Columnist Kate Maddox: Saxe wedding is pure magic

Kate Maddox

Sunday, June 4, 2000 | 8:54 a.m.

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

Melinda Saxe, known around town as the First Lady of Magic, tied the knot on Thursday night in a small ceremony at the Little Church of the West. Her new "first man" is actually husband No. 2, Mark Evensvold. Saxe's first marriage, to Monte Carlo magician Lance Burton, ended in divorce in 1994.

The bride, who had been working in Branson, Mo., is apparently looking for a spot on the Strip for her sexy magic show. Looking curvy in a tight sleeveless, gold-sequined dress, Saxe wed the 35-year-old Evensvold in an evening ceremony. Also planning a trip up the aisle is KVBC Channel 3 meteorologist John Fredricks. The affable weather guy will be taking the plunge on Monday, which is also his birthday. His bride-to-be works at SKS Advertising in Las Vegas.

Sun senior investigative reporter Jeff German is hard at work on a tell-all book chronicling one of the biggest murder cases in the history of Southern Nevada. German has inked a deal with New York-based Avon books and will be taking some time off in the near future to finish work on his insider book based on the Ted Binion-Sandra Murphy-Rick-Tabish, love-and-death-in-Las Vegas saga.

German, as some of you might recall, was the Sun reporter who helped jump-start the murder investigation with his thorough coverage of the events surrounding the death of the hard-living casino mogul. The book's title and publishing date have yet to be determined, but it's certain to be the hottest read in town when it hits the stands.

Representatives from the Gays and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) tried to storm the suits at CBS television's annual affiliates conference at the Bellagio earlier this week.

The group, which is on a crusade to prevent the Dr. Laura Schlessinger talk show from hitting the airwaves, was hoping to infiltrate the group of CBS execs in order to distribute some reading material about the controversial conservative radio doc.

GLAAD is upset about Dr. Laura's defamatory remarks concerning homosexuals, and it wants want to spread the word about keeping her off the tube -- her Paramount-produced talk show is scheduled to hit the airwaves this fall.

GLAAD has made the demise of Dr. Laura its personal mission and an organization spokeswoman says it will keep up the fight and the demonstrations until she's completely without sponsorship.

However, the group didn't get too far in Vegas -- after running up against Bellagio security, it only managed to leave some reading material for the CBS heads before being asked to leave.

Ex-Mrs. Donald Trump (No. 2), Marla Maples, was spotted in town this week, scurrying through the MGM with daughter Tiffany in tow. With her head down, Maples hurried along, tugging at the littlest Trump to keep her upright.

Perhaps Maples was hoping to avoid questions about her latest publicity/get-rich scheme. The Donald's ex is set to have her 7.5-carat engagement ring auctioned off this week.

The diamond bauble is expected to draw somewhere in the neighborhood of $150,000 -- a nice perk when added to the $2.5 million cash settlement Maples received in the divorce settlement.

Although the auction house catalog describes the ring as an object of "national gossip" and a "piece of history" (not so sure about the latter reference, but the former might apply), critics are simply calling the piece and the auction the epitome of tackiness. Maples is engaged to film producer Michael Mailer, son of author Norman Mailer.

Some of you will be relieved to hear that self-styled Vegas personality and local, ahem, celebrity Monti Rock III has finally found someone to host his "annual" 60th birthday bash. I won't divulge the names of these kind party-givers, but let's just say that they stepped forward in the nick of time. Monti & Co. plan to turn it up all night tonight in honor of ... well, in honor of Monti.