Bout with cancer has dampened Sonny’s disposition

Friday, Oct. 28, 2005 | 7:14 a.m.

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A phone number for information about king will be in service Saturday: 650-2535. Or e-mail eltsinger@aol.com. Contributions may be made to the Sonny King Trust Fund, account number 004969748687, at the Bank of America, 1140 E. Desert Inn, 89109-2812. Contributions are tax deductible.

One of Las Vegas' most beloved entertainers is ailing -- both physically and financially.

Doctors are treating Sonny King's medical ailments. Frances and Richard MacDonald, developers of MacDonald Ranch, are working on the financial ailments, which largely have been related to his illness.

The noted Las Vegas couple will hold a private fundraiser for their friend at their Turnberry Place penthouse on Nov. 20.

"We go back a long way," Frances MacDonald said. "The first time we met was at the Sahara -- I worked there from 1959 to 1964. He was in the lounge and I worked in the gift shop, and then I managed the dining room.

"We've been close ever since."

The royalty of old Las Vegas entertainment is being invited.

"Everybody loves Sonny," MacDonald said. "I thought if we invited all his peers -- I don't care what they give -- that it might help."

King recently completed radiation treatment for a cancerous growth on his tongue. More tests will determine whether the cancer has been arrested or whether an operation will be required.

For five years at the Bootlegger he hosted "Off the Cuff," a Friday and Saturday night revue featuring King and many of his show business friends who would drop by and entertain fans.

King continued to host the show during his radiation treatment until he became so ill in early August that he no longer could perform.

King's radiation treatment made his throat so sore that he couldn't eat solid food, causing him to lose more than 50 pounds. On Sept. 16 he collapsed and was at Sunrise Hospital until being transferred Thursday to Kindred Hospital Las Vegas at Desert Springs for rehabilitation.

In addition to suffering from the effects of the drastic loss in weight, King developed pneumonia.

"The pneumonia is what almost killed him," said Peggy King, his wife of seven years. She said her husband has gained 39 pounds since entering the hospital.

King, who is in his 80s, has Medicare, but Peggy says it only covers 80 percent of the bills -- which are approaching $100,000 and climbing.

"And it doesn't cover his medicine," she said. And so bills keep piling up.

When entertainers Nelson Sardelli and Freddy Bell substituted as hosts for King, they gave him their checks from the Bootlegger. Today the Kings' only income is his Social Security.

"I spent 35 years with Wells Fargo in San Francisco before moving to Las Vegas," Peggy King, who is in her 50s, said. "I haven't worked for the past five years, but I have applied for a loan officer's license here in Nevada, and as soon as I get it, I will go back to work -- but it will take me six months to build up my business."

She said she hasn't been able to look for work for the past two months because she has spent all of her time with her husband.

"I've been with Sonny day and night for 60 days," she said. "He panics if I'm not there."

This is not Sonny King's first bout with cancer.

In 1992 he received radiation and chemo treatments for a cancerous tumor on his neck.

He recovered but worked only sporadically after that, until he got the gig at the Bootlegger in 2001, after it moved from Eastern and Tropicana avenues to its present site at Las Vegas Boulevard South and Blue Diamond Road.

Peggy King said when she married Sonny in 1998 he was still deeply in debt because of the earlier cancer treatment -- an illness that also has made it impossible to get supplemental insurance that would have helped cover his current medical expenses.

"He was living on Social Security and credit cards," she said. "After we got married I had to file for bankruptcy for him -- and since we were married and this is a community property state, I was part of the bankruptcy."

King is a legend among his show business friends, who include almost every legendary entertainer to perform in Las Vegas in the '50s through the '80s.

He and Dean Martin were roommates when they were starting out in show business -- often boxing each other in their hotel room and charging admission to raise money.

King is credited with introducing Martin and Jerry Lewis, who teamed up to become one of the most popular comedy duos in the nation from 1949 to 1959.

Martin's daughter, Deana, has invited King to her home in Branson, Mo., to recuperate when he is released from the hospital. Deana and King have always been close.

"She calls him Uncle Sonny," Peggy King said.

King was an ex-officio member of the Rat Pack -- close friends with Martin, Frank Sinatra, Joey Bishop and Sammy Davis Jr. -- but never identified as a member of the group by the media.

King, who arrived in Las Vegas in 1955, eventually became Jimmy Durante's opening act and spent 28 years with the comedian.

He is expected to attend the tax-deductible benefit being given for him by the MacDonalds.

"He's feeling a lot better," Peggy King said. "He says he's anxious to get back to work -- and he's winking at all the nurses."

Send an SOS

The "Society of Seven" will close after the revue's Jan. 1 performance, almost 18 months after it debuted at Bally's. Entertainment director Chris Nelson said the decision not to extend the contract was not based on ticket sales.

"It's not because they were doing poorly," he said. "They have been a fantastic, solid group. We are simply going to explore different options."

Bob Jose, spokesman for SOS, said the group will be going on tour in Asia and the United States when their engagement ends. Lani Misalucha, who joined the former all-male revue last year, will accompany them on the tour.

"The plan is to come back to Vegas when the tour ends," Jose said.

He said SOS has received numerous invitations to perform around the world since premiering its afternoon show at Bally's in August 2004.

"But we couldn't accept them because of our commitment here," Jose said.

While Jose says the afternoon show was successful, he also said it was difficult.

"Afternoon shows are always a struggle," he said. "When night comes, people are ready to party -- they don't have the mind set to watch a show in afternoon."

The Society of Seven has been entertaining fans for more than 40 years.

They first came to Vegas as the Fabulous Echoes from Hong Kong in 1964 for a four-week engagement at the Thunderbird that turned into a gig that lasted more than four years.

In 1969 they moved to Hawaii, where they were one of the state's top tourist attractions. In 2001 they returned to Las Vegas, with a successful five-month run at the Las Vegas Hilton.

From there they went to the Golden Nugget for a brief run, then to the Aladdin's CenterStage theater in November 2002. The Aladdin closed the theater in October 2003, leaving the group without a permanent venue until opening at Bally's.

Jerry Fink can be reached at 259-4058 or jerry@lasvegassun.com.