Friday, Oct. 3, 2003 | 10:53 a.m.
What could be more Vegas than a Siegfried & Roy birthday party?
Roy Uwe Ludwig Horn -- who turns 59 today -- had about 1,000 of his nearest and dearest spill into his Mirage showroom Thursday night for a little celebration.
Well, maybe not so little.
"One thing I love to do is celebrate," Roy told VegasBeat after emerging from a massive stage set with "Happy Birthday, Roy" written across the top where he briefly addressed the guests.
Celebrate he did. Of course, he was joined by Siegfried, their manager, Bernie Yuman, and entertainers and dignitaries such as Steve Wynn, Breck Wall, Lawrence Weekly, Vicki Lawrence, Elizabeth Blau, Frank Marino, Lance Burton, Duke Morgan, and various Scintas and "Mamma Mia!" cast members.
Beyond the notables, Roy was also feted by hundreds of people he has worked with during his 14-year Mirage gig, ranging from valets and bartenders to Mirage prez Bobby Baldwin and MGM MIRAGE boss Terri Lanni.
"Everyone here is my friend," a jubilant Roy said before two dozen of his show performers hit the stage for a boffo Latin dance number, featuring a female impersonator as Chita Rivera, complete with fruitbowl headgear.
There was of course a lavish buffet, with a carved white tiger ice centerpiece.
There was also a superlative band, Harbor Lights, and Serena Henry -- the Henderson resident and finalist from the TV show "Fame" -- came on to sing a few numbers.
Rare peek
A true American entertainment icon, Phyllis McGuire, is opening her Las Vegas home Thursday to benefit the Las Vegas Art Museum.
McGuire will showcase more than 100 vintage couture gowns she owns from designers such as Bob Mackie, Edith Head, Halston and Nolan Miller.
There are also a cocktail party, gala dinner and silent auction on the agenda. Some tickets, priced at $1,000 and down, are still available by calling the museum at 360-8000.
The event, which Joyce Mack helped to organize, will honor artist and comedienne Phyllis Diller.
Incognito
His recent trip to Vegas didn't have a negative effect on champion race car driver Michael Schumacher, who won the United States Grand Prix in Indianapolis on Sunday.
The five-time Formula 1 champ, who was born in Germany, is so popular in Europe he can't walk down a street without being mobbed by fans.
Thus, European sports stars such as Schumacher and soccer idol David Beckham relish their time in America for the anonymity it provides.
When Schumacher walked the red carpet recently at the "Zumanity" premiere, for example, none of the paparazzi knew who he was.
"Usually, I am not recognized at all by Americans, and I can move around freely. I like that," he told us.
Later, he hit the slot machines. "I am a small gambler -- I went for the penny machines," said Schumacher, who according to Forbes magazine earned $59 million in 2000.
Dion fallout
When we recently called Celine Dion's reps to ask her if a hernia operation was the reason she had cut out the part of her show where she hangs from the ceiling and sings a Roberta Flack song, they said no.
But in an interview with Canadian journalist Pat Donnelly published Saturday in the Montreal Gazette, Diva Las Vegas said: "I had a hernia. I had to have surgery about eight weeks ago. It was taken care of."
So when we called Dion's reps again Thursday to clear it up, Dion spokeswoman Kris Lingle said she had "made some calls," but politely said she was unable to say anything definitive on the subject.
In the Gazette interview, Dion said the physically demanding "A New Day ..." number was not necessarily the cause of the operation, citing exercise and childbirth as other possible reasons.
"So far, they say no more flying," Dion said. "But maybe in a few months it will change."
In a wide-ranging chat, she also said that her husband, Rene Angelil, "loves to gamble," but that she rarely does. Instead, she prefers to shop.
Also, she said that she no longer worries about contracting "Vegas Throat," an affliction that singers report because of the dry desert air, and that singing is not her priority anymore.
"Since I've paid less attention to my vocal chords, the better it is going," she said.
Then: "My priority is not singing. My priority is to be as good a mother as possible. I want to be a good mom, a good wife, a happy human being. And if I'm happy and I have all that, I can sing much better."
Here, there
For those keeping track, and we are, the New York Giants were not angry at what a local newspaper claimed was an inaccurate VegasBeat report. The team was angry that tight end Jeremy Shockey was spotted in Vegas two nights before he had a game in Washington.
Shockey was spied at a Playboy party at the Palms on a Friday before a Sunday game. Not only did two newsroom colleagues eyeball Shockey and a drink (a cosmopolitan) in his hand, but two Palms staffers confirmed he was in the house -- and the team did not come back to us after the fact and ask for a retraction or clarification, despite being given the opportunity to do so.
It was also widely reported that Shockey was back in town last weekend, when the Giants had a bye week.
Peculiar
Human pin cushion Tim Cridland -- who stars in "Shock!" at Bourbon Street -- appears this weekend on the Discovery Channel (Cox cable channel 25) show "More Than Human."
"I almost get killed as part of a scientific experiment," he said.
Also on the broadcast is Danielle DeMeux, aka Miss Electra, The Danger Diva. She is billed as a living electricity conductor.
The show airs at 8 p.m. and then 11 p.m. today and again at 2 p.m. Sunday.
VegasBits
Paid up: Oscar De La Hoya's personal publicist read our item Thursday about the boxer not paying off a $500,000 bet he made with Sugar Shane Mosley. Said debt has now been paid in full, she assures us ...
Congrats: The Public Relations Society of America has honored Las Vegas publicist Mary Vail with its Paul M. Lund Public Service Award. The national prize is presented to a member whose "participation as a volunteer has increased the common good." Vail does work for such groups as The Shade Tree women's shelter and the Southern Nevada chapter of the American Red Cross ...
Hooray! One of our all-time favorite teams, the Harlem Globetrotters, are coming to Vegas. Tickets -- priced from $9 to $50 -- are on sale for their Feb. 18 date at The Orleans Arena.
From Sun wires
Hours after being arrested and released for allegedly being under the influence of a narcotic, singer-actress Courtney Love was taken to a hospital for treatment in Los Angeles Thursday.
Love, 39, was found early Thursday outside a home where she had allegedly broken the windows in an attempt to enter. She was arrested and booked for investigation of using illegal drugs, posted $2,500 bail and was released.
The injured stuff: A plane flown by famed test pilot Chuck Yeager went off a runway and into a ditch Thursday while taxiing after landing in Clayton, Ga. Yeager, 80, had a bump on his head, but neither he nor his wife, Victoria, was seriously injured in the accident.
archive
