Columnist Kate Maddox: A slice of life for celebrities

Kate Maddox

Saturday, Sept. 16, 2000 | 6:25 a.m.

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

On Oct. 15 VH1's annual celebrity golf-fest, Fairway to Heaven, returns to the Royal Links Golf Club in Las Vegas. Always a good chance to watch the stars slice their way through the course and to snag an autograph or two, this year's tourney will mark the opportunity for one regular Joe to caddy for a couple of big-name movie stars. And who wouldn't want to spend a day carrying clubs for two people who make upwards of $20 million a year? With that kind of dough they probably need help lifting their pencils to sign autographs as well. Be at the ready.

Don't get me wrong, there are a few perks for the chosen caddy (that's in addition to getting to mop a celebrity brow on the 14th hole). The winner of the contest will receive airfare to Vegas and a three-day, two-night stay at the Hard Rock, plus $500 spending money and VIP passes to all of the Fairway events.

So whose clubs so desperately need carrying? Will Smith and Charlize Theron will be the celebrities requiring course assistance. They also happen to be the stars of the upcoming feel-good movie, "The Legend of Bagger Vance." Co-starring Matt Damon, the golfing-inspired film is scheduled for release in early November, around the same time Fairway to Heaven hits the VH1 airwaves.

If you want to get in on this contest, go to vh1.com and write a 25-word-or- less essay as to why you would want to caddy for Smith and Theron (and I suggest you leave out the whole mopping of the celeb brow rationale).

Last year's Fairway to Heaven showcased the golfing success and/or failure of such stars as Joe Pesci, Alice Cooper, Chris Noth, Lisa Loeb, Brian McKnight and the Backstreet Boys.

Former boxing promoter Rock Newman did a good deed this week. Newman and his wife, Demetria, donated $55,000 to the Mountaintop Faith Ministries. The money was given to honor the local ministry for its work within the Las Vegas community.

Oddly enough, however, it was another community leader who helped make the generous donation possible. Newman credited Steve Wynn's buyout of the homes on the Desert Inn golf course with supplying the extra cash flow. Newman, who owned a home on the course for five years, said it was his "good fortune in dealing with Steve" that prompted the couple's magnanimous move.

Tony Curtis is making headlines in the Hollywood trades these days. Curtis, who has tentatively signed on to play Joan Collins' husband in a the new comedy "These Old Broads," is apparently bellyaching over his salary, according to the New York Daily News.

The movie, which stars Collins, Elizabeth Taylor, Shirley MacLaine and Debbie Reynolds (whose daughter, Carrie Fisher, wrote the screenplay,) centers on actresses "of a certain age" who reunite for a TV special. And Curtis, who lives in Las Vegas part time, apparently wants more cash for his cameo flash.

His small part requires just a few days of filming and would be a great chance for the 77-year-old actor to share the spotlight with Hollywood's finest divas, but he's supposedly on the fence until things are fine-tuned to his financial liking. Curtis' manager, Tony Korman, was quoted in the Daily News as saying, "They offered Tony no money and we're trying to work out a better deal." Well, good luck to a speedy resolution. Filming already started last week.

The team behind Melinda, the First Lady of Magic isn't complaining about the recent loss of the Venetian's C2K nightclub or the departure of "Nebulae: The LifeForce." In fact, the performer is plenty happy with the way things have turned out.

Melinda, whose sexy, upbeat illusions are drawing bigger crowds these days, will take advantage of the showroom's lightened load and add three new shows a week, starting Monday.