Thursday, July 17, 2003 | 10:56 a.m.
Life is in full swing for popular Vegas fixture and legendary jazz pianist Buddy Greco, who has an assortment of projects all coming to fruition at the same time.
The rundown:
"Fever!," the Peggy Lee tribute show that Greco and his wife, Lezlie Anders, debuted last year, might become part of the rotation at the Suncoast.
Publishers are bidding on Greco's autobiography.
Top-shelf Hollywood director Ron Shelton ("White Men Can't Jump," "Bull Durham") called Greco this week and said that he is talking to Jason Alexander about playing Greco in a film version of his life story.
"It is all very flattering and my beautiful wife and I are very excited about everything," Greco told VegasBeat.
Greco and Shelton have a history. Greco appeared in a few scenes in Shelton's 1999 fight flick, "Play It To The Bone."
Greco's story is fascinating. He grew up in Philadelphia, listening to opera records from his father's music shop. He was singing for paying audiences at age 10, was performing at clubs as a teenager and by 19 was a pianist for Benny Goodman.
The decades-long run of ups (he met Frank Sinatra and they became lifetime friends) and downs (he lost his girl, Dani, to neighbor and actor David Janssen) was on.
But sometimes the downs seemed to outweigh the ups, as Greco writes in his book proposal: "I was so despondent ... There seemed no point in not ending it all."
Then, 20 years ago, "an angel" entered his life -- Anders. They have been personal and professional collaborators ever since.
Their most recent project, "Fever!," gets a new life Aug. 15 (the day after Greco turns 77).
Now, after four ex-wives, seven children, 67 albums and crossing paths with everyone from Judy Garland to Sean Connery, Greco has decided it is finally time to tell his story. He is working with a co-writer, Frank LaSpina.
"What a life, huh?" Greco said. "And don't you just love happy endings?"
True aim
Since Elvis Costello is in town -- he plays at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel Friday night -- we can trot out our favorite knock on critics:
"Writing about music is like ... dancing about architecture," Costello once said.
We hear that Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes will open for Costello; no word if Robinson's pregnant wife, Kate Hudson ("Alex & Emma"), will be at the show.
Name game
There is some confusion in Las Vegas among the musically challenged. Seems there are billboards for The Orleans around town advertising Dion, who is performing today through Sunday.
VegasBeat actually got a call from someone asking if Celine Dion was doing some shows at a venue besides Caesars Palace, where she is off until Aug. 6.
The answer is no. The Dion at The Orleans is Dion DiMucci, born in the Bronx, frontman for the 1960's doo-wop group, Dion & The Belmonts ("Teenager in Love").
Celine Dion is not from the Bronx, as far as we know. Different accent, at least.
Sad note
The local culinary community is mourning the untimely passing of Howard Hamada, scion of the family that operates eight Las Vegas Hamada restaurants.
Hamada, 43, died last week of a heart ailment.
His wife, Nancy Hamada, and the couple's three young children were comforted by an estimated 500 mourners who jammed the Lakes Lutheran Church on West Sahara Avenue on Monday for the funeral.
Among a long list of professional activities and honors, on June 17 Hamada had been presented with the 2003 Restaurateur of the Year Award by the Nevada Restaurant Association at its gala Epicurean Affair at Caesars Palace.
Sound machine
Calling all Gloria Estefan fans!
The Cuban chanteuse will be making an appearance by the fountains in front of Caesars Palace on Monday morning to promote her series of October shows at The Colosseum.
She'll appear with director/choreographer Kenny Ortega, who is creating the multimedia "Gloria Estefan Live & Unwrapped" show, which supports her first English-language single in six years, "Wrapped" -- which will also be released Monday.
Tickets to her Oct. 10 to Oct. 19 concerts will be going on sale at the same time.
Road trip
ESPN 920-AM program director John B. Hanson and station jocks "Ballpark" Frank Harnish and Mitch Moss are in Lake Tahoe today.
They are broadcasting this afternoon from the American Century Championship at the posh Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course.
Among the notables with tee times: Michael Jordan, Dan Quayle, Mario Lemieux, Lou Holtz, Jesse Ventura and John Elway.
VegasBits
Planet possibilities: Planet Hollywood owner Robert Earl left a voice mail for VegasBeat early this morning from London, saying he felt our Wednesday item on the possibility of his hiring former Wynn Las Vegas exec Don Marrandino implied that Earl did not have full confidence in Planet Hollywood President and Chief Executive Mike Mecca. Earl says he does have full confidence in Mecca.
"I did speak to Mr. Marrandino very early in the process, well before we were fortunate enough to meet Mike Mecca and get him on board," Earl said in the voice mail.
Horror: In case it wasn't entirely clear in Wednesday's column, the betting line that Paris Las Vegas/Bally's oddsmaker Johnny Avello posted at a faux weigh-in for Freddy Krueger's and Jason Vorhees' upcoming movie battle was for entertainment purposes only. As with the Academy Awards and "American Idol," fun odds are posted, but actual bets are not taken.
From Sun wires
Former President Bill Clinton has called on his celebrity friends to share recipes compiled in a $35 cookbook to raise funds for his library foundation.
The cookbook, to be published next month, contains 250 recipes from celebrities including Muhammad Ali, Bono, Christie Brinkley, Chevy Chase, Whoopi Goldberg, Don Henley, Quincy Jones, Sophia Loren, Mary Steenburgen, Barbra Streisand and Elizabeth Taylor.
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