Mariah Carey, Vince Neil lighting up Las Vegas

By Melissa Arseniuk (contact)

Friday, Sept. 11, 2009 | 2:05 a.m.

Tom Donoghue

Mariah Carey

While Labor Day weekend may signal the end of summer for some, it’s still high time for summer fun in Las Vegas.

The Hard Rock Hotel’s Friday Night Live concert series is still going strong, with Collective Soul set to take to the poolside stage at 8 p.m. tonight.

Mickey Avalon will be back in town for another round, too, after rocking Cherry nightclub at Red Rock Casino last weekend. Tonight will mark Avalon’s return to his regular home-away-from-home, Privé at Planet Hollywood.

And speaking of homes away from home, Mariah Carey moved back into the Palms this week in advance of her first of two two-night stands at the Pearl Concert Theater.

Mimi will perform tonight and tomorrow night but if you can’t catch her this weekend, do not despair: She’ll be back next month for a second set of shows.

Tomorrow afternoon the stars from “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” will descend upon MGM Grand for a special sneak peek at the resort’s new, 12,000-square foot CSI-themed exhibit, CSI: The Experience.

Marg Helgenberger, George Eads, Jorja Fox, Robert David Hall, David Berman, Liz Vassey, Wallace Langham and Eric Szmanda will all be there, as will the show’s creator, Anthony E. Zuiker, and fellow executive producers, Carol Mendelsohn and Louis Milito.

Hew Burney

Vince Neil

Later that night, Vince Neil will kick start some skin art at the grand opening of his newest tattoo shop, Vince Neil Ink. The Mötley Crüe frontman already has one namesake ink shop at O’Shea’s but the new location at the Rio will make for two tattoo parlors in town for the tat-loving Neil.

The entrepreneurial singer christened his first bar and grill in the city, Feelgood’s last month, and put in an appearance after he and the Crüe played The Joint.

While Tommy Lee, Mick Mars and Slash aren’t expected at the Rio this weekend, Neil’s other group, the Vince Neil Band, will perform as part of the grand opening festivities.

Across the street at the Palms, meanwhile, there’s a pretty good chance Pussycat Dolls lead singer Nicole Scherzinger will pop by the so-called “Gossy Room” on Saturday night.

The brunette beauty is expected to take in the resort’s newest resident headliner, Matt Goss’, show before heading over to the Luxor for her official Saturday night appearance at LAX nightclub.

Goss’ show is the latest project from Pussycat Dolls founder Robin Antin, which means Scherzinger will not only catch the sexiest new showroom act in Vegas, but she will get to catch up with Antin while she’s at it, too.

Courtesy Troy Jensen

Robin Antin

As the pussycats play at the Palms (and later, LAX), a full-grown dog will be busy pawing around at Pure. While some may still know him as “lil,” Bow Wow is a pup no more.

Bow Wow turned 21 more than a year ago, in fact, and as the Caesars Palace hotspot’s host, the 22-year-old rapper will have full access to the club – including, curiously enough, the Pussycat Dolls Lounge.

And as the weekend comes to a close, Latin America’s answer to Bob Dylan, Guatemalan singer-songwriter Ricardo Arjona, will perform a Spanish-flavored show at The Joint.

From rockers to small-screen stars, there are still plenty of high profile personalities who are heading to Las Vegas and looking to party.

So much for Labor Day signaling the end of the summer celebrity-sighting season.

Melissa Arseniuk writes about Las Vegas entertainment and celebrity events. She can be reached at 702-948-7823 or by e-mail at melissa.arseniuk@lasvegassun.com.