Celebrities' 'Sinsational' Vegas Tales Exposed
Insider shares stars' exploits that happened in Vegas but didn't stay there.
Jan. 4, 2009 — -- For nearly a decade, Norm Clarke has tracked VIP high jinks for the Las Vegas Review-Journal. His new "Norm Clarke's Vegas Confidential: Sinsational Celebrity Tales" (Stephens Press, $15.95) chronicles star turns that happened in Vegas, but didn't stay there. He shares some with USA TODAY's Kitty Bean Yancey.
Q: Your book talks about Jennifer Aniston getting onstage at the Forty Deuce club to dance for Vince Vaughn, Britney Spears having to be helped out of Pure nightclub a couple of New Year's Eves ago, the late Anna Nicole Smith coming on to Chippendales dancers. Celebs can play in L.A., too, so why do they go wild here?
A: It's one-stop shopping. You can go from gambling to fine dining to clubs, even in one (casino resort). Celebs come to Vegas and have three shots of Cuervo and think they're invisible.
Q: What's one of your recent celeb sightings?
A: We had (Olympic swimming champ) Michael Phelps stand up on the catwalk at Tao (nightclub at The Venetian) wearing a hoodie and shouting out the lyrics to rap songs.
Q: When you came to town, casinos were not eager to have celebrity antics publicized.
A: Vegas was in the "what happens here stays here" mode with celebs. They come to let their hair down, and the feeling along the Strip was that no good could come from having guests in a gossip column. As it turned out, celebrity gossip helped fuel Vegas (as a destination for average people hoping to glimpse or emulate celeb partying). The second question people ask when you go home — after "Did you win?" — is "Who did you see?"
Q: What changed casino managements' minds?
A: The opening of the Palms (Casino Resort) in 2001 with its celebrity-centric approach. Owner George Maloof courted celebrities. Paris Hilton was his date to the opening. The Real World: Las Vegas was filmed there. He befriended Britney Spears (she was staying at the Palms when she impulsively wed fellow Louisianian Jason Alexander). He has a solid friendship with Michael Jackson. He threw an 81st birthday party for Hugh Hefner.
