Columnist Joe Delaney: Fond memories of the greats at Circus Maximus

Joe Delaney

Thursday, Aug. 31, 2000 | 9:26 a.m.

Joe Delaney's column appears on Thursdays and Fridays. Reach him at 259-4066 or joe@lasvegassun.com.

Caesars Palace closes its Circus Maximus to the public Sunday with Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gorme's final performance, but will remain open for a private gathering on Monday ... As soon as that is over, the wrecking crew will move in, and another important vestige of Las Vegas' glory days will disappear ... We've been told there will be a new and even better showroom/theater somewhere on the property ... Time will tell.

We were there on Aug. 5, 1966, when the Circus Maximus opened with Andy Williams, Elaine Dunn and "Rome Swings," a mini-revue with 15 dancers at the start of the show ... Williams is now ensconced in his own theater in Branson, Mo., and well-invested in that area.

The Newley story

Following is a story I've related to readers of this column before, following Anthony Newley's death in April 1999:

Some three months prior to the opening, Caesars entertainment director Dave Victorson swore me to secrecy when he told me his selection as the hotel's first headliner would be Newley ... Newley was hot on Broadway with "Stop the World, I Want to Get Off" and could not be available; the honor went to Williams, who later brought in the Osmonds.

Newley finally made his Caesars Palace debut three years and two days later, on Aug. 7, 1969 ... I was there, sitting in a booth with comedian Jackie Gayle, a constant talker, who this night sat in complete silence, awed as I was by Newley's brilliance as a performer.

That Sunday's single performance, a dinner show, had been bought out by the John Deere Tractor Co. as part of an around-the-world tour for its top tractor salesmen ... My wife, Roberta, and I were the only two in the showroom not associated with the John Deere people.

What happened

The Deere salesmen were due in at noon ... They were delayed at the airport in Hawaii and arrived at 8 p.m., tired, sullen, some besotted, in Hawaiian shirts, shorts, sandals, with dead leis around their necks, angry, hostile at best ... Food service was started and Newley introduced as the group was seated ... They had no idea who Newley was or what he did.

The next hour was an unmitigated disaster ... Somehow Newley got through the worst audience I've ever experienced anywhere ... Before going backstage I rang Victorson at home and suggested he come in ... Near tears, Newley wanted to cancel the rest of the three-week run.

Victorson prevailed; Newley stayed on and did so well, Caesars presented him with an expensive sports car on stage on closing night ... Las Vegas never became Newley's bailiwick ... He went on to play the Riviera and the Sands Copa Room but never quite recovered from that Sunday night at Caesars.

Sad finale

Newley, retired and ill, passed away last year in Florida ... We were quite close during the years he worked in Las Vegas, to the point that we had planned working together on a documentary of the troubles in Northern Ireland as seen through the eyes of an English Jew and an American of Irish descent ... It would have been an honor to work with him, a great talent, a gentle man.

Back to Caesars

Nero's Nook was the class of the Las Vegas lounges, really a mini-showroom ... It also opened on Aug. 5, 1966, as well with Harry and Jimmy Ritz, the Ritz Brothers ... Harry Ritz was a comedic original, many of the comedians who followed -- and a number of his contemporaries as well -- "borrowed" from him ... He was also a master storyteller ... More Caesars reminiscences Friday.

Star-policy rundown

It's George Carlin (Bally's); Steve & Eydie (Caesars Palace); Clint Holmes (Harrah's); Howie Mandel (LV Hilton); Bill Acosta (Luxor); Rodney Dangerfield plus Rita Rudner (MGM Grand); Siegfried & Roy plus Danny Gans (Mirage); Lance Burton (Monte Carlo); Little River Band (New Orleans); David Cassidy-Sheena Easton (Rio); and Melinda, the First Lady of Magic (Venetian).

Recommended: Sonny King and Peter Anthony, 3 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 3 and 7:30 p.m. Monday (Regent Las Vegas) ... Marv Koral's All-Stars, featuring Carl Fontana are at Houlihan's on Rainbow Boulevard at Lake Mead Boulevard, 7-10 p.m. ... See you Friday.