John Katsilometes

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Torres can't slip Holt this time: Sunday, July 6, 2008; Well, uh, no 11th-round controversy this time. Three knockdowns. One knockout. It took but a minute.
At LV Phil event, hearts go boom: Friday, July 4, 2008; Chuck and Carol Coleman first experienced the fireworks in 1994. But it wasn't on the Fourth of July. It was in October.
John Katsilometes keeps on top of the city's trend in European-style pools, the latest of which will open May 15 atop Flamingo Las Vegas: Sunday, May 6, 2007; And apparently, so will topless sunbathing.
John Katsilometes reports on a unique wedding ceremony for a similarly unique couple in the downtown arts district: Monday, March 26, 2007; Funkhouser owns the antique and crafts store the Funk House, serves as the president of the nonprofit arts organization Whirlygig and is founder of the weekly art walk/crafts fair/street party First Friday. Dominguez operates his own flooring company, the aptly titled Fabulous Floors of Las Vegas. The two met at Dino's, which sits across from Olympic Garden on Las Vegas Boulevard South, on Valentine's Day 2006. In July, again at Dino's, during "Karaoke Night with Danny G" and with the Bee Gees classic "Words" droning in the background, Dominguez brought forth a sheet cake with a proposal scrawled across the frosting. She accepted, and on Saturday exchanged vows in front of about 60 friends and family.
John Katsilometes meets a man who met Sammy Davis Jr. 67 years ago and showed up to honor the legend Thursday: Friday, Feb. 16, 2007; Miller met Davis, who was then a member of the Will Mastin Trio, in Harlem in 1940. Miller was a member of a jazz outfit called the Three Chords, and the acts toured the vaudeville circuit for several years. But the Three Chords were never more than a support act, while Davis ascended to worldwide stardom. In 1960, Miller and Davis parted ways.
John Katsilometes on a report that puts the elbow-through-the-Picasso episode to the test: Thursday, Feb. 1, 2007; Now someone has put that contention to the test. On Monday, Michael J. Lewis, author and art writer for the online publication Commentary Magazine, wrote: "An elbow thrust, however fierce or well-aimed, is not likely to puncture a linen canvas," explaining that paintings are not stretched very tightly and typically have a little bit of "give." Lewis asked a friend of his who is a painter to see if he could pierce a taut canvas with his elbow. Lewis writes: "Working with heavy cotton duck canvas (a weaker fabric than the Belgian linen that Picasso likely used), he was only able to put a bowl-shaped depression into the canvas, despite repeated attempts. The insurers will be investigating this case carefully. Perhaps they'll ask to take a cast of Mr. Wynn's elbow."
John Katsilometes takes in a news conference for Miss America, which is totally different than Miss USA: Friday, Jan. 26, 2007; The Miss America president and chief executive also said the pageant is pleased with its relationship with cable outfit CMT, which took over as the pageant's TV home after Miss America and ABC parted ways after the 2005 pageant. As CMT Executive Producer Sarah Brock noted, 35 million viewers watched last year's pageant.
John Katsilometes reports that Arizona Charlie's Decatur plans to bring back the Palace Grand Theatre: Monday, Jan. 22, 2007; But in May 2000 the theater was turned into a 500-seat bingo hall. A sold-out performance by Bobby "Blue" Bland seemed to serve as the old theater's send-off. But last week General Manager Ron Lurie said he is in discussions for the design of the new ballroom and plans to turn the bingo center back into an entertainment and banquet facility. "We're talking to architects and drawing plans. We'd like to start relatively soon," Lurie said. "We'd like a flexible, multipurpose facility. We'd go back to chair seating, cocktail tables, and it would be for 500 to 600 people."
John Katsilometes on the spicy 'Top Chef' competition and two Las Vegas chefs who are bracing for the finale: Sunday, Jan. 21, 2007; To recap, in last week's hair-razing episode Vigneron was (again) singled out for group derision in a stunt that more resembled a fraternity hazing prank than anything related to a culinary contest. It all started during a night of revelry when Aboumrad disclosed that she'd always wanted to shave her head. She and Hall wound up doing just that, but contestant Cliff Crooks (with goading from Hall and Sam Talbot and a shrug of the shoulders from Aboumrad) took the frivolity beyond bounds by pinning down Vigneron and trying to shave away his wildly wavy locks.
John Katsilometes checks in on a grass-roots political group with impressive credentials and lofty goals: Monday, Jan. 15, 2007; Thus, Bilbray-Kohn has taken action as the visionary and executive director of the fledgling political candidate training program whose mission is to groom women in the Democratic Party to run for office at all levels in the state of Nevada. The event, in the heart of the downtown arts district, was a meet-and-greet function for emergeNevada's 2007 candidate class (a pair of noteworthy guests: new Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto and Councilwoman Lois Tarkanian, who wrote the first $1,000 check to the organization). EmergeNevada's wide-ranging field of 16 prospects includes Kelly Benavidez, a City Council liaison to Councilman Lawrence Weekly; Liz Carrasco, director of Community Development for Planned Parenthood of Southern Nevada; Tammy Peterson, an attorney with Jones Vargas and former president of the Junior Club (and also a former prosecutor with the district attorney's office Special Victims Unit); and Adeana Shendal, column frequenter and director of public relations for Four Seasons Las Vegas.