Paris Hilton: How Truthful Was She?

Music For Your Listening Pleasure

Chowing Down On Too Many Weiners Causes Pain For Champ

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - Takeru Kobayashi dismissed speculation Friday that his recent jaw ailment could be a ploy against his main rival at the Nathan’s hot dog eating championship next week in New York.

“That’s not even funny,” the 29-year-old Japanese eating machine said. “I don’t even have time to think about that.”

After his disclosure this week that he has a creaky jaw and he is getting treatment, some, including ESPN host Tony Kornheiser, suggested that Kobayashi was trying to lull American Joey Chestnut into complacency.

Chestnut gained the hot dog record five weeks ago, eating 59 1/2 dogs to Kobayashi’s 53 3/4. They are expected to be among the competitors at the Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest at Nathan’s Famous at New York’s Coney Island on Wednesday. Kobayashi is looking for his seventh consecutive title.

Kobayashi said this week that misaligned wisdom teeth and his voracious competitive eating career have led to painful arthritis in his jaw.

In a phone interview using a translator from his New York hotel, he told the Chattanooga Times Free Press that he can only open his mouth to the width of two of his fingers.

“Right now, it’s not so good, but I’ve been talking to professionals and taking their advice,” he said. “They’ve been giving me exercises for relaxing the muscles and giving me some things I can do to relax and heal my jaw.”

Kobayashi said he also wants to return to Chattanooga’s Krystal hamburger eating contest in the fall. He is the reigning champion of the Krystal Square Off competition hosted by the Chattanooga-based fast-food chain.

Source: MSNBC.Com

A Show I Would Like To See On DVD.

Rescue 911

Rescue 911 was a reality show hosted by William Shatner. The show consisted of re-enactments of real life emergency situations and documentaries of hospitals, police, and firefighters. The show ran for seven seasons on CBS from 1989 to 1996.
Always an interesting show, I wonder how many people even remember this program, which brought William Shatner into our lives with the latest reenactments of tragedies and disasters. If not a season by season release, would something of this nature suffer with a title like "Best Of"? How can you say a tragedy of someone running and falling on a pair of scissors is a best of episode?
In all honesty, while I think there is a market for this show, I'm wondering how in the heck could it be marketed and not seem rather unsavory.
On the other hand, other shows from that time such as NBC's "Real People", and ABC's "That's Incredible" would seem like sure targets for a video release, but yet you hear nothing about them.

This Makes Jordin Sparks Look Like Roseanne Barr.

This is my sisters granddaughter singing Old Man Tucker. Jordan Sparks could only wish she could sing this well.




I wish I could take credit for this video, but it was taken by my sister Denise. She has more posted at YouTube. Click here to see them.

The Trouble With Angels On TCM In Widescreen!

Update On June 06, 2008

"I've got the most scathingly, brilliant idea!"



The photos in this article are used with the permission
of Mr. Bruce Clark, the copyright owner of the original
images. Be sure to visit his great website at
http://www.thetroublewithangels.com/
Thanks Bruce!

Another of my favorite movies.

The rare "letterboxed" (widescreen) version will air ONCE in July on Turner Classic Movies!
Wednesday, July 18th, 2007 4:00PM Eastern Time 1:00PM Pacific Time

The Trouble with Angels is a 1966 comedy film starring Rosalind Russell and Hayley Mills set in a fictional all-girls Catholic boarding school operated by an order of nuns. Russell plays the Mother Superior, who spends the movie at odds with Mary Clancy (Mills), a rebellious teenager, and her misery-loves-company friend Rachel Devery (June Harding).

The movie, which follows an episodic storyline that follows the young women through their high-school years, also stars Marge Redmond (who also appeared as a nun in the television series The Flying Nun) as Sister Liguori, Mary Wickes (who also played a nun in Sister Act, and its sequel Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit) as Sister Clarissa. Gypsy Rose Lee is also featured in the movie.

This photo is used with permission by copyright owner Bruce Clark.
The film marked a departure for Mills, who was attempting to emerge from her juvenile leads in Walt Disney-produced teen comedies as a comedic actress in this production directed by Actress/Director Ida Lupino.

The film enjoyed good reviews and enough success to warrant a sequel (Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows). However, Mills opted not to reprise her role as the progressive protagonist and was replaced by Stella Stevens, who played Sister George, foil to Rosalind Russell’s Mother Superior.

Uncharacteristically, Russell criticized Mills' professionalism in her memoirs. Russell credited her Catholic-school education as inspiration for her role as Mother Superior.

The film was based on the memoir Life with Mother Superior by Jane Trahey, in which Trahey told the true story of her high-school years at a convent boarding school near Chicago in the 1930s.
Source: Wikipedia
Here's a couple of memorable clips from the movie.


UPDATED: June 6, 2008
Just thought I would add these two new photos that I found at soundtrackcollector.com. One is a movie poster and the other is of the soundtrack which was composed by Jerry Goldsmith.



Also, to read a well written movie review and analysis of The Trouble With Angels, go here.

Want To Own A Casino?

With Kirk Kerkorian wanting to buy the Bellagio, you may want to buy a casino , too, and are wondering what's left. (Too bad the Bellagio got away from you, eh?)
(Not For Sale)
You might not think there are any casinos for sale in town, but for the right price - think Bellagio - just about any joint might be in play, especially downtown.

But watch out. As with buying a house, you need to do your homework and read the disclosure statements before signing those escrow papers. Not every casino is growing a money tree out back.

"You've got to have a facility that makes sense because it's got a good location and good parking," says Michael Gaughan, owner of the South Point and a second-generation casino operator. "You've got to have good management. And you've got to have people. These places (that struggle) are missing one of the three."

So, having been forewarned, ask your broker to show you these places if you want to keep up with the Kerkorians.

Binion's

Who doesn't love a downtown classic, where history hangs as thick as last night's cigar smoke? But watch out for those darned land leases, which go back a few generations , too.

Binion's, birthplace of the World Series of Poker, sits on land owned by multiple landlords.

In the first quarter, Binion's reported an operating loss of $1.3 million. One reason: The casino owner, MTR Gaming - which bought the place for poker-bragging rights - paid $1.7 million in lease payments to the land owners.

The leases expire at different times, making it difficult to negotiate a buyout to tear down the property or make major and much-needed renovations.

In the meantime, management is trying to pull in a younger clientele with mechanical bulls in the former sports book, an after-hours dance club in the steak house and go-go dancers in the casino.

Lady Luck

The old dame, located near downtown's fledgling entertainment district, closed more than a year ago, before securing financing for a major redevelopment that aimed to create a hip, boutique hotel like those in New York or Los Angeles. Financing has yet to materialize. So it seems it's harder than expected to do something special in a depressed neighborhood whose best prospects are young but cash-poor scenesters.

"You need more renovation and more bodies down there," Deutsche Bank stock analyst Bill Lerner said. "You just need things freshened up in a big way."

Plaza, Las Vegas Club, Western, Nevada Club

This four-of-a-kind is a good bet, if you can get the owners to sit down with you.

Bigger losses a few years ago at these downtown standards were shored up under new management, although downtown still struggles to make a buck off aging bargain-hunters. As more improvements come to the area - performing arts, medical research facilities and civic center, for instance - the value of these properties will rise. They're also owned free and clear for redevelopment.

But you'll have to make a good offer, because owner Tamares Group doesn't want to part with them. The company says it wants to play a long-term role in downtown redevelopment and awaits nearby office redevelopment on 61 acres of Las Vegas' land behind the Plaza.

Gold Spike

Step right up, folks. Quickly. Tamares Group does want to sell this casino for the low, low starting price of $15 million.

Fifteen million dollars for 1 acre isn't a steal for one of downtown's dumpiest joints, unless they throw in a whole lot of $1.99 margaritas.

Riviera

All that this old Strip standard needs is an extreme makeover and a decent re-fi. It seems to have everything else that's needed to make a profit - a decent management team, a great Strip location and lots of people walking through. But paying interest on $213 million in debt is the albatross around the company's neck.

The bigger problem is the patchwork quilt that they call a casino. Bring in the wrecking ball.

Two groups of shareholders are battling for the company (and the right to eventually rebuild something more spectacular) , but management hasn't been able to strike the kind of deal that will make everyone happy. So there's time to make a bid. But you'll have competitors , and your timing - with the company's stock yo-yoing on land speculation - needs to be perfect.

Key Largo

A fixer-upper for someone with imagination, the small, squat Key Largo - once known for its $1.99 burgers - has been closed for two years, made obsolete by bigger, flashier competition. Its 5 acres near the corner of Flamingo and Paradise roads are now awash in weeds.

The Florida-based condo developers who bought Key Largo in 2005 for $23 million could flip the boarded up property today for twice that. Or they could take a bigger gamble, building a next-generation resort that could, say, take the form of a 20-story high rise with a casino, a spa and other resort offerings.

With sky-high land and construction costs, pulling that trigger has become tougher than ever. But because the property's gaming license has lapsed, at least 200 hotel rooms will need to be built to qualify for a new one.

Hooters
A nice place in the wrong neighborhood?

The idea seemed so promising when the doors opened last year: Take over an older hotel, re brand it as Hooters, bring in the tight T-shirts and orange short shorts, lay out the chicken wings and get out of the way as people pour in.

Well, it might have brought in some fraternity brothers , but as Las Vegas has dressed itself up to the nines, the place hasn't proven upscale enough for a gentleman to come in with his girlfriend or wife, and not hot enough for young men on business trips who are more attracted to Mandalay Bay, Hard Rock or the Palms.

And it's not situated very well to attract foot traffic - a block off the Strip, on the far side of the Tropicana, and across the street from the MGM Grand parking garage. Worth the hike?

And then there are those nasty loan payments for last year's $130 million makeover.

There's a $225 million bid for the property , but nothing's been signed yet, so it's not too late to weigh in.

Casino MonteLago
Location! Location! Location! (in the boondocks).

The MonteLago is hardly a fixer-upper. The small, Tuscan winery-themed casino opened at ritzy Lake Las Vegas in 2003 - before there was much of a locals market to tap into. As a result, it has struggled to find its legs and make money, and recently changed hands in a deal that is expected to close in the fall. So you may be too late to grab this one.

"It was definitely a mistake to open that early," said Johan Finley, chief executive of PDS Gaming, a company that leases slot machines to casinos. Finley formed a separate company to buy MonteLago.

Despite being situated in a swanky neighborhood with boutiques and the next-door Ritz-Carlton, there still wasn't enough traffic to support a casino, Finley said. Moreover, it was hard to attract gamblers from the closest civilization - Henderson neighborhoods at least 10 miles away - because they can patronize closer casinos with more amenities.

Finley is betting on future growth around Celine Dion's neighborhood to turn MonteLago's fortunes around.

Here's an aerial view by helicopter so that you can scout out your location!

Source: By Liz Benston
Las Vegas Sun