Columnist Kate Maddox: Stern seeks out Ranch hands

Kate Maddox

Friday, Feb. 1, 2002 | 4:21 a.m.

In the weeks before his scheduled arrival in Las Vegas, Howard Stern became enamored with the idea of working with a man named Dennis Hof. No, Hof isn't a celebrity. He's not able to set records with his bodily functions, like lots of Stern listeners. And nope, he's not a stuttering, joke-telling member of the Stern Wack Pack.

Hof owns the Carson City Moonlite Bunny Ranch. He manages a stable of working girls and this week, he gets his shot at national exposure. Thanks, Howard.

During Tuesday's live Stern show at the Hard Rock Hotel, Hof will marry off one of his favorite "girls," a porn star named Holly Landers.

"This will be a legit wedding," explained Hof, who takes these kinds of things as seriously -- as would your average businessman. "She's marrying a listener. And she's ready to do it."

For moral support, Landers' bridesmaids will be fellow bunnies.

Hof's also the guy responsible for the other Stern stunt involving legalized prostitutes and twisted radio fans: He's orchestrating the fix-up of a mother/daughter "working" family, with a father/son team of Stern's selection.

The "Rat Pack is Back" is losing 'Ol Blue Eyes.

Steve Lippia, aka Frank Sinatra in the popular Sahara show, has announced that his last day will be Feb. 10. Lippia joined the cast, which includes Rick Michel, Doug Starks and Mark Cohen, in December 2000.

But playing Sinatra as part of a pack apparently has a life span. Lippia says he's moving on to focus on his solo singing career -- as Steve, not Frank. Catch him before he leaves. Lippia's replacement has yet to be announced.

The thing with Steve Wynn is you never know if he's unloading -- or gearing up to go bigger.

Last week the New York Post reported that Wynn has put his swanky New York digs on the market for $15 million. Wynn bought the Fifth Avenue apartment a little more than a year ago for $7 million, after the Vegas tycoon reportedly had some trouble buying a fancier pad.

Those snooty New York co-op boards said at the time they considered Wynn's millions "Las Vegas money" -- which apparently doesn't make the grade with old-school Manhattanites -- and turned him down.

No matter, Wynn took the smaller (read again: $7 million) place and it appears he'll make a tidy profit from the uptown snub. Talk about getting the last laugh.

Celine Dion is still flirting with the spotlight, though she's been in "retirement" for the past two years. Dion smartly chatted up Barbara Walters on "20/20" Friday night.

The singer told Walters she's looking forward to her new life in Vegas (and her $100 million Caesars Palace paycheck) because of the "normal" family time it will provide. " ... Mommy will leave home around 6 p.m., five nights a week. I'll come home, sleep, kiss good night. I can spend time with (son Rene Charles.) That's the most important thing to me."

Of course, Dion will reportedly be commuting by chopper from her custom Lake Las Vegas mansion to entertain 4,000 fans a night in her own production show in one of the priciest and riskiest ventures on the Strip. But she does make is sound simple, doesn't she?