Las Vegas Weekly

May 4, 2010 · 3:24 PM

Strip Scribbles: Ne-Yo to open Encore Beach Club and Surrender

By Robin Leach

Ne-Yo, DJ Clinton Sparks and Elijah Kelley at Rehab.

Photo: Hew Burney / Hard Rock Hotel & Casino

Hotel tycoon Steve Wynn spares no expense when he throws a party, and he’s determined that the opening Memorial Day weekend blasts for his Encore Beach Club and its Surrender nightclub will be the biggest and the best. Sean Christie, who runs the new clubs for Steve, has booked superstar and hometown hero Ne-Yo as the debut performer.

When the all-star musical lineup kicks off May 28, DJ Steve Aoki, who is the club’s music director, will take over the turntables with his dance hit “I’m in the House” to start his Aoki’s House party. The day after Ne-Yo, it’s the afternoon debut of DJ Kaskade and a nighttime show by LMFAO, whose hits include “Shots” and “I’m in Miami.”

Sean and Steve promise that their $60-million-plus EBC will be the premier destination for trendsetters wanting a quality party atmosphere found in Europe. As day turns into night, the party moves into Surrender, a 5,000-square-foot nightclub that opens up to the surrounding outdoor oasis.

*Rapper Ludacris filmed his new music video at the Palms yesterday, and our thanks to Artemus Jenkins for these on-set shots. No official word as to what the new Ludacris video will be titled, but preliminary rumors suggest it will be “Sex Room.”

*After dinner on the terrace of chef Paul Bartolotta’s Mediterranean restaurant, actress Lisa Kudrow watched The Beatles Love by Cirque du Soleil at The Mirage last night. Lisa was with husband Michel Stern and his parents Serge and Paulette Stern, who were visiting from France and celebrating their 63rd anniversary. After the performance, the group went backstage to meet the cast, where Michel and his parents spoke French with many of the performers. British boxer Ricky Hatton also watched Love while in town. Ricky is from Manchester, where I worked for a while at The Daily Mail during my very early days in journalism back in the early 1960s, just 30 miles away from where The Beatles were discovered in Liverpool.

*Monte Carlo comedy impressionist headliner Frank Caliendo appears on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno tonight. Fans know that Frank does an uncanny impression of Jay, along with John Madden, Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. Now the question is whether Frank will impersonate Jay in front of Jay!

*Proving that stars go out to watch other stars, Grammy Award-winning songwriter and rapper Timbaland watched Disney’s The Lion King at Mandalay Bay with his wife Monique and 25 of their friends for her birthday. After the show, they went backstage to meet the cast, who surprised Monique with “Happy Birthday” The Lion King-style as they presented her with flowers and an autographed poster from the Las Vegas production. The couple posed for photographs with Derrick Williams (Mufasa), Kissy Simmons (Nala) and Buyi Zama (Rafiki).

Comedienne Lily Tomlin, who is headlining at MGM Grand’s Hollywood Theater, watched Frank Marino’s Divas of Las Vegas at Imperial Palace on her night off. Frank told me that she was impressed with all the impersonations but really loved the Dolly Parton character because they starred together in 9 to 5. “I just need Goldie Hawn to stop in now to complete the hat trick,” Frank said.

My pal Kenny Ortega, who has directed and choreographed for Michael Jackson, Cher and the High School Musical films, celebrated his 60th birthday with good friends Pussycat Dolls founder Robin Antin and British singer Matt Goss at Matt’s Caesars Palace show. Kenny joined Matt onstage for “St. James Park.” British boxer Ricky Hatton stopped by to support his countryman on two consecutive nights at The Gossy Room.

Boxing legend Muhammad Ali sat right up front Sunday to watch Viva Elvis at Aria with his daughter Marilyn and her family. Also enjoying the Cirque du Soleil spectacular were True Blood couple Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer. They posed for photographs with Viva Elvis dancers and fans and loved the show but had to leave 15 minutes before it ended to catch their flight back to L.A. Incidentally, Viva Elvis cast members are performing on tonight’s Dancing With the Stars on ABC.

*Crowds enjoyed a beautiful spring day with live music for the colorful and costumed 2010 Gay Pride Festival downtown, with Tina Turner impersonator Larry Edwards from Divas of Las Vegas as the parade grand marshal. Las Vegas News Bureau photographer Glenn Pinkerton was there for Vegas DeLuxe as the parade kicked off at the Clark County Government Center.

*Former GOP presidential candidate and Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney will be at Deseret Books in Henderson tonight to autograph his new book No Apology: The Case for American Greatness.

*Food and wine fans get a special treat at Mandarin Oriental in MGM’s CityCenter tonight. Modern mixologist Tony Abou-Ganim will demonstrate how to make a few of the 60 best drink recipes featured in his new book Modern Mixologist: Contemporary Classic Cocktails launching today. He’ll not only create signature cocktails, but also autograph copies of his book. Then it’s off to the delectable dining delights at Mozen Bistro that savvy travelers are raving about as “an unforgettable summer experience with superb service.”

*2010 Miss America Caressa Cameron had a busy two days back in her home state of Virginia. She participated in several events at Richmond International Raceway, including The Sprint Cup, one of NASCAR’s premier events. For the second consecutive week, Caressa was invited by NASCAR to sing “God Bless America” for the sold-out crowd that cheered for their hometown winner of the pageant here at Planet Hollywood in January.

*R&B singer Mya was the hostess with the mostess when she welcomed guests to Venus Pool Club and Pure in Caesars Palace. Mya showed up dressed in a brown swimsuit with a light blue cover up and treated sun-seekers to a poolside performance. Mya sang songs from her new album, plus the fan favorite “Ghetto Superstar.” After her performance, Mya hung out with friends, sipped pina coladas and snacked on nachos and quesadillas. For Pure, she changed into a hot pink dress for the VIP section, where she enjoyed Dom Perignon and Grey Goose cocktails. She welcomed sports stars to the party, including Jermaine O’Neal, Craig Smith, Nate Clements, Corey Ivy, Chris Carr, Frank Walker, LaDainian Tomlinson, Larry Johnson and Antoine Winfield.

*Venetian headlining comedian David Spade joined crooner Brian Evans onstage for a Las Vegas-style reunion. Brian commutes between Las Vegas and Hawaii to present the Maui Celebrity Series. Mick Fleetwood and Apolo Anton Ono were among the audience for the fourth of Brian’s shows there. Next up is Tom Arnold, who hosts May 29 with Hawaii comedians.

STAR SURVEILLANCE

*Tao and Lavo: The celebrity-filled weekend of sports stars at Lavo in the Palazzo included Shawne Merriman of the San Diego Chargers, Joakim Noah of the Chicago Bulls, Bobby McCray of the New Orleans Saints, Patrick Willis of the San Francisco 49ers and retired NBA player Jalen Rose.

Knowshon Moreno and Brady Quinn of the Denver Broncos were spotted at Tao in The Venetian. Tao’s weekly Worship party was packed with stars for fight weekend, with hometown heroes The Killers listening to the sounds of DJ Five. Fred Taylor of the New England Patriots, free agent Jevon Kerase and Roscoe Parrish and Marcus Stroud of the Buffalo Bills hung out with the cast of VH1’s Real Chance of Love. Larry Johnson of the Washington Redskins and Clinton Portis and Brandon Marshall of the Miami Dolphins also were at Tao.

*Palms: Timberland, T.I., Ludacris, Mark Sanchez of the New York Jets, Osi Uminyora of the New York Giants and Jay Cutler of the Chicago Bears all stayed at the Palms and Palms Place for fight weekend. Jay and Brandon celebrated Jay’s birthday at N9NE Steakhouse, with Ricky Hatton, Will Allen, Karlos Dansby and Jake Edward Long of the Miami Dolphins, Mayor Oscar Goodman, Mark Sanchez, Jermaine Dye and Brandyn Dombrowski all at nearby tables. Jay, Mark, Brandon and Tony Scheffler of the Detroit Lions were part of a 20-strong party at Rain after dinner and had a table onstage to party to DJ Z-Trip. A Playboy Bunny presented Jay with a key to The Playboy Club, and at 3 a.m., the group was at Moon.

Over at Ghostbar, Shaun Rogers of the Cleveland Browns was with a female friend, and actor Barry Pepper checked out the view from the patio. Palms mogul George Maloof, Mark Sanchez with free agent Javon Walker and actress Gabrielle Union were at N9NE after the big fight. Joey Porter of the Arizona Cardinals and Shaun Rogers with his wife also were at N9NE. Jay Ratliff and Keith Brooking of the Dallas Cowboys played blackjack. Clinton Portis of the Washington Redskins was at Nove Italiano before he hit The Playboy Club and Moon.

*XS and Tryst: Music star Gloria Estefan was at Tryst in the Wynn, with LaDainian Tomlinson of the New York Jets and friends at a nearby VIP table. NFL announcer Jerome Bettis also was at Tryst. Michael J. Fox, Flavor Flav, Javon Walker, Mark Sanchez and Larry Fitzgerald of the Arizona Cardinals were in separate parties at XS in the Encore.

TONIGHT’S TIPS

He is everybody’s favorite headmaster. Actor Dennis Haskins of Saved By the Bell is hosting at Pure, and British video vixen Louise Richmond is joining him with two of her British beauty queen girlfriends. … Comedian Allan Havey takes the stage at The Improv at Harrah’s through Sunday with Rick Delia and Sam Fedele.

TOMORROW’S TEASES

It’s Cinco de Mayo, and we’ve got the rundown of all the parties in town, including CHiPs star Erik Estrada refereeing the human cockfighting at T&T in the Luxor. … Dozens of star chefs, including Wolfgang Puck, Bobby Flay, Alain Ducasse, Rick Moonen, Charlie Palmer, Cat Cora and Guy Savoy, and hundreds of foodies arrive for the Fourth Annual Vegas UnCork’d with more than 30 dinners, tastings and events over four jam-packed days, including a blackjack tournament where the chefs leave the kitchen to battle one another.

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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