VegasBeat — Timothy McDarrah: Same old story: Kiss prompts sparks

Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2003 | 9:26 a.m.

Expect the usual fireworks when Kiss plays at Rain in the Desert at the Palms on March 16.

The band is well known for its onstage explosions -- and has been since 1974.

But after the recent tragedy at a Rhode Island nightclub where 97 patrons were killed when fireworks accompanying a rock show by the metal band Great White set the facility on fire, all onstage pyrotechnics displays have been under intense scrutiny.

"It would not be Kiss without pyrotechnics," Andrew Belmonti, the director of operations for the N9NE Group, which operates Rain, told VegasBeat. "And we will have fireworks at the Kiss show. There never really was a question about it.

"We are not taking any extra precautions because we are always extremely careful when fireworks are involved."

Belmonti said there are always inspections by fire marshals far in advance of shows that feature fire.

"It is a lengthy procedure, they test all the surfaces, check the exits, and so on," Belmonti said.

Kiss lead singer Paul Stanley told the Associated Press on Tuesday: "People want a thrill, people love spectacles and people love to be entertained.

"That's why people go to horror movies, why they go on roller coasters, and why a band like us has been able to be around as long as we have."

Kiss bassist Gene Simmons, who has accidentally set his own hair ablaze several times while breathing fire onstage, said he "would no more ban pyrotechnics at rock concerts than I would on the Fourth of July."

Added Stanley: "You have to be careful of anything you do with fire."

Rain holds 1,800 people, and the concert is a sellout.

Bull show

I think that the energy drink Red Bull tastes sort of lousy. But it did a good thing Monday night.

The beverage maker rented out the Lance Burton Theatre at the Monte Carlo and put on a show. They called it "Center Stage;" it was really a Las Vegas "American Idol."

Seventeen singers, dancers, rappers, jugglers and comedians -- who have day jobs moonlighting as servers and bartenders in area bars, clubs, casinos and restaurants -- all strutted their stuff.

Vocalist Robyn Michel, who works at Nana B's Trattoria on West Tropicana Avenue, copped the $5,000 first prize. She also has worked as a backup singer to Lesley Gore.

Rapper Shayne Unea from Fleming's Prime Steakhouse on West Charleston Boulevard was second, walking away with $2,500.

Kelly Blakemore from the Stadium Saloon on Boulder Highway was third, and earned $1,000.

Wayne Brady emceed the upbeat event. Most of the contestants had extremely vocal cheering sections, especially the sign-waving group supporting Arica Painter from the T-Bird Lounge.

At one point Brady, who once performed at MGM Grand Theme Park, gave a shout-out to judge Chris Coaley -- his former Vegas boss, who is now the MGM's director of entertainment. The other judges were William Morris talent agents Chris Burk and Stacy Mark, entertainers Kristine W. and Rick Thomas, Carrie Carter-Henderson of Best Models & Talent and the Tropicana's entertainment head, Ginny Murphy.

More Andy

Like fellow pop culture icons Marilyn Monroe, James Dean and Elvis Presley, Andy Warhol is moving into the "More Famous Now Than When They Were Alive" category.

In addition to the current Warhol show at the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art and the upcoming "American Pop Icons" show at the Guggenheim Hermitage Museum, the Sixth Floor Museum at the Texas School Book Depository in Dallas is mounting a Warhol show.

It is tentatively titled "Andy and Jackie" and focuses on Jackie Kennedy's relationship with Warhol, the art world and high society.

The museum is located in the space where in 1963 Lee Harvey Oswald allegedly assassinated President Kennedy.

Think pink

Way to mold the past and the way past.

Nevada Ballet Theatre presented "Vivaldi to Pink Floyd" at Judy Bayley Theatre over the weekend, then it had a pink-themed party at Roy's on East Flamingo Road.

Among the revelers were Nancy Houssels and dancer/choreographer Vassili Sulich -- who founded the troupe as the Nevada Dance Theater in 1972 -- NBT Executive Director Harris N. Ferris, model-turned-stylist Lieuchi, Jonathan Schiff (of Schiff Properties), costume designer Victoria McFall and Diva Las Vegas himself, aka scenester Michael Shulman.

VegasBits

Las Vegas residents Audrey and Barry McCool, whose son Willie died in the Columbia space shuttle disaster, will be honored before the UAW DaimlerChrysler 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday ...

"The Recruit" star Colin Farrell really does drink Guinness, as he said in all those TV interviews promoting his new movie with Al Pacino. He was sucking them down at the Ra nightclub at Luxor the other night ...

Liz Smith's syndicated New York Post newspaper column Tuesday was a glowing paean to Las Vegas. It was formed as a letter from a friend who attended the "Mamma Mia!"opening, the "Diamonds and the Power of Love" show at the Ritz-Carlton, Lake Las Vegas and the restaurant Le Cirque at Bellagio ...

Former Howard Stern prankster Jackie "the Joke Man" Martling pulls into the Riviera Comedy Club the first weekend in April ...

Oscar De La Hoya is not a whiner, but a wine-r. The boxer spent a full 10 minutes discussing his wine choices with Aureole wine director Andrew Bradbury at the Mandalay Bay eatery Wednesday night ...

Kevin A. Steussi, the food & beverage veep for Steve Wynn's company, is keeping plenty busy until Le Reve opens in 2005. He is now in Macau working on Wynn Resorts' new property there ...

"Miss Saigon" lands in the Aladdin Theatre for the Performing Arts May 13 for eight performances. Tickets go on sale Saturday.

From Sun wires

Howie Epstein, a former bass player for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, died of what authorities suspect was a drug overdose. He was 47.

Investigators were told Epstein had been using heroin, said Maj. Ron Madrid of the Santa Fe (N.M.) County Sheriff's Department. Epstein was driven to St. Vincent Hospital by his girlfriend, who described him as "under distress." He died Sunday.

Epstein had been a respected musician and producer for more than 20 years. In addition to his work with Petty, he played on some of Bob Dylan's albums in the 1980s and produced a Grammy-winning album for folk singer-songwriter John Prine called "The Missing Years."

The ratings factor: MSNBC fired Phil Donahue on Tuesday, abruptly ending the veteran talk show host's return to television after six months of poor ratings.

Donahue's final show will be Friday night. The news show that precedes him on the air, "Countdown: Iraq," temporarily will be expanded.

The move was not a surprise. MSNBC hoped "Donahue" would provide a liberal counterweight to Fox News Channel's competing "The O'Reilly Factor," but the ratings started poorly and didn't improve.

Bag lady: Dionne Warwick, who was arrested at an airport last year after authorities found marijuana in her bag, is blaming someone else for putting it there.

"Apparently, somebody that didn't want to get caught thought it would be better off in somebody else's bag," the singer recently told the Associated Press.

The 62-year-old was arrested in May and charged with a misdemeanor after screeners at Miami International Airport said they found marijuana joints inside an empty lipstick container in her bag. Charges were dropped after Warwick agreed to a plea bargain deal, which included a treatment program.

Warwick says she's not a drug user. "Drugs of every sort, including aspirin, are not anything I even think about," she said.

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