Elvis captured 12-year-old heart
In town for the VIP opening tonight of Cirque du Soleil's "Viva Elvis" at CityCenter is Linda Deutsch, longtime ace reporter for The Associated Press.
When the opening night curtain closes, she will have gone full circle with The King of Rock 'n' Roll.
At age 12 in Asbury Park, N.J., she was president of one of the first Elvis Presley fan clubs. She appropriated her father's copying machine, and, with her mother picking up the postage tab, she saw the fan club grow to 300 .
Upon graduating high school Deutsch got a congratulatory letter from Elvis.
On behalf of the fan club, she presented TV personality Dick Clark with a petition to devote an entire "American Bandstand" show to Elvis on his 24th birthday.
She's been to Graceland three times. And her office, a shrine to Elvis, includes an Elvis tissue box she bought at the Elvis Diner in Jerusalem.
"I never got to see Elvis in Vegas. This will be as close as I'll come," she said Thursday from her home in Los Angeles.
She probably owes her career to Elvis. When she joined the Los Angeles AP bureau in 1967, her goal was to become an entertainment reporter. Her break came when she was assigned as backup reporter on the trial of Sirhan Sirhan, who assassinated Robert F. Kennedy in 1968.
Deutsch is in her sixth decade as The AP's lead reporter on high-profile trials, from Charles Manson, Patty Hearst, O.J. Simpson and Michael Jackson. Next up: the trial of Jackson's Las Vegas doctor, Conrad Murray.
THE SCENE AND HEARD
In the opinion of Priscilla Presley, Elvis would have approved of "Viva Elvis." During an appearance on CNN's Larry King show Thursday, she called the dance-centric show "very Vegas" and said Elvis, "who loved dance numbers," would have been honored. What he might have found most enjoyable has been cut out: a scene with a blue suede shoe squashing an Elvis impersonator. ...
The Stratosphere Tower dimmed its lights at 6 p.m. Thursday in tribute to seven- time NASCAR champion Dale Earnhardt, who died on Feb. 18, 2001, on the last lap of the Daytona 500. It was part of a coast-to-coast tribute.
MAY I RECOMMEND
Cirque du Soleil's ultimate tribute, "Viva Elvis," features a king-sized look at all things Elvis. A huge cast performs amid colossal set pieces, from a towering wedding cake, a giant jukebox and a blue suede shoe big enough to house an army of Elvi. The invite-only VIP opening is tonight at Aria in CityCenter.
SIGHTINGS
Sharon Stone and son Roan Bronstein, at the 7 p.m. performance of "Love" (The Mirage) on Thursday. Earlier, Stone and her son, who turns 10 in May, checked out the Secret Garden at The Mirage. ... A&E's "Gene Simmons Family Jewels," filming at Rockhouse on Thursday. Simmons' partner, Shannon Tweed, and their son, Nick, who just turned 21, checked out the bar's signature 80-ounce guitar drinks.
THE PUNCH LINE
"President (Barack) Obama won a medal in the Olympics last night. The downhill approval rating." -- Harrah's headliner Rita Rudner
Norm Clarke can be reached at (702) 383-0244 or norm@reviewjournal.com. Find additional sightings and more online at www.normclarke.com.
