Wednesday, May 28, 2003 | 10:47 a.m.
It is nearly as boring to read about Michael Jackson these days as it is to write about him.
But as the pieces continue to fall into place for him to open a Celine Dion-like Vegas production show, we trudge ahead.
As a lawsuit filed in Indianapolis by his former financial advisers snakes its way through the courts, it is increasingly clear he is in dire straits, and we ain't talking about Mark Knopfler's band.
And while conventional wisdom says that a Vegas casino would never book The Gloved One because of his legal and other troubles, The Venetian is not a conventional casino.
It is not part of an entertainment behemoth, such as Park Place or MGM MIRAGE or Mandalay Resort Group.
That means Venetian owner Sheldon Adelson and President Rob Goldstein have a freer hand to take chances (see: Guggenheim Museum) and do not have to hold meetings with those pesky shareholders.
After the Guggenheim officially closed this month, Goldstein told the Sun's Jerry Fink that the space would be made into a legit theater, and the hotel was also looking to take back the lease in the showroom where "V -- The Ultimate Variety Show" and Michael Flatley's "Lord of the Dance" play.
When VegasBeat ran into Goldstein the other day, we half-jokingly asked if he had reached out to Jackson's people.
"Never say never," Goldstein told us, without a hint of a smile on his face.
"What?" we said to Goldstein. "You'd seriously try to bring Michael Jackson to The Venetian?"
"Never say never," he repeated. "When I said we were talking to everybody, I wasn't kidding."
The plot thickens.
Weird
Speaking of Jackson, the brilliant rock 'n' roll satirist, "Weird" Al Yankovic -- well known for his Jackson parody songs "Eat It" and "Fat" -- is coming to Las Vegas.
On June 21 at the Aladdin he will dust off his "pirate satellite broadcasting transmitter" for another AL-TV special.
He has had eight hourlong specials on MTV where he interviews rock stars he admires, celebrity friends and his pal, Harvey the Wonder Hamster.
This time the special will air on VH1 (Cox cable channel 33). It debuts July 21.
Call me
If folks take the time to call, we'll take the space to share their comments.
First, Robin Leach checked in to clarify that the party he is having this weekend is not a birthday party, as was reported Sunday in VegasBeat.
"It is a 'no-reason' party -- and that's the reason showgirls from all over town are coming: the 'X' girls, Showgirls, Crazy Girls, Tilted Kilt girls. I can't wait!" Leach said. His birthday, he added, is in August.
We also heard from Mark Wahlberg, who said thanks for mentioning his benefit screening of "The Italian Job" at the Palms tonight.
"I've become good friends with the Maloofs over the last year, and lately George and I found ourselves talking about ways we could work together," Wahlberg told VegasBeat. "Thanks to his interest and generosity, we were able to organize a benefit (for the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation) and bring in another organization that focuses on youth enrichment -- the Andre Agassi Boys & Girls Clubs of Las Vegas.
"I am really looking forward to it."
Several ticket packages for the screening, and parties in the "Real World" suite beforehand and Little Buddha afterward, are still available. They are on sale at the Stuff store at the Palms and at ticketmaster.com.
More Whitney
The Las Vegas escapades of Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown continue to flood the VegasBeat in-box.
Seems that during their stay at Bellagio last week -- they were in town for the "VH1 Divas Duets" show -- a high-roller approached Brown and said he wanted to gamble with him.
The unnamed man handed Brown $5,000 for just that purpose.
Brown promptly pocketed the money, turned around and left.
The man called Bellagio security, who alerted Houston.
They finally found Brown sitting alone at a bar, and the group moved to the couple's private hotel villa to sort it out. The man got his money back, and Brown reportedly got a tongue-lashing from the wife.
Now it is Israel's turn to deal with the contrary couple. Believe it or not, they were in the Holy Land on Tuesday meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
Houston said they were in Israel to visit "friends and family" among the Black Hebrews, a community that moved to Israel in 1969 and settled in the southern town of Dimona.
Fast times
Last week Marty Allen and his longtime wife and professional partner, Karon Kate Blackwell, returned home to Las Vegas after one of their many cruise ship engagements.
He found a belated 81st birthday gift from his wife in their driveway -- a brand-new BMW sport convertible.
The couple are among the most popular -- and clearly best-compensated -- performers on the cruise ship circuit.
They next play Vegas at the Suncoast Showroom on July 12 and July 13.
VegasBits
Shopper: Heiress and socialite Paris Hilton shopped at Meital Grantz' chic Talulah G boutique Tuesday ...
Happy: Strip headliner and entertainment legend Gladys Knight turns 59 today ...
Raw: For being connected to a bankrupt hotel, Desert Passage at the Aladdin continues to attract a lot of new business. Tonight Bonsai, a high-end sushi bar, has its grand opening there ...
Add on: Former Skid Row frontman and "Jesus Christ Superstar" stage performer Sebastian Bach has been added to the lineup for Meat Loaf's "All Star Jam & Pool Party" at Skin at the Palms on Saturday night ...
Presses: Vegas magazine, set to debut in July, was written up in Tuesday's Wall Street Journal. Also, the editor of Ocean Drive magazine, Glenn Albin, will assume a similar title at Vegas. Jerry Powers, who runs Ocean Drive's parent company, SoBeNews, will co-publish Vegas. The first edition of Vegas magazine has Heidi Klum on the cover. Vegas magazine and the Las Vegas Sun are both part of the Greenspun Media Group.
From Sun wires
Heather Mills, wife of former Beatle Paul McCartney, is pregnant with the couple's first child, their spokesman said today.
In a brief statement, the couple said "we are delighted with this happy news."
Mills, a 34-year-old former model who lost a leg in a motorcycle accident and raises money for children disabled in war, married McCartney at an Irish castle in June 2002.
The spokesman, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the baby is due later this year. He did not say what month.
The child will be the first for Mills, who was married briefly in 1989. McCartney, 60, has three adult children, Stella, Mary and James, and a stepdaughter, Heather, from his marriage to his first wife, Linda McCartney, who died in 1998.
Three months ago Mills said in a television interview she feared she would never have a child because of a series of health problems, including cancer and two ectopic pregnancies.
"The chances of me getting pregnant are about that much," she said, holding up her thumb and finger an inch apart.
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