Print edition for December 20, 1996

Concert Information: WHERE: Stardust hotel-casino.

Jay White Fast Facts: Occupation: Neil Diamond impersonator

Imitation Diamond: Lisa Ferguson; Sure, he looks like Diamond, sounds like Diamond and even acts like Diamond.

Louie: a funny way to spend 90 minutes: Joe Delaney; This was followed by 20 minutes or so of observations on the airport, gaming, Caesars Forum Shops and the talking statues, hotel rooms and beds, before doing "Where are you from?," a true impromptu with audience members. Very few comedians can do this and be consistently funny, working without a net, doing so without offending anyone.

Mickey Rooney to headline holiday show at Gold Coast: Rooney, 76, has been a Las Vegas headliner since the city's birth as the entertainment capital of the world in the late 1940s.

NLV man charged in slaying: Roy Whittaker, 21, also known as "Roy-Mac" and "Mac-Villain," was arrested at 7:30 a.m. on the street near his North Las Vegas residence, Lt. Chris Larotonda said.

After 50 years, Siegel legend haunts resort: Robert Macy; But the opening of Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel's Flamingo Hotel on Dec. 26, 1946, forever changed the face and fortunes of Las Vegas.

Helping to make a merrier holiday: Art Nadler; Why not ask the guys to pitch in a few bucks and buy some presents for needy kids around town? Mike Pitts thought the idea had merit.

Strip casino exec disputes $25,000 fine: Hans Dorweiler, director of casino operations at the Strip hotel-casino, charged Thursday that state agents used "coercion and entrapment."

SMU plans to name new coach: Dallas-Fort Worth television stations KXAS and KDFW also cited unidentified sources as saying Cavan was SMU's choice to succeed Rossley, fired Nov. 25 after compiling a 15-48-3 record in six seasons.

Variety Club events 'Honor the Children': Proceedings start with breakfast at McDonald's. The youngsters will be escorted to the Stratosphere Showroom where they will be entertained by comedian-magician and Variety Club Board member Nick Lewin, star of Maxim's Comedy Magic Show, the Roxy Diner performers, have their accomplishments acknowledged and be presented with their bicycles and special equipment.

Postal Shootings: * JULY 9, 1995: A postal worker walked up to his boss in a processing center in City of Industry, Calif., pulled a handgun from a paper bag and shot him to death. Bruce William Clark, 58, was arrested.

Salvation Army not likely to reach fund-raising goal: "To date, we have only collected about $125,000, and with just a few days left in the Christmas season, it seems unlikely that we will even collect as much as the $221,000 we took in last year," said Lt. Col. Jim Sullivan.

Implant ruling attacked: "It flies in the face of the 9th Circuit," White said on Thursday.

Las Vegas Bowl: UNR-Wilkins 16 pass from Dutton (Shea kick), 3:21.

UNLV students tell city's story with photos in 'Planet Vegas': The project includes photographs of every motel on Las Vegas Boulevard south of Fremont Street as well as wedding chapels. Also included are "casino still-lifes," featuring artfully arranged slot machines.

Lied presents a journey to the Philippines: Activities kick off at noon with a presentation of dozens of "parol," paper lanterns that are hung in the windows of Philippine homes at Christmas. A "sipa" toy-making activity will also be presented.

Columnist Joe Delaney: Tragedy is easy, comedy is tough: Joe Delaney; Las Vegas is fortunate this weekend before Christmas in having two very funny people -- gentle, warm, sensitive comedians -- working in town: Louie Anderson with his "Holiday Special" at Bally's through Christmas Day, and the very ladylike Rita Rudner, through Sunday (Desert Inn).

Prep Classic Results, Local Boxes, and Leaders: Bishop Gorman 60, Toxteth (England) 43

Third time charm for UNR: By Brian Hilderbrand; For starters, the two teams quashed the belief that pairing the champions from the Big West and Mid-American conferences automatically leads to a wide-open, high-scoring contest. Thursday night's contest was the lowest-scoring of the five Las Vegas Bowls.

LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY 1997 SCHEDULE: * SHORT OVAL: FEB. 9: Supermodifieds, USAC midgets, sprint cars. MARCH 14: Open Comp late models, celebrity legends cars, demolition derby. MARCH 15: Legends cars, barbecue. MARCH 22: Late models, limited late models, street stocks, mini-stocks. APRIL 12: Late models, limited late models, Grand American modifieds, legends cars. APRIL 19: Late models, limited late models, street stocks, mini-stocks. MAY 10: Late models, limited late models, Grand American modifieds, legends cars. MAY 17: Late models, limited late models, street stocks, mini-stocks. MAY 31: Late models, limited late models, Grand American modifieds, legends cars, demolition derby. JUNE 14: Late models, limited late ...

Rebels under the gun in Shootout tourney: Steve Carp; But there's no getting around it. Saturday's nationally televised game with Tulane is crucial to the Rebels' season.

'American Superstars' move up at Stratosphere Tower: The new show features the addition of singer/entertainer "Marvelous Marva" Scott performing as Diana Ross with the Supremes.

Myst, LV game hot items: Two popular computer games are expected to surge, one because of a price cut, the other because of its availability in an Apple operating system.

Former 'Brady' on Christmas concert bill: David Renzi; If his second time on a Las Vegas stage is anything like his first, Barry Williams might be tempted to sing "Jingle Smells."

Artillery shells test successful: It was the first of four tests to analyze emissions that would be given off by open-air disposal of munitions and rocket motors.

505401555.html: SATURDAY

Black Book deletes Civella: While the Civella brothers, who once ran Kansas City's crime hierarchy, are out of the book, Carl's son Anthony has been nominated for inclusion in the document.

Sierra winter will make a cold debut: A winter storm watch was in place for northern Washoe County and the adjoining Sierra starting tonight.

NFL Roundup: Buffalo, Kansas City have final shots at the playoffs: Barry Wilner; On Sunday, they meet at Orchard Park, N.Y., with the winner headed to the postseason and the loser possibly headed home. Should Jacksonville beat Atlanta, the Buffalo-Kansas City loser is out.

Letter: Destroy that plutonium in domestic power plants: And stop talking about fairness. All is fair only in love and war. Fairness, just like in affirmative action, implies equality without rationality, or in other words, fabricated equality.

Fire destroys travel trailer: The trailer, parked in the driveway of a home at Johnson Avenue and North Honolulu Street near Charleston Boulevard, was fully engulfed in flames when Las Vegas Fire Department firefighters arrived at 12:30 a.m., spokesman Timothy Szymanski said.

Giuliani warns gaming boat customers: Giuliani said he had no evidence of anything improper about the operation, but said his concerns were justified in light of the historical links between gambling and organized crime.

Lady Rebels 70, Fairfield U: ne ap ateb UNLV LADY REBELS (2-5) %

Ormsby House gets last chance to sell: "You probably won't have much rope left," Commission member William Urga told Silverton in describing the panel's likely attitude at its February meeting if there's no sale by then to Patriot American Hospitalities Corp. of Dallas.

Sports Briefs: Thunder tries to end losing streak: The IHL Southwest Division foes meet at 5 p.m. in the Summit as the Thunder plays its eighth of nine consecutive road games this month. The game will be televised on Prime Cable channels 1 and 48 on broadcast on KENO 1460-AM.

New Year's Eve's big block party shuts down streets: Cathy Scott; And with the planned implosion of the Hacienda hotel-casino at 9 p.m., New Year's Eve on the Strip is expected to be busier than ever, police said.

N.C. team counting on LV title: Tim Graham; Winning Monday night's championship game is the only acceptable outcome.

LVMS releases 1997 schedule: The IRL and IMSA dates still are tentative but look to be done deals. LVMS president Richie Clyne said earlier this week the IRL announcement was being held up by television negotiations -- both LVMS and the IRL want to run the race at night, but haven't been able to tie down a prime-time TV slot.

NFL Capsules: How they match up for last week of regular season: PATRIOTS (10-5) AT GIANTS (6-9)

Columnist Ken McCall: There's nothing rewarding about these cases: Ken McCall; Forget about it.

Patients get free transportation: Round-trip transportation is provided free of charge to allow patients who are usually unable to spend the holiday with family and friends.

College Notes: Iowa State's Davis opts for NFL Draft: With one faxed announcement, Iowa State offensive coordinator Steve Loney's job got a lot harder.

Frontier goes to court to try to muzzle lawyer: Sworn statements that Las Vegas attorney Will Kemp took from the former head of a Frontier spy squad used against striking workers have prompted SUN stories the past week disclosing alleged wrongdoing at the Strip resort.

Promoter considers McCall replacement: Dean Juipe; With Oliver McCall increasingly unreliable, preliminary plans are already being made to find a replacement for him in the event he drops out of his Feb. 7 World Boxing Council heavyweight title fight with Lennox Lewis at the Las Vegas Hilton.

AIDS doctor first citizen of month: Cade, a member of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS, was to be honored at 10 a.m. today at City Hall. Cade treated Nevada's first AIDS patient in the early 1980s, and spearheaded the creation of University Medical Center's AIDS ward and an AIDS hospice.

State ponders role after utility deregulation: Larry Henry; When night comes, she returns to a mobile home at the foot of Mount Charleston, slips under a pile of blankets and shivers in the darkness.

Sal DeFilippo: Playoffs never easy to calculate in NFL: OK, so it isn't natural to assume the postseason fate of the Indianapolis Colts could depend on whether the Bills tie the Chiefs on Sunday.

Panthers to end perfect at home: Dave Goldberg; Instead, it's a matchup of two teams headed for the playoffs, with the Panthers looking like an NFL power.

Steve Carp: It's time to change bowl game format: That sparse turnout is Exhibit A for changing the format, if not the day and time this game is played. After five years of predominantly empty seats in the stadium, it's crystal-clear Las Vegas isn't willing to support a game involving the Big West and Mid-American Conference champions.

NBA keeping an eye on prep star Odom: Tim Graham; That's all Los Angeles Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak needed to find out if scouting potential UNLV recruit Lamar Odom was worth his time.

Friends: Slain Postal worker a good person: Cathy Scott; Friends of James "Jay" Brown, who was gunned down outside the Sunset Road post office, allegedly by an employee he had fired, expressed disbelief at the news of his death.

Double dealing: Warren Richey; WASHINGTON -- The first step of Earl Edwin Pitts's career as a double agent was direct. In July 1987, he sent a letter to a Soviet official at the United Nations seeking a meeting with the KGB.

Nevada will get Utah elk: Division employees used a helicopter Wednesday to trap the elk. The animals were herded into a holding area, and then 54 of them were loaded into horse trailers for a ride northward to Hardware Ranch southeast of Logan.