Jackson doctor has at least one grateful supporter in town

Like many locals, longtime Las Vegas resident Dradyne McLemore has watched the developments on the death of pop star Michael Jackson and his connection to Dr. Conrad Murray.

Murray's Southern Nevada office and home in Las Vegas were searched earlier this week by Los Angeles police and DEA agents, who are conducting an investigation into whether Jackson was the victim of criminal wrongdoing in the form of an administered drug overdose.

McLemore wouldn't know anything about that, but she does know and admire Murray, who can use all the allies he can get these days. McLemore's husband, William L. McLemore Sr., was Murray's heart patient for three years.

William suffered from a severe heart condition and at one point needed an operation. Dradyne said she was impressed with Murray's skill and professionalism. She called him "not only an excellent cardiologist, coming highly recommended, but a fine upstanding and compassionate man."

"He treated my husband for three years for an enlarged heart, who also had diabetes and high blood pressure, but Dr. Murray placed stents in his heart, and arteries in his legs thereby extending his life three more years. He died on Easter Sunday 2008 at home in bed where he wanted to be just as we were preparing to go to our church and serve barbecue ribs, chicken, potato salad, baked beans, and punch. Our son prepared the best ribs in this town."

MARTINI MAYOR: Mayor Oscar Goodman celebrates his 70th birthday with a small gathering at 7 p.m. with a few thousand of his closest friends at the First Street Stage Plaza next to the Golden Nugget.

Amazing. I can't tell you how many people in law enforcement bet the former mob lawyer wouldn't live anywhere near this long.

"This past year for the city has been a glum one," Goodman says. "I need a birthday celebration like I need a hole in the head. But beyond the three worthy charities, the main reason I'm doing it is that I want people to have a good time. Happy days are here again."

Admission is $20, and every dollar will benefit the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, Opportunity Village and Three Square. Partygoers will receive two martinis, a T-shirt and button.

Unfortunately, the button cannot be used as a get-out-of-jail-free card.

TAX TIME: Glen Mallette Sr. is only 83 years old, so I guess there's always a chance he'll live long enough to see the value of his home return to a respectable level.

Like a lot of locals, he has labored under the impression that his property taxes were going to go down along with the value of his home, which has dropped 50 percent in the past 24 months.

"My house value went down 50 percent, and my taxes went up 17 percent," Mallette says.

And no one, but no one, seems in a hurry to come to the aid of this octogenarian and many other seniors like him who are trying to remain afloat while making sense of this brave new world ruled by such strange logic.

TIRE WORKS TROUBLE: The owners of Tire Works Total Car Care are making life increasingly complicated for those who participated in Channel 13's stinging series of news reports calling into question the company's ethics.

One of those complications comes from a court document filed on behalf of defendant Robin Roques, who was interviewed for the stories as a critical expert witness, but now denies acting in the capacity of an expert and also denies saying the company's service and billing constituted "fraud."

Roques was quoted in a news report saying, "It's fraud, OK. They're selling stuff that is unneeded services and they're just taking money from the public and giving the auto repair industry a bad name."

ROUGE LEGEND: Filmmaker Stan Armstrong is shooting his latest documentary, "Moulin Rouge -- The Las Vegas Misunderstood Legend." It should be a good one. This week Armstrong interviewed D.C. Ryder, a disc jockey who set the mood at Club Rouge for many years.

ON THE BOULEVARD: Big Dog's Draft House at 4543 N. Rancho Drive is fighting the recession blues by playing the musical variety at 8 tonight. The bar is famous for its brats, microbrews and loyalty to the Green Bay Packers.

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/.