Spring bouquet says just ‘friends’

One of Gov. Jim Gibbons' young lieutenants is hanging out with and sending flowers to Hollywood hottie Lauren Conrad.

The former "Laguna Beach" co-star, now a lead in the hit TV show "The Hills," invited Brad Keating, 21, to the launch Tuesday of the fall collection of her fashion line at Los Angeles Fashion Week.

Keating, in a telephone interview Thursday, said he didn't attend because of a business class but sent flowers.

Red roses? "They weren't roses," he said. "A spring bouquet, I think."

They were introduced at the Video Music Awards at the Palms in September "by one of the Maloofs," he said. "We're good friends and we stay in touch. We hang out when she's been here on business with people we all know," Keating said.

He graduated from Coronado High School, where he was student body president during his senior year. He also advised former Gov. Kenny Guinn on teen issues, published reports stated.

While in high school, Keating created "The Wait Program," a national pregnancy prevention movement based on abstinence.

However, when I asked whether he was involved in a program promoting virginity, he said no. And after the interview, a photo of Keating at a nightclub surrounded by six young women was removed from his Web page on MySpace.com, which is a social networking site.

On another social Web site, Facebook.com, Keating lists Conrad among his friends, along with Anthony Eliades, scion of the Olympic Garden strip club family.

After serving as an intern to Gibbons upon graduating from Coronado, Keating later was a personal aide of Gibbons' in Las Vegas. He joined the governor's staff as an assistant to the governor when Gibbons took office in January 2007.

THE SCENE AND HEARD

Look for a line down the block tonight at DeStefano's Italian Restaurant, at Pecos Road and Tropicana Avenue. I hear Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme are showing up with crooner Vic Damone. All three had Top 10 hits: Lawrence hit No. 1 with "Go Away Little Girl" in late 1962, Gorme made it to No. 7 on the charts in early 1963 with "Blame It on the Bossa Nova," and Damone hit the big time in 1956 with "On The Street Where You Live," which rose to No. 4. Lawrence also had four other Top 10 hits. ...

Professional ballroom dancer Kym Johnson, who has been working with Penn Jillette for the upcoming "Dancing With the Stars" competition, is making a guest appearance today at Lake Elementary School.

MAY I RECOMMEND ...

The Irish have all the luck: They get an extra night to party this year, with St. Patrick's Day celebrations scheduled for Saturday and Monday. You can have brews on the Brooklyn Bridge at New York-New York's Nine Fine Irishmen or discover why McFadden's Restaurant and Saloon at the Rio is billed as the "Wildest Irish Pub on Earth." Other favorites: McMullan's Irish Pub at 4650 W. Tropicana Avenue and J.C. Wooloughan's Irish Pub in the J.W. Marriott in Summerlin.

SIGHTINGS

Personal injury lawyer Glen Lerner, better known in his TV commercials as the "Heavy Hitter," walking into Gordon Biersch brew pub on Thursday in track pants and a black T-shirt with the words "Jesus Rules." He is scheduled to be in court today to explain to a district judge why he missed the first day of a former client's murder trial in January. The T-shirt fits with rumors that Lerner has undergone a religious transformation. ... Boxing champ Floyd Mayweather Jr., on a shoe-buying spree Wednesday for gal pal Rozonda Thomas, best known as "Chilli" of the R&B group TLC. Mayweather bought her nine pairs of shoes at the Giuseppe Zanotti boutique inside the Forum Shops at Caesars. The tab came to $4,600.

THE PUNCH LINE

"Reaffirmed his policy of 'Bros before Hos.' " -- From David Letterman's Top Ten Surprises During N.Y. Gov. Eliot Spitzer's Resignation

Norm Clarke can be reached at (702) 383-0244 or norm@reviewjournal.com. Find additional sightings and more online at www.normclarke.com.