Psst! Manning’s in town and he’s …
Some days a 5-carat scoop arrives on a silver platter. Sometimes, your diamond turns to dust.
Here's a doozy for you: It started with a telephone call from a reliable source who said Archie Manning, the father of two Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks, is in town for a betting seminar.
A betting seminar?!
It doesn't take a Ph.D. to figure out the NFL won't be happy with that, not with his son, Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, in the Super Bowl on Sunday.
So I headed off to a midmorning book signing, figuring I'd chase the story from the World Market Center, where 50,000-plus showed up this week for the 2010 Winter Las Vegas Market show.
Before I could make a call, an executive at the center comes up to the table and says that Archie Manning spoke at a seminar there Tuesday.
Shazam! How lucky can you get?
"Would you like the press release?" said the source.
Of course. Nothing beats having verification if the story becomes a full-blown scandal during Super Bowl week, and that's a good bet.
Then the press release arrived. Yes, it confirmed, Archie Manning was the keynote speaker of the "kick off to 2010" and shared his winning insights with "power players" at a private event, according to the press release.
But he was addressing a bedding seminar, which was being held in conjunction with the home furnishings convention.
A WISH FULFILLED AND MORE
A 12-year-old Las Vegas boy named Andrew got his wish and more Wednesday.
The youngster, who loves ventriloquism, made his wish through the Make-A-Wish Foundation that he could see Terry Fator's show at The Mirage. Fator recently made it happen. But he couldn't get a surprise done in time for their first meeting so Fator invited the family back Wednesday.
Fator presented Andrew with a special puppet.
Fator, an "America's Got Talent" winner, will sing the national anthem at the Shelby American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race on Feb. 28 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
His first-anniversary gala at The Mirage on March 13 will include the unveiling of a new puppet for his show.
THE SCENE AND HEARD
Boxing legend Mike Tyson is en route back to the states after competing in Italy's version of ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" in Rome. Based on the YouTube.com video, the jury is out on whether he will get an invitation to join the popular ABC show. He was booked by local talent agent Jaki Baskow, who has been representing him for 18 years. ... Las Vegan Kevin Rose, a rock star in the Internet world, is ranked No. 5 on Forbes magazine's "Web Celeb 25." Rose, who attended Vo-Tech here in the early 1990s and later worked at the Nevada Test Site, moved to Silicon Valley to test his ability. Mission accomplished: He turned a $6,000 investment into $60 million. Among his Internet startups: the social bookmarking Web site Digg, and WeFollow.com, a clearinghouse for Twitter followers. Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton is No. 1 on the list for the third year in a row.
SIGHTINGS
Archie Manning, at Ruth's Chris Steak House on Paradise Road on Tuesday, before catching a red-eye flight to Miami for Super Bowl festivities. Ruth's Chris owner Marcel Taylor, a New Orleans native, showed Manning a framed photo in the restaurant that the former Saints quarterback had given him. Manning promised another photo: of sons Peyton and Eli.
THE PUNCH LINE
"Actor Rip Torn apparently got really drunk and mistook the neighborhood bank for his couch. He thought he was breaking into his house, and it turned out that it was a bank. Who hasn't made that mistake?" -- Jay Leno
Norm Clarke can be reached at (702) 383-0244 or norm@reviewjournal.com. Find additional sightings and more online at www.normclarke.com.
