Friday, Oct. 10, 2003 | 4:52 a.m.
Michael Flatley, Lord of the Casino?
The high-steppin' entertainer has plans to build an Irish-themed casino on the Strip.
Flatley told an Irish newspaper that he has already secured $500 million in financing and that he is talking to electronics giant Sony about potential involvement.
Flatley also told the Irish Independent he is in talks with Hugh Hefner about teaming to build the hotel's spa and "leisure facilities." Oh, baby.
Flatley arrived in Vegas on Friday for Saturday's scheduled fifth anniversary performance of his "Lord of the Dance" show at The Venetian. It has played there since coming over from New York-New York last year.
The show's continued success has helped to convince him there is an appetite for an Irish-themed gaming property. He also cited the explosion of the number of Irish-themed pubs in Sin City, including J.C. Wooloughan's (JW Marriott), Nine Fine Irishmen (New York-New York), Tilted Kilt (The Rio), Fado (Green Valley Ranch Station) and McMullen's.
Rumor of the day: Bob Stupak and Janet Moncrief got married in California last week. We called both of them Friday to check on it, but neither called us back.
They have been spotted canoodling in public a lot lately, including the other night at the bar at Simon Kitchen and Bar at the Hard Rock Hotel.
A colleague spied Chicago White Sox slugger and Henderson resident Frank "Big Hurt" Thomas as he sauntered into Bellagio near midnight Thursday and plopped himself down at a $100 minimum blackjack table.
Thomas spent part of the night playing two hands at a time at $200 each.
Sometimes even rich, powerful people (and celebrities) have to wait.
There was quite a line of them standing outside Phyllis McGuire's palatial Rancho Circle home waiting to get into her party honoring Phyllis Diller Thursday.
At one point the outdoor lineup for the Las Vegas Art Museum benefit included Elaine and Steve Wynn, Robin Leach, Gianni Buchanan, Tony Curtis, designer Nolan Miller and Vera and Bob Goulet.
Already inside was the rest of the Vegas A-list crowd, including Brenda and Clint Holmes, Sandy and Roger Peltyn, Lovee and Bob Arum, Joyce Mack, Rita Rudner, Donna and Jack Wishna, Chantal and Stephen Cloobeck, Donna and Bobby Baldwin, Frances and Mac McDonald and Rich Little.
We hear that Don Marrandino has a new job. The former Wynn Resorts, Hard Rock Hotel and Station Casinos exec is about to be named by Harrah's as the go-to guy at its Lake Tahoe properties.
Afternoon talk show pioneer Mike Douglas is visiting Las Vegas this week.
If you want to get a glimpse of him, head over to The Orleans on Thursday afternoon, where he will do a live remote with KJUL 104.3-FM host Duke Morgan.
They'll be at Brendan's Pub starting at 3 p.m. Douglas will also sing a few songs, we hear, accompanied by resident performer Frankie Randall and some surprise drop-ins.
Las Vegas artist Ruby Mazur is mad at VH1. Tongue-tied, really.
Mazur is well known as the designer of the iconic Rolling Stones tongue-and-lips logo, but the music channel credited Andy Warhol with the logo design when it recently named 1971's "Sticky Fingers" as the greatest album cover ever.
Warhol and Stones aficionados know that Warhol designed the jeans-and-zipper portion of the classic cover, but Mazur created the indelible logo.
Mazur has designed more than 3,000 album covers by artists ranging from Van Morrison to B.B. King to Billy Joel. Mazur also designed 1971's "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" album cover.
Mazur has recent work on display at the Art de Vignettes gallery at Fashion Show mall.
Today VegasBeat makes its first venture onto eBay, the Internet auction site.
We're going to see what we can get for an original "Pumping Iron" program. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed it for us at the movie's premiere back in 1977. Twenty-five years later, the program remains in mint condition, unlike the author of VegasBeat.
We also have the 100-percent cotton "Pinball Wizard" T-shirt that Elton John signed for us after the opening of the movie "Tommy" two years earlier.
That one we'll save until after John starts his Vegas headliner gig next year. He makes the official announcement Oct. 21 at Caesars Palace.
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