Monday, May 31, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

NORM: Hopkins recounts 'Z student' days

Rich Little, far left, raves about the impressionist he inspired, Gordie Brown, the first resident headliner at the new Golden Nugget. Sandy Murphy unlucky at Palms. Annette Lu tries Bellagio fare.

Anthony Hopkins, a high school dropout who moved to America with "no plan, no goal," challenged graduates of The Meadows School to "be bold" because "dreams come true."

"Last week the president of the United States said he was a C student. I was a D student, maybe a Z student," the 1991 Academy Award-winning best actor said Saturday during his commencement address.

Hopkins said his mother was so concerned about his poor grades that she took him to a child specialist.

After a battery of tests, the specialist said, "There's nothing wrong with him. He's just bored. He's different. He has an artistic appetite."

That specialist "was one of my first allies," said Hopkins, almost unrecognizable with whitish hair at shoulder length.

Barely 17 and convinced he was going to be "a big zero," Hopkins said his break came when he walked into a YMCA one night "and wandered my way into a world that changed my life forever."

Rehearsals for a play were in progress, and a mesmerized Hopkins asked whether he could participate.

He was given a single speaking line: "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the world."

The line "was my first performance, March 26, 1955."

Hopkins said he left South Wales for California "with no plan, no goal, just a sunny dream."

But, he said, "Dreams come true one step at a time," with the help of desire and faith.

"Be bold," he said, for "within ourselves is where the true power lies."

He told the audience he was there because Sydney Yuman, a member of the Class of 2004, wrote him a letter asking him to deliver the commencement address. Her father, Siegfried & Roy manager Bernie Yuman, and Hopkins are longtime friends.

Canadian Idol

"Downtown" Gordie Brown became a Las Vegas headliner with more than a little help from his idol, Rich Little.

Brown, the new Golden Nugget's first resident headliner, spotted Little in the crowd at Friday's soft opening and thanked the legendary vocal impressionist for providing the inspiration.

"You never forget your mentor," Brown said backstage, where he welcomed Little and other well-wishers.

Brown was an established political cartoonist in Canada at the Ottawa Sunday Herald when he attended a performance by Little, who grew up in Ottawa.

Brown, in his 20s at the time, experienced an epiphany after seeing Little's show. "That was it for me. I wanted to be that man."

Little, a Las Vegas resident, had rave reviews for Brown. "He's grown so much. He's doing voices never done before."

The Scene and Heard

Sandy Murphy's jaw-dropping gambling losses were all the buzz in the Palms' gaming pits over the weekend. ...

They're calling it "Southern Nevada's most unique concert venue." The inaugural of "Stars on a Lake" is set for a July 3 debut with LeAnn Rimes performing on a floating stage near Lake Las Vegas' MonteLago Village. Tickets: $39.95 and $69.95 through TicketMaster (474-4000).

Sightings

Taiwan Vice President Annette Lu, wounded in an assassination attempt earlier this month, seen dining in a wheelchair Saturday on the patio at Picasso (Bellagio) in a party of 30, including 10 bodyguards and Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev. ... 'N Sync's Joey Fatone, getting the name of his fiancee, Kelly, tattooed on the inside of his lower lip Friday at the Hart & Huntington Tattoo Salon at the Palms. It was part of Fatone's bachelor party weekend.

The Punch Line

"If only cats grew into kittens." -- R. Stern

Norm Clarke can be reached at 383-0244 or norm@reviewjournal.com.