History Channel hits a basis-loaded Home Run: Counting Cars

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Danny The Count Koker
Danny "The Count" Koker

“Most people in Las Vegas bet with chips, but Danny “The Count” Koker bets with cars. Known from his numerous appearances on Pawn Stars, this Sin City legend walks, talks and breathes classic American muscle cars. When he sees a car he wants, he will do whatever it takes to get his hands on it—including making on-the-spot cash offers to unsuspecting owners. On the HISTORY series Counting Cars, Danny and his team restore, customize and sell cars in a hurry, scrambling to keep their Las Vegas shop in the black. From vintage Thunderbirds to classic Corvettes, toy cars to souped-up sidecar motorcycles, Danny and the crew of Count’s Kustoms will stop at nothing to find and flip the greatest rides of all time.” read more from the History Channel

The Count – A.K.A. “Count Cool Rider” as the head of the Koker & Family ownership group “purchased Channel 33, Inc. (first air date, 1989.) Under the Kokers, KFBT was an independent station with a firmly local flavor and soon garnered much acclaim with features such as the scary B-movie night Saturday Fright at the Movies, hosted by Count Cool Rider, which aired at 10 p.m. Count Cool Rider was actually Danny Koker, one of the station’s owners, who has since gone on to become a respected builder of custom motorcycles, as well as a regular expert on the History channel series Pawn Stars and host of its spinoff, Counting Cars.”

PAWN STAR’S bike-expert and way-cool, Danny Koker – AKA -The Count owns, operates and performs at COUNT’S VAMP’D – a Las Vegas rock ‘n’ roll club that was co-owned by Motley Crue frontman Vince Neil. “Count Vamp’d is the old Feelgoods in Vegas that was opened by investors with Vince Neil of Motley Crue being a minority investor and marketer. Once Neil got divorced he had to sell his stake in the business and the name had to change. Vamp’d is a dracula-themed rock club, bar/restaurant. Yes, it’s all those things. Unfortunately, I have not caught a show there yet so I cannot speak to the concert setup or sound. I do know they attract national to local acts, George Lynch probably the biggest name that hits there regularly, and local Vegas Iron Maiden tribute band ‘Aces High’ is also a regular. The bar itself is very cool, has lots of guitars behind glass, cool decor, and rock-star type memorabilia.” Access a previous LasVegasBuffetClub post on COUNT’S VAMP’D

…Not to mention, Count’s Kustoms

The History Channel’s Official Website
COUNT’S VAMP’D Official Website
Count’s Kustoms Official Website
Main pages of LasVegasBuffetClub.Com

Feds Investigate Sands Las Vegas

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Sheldon Adelson, Las Vegas Sands Corp
Sheldon Adelson, Las Vegas Sands Corp

Monday, August 06, 2012
KFI Los Angeles

WASHINGTON (AP)
Federal officials are investigating whether Las Vegas Sands Corp. broke federal law by failing to report millions of dollars of potentially laundered money transferred to its casinos by two high-rolling Las Vegas gamblers, according to the Wall Street Journal. Read more…

Visit the Palazzo Pages of LasVegasBuffetClub.Com

Sonny Liston, The Real Story Behind The Ali-Liston Fights

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SONNY LISTON
SONNY LISTON

Once again an early morning radio-show host was interviewing an author. The show was about the latest book on the powerful pugilist, heavyweight-champion, Sonny Liston. Since I “met”* Sonny Liston in Denver, the interview grabbed my interest. *”He was washing his car in his driveway and he shook my hand.”

Either during the course of the interview or reading it elsewhere, Sonny Liston’s kindness to much littler people – AKA kids – was brought up. I can vouch for that. He was indeed a gentle-giant, very soft-spoken and kind. I experienced not a trace of fear in the brief time I was in his presence. I don’t recall myself having any fear either.

“Someone finally has Sonny Liston’s back. Paul Gallender’s revealing biography, Sonny Liston – The Real Story Behind the Ali-Liston Fights, sheds new light on Liston’s tragic life and extraordinary talent.”

“In meticulous detail the author shows why the outcome of Sonny’s two bouts with Muhammad Ali had far more to do with what took place outside of the ring than in it. The truth about their one-round fight in Lewiston, Maine, will shock you.”

“When Sonny was forced to lie down against Ali in that fight, his reputation, career and legacy went down with him. He was barred from fighting anywhere in the United States. Just five-and-a-half years later, his wife, Geraldine, returned home to Las Vegas and found his body; he had been dead a week.”

“Most of the sporting press despised and feared Liston and was quick to demean and forget him after the Ali bouts. Because of the media’s unrelenting attacks most of what the world knows about Sonny has no basis in fact.”

“Sonny’s immense talent has been largely ignored but it has never been equaled. Half a century ago, he was to boxing what Babe Ruth was to baseball, what Tiger Woods became to golf, and what Usain Bolt is to track. The legendary Joe Louis called Liston the greatest heavyweight champion in history.”

“Gallender introduces you to a man you would have been proud to know – a man whose integrity, sense of fairness and depth of character was acknowledged for the most part only by his family, friends and children of every race. Once you start reading this book you won’t want to put it down.” read more…

Sonny Liston lived in Denver: “Subsequently Liston spent some months in Denver where a Catholic priest who acted as his spiritual adviser attempted to help him bring his drinking under control. After he won the title Liston relocated to Denver permanently, saying, “I’d rather be a lamppost in Denver than the mayor of Philadelphia.” More from WIKI…

Charles L. Sonny Liston
Charles L. "Sonny" Liston

Visit the main pages of LasVegasBuffetClub.Com

Another Full Moon August 1, 2012

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Full Moon
Full Moon

There will be yet another Full Moon Aug 1, 2012, 9:27 P.M. Las Vegas time.

From the Old Farmer’s Almanac:
“Historically, the Native Americans who lived in the area that is now the northern and eastern United States kept track of the seasons by giving distinctive names to the recurring full Moons.”

August’s moon is called The Full Sturgeon Moon

“Each full Moon name was applied to the entire month in which it occurred. These names, and some variations, were used by the Algonquin tribes from New England to Lake Superior.” read more about The Full Sturgeon Moon

“In August 2012, we will also enjoy a second full Moon on the 31st! The second full Moon in a month is commonly called a Blue Moon. This occurs about every 2.5 years.”

“Each month, we explain the names of the full Moon—plus, fascinating Moon facts:” The following video from The Old Farmer’s Almanac:

OUT WEST
Shoshone
Great Basin, Nevada, Wyoming
According to Western Washington University, the Shoshone word for August’s Moon is “guuteyai-mea'” meaning, “hot.”

BACK EAST
Mohawk
Eastern Woodlands
According to Western Washington University, The Mohawk word for August’s Moon is “seskehko:wa” meaning “time of freshness.”

Caesar’s gets key permit for Vegas Strip wheel

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550-foot-high observation wheel
550-foot-high observation wheel

“This artist rendering provided by Caesars Entertainment shows an artists[sic] rendering of a planned 550-foot-high observation wheel on the Strip in Las Vegas. The wheel is expected to be the largest in the world. The Caesars Entertainment is part of a planned $550 million development on the Strip. (AP Photo/Caesars Entertainment)”

Associated Press
By KEN RITTER

“LAS VEGAS — Caesars Entertainment Corp. announced Wednesday that it obtained a key county permit to build the world’s tallest observation wheel in a more than half-billion dollar retail, dining and entertainment complex it is developing on the Las Vegas Strip.”

“The Ferris-style wheel, dubbed the High Roller, is expected to stand 550 feet tall. It is the centerpiece of a planned $550 million development, dubbed LINQ, expected to open next year between the company’s Harrah’s Las Vegas, Imperial Palace and Flamingo Las Vegas casinos.”

“The height would eclipse the nearly 443-foot London Eye, which opened in 1999, and the 541-foot Singapore Flyer, which opened in 2008. Both were the tallest observation wheels in the world when they opened.”

“The Caesars project would also be taller than a 500-foot wheel called SkyVue currently under construction about 3 miles south on Las Vegas Boulevard. That wheel is also expected to open in late 2013″ read more…

“Support structures are now about 200 feet high for the rival SkyVue wheel, being built by developer Howard Bulloch and Compass Investments across the Strip from the Mandalay Bay resort, near McCarran International Airport.”

Bada Bing Bada Boom, here’s the review of Jersey Boys

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Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons
Jersey Boys AKA Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons

Quite simply stated, Jersey Boys is one of the best audio/visual things I’ve ever experienced. The way more than apt individual who wrote/programmed the set-design/lighting hit a bases-loaded, home-run with me. The set design itself, in terms of walls, furniture, stage-lighting etc. was gorgeous, if not remarkable, but there’s another facet to the design. Large 1/4-stage size? planes of light at the back of the stage changed colors and danced to the music, in fact the phrase that came to mind was that the planes of light were the fifth instrument. For those of you – and you know who you are – the fifth instrument refers to 50s – 60s rock and roll groups that usually had only four instruments: Drums, bass-guitar, lead-guitar and rhythm-guitar. Often the planes of light were big blocks of artist’s blue.

The only iffy thing for me was that there was not one out of four, of the lead-actors in the show, with an Italian surname. In fact I recall only two or three Italian names in the entire cast of 20-30. And this is a musical about basically five or six American Italians from New Jersey. Having said that, the players that played the Jersey Boys couldn’t have been better. Not attempting to mimic or copy Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons’ voices, they just did their own thing, and their thing was good, very good.

The music was loud – good loud – and was note perfect. There was a drum set center-stage, rear and it was working throughout the night. It was difficult to determine what other – if any – instruments were plugged in as most of the soundtrack was prerecorded. If I’m wrong please let me know. It was a bit unsettling to discover the recorded soundtrack, but I got over it and really enjoyed the show.

All the great recordings from Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, starting with SHERRY were performed with great skill and expertise. And maybe, with great respect – I’m speaking of the viewpoint of the story writers.

“Jersey Boys is a jukebox musical with music by Bob Gaudio, lyrics by Bob Crewe and book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. It is a documentary-style musical, based on one of the most successful 1960s rock ‘n roll groups, the Four Seasons. The musical opened on Broadway in 2005, and has since had a North American National Tour, along with productions in London’s West End, Las Vegas, Chicago, Toronto, Melbourne, Sydney, Philadelphia, Auckland and currently in Brisbane. Jersey Boys won four 2006 Tony Awards including Best Musical.’

Marshall Brickman
“was a member of the folk trio The Tarriers in the late 50s, with Eric Weissberg and actor Alan Arkin. He played Bluegrass guitar on the 1963 album New Dimensions in Banjo and Bluegrass with Weissberg;” “this was later reissued as Dueling Banjos, a pseudo-soundtrack album for Deliverance in 1973. (The title track was the only piece that was actually used in the film.) IMdB;” “he sang with John Phillips and Michelle Phillips in The New Journeymen before they split off to become 1/2 of the Mamas and the Papas He was an American screenwriter, best known for his collaborations with Woody Allen. He is also known for playing the banjo with Eric Weissberg in the 1960s, and for a series of comical parodies published in The New Yorker.” – Wikipedia. Makes you wonder!!!

Rick Elice
“Elice earned his BA from Cornell University, his MFA from the Yale Drama School and is a Teaching Fellow at Harvard. He was the salutatorian graduate of Francis Lewis High School in Queens, New York (class of 1973). He is a charter member of the American Repertory Theatre. His partner is actor Roger Rees.”

Bob Crew comes out as the big winner/mover and shaker, record producer/song writer, ain’t it always so.

Get to the theater.

Jersey Boys
Buell Theatre
Denver, CO 80204

Tickets/Tours
303.893.4100 | 800.641.1222
TTY: 303.893.9582
Hours: 10am-6pm Mon-Sat

Live Support
Speak with a real person seven days a week.
1 – 888 – 546 – 8561

“Times for ‘Jersey Boys’ are at 7:30 PM from Tuesdays to Sundays. Matinee performances are at 2 PM on weekends with a special matinee on August 9, Thursday, at 2 PM.”

Box Office, Theatres, Seawell Grand Ballroom Speer & Arapahoe
Drop off location 14th & Curtis St.

Check out another post about The Jersey Boys

The Denver Connection: Jersey Boys/Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons

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Frankie Valley & The Four Seasons
Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons

I was just invited to see Jersey Boys at the *Buell Theatre in Denver. I mentioned to the inviter that there is a Denver connection to Jersey Boys.

“Jersey Boys is a jukebox musical with music by Bob Gaudio, lyrics by Bob Crewe and book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. It is a documentary-style musical, based on one of the most successful 1960s rock ‘n roll groups, the Four Seasons. The musical opened on Broadway in 2005, and has since had a North American National Tour, along with productions in London’s West End, Las Vegas, Chicago, Toronto, Melbourne, Sydney, Philadelphia, Auckland and currently in Brisbane. Jersey Boys won four 2006 Tony Awards including Best Musical” more from WIKI

The Denver connection is a Green Eyed Lady. Denver’s own Jerry Corbetta (born September 23, 1947, in Denver, CO was a founding-member of Boulder, Colorado’s, 70s psychedelic-rock-band, Sugarloaf. Sugarloaf’s, Green Eyed Lady reached #3 on Billboards Hot 100 in 1970. Don’t Call Us We’ll Call You was another national hit by these inovative musicians. In the 80s, Jerry Corbetta joined the Four Seasons‘ line-up and the group became a sextet. “He [Jerry Corbetta] co-produced Frankie Valli’s critically acclaimed album “Heaven Above Me“, then was asked to join The Four Seasons for their Twentieth Anniversary Tour.” read more…

Sugarloaf with Jerry Corbetta
Sugarloaf with Jerry Corbetta, blue shirt

Read all about it here:

*Buell Theatre is located in the Denver Performing Arts Complex which is the second largest of its type in the world to New York’s Lincoln Center. The DPAC is located at 1031 13th Street on 12 acre site including ten performance venues connected by a tall glass roof. Buell Theatre Tickets used to be known as the Temple Buell Theatre.[sic]

Check back in a few days for the review…

LVH – A.K.A. The Las Vegas Hotel, formerly The Las Vegas Hilton

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This post is for those who may have missed the seemingly, seamless shift from Las Vegas Hilton to Las Vegas Hotel. Seems it was just a matter of a few letters, right Vanna White…

LVH AKA Las Vegas Hotel
LVH AKA Las Vegas Hotel

The hotel left Hilton at the end of 2011 and was renamed LVH – Las Vegas Hotel & Casino on January 3, 2012.

The LVH – Las Vegas Hotel & Casino (formerly the Las Vegas Hilton) is a hotel, casino, and convention center in Paradise, Nevada. It is a joint venture between Colony Capital, which owns 60 percent, and New York City-based REIT Whitehall Street Real Estate Funds, which owns the remaining 40 percent.[1] It has 2,956 hotel rooms and 305 suites. Located on 64 acres (26 ha), it has a 74,000 square feet (6,900 m2) casino and is also home to the largest sports book in Las Vegas read more from WIKI…

Here’s a link to The Las Vegas Hotels’ Official Website
Visit the LasVegasBuffetClubs’ page on The Las Vegas Hotel

Woman hits the streets to beg for money…for breast implants

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Monday, July 16, 2012, KFI AM Radio, Los Angeles

WATCH: Woman hits the streets to beg for money…for breast implants
Dressed in a bikini, Chrissy Lance staked out an Ohio street corner to collect money with a sign that read “Not homeless. Need boobs.”

(KFI 640 AM) In Akron, a panhandler is drawing a lot of attention. But in this case, it's not about money or food. Instead, one woman is panhandling for breast implants.

Dressed in a bikini, Chrissy Lance of Rittman, staked out the corner of Manchester Road and Carnegie Avenue to collect money with a sign that read Not homeless. Need boobs.
Dressed in a bikini, Chrissy Lance of Rittman, staked out the corner of Manchester Road and Carnegie Avenue to collect money with a sign that read "Not homeless. Need boobs."

Read more...