Thursday, March 1, 2001 | 8:40 a.m.
Joe Delaney's column appears Thursdays and Fridays. Reach hi at joe@ lasvegassun.com or 259-4066.
Identification ... This column has been arguing for acts or shows being identified with their hotels ... There are excellent examples all around town ... Cirque du Soleil started in a tent on the Mirage grounds ... Now "O" is synonymous with Bellagio and "Mystere" with Treasure Island ... This is also the fact with Siegfried & Roy and Danny Gans, in their respective theaters at the Mirage.
Rick Springfield will become identified with "EFX Alive" in time ... "EFX" is an entity unto itself despite the strong personalities that preceded Springfield ... Mention "EFX" and one immediately thinks MGM Grand ... "Jubilee" means Bally's, just as "Best of the Folies Bergere" has been identified with the Tropicana for four decades.
Lance Burton and the Monte Carlo -- one begets the other ... Steve Wyrick is doing his best to see that this happens with the Sahara and himself ... Harrah's should be commended for sticking with Clint Holmes, now a winner, into his second year. David Brenner seems to be proving our point, building an identification with the Golden Nugget.
Wayne Newton once meant three Hughes hotels -- the Desert Inn, Frontier and Sands ... He is nicely into his second year, closely identified with the Stardust and Boyd Group properties ... When Newton is off, the Stardust is building an identification with Don Rickles, B.B. King and others.
Circus Circus made a special niche for itself with free circus acts and a family-friendly atmosphere; elsewhere Mandalay Resorts is doing fine with the "Tournament of Kings" and a medieval-style meal at the Excalibur, and even better with Blue Man Group at the Luxor, plus "Midnight Fantasy" in its Pharoah's Theater ... Mandalay Bay is counting on a musical, "Storm," to become a long-run attraction in its theater, too long empty.
The Blue Note Las Vegas, Hard Rock's the Joint and House of Blues are doing an excellent job of bringing in short-term alternative acts, specializing in blues, jazz and rock ... Station Casinos' resorts are doing a similar job with more middle-of-the-road attractions, past and present ... These concepts are also a form of identication.
The Riviera and the newly refurbished and revitalized "Splash" are another example of long-term identification between show and hotel. The Riviera is also exemplary for the total of its entertainment choices -- "Crazy Girls," "An Evening at La Cage," the Comedy Club, an active lounge plus Lon Bronson's All-Star Band Saturday late show and Don Menza's Monday night jazz.
Mention "Legends In Concert" and the Imperial Palace comes to mind; this is also true with "American Superstars" and "Viva Las Vegas," evenings and afternoons, respectively, at the Stratosphere ... "Lord of the Dance" should be going into its fourth successful year at New York-New York in July.
There are other examples, enough to make one wonder why Park Place Entertainment is so determined to go without a main showroom at Caesars Palace for the next couple of years, and so determined to close out Caesars Magical Empire, a money-maker, not a loss leader, but obviously, not enough of a money maker ... Solution: Another nightclub?
Park Place's entertainment record at Paris Las Vegas has been dismal ... Bally's has a proven long-term winner in "Jubilee," but George Carlin was lost despite a 10-year record as a profitable attraction with great national exposure, with his award-winning HBO specials and best-selling books and albums ... Bally's loss was the MGM Grand's gain.
The Flamingo Las Vegas has a number of attractions ... "Bottoms Up" is a winner in the afternoons ... Bill Acosta's "Lasting Impressions" is hanging in there, and that's the best that can be said for "Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus" ... "Second City" has a chance in Bugsy's Celebrity Theatre, but "Forever Plaid" was forced to close last night, another case of Park Place wishing to revise a deal downward, a la George Carlin.
Justin Tranz's "Hip-nosis" seems to be doing well at both O'Sheas and the Flamingo Las Vegas, a four-wall deal, as are most of the other Flamingo Las Vegas arrangements ... We can understand Park Place letting the Hilton run down in anticipation of its sale.
It was Las Vegas know-how that got Atlantic City off the ground, but once this was accomplished, the tables were reversed and we became more like Atlantic City with two- and three-day weekend star policy attractions and Friday as an off night ... The late Arthur Goldberg was the guiding force behind Park Place Entertainment and was responsible in large part for Las Vegas becoming more like Atlantic City instead of the other way around.
So far, there are no visible signs of change in attitude toward entertainment at Park Place ... This is sad when one sees the examples shown above and realizes that entertainment is still the No. 1 reason given for coming here by visitors ... There are concepts, shows and talented performers out there that could work here ... See you Friday.
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