Wednesday, November 17, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

NORM: Hughes aide sees landmark vanish

Bob Maheu, shown at his Las Vegas home on Tuesday, was Howard Hughes' alter-ego from 1957 to 1970. Jerry Tarkanian Jimmy Kimmel

Bob Maheu sat riveted in front of his TV Tuesday, watching the end of the most symbolic structure of the Howard Hughes era.

Demolished by Tuesday's implosion of the last Desert Inn buildings was Hughes' legendary penthouse, where the eccentric billionaire lived for four years as a recluse.

Maheu's reaction was visceral.

"I thought it would be closure, but the relationship I had with this man can never be closed," said Maheu, 85, who served as Hughes' alter-ego from 1957 to 1970.

Hughes arrived at the Desert Inn in secret on Thanksgiving Eve in 1966.

"We stopped the train five miles out of town and brought him in unnoticed," Maheu said by telephone.

Hughes, through Maheu and aides, went on a casino-buying binge, purchasing 17 in all, diluting much of the mob's control.

"People say we made Las Vegas. We did not make Las Vegas; we got it ready. No one in the world could have accomplished it as quickly as he did. In those days, publicly held companies could not buy into gaming.

"We got it ready for Kirk Kerkorian, Irwin Molasky, the Greenspuns, Don Reynolds, Bill Harrah, the Houssels, and all the great talents here."

Three weeks ago, Maheu took his last look at Hughes' penthouse on the ninth floor.

"They wanted me to take security and a group of executives to the room where Hughes stayed. Visualize the last portion of it (the tower) going north. He was on the east side, facing the pool. But he never saw the pool because he had all the windows blacked out," Maheu said.

A lot of memories flooded back on Tuesday as Maheu watched the replays.

Among them, this one from the mid-1960s: "I remember when Gene Mayday, the owner of Checker Cab, had a survey that showed more full mink coats were embarking at the Desert Inn than all the (Strip) hotels together."

He recalled the purchase of the first limo in town, "and I was very severely criticized for being ostentatious."

Maheu spent three days last week being interviewed at the Four Seasons by Leslie Stahl, correspondent for CBS' "60 Minutes." The segment will air Dec. 10, a week before the release of "The Aviator," starring Leonardo DiCaprio as a young Hughes.

A favor for Tark

Jerry Tarkanian may be in the eternal doghouse for this recruiting job.

Jimmy Kimmel, in a guest column for the Sporting News, says one of the biggest thrills of his teen years was meeting his hero, Tarkanian.

Kimmel and his Las Vegas buddies were at a tournament at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif., to watch the Runnin' Rebels when they spotted Tark and his wife, Lois, in the parking lot and began honking and hollering.

"To our delight, he waved us over. 'Hey, guys,' he said, 'will you take Lois back to the hotel?'

"She was still clutching the rosary beads she'd work furiously during every game, no doubt asking the Lord's protection from the three strange men her husband just forced her into a van with."

Lois Tarkanian never said a word during the short ride to the hotel, said Kimmel.

Sightings

At Monday's opening of the Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World at the Silverton casino and hotel: Oakland A's pitcher Mark Mulder, Olympic softball gold medalist Jenny Finch, Miss Nevada USA 2004 Victoria Franklin and NASCAR driver Kerry Earnhardt. The store opens to the public at 10 a.m. today. ... Roger Clemens, bringing an autographed baseball backstage Saturday after Danny Gans' show (The Mirage).

The Punch Line

"Fallujah is 70 percent under control. To put that into perspective, L.A. is only 60 percent." -- Jay Leno

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