Services for singer Goulet on Friday to be open to public

The closed-casket funeral is the only service scheduled for the entertainer, who died Oct. 30, though family members probably will participate in a private viewing, said Norm Johnson, Goulet’s longtime publicist. Goulet’s body will be cremated.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is coordinating an effort among local casinos to honor Goulet with marquee displays on the day of the funeral. Tentative plans called for collective 15-minute displays at noon and 6 p.m., along with what any individual casinos opt to do.

It’s the first tribute coordinated by the convention authority since lights were dimmed in honor of Ronald Reagan in June 2004.

Invited guests include Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme, Rich Little, Phyllis McGuire, Michael Douglas, Kirk Douglas, Suzanne Somers, Barry Manilow, Celine Dion and Lance Burton. The service is expected to include short eulogies from Goulet’s daughter, Nicolette, and his sons, Christopher and Michael.

The church can accommodate as many as 2,500 people and will open its doors for the service after a regularly scheduled Mass ends about noon.

Goulet died in Los Angeles of interstitial pulmonary fibrosis that spread rapidly after a September diagnosis. The longtime Las Vegan had been transferred to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where he had awaited a lung transplant since Oct. 13.

The singer known for his booming baritone bought his Las Vegas home in 1974 when he was a regular headliner at the Frontier and Desert Inn. He and his wife, Vera, who managed his business affairs, split time between Las Vegas and a yacht in Marina Del Rey, Calif., after marrying in 1982.

Goulet first gained fame playing Sir Lancelot in the Broadway musical “Camelot” in 1960. He went on to a career in movies, television, records and Las Vegas showroom performances, winning a Tony, Grammy and Emmy for performances or productions.

Contact reporter Mike Weatherford at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-0288.