Wallace altruism: No kidding around

George Wallace once again is running a toy drive at his Flamingo shows, collecting gifts for the children of HELP of Southern Nevada.

"People bring in two toys, they get in for free. How 'bout that?" George pitches me.

What kinds of toys should people donate?

"iPhones and bicycles -- toys over $200, anything I can use," he jokes and laughs.

"No," he says seriously. "Bring anything unwrapped and new."

Wallace, 57, says kids who are more financially fortunate receive far better gifts than when he was a tot in Atlanta.

"My niece asked me for a $1,500 computer for Christmas. What did we get? We got a Slinky -- you put it up on the steps, let it come down. How many times does a $1,500 computer go down a flight of stairs?

"The closest thing we had to a computer was an Etch-a-Sketch. And if we wanted an upgrade, we'd just shake it.

"A friend of mine went up in the attic with his son, and they brought down an old Underwood typewriter. And the kid says, 'Oh my God, Dad, look at that! You don't even have to wait for it to come out of the printer!' "

If you want to donate to HELP of Southern Nevada separately, check out the toy drive and adopt-a-family programs at HelpSoNV.org, or call 369-4357.

This isn't the only toy drive in Las Vegas, of course. There's Toys for Tots (look for the link at LasVegasNow.com). Plus, Holly Madison gives good face to Lotus Broadcasting's toy drive for the Salvation Army and Toys for Tots. If I've forgotten a drive, let me know.

Wallace's toy deal lasts through Saturday, for tickets that usually go at full price for $48-$91. This is the toy drive championed by radio station KLUC-FM, 98.5.

THE TRUTH ABOUT CITYCENTER

The truth about this, at least: People keep asking me how to get to CityCenter. I'm not an expert traffic columnist, as is Road Warrior Adrienne Packer. However, here you go:

Take Confusion Boulevard, then turn west on I Don't Know Where The Hell I Am Lane. Look for Some Valet Area Or Another.

Or park at Monte Carlo or Bellagio and catch the free tram to CityCenter's mall, which looks remarkably like ... a mall.

I asked Wallace about CityCenter. He hasn't gone yet. He thinks it's really pretty and potentially great, although he jokes: "You gotta hotel that's already leaning over -- you want me to stay there?"

And: "It's all valet parking. I said, 'Ew, the locals are gonna be pissed about this!' "

MY UNEMPLOYED FRIENDS

Layoffs at the Las Vegas Sun put some of my friends out of work.

Quite a few laid-off Sunners I know are nice and/or were good at their jobs and/or were hardworking and loyal.

It just goes to show you, nothing protects you from a yuckonomy or a company's wrong-turn financial moves.

Wallace and I were talking about the layoffs.

He says: "I don't know why these things happen just before the holidays. People get laid off just before Christmas. And every time they start a war, and they're gonna send some troops over, they do it before Christmas. I don't know why they do that."

Yep. Sucks.

Doug Elfman's column appears on Sundays, Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays. E-mail delfman@reviewjournal.com. He also blogs at reviewjournal.com/elfman.