John Katsilometes keeps on top of the city’s trend in European-style pools, the latest of which will open May 15 atop Flamingo Las Vegas

Sunday, May 6, 2007 | 7:05 a.m.

The Sands might be long gone, but sands will always be a feature on the Las Vegas Strip.

And apparently, so will topless sunbathing.

The "European style" pool theme is abounding on the Strip and just to the north, at the Stratosphere. Recent European-style pools getting a spring jump on the summer season are Bare at the Mirage and the Tao Beach Club at the Venetian, the latter of which celebrated its grand opening this weekend. Those adult-themed attractions join Moorea Beach at Mandalay Bay, the Sunset European pool at Wynn Las Vegas, Venus at Caesars Palace and Club 25 at the Stratosphere (named such because it sits on the 25th floor).

Add to that list a new attraction scheduled to open May 15 at Flamingo Las Vegas, to be called the Go Pool, which complements the hotel's new "Go" luxury rooms.

The adults-only Go Pool will be open exclusively to hotel guests. The pool's perimeter will be ringed with brightly colored cabanas and the bar will serve specialty cocktails, which are amenities similar to those offered at other European-themed pool areas. What is distinctive is that the Go Pool will sit atop the hotel's roof, giving the top of the famous resort a topless appeal.

NoteMart

On Thursday afternoon, after formally announcing her two-year deal to replace Celine Dion at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace, I asked Bette Midler if she had any favorite Vegas hangouts. "The Colosseum," she quickly responded, then added, "Oh! And the Neon Boneyard." On Wednesday Midler visited the land of vintage Vegas signs on Las Vegas Boulevard North, just south of Cashman Field. She said she has a fascination with the old Vegas hotel signs. "It's such a wonderful collection. I could not believe how big some of those signs are. It's great that they are being salvaged. Too much of this city's history has been torn down." ...

Mr. Happiness has competition: Spotted at the Saturn dealership on West Sahara Avenue on Saturday was a guy in a Spider-Man suit waving at passing motorists ...

My former colleague at the Sun, photographer Ethan Miller, has shot all of the major fights in Las Vegas dating to April 1994. Today he is firing away for Getty Images. Miller spent much of the week focused on the Oscar De La Hoya-Floyd Mayweather Jr. fight, which he said was the most heavily hyped fight the city has seen in 10 years, since the second Evander Holyfield-Mike Tyson bout on June 28, 1997 (that was the night Tyson turned Holyfield's head into a chew toy) ...

On Friday night I happened into the Las Vegas Pinball Hall of Fame at 3330 E. Tropicana Ave., which is still hangin' and clangin' despite a drop in business since the budget Tropicana Cinemas closed last month. The parking lot was usually full and business at the pinball haven busy on weekend nights when the cinemas were open. But Friday, there were only a half-dozen of us feeding quarters into a bumper crop of vintage machines.

Owner Tim Arnold said the cinemas are expected to reopen on May 15 (with two screens, and possibly a beer and wine license), and when that happens the buzz will return. As Arnold said Friday night, "A pinball museum is a challenge. Kids don't get it. Women don't get it." Ah, but for those of us who thrill in winning a free game off a 1977 Sure Shot machine, the arcade is a real treat. For a look at Arnold's empire, go to www.pinballmuseum.org ...

Vegas moment: A guy playing guitar on open-mike night Friday at Rejavanate Coffee Lounge at 3300 E. Flamingo Road could barely be heard over Janis Joplin's "Down On Me" playing on the pub's television, which nobody bothered to turn off ...

Just as it was name-checked in the latest issue of Elle Decor magazine, the vintage furniture store Modify at 8 East Charleston Blvd. seemed to close. It was dark for a few days, but on Saturday co-owner Maria Willman said not to worry. She was out for a bit, tending to family issues, but the place is up and running again, open Wednesday through Sunday from 1 p.m. to about 7-ish ...

An example of why you should play the locals card when purchasing show tickets: The cost of purchasing five tickets online (including service charges) to "Second City" at Flamingo Las Vegas is $301.25. But if you visit the hotel box office and flash your local ID, and you happen to be with another Nevada resident with valid ID, that sum drops to $167 because of a pair of two-for-one locals discounts and removal of online service charges ...

The book "Nicky Deuce: Welcome to the Family," written by former Riviera entertainment director Steve Schirripa, will be an original movie to air on Nickelodeon, according to published reports. Schirippa co-authored the book with Charles Fleming. The story is of a teenager who moves to Brooklyn to live with a fond-of-cooking grandmother and an uncle who seems to be a gangster. Schirippa, a fixture in "The Sopranos," is expected to play the uncle. No air date has been announced ...

Making a spectacle: Reader on the roads reports JSLQQKN on a white Chevy Malibu.