VegasBeat — Timothy McDarrah: Celebs share in conventional wisdom

Friday, Aug. 29, 2003 | 10:43 a.m.

If you haven't seen a celebrity -- or a celebrity marriage buster -- in Las Vegas this week, you just haven't been trying.

The MAGIC convention (Men's Apparel Guild in California), which wrapped Thursday, brought mass quantities of famous faces -- from Dennis Rodman to Gwen Stefani -- to hot and cool spots all over town.

White-hot "Sex and the City" hunk Jason Lewis was at several MAGIC parties and local restaurants, and took in the 8 p.m. show of "La Femme" at MGM Grand on Wednesday.

And all eyes were on October Playboy subject Deanna Merryman when she had dinner with some gal pals at Simon Kitchen and Bar at the Hard Rock Hotel on Wednesday night. She is the "other woman" who caused the breakup of NASCAR star Jeff Gordon's marriage.

At a race in Bristol, Tenn., last weekend, when asked by reporters about Merryman and her Playboy photo spread and article, Gordon did not deny her lurid account of how she met Gordon and their 11-month affair.

At Simon, Merryman was basking in the attention of male admirers, including Daniel Baldwin, and answering questions about her relationship with Gordon in a most frank manner. As children might get a hold of this column, we can't relay much of what she said.

Elsewhere that evening, a slew of parties capped MAGIC week, the important semi-annual fashion gathering.

At the Moorea Beach Club, Mandalay Bay's new private European (read: topless) pool area, Flaunt magazine, a cutting-edge Los Angeles-based fashion book, hosted a party with a diverse guest list that ranged from Colin Farrell to Cris Judd.

Up at ghostbar, Las Vegas entrepreneur Roger Grant introduced a new line called Big Headed Boxers. The centerpiece of the affair was a pair of white shorts encased in a block of ice.

Downstairs at Baby's at the Hard Rock Hotel, the room was transformed into a garage in keeping with the theme of the host, Von Dutch, which makes $149 men's jeans that appear to be used and are often torn.

At Prana, hip-hop artist Eve introduced her new Fetish line of lingerie, and lots of her celeb friends, including Stefani, were showing support. Rodman, meanwhile, was at the Palms most of the week to support his pal Nelly's new line of Apple Bottom jeans. Other Nelly guests included the Rev. Run (Joseph Simmons) from Run DMC, his Def Jam brother Russell Simmons, former NBA player John Salley and current NBA players Gary Payton and Al Harrington.

Bitch is back

Once again, it seems the rumors are true: Elton John will headline at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace.

According to reliable entertainment-industry sources, the Rocket Man will be at Caesars Palace on Oct. 21 to make the stunning announcement that he will "guest star" on approximately 150 nights starting in 2004 -- the nights that Celine Dion is off.

Exact performance days and a start date for the former Reginald Dwight are still being negotiated.

On the dates when John has other commitments, Mariah Carey, Gloria Estefan and Jerry Seinfeld will fill in.

John will be paid an estimated $54 million for two years' work, totaling about 300 shows -- approximately the same jingle Dion is making. She is getting $100 million for her 600 shows over the course of her three-year contract, which ends in March 2006.

Cashing in

Best-selling author, "Sopranos" co-star and former Riveria Entertainment Director Steve Schirripa has done it again.

He just inked a deal with Random House for another "Goombah" book -- for a whopping $325,000 advance.

"A Goombah's Guide to Life" was a top seller last year. Schirripa's follow-up, "The Goombah's Guide to Love," hits bookstores Nov. 4.

Now he'll write a "how-to" Goombah book: How to plan a Goombah wedding, a christening -- and maybe how to correctly bury a body.

Suit

Jason Binn, the co-publisher of Miami's Ocean Drive magazine -- the sister publication and model for the new VEGAS Magazine -- has been sued by a former business partner, who charges that Binn improperly used company money to pay for "prostitutes and/or exotic dancers in Las Vegas," according to court papers.

Binn's lawyer Gerald Lefcourt said the suit was "baseless" and a "stunt" by Binn's former colleague, Randy Schindler. Schindler and Binn have been in a legal battle since May over ownership of Niche Media, which publishes Hamptons, Gotham and L.A. Confidential magazines.

VEGAS Magazine is co-published by SoBe News, which publishes Ocean Drive with Binn, and the Greenspun Media Group.

The suit accuses Binn of mismanaging Niche Media funds, not SoBe News money.

Binn attended the gala VEGAS Magazine launch party at the Palms on June 26 and is expected to attend a party at Risque (Paris Las Vegas) on Saturday night to mark the glossy new mag's second issue.

The suit was filed Monday in Manhattan Supreme Court and was first reported in the New York Post.

Show starter

Las Vegas chiropractor Dr. Scott Lewis is producing another Strip show, his third current effort.

"Mindblowers," which Lewis describes as a "supernatural variety show," debuts Sept. 15 at Riviera's Le Bistro Theatre, and will play Mondays at 11:30 p.m. through Halloween.

In it, he'll be doing some John Edwards-type mind reading, but says he will not try to communicate with the dead.

Also appearing will be Robert Allen as "Krustkin -- the World's Oldest Psychic Performer" (Allen co-produces "Shock!" with Lewis at Bourbon Street); Human Pincushion Tim Cridland; and singer/stunner Kellie Karl, who also appears in "Shock!" as well as in Lewis' original and long-running Riv show, "Outrageous Comedy Hypnotist."

VegasBits

Open: Fiamma Trattoria, the new MGM Grand hot spot from celebrity New York restaurateur Stephen Hanson, served its first public meal Thursday night; the official opening is Sept. 15. Located where olio! used to be, the eatery is also hosting a big party after the Oscar De La Hoya/"Sugar" Shane Mosley fight on Sept. 13 ...

Party: Robin Leach turns 62 today. He's being feted by friends at a private champagne-and-caviar (what else!?) bash at a Strip locale next week ...

Congrats: Our Las Vegas Sun gossip predecessor, Kate Maddox, now a local news anchor on KTUD Channel 14 (UPN) and entertainment reporter on KLAS Channel 8, is getting married. She and businessman Cab Bennett told us they plan to tie the knot early next year on an island far, far away.

From Sun wires

Michigan's Interlochen Center for the Arts has filed a lawsuit against Tori Amos and her California-based manager, seeking to recoup a $40,000 deposit for a concert that never took place.

The lawsuit describes deadlocked negotiations over the amount to have been spent on catering, the number of "comp" tickets requested by Amos and her demand that up to three "awareness groups" be allowed to set up on the Interlochen campus during her Aug. 19 concert.

Cast him out: The devil is in the details of "Exorcist IV: The Beginning."

Director Paul Schrader says he's been fired from work on the upcoming thriller, which is a prequel to the acclaimed 1973 original about a demon-possessed girl.

The filmmaker, whose directing credits include 1997's "Affliction" and last year's "Auto Focus," told the Associated Press on Wednesday that he had completed a final edit of the movie, which he described as a psychological thriller.

The rift that led to Schrader's recent dismissal reportedly started when executives at Morgan Creek Productions decided to make the tone of "Exorcist IV" more horrific -- with more shocks and gore -- after shooting had been completed.

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