Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

VegasBeat — Timothy McDarrah: Conservative group ducks ‘Pride’ parade

It's not quite like when a woman in Michigan, Terry Rakolta , got Procter & Gamble, McDonald's and Kimberly-Clark to no longer advertise on the old Fox sitcom "Married ... With Children."

But the advertiser-backed Family Friendly Programming Forum has withdrawn its funding for NBC's adult-themed animated series "Father of the Pride." The animated situation comedy depicts the sex-filled lives of animals in Siegfried & Roy's Las Vegas show.

The news was first reported Tuesday in Ad Age, an industry journal.

The Family Friendly Programming Forum is a group funded by nearly 50 of the nation's largest and most conservative corporate behemoths, such as Wal-Mart. It contributes money and other support toward "the development of wholesome family-friendly TV programming for the prime-time hours of 8 p.m. to 10 p.m."

At the network sales presentation in the spring, the show was pitched as family-friendly. But it has since evolved into an often-lewd program, with its animal characters making thinly veiled references to sexual acts.

It was not clear exactly how much money was withdrawn, but Ad Age reported that the group initially gave $50,000 to NBC to help underwrite the show -- which the network is going to return.

Because of its quality animation and high production values, NBC has said that each episode of the program costs more than $2 million.

"Regarding 'Father of the Pride,' when we originally read it, it was deemed family-friendly by the majority of the contributors to the script fund," Kaki Hinton, Pfizer Consumer Healthcare's vice president of ad services and co-chairwoman of the Family Friendly Programming Forum, told Ad Age.

"NBC has been responsible, and they informed us the show would be taking an adult turn and we agreed to eliminate that project from the script development fund."

When we called NBC's Burbank-based Adam Giagni, the show's designated spokesman, he had no comment on the issue. Bernie Yuman, Siegfried & Roy's manager and a co-executive producer of the show, said he wanted to reserve comment until he had read the full Ad Age article.

More Cirque

Official news on the new Cirque du Soleil show scheduled to open late this year or early next year at MGM Grand is finally on the way.

The Montreal-based entertainment group that has come to dominate the Vegas scene with such shows as "O," "Mystere" and "Zumanity" has scheduled a news conference on Sept. 15 to talk about the pending production.

Trick or Treat

Lori Brown -- wife of Golden Nugget headliner "Downtown" Gordie Brown -- is pregnant.

The child, due around Halloween, will be named Presley, Brown told us backstage after we caught his coruscant act Monday night.

"Elvis Presley has always been my idol and my inspiration," Brown said.

So he knows the child will be a boy?

"Either way, it's Presley," Brown said. "But yes, it is going to be a boy."

Brown's set -- where he runs through a diverse and dazzling array of pop-culture personality impressions that include Herve Villechaize, Robert De Niro, Billy Joel, Katharine Hepburn, Jim Carrey and Ozzy Osbourne -- ends with a marvelously camp Elvis impression.

Brown's successful show is expected to add several weekly performances after "Spirit of the Dance," which has the early slot in the showroom they share, closes next month.

Ruby Thursday

Biggest party in town Thursday will be the reception for Vegas resident and artist Ruby Mazur at the Art de Vignettes gallery at the Fashion Show mall.

The designer of the iconic Rolling Stones tongue-and-lips logo started his career at Paramount Records, where he was nominated for a Grammy Award for his work. Mazur's artwork has graced the covers of more than 3,000 albums from the likes of Ray Charles, Elton John, Billy Joel, Sarah Vaughan and Van Morrison.

The event opens to the public at 4 p.m., with a VIP reception to follow at 6 p.m.

Rock on

Garth Brooks and Meat Loaf have been added to the list of celebs -- headed by De Niro -- attending the "We Will Rock You" Queen musical opening tonight at Paris Las Vegas.

At a post-show party on the hotel's pool deck, band members Brian May and Roger Taylor will be inducted into the Hollywood Rock Walk, as they imprint their hands in cement. Their handprints and signatures will then permanently reside in Los Angeles beside such fellow rockers as Eric Clapton, Johnny Cash, Jimi Hendrix, Aerosmith, Carlos Santana and the Ramones.

And, a special "In Memory Of" plaque will also be placed in cement, to pay homage to the late, great Freddie Mercury.

VegasBits

Celebrate: Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst rented the Hard Rock Hotel's penthouse suite (the one with the bowling alley) over the weekend for some belated birthday festivities. He was born Aug. 20, 1970. Among the revelers joining him were Paris Hilton, David Copperfield, Ron Jeremy and the hotel's comedy headliner, Jeff Beacher ...

Focus: Usher and his gal pal, Chilli (of TLC), stopped into the designer eyewear shop Lunettes (Mandalay Place) over the weekend and did some "serious shopping," we are told. The couple also visited Le Paradis Jewelers, where they added to their collection of bling ...

Boss: Golden Nugget co-owner Tom Breitling joined Bruce Willis and the Accelerators onstage Saturday night during their show there. Afterward, Willis and the band jammed on the stage at Zax until about 2 a.m. ...

Eats: Former NBA star Charles Barkley and three friends had dinner Sunday at Charlie Palmer Steak (Four Seasons) ...

Funny: Comic Robin Williams was spotted Sunday around the Hard Rock Hotel. Spies report him looking through the merchandise at the hotel's retail store and at the Cuba Libre cigar emporium. Earlier, Williams was seen at Mandalay Place, where he visited Sauvage, a designer swimwear boutique, and the Chocolate Swan ...

Buy: Hot clothing designer Paul Frank, who just opened a store at Fashion Show, bought some small side tables at Modify, a great retro furniture store on East Charleston Boulevard, during the First Friday celebration last week ...

Guarantee: Congrats to Mark Kriegel, my former elementary school classmate and New York Post colleague, on the publication this week of "Namath," the first in-depth bio of the former New York Jets star. The book earned a rave from the New York Times and 3 1/2 stars from People magazine. A Vegas book-signing is planned.

From Sun wires

Rapper hurt: Chicago rapper Twista, known for hits such as "Slow Jamz" and "So Sexy," was hurt in a van crash that killed a member of his security staff in Erie, Pa., state police said.

Twista, whose real name is Carl Mitchell, was treated and released from a hospital after the van in which he was riding veered off Interstate 90 just after 4 a.m. Monday and rolled over in the median, police said.

Another man in the van, Arthur Dixon of Chicago, died after he was taken to a hospital, authorities said. Five other men in the van were hurt, none seriously, police and hospital officials said.

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