VegasBeat — Timothy McDarrah: LV offers Marriott merriment

Friday, May 7, 2004 | 3:42 a.m.

VegasBeat appears Sunday through Friday in the Las Vegas Sun. Timothy McDarrah can be reached at tim@lasvegassun.com or at (702) 259-4096.

WEEKEND EDITION

May 8 - 9, 2004

Alert the strip clubs. Evan Marriott -- TV's "Joe Millionaire" -- is coming to town Saturday, and he plans to take full advantage of the adult opportunities that Las Vegas has to offer.

"I am a big fan of women, and there are plenty of them in Vegas," Marriott told us in a phone conversation last week in anticipation of his visit to the Galleria at Sunset mall to promote "Fake-A-Date," his new Game Show Network offering.

"I have been in Vegas before and who knows where I'll go this time," Marriott said. "I am a girl watcher, for sure."

Marriott and Cox Communications will also present a student with $10,000 for college at the appearance.

Marriott said that the $500,000 he won on the "Millionaire" reality show is safely invested.

"I am no MC Hammer," Marriott cracked. The rapper ran through an estimated $35 million and declared bankruptcy.

He also told us that he just turned down a "hefty, hefty, hefty offer" to appear on a new version of "The Surreal Life" -- the reality show where bold-faced names from the past live together in a communal house.

The last version included Corey Feldman, Emmanuel Lewis, Erik Estrada, Gabrielle Carteris, Tammy Faye Messner and Vanilla Ice, among others.

"Why did I say no? You can't put a price on dignity," Marriott said. "I'd rather go back to doing construction than make a jackass out of myself like that."

Jesse James of West Coast Choppers and the "Monster Garage" TV show is already a Vegas staple. He has been by the side of his girlfriend, Sandra Bullock, as she films "Miss Congeniality 2" around Las Vegas.

Now he is being immortalized on poker chips. James will be at the Palms on May 28 for the debut of the chip line, and he'll also host a fashion show at the hotel that night with clothing from West Coast Choppers' Jesse's Girl line.

Happy birthday, Clint Holmes. The Harrah's headliner turns 58 today.

Several national media outlets are speculating that Steve Wynn might have been the anonymous bidder of a record $104 million for a Picasso at a New York auction last week.

"I attended the auction but didn't bid on a thing," Wynn told the Las Vegas Sun's Jeff Simpson.

Sheriff Bill Young has been named official spokesman for Olive Crest, a Las Vegas home for abused children.

"Olive Crest's mission is one that personally touches me, as I am keenly aware of the abuse that takes place right here in our own community," Young said in an e-mail.

"I have more than 3,000 inmates in my jail on any given day," Young said. "And most of those inmates come from homes where child abuse is an everyday occurrence. While many of us remember home as a place filled with hugs and happiness, children all around us have a reality that is quite the opposite."

He is going to film a series of public service announcements starting this week.

Penn & Teller will be performing, and Douglas B. Baker from the U.S. Department of Commerce will be the keynote speaker at a Tourism Week luncheon Monday at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

In a community that is fueled by the tourism industry, the luncheon is considered one of the most prestigious industry events of the year.

In 2003 more than 35.5 million people visited Las Vegas, creating a total economic impact of nearly $33 billion, according to Marina Nicola of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Happy Mother's Day.

Any day, however, is a good time to appreciate greatness.

So, VegasBeat would like to wish a happy day to our mother, Gloria, our son's mom, Caroline, Mother Nature, Mother Jones magazine, our niece's mom, Emma, Old Mother Hubbard, Raquel Welch of "Mother, Jugs and Speed," Mother of Pearl, Mother Goose, "Mamma Mia!" and, from yours truly, the Mother of all Gossip Columnists.