Wedding couples crazy about cakes

We asked for your crazy cake stories -- from weddings or special events -- and we got a plateful.

The inspiration for our search came after witnessing the 70-pound, 22-layer cake replica of the White House at the wedding of CNN chief White House correspondent Ed Henry and Shirley Hung, a CNN senior producer based in Washington, D.C.

Some of the wildest entries (after disqualifying the erotic cake entries):

■ KLAS-TV, Channel 8 weatherman Ted Florendo and his wife, Jennifer, went for the Mad Hatter theme at their April 24 wedding. Their cake, a five-tier creation that weighed in at 120 pounds, offered something for everyone. Created by Gimme Some Sugar, the cake flavors included: Red Velvet, S'mores, Luscious Lemonberry and Strawberry Bomb.

The outrageousness didn't end with the cake: The bride and groom went with a "Vegas" theme to the grand entrance. Each member of the bridal party was assigned a character.

"We had Elvis, a cocktail server, a pageant queen, a party girl, a casino/mafia boss and his trophy wife, Flavor Flav and even a buffet lover," Jennifer said.

And no Vegas wedding would be complete without "crashers," so they added the Alan and Carlos characters from "The Hangover" (played by Zach Galifianakis and the baby).

■ N9NE Steakhouse executive chef Barry Dakake said the "craziest" cake to come out of his kitchen was a dead-on replica of a 15- to 20-pound Thanksgiving turkey made out of white chocolate.

"Every year I cook for the entire staff, and they are allowed to bring family members. We feed 100 before the public comes in and they get everything we have: lobster, prime rib, turkey. My pastry chef used jams and jellies to keep it in place. Little apples were made out of marzipan. A lot of food coloring and dye. It was amazingly realistic," Dakake said.

■ Veteran Las Vegas magician Steve Dacri chose a bird theme as well, with a twist, for his first marriage.

"We had a cake made in the shape of the Magic Castle in Hollywood, where I have appeared for the past 36 years," said Dacri, who appears at the Hilton's Shimmer Showroom. "In the top was a secret compartment where three white doves were stashed. A wire ran down the side of the cake to the head table, when I pulled it, the trap door was supposed to open and the doves would fly out. When the moment arrived, I pulled the wire, it broke, the doves were trapped inside the cake. I had to go over to it and punch a hole in the top with the knife. Then the birds happily flew out. I should've known the marriage was doomed from that moment on."

FLASHBACK

From the Vegas Confidential archives, May 9, 2004: Cleveland Cavaliers rookie LeBron James, downing a 2-pound lobster during a midnight dinner Friday at N9NE Steakhouse (Palms). Dakake and general manager Rob Wimpfheimer reopened the kitchen when James, newly crowned NBA Rookie of the Year, arrived with a barely 18 party of 18. James, 19, and his underage posse drank ginger ale mixed with Coca-Cola.

THE SCENE AND HEARD

Moving anchors Sue Manteris and Jim Snyder to the 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts was to "make better use of their time" at KVBC-TV, Channel 3, owner Jim Rogers said. My reference to the near-clean sweep of evening anchors at KVBC in the past three years was not intended to suggest Manteris and Snyder were leaving the station.

SIGHTINGS

CNN talk show host Larry King, with his wife, Shawn, and their sons at Terry Fator's show at The Mirage on Friday. ... Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford, the NFL's No. 1 overall draft pick, backstage before Kenny Chesney's concert at The Joint (Hard Rock Hotel) on Friday. Also there: NFL Hall of Famer Troy Aikman. ... Mark Salling from "Glee," at Tao Asian Bistro (The Venetian) and Azure pool (Palazzo) Saturday.

THE PUNCH LINE

"For the second day, there were no World Cup games. I missed the sound of vuvuzelas so much that I taped a beehive to my head." -- Jimmy Kimmel

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