Columnist Kate Maddox: Cassidy ‘At the Copa’ no more

Kate Maddox

Friday, Dec. 1, 2000 | 11:26 a.m.

Kate Maddox's column appears Fridays, Sundays and Tuesdays. Reach her at kmaddox@lasvegassun.com.

Johnny Flamingo has left the building. David Cassidy, who has starred in the Rio's "At the Copa" production with Sheena Easton for a little more than a year, is closing up shop. The singer/actor announced at a Thursday news conference that he would no longer do his show and will instead work with Harrah's in a strictly concert-performance capacity.

Cassidy intends to tour most of Harrah's 21 U.S. properties, giving 30 concerts over the next year.

For Cassidy the change had more to do with an overloaded schedule than unhappiness with his current production. Cassidy says this freshly inked deal will allow him "more freedom" and "a better quality of life overall."

The former teen dream also said that recent concerts at Harrah's properties in Atlantic City and Laughlin made him realize just how popular he still is with his fans. "People still want to see me, thank God," Cassidy said. "I miss that kind of connection with the audience."

Cassidy intends to perform worldwide over the next year and mentioned plans for two gigs at Royal Albert Hall in London. He's also close to signing a new record deal with "a major label" and heading into the studio to record a double-album set for release in the summer of 2001.

Cassidy also hopes to resuscitate his acting career. The singer has a part in a low-budget indie feature scheduled to begin filming in February. Cassidy described the flick as "dark, very dark," and said it's something along the lines of "Pulp Fiction." Cassidy said production would begin as soon as a female co-star is cast. Paging Sheena Easton ... or, maybe not.

Speaking of Easton, she has yet to announce her plans after "At the Copa" ends on Jan. 21. For the record, Cassidy did say that during his Rio stay he "never had any problems with workmates ... (I) never yelled and screamed ..." Curiously, however, Easton was absent from the news conference, and although Cassidy profusely thanked just about everyone who helped make his show at the Rio a success, he never once mentioned his co-star.

Rocker Sammy Hagar is bringing a branch of his popular Cabo San Lucas nightclub to Las Vegas. The former Van Halen frontman has just agreed to a deal with Station Casinos to build a new 20,000-square-foot club at Sunset Station. Cabo Wabo is scheduled to open in December 2001 as part of Sunset's ongoing expansion project.

The deal also includes performance dates for Hagar, who intends to rock out at the multilevel nightclub at least once a year.

Hagar is scheduled to be in town today to announce the club deal and a Thomas & Mack concert date for Jan. 26.

I owe Wayne Newton an apology. I assumed that Newton's Thanksgiving trip to boost Republican morale in Florida was a paying gig. I was wrong. Newton was asked by the Bush/Cheney camp to entertain, but he donated his time to the cause. He even flew down on his very own private jet. So free turkey or no, it was a gesture from the heart.

And in movie news, two more bold-facers have signed on for Steven Soderbergh's "Ocean's Eleven" remake. Casey Affleck (younger brother of Ben) and Scott Caan (son of James) will co-star along with George Clooney, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts.

In a curious new addition to the story, Affleck and Caan will play Mormon brothers enlisted to help pull off a casino heist. Cameras are scheduled to roll on the Rat Pack revival in February.