Privacy lures celebrities to Sin City

That now infamous slogan, you know, the one about stuff staying here, is one of the reasons celebrities take such delight in Sin City.

The embrace of the discreet has transformed Strip resorts into destinations of choice for pop culture's elite and wannabes.

"Las Vegas is definitely a celebrity playground," says George Maloof, principal owner of the celebrity-centric Palms resort. "They want to come and have fun and get away like everyone else. People come here to get away and let themselves go. It's no different with them."

Previously, Las Vegas was the go-to spot for the easy marriage and quickie divorce, hanging with the Rat Pack or attending a big championship fight.

However, high-end businesses catering to all level of celebrity, while going to great lengths to protect their privacy, have transformed the Strip during the past few years into a daily and nightly happening.

"I've never seen a city like this," says Steve Weiser, Las Vegas bureau chief for the television magazine show "Extra." "And what's going on in this city, it's New Year's Eve on the Strip on a Tuesday night."

All levels of celebrity, from the A-list star through the soon forgotten reality star, are enticed by the selection of the finest restaurants, luscious spas, high-end stores and unrivaled nightclubs.

All along a three-mile stretch of road with some of the most luxurious hotel rooms ever built from the Wynn Las Vegas to Mandalay Bay.

So if the city is such a hotbed of celebrity fun and relaxation, why are there not more reports of them being seen in the media?

In two words: private property.

"They want to get away from L.A. where there is paparazzi everywhere," Maloof says. "(Las Vegas) just gives them a haven where if they want to go out and have fun they can."

In Los Angeles, a celebrity might live in Beverly Hills but have to drive many miles to one of a select number of shops, restaurants or nightclubs spread out through the area.

Most likely, they will then have to cross into public space to enter and exit the building, exposing themselves to the public and the paparazzi.

Along the Strip, the concentration of the clubs, spas, restaurants and shops on a single property allows for a level of privacy celebrities are not able to enjoy elsewhere.

"Las Vegas is Disney for adults," says Rino Armeni, a former food and beverage manager at Caesars Palace who helped lure chef Wolfgang Puck to open celebrity favorite Spago in 1992. "The media in Las Vegas is not as powerful as in Los Angeles or New York. They feel more comfortable when they come here."

It's harder to find photos and video of high-profile people stumbling drunk out of a club in the morning's wee hours in Las Vegas than Los Angeles or New York.

"You don't see a lot of that in Las Vegas because they are very well-protected," Weiser says. "You may hear about it, but there is no video to support it. You don't know what's fiction or what's real."

Less known is the fact that many celebrities now are buying houses or condominiums.

Enticed by the low cost of living and a friendly tax structure, real estate agents often are sworn to strict secrecy about who is buying what where.

But this is not to say celebrities are invisible from the public eye.

Celebrities arrive in town without their publicist and security. Many often are seen by the pool, on the casino floor, in shops or eating dinner. Some collect hefty fees for heavily publicized appearances at one of the various nightclubs. Some even choose the Strip over Los Angeles or New York to hold an event.

A few hundred people are crowded around the red carpet at Planet Hollywood Resorts on a Thursday night in late January.

It's the world premiere of the movie "Rambo" and the onlookers, mostly tourists with a few locals, are hoping for a glimpse of celebrity.

Cameras click and toes strain as onlookers jostle for the best angles possible.

A buzz shoots through the crowd as the star of the evening, Sylvester Stallone, arrives. The excitement increases when old friend and now politician Arnold Schwarzenegger arrives.

Other arrivals are met with camera clicks followed by a few "Who's that?" whispers among the crowd.

Contact reporter Arnold M. Knightly at aknightly@reviewjournal.com or (702) 477-3893.