Lohan nabs tickets, says she’s growing

Lindsay Lohan helped a Las Vegas galpal win Hannah Montana tickets on Friday and gave a local radio station a hard-to-get interview.

Lohan, who has been keeping a low profile since her rehab stint recently ended, went on the Mark and Mercedes morning show on KMXB-FM 94.1 (Mix) as a favor to Lorit Simon, a staffer at Tanning Vegas.

The morning show hosts were having a contest to have the "coolest celebrity" call in to the show.

Simon is Lohan's personal airbrush tanner. Lohan flies her out to Los Angeles for tanning jobs and works with her when the 21-year-old film star comes to Las Vegas.

Lohan told Mark and Mercedes "my life is different now, and it's changed, and I'm growing up. It was time to grow up. I've gone through a lot, and I'm just a different person now," said Lohan, who added later, "It's amazing, everything's going so well."

She said she has been working on staying out of the news and is concentrating on music projects.

"I've been in the studio, and it's going really well, and I'm really excited, 'cause it's going to be more urban pop," she said. "It's good to be back in the studio."

Lohan stayed away from questions about her love life, saying, "I don't kiss and tell."

One of her goals is to visit Africa on a humanitarian mission sometime soon.

"I really love children," she said, "and it would be nice to give back."

IKE & TINA'S BIG SURPRISE

Ike and Tina Turner had no idea they had their biggest hit on their hands after leaving a Las Vegas recording studio back in the early 1970s.

In one of his last interviews, Ike Turner told the TKO Morning Show on KKLZ-FM, 96.3 in October about a Las Vegas rush-job that turned into gold.

In between performing at The International (now the Las Vegas Hilton), they were rushing to finish three tracks for their next album before taking off for Australia.

"One of those tracks was 'Proud Mary,'" said deejay Jim Tofte. "Tina hadn't learned the lyrics yet, so Ike sang her through it. While it was only supposed to be Tina on the track, the producer liked Ike's take so much, it made the final cut; and the rest is history."

Ike Turner, who died Wednesday in San Diego at age 76, told KKLZ's Tofte, Mike O'Brian and Charly Kayle that he was prompting Tina. "That's why you hear me in the background, going, 'Left a good job in the city.' "

Sitting in on the recording was headliner Bill Cosby, Ike Turner told the deejays.

"Proud Mary," first recorded by the song's writer, John Fogerty, and Creedence Clearwater Revival, won the Grammy for the Turners in 1971. The song reached No. 4 on Billboard in February of that year.

THE SCENE AND HEARD

No red carpet is planned for Celine Dion's farewell show tonight at Caesars Palace, but there will be plenty of starpower. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes are in town, reportedly to see Dion, and there are rumblings that Oprah Winfrey is planning to attend. ... Illusionist Criss Angel is attempting another Houdini-styled escape from the bottom of a 117,000-gallon aquarium Sunday at Silverton Casino Lodge. The "Mindfreak" star was forced to call it off in March when he appeared to have trouble breaking free from handcuffs, metal chains and foot restraints. He'll start about 5 p.m. ... Tennis icon Chris Evert and golf great Greg Norman got engaged Sunday in South Africa.

SIGHTINGS

Cruise and Holmes, arriving at Nobu restaurant (Hard Rock Hotel) at 10 p.m. on Thursday with another couple. ... Singer Bjork, having eggs Benedict at Hash House A Go Go on West Sahara on Friday with a couple of friends after arriving by cab. ... Skateboarding star Tony Hawk, celebrating his company's holiday party at Stack Restaurant & Love (Mirage) on Thursday. ... Las Vegan Kurt Busch, NASCAR's 2004 champ and Jamie Little, NASCAR and X Games reporter for ESPN/ABC, taking part in opening-day racing on Thursday at Pole Position Raceway, a new indoor go-kart track venue at Arville and Flamingo. Both are investors. ...

THE PUNCH LINE

"Rush Limbaugh points at him and says, 'That dude's messed up.' " -- From David Letterman's Top Ten Signs A Baseball Player is Using Steroids

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