painted.

*New Paris resident headliner Barry Manilow debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard album charts with his Greatest Love Songs of All Time. Barry was ahead of The Black Eyed Peas and Susan Boyle and just behind Lady Gaga and Lady Antebellum. He’s expected to move up to the top next week. Congratulations to Barry, who opens his new show March 5 at the Paris and performs a sneak preview for the annual charity gala Keep Memory Alive on Feb. 27 at the Bellagio for our Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health downtown.

*Sometimes you have to take credit where credit is due and pat yourself on the back when you’re ahead of the competition! Stories yesterday and today about construction changes planned for a giant entertainment complex at the Paris were old news to VDLX readers. We gave you that exclusive on Jan. 15 when we told you the Sugar Factory flagship, an expansion of the popular brand to include a 15,000-square-foot dining and entertainment experience and retail paradise, would open this fall at the Paris. We reported that a patio would frame the entryway from the sweet facility to the hotel, where the current fountain exists. I asked you to think of it as the savory and sweet version of Willy Wonka rocking out to MTV! The Sugar Factory, with an outpost in The Mirage and in L.A., has become a celebrity favorite, with Britney Spears, Kim Kardashian and Pussycat Dolls endorsing Couture Pops.

*Here’s another exclusive: Playboy Morning Radio show hosts Kevin Klein and centerfold beauty Andrea Lowell look set to re-create their zany on-air entertainment adventures in an audio version of Playboy magazine as part of the new Playboy comedy nights at the former Matt Goss lounge in the Palms. Andrea, who recently wed here in Las Vegas as we also exclusively reported, had her honeymoon at Palms Place and wedding dinner at celebrity chef Kerry Simon’s restaurant there. Andrea and Kevin, who broadcast their show from The Playboy Mansion, are heard on Sirius channel 99 on Mondays through Fridays from 7 to 10 a.m. PT.

Tonight’s tips

As we noted in our story earlier today, Carlos Santana resumes his residency run at The Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel with three weeks of sensational shows through Feb. 21. The next run is April 21 through May 2. … Nile and Immolation lead a six pack of rock groups for a show titled Those Whom the Gods Detest at the House of Blues in Mandalay Bay. … There’s a House of Lounge gift bag giveaway at Carey Hart’s Wasted Space in the Hard Rock Hotel. … And Blush in the Wynn features Jason Lema and local legend Frank Richards as house music reigns supreme.

Tomorrow’s teases

Fran Drescher of The Nanny fame comes to town in the name of charity, and Drew Carey kicks off a run of outrageous improv comedy. Plus, with the departure of the Miss America Pageant and the arrival of the Miss USA Pageant, we meet the Nevada beauty who has competed in both. She’s just moved into her Las Vegas apartment in time for her new reality TV series and to prepare for the May pageant.

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 at Twitter.com/Robin_Leach.

Follow Vegas DeLuxe on Twitter at Twitter.com/vegasdeluxe.

Follow VDLX Editor Don Chareunsy on Twitter at Twitter.com/VDLXEditorDon.

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