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Curtis’ bartender pals still toasting his life

Mystery solved.

For more than a year I’ve been hearing rumblings that some friends of film legend Tony Curtis gather at his grave every year, with drinks in hand, and toast him on his birthday, June 2.

I stopped in the Bellagio steakhouse, Prime, one of Curtis’ favorite restaurants, a few nights ago to check out the rumor.

Sure enough, Prime’s three bartenders, Jeff Buttaccio, Wayne Gedutis and Doug Mazzone, confirmed the story.

“Tony used to come to the bar and have a margarita before dinner, so after he died we started going to his grave at Palm Mortuary to toast him with a margarita,” Gedutis said.

Curtis, who spent the last decade of his life in Henderson with his wife, Jill, died Sept. 29, 2010. He was 85.

A veteran waiter overheard the conversation and added this gem:

“Tony went to the table of an 80-year-old lady and kissed her hand.”

In shock, the woman gasped, “Oh my god, it’s … Tony Bennett!’

“No, darling,” Curtis replied. “It’s only me.”

His huge presence is deeply missed on the charity and party circuits.

QUAKE MEMORIES

Several R-J readers emailed their memories of the Loma Prieta earthquake that rocked the San Francisco Bay Area Oct. 17, 1989.

Elaine Halley of Fort Mohave, Ariz., said she and her husband, Ed, experienced a weird twist.

Her brother, Ken, was an audio engineer with ABC, the network covering the World Series.

The Halleys had planned to meet him after for a late dinner Oct. 16. But he informed them he had his plans. He was flying back to New York City immediately after the game.

“Something in his voice indicated he wanted out (of the area) NOW!” Halley wrote.

They drove back to Sacramento about 5 p.m.

The next day her brother called from New York and said he had a premonition. Later they heard the news: The San Francisco Bay Area was hit by a powerful earthquake.

“To think we were on the freeway at exactly the same time the day before sobered us. I’m grateful to my brother for his insight,” she said.

Former R-J sportswriter Royce Feour was at Game 3 as a spectator. Less than three hours earlier he had driven across the Bay Bridge with Wayne Pearson, director of development at UNLV.

They returned to the San Francisco Hilton after the quake and faced a 34-floor hike to their room in the dark, since most of the city was without power.

Fortunately the hotel had an emergency generator. Guests were given flashlights to go from the elevator down pitch-black hallways to their rooms.

“First thing we did was hit the mini-bar,” Feour wrote, and survey the wild scene from the patio, including the broken Bay Bridge.

The hotel did not charge for rooms that night, or the mini-bar, he added.

Lorelle Ellis was living in San Francisco at the time and recalls her son’s sports trophies crashing during the quake.

She and her son immediately went to the Red Cross to offer their help as volunteers.

Ellis’ mother was two weeks old when she survived the 1906 earthquake.

“She said she lived in an orange crate in Golden Gate Park for months,” Ellis said.

THE SCENE AND HEARD

Producer Andy Walmsley, the man behind the show business roasts, is unveiling his latest concept Tuesday at the Inspire Theater, 107 Las Vegas Boulevard South. Six prominent entertainment figures will speak frankly for 15 minutes each about their lives. The speakers: Mary Wilson, formerly of The Supremes; comedians Marty Allen and the Amazing Jonathan, former “Crazy Girls” star Shellee Renee, “O” performer Christina Jones, a former Olympian in synchronized swimming, and choreographer Jeff Kutash. A Q-and-A will follow. The show starts at 10 p.m., with the pre-party and red carpet from 8:30 p.m. to 10. It is a VIP-invite only affair. …

Hofbrauhaus Las Vegas ranks No. 6 among the eight best big-city Oktoberfests, according to Sparefoot.com. Cincinnati topped the list, followed by Tulsa, San Francisco, St. Louis and Chicago. Denver was seventh and Boston eighth.

SIGHTINGS

Jennifer Lopez, with her longtime manager Benny Medina at Shania Twain’s show Friday at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. … Planet Hollywood headliner Britney Spears, taking in “Absinthe” (Caesars Palace) and Nobu on Thursday, on a night off. … “Teen Wolf” star Tyler Posey, celebrating his 23rd birthday with friends Friday at Hakkasan restaurant (MGM Grand). … U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Holly Madison, dining with friends at separate tables at Giada (The Cromwell) on Thursday. Earlier in the week, star chef Bobby Flay had dinner and chatted with the restaurant’s namesake, Giada DiLaurentiis. Flay was in town celebrating the 10th anniversary of his restaurant, Mesa Grill, at Caesars Palace.

THE PUNCH LINE

“The government of Gibraltar gathered about 30 monkeys that they call ‘problem monkeys’ because of their destructive behavior, and shipped them off to live in Scotland. What does it say about my homeland when a government sees ‘problem monkeys’ and says, “You know where we should send them?’ ” — Craig Ferguson

Norm Clarke’s column appears Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. He can be reached at 702-383-0244 or email him at norm@reviewjournal.com. Find more online at www.normclarke.com. Follow Norm on Twitter @Norm_Clarke.

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