Threat of Y2K glitches doesn’t faze Streisand fans

Kimberley McGee

Monday, Jan. 3, 2000 | 4:32 a.m.

The lack of New Year's Eve fireworks on the Strip didn't much matter to the thousands of fans at the Barbra Streisand concert.

They were waiting for something more lasting to begin onstage at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

"I love the lady," Craig Jones said as he cradled his wife, Leann, against his shoulder.

While the world waited for word on Y2K glitches, the Streisand fans filed into the arena. They weren't wondering about any lack of money, water or energy. They just wanted to hear a few notes from the famous "Funny Girl."

Scalpers were out and about, but the well-dressed crowd wasn't buying, simply waiting for their diva to dig into some favorite hits. This concert was rumored to be her last.

"I thought I'd meet more jerks here in Vegas," Leann Jones said. "It's nice to meet so many nice people here."

Although they said that Y2K was breathing down their necks, they relaxed within the confines of the arena.

"We think everything is going to be fine," Leann Jones said. "We just want to see Barbra."

Michael Beuer of Chicago didn't mind the Y2K bug -- it was secondary to his favorite crooner. "It is the voice that does it to me," Beuer said. "It touches my soul. It really does. She can turn my bad mood to a good mood."

Above all, he wanted to be near the Golden Voice.

"Just to be in the same room with her is enough," Beuer said. "She affects me. Her voice, her music is traditional. I'll put money on it -- (people) will listen to Streisand in 20 years. She is like Sinatra."

Rumors had circulated that Streisand would not let the hired help at the MGM look at her. A bellboy, reportedly, had to look away in her room so that he didn't catch a glimpse of the star.

"She's a perfectionist," Beuer said. "She gives her all. She is why I'm here in Las Vegas at all. I respect the lady, big time."

Beuer paid $5,000 to see his idol. And, he says, the dent in his $80,000-a-year salary was worth it.

"This will be the most expensive vacation I've ever taken," Beuer said.

But it was a good deal, considering what his main attraction gave back. "It's a contract," he said. "I bought a ticket and she delivers."

Scott Gordon of Philadelphia was equally adulatory, not only of Streisand but of where she was performing.

"She's spectacular," Gordon said. "There's no other place to see her. She's the only voice now."

Most of Streisand's fans turn to her as the last true voice that won't disappear with a fleeting top-20 song.

"We are lifelong fans," Troy David of Southern California said. "This may be the last time to see her, a great performer."