VegasBeat — Timothy McDarrah: Kenny opts out of return to bar

Monday, July 28, 2003 | 10:34 a.m.

Erin Kenny won't be bellying up to the bar anytime soon.

The embattled former Clark County Commissioner abruptly withdrew her application Thursday to retake the state bar exam, scheduled to be given this week, according to reliable sources.

Kenny is ensnared in the federal investigation into Mike Galardi and his strip club, Jaguars, in part because of her reported ties to strip-club lobbyist Lance Malone, himself a former county commissioner.

Kenny first took the three-day bar exam on July 30, 2002, when she was running an ultimately unsuccessful campaign for lieutenant governor.

Kenny did not pass the exam, but said she expected to fail, citing a lack of study time because of her efforts to reopen the temporarily shuttered University Medical Center Trauma Center.

Kenny also said at the time she planned to take the exam again when it was offered this July.

Calls to Kenny, who graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, law school in May 2002, were not returned.

There was no way to immediately determine why Kenny decided not to retake the exam. No reason needs to be cited when withdrawing an application, although it must be done in writing and signed. The $475 bar exam fee and $50 application fee are nonrefundable.

As of Friday, 575 people were scheduled to take the bar exam at the Plaza hotel on Main Street in Las Vegas or the Henderson Convention Center. Another 117 were on the list to take the exam in Reno. The test is being offered Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Carey carries

If one looked at Mariah Carey's Saturday night show at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace as a bid for her own Celine Dion-style Vegas extravaganza, she did well.

Like Celine, Mariah sang a song while suspended high above the stage. Like Celine, Mariah was joined onstage by generally extraneous people, some dressed as circus performers. Like Celine, Mariah can really belt out a song.

Also like Celine, the media takes its shots at Mariah, but she chooses to focus on the love shown by her rabid fans -- and there was plenty of that. One man in a Honey B. Fly shirt -- that's Carey's official fan club -- bum-rushed the stage, but wanted only to stand near her and profess his love, which he did.

Carey shooed security away and asked the fan his name, which was Sam. She immediately started quoting Dr. Seuss, the whole "Sam I Am" thing. The capacity crowd exploded at her impromptu act.

Carey's voice was not at its usual strength; after most songs she'd sip from a cup and tell the crowd, "Little tea, little tea." But her fans hardly cared.

It was Carey's first show on the U.S. leg of her "Charmbracelet" world tour, and she said from the stage that she was glad to be back on familiar turf. She entered the hall like a boxer, coming down the center aisle, singing to the folks sitting on the aisle as she passed.

She had the crowd at "Hello."

Serving Loaf

Over at Mandalay Bay, backstage before Meat Loaf's show Saturday night, the former Marvin Lee Aday was not the center of attention, despite news that this fall he'll start work on "Bat Out Of Hell III," a follow-up to two of the best-selling albums ever.

Instead, everyone backstage -- including opening act Cyndi Lauper -- was joining Amanda Aday, Meat Loaf's 22-year-old daughter, in celebrating the news that her pending HBO series, "Carnivale," is pegged for a Sept. 14 debut in the prime 9 p.m. Sunday night time slot where "The Sopranos" and "Sex and the City" air.

The show, a 12-part supernatural drama centering on Depression-era carnies, also stars Michael J. Anderson -- the dwarf from "Twin Peaks" -- Amy Madigan (Kevin Costner's wife in "Field of Dreams") and "Maude's" daughter, Adrienne Barbeau.

Nate who?

A bevy of Playboy models will be at The Venetian Tuesday, possibly providing weather reports. Really.

Some high-rollers, and some low-rollers (the media!), have been invited to visit with 2003 Playmate of the Year Cristina Santiago, various Girls of Starbucks, Girls of Reality TV, and the Dahm Triplets -- Jaclyn, Erica and Nicole -- as they introduce some new Playboy videos.

The announcement for the event says the women are available to do live remote weather reports for local television stations.

The event is a part of the big Video Dealers Software Association show that hits town this week.

Fame pays

Henderson's Serena Henry, who was a finalist on the NBC talent show "Fame," is back home.

Friends and family are tossing her a private party tonight at an area eatery, and David Saxe, producer of "V -- the Ultimate Variety Sho," has offered her a singing slot in his show. We hear she may start as early as Tuesday night.

She'll perform at least two nights per week to fill out the evenings when the band Trademarq is off.

This weekend, Trademarq performed at the party Michael Jackson threw for father Joe Jackson's 74th birthday party at the Neverland Ranch in California.

VegasBits

Friends: 50 Cent and his new girlfriend, Mya, had an intimate lunch in a Four Seasons cabana Sunday afternoon before his performance in the "Roc the Mic" show at Thomas & Mack Center. Jay-Z later joined the couple for an afternoon iced tea ...

Bear: Professional Football Hall of Famer Mike Ditka hit the craps tables at Las Vegas Hilton on Sunday. Tonight he is the keynote speaker at City of Hope Cancer Center's benefit dinner at the hotel ...

Afterward: Carey had a 1 a.m. dinner at Spago after her concert Saturday night before the afterparty at OPM (Forum Shops at Caesars). Several of her band members -- including Lionel Cole (nephew of Nat King Cole), Sam Simms and Eric Daniels saw Soul Desire at the Big Apple Lounge at New York-New York after the concert. They are friends with Soul Desire drummer Robert Shipley ...

Holding court: Sacramento Kings star Chris Webber was the center of attention at Rain in the Desert (Palms) on Saturday night ...

Doll: "Beverly Hills 90210" star Brian Austin Green bought five bottles of Cristal at Baby's at the Hard Rock Hotel on Friday night. He shared the bottles with Pauly Shore, Brad Rowe ("Full Frontal"), Chad Lindbergh ("The Fast and the Furious") and Marklen Kennedy ("Melrose Place"). Green's girlfriend, Vanessa Marcil, co-stars in the new NBC series "Las Vegas."