Uber’s first rider in Las Vegas sings its praises

By John Katsilometes

Sunday, Nov. 9, 2014 | 2 a.m.

Information culled from around the VegasVille landscape:

• Who was the first official Uber passenger ever in Las Vegas?

Brandon Flowers.

The Killers frontman and longtime Las Vegas resident (a former bellman at Gold Coast, for another slice of triviata) is recognized by Uber as the company’s first ride in this city. He ordered a vehicle Oct. 24, during the ride-sharing program’s statewide debut.

As Uber trumpeted on its website, Flowers “was so excited to finally have the ability to get picked up at his home beyond the Strip that he requested an uberX as soon as he heard we launched. Brandon is officially Las Vegas’ Rider Zero.”

Probably, the experience was Uber-Killer?

• Months ago, we wrote about Felix Rappaport’s move to Foxwoods Resort in Mashantucket, Conn., after a two-decade career as a resort executive in Las Vegas. Rappaport’s last stop was Mirage, following a stint as dual president of Luxor and Excalibur. He took over as vice president and chief operating officer of Foxwoods in February, during Super Bowl weekend.

Since then, the resort has embraced a trio of the Luxor’s more popular stage attractions.

In May, Rappaport booked a new version of the popular production “Menopause The Musical” to that hotel’s Fox Theater. This month, he lured Carrot Top for a show and magician Criss Angel for performances Nov. 13-15.

That means three of the Luxor’s headlining shows are being performed in November in Connecticut, with only the masked dance troupe “Jabbawockeez” and the adult revue “Fantasy” unaccounted for. “Menopause” marks the first time Foxwoods has staged a musical production. Rappaport has said the hotel is looking for broad appeal at its theaters and seeking Vegas acts and productions was a good place to start.

• The most positive news to hit Tivoli Village in at least a month is Alex Stratta’s plan to open a tapas restaurant, fittingly to be called Tapas. Five businesses at retail complex in the northwest have closed in recent weeks, and Tivoli is feeling heavy competition for foot traffic from the newly opened Downtown Summerlin and adjacent Boca Park.

Stratta’s venture at Tivoli is a return to operations in Las Vegas, as his namesake restaurant Alex at Wynn Las Vegas closed in January 2011.

• I keep seeing this Geico commercial featuring former UNLV grid star and Cincinnati Bengals running back Ickey Woods. He’s waiting in line at a deli counter in a supermarket, holding a slip of paper with a number for an order of cold cuts.

This commercial’s flaws are widespread. Let’s line ’em up:

1) Woods is wearing a jersey with his college and NFL number, 30. But the number he has drawn is 44, which most sports fans associate with, oh, Reggie Jackson. The number should be 30, to match Woods’ uniform.

2) Woods performs the famous “Ickey Shuffle” dance, which is familiar to football fans who remember his great rookie season. But he also is shouting, “Gonna get some cold cuts, gonna get some cold cuts!” and “Gimme some!” Fans will fondly remember just the dance, not Woods shouting about anything. Just do the dance.

3) While still holding the number, Woods spikes the package of cold cuts he, evidently, just received from the guy at the counter. He shouldn’t have the slip of paper if he has taken the order. They should have tossed him a block of cheese and let him spike that.

• One of the busiest attractions in the city, the Mob Museum, is commemorating the 65th anniversary of the Kefauver Committee hearing on Nov. 15 by offering free admission for Nevada residents from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The hearing took place in that building Nov. 15, 1950, when it was the Federal Courthouse. Non-Nevada residents will be offered 2-for-1 tickets.

The Kefauver Hearings were conducted by Sen. Estes Kefauver and famously exposed organized crime and many of the mobsters of the Mafia underworld.