John Katsilometes on the timing of nuptials for Hunt-Bono

kats@lasvegassun.com

Sunday, Feb. 12, 2006 | 12:30 p.m.

"Saturday Night Live" once aired a skit centering on a talk show titled, "What Were You Thinking?" where guests were asked that question after making particularly curious career or personal decisions.

Portraying former presidential candidate Walter Mondale, Dana Carvey was asked by the host (played by the late Phil Hartman), "What were you thinking?" after promising to raise taxes during his campaign against Ronald Reagan. "Oh ... I dunno," was the Carvey-as-Mondale response.

That skit came to mind when the date of the Dennis Bono-Lorraine Hunt wedding came to light: March 5, same date as the Academy Awards. I mentioned that oddity several days ago and called Hunt last week to check on how the date was determined.

"We never thought about (the Oscars)," she said, laughing. "We only wanted to pick a date so everyone could make it. Dennis has family coming in from Connecticut and we're trying to get two families united. What we did do was check on the community calendar to make sure we could book a place for that." (The site of the wedding and reception are being kept a secret.)

The wedding should not compete with any Oscar parties, Hunt said. The plan is for a small, intimate gathering of family and friends. "Dennis has more than 1,000 visitors to his show ("The Dennis Bono Show," taped weekly at Sam's Town Live!) every week - we could have the Thomas & Mack Center filled for this."

Barry sells: The lesson here: Never underestimate the breadth of Barry Manilow's fan base. The Las Vegas Hilton headliner debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart last week with "The Greatest Songs of the Fifties." It is the first time since 1977's "Live" concert recording (the one with the cover shot of Barry wearing a sequined jumpsuit and reaching for the sky) that Manilow has debuted at No. 1. He returns to the Hilton stage Wednesday ...

Praise of Enrico's: It's relatively cramped (45 seats in a none-to-large dining area) and a bit difficult to locate, tucked into the Von's shopping center on the northwest corner of Lone Mountain Road and Decatur Boulevard, but Enrico's Italian Bistro is worth the effort. The food is fantastic ...

Steering in the right direction: Note to Cadillac-LaSalle owners in the wake of the column item I wrote last week previewing today's "Cadillac Through the Years" show at The District at Green Valley Ranch: Please call the Cadillac-LaSalle Club of Las Vegas at (702) 392-7879 for information about buying, selling, showing or obtaining parts for your vehicle. I'm not your man for that info.

Dozens of vintage Cadillac and LaSalle automobiles will be on display at today's show, which runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is free to the public ...

Keys to the kingdom: The Piano Gallery of America opens Wednesday at 4245 S. Grand Canyon Drive (on the corner of Flamingo Road and Grand Canyon). Its co-owner is Jie Bu, who in a 15-year career in Las Vegas has trained more than 1,000 students as an instructor at UNLV and as co-founder of Music & Arts of Las Vegas, a music school on Spring Mountain Road ...

Seeking pray: A clever sign in front of Good Samaritan Church on West Flamingo Road: God Answers Knee Mail.

John Katsilometes can be reached at 259-2327 or 812-9812, or at kats@lasvegassun.com.