The reports we're getting from a couple of LowLife members who have visited the Venetian Resort in Macao is that the hotel and casino are doing fairly well with lots of visitors and a good amount of gamblers. While Las Vegas Sands has announced they are halting other Macao construction projects, it would seem the cash-poor company could simply sit back and earn some revenue from the beautiful casino and weather the economic storm that has hit pretty much everywhere.

Unfortunately, LVS can't do that. They have 5 more parcels of land where they have to build multi-billion dollar resorts. The first one must be completed by August 2011. If the company doesn’t complete development it could lose its right to operate the Venetian Macao and any other of its developments forever. So, the entirety of the development, all the billions of dollars, could be an entire wash if Las Vegas Sands can’t find enough financing.

Add to that the fact that the company doesn't even have government approval to develop the parcels and China's recent visa restrictions and you have a pretty gloomy outlook for Las Vegas Sands.

After Olympic swimming star Michael Phelps won his 8 gold medels he said he was going to do something he had never been able to do in his life before: be normal for awhile. He had been training solidly most of his life and hadn't been able to eat, drink and be merry. Until now.

The first thing Phelps did was to head to Las Vegas, check into the Hardwood Suite at the Palms, hang with Playboy Bunnies, goof with celeb DJ Paul Oakenfold and hone his poker skills (he was good enough to make it to the final table of the Caesars Palace Poker Classic).

Michael isn't stopping there, however. He intends on improving his poker playing as he wants to enter next year's World Series of Poker. He has also hooked up with a 26 year old cocktail server at Moon (same place George Clooney met his recent short-term girfriend) and they are serious enough for Phelps to take her home to Baltimore to meet his family during this Thanksgiving weekend. Her name is Caroline “Caz” Pal (more photos below). We can't confirm if this is Michael's first girfriend he's ever had or not. We're still investigating.

Hopefully, it'll last a bit longer than Cloony's little fling...

More Photos of Phelp's New Las Vegas Squeeze (more)

Membership has it's privledges! It pays to be a LowLife! Or better still, ya don't pay if you're a LowLife (a LowLife couple, that is)!!

Due to our incredible charm, a bit of arm-twisting, quite a bit of alcohol and some naughty flirting, American LowLife was able to secure an exclusive deal with the brand new Power Exchange Las Vegas: LowLife couples are FREE now through December 28th! Woo hoo! Party time!

~sigh~ The things we sacrifice on behalf of our members...like our liver...and brain cells... We are freakin' saints--saints!--I tell ya! I can see it now: Saint LowLife -- the patron saint of hedonistic causes. Our likeness will be on to-go cups, condom wrappers, lube bottles, and fake Pepsi cans with hidden compartments.
~ring, ring~ "Sorry to interupt--Phone call for Lowest LowLife. It's Pope Benedict XVI on line 2. Something about a 'saint canonization'. You wanna take his call or should I tell him you're DPing the Head Mistress?".

You owe us a drink for this...

Also, more fun stuff to come including P.E.'s actual grand opening event. Keep reading "Know It A.L.L." for updates!

LowLife venue listing for Power Exchange (includes coupon link, directions, map link, photos, etc.).
Note: Beginning Dec. 1st, Power Exchange is open Thursday -Sunday.

Laudable conservation efforts? A reaction to rate increases? Consumers trying to spend less overall? All of these reasons could factor into the fact that the Las Vegas Valley Water District has sold nearly 4 billion gallons less water than it did the same time last year.

However, one of the causes being kicked around is that it appears Clark County's population actually shrank by over ten thousand people compared to last year.

Shrank?! Shrank?!! Our population doesn't decrease--it only increases, damnit! Is this the new "rust belt"? We're not Cleveland, for gawd's sake! I mean, we've been the fastest growing city in the nation for years and years and years! Our average growth rate was 4,000 new people per month and, for a time, hit 6,000 per.

If the figures are accurate, it will be the first time since the State began collecting data in the 60's that we'd have a decline. Overall, it looks like the County hit 2 million in population and now may be just a little bit under that mark although there's a heckuva lot of guesswork in coming up with the numbers...

As many Californians found out while trying to get an early jump on Las Vegas fun, Wednesday was a very wet day and a sucky time to drive over El Cajon pass. In fact, there was record amount of percipitation--including snow in higher elevations--in Las Vegas for the date and some of that will continue during Thanksgiving.

The good news is that it should end later tonight and be mostly sunny on Friday, that traditionally crazy shopping day that kicks off the Christmas season.

After a wedding in Las Vegas, a Pennsylvania man was driving in Arizona with his newlywed and was pulled over by the county sheriff's department due to erratic weaving on and off the shoulder, perhaps celebrating the wedding reception while cruising along I-40.. The driver admitted to deputies that he had a little marijuana and a pipe in between the front seats.

Maybe he was hoping his honesty would end the matter but the deputies decided to call in a drug-sniffing dog and check things out further. They then found a bunch more pot hidden in some nifty little stash devices including a Pepsi can with a fake bottom, a tire puncture seal can with a screw-off bottom and a large tool chest that didn't contain any tools--except pot-smoking tools including pipes, pipe cleaners and pipe screens along with a hefty amount of what looks to be some decent quality bud.

The dude is now in an AZ prison which is a far cry from the honeymoon suite he was expecting.

A Look at Some of the Stash (more)

Actor Jamie Foxx was in town partying recently and spent his time going from Tao at the Venetian and Lavo at the Palazzo. He also was able to simply signal a hot female and she would immediately join his entourage. Must be nice...

ALL's Mr. Admin does the same thing, only at the senior citizens home. Takes 'em a little longer to walk (or roll) over join his AARP posse, however...

Robin Leach Reports on the Clubbin' Jamie Foxx (more)

No, we're not advocating it. In fact, we think it's one of the sicker things going on in the sex world. We're fine with most anything between consenting adults but that stuff is a sign of someone who never psychologically--and certainly sexually--made it out of the 3rd grade. Now, I'm not a doctor (although I play one on websites) and I don't know for sure why they do what they do but I would guess they wouldn't be too successful in the lifestyle. While the vanilla world might condemn us swingers as being pervs, I think there are good pervs and bad pervs and these guys are definitely bad pervs (we obviously have similar thinking when it comes to good LowLifes vs bad lowlifes or we wouldn't have named the site the way we did).

So, why am I bringing this up? I guess I just got fired up when I ran across an article in the digital paper about how Vegas police have busted a child porn operation recently. But more than that, I started looking at the photos of the alleged offenders and thinking, "Damn, these guys LOOK like sex offenders, don't they?!" I mean, if you could grab 8 guys out of central casting for a Hollywood child porn movie these characters would be perfect.

Would a Swing Line-up Look Similar? (more)

"Long-hauling" is the term used in the taxicab industry to describe what happens when a cabbie takes the long way around, thereby making that fare meter click off more miles than it should. One of the most common ways for this to happen in Las Vegas is on the trip to and from the airport, the most frequent trip cab drivers make.

If a taxicab has taken you on I-215 and through the airport tunnel rather than via Tropicana Ave. or Paradise Rd. then chances are you've been long-hauled. The I-215 route feels ok because you are constantly moving as opposed to the stoplights of the surface streets but the route is actually several miles longer and several dollars more expensive.

A Cabdriver Comes Forward About Long-hauling (more)

Busiest? Well, at least for a few days, anyway...

Looks like the Thanksgiving holiday will be a big deal for Las Vegas. The reason? Big deals offered by pretty much every hotel in town. According to travel site Orbit.com who tracks these things, Las Vegas will beat out every one of the rest of the airports in the nation, including L.A. and the NYC and Chicago airports, as wave after wave of visitors are invading McCarran to take advantage of the killer prices offered by even the 5-Diamond hotels in town. (Do ya think Vegas resorts will get the room-pricing hint?)

Last year we were #10 during Thanksgiving but, then again, last year ya had to pay $375 for the same room that might cost you $200 less this year.
It looks like it's gonna be party time in Sin City this holiday weekend!

Top 10 busiest airports for Thanksgiving 2008 (more)

There's a storm rolling into town. And no, we don't mean the forecast that Las Vegas weather is supposed to change to rainy and cold (and snowy in the mountains) by week's end. No, we mean the launch (yep, we get him first) of the much-anticipated Bret Michael's VH-1 "Rock of Love Bus Tour"! And where would you hold such a huge event? Why Aliante Station's Access Showroom (capacity: 700, standing room only) in North Las Vegas, of course. Where did you think?

Bret Michaels, the lead singer from the big hair 80's band Poison (and who received lots of "exposure" via a sex tape he and Pamela Anderson made), has become a reality TV series darling on VH1 and now the rocker rolls out the third season of his looking-for-a-date show "Rock of Love" at the new Aliante Station Casino on Friday night by playing tunes from his recently-released solo CD "Rock My World" which features TV show-related songs.

Not sure how senior citizen-oriented Aliante came to host the VH1 love god but this could be your chance to get intimate with Mr. Michaels in the Center Bar after the show...

If your party night doesn't really get going until the wee hours of the morning--say 4 or 6 or 8 a.m.--and are wondering where to head when you still feel like partying but all the regular clubs are gettin' lame, well, just tell the cabbie to take you to Bill's Gambling Hall across the Strip from Caesars.

Bill's?! But Bill's is dive joint that should have been moved to Fremont Street years ago, right? Not so fast, partner. Bill's, formerly Barbary Coast, is the home of the original after-hours L.A. cool club in Vegas: Drai's. Drai's has been around 11 years now--ancient in Vegas terms--and is still the premier place to go when the buzz is still high and the sun is coming up.

Check out this article on Victor Drai and a look at Vegas' favorite after-hours party place.

Vegas club news from the LV R-J Newswire...

Two major players in the Las Vegas nightclub scene are moving forward with new venues. Rumors have been flying that Steve Wynn's upcoming megaclub, XS, in the Encore tower might be downsized from its massive 40,000-square-foot plan due to the sinking economy.

Not a chance, insiders say emphatically. Yes, it will be one of the biggest clubs in the country, but two-thirds of the square footage is outdoors. The party will move outside as the club fills up, instead of the daunting challenge of making a cavernous club look full.

The $2.2 billion, 2,034 room Encore is scheduled to open around Christmas.

Over at the Hard Rock Hotel, it's full speed ahead for the next generation of The Joint. The new $49 million club will allow 3,000 for a seated show, 4,000 for other events. It's more than double the previous capacity.

It opens in mid-April with big-name opening night entertainment and will feature "some great new elements," said Yale Rowe, the Hard Rock's new senior vice president and general manager.

More on Encore and Their Planned 'Sinatra' Restaurant (more)

Guys, R&B singer Usher--performing at the Palm's Pearl tonight--doesn't want you to attend his concert. "I actually never really opened the show up for males. Period." He's named the tour "Ladies Only" and is catering it specifically for the women.

Usher says: "I can't prohibit them from buying tickets and being a part of it -- obviously you can't discriminate in America. However, I do want them to know that in the event that they decide to come, this show is catered specifically towards women."

Guys, I'm thinking we send the ladies to the concert while we sit in a bar at the Palms and watch the Lakers/Nuggets game. Then, as they file out of the concert, we take 'em upstairs to a big party suite and take advantage of the mood Usher got 'em in... Who's in?

During the Thanksgiving season in years past parking at McCarran has been a major problem (can you say "totally f*cked"?) but, thanks to a new parking lot combined with less people traveling, it should be pretty easy to find a space this year.

There's a new economy lot with 1,000 more spaces (of course they've increased the price from $6/day to $8 but ya can't have everything) and rather than 800,000 people normally using the airport during the holiday there will probably only be around 690,000.

A small thing to give thanks for, especially if you're running late and making a mad dash to the airport...

Las Vegas nightclubs have fallen into the habit of booking celebs, semi-celebs and kinda-celebs for their New Year's Eve parties thinking that some semi-famous person in the tightly guarded VIP booth will increase our pleasure quotient. Looks like the economy is affecting the selection process this year, however.

This year's early appearance signings include Kim Kardashian--the celebrity best-known for her large derriere and not a whole lot else--and damn near the entire Kardashian family: sisters Khloe and Kourtney, mom Beverly and Olympic gold medalist step-dad Bruce Jenner for the Strip festivities. The K-Clan will be at LAX. Pregnant singer and lip-syncher Ashlee Simpson and Fall Out Boy rocker husband Pete Wentz will make a joint appearance at Pure and there's a rumor that Heidi Montag and boyfriend Spencer Pratt of MTV’s "The Hills," will spend their New Year’s Eve at French designer Christian Audigier’s nightclub in Treasure Island.

Let's see, a knocked-up Simpson doing a NYE toast with sparkling apple juice, a whole family of people who are simply sorta famous for being kinda famous (I mean, Kim can't even dance--did you see how she got out-danced on DWTS by 82-year old Cloris Leachman?!), and a couple of reality TV stars to help us bring in the new year. Pretty exciting stuff, no?

Where's Paris Hilton when you need her? Oh, that's right, she's already been booked to host a club in Sydney, Australia. Shows how far we've sunk when Paris snubs us for Down Under...

A three day comedy festival called, fittingly enough, 'The Comedy Festival' opens tonight at Caesars Palace. If you've watched anything on cable station TBS over the past 6 months you've almost assuredly seen the nearly endless promos for the event which they are taping and showing on the network at the end of the month (Nov. 29th for tonight's show). TBS will also stream the show live on the Comedy Festival website.

There are a ton of comedians from all over the world converging on Vegas for the event (many listed HERE) with some of the big names being Ellen DeGeneres, Jerry Seinfeld, Dane Cook, Cheech and Chong, Andrew "Dice" Clay and The Kids in the Hall.

Here's a quick chat with Ellen DeGeneres prior to her "Ellen's Even Bigger Really Big Show" performance in the Colosseum. (Note: the acts will be performing in three different venues inside Caesars depending on the performer's status including the Palace Ballroom and the Augustus Ballroom with the big boys--and girls--showcasing in the huge Colosseum.)

The winner of "Dancing With the Stars"' first season and a former Spice Girl (who also appeared on DWTS) will be starring in a new Vegas show about taking it all off. Scary Spice Mel B and "General Hospital" actress Kelly Monaco star in "Peepshow," slated to open at Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas in April, 2009.

Mel B will originate the role as the mistress of ceremonies, the “Peep Diva,” and Monaco will take the stage as “Bo Peep,” a timid girl who the Diva guides in her transformation into a confident, sensual woman. Unfortunately, while the burlesque show will feature plenty of nudity, Monaco and Mel will be keeping their clothes on.

“'Peepshow' has been a dream of mine for a long time and now that dream is coming true,” said director/choreogrpaher Jerry Mitchell. “We have gathered 20 of the sexiest dancers from film, video, and Broadway to bring a truly American form of entertainment back to the Strip.”

If its a success, the revue plans to rotate in celebrities that will play multiple month engagements.

We're not sure if the information is correct or not but the word on the Strip is that superstar television chef Emeril Lagasse will be taking over the space at the Palazzo where Jay Z had his 40/40 club.

After Jay Z ditched out, the hotel turned the club into their sports book--certainly one of the fancier betting parlors in town--and made a big deal out of promoting the place like it was what they had really wanted all along.

Now comes big-time celeb chef Lagasse who supposedly will be turning the space into Emeril's Sports Emporium. We assume you will be able to watch every New Orleans Saints game while eating some kick-ass jambalaya.

We watched the football game Sunday night between the San Diego Chargers and the Pittsburgh Steelers and commented on how the freaky ending probably had some bettors ready to jump out of a window. Turns out Nevada sports books were quite happy with the way things turned out...

From ESPN.com:
Conspiracy theorists should probably head into their nuclear-bomb proof bunkers, because NFL referees have once again made a very fishy call that heftily benefited Las Vegas sportsbooks.

Why Sports Books Are Happy (more)

Minus 5 is a new attraction ("club"?) in Mandalay Place where the temperature inside is set at a constant negative 5 degrees Celsius (27 degrees Fahrenheit says the Minus 5 website although the article states 23 degrees), where the furniture and bar are made of ice and where you are given a parka, gloves and boots to put on before entering.

Minus 5 has been open a couple of months now so an L.A. Times columnist decided to stop by and check it out. Here's his story.

To us, this seems like a one-time-visit gimmick but maybe we're missing something...

The LowLife Listing for Minus 5 with some additional photos and info.
Stupid Questions We Asked About Minus 5 Before It Opened

Another Top 5 list from BlackBook--this one regarding breakfasts in Las Vegas.

Las Vegas: Top 5 Best Breakfasts
The most important meal of the day. And sometimes the only one.
1. Hash House a-Go-Go (Off-Strip West) - Ginormous plates of pancakes and protein in a spacious room. A mix of families brunching and local industry types recounting last night’s exploits.
2. Peppermill Fireside Lounge (Convention Center Drive) - Vegas’ favorite breakfast spot for decades featuring heart-stopping specialties like potato skins stuffed with sausage, eggs and cheese.
3. Bouchon (Strip: Central) - Short on time? Have a baked-on-premises pastry and a cup of fine French roast.
4. White Cross Lunch Counter (Arts District) - The dive bar of diners since the 60’s. Cheese-laden omelets and the legendary trout n’ eggs.
5. Abbey Road Bar (Strip: Central) - Prefer a liquid breakfast? Make your own bloody Mary: Choose your vodka, mixer, spice level and heap with veggies until solid food becomes feasible.

What, no Omelet House? We certainly agree with the Peppermill which can also be the most entertaining place watching all the post-partiers trying to sober up.

The Penthouse brand, best-known by the men's magazine that bears its name, wants a major presence in Las Vegas, much more than just the gentleman's club it recently acquired (on Russell Road--was SIN).

Penthouse wants a casino on the Strip and not just a minor one. No, they want a "significant property" and they have the cash, through their online empire which supposedly has 200 million members, to buy a major casino at a time when gaming stocks have crashed.

Penthouse's Las Vegas Vision (more)

Las Vegas is a party town under normal circumstances but there are two holidays where Las Vegas really kicks it into hyperdrive: Halloween and New Year's Eve. American LowLife had ya covered with our Halloween party listings where we featured over 50 of the freaky events. We expect our New Year's '08 list to be even more jam-packed with NYE parties and pre-parties!

Decisions, decisions...

The LowLife NYE List Begins

Las Vegas now has five AAA Five Diamond restaurants, second only to Chicago's seven. While dining at most of them would mean further depleting the already battered 401k, we can attest there are some damn good meals being served in these five joints.

First-time honoree Guy Savoy restaurant at Caesars Palace is the latest addition to the AAA Five Diamond list. The other four: Picasso (Bellagio), which received its eighth award; Le Cirque (Bellagio), sixth; Alex (Wynn Las Vegas), fourth; and Joël Robuchon (MGM Grand), third.

Britney
There's serious talk that Britney Spears will stage a huge (HUGE, I tell ya!) comeback on New Year's Eve in Las Vegas with a network television (none of that small-time cable shit for the Brit) mini-mini concert (2 songs from her soon-to-be-released new album "Circus") live from a stage set up on the Strip.

Herbst In Terrible Shape
Herbst Gaming, which owns 15 casinos in Nevada and the Midwest and a huge slot-servicing route business, is close to bankruptcy. Herbst owns the three casinos in Stateline, er, Primm and also Terrible's Casino on Paradise & Flamingo. Yet another full-o'-debt gaming company.

WSOP Youngsters and Foreigners
The World Series of Poker at the Rio is the richest poker tournament in the world and the finals for the WSOP just wrapped up. The winner was a 22 year old Danish man who has only played poker for 4 years. He took $9.1 million home. The runner-up was a 27 year old Russian who took away $5.8 mil.. Both men honed their poker skills on the internet. Looks like the days of winners coming from the ranks of grizzled old farts who learned how to play in smoky back rooms in Texas have seen their day.

Biggest UFC Fight Ever? (more)

If you are thinking of coming to Las Vegas over the long Thanksgiving weekend, check out these hot room deals offered from some of the nicer Las Vegas hotels, including THEhotel, Mandalay, Bellagio, TI, Palazzo and also the LV Hilton.

Imperial Palace Hotel & Casino doesn't have a whole lot going for it other than its location on the Strip (across from Caesars) and lots of cheap rooms. It does have a pretty good automobile collection, an incredible Hawaiian luau (um, at least that's what the marketing material says) and, of course, the venerable 'Legends in Concert', one of the premier entertainer impersonator shows in Las Vegas.

Unfortunately for the IP (as we locals affectionately call it), the resort is losing Legends, a show that has been synonymous with the Imperial Palace for 20+ years. The word we heard is that it's moving to Harrah's on December 15th and will be sharing the showroom with Rita Rudner. A note to Elvis, Cher, Janet Jackson, Tina Turner and all the other look/sound-alikes: I think you will like your new digs a lot more.

It makes ya wonder what is going on with the IP, though. Shifting the resort's top attraction to a sister property is curious. There's been talk of imploding the place since Harrah's Corp. bought it in 2005 but, instead of tearing the hotel down, the parent company put a few bucks into remodeling so those rumors have pretty much dissipated. And now, with Harrah's massive debt load (approx. $24 bil.) and the piss poor economy, there's little chance of the "world's largest gaming company" building a mega-resort in that prime location.

Maybe we'll have a few more visitors this weekend...

With hotel room deals to be had on just every Strip street corner and with gasoline prices dropping record amounts, perhaps some of the party people in neighboring states will be tempted to hop in their vehicles and forget the economic troubles with a road trip to Las Vegas. Yeah, Road Trip, baby!

Gasoline prices in Nevada just posted their largest monthly decline ever, and it appears some consumers have met the drop with boosts in spending and traveling.

The average cost of a gallon of regular unleaded fuel in the Silver State tumbled 96 cents, from $3.39 to $2.43, between Oct. 11 and Tuesday, according to travel club AAA. Las Vegas saw a 92-cent falloff in the same period, from $3.32 to $2.40.

The price of crude oil has gone from a high of $147/barrel in July to less than half that now.

While I doubt we'll see major airlines roll back their recent ticky tacky charges (i.e. 1st bag, 2nd bag, aisle/window, phone reservations, etc.) just yet (if ever), at least LowLifes can still jump in the car and head to Sin City without spending all the gambling money on the way.

A good way to increase revenue for businesses is to increase the size of the customer base they cater to. Normally, under regular business conditions, a company would offer a product that caters to a different segment of buyers such as a car company suddenly producing trucks. Or, perhaps, a swing site like American LowLife deciding to expand into that huge men-who-like-their-scrotums-stomped-on market (the ones who literally like it--we realize husbands/boyfriends get their scrotums stomped on figuratively every day and like it, whether they actually enjoy it or not). ALL could add thousands of new members if we went after those poor souls.

There are other market conditions--"unnatural" ones--such as laws and regulations that prohibit businesses from entering certain markets. This is prevalent in the "vice"-related industries such as alcohol, tobacco and gambling where there are prohibition regs, health issues or age concerns. The consumers are there, ya just can't go after them (officially, that is).

Change the Law = Instant Tax Revenue Increase (more)

(Click the "More" link below for additional details, the coupon link for FREE LowLife entry and exclusive photos!)

It's official. There's a Power Exchange in Las Vegas.

Power Exchange is a well-known name in the alt-sexuality world due to their large, multi-level building in downtown San Francisco which is full of all sorts of decadance. PE isn't your typical swing club as it caters to a variety of sexual preferences: gays, bi's, swingers, trannies, BDSMers--you name it.

The word from Mike Power, the owner of PE, is that the Las Vegas version will be more swing-centric than the SF club but will definitely have areas and evenings that pervs of all sorts can enjoy.

The Opening
The new Power Exchange in Las Vegas will open its doors for a "soft" grand opening this coming weekend, November 14th & 15th (hopefully, the opening isn't too "soft"!). This is free for all LowLifes (if you present the LowLife coupon--see below) so even if you don't plan on playing, it's a good time to stop by and check the place out--it looks like a pretty nice venue.

The LowLife Listing for Power Exchange

Add Your Name to the RSVP List!

Details, Map, Exclusive Photos, FREE ENTRY Coupon Link, etc. (more)

Whitney Houston is nearing completion of her new album and there's talk of her coming up with a Vegas headliner act ala' Toni Braxton. Supposedly she's been clean and sober for three years so she's bankable again. Might the Planet Hollywood showroom, soon to be vacated by 'Stomp!', be the right fit for her?

Madonna was in town for a couple of concerts at the MGM over the weekend. Sounds like she really changed her songs around. One reviewer wrote: "Few popsters would ever think of toying with some of their biggest hits the way Madonna does on stage."
If you are thinking of seeing Madonna somewhere along the way on her "Sticky and Sweet" tour, here's a look at what you'll be in for.

A Photo From the Bad Ol' Days (more)

It's always a big deal when a major or, in this case, a semi-major, new resort opens in town and this particular grand opening might have more significance than a typical resort debut. Aliante Station, Station Casino's latest hotel and casino opening (they have 17 other "locals" properties), is the first gambling resort to open during a time when the Las Vegas economy has gone to hell in an hand-basket and Station's CEO Frank Fertitta III is more than a little concerned.

"The Las Vegas economy will turn around," Fertitta said. "It's not a forever thing. We just have to work our way through these challenges and these difficult times. In the short run, it's very painful." (See 3Q earnings report link below for more "pain")

The City of North Las Vegas is excited, however. Aliante is bringing approximately 1,400 jobs to an area of Clark County suffering from high foreclosure rates and increasing unemployment.

More on Aliante + Station's Financials (more)

We've posted various "Best of Vegas" lists from the 'BlackBook' website in the past and while we don't always agree with the choices, they are good at starting conversations.

Their lastest ranking is the city's Top 5 Shows. With Cirque du Soleil's Ka leading the way, this list might generate some feedback.

Top 5 Las Vegas Shows according to BlackBookMag.com

It’s always good to do at least one thing on your trip that you can tell your boss about.

1. KA at MGM Grand - With martial-arts-inspired acrobatics, thundering music, and a set that rotates 360 degrees, KA is the least airy-fairy of the Cirque de Soleil offerings.
2. O at Bellagio - Cirque de Soleil performers + giant tanks of water = jaw-dropping acrobatics.
3. Tom Jones at MGM Grand - Come for the kitsch, stay for the charisma. There’s a reason he’s been doing this for 40 years.
4. Cher at Caesars Palace - 17 Bob Mackie costume changes. An entrance that involves descending from the ceiling. Truly, in coming to Vegas, Cher has come home.
5. Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular at The Venetian - Onstage fireworks, a falling giant chandelier and—we think—some people singing.

The Consumer Electronics Show has been held in Las Vegas since 1978 and is one of the largest shows to hit town, especially after Condex closed down several years ago. In 2006, attendance was over 150,000 individuals in 1.67 million net square feet of space making it the largest electronics event in the United States.

Attendance has been declining somewhat for the past couple of years due to the economy and increased travel expenses, and attendee murmurs of price gouging by Las Vegas resorts have grown increasing louder, especially after the 2008 show.

Well, with the shape Las Vegas is in, Strip hotel rooms for the 2009 expo (Jan. 8-11) are the cheapest in years. It used to be ya had to book an over-priced room six months or more in advance or wind up in a dumpy motel downtown (or even Circus Circus, gawd forbid). Now, many of the attendees are cancelling their expensive reservations and re-booking at tremendous savings. Something to think about if you are coming out for CES...

The LowLife listing for C.E.S.

Chef Andre Rochat, a celebrity chef in Las Vegas before the age of celebrity chefs, is closing down the original Andre's downtown. We've had many a good meal in the place and intend to have at least one more before Andre shuts the doors December 31st. Andre still cooks it up at his Alize restaurant on top of the Palms or his soon-to-reopen and newly remodeled Andres Monte Carlo.

Andre has advertised on this site in the past and you may have seen him at a "Swing! on the Strip" event or the occasional Purrfect mixer when we could drag him away from the stove.

If you haven't eaten at the original Andre's you had better hurry!

Here's more on Andre from Norm!, the R-J's Gossip Dude... (more)

With the economy beating up Las Vegas there are some pretty good bargains to be had. Even Cirque du Soleil is offering some killer deal (guess they gotta pay for the 'Believe' bomb somehow).

Cirque is offering $49 tickets to "Mystere" (Treasure Island), "Zumanity" (pictured, right--New York-New York) and "Ka" (MGM Grand). Call (866) 241-2833 and mention "local."

It doesn't say that you actually have to be a local to get the deal. Maybe it's their sly way of acting like they are just doing something nice for the locals but, in reality, the promotion is open to everyone. Out-of-towners: Let us know if the not-so-secret promotion code works for you...

Las Vegas Sands, which owns the Venetian and Palazzo casinos, warned investors that there is "substantial doubt about the company's ability to continue as a going concern".

Uh oh. The first of many?

The presidential elections are the Super Bowl or the Olympics to the television news networks, a chance to show off their latest high-tech gadgetry to, most likely, their largest audience of the year. With this past election being such an historic occasion, the ratings were even higher and the networks went all out with touch screen interactive maps, instant county-by-county comparisons of elections past going as far back as 1960, more HD and HD-only info and, the most innovative of all, holographic 3-D interviews looking like something out of Star Wars.

If you watched CNN's coverage of the election you saw a glimpse of the future. Instead of interviewing someone using a split screen, why not have a 3-D image of the person in your studio, instead? While actual 3-D holographic technology isn't quite perfected yet, lots of viewers were buzzing about CNN's attempt to raise the news broadcast bar.

How It Was Done (more)

'Stomp Out Loud', the rhythmic, trash can-beatin' production at Planet Hollywood, will close January 4th (the same day Mamma Mia! will close) with hopes of moving to a smaller Las Vegas theater in the future. While the show has generally received good reviews, it has mostly played to crowds of about 1/3 of the 1,200 seat capacity. The owner of the Planet Hollywood Theater--Base Entertainment--is looking for "something that more properly fills the space" but adamantly denies the rumors of a Mariah Carey show in the theater.

In additional show news, 'The Soprano's Last Supper', the dinner show which is based on the now-cancelled HBO series, has bounced around quite a bit and is bouncing yet again. 'Sopranos' has been in Krave's Harmon Theater, the boarded up Empire Ballroom and is currently in the Riviera Comedy Club. While the show was designed to include the serving of dinner as part of the overall presentation, the Riviera couldn't accommodate that and the pre-show meal was served in a near-by Riv restaurant which messed up the flow of the show. So, 'Sopranos' will move to the more obscure Greek Isles Casino down the block and start serving dinner as part of the show package.

Mystere, the first of the Cirque du Soleil shows to hit Las Vegas, started out being performed in facilities which were a slight upgrade of one of Cirque's traditional road-show circus tents in the back of the Mirage. Even now, as you watch Mystere, it's not hard to imagine the show as one of Cirque's touring productions.

It was a whole new ballgame when 'O' opened at the Bellagio 10 years ago, however. There was no way the show's 150-by-100 foot, 25 foot deep, 1.5 million gallon liquid stage powered by twelve 30-foot hydraulic lifts could be anywhere but in an ultra-expensive--and permanent--structure. 'O' was the real beginning of the elaborate Cirque shows (just as the Bellagio was the beginning of the 5-star/diamond Vegas hotels).

Now, 10 years and nearly 4,800 shows later, 'O' is still a damn good show, even when compared to all the other Johnny-come-lately productions (like La Reve, Ka, Love & Believe), and is still selling out most nights.

Congratulations 'O' and you, too, Bellagio. Ya brought a lot of class to our town.

A few fast facts about 'O' (more)

(Since there are so many bikers in the lifestyle we thought this might be of interest to some LowLifes. Even if it's not, we find it fascinating so we're posting it anyway.)

Towards the end of October, 64 members of the Mongol motorcycle gang were arrested in seven states--a handful from Las Vegas--on various charges ranging from drug trafficking to murder.

OK, we've heard tell stories about motorcycle gang violence (remember the Laughlin River Run '02?) and drug dealing so that's nothing new. And we've heard of some of the fun stuff that was also named in the indictment: members being awarded patches for doing stuff at crazy sex parties (don't they do the same thing at the Green Door?).

But perhaps the most interesting aspect of the indictment goes way beyond all of that. The Feds are trying to take the motorcycle club's registered trademark "Mongols" logo (Trademark No. 2916965) away from them. The government is saying that the logo is an asset much like a house or a car and, since those can be seized, why can't a registered trademark be seized also?

Cops Can take the Mongol Jacket Off Your Back?! Read On... (more)

Can't find much on it just yet but did run across blurb on Cher's concerts at Caesars:

"Cher is not leaving Las Vegas anytime soon. The artist has just signed on for a second round of shows at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace. Her next series of performances span from February 21st through May 24th with various breaks in between."

Looks like Caesars execs didn't get too upset at the diva cancelling her recent scheduled performances, supposedly due to boy-toy problems.

It seems like just yesterday that Treasure Island Hotel & Casino decided to become trendier and rebrand their property as simply "TI". Along with the new image came a more adult attitude both inside and out.

The pirate show at Treasure Island used to be a family-friendly all-male battle between the good ship "Brittania" and a pirate ship in "Buccaneer Bay". When everything at the hotel got all sexed up 5 years ago (like the kiddies pool being turned into a large hot tub for adults), the Strip-side show became a battle of sexy sirens versus hunky but seriously over-matched pirates in "Sirens Cove". In honor of the 5 years the street leading onto the property has been renamed "Sirens Cove Blvd.".

We're happy they changed the show as we get to post the occasional photo of those sexy Sirens of TI. Congrats, Sirens!

A Sirens Group Photo Plus Fast Facts About the Show (more)

The show reviews of Criss Angel's 'Believe' indicates we have a total dud on our hands. Descriptions like "boring", "Cirque's first bona fide bomb", "a gorgeous golden structure (i.e. the stage, costumes, etc.) surrounding a void", "charmless", "banal", "bombastic", and "unbelievably bad, sad," were used. Lots of references to the movies 'Showgirls', 'Gigli' and 'Ishtar' ("bad", "bomb", "expensive bomb" respectively).

Here's a good one: "Wooooooooow. Criss Angel's new Cirque du Soleil show is terrrrrrible."

Ouch, ouch and more ouch.

So, if the critics are correct, what the hell is Cirque going to do? Will the show be completely re-vamped? The Cirque/MGM Mirage partnership spent so much money on 'Believe' ($100+ mil.) you would think they would at least try and salvage it somehow (at least Luxor got a cool theater out of the deal).

More on the Believe Debacle (more)

Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, perhaps the most well-known power couple in Las Vegas, are always up to something whether it's charity fund-raising (The Andre Agassi Charitable Foundation, Grand Slam for Children, The Agassi Boys & Girls Club, etc., etc.) or their highly rated charter school (Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy) or an occasional national TV commercial.

So, what is the duo into right now? Furniture. Furniture? Yep, the stuff you sit on, sleep on and eat on. Andre & Steffi have teamed with Kreiss Furniture for a new line of home furnishings called the AGK Collection.

This collection isn't just something where a furniture company added the Agassi/Graf name with little or no input from the celebs. No, the couple is intimately involved in every step of the process from the design concept to "field testing" (i.e. in their home with their children) to the marketing of the collection worldwide.

More on the Agassi/Graf furniture venture...