Roy Horn’s magic is his courage

So what did we learn from ABC's "20/20" special "Siegfried & Roy: The Magic Returns"? For starters, Roy Horn insists his miraculous recovery is far from over.

"My doctor has told me that within one year I will be able to do everything I want to do," Horn told host Elizabeth Vargas.

And if that should happen, what has Roy missed most? Dancing and swimming with his tigers, he said.

Vargas extracted a fascinating revelation from Siegfried Fischbacher, who admitted to deep depression that led to "a lot of crazy things," including joining a monastery in Greece and getaways to Europe.

"I was running away...escaping," he said.

After viewing the special, freelance reporter/local blogger Steve Friess wrote Saturday on Vegashappenshere.com that he's "more convinced than ever that that tiger was absolutely, positively not Montecore on stage at the Bellagio, unless they call all of their tigers Montecore."

"Had it been the same tiger that attacked Roy," Friess wrote, "much more on that would have been dealt with in the TV special."

I agree, but for a different reason.

It's absurd to think the same animal that attacked Roy would be in front of 1,000 people at the Keep Memory Alive benefit without safety barriers. With only a piece of raw chicken to keep him under control?

Surely ABC-TV, Bellagio and OSHA would have questioned the liability.

Unmentioned on "20/20" was the one-line shocker in a LasVegasWeekly.com live blog from the event that suggested Roy's health was in question that day because he has had a condition that caused bleeding in his lungs.

If that's ever confirmed, and I think it will be, did Roy have a stand-in in case he couldn't take part? With both illusionists wearing masks during their farewell appearance, who would know?

Other questions arose.

Vargas and Siegfried both mentioned that the rehearsals involved "tigers," not a tiger. I had mentioned on my Web site a few hours after the event that a spy said two tigers were involved in rehearsals. Did somebody decide a two-cat act was too risky? Why?

Friess found it odd there was "no reference at all to the USDA's 233-page report on the incident that concluded it was, in fact, a tiger attack. Also, no reference to the MGM Mirage and S&R getting the USDA to suppress the video from that night."

"Is it me, or is it odd that a major news network did a one-hour report on a topic and didn't cite the fact that the government did an 18-month investigation and released a massive public document on the matter?"

We know what was not smoke and mirrors: the hours of relentless rehab, the sheer determination to relearn how to walk and talk, that went into Roy's gritty recovery.

That's certainly no illusion.

THE SCENE AND HEARD

In the works, we hear: a Steve Wynn appearance on CBS' "60 Minutes" and a trip to Washington, D.C., by Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman, who, we predict, won't be shy. ...

Bald is in at the Palms, after more than a dozen N9NE Group employees got buzzed for a good cause on Saturday. Before the sheer frenzy ended, N9NE Group honcho Michael Morton had coughed up $8,200 to the St. Baldrick's fundraiser for childhood cancer at McMullan's Irish Pub on Tropicana Avenue. The cue ball club includes N9NE Group president Andy Belmonti, Rain nightclub general manager Ian Clement, assistant director of nightlife Roberto Semidei, and executive chefs Barry Dakake of N9NE Steakhouse and Geno Bernardo of Nove.

THE PUNCH LINE

"Beautiful day today. Sunny. As I was driving to work, I saw a foreclosure sign that had an awning." -- David Letterman

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