How to Find and Spot Celebrities in Las Vegas

OK, so you and I are hanging in Vegas, and suddenly you hear murmured whispers : "Look, there's........" We gawk in the direction of the pointed fingers. We haven't a clue of who it is, or if it is even SOMEBODY given the royal title of "celebrity". Sure, celebrities walk amongst us common folk, but they don't party with us or like we do. You aren't going to see the celebs playing penny machines. You won't even see them playing the slot machines. They walk amongst us, but they are not of our kind. They have been anointed as celebrities by the media. Maybe they acted in a film. Big deal, we all act in real life, we just don't get paid for it. Maybe they are famous for basically being a media darling...the ones with the glorious blonde hair extensions, the blindingly white teeth, the surgical makeovers, you know..the people we read about every day who live to party in Las Vegas.

We've seen all the pics of the celebs posing and posturing in Las Vegas. Maybe you were in the same place at the same time but didn't realize you were amongst the celebrities. It happens. I was sitting in Paris a few years back, when a big part of the male cast of the Soprano's walked by me. I saw them but it didn't register. They all looked like uncles at my family reunion. They didn't LOOK special. They looked like ordinary people.

The same trip I was in the lobby of Paris with a security guard. (Long story, someone got into my room). It was during Sho West and there were celebs all over the place, so I heard. The security guard told me that Michael Douglas was in the lobby. I looked around, saw maybe three men, and none of them looked like Michael Douglas to me. He told me he couldn't say which one was Mr. Douglas, but trust me, I never could ID him. Maybe I was just too upset or maybe makeup and camera lighting does wonders.

Celebs don't always look the same in person. So here's my tips on how to find and ID celebs on your next trip to Las Vegas.

Location, Location, Location! Its true in real estate, its true in Vegas. You won't find celebs in the Excalibur or the Riviera. You might find celebs at the Bellagio, Wynn's, the Venetian complex, the Palms or the Hard Rock. If there is a big whoop de do at a hotel, like a huge concert at the MGM, you might see one or not. If there is a club opening, you'll find celebs. You may not have heard of any of them, but they'll be there to get their picture taken. The red carpet with the back drop and paparazzi will tip you off.

Check out the latest hot spot restaurants that you and I can't afford, nor would we eat the food they serve. You know, the ones with like 12 tables and a chef whose name we can't pronounce. Regular people don't want to spend $200 bucks on a dinner of exotic things they've never heard of...we'd rather hit a buffet and pick stuff we can readily ID. But if you hang around the area, you might see one or two slipping in.

Here's how to spot a celeb: If you see a very anorexic thin blonde with hair extensions, a tiny club dress, expensive stiletto heels and a purse the size of a sofa cushion, you may have seen a celebrity. If she's being "handled" by a very large man who looks like a former pro football player gone to seed and he's telling people to make way, you've spotted a celebrity. Expect to spend hours saying "Who the hell was that?" Even when you find out, you still won't have a clue who she is. You'll just want to feed her.

If you see a man who has blindingly white teeth, a six pack, has tousled uncombed with a three day stubble, is surrounded by a bunch of guys saying "We love you, man", he's either a young celeb partying or he's a groom at his bachelor party. Could go either way. All the young male celebs look the same. If he's wearing expensive clothes, he might be a celeb. If he's wearing shorts and a tee shirt with a ball cap, he's one of us.

If you are in Caesar's Forum Shops and you see a thin man in spandex pants with dyed hair and full face makeup, you are probably seeing a rock star. He may or may not have tattoos. If he has scarves trailing, you've just spotted Stephen Tyler. If he has a British accent, you may have hit the celeb mother lode. If he is accompanied by an aging plastic Barbie doll with a plunging neckline and huge lip glossed lips, he's a rock star and that's his wife.

If you see a young girl shopping for a purse in Hermes that costs 17 grand and she actually
buys it, she's either a new young celeb, or a daughter of a rock star. If you go home and brush up on your reality shows, you'll find out who you saw. Getting your ass kissed in these stores by sales clerks means nothing. The clerks don't know if you just hit a jackpot or if you are SOMEBODY until they see the cash or the name on the credit card. They won't tell you, their
commission is at stake. Cha Ching! Privacy rules. If its a celeb who doesn't buy and she was a total bitch to the sales clerk, they'll drop her name as soon as she leaves the store.

If you are hanging at the Palms and you see an old guy in the Playboy club in his PJ's wearing an ascot and surrounded by big breasted blondes, don't assume its Hugh Hefner. It just might be an old rich guy who wandered out of his room and forgot how to get back. If its Hef, you'll know by his entourage.

If you are still hanging at the Palms, and you see some really really tall men, they are probably basketball players, current or former. I've seen a lot there of tall men there, never could figure out who they were.

If you are at the Luxor, you might see Criss Angel. He lives in the Luxor and performs there. He is a different celeb, he actually walks through the casino. Don't expect to party with him or hang with him, just be satisfied with a glimpse as he passes by.

If you see a very tall well dressed woman who struts, sashays and poses , you've either spotted a super model or a man in drag. Check the hands and feet, check for an adams apple. If you still can't tell, back off, you've had too much to drink and could be making a huge mistake! ;)

Traveling to Vegas with the 9/11 Terrorists: True Story!

I'm packing to head to Vegas and every time I pack, I think of my trip to Las Vegas months before before 9/11. I was heading to a work related event and was accompanied by my parents. I go to at least two conventions in Las Vegas every year. This time we were flying on American West, formerly known as America Worst because of their lousy on time schedule.

We were meeting up with my cousin/sister at Phoenix Sky Harbor. Deb was going to be my roomie since my husband had to work. Our flight was late. Oh, surprise! The plane was at the next gate but even though Deb was at the gate, they closed the door and wouldn't let us board.

Her friend Dave was there to see her off. Yup, you could actually be IN the airport if you weren't traveling. He rushed us to an American West office so we could be reticketed on another flight. He was an elite traveler and we were like the 800th person in line, he called the airline, made our arrangements to get us switched to Delta. So like crazy people, he grabs a wheelchair for my father, grabs our carry ons and runs us to a bus to get us to another terminal where our tickets were waiting. And they were!

The plane was a 767. Pretty weird flying from Phoenix to Vegas because there were only like 40 people onboard, but it was late at night. Deb and I were in the first cabin after first class. My parents were in the next cabin.

In strolls a group of 7 men who had no luggage, no carryons and appeared to be speaking Arabic. They got on the plane and started going through the overhead bins. When they found a bin that had plane stuff in it they started "messing" with it. The flight attendant stopped them, told them to sit down. And they did, for about a minute. And then they started wandering into first class and toward the cockpit. The flight attendants from the back came up front and told them to sit down so we could take off. Now remember, this was the time when security was relaxed, the cockpit door would sometimes stay open during the flight and you could watch the takeoff.

Deb and I and the 7 men were the only ones in our cabin. The men acted like they didn't understand. Back they went rifling through the overhead bins in the next cabin. Weird considering they came with nothing except for the clothes on their back. Two flight attendants escorted them back into the cabin and they insisted they wanted to sit where Deb and I were sitting. There were seats everywhere, but they wanted to look out our window.

Deb is not known for her finesse. She tells it like it is. She said "Get the f--- out of my face camel breath and go sit down." The flight attendant laughed and said "Amen". Three of them kept leaning over us and we decided to move up a few seats. They followed us. The flight attendants finally stood in between the doors to the cabins to keep them seated. They also locked the cockpit door. As soon as we were in the air, they blocked the exits and entrances to our cabin with the carts.

Since no one was in the back of the plane, the attendants called the back and sent the attendants up to our cabin. These guys didn't quit. They were in and out of the bathrooms, moved a cart and tried to get into first class . They were totally enthralled with the mechanics of the plane, especially the wing flaps. They spent all 50 minutes of the flight trying to keep this group who PRETENDED not to understand English to sit down.

A flight attendant asked one of them why they were going to Vegas and where they were staying. One guy said he was going to take pictures. The flight attendant asked him where was his camera. He said he didn't have one. WTF? Where are you staying? They didn't know. Do you gamble? No. We were like wondering why these young Arab men were going to Vegas when they were not gamblers, had no luggage, didn't know where they were staying and seemed interested in keeping me and Deb in our seats and messing with the plane.

As we started to descend, they got out and headed to watch the wing flaps again. The attendants called the pilot, the pilot told them to sit down now. They pretended not to understand, but they understood EVERYTHING when the flight attendants were talking to them behind us. They escaped into the back cabins and the flight crew went back to get them. They were in the back galley. By this time, all 40 of us on this cavernous flight were wondering what was up with them.

They made them come back and sit down and they got up again and leaned over me and Deb. There were windows everywhere, why our window? She screamed this time "Get the f--- away from me and sit the hell down." The co pilot had to come back and sit them down so we could land.

Now here's the weirdest part, they didn't want to get off the plane. Of course, they weren't at baggage pickup. Everyone on the plane waiting for our luggage was talking about how weird they were and why were they messing with the plane.

Fast forward a year. Its 9/11 and I just returned the night before from a business trip to Las Vegas. The news starts to unfold. Deb and I get a sick feeling when we see the pictures of the terrorists on TV. We call each other, is that Camel Breath? We recognized those guys...they were on that flight with us! We called each other, called my parents. My parents recognized them also. Mom cries and cries. Then comes the news that the terrorists had been flying between Phoenix and Las Vegas on a 767s to learn the workings of that aircraft. They'd been taking flight lessons in Phoenix. OMG, it really was the terrorists on that flight!!

So we call the FBI. And since I'm totally anal about keeping receipts from business trips, I had all the flight information. And I never was so scared in my life while I gave the FBI agent the information of our flight and our statements. And then we all freaked out. Big time. And Mom cried some more.

A few months later, James Woods the actor, is on Jay Leno's Tonight Show and he's talking about how he was on a flight with the terrorists and how he had to file a report with the FBI. And he talked about how it shook him up to think of what could have happened. Hey, I know the feeling.

So as I get ready to go to Las Vegas again, instead of bitching that I have to take off my shoes at security and I can't bring on a lighter or more than 3 ounces of liquids, I think of THAT flight, and I shut my mouth. I think of how lucky we were and I pray for the ones who weren't as lucky as we were. And I wish that someone on the crew would have reported them to the police. And that might have changed history.

Don't Go To Vegas Without....

There are certain things I always bring to Las Vegas.

I never leave home without:

Eye Drops The smoke, late hours and lack of sleep plus the dry air equal dry eyes.

Comfortable shoes For nonstop walking.


A clip or a snap clothespin to keep the black out drapes closed. Who wants to see the sun at the crack of dawn streaming in through the drapes?

Dollar bills, At least $25 in dollar bills in an envelope for tipping. And some $5 and $10 bills for tips and taxi's at the airport.

Slot cards. Gotta get those points!

Program your hotel, local car rental office and any other local Vegas numbers into your cell phone. If you get delayed, you can call and let them know you are still on your way.

Antacids, cold pills and whatever over the counter medication you might need. It will save you tons of cash if you have it in your suitcase rather than buying it at the hotel.

A fold up zip travel bag. I throw it in my suitcase to put in my dirty clothes and any I can use the space for stuff I manage to buy or accumulate on my trip. Make sure you have your ID on the case so you can check it if you are flying.

Zip plastic baggies. Sometimes you just HAVE to snatch an extra cookie from the buffet. Sometimes you buy a bag of snacks and want to keep the rest of them fresh in your hotel room. They come in handy if you have wet stuff or if you have bottles that might leak in your suitcase. Or, if you are like my mom who totes all the bathroom toiletries home, you'll need 'em.

PUREL to get rid of germs so you don't get sick.

Money.

Culinary workers face strike deadline in Las Vegas

Culinary Union Local 226 and Mission Industries faced a Tuesday deadline set by the union last week amid talks on a union health care plan. At stake is clean sheets and towels for all Las Vegas hotel guests. Almost 50 hotel-casinos use the company’s six local plants for sheets, towels and other services.

The company has says it is trying to renegotiate with some of its customers to help pay for a health plan it says is now double its current amount.

“The casinos have all been willing to listen and talk with us. They’ve been receptive,” David Spurlock Jr., general counsel for Mission Industries, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The company has said it will continue all of its services if workers strike.

Let me know if I need to pack my own towels and sheets...this won't keep me at home!

UPDATE: The union announced a tentative contract that will be presented for union ratification on Tuesday.

My First Time, The Stupidity Begins

The early 80's were a different time. I was young, newly single and ready for a change of pace. "Cuz" and I were raised together like sisters. Cuz is also newly single, her husband was tragically killed. Both of us are miserable over the holidays, our parents decided we need a trip to Las Vegas.

I fly to Phoenix and we drive through the desert. We pick up a couple of big cowboy hats at an outdoor market to shade us from the desert sun and we're off.

We've packed a list made up by our parents:

The strip is one way, lock up your parking spot early and walk.

Don't drink and drive.

Don't talk to strange men.

Play slot machines with bars on them.

Armed with our words of wisdom, maps, extra water for the car, a cocktail dress and some cash, we arrive at twilight just in time to see the neon.

My heart is pounding...I've never seen anything like this! I've lived in a pastoral farm community and this is amazing! I literally could feel the heat of the lightbulbs.

Then it happened...within minutes I became stupid. Yup, here I am, educated, sensible, managing a business..and I become stupid.
And, I'm having the time of my life.

Celebrity Sightings In Las Vegas

Vegas Virgins expect to see celebrities on their first trip. Sometimes you do, most times you don't. Sometimes you just stumble across one. They don't do Vegas like mere mortals, they have entourages. If you are clubbing, they're in private areas. You'll KNOW they are there, you may not see them. Just follow the flashbulbs and read about it the next day on the net.

My first trip to LV, I was in an elevator with Richard Pryor. I realized who he was the minute he said hello and I became mute. I couldn't open my mouth. I stood there like an idiot. All I remember is that he was very polite, totally unlike his on stage persona.

I've seen a variety of celebs and sometimes didn't recognize them. One day I was playing the slots at the Rio and had a great time bantering with the guy next to me. He was hilarious and we played for hours. When he got up to leave, I realized there was a group of people behind us. One man came up to me and kept saying...OMG...do you realize who that was? No, I didn't and I still don't know who he was. He was a golfer, he wasn't Tiger Woods. He was just a really fun person.

I was at Caesar's the night they opened Planet Hollywood in the Forum Shops. I was there with family and was totally oblivious to all the celebs milling about until Sylvester Stallone's body guards came by. They made us move from the machines we were playing so he could walk down the center of the aisle. Gimmeabreak! We were winning! Everytime I see a Rocky pic, I still get pissed off by his arrogance.

I had an encounter with Mike Tyson at the Venetian. I waved at him and he thought he knew me and came over to talk. I freaked. He was really polite and his face tattoo isn't as noticable in person. The same night I was chatting with some rappers who were sitting next to me in the Grand Luxe Cafe. Since I'm not into rap, I had no clue who they were, but they had a line of fans. They were fun, they let me wear their bling, they rapped for us and offered me and my husband back stage passes to their show. We would have gone if we were in town!

We've seen celebs like Doogie Houser, Kenny Rogers, Daisy Fuentes, Steven Tyler, Lou Gossett, and Senator John McCain on different trips. And you know what? They're just like us, only with more $$$$.

Las Vegas Makes Me Stupid!

Yes, its true. I've been known to become very stupid in Las Vegas. Maybe its the time change. Maybe its because I don't sleep very much. Maybe its the nonstop excitement. Maybe I've stepped one buffet over the line. Whatever it is, Las Vegas makes me stupid.

I hit the cash machine when I know I shouldn't because I'm sure I'm going to win a jackpot. Yes, I've actually hit jackpots. But most of the time the only jackpot is the payout at the cash machine.

I've been known to buy stuff that when I get home I wonder what I was thinking. It seemed like such a good idea at the time. I came home with three overpriced sparkly handbags. I LOVED them in LV. Back at the hometown grocery store, I get some strange looks.

I've bought makeup that looks ridiculous. Sephora is nirvana to me. Wall to wall cosmetics, I get stupid and fill up my basket. I'd never spend $50 on a lipstick at home, but in Vegas, I gotta have it. It made sense at the time. It was a good thing I had cash from a win, because if I had charged it, I would have been sick when the bill arrived. Another time my cousin who lives in LV convinced me I needed this thing that paints purple highlights in your hair. I've only used it on Halloween. At the time, it was wooo hoooo....purple highlights!

I've bought another suitcase in Vegas to haul home cheap junk that the casinos were handing out free and they sit in my basement. My husband went right along with it even though he knew I was toting home useless junk. Guess he figured it was easier than arguing with Stupid. But it was FREE!!

I went hiking in the desert. STUPID! It was nearly triple digits and I am deathly afraid of snakes. DUH.

I've gone to the pool without sunscreen. Dumb, stupid. I paid for it.

I let a hotel bartender mix me a special ladies drink at a slot tournament. I have very little alcohol tolerance, but this was so tropical and fruity. I ended up sitting in the elevator to go to my room. STUPID! I bet the people in the elevator thought I was a lush. I still had half of the drink in my hand.

I am the poster child for stupidity in Vegas. Don't be like me. Pack your brain when you travel. Oh, and by the way, I'm only stupid in Vegas. ;)

More polish for Golden Nugget

If you haven't stayed at the Golden Nugget downtown, there will be a lot more reasons for you to stay there. The hotel is not only the nicest hotel downtown, but its getting a facelift. I've stayed there, I'll stay there again. Downtown can be a lot of fun, wandering in and out of the casinos! And downtown is a great place to people watch!

More polish for Golden Nugget

Downtown hotel gets more space for casino, meetings; hotel tower to come

By BENJAMIN SPILLMAN
REVIEW-JOURNAL

A $70 million casino, convention and nightclub addition is nearly complete at the Golden Nugget in downtown Las Vegas.
Photo by John Gurzinski.

Last year owners of the Golden Nugget spent $100 million on the hotel's biggest upgrade since 1984 when Steve Wynn owned the property.

There's more where that came from.

Now Landry's Restaurants, a Houston-based company that bought the Golden Nugget in 2005, is finishing a $70 million casino, convention and nightclub addition.

As early as next year the company plans to spend another $150 million adding an approximately 500-room hotel tower with casino to what is already the swankiest spot on Fremont Street.

When the tower opens in 2009, Landry's will have spent more on renovations and additions to the Golden Nugget than they spent in 2005 acquiring the property and a sister hotel-casino in Laughlin for $295 million in cash and debt assumption.

To continue reading, click here.

The Top 10 things About Las Vegas That Makes Me Crazy!

# 10 Having to go to the cash machine. (again)

# 9 Finding out you passed a celebrity and didn't notice.

# 8 Having your spouse, partner or travel companion pout

# 7 Walking past the slot machine you played all day to see that it just hit the jackpot

# 6 Waiting for your luggage at McCarren airport.

# 5 Having to go to bed because you are so exhausted you can no longer function.

# 4 Paying $3.50 for a glass of iced tea in a cafe

# 3 Battling traffic on the strip

# 2 Waiting in line

# 1 Having to go home.

What are yours?