The Judith Miller circus moves to Las Vegas this week and figures to be the hottest news story around. At the center of a growing controversy, the New York Times reporter addresses the Society of Professional Journalists Convention and National Journalism Conference at the Aladdin.
Miller, who is taking a leave of absence from the paper, may rewrite her speech after reading today's Times, in which colleagues cast her in a critical light.
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Miller, whose father, Bill Miller, was a Las Vegas entertainment icon, recently spent 85 days in jail rather than reveal who disclosed the identity of undercover CIA agent Valerie Plame.
The Times reported that the handwrittten name "Valerie Flame" appears in a notebook she used while interviewing I. Lewis Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff.
Miller's detractors are critical of her prewar stories supporting the Bush administration's case that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.
Also on Tuesday, she is to receive the SPJ's First Amendment Award.
Her father was credited with inventing the Las Vegas lounge scene and, as entertainment director at numerous Strip properties, helping make Las Vegas the entertainment capital of the world.
THE SCENE AND HEARD
The 2005 Las Vegas Marathon, the first to include the famous Strip, will feature Vegas-centric themes along the way. The 15,000 runners will pass a large wedding cake near the A Special Memory Wedding Chapel (800 S. Fourth St.), where competitors can get hitched in a run-through lane. Yes, someone will jump out of the cake.
Radio personality Dennis Bono hosts the 10th anniversary of the Old Timers' Reunion tonight in the Stardust Ballroom. ...
Ben Affleck should be comfortable in his next role. He's starring in a gambling drama titled "Smokin' Aces," being filmed in Tahoe. He stars opposite Ray Liotta, Jeremy Piven and singer Alicia Keyes, making her film debut.
SIGHTINGS
Gwen Stefani and online journalist Matt Drudge (no, not together), at the 10 p.m. Friday performance of "Avenue Q" (Wynn). Drudge was still cracking up 24 hours later at Bartolotta over an audience member's outburst during a scene featuring Kate Monster, played by Brynn O'Malley. The jilted Kate was singing "there's a fine, fine line between love and a waste of your time," when the lyrics apparently struck a nerve with a female showgoer, who enthusiastically seconded the emotion. ... Phil Mickelson, chilling out with pals at Light (Bellagio) after missing the cut Friday at the Michelin Championship. ... David Spade, at Body English (Hard Rock Hotel) on Friday after his show at The Mirage. Apparently, all is forgiven after his Sept. 8 dis of the Hard Rock on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno." Spade told Leno he went to the Hard Rock pool to check out chicks, but "it's like a thousand Guidos from New Jersey and two waitresses!" He added, "It's like a pirate ship over there. No girls in sight. They are putting oil on each other. It was a little g-a-y." ... Scott Wolf of "Party of Five" and his wife, Kelley, closing down Ivan Kane's Forty Deuce (Mandalay Bay) at 6 a.m. Saturday. ... Bill Cosby, addressing the Frederick Douglass Educational Fund Gala Dinner & Awards Banquet on Friday at The Venetian. Gov. Kenny Guinn was honored for being a champion for values of education and families.
THE PUNCH LINE
"So Sly Stallone is headed back in the ring for 'Rocky VI'? Who's he taking on, Wilford Brimley?" -- Bill McCuddy, Fox News entertainment
