Sahara gets set for ‘Raw Talent’

The new owners of the Sahara hotel-casino are close to announcing a new show set to open in August.

"Raw Talent Live" is being described as a high-energy dance show built around high-tech video illusions.

Nicole "ND" Durr, who conceived and created the spectacle, will direct and produce it in a partnership with Bernie Yuman, longtime manager of Siegfried & Roy and Muhammad Ali.

SBE Entertainment Group LLC of Los Angeles and San Francisco-based Stockbridge Real Estate Funds purchased the Sahara in August from Las Vegas-based Gordon Gaming Corp.

The new owners reportedly paid between $300 million and $400 million for one of the oldest icons on the Strip. The 1,720-room hotel-casino, which opened in the 1950s, has been undergoing a transformation.

SBE's Sam Nazarian operates almost 20 hotels in Los Angeles and Miami's South Beach, along with nightclubs and restaurants.

DOCTOR'S CALL

Dr. Stephen Miller, Roy Horn's physician for 11 years, is rebutting a statement in the new book "The Secret Life of Siegfried & Roy."

The book, a tell-all by the illusionists' inner circle, said Miller resigned as Horn's doctor about two months after the Oct. 3, 2003, tiger incident because of Siegfried Fischbacher's meddling with the prescribed medical regimen.

Based on that passage in the book, I wrote in Friday's column that Miller quit during Horn's "early struggles" after the attack at The Mirage.

Miller said he remained Horn's doctor for more than a year after Horn was bitten.

"It was something I put my heart and soul into," Miller said. "I waited until he was very stable. I didn't like things I witnessed, and I didn't like the way I was treated.

"I did the right thing, and I improved him. It was something I put my heart and soul into.

"I'd like to say what happened, but nobody would believe it. I was there, and I couldn't believe it either."

THE SCENE AND HEARD

A Las Vegas country group by way of Texas has made the finals of NBC's reality show "Nashville Star," which premiered Monday night. Third Town, a last-minute replacement, moved to Las Vegas in hopes of being discovered. Before getting the call over the weekend to be among the final 12, each member was performing separately in shows to pay the bills. They are the oldest participants in the reality show. Jeffrey Fairchild is 37, James A. Kouns, 29, and Tony "Little Tony" Mosti, 35. ...

Correction: Deshawn Stevenson is a member of the NBA's Washington Wizards.

SIGHTINGS

At Elton John's show (Caesars Palace) on Sunday: romance writer Jackie Collins and soap star Susan Lucci. ... Pro golfer Ernie Els, enjoying Opus One wine with his Mexican fare on Saturday at Dos Caminos (Palazzo). ... At Brenden Theatres (Palms): Michael Jackson, with his children Friday at "Kung Fu Panda." On Saturday: Akon, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and new artist Dream, watching "You Don't Mess With the Zohan."... At Poetry Nightclub (Forum Shops at Caesars) on Sunday: Nelly, Allen Iverson, Chingy, Larry Hughes and the rap crew Saint Lunatics.

THE PUNCH LINE

"It's so hot, Barack Obama enjoyed the chilly meeting with Hillary (Clinton)." -- David Letterman

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