Sunday, October 10, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

NORM: Britney Spears, manager split

Britney Spears has split with manager Larry Rudolph, who has helped guide her career since she was 13 Kid Rock was on a roll with friends at the Hard Rock.

Britney Spears' longtime manager, Larry Rudolph, is going another direction: He's joining forces with the family-owned Maloof Entertainment.

Rudolph, Palms owner George Maloof and local attorney David Chesnoff engineered Spears' exit from her 55-hour marriage last January. Rudolph announced last week he

has split with Spears after a nine-year management relationship with the pop singer.

Credited with discovering the Louisiana native when she was 13 years old, Rudolph said in his statement that they had "mutually agreed" not to renew their relationship.

"He knows everyone in the world, and he comes to us with ideas on shows, and we'll help create shows with him," said Phil Maloof, a Las Vegas resident who is the CEO of Maloof Entertainment and Maloof Music.

Pussycat Dolls at home

The Strip soon will become the valley of the dolls.

Continuing the trend toward the naughtier Old Vegas era, the Pussycat Dolls, a burlesque-style cabaret act that features a revolving cast of Hollywood stars, will have a permanent presence in the new megaclub at Caesars Palace.

The Pussycat Dolls will have their own permanent lounge with shows every night, said Robert Frey, a managing partner.

It will be part of Pure, the 36,000-square-foot club that opens at Caesars late this year. The two-tiered nightspot will feature a terrace overlooking Las Vegas Boulevard.

Burlesque in Las Vegas dates to the 1940s and '50s, when the Strip sizzled with the likes of Lili St. Cyr, Blaze Starr and Tempest Storm.

Many of Hollywood's sexiest names have embraced the risque revue and helped spark the stage show revival. Pussycat Dolls alumni include Christina Aguilera, Carmen Electra, Gwen Stefani, Nikka Costa and Brittany Murphy.

Frey, who co-owns Coyote Ugly, Tangerine and Bikinis with Jennifer Worthington, said four or five name stars have indicated they will participate in the Las Vegas shows.

The Scene and Heard

How did the drive-by shooting at Siegfried & Roy's Jungle Palace stay secret so long? Bernie Yuman, manager of Siegfried & Roy, denies there was an attempt to suppress the news.

"That was totally out of our control. That was all Metro," Yuman said.

Information about the Sept. 21 incident didn't surface until last week.

Authorities still are searching for former Oakland Raiders kicker Cole Ford, 31, who has been charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon and six counts of discharging a firearm from a motor vehicle. ... Las Vegas physician Joe Johnson, better known as "The Rock Doc" because of all the visiting celebs he treats, needed wings and a prayer to keep a bargain with Rodney Dangerfield. As entertainment director for Arkansas State University in the late 1960s, Johnson booked Dangerfield for a pep rally at Jonesboro, Ark. The contract called for getting Dangerfield to Memphis by midnight for a flight back to New York. On takeoff, the flight was aborted by bad weather. Johnson spotted an old commercial prop airplane landing nearby. He and Dangerfield dashed across infield, climbed the retractable ladder to the cockpit and waved money at the pilot. Dangerfield made his connection.

Sightings

Kid Rock, throwing a bowling party in the Hard Rock Hotel high-roller suite after his concert Friday night. Attendees included his band, his opening band White Starr and members of his entourage, including Bret Boone of the Seattle Mariners.

The Punch Line

"When I was born, the doctor took one look at my face, turned me over and said, 'Look, twins.' " -- Rodney Dangerfield

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