TheVegasEye

The issue or price changes at the Criss Angel magic show continues to attract attention. Some fans complained of being charged extra for reissued Criss Angel tickets, prompting John McCroy, senior publicist, to allege that pricing structure remains the same for the show. McCoy said Preview pricing, which is 25 percent off the ticket price, now applies to preview performances between September 12 and October 8. Customers that bought their full-priced ticket during this revised preview period will be refunded 25 percent.. Customers who purchased tickets to performances between September 1 and 11 that cannot attend another performance will be refunded. Performances scheduled from October 10 onwards will remain as full priced tickets as originally scheduled, he said.
Many of the fans remained skeptical that this was the ORIGINAL plan – believing it was more likely that Cirque was actually backpedaling and trying to cover its tracks when fans called bullspit on an unannounced price hike. Thevegaseye.com will not pass judgment in this matter.
One reader was very adamant in statements about the situation: “Just want to let you know I got my $180 credited, and YES I THANK YOU AGAIN!!! If it weren't for you I'm sure Cirque would have just let it ride and screwed us all!! You are awesome!!!”
DO YA LIKE COCKTAILS? How about patriotism? Try both in one package! “The All American” is a great holiday cocktail that will be served up all weekend at Sierra Gold now through July 6th. It is served over ice and topped with a cherry. It contains 1.5 oz of Skyy Cherry Vodka 1.5 oz blended with fresh lemonade and is available at all three Sierra Gold ultra-tavern locations.
ITEM! CHECK OUT THE CELEBS THAT HAVE GRACED VEGAS RECENTLY:
Don Cheadle : Seen enjoying cocktails on July 1^st with about 10 friends at Nov é Italiano in the Palms Casino in Las Vegas.
Adam Sandler : Seen enjoying a steak dinner on July 2^nd at N9NE Steakhouse in the Palms Casino in Las Vegas before heading up to Playboy Club for a game of blackjack.
Charles Barkley : Seen sharing Campfire S’mores on July 2^nd with a group of ladies at the N9NE Steakhouse bar in the Palms Casino in Las Vegas.

Las Vegas Sands Corp., the world's largest casino company by market value, may borrow about $7 billion to expand and refinance debt for projects in Macau, according to three people familiar with the deal. The company is in talks with lenders for the deal, which would be its biggest outstanding loan, to help fund new casinos and hotels in the former Portuguese colony, said the people, who declined to be identified because the information isn't public. It may also replace $3.3 billion of loans taken in 2006 to finance its Venetian casino resort in the city, the people said. The loan will help Las Vegas Sands fund $12 billion in spending on a 20,000-room hotel and casino complex in Macau, the place that overtook the Las Vegas Strip in 2006 as the world's biggest gambling hub. Las Vegas Sands shares fell to the lowest in 2 1/2 years and have shed more than half their value in 2008. ``Demand for gaming in Macau is still growing fairly well, but supply is an issue,'' said Gabriel Chan , an analyst at Credit Suisse Group in Hong Kong. ``The growth of supply is just outrageous. This, together with rising labor costs and inflation, will put further pressure on every casino operator in the next couple of years.'' Macau, the only region in China where gambling is legal, has also drawn investors including Wynn Resorts Ltd. and MGM Mirage. Credit Suisse expects the supply of gaming tables in Macau to increase by 30 percent next year, outpacing the 20 percent expansion the Swiss bank forecast for demand, Chan said. Las Vegas Sands dropped $2.43, or 5.4 percent, to $42.44 by 4:05 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange trading, the lowest price since January 2006. The shares have plunged 59 percent this year. ``The company does not comment on rumor or speculation,'' Las Vegas Sands' spokesman Ron Reese said today in a telephone interview. If Las Vegas Sands has anything to report, it will file the information with the Securities and Exchange Commission, he said.

Comedian Jason Alexander, formerly of the hit TV sitcom "Seinfeld," was spotted dining at Fix Restaurant & Bar with friends on Wednesday evening.  The funny man is in town for a charity poker tournament and feuled up for his big games on Fix's shared appetizers including the very adult fried mac 'n' cheese, spicy tuna, mini lobster tacos a Caesar salad and a petite filet.

In a city where itty-bitty bikinis are standard summer attire, you’re bound to have seen women who have mistaken an oddly-orange hue for a golden brown tan. The culprit? The carrot. Traditionally, spray tan formulas are derived from carrot extracts, thus resulting in the undesirable orange glow. One company in Las Vegas has found a better solution. Literally. The Tan Factory is the only tanning salon in Las Vegas who uses an exclusive, proprietary “Deluxe Browning” spray tan formula derived not from carrot extracts, but from apple extracts. Right now, you can purchase one of these spray tan packages or any traditional tan package at a special 2 for 1 price. That means whatever you buy, The Tan Factory will double the value, all in honor of their annual 4^th of July sale, running Now – July 10 at all 15 Las Vegas area locations. Do your part and put an end to orange spray tans everywhere. Visit www.tanfactoryfreedom.com for more information and the chance to win unlimited tanning for a year!

The Criss Angel machine has come forward to set the record straight after some fans complained of being charged extra for reissued Criss Angel tickets. John McCroy, senior publicists for Angel, said, "The pricing structure remains the same for CRISS ANGEL Believe." McCoy said Preview pricing, which is 25 percent off the ticket price, now applies to preview performances between September 12 and October 8. Customers that bought their full-priced ticket during this revised preview period will be refunded their 25 percent.. Customers who purchased tickets to performances between September 1 and 11 that can not attend another performance will be refunded. Performances scheduled from October 10 onwards will remain as full priced tickets as originally scheduled, he said.

Ernie and Bert fans unite! There will a HUGE rubber duckie evening pool party each Tuesday night this July! Bring your swimsuit to look for specially marked ducks redeemable for prizes -- free drinks, dinners at Simon Restaurant & Lounge, and free rooms at the Palms Casino Resort. Sign the guest book and you’ll automatically be entered to win a free weekend in a Palms Fantasy Suite (winner announced July 29, 2008). It starts during Tuesdays in July Happy Hour – Simon at Palms Place, 6:00-8:00 p.m. Party Poolside – 8:00 p.m. – Midnight at th e Pool at Palms Place Hotel & Spa, 6^th floor 4381 West Flamingo Road . No cover charge Poolside attire: swimwear encouraged . Liquor: Sangria, Mojitos, and Hard Lemonade “Ducktails” Questions? Try www.palmsplace.com.

Is The MGM / Mirage PR Dept embarrassed about their restaurants or punishing you for reading us?  When important information is withheld from the public – especially for spiteful reasons -- it causes damage. It causes just a little damage in some cases and quite a bit in others.. Targeting and victimizing a specific member of the media to withhold information from doesn’t just hurt that entity. It hurts everyone. Take MGM’s apparent vendetta against thevegaseye.com, for instance. It has negatively affected our readers and now poor chef Laurent Tourondel-- who won’t be able to get news of the opening of his award winning BLT Burger restaurant in time for our two million readers to come visit. You see, that happened yesterday and we’re just now getting the info. So, sorry you couldn’t read about this on his opening day. This childish vindictiveness of punishing us for your personal reasons needs to stop. This isn’t about us anymore. This isn’t about petty bickering or egos or Sin City Beer being carried on MGM properties only because its owner is the husband of a high-ranking MGM/Mirage executive. NO. This is about cutting a business off from a potential audience (our, remember, two million plus readers) out of childish petulance. This is about cutting our readers off from an opportunity to try something new and exciting. This omission was not accidental. Our calls and emails trying to resolve have been ignored. Thanks to the MGM PR department, everybody loses.  How would Mr. Kerkorian or Mr. Lanni feel about them playing with their bank accounts and reputations?

Red Rock Resort premieres “Bottle Rock It”, its new weekly poolside concert series with a wine-tasting charity option with all proceeds benefiting the Las Vegas Springs Preserve. Legendary rocker Slash and his Blues Ball Band will headline the premiere event on Saturday, July 5. Slash will be performing the first of three summer concerts at Red Rock entitled LAST MAN STANDING; with each show featuring some of the most talented and legendary musicians in rock and hip hop history. Joining Slash on stage for the launch will be Alice in Chains guitarist Jerry Cantrell, drummer Jason Bonham who performs with Led Zeppelin in place of his legendary father as well as appearances by Royston Langdon, formerly of Spacehog; and other surprise guest artists. Tickets for the event are $30 and available at the door. For an additional $20, guests can enjoy an organic wine tasting section with all proceeds from the wine tasting event benefiting the Las Vegas Springs Preserve. “Bottle Rock It was designed for our guests to enjoy the hot summer nights poolside Saturday nights at Red Rock Resort,” said Kyle Markman, nightlife manager at Station Casinos. “We thought that combining great music, amazing cocktails and poolside fun is the way Saturday night should be in Vegas, and don’t forget to bring your bathing suit.” On July 12, rocker and vocalist Perry Farrell from Jane's Addiction will take the stage. Admission to the event will be $20 and tickets will be available at the door. As with all Bottle Rock It events, the wine tasting benefiting the Springs Preserve will be available for an additional $15. “Bottle Rock It” is put on by Red Rock Resort and will take place every Saturday night through Sept. 27. Additional concert performances to be announced. Doors open at 7 p.m. and concerts begin at 9 p.m. The event is open to adults 21 years and older with valid ID. Entry to the concerts will be first come, first serve and based upon venue capacity.

Paris Las Vegas, the luxurious Strip resort brings the passion, excitement and 'savoir-fair' of Paris to the entertainment capital of the world, fetes visiting Gay Days & Nights Las Vegas ® guests with the French Kiss II Party. The second annual event will be held at Risqué, the ultimate destination for the night culture scene, on Thursday, July 3. Doors open at 10 p.m. Co-sponsored by Paris Las Vegas and Instinct Magazine, French Kiss heats up the night with a two-hour open bar featuring premier spirits p.i.n.k. vodka and Ty∙ku. At 10:45 p.m. the catwalk will be strewn with gorgeous models flaunting the hottest new underwear fashions for the ‘Gay & Risqué’ underwear fashion show from designer Andrew Makay of N2N Bodywear. and Cirque du Soleil artist Edie will reign as show emcee. Matt Zarley, singer, songwriter and Broadway veteran, will pleasure the audience with an exclusive performance in the intimate club setting. Zarley’s new album, "Here I Am" was recently chosen as a Top 20 Finalist in the 2008 American Idol Songwriter Competition from more than 3,000 entries while his first album in 2002, "Debut," received critical acclaim and featured a Billboard dance hit. That same year Zarley had the honor of being chosen as the first openly gay bachelor featured in PEOPLE magazine's "Hottest Bachelors" issue - opening the door for gay men to be featured in the best-selling issue. Recent LGBT appearances include LA PRIDE, the Rosie O'Donnell Family Cruise and various HRC events. Zarley has also worked with amazing artists such as Vanessa Williams, Whitney Houston, Usher, Reba McIntire, Chaka Khan and Gladys Knight. Turn table stylings by internationally-renown DJ Casey Alva will keep the party vibe going throughout the night. Alva’s impressive appearances include standing residency at Here Lounge in West Hollywood, Club Montage in San Diego and the largest gay circuit party ‘White Party Palm Springs.’ International fame has come with note-worthy performances in London, Vancouver and Sydney. Known for high-energy mash-ups incorporating deep and funky grooves with hard-driving tribal beats, lush trance and progressive house, Alva is a pioneering force seamlessly layering sound with innovative scratching and sampling techniques. Alva’s producer credits include studio work with The Black Eyed Peas, Erika Badu, Lil’ Bow Wow, Kelis and Laurent Wolf. A suggested donation of $25 is requested and all proceeds will benefit the Las Vegas Gay & Lesbian Center, the Southern Nevada Association of Pride, Inc (SNAPI) and the Liberace Foundation Raffle tickets will be included in the donation cost redeemable for prizes from Gay Days & Nights Las Vegas ® sponsors and Paris Las Vegas. To RSVP in advance for the exclusive guest list, which offers front-of-line access, please visit www.instictmagazine.com/frenchkiss.com.

"Okay now I see what GISELLE was raving about."THE FANS SPEAK OUT: A few Criss Angel aficionados have contacted thevegaseye.com to complain about the treatment they received when Cirque canceled Criss Angel shows  between today and Sept. 13. One fan got a phone call from Luxor about the cancellation, but found out the prices had been raised when trying to re-purchase performance tickets. "Who, WHO has the Brass Balls enough to not only cancel thousands of peoples vacations, but to add on some insult to it by  telling them they will have to now pay MORE to reschedule!" steamed the fan. Most agree price raise is sneaky and insidious considering the original prices are still posted as if they still applied. Ultimately, they said, no one will know it happened unless they try to repurchase the tickets.

Premier Label Water Co. the same company that brought Bling h20 to Las Vegas has done it again by introducing another dazzlingly glamorous Spring Water which makes you dizzy but not tipsy. These bottles start with not just Chrome and Gold but keep your heart racing with Pink, Violet, Tangerine, Chartreuse, White and Black. They say they can even match your décor just not animal print. The main difference this go around is the price which is guaranteed to whet your wallets. For information contact: Luins Williams, Premier Label Water Co., 888-628-0798,  luins@plwc.net, www.plwc.net

Golden Gaming, Inc., operator of Golden Casino Group, Golden Tavern Group and Golden Route Operations, names Steve Arcana chief operating officer and Matthew Flandermeyer chief financial officer. Arcana and Flandermeyer oversee operations for Golden Casino Group, consisting of the Golden Mardi Gras Casino, Golden Gates Casino and Golden Gulch Casino in Black Hawk, Colo. and the Pahrump Nugget Hotel & Casino in Pahrump, Nev.; Golden Tavern Group, Nevada's largest tavern operator with 44 establishments; and Golden Route Operations (G.R.O.), Nevada's third largest slot route operator with more than 2,500 machines in more than 200 locations throughout the state. Arcana served as vice president of operations prior to this promotion. He has played an instrumental role in the growth of Golden Tavern Group, making it the largest tavern operator in Nevada with the expansion of the PT’s brand to include 33 locations, the introduction of the flagship brand Sierra Gold ultra-tavern to both northern and southern Nevada and the development of the exclusive and proprietary Golden Rewards player program and Golden Jackpot reward system. In addition, Arcana also played a key role in the acquisition of multiple casino properties in Colorado and Nevada, which resulted in the formation of Golden Casino Group. “We are pleased to promote Steve to chief operating officer,” said Blake L. Sartini, Chairman and CEO of Golden Gaming, Inc. “His expertise and extensive industry experience serves as a tremendous asset to Golden Gaming as we look forward to further growth and success.” Flandermeyer began his profession in public accounting with Arthur Andersen & Company, focusing on the financial services sector. Flandermeyer continued his career at Boston Chicken, Inc. where he spent five years managing the corporate accounting department and Einstein Bagel Partners, LP. As Senior Director of Field Financing and Accounting he oversaw the operation’s finance department, supporting 550 units with annualized sales of $390 million. For nearly six years, Flandermeyer served as vice president, CFO and partner of a collection of restaurants that included The Clubhouse, Nick’s Fishmarket and Carlucci – Lincolnshire. Most recently, Matt was CFO of Mo’s Restaurants, a restaurant portfolio company. “We are very happy that Matt joined our team,” said Sartini. “Matt’s input and guidance will be important to maintaining and improving upon our existing core group of assets and continuing the company’s rapid growth profile.” MEANWHILE! A unique first of its kind eco-friendly festival celebrating Mahatma Gandhi's life and message will be held in Nevada on Jul 26. According to Tom Stille and Doug Keeney, coordinators of this Gandhi Fest; drummers, fire spinners, artists, healthy and organic food chefs, yoga teachers, DJs, and sustainable living advocates will join hands to celebrate peace, love, freedom, non-violence, self-power and conscious living as promoted by Gandhi. Rajan Zed, acclaimed Indo-American leader, will be the keynote speaker who will talk about Gandhi's life, philosophy, and experiments, and answer questions of the participants during this festival. To be held at River School Reno, this festival will continue till two am, and will include folk dancing, musical performances, sustainable goods displays, nature tours, fire spinning, kite flying, yoga shows, organic food demonstrations, etc. Each festival participant will artistically contribute to a "Gandhi collage", to be created on the occasion. A competition will be held to make Gandhi sketches. Plans are being formed to make this Gandhi Fest an annual feature. There is a renewed interest world over in Mahatma Gandhi and his ideas, who is universally venerated as one of the paramount moral, political, and social leaders of the recent history, Rajan Zed adds.