Recession Road Trip author finds apt subject in Las Vegas

By John Katsilometes

Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2009 | 8:46 p.m.

You can judge a person by the level of spiciness he or she selects for dishes served at Lotus of Siam.

If the person sitting across from you chooses “10,” and has to be talked down to “9,” and then finds “9” a little wimpy, then you are dining with an intrinsically adventurous sort.

Freelance journalist Christina Davidson is one of these “10” people, which I found during a hastily arranged dinner on the evening of Aug. 31. “Ten? You sure?” the waiter asked after giving the usual spiciness range of 1 to 10. He kept saying “You sure?” until she finally agreed to cut the "severity" level to 9. As it turns out, nine is not that terrifying, but we never would have known if Davidson had not shot that high.

Davidson uses the same gun-for-10 approach in her work, which at the moment is a 4 ½-month, 20,000-mile meander across the contiguous United States for a project for Atlantic Monthly titled Recession Road Trip. When Davidson hit Vegas on this trip, driving rented Prius No. 5, she was so new to the city that she told me she was staying “downtown” at Harrah's. But she swiftly learned the lay of the land, in small part because the day that I interviewed her for “Our Metropolis” (the episode aired Sept. 8), I took her for a spin through the Commercial Center and the Arts District. Typical tourist traps, yes. That’s when we decided to eat at Lotus of Siam, as Davidson is fond of Thai cuisine -- especially if the restaurant is positioned next to a 45-year-old pool hall and equally aged wig shop.

Davidson also likes to dig for recession stories, even when her three-state-per-week schedule (during which she takes her own photos) puts uncanny demands on her time. Our meeting was a fortuitous crossing of paths arranged by an Atlantic Monthly staffer in Washington, D.C., who caught me in e-mail. After the 30-minute “Our Metro” interview and quick tour of Vegas, I dropped Davidson back off at Harrah's, wondering what she would uncover over the next several hours. As her work reveals, she displayed remarkable story-seeking dexterity by dialing up a targeted Craigslist search and finding the right story: a young man she dubbed “Jimmy,” who has been delving into the quick-buck world of erotic massage for males. But finding this young man was only the beginning. Davidson drew him into a conversation on Fremont Street -- the real downtown -- spending several hours with Jimmy, usurping his story and then writing a lengthy, detailed and fascinating tale.

It is just one account of many compelling, touching and revealing stories Davidson is writing for her Atlantic blog. The Recession Road Trip will likely be a book at the end of this journey, sure to be a satisfactorily spicy account of her time spent on the road. We’ll give it a 9, at least.

Swayze mourned by NBT

Patrick Swayze’s death Monday at age 57 of pancreatic cancer rekindled fond memories of his visit four years ago to Nevada Ballet Theater. In July 2005, Swayze and his wife, Lisa Niemi, hosted a talk at the NBT Academy dance studio, spending a couple hours talking with students, parents and staff about his acting and dancing career. In November, he returned to Las Vegas to host a screening of the film “One Last Dance” at Brenden Theatres at the Palms, with proceeds from ticket sales donated to the theater company. “He was the biggest non-celebrity celebrity I’ve ever met. He was just very down to earth,” NBT Director of Public Relations Jenn Kratochwill said today in a phone conversation. “It was one of the coolest experiences we’ve had with a celebrity. He was totally gracious and kind.”

Love it

A few nights ago, just as I was about to drift off to sleep, I heard this weird conversation between Craig Ferguson and guest Mindy Kaling of “The Office” on Ferguson’s “The Late Show.” At 1:31 a.m., I tweeted on my busy Twitter account: “On ‘Late Late Show,' Mindy Kaling of ‘The Office’ is KILLING the area around Luv-It Custard. ‘The sketchiest neighborhood ever,’ she says."

I didn’t anticipate the fervent Luv-It fallout chronicled by my colleague Kristen Peterson. I’ll only say that if Kaling or anyone else thinks that the Luv-It locale (across from Dino’s on Las Vegas Boulevard) is a sketchy location for a business, he/she never picked up a vehicle from Buffalo Jim Barrier's Allstate Auto & Marine at dusk. That used-condom-strewn, drug-abuse-laden Industrial Road parcel where the big mechanic/entrepreneur/Las Vegas caricature used to service vehicles was some real sketchy.

Shots for the house

One of the two Melting Pots shuttered in June -- the Summerlin location -- is back in business tonight. … The California on Fremont Street is hosting a three-day event for University of Hawaii football backers as the Warriors take on UNLV. The highlight is a tailgate party from 4 to 7 p.m. in the Main Street Station parking lot. The Hawaiian-themed Cal has long been a favorite of those from the islands. … In an interview with Jim Moret on “Inside Edition,” O.J. Simpson’s ex-girlfriend Christie Prody, who stood by Simpson during his trial in Las Vegas, says she believes Simpson killed Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman. Prody says Simpson “in so many words” told her that, for what it’s worth. … Making an appearance on “Wheel of Fortune,” at this very writing, is a masked Tony Crivello of “Phantom -- The Las Vegas Spectacular” in the shows taped at The Venetian in July. Crivello, one of the city’s best NFL handicappers (and I am including the pros in this) is already 3-0 in the Sun’s annual celeb NFL handicapping contest. A native of Milwaukee, Crivello is a major Green Bay Packers fan who once joked that “Phantom” producers should give fans attending shows during the NFL season green-and-gold Phantom masks.

Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at twitter.com/JohnnyKats.