Thursday, July 10, 2003 | 10:53 a.m.
The old Elton John song, "Funeral for a Friend," comes to mind.
Today the familiar skull-and-swords marquee comes down from the front of the Treasure Island. (Oops! -- We mean TI.)
The beloved Vegas icon will be retired to the Neon Boneyard, part of the downtown Neon Museum, where cool old signs go to pass their later years.
"Is it sad? Sure. But it is also exciting," TI prez Scott Sibella told VegasBeat. "The fact is that there is nothing inside this property that caters to kids anymore and we have nothing that was here when we opened 10 years ago."
He cited as an example the video arcade, which has been reduced from 25,000 to 1,200 square feet.
"We've re-energized the inside, and now it is time to re-energize the outside. The impression is that this is a good property for kids and we want to change that," Sibella said. "We're also going to paint the entire hotel and get rid of that pink."
He is also looking to capitalize on overflow from Wynn Las Vegas when the billion-dollar property opens across the street from TI next year.
"They will attract adults, and adults with some money to spend. As a mid-level property situated so near to them, we are unique in our opportunity to capitalize on our location."
"Sirens of TI" (the hotel's new, adult-themed pirate show) creator Kenny Ortega and choreographer Travis Payne are expected to attend. Joining them will be a short list of celebs, including "The Other Half" television show star Mario Lopez, who will host the ceremony.
On Friday 50 women competing for one of the 15 starring roles in "Sirens of TI" will gather on the Strip in front of the hotel at 7:30 p.m. to start what the hotel is billing as an "exoTIca weekend" -- a series of pool parties, cocktail events and high-roller meet-and-greets.
Ages 21 and over, please.
Giving back
VegasBeat always likes to call attention to local folks who done good, and then come back to share the wealth.
Baltimore Ravens linebacker Eddie Hartwell -- Cheyenne High School, class of 1995 -- was just named Citizen of the Month by Las Vegas Councilman Lawrence Weekly.
On Saturday, Hartwell hosted more than 100 local kids at a Big Hart Football Clinic at the Doolittle Community Center on North J Street.
Hartwell and some fellow NFL players, including Raiders tight end Roland Williams and Chargers defensive back Vernon Fox, ran the kids through a number of drills, served lunch and handed out No. 56 jerseys -- Hartwell's uniform number.
"I'm grateful that my good friend Eddie, who grew up in Las Vegas, could take the time to teach our youth the importance of teamwork and the game of football," Weekly said. "It is important that during the hot summer months we offer positive activities like this."
God save Vegas
VegasBeat used to wear skinny ties and missed several days of high school recovering from attending a week's worth of shows by The Clash at Bond's in Times Square.
But we always regretted never seeing The Sex Pistols. Now, they are back -- and playing Vegas.
Four of the band's original members -- Johnny Rotten (real name: John Lydon), Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and Paul Cook -- are touring this fall, and are scheduled to play The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel on Sept. 5.
Does this reunion reek of the kind of shameless and crass commercial sellout that Sid Vicious and friends railed against 25 years ago? Perhaps. But the Pistols have lost little of their defiant attitude.
Rotten hopes fans do not come in traditional punk garb.
"Nothing more awful than seeing one huge army of mohawks -- such a disgusting cliche and so against anything I've stood for," he told the Los Angeles Times last week. "If you want a uniform, there are real armies out there you can join."
Ticket info for the Vegas gig has not yet been announced.
International
Azteca Las Vegas and Mexico's hottest talk show, "Ventaneando," are marking a new sales deal with the local Fox affiliate KVVU Channel 5 with what they are calling an "historical broadcasting event" today.
The show, starring Paty Chapoy (Mexico's answer to Robin Leach), who offers "insight into the lifestyles of the rich and famous," is doing a live broadcast from Caesars Palace.
It will also be broadcast in seven South American nations and on KHDF Channel 19 (cable channel 63), a new Spanish-language Las Vegas television station.
VegasBits
Funny ladies: Rita Rudner took in the sensual Luxor revue, "Midnight Fantasy," last weekend. She and Carole Montgomery, the show's comic, are old friends. Also, the first Las Vegas tapings of Rudner's syndicated advice show, "Ask Rita," take place July 27 to July 30 at the MGM Grand ...
Winner: Nevada Public Radio's "Along the Way" program host David Bert has received this year's Conservation Communicator of the Year award from the Nevada Wildlife Federation. It cited him for bringing the outdoors to those who are not able to experience it first-hand because of physical challenges. The show airs on KNPR 89.5-FM on Wednesday and Sunday mornings ...
Add it up: The Violent Femmes play the outdoor Skin Pool Lounge at the Palms on Aug. 22. Hope they don't blister in the sun. Tickets go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. The group still sports its original 1980 lineup: Gordon Cano, Brian Ritchie and Victor DeLorenzo ...
Done deal: Monti Rock III reports that he has officially signed his Castaways deal and plans to mount his headline show there within one month ...
Flay on the way: Caesars Palace President Mark Juliano today announced what VegasBeat hinted at back in April: Celebrity chef, TV personality and author Bobby Flay will open a Vegas branch of his famed New York City eatery, Mesa Grill. The restaurant is slated for a spring 2004 debut at Caesars ...
If you build it ... : The Hard Rock Hotel, known for never having enough weekend parking spaces, is adding two floors to its garage this winter ...
Call me: VegasBeat is back for its weekly radio call-in bit with "Las Vegas Today" host Andy Vierra on KNUU 970 AM (K-NEWS) at 4 p.m. today. Call the studio line at (702) 735-6397 and we'll dish.
From Sun wires
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., has sold more than 1 million copies of her memoir "Living History," in almost exactly a month, her publisher announced Wednesday.
Clinton appeared on CNN's "Crossfire" to present conservative host Tucker Carlson with a cake shaped like a giant shoe. In the days after the book was released, Carlson had repeatedly promised to eat his shoes and tie if the book sold more than 1 million copies.
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