Friday, May 12, 2006 | 7:23 a.m.
So just how would one disassemble the La Concha motel to haul it from the Strip to its new home at the Neon Museum?
"Slice it up like an orange," Neon Museum board member Steve Evans said Wednesday night during a Neon Museum fundraiser at the Plaza's Center Stage Italian Chop House. "But that's easier said than done."
Dozens of Las Vegans dedicated to preserving the city's history took part in a wine and food tasting, tour of the Neon Boneyard and silent auction to help raise funds for the La Concha project. KLAS Channel 8 investigative reporter George Knapp served as emcee.
Sufficient funding is in place to have La Concha moved immediately if needed, but the entire relocation/renovation plan will cost $1.5 million, and only about two-thirds of that has been raised, Neon Museum co-chairwoman Nancy Deaner said Wednesday.
One more fundraiser, likely at the La Concha site, will be held before the Paul Revere Williams-designed motel lobby is cut into pieces, hoisted onto flatbed trucks and hauled away. That should happen in September, said Deaner. The board hopes to have the structure placed immediately on the museum site on Las Vegas Boulevard North, about a mile north of Fremont Street, rather than have it stored elsewhere, she said.
"Funny things happen to buildings when they are stored away," she said. "We'd like to have it where we can see it, keep an eye on it."
The La Concha lobby will eventually be used as the Neon Museum's visitors and information center. As Evans said, "We have a reputation for imploding rather than preserving and celebrating our history. We'd like to change that."
Over the years tragedy has befallen many famous Las Vegas signs. The famous Dunes sign fell victim to the hotel's implosion in 1993. And the distinctive sign that for years adorned the Mint on Fremont Street seems to have simply vanished.
"We have no idea where it is," Deaner said. "But we'd sure like to know so we can have it restored."
NoteMart
Julia, Julia : During an appearance this week with Mike O'Brian and Beth Lano on KSTJ 102.7-FM to promote her CBS sitcom, "The New Adventures of Old Christine," Julia Louis-Dreyfus was asked about the oft-criticized "Seinfeld" finale.
"I actually haven't watched the final episode in many years but I feel mixed about it," Louis-Dreyfus said. "It was great to watch all of the guest stars come back, very fun for us to watch them one more time. But as for the four of us, I wish we had more to do, story-wise, in that show."
Louis-Dreyfus is hosting "Saturday Night Live" this week. She spent three years in the '80s on the show and, amazingly, is the first former female cast member ever to return to host the show in its 30-year run
Ellis well for S&R: The Ellis Island Medals of Honor has tabbed Siegfried Fischbacher and Roy Horn for Medals of Honor "recognizing their remarkable commitment to entertainment and conservation." The ceremony will be held Saturday on Ellis Island in New York. Begun in 1986 by the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations Inc., Ellis Island Medals of Honor recognizes prestigious American citizens of various origins for outstanding service to the United States and to their ancestral groups, according to a news release
"Hey, tarbender!" The Museum of the American Cocktail at Commander's Palace at Desert Passage mall at the Aladdin is celebrating the 200th birthday of the American cocktail from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday. A competition among several local and national master mixologists is scheduled. Judges include Livio Lauro, Robert Hess, Tony Abou-Ganim, and Francesco LaFranconi. Presiding over the ceremonies will be James Beard Award nominee and master mixologist Dale DeGroff. Admission is $10
Delisco! Every so often I spot high-energy vocalist Delisco at the gym. I always ask, "Hey Delisco, got any scoops?" and the other day he did - he will be performing at the Sahara's Casbar Lounge from May 23 to May 28; there is no cover charge. Delisco was the winner of the E! reality show "The Entertainer," which landed him a headliner gig at the Shimmer Cabaret at the Las Vegas Hilton last year
More Pamorama: Anyone accusing American print journalists of being unnecessarily salacious should check out this Indo-Asian News Service story. It's from the Hindustan Times, about Pamela Anderson's purchase of a residence at Panorama Towers on Dean Martin Drive just west of the Strip. The headline: "Anderson buys love shack in Vegas." The lead paragraph: "Former 'Baywatch' star Pamela Anderson has bought a penthouse in Las Vegas to entertain her male lovers."
Masseuse? Hypnotist? Plate on a Chevy Malibu heading north on Fort Apache Road: IRELXYU.
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