John Katsilometes reveals a different sort of phantom that occupies the Venetian theater at ty th

Thursday, Aug. 10, 2006 | 7:36 a.m.

The Phantom Theatre at the Venetian has been home to two Phantoms. There is the tormented, disfigured character who carries "Phantom: Las Vegas Spectacular."

And there has been seat No. 38 in Section 2, Row C.

The Phantom Seat.

Although Row C in Section 2 ends at seat No. 37, tickets have been issued for No. 38 - errantly, as two visitors from San Diego recently discovered. Bob Gigliotti and his wife, Patricia, were in town on July 26 to celebrate their 20th anniversary. They held seats (or, rather, tickets for seats) No. 37 and 38 in Row C, but instead were placed in Nos. 36 and 37.

Soon after the Gigliottis were seated, an usher led down two other ticket-holders - a woman and her daughter - to 36 and 37, and the Gigliottis were moved to two other comparable seats.

As Bob Gigliotti related, he was told that during construction Seat 38 was originally an aisle seat in Row C, but that it had since been removed. That's true, Venetian spokesman Ron Reese said.

"We had a seating map in place prior to the seats being put in and that seat had been sold a few times," Reese said. "Even though it had been removed it continued to show up on the map. In fact, it still shows up on the seating chart, but that is being addressed."

Bottom line, Reese said, is that today no one is being issued the Phantom Seat by the Venetian box office. Still, the Gigliottis are seeking a full refund of $314 for the two tickets. But Reese said, "We made accommodations to put them in the same row, and subsequently offered compensation."

And as for why the seat did exist on a seating chart but not in fact, Reese said, "I can't explain why - we were selling tickets as early as possible, and there was still work being done on the theater." Consider it another mystery in the Phantom's saga.

NoteMart

Life at the Riviera is anything but staid these days. On Monday a new $20-per-share bid for the property was made by International Gaming and Entertainment, throwing the future of the hotel into further uncertainty. That development followed Friday's frustrating news (at least for Riv officials) that the opening episode of "CSI" would not be filmed at the hotel, as originally hoped. "CSI" is now looking to the Plaza and its main entrance at 1 Main St. as the backdrop for the episode opening its seventh season. A scouting crew from "CSI" twice toured the Riv a couple of weeks ago and expressed concern about the bare backsides on the famous Crazy Girls relief airing on network TV (although that wasn't the deal-breaker).

Vegas History 101: Several weeks ago secretary of state candidate (and a member of one of Las Vegas' most famous families) Danny Tarkanian attended a function at Texas Station sponsored by the North Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce. He introduced himself to a Las Vegas newcomer who, at hearing "Tarkanian," said, "That name sure sounds familiar." Tarkanian managed a smile.

Four of a kind: Poker stars who have reserved condos at W Las Vegas, to stand on Harmon Avenue west of the Hard Rock Hotel, are Phil Hellmuth, Antonio Esfandiari, Phil Laak and David Williams. W Las Vegas, a $2 billion project owned by the Edge Group, is scheduled to open in late 2009.

To both staff a new club and remind us of said club, on Friday the Palms is holding a "Bunny Search" to seek new Playboy Bunnies for the new Playboy Club, part of the Playboy Experience at the Palms Fantasy Tower. The Playboy Experience opens in October; the "Bunny Search" begins at 7 p.m. and prospective Bunnies are invited to sign up in person or online at www.playboybunniesearch.com

In honor of Rudy Ruettiger, who led Tuesday's column, the vanity plate on a burgundy Acura MDX reads NTRDAME (but why burgundy?)