‘Big Bad Bear’ had tough, gentle way of guarding singer

Casino marketing veteran Gene Kilroy has been around a lot of tough guys in his life. Kilroy, after all, was once Muhammad Ali's "facilitator."

But for Kilroy's money, Wayne Newton bodyguard Michael "Bear" Forch was one of the toughest and gentlest men he has ever met. Forch died Wednesday in a local hospice of pancreatic cancer. He was 61.

"It's not the destination; it's the journey," Kilroy says. "Bear had a great journey. He had so much love for Wayne Newton. He called Newton 'The Chief.' There's an old saying in life about how many people you'd want next to you in a foxhole. Bear was the type of guy Wayne would want in that foxhole. Bear always had his back."

Bear had a reputation for toughness that usually was enough to quiet any difficulty that surrounded Newton. Occasionally, a reputation wasn't enough.

"You've heard of 'Big Bad John?' He was 'Big Bad Bear,' " Kilroy says.

"When he was in intensive care, I told him, 'Bear, you hit harder than Sonny Liston and Ernie Shavers.' He said, 'When I had to.' He was an outstanding guy."

CITYCENTER GHOST: As usual, Kirk Kerkorian is a ghost in his own kingdom.

While MGM Mirage executives Jim Murren and Bobby Baldwin gave speeches and accepted applause Tuesday at the opening of CityCenter's Vdara high-rise hotel, the man who made it possible stayed out of sight.

Kerkorian, 92, likes it that way. Friends say he would rather have a root canal than make a public appearance.

But Kerkorian's influence on the CityCenter project wasn't lost on his friends and MGM Mirage board members Mel Wolzinger and former Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn. Although Murren and Baldwin deserve credit for making the dream come true, it all began with Kerkorian.

"You can't underestimate Kirk's ability to say, 'Do it,' " Wolzinger said. "It couldn't have been done with out him."

ONLY VEGAS: One of the many reasons I love Las Vegas is that it refuses to be ordinary.

Where else can you catch the world's greatest rodeo cowboys and the world's greatest chess players at the same time?

The National Finals Rodeo is ready to tear it up at the Thomas & Mack Center. And the World Chess Federation World Championship has begun at the Riviera. Both competing for millions in prize money.

The chess masters are the ones without the hats.

ON THE BOULEVARD: KVBC-TV, Channel 3, anchor Kendall Tenney is leaving the station he joined back in 1994. The hard-working family man is creating his own PR firm, and I hear he already has picked up several high-profile clients.

BOULEVARD II: The Las Vegas Sun is barely quivering after this week's bloodletting. What a shame and a loss for news consumers.

BOULEVARD III: Former Las Vegan Sally Denton, a member of the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame, has just released her latest book, "The Pink Lady: The Many Lives of Helen Gahagan Douglas." It's an excellent political biography.

BOULEVARD IV: There's still time to get your Claus on and contribute to Opportunity Village's fifth annual Great Santa Run on Saturday at Town Square. You can register on site for the event, which begins at 8 a.m. Earlier this week, the number of registered Santas approached 6,000.

BOULEVARD V: The National Weather Service issued a freeze warning for Las Vegas. In keeping with the current celebrity buzz, I hear officials are calling it "chillier than Tiger Woods' bedroom."

BOULEVARD VI: The Boulevard notes the passing of gaming executive Rich Fiore, who died last Friday at age 50. Fiore was one of many members of the gambling fraternity born in Steubenville, Ohio.

Fiore helped design games for top companies. He also was a devoted family man and contributor to Faith Lutheran.

John L. Smith's column appears Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. E-mail him at Smith@reviewjournal.com or call (702) 383-0295. He also blogs at lvrj.com/blogs/smith.