Columnist Kate Maddox: ESPNZone set for Hart attack

Kate Maddox

Friday, June 29, 2001 | 4:21 a.m.

Kate Maddox's column also appears Tuesdays and Fridays in the Las Vegas Sun. Reach her at 259-2309 or kmaddox@lasvegassun.com.

Just because the party will be VIP doesn't mean the public will miss out on the ESPNZone's grand-opening festivities.

The Las Vegas ESPNZone will be the seventh sports-themed eatery of its kind nationwide and ESPN and New York-New York are planning a big bash.

On July 19 the hotel's model of the Brooklyn Bridge will feature a vertical ramp, on which various X-Games athletes will attempt suicide -- or their version of biking, which very much resembles some form of suicidal flirtation.

The nail-biting action will feature extreme motocross racer and Las Vegas homeboy Carey Hart, who will perform jumps on the bridge and with any luck proceed to the party without serious injury.

The outdoor celebration will also include a special tribute to "Sports' Greatest Longshots." (Good idea to name it such whilst the athletes are simultaneously attempting feats that could render them sidewalk fertilizer? Didn't think so.) U.S. Olympic wrestler Rulon Gardner, former L.A. Dodger and U.S. Olympic baseball team manager Tommy Lasorda and former boxer Buster Douglas (the first fighter to defeat Mike Tyson as a pro) will be be on hand to accept Longshot honors.

Post-presentation, sports stars and celebrities alike will kiss off the heat, pack up the ramp and head inside for food, drink and all that mutual admiration mishmash that opening fetes are famous for.

The public will have to settle for Lady Liberty in a giant ESPNZone jersey.

Yes, in a highly questionable act of patriotism, New York-New York's Statue of Liberty will awake Monday morning sporting a 190-pound T-shirt, all in the name of ESPN and theme restaurants.

Whether or not her relationship with Benjamin Bratt was on the rocks in April, one source says Julia Roberts rarely stopped gushing about her beau while in Las Vegas shooting "Ocean's 11."

"I'm surprised to hear they broke up," said the source, who works at the Bellagio and had frequent contact with Roberts during her stay at the hotel. "She talked about (Bratt) all the time -- kind of like they had just started dating or something. He was her favorite topic."

As for the rumors that Roberts got cozy with George Clooney after hours at the hotel, the insider said the only thing the actors shared was a friendship. In fact, Roberts spent some of her stay getting to know Clooney's then-girlfriend, British model Lisa Snowden. "They all got along," says the witness. "There wasn't anything weird about (Clooney and Roberts') relationship."

Although Sunset Station has yet to officially announce the cancellation, chances are strong that comedian Paula Poundstone will not be making her scheduled July 28 appearance in the hotel's Club Madrid.

Poundstone, who is free on bail after she was arrested Wednesday and charged with child endangerment and committing a lewd act on a young girl, will be arraigned in Santa Monica Superior Court on July 27.

Cast members gearing up for Vegas' second coming of "Chicago" have confirmed that the lengthy musical is indeed being trimmed for production at the Venetian's C2K Showroom. The delicate editing (they need to chop about an hour and a half) is reportedly being worked on by the show's original music and lyrics team of John Kander and Fred Ebb.

Impressionist Danny Gans has made Casino Player magazine's Best Of list for the second year in a row. Gans is once again the national publication's pick as the Strip's Best Headliner.