Columnist Jerry Fink: Dusk to dawn at Hilton

Friday, Oct. 29, 2004 | 8:31 a.m.

Jazz vocalist Matt Dusk riled friends of Lt. Gov. Lorraine Hunt and singer Dennis Bono earlier this year when the 25-year-old entertainer made some unflattering remarks during the taping of "The Casino," a reality series that aired on Fox (KVVU Channel 5) during the summer.

The series was shot at the Golden Nugget.

During one of the shows Dusk objected to allowing Hunt and Bono to give an impromptu performance with his band, saying he didn't want to be part of a "cheesy karaoke" event.

Since the ending of the taping of the series in March, Dusk has spent most of his time touring Canada promoting his new CD, "Two Shots."

And he has moved to Las Vegas, spending as much time as he can here between tour dates.

Dusk will get to spend the next month at home, when he begins an engagement at the 1,500-seat Las Vegas Hilton Theater from Nov. 1 through Nov. 21. The show, which begins nightly at 7:30, will be dark Wednesdays.

"First of all I want to say that I think Lorraine Hunt is a wonderful woman and Dennis Bono is a wonderful guy," Dusk said as he explained his version of what happened in June, when the show aired.

According to Dusk, Nugget entertainment director Joe Leone ordered him to put Hunt and Bono onstage during his lounge show as it was being taped for television.

"It was opening night and the band and myself were trying to put on the best show we could," Dusk said. "Leone said, 'Can you put these guys on the stage to sing a song,' and I'm like, 'I don't know if my band has some of the charts. Some of them aren't jazz players.'

"Leone said, 'You've got to make it happen.' So they came up onstage. I didn't think, with the way the band was playing -- they were just thrown into the situation -- in my opinion it didn't make Lorraine and Dennis look the best I know they could."

Dusk said he told Leone, "You really can't throw that at me because I want to make sure (Lorraine and Dennis) look good and I don't want to put on a cheesy karaoke kind of show here."

Dusk says he has been to the Bootlegger, a restaurant and lounge owned by Hunt, and sang several times.

"I had fun there," he said.

But that was not the kind of setting he envisioned for his lounge show, which was going to air on national television. Since the airing of the show, Dusk has made up with Hunt and Bono.

"I have no ill feelings toward anyone," Dusk said.

Hunt and Bono say they like the personable singer and hope he does well in Vegas.

On Nov. 11, Dusk is scheduled to appear on Bono's weekly radio variety show, which is taped at 2 p.m. Thursdays at Sam's Town and airs at 7:30 p.m. Fridays on KJUL 104.3-FM.

Dusk described the experience of taping "Casino" as "stressful."

"When you have video cameras chasing you 18 hours a day, you lose track of reality," he said.

Dusk said he landed the job when his managers, song publishers and the producers of the series thought he would make an ideal subject for the TV cameras to follow around as he tried to make it in Las Vegas. Dusk liked the idea because he had just completed recording his latest CD.

"They said if I would come down to Vegas and get a gig they would introduce me to Tim (Poster) and Tom (Breitling) at the Nugget, and if Tim and Tom wanted to hire me to perform in their lounge then I could be on the series," Dusk said.

The Nugget owners liked Dusk and he got the job, which required about 10 weeks of taping.

"For me, it was an incredible opportunity to launch a record," Dusk said, noting the show had an average of about 6 million viewers.

By the time the series aired, Dusk was touring Canada while promoting the CD, which recently went gold in his native country. Next year he will be touring with the album in Europe, Asia and Australia and then in the United States.

Dusk has been singing professionally since age 7, when he joined a choir that toured the world twice a year. He performed with the group until he was 18 and then he formed a band and performed mostly in nightclubs in-and-around Toronto for eight years.

When he moved to Vegas to appear in the TV series, he says he fell in love with the city and decided to make it his home.

"It's its own town, very unique," Dusk said.

Hall of Fame

Six of Las Vegas' legendary performers will be inducted into the Casino Legends Hall of Fame during an annual ceremony Sunday at the Tropicana. The inductees include Jack Jones, Patti Page, Debbie Reynolds, Sheena Easton, Ben Vereen and Tempest Storm.

Clint Holmes will host the by-invitation-only event, which begins at 2 p.m.

The ceremony is put on by the Tropicana and the Casino Legends Hall of Fame Museum.

The ever-changing museum contains thousands of exhibits related to Vegas entertainment.

"We're always changing displays," museum founder and director Steve Cutler said. "In the last couple of years, 25 percent of the museum is different."

The latest exhibits include five original oil paintings of celebrities by Andre Sabori and items related to stripper Tempest Storm.

The next display that will be added to the museum is a trumpet once owned by Louis Armstrong.

The entertainers who are inducted into the Hall of Fame have close ties to Vegas:

Jones, who received Grammys for "Lollipops and Roses" in 1961 and "Wives and Lovers" in 1963, was 19 when he first performed here at the Thunderbird in 1957.

Page ("Tennessee Waltz"; "Mockin' Bird Hill") also made her Vegas debut at the Thunderbird (1949). From 1950-61 she frequently performed at the Desert Inn.

Reynolds, former owner of a Las Vegas casino (which is now the Greek Isles), frequently performs in Vegas.

Easton lives in Las Vegas, headlining at the Las Vegas Hilton for the past two years and after co-starring with David Cassidy at the Rio in "At the Copa."

Vereen -- a dancer, singer and actor -- has appeared in Vegas several times over the years, including at the Las Vegas Hilton in 1976 and the Riviera in '79.

Storm, an icon of burlesque, first performed here in 1951 -- at the Embassy Club in North Las Vegas. She was a frequent Vegas headliner in the '50s and '60s.

The chase is on

"Les Miserables," one of the world's most popular musicals, begins a six-day engagement Tuesday at Cashman Theatre, 850 Las Vegas Blvd. North. Shows begin at 8 p.m. Tuesday through Nov. 5; 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Nov. 6; and 1 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Nov. 7.

Based upon Victor Hugo's classic novel, the story is an epic tale told during three of 19th century France's most turbulent decades. It focuses on fugitive Jean Valjean, who is being pursued by Inspector Javert, in a lifelong struggle.

The Broadway production ended its 16-year run on May 18, 2003, and is the third-longest running show in Broadway history.

The musical at Cashman is part of the Las Vegas Broadway Series, which in the past had been held at the 7,000-seat Aladdin Theatre for Performing Arts.

The first production of the season, "Peter Pan," ended Oct. 24. Following "Les Miserables" will be "Contact" (Dec. 30-Jan. 1), "Jekyll & Hyde" (Feb. 8-13) and "The Graduate" (April 19-24).

I vote for Clinton

Popular performer Kelly Clinton, who hosts the standing-room-only Celebrity Karaoke gig at the Bootlegger Bistro on Monday nights, has been named entertainment director at Turnberry Place's exclusive Stirling Club.

In addition to booking entertainers, she will headline the room Friday and Saturday nights.

And she will continue to host karaoke at the Bootlegger.

Clinton says for her Friday night gigs she wants to re-create old Las Vegas, when entertainers would hang out at various hotels after a performance.

Funny bet

A good bet for a fun time tonight is Robert Schimmel. But be warned, his shows can be vulgar, and some say rude.

The cancer survivor and outspoken comic will perform at 10 p.m. at the Mandalay Bay Theatre.

Fawcett tapped out

After just a couple of weeks, Allen Fawcett abruptly ended his "Lippin' to the Hits" afternoon show at Palace Station.

A spokesman said Fawcett decided his show, patterned after his '80s hit TV series that featured lip syncing, would be better marketed to tourists than locals. Palace Station promotes itself as a local's place.

Fawcett says he hopes to open at a venue on the Strip in late January.

Comedy Festival update

Las Vegas has Carrot Top.

Tulsa, Okla., has Grape Top.

Michael Porter, who began dyeing his hair purple five years ago, bills himself as a stand-up comic -- even though he is a quadriplegic and confined to a wheelchair.

"Doctors told my parents I would never see my fourth birthday," said the 39-year-old amateur comedian, a native of New Jersey who moved to Tulsa seven years ago with his wife, Lisa, to attend Oral Roberts University.

Porter was one of 250 aspiring comics who attended the third annual Las Vegas Comedy Festival recently at the Golden Nugget.

"I attended the Comedy Festival because it offered a lot of seminars and I got a lot of insight into what comedy is really about and how to be a comedian," Porter said. "But I guess the main thing is I made some connections with other comics. My wife and I feel we made some friends."

Porter has never performed professionally. He began pursuing a comedy career about three years ago after appearing in a church talent show.

"I had dyed my hair purple to connect with kids I ministered to, and when the church had the talent show I decided to try some stand-up," he said. "Carrot Top is one of my favorite comedians, and so since my hair was purple I thought I would call myself Grape Top."

The big winner of this year's festival competition was Chicago comedian Larry Reeb, who is billed as Uncle Lar.

Reeb won $25,000 in the Best of the Fest category. Las Vegas comedian Sandy Hackett presented Reeb with the Hackett Award, named in honor of Sandy's late father, Buddy. Colorado resident Josh Blue, who has Cerebral Palsy, won the $10,000 first prize in the Royal Flush category -- competition for professional comedians.

Mary Thomas, executive director of the festival, said it was the best so far, with more than 3,000 noncomedians attending one or more of the various comedy performances during the five-day event.

"We had a great turnout, tremendous shows," Thomas said. "It was a tremendous success for us and the comedians. We found some very significant comedians. People are talking to them right now about their future."

There were many highlights during the laugh-fest, among them a panel discussion hosted by Las Vegas comedian Joey Villa.

The panel included some of the legends in the comedy business, including Sammy Shore (opening act for Elvis Presley and founder of the Comedy Store in Los Angeles); George Schlatter (creator of "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In"); Bernie Brillstein (producer of such films as "Ghostbusters" and "The Blues Brothers"); and comedian Shelley Berman.

During the festival Schlatter received the "Uncle Miltie Pioneer of TV" award and Brillstein received the Steve Allen "Pioneer of Comedy" award.

Good cause

A benefit for Several Sources Foundation, an organization that provides homeless shelters for battered and abused teenage mothers, will be held at 9 p.m. Friday at the Aladdin's V Theatre.

Featured entertainers will include Clint Holmes and his musical director, Bill Fayne, and Ted Levy doing a tribute to Sammy Davis Jr.

Among celebrity guests scheduled to attend the event are Lt. Gov. Lorraine Hunt, impressionist Gordie Brown, Robin Leach, Vince Neil (of Motley Crue) and vocalists Grant Griffin and George Bugatti.

Those who attend the event are invited to buy their way to stardom with donations to the Foundation. Packages range from $500 to $5,000.

The packages include (depending upon the donation) a table for four with complimentary champagne in the star section; a walk down the red carpet; limousine pickup and drop off; and a visit to a spa.

General admission is $25 in advance and $30 at the door.

For reservations call 791-1777.