Sarah Palin to speak in Searchlight

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Sarah Palin will be in Searchlight (near Hoover Dam) on March 27 to promote the Tea Party Express's tour.

Searchlight is the home town of Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Palin was reportedly paid $100,000 to speak this weekend in Nashville, and is also reportedly not being paid for her Searchlight appearance.

The bus tour will span 42 cities and end April 15 in Washington, D.C.

Rape case against David Copperfield closed

Ever wonder what became of the lawsuit that illusionist David Copperfield raped a woman on his private island?

In October 2007, Copperfield was investigated under allegations of raping and assaulting a 22-year-old woman on his island in the Bahamas.

Copperfield continued performing at his home base of the MGM Grand during this time and continues today.

Yesterday, investigations were closed and charges were not filed.

As simple as that: case closed.

No word whether a settlement was made or guilt was determined or not during the two-year investigation.

Paris Hilton weds in Las Vegas

It's been awhile since Paris Hilton has been in the news.

Over the weekend, however, Hilton got married in Las Vegas at the Little Church of the West wedding chapel.

Well, it was all staged for publicity, but it was a mock wedding nonetheless.

The fake groom was Piers Morgan, from "Britain's Got Talent."

Hilton -- and her dog -- were dressed in white for the occasion. And there were plenty of witnesses dressed as Elvis and Marilyn Monroe.

The wedding will air Jan. 2 on VH1's "Piers Morgan" show.

Mario Lopez teaches acting

Learn how to be an actor this weekend.

On Sunday, Nov. 15 at 3 p.m., Mario Lopez (from EXTRA and "Nip/Tuck") will be on hand to take you through his career at the Film Actors Expo, taking place at Rave Motion Pictures (at the Town Square).

Tickets are $25 if you register before Saturday; otherwise it's $30 at the door. ($20 student tickets with valid student ID are also available.)

For more info, visit Actors Expo.

Wayne Newton to perform possible last run at Tropicana

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Is Tropicana receiving a makeover?

The venerable hotel-casino could be a whole lot different looking by next year, when it completes its $100 million renovation.

And not just in looks, but internally the talent is a-changing.

The Tropicana is the residence of Wayne Brady where he hosts the reboot of "Let's Make a Deal" (Brady's otherwise at The Venetian for his improv show).

Now Wayne Newton has set up shop at Trop, for possibly his last show before retirement. Newton has been performing for 50 years, which coincidentally is how old the Tropicana is.

Newton stars in "Once Before I Go," complete with full orchestra, video and photo montages, and his own personal memorabilia on display next to the merchandise store.

Tickets run $80 to $100.

Shows are Tuesday-Saturday at 8:30 p.m. at the Tiffany Theatre and can be purchased by calling (702) 739-2417, (800) 829-9034, or http://www.troplv.com.

Paula Abdul renews interest in launching Vegas show

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Who are we to comment on Paula Abdul turning down an 8-figure salary on "American Idol" (and that's per season, not even per year), when she can return to her roots and get dirty designing a show of her very own?

Just a few years ago she was in heavy talks with Silverton to put on a custom show there, until talks fell through (which included the rumor that she was responsible for getting two employees fired because she was under the impression they made her miss a flight).

Now Abdul is back on the Vegas circuit, making it known that she's in negotiations with some major Strip hotels (Venetian, Hilton, Wynn) for a new song and dance show that she will choreograph.

We suspect this is more a ploy to drum up interest among the competing casino-hotels while also getting unmentioned properties (ahem, MGM Mirage, Harrah's) to notice and make a bid.

We checked the sportsbooks of each and so far there's no over/under on the number of employees Abdul will get fired this time (just kidding, Paula!).

DJ AM found dead

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Popular Las Vegas disc jockey DJ AM was found dead today.

DJ AM, whose real name is Adam Goldstein, was in residence at PURE (at Caesars Palace) every Friday night and LAX (at Luxor) every Sunday night. He was co-owner of LAX.

Goldstein and Travis Barker (drummer of Blink 182) were recently in the news when their plane crashed last year in South Carolina, killing four people. Both were severely injured.

Goldstein has had a history of drug and alcohol addiction, and in October was set to star in his MTV reality show "Gone Too Far" that chronicled interventions for drug abusers.

About 5:20 p.m. ET, Goldstein was found dead in his New York apartment in SoHo with drugs nearby. It is unclear whether drugs were a factor; a medical examiner will determine the cause of death.'

Michael Jackson musical tribute at The Pearl

A star-studded Michael Jackson musical tribute takes place tomorrow afternoon, the day of his 51st birthday.

Coming out to sing and pay tribute to Jackson are stars from Las Vegas shows including Clint Holmes, Human Nature, Jersey Boys, Peepshow, Phantom, Sirens of TI, and more.

The show takes place at 3 p.m. at the Pearl (at The Palms).

Tickets are $25 and benefit music education in Nevada Public Schools. They can be purchased at the Pearl box office or via ticketmaster.com.

Danny Gans tied to Green Valley pharmacy

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

The Las Vegas Sun revealed an association between the late Danny Gans and GreenValleyMed, a medical supplier in Henderson.

Gans died from an accidental overdose of pain medication on May 1, though it was never revealed where that drug came from because he didn't have a prescription.

Clark County coroner Michael Murphy noted at the time that "this was not drug abuse."

In 2003, Gans became a 22% owner of the GreenValleyMed.

The Sun is trying to find out if GreenValleyMed carries Dilaudid, the brand of the painkiller that was found in Gans.

According to their website, "GreenValleyMed caters specifically to the needs of physicians and other medical professionals who want one place they can count on for all their pharmaceutical, specialty compounding, nutriceutical, medical supply, and equipment essentials."

The report suggests that Gans received the drug directly from his pharamaceutical company, which was also located near Gans' residence.

Read the full story...

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com

Michael Jackson as giant robot in Las Vegas

In June, we posted that Michael Jackson was looking at a giant replica himself in the desert, for all planes to see for miles around.

What we didn't realize was that it was a giant robot MJ (pictured above, rendition by Timothy Patterson and costume designer Andre Van Pier)! And not just a giant robot, but a giant walking robot that would roam the Nevada desert.

Goodness.

Later, the robot idea morphed into a proposed casino entrance a la the MGM Grand but with Michael instead of a lion.

With Jackson gone as well as Van Pier (died August 2008), perhaps the robot casino is cursed. The more we think about it, though, the more we'd like to see some billionaire step up and make this idea happen. Bring back the gawdy to Las Vegas!