Wynn: Pieces didn’t fit for Midler deal

Those rumors were true: Steve Wynn is confirming rumblings that surfaced here about two years ago that he was close to signing Bette Midler.

Wynn tells local podcasters Steve Friess and Miles Smith that he had a tentative deal with Midler that included building a new theater.

"I had an arrangement. I was gonna build a theater. I had a tentative deal with Bette," Wynn said in the interview at TheStripPodcast.com.

"But in the deal was the proviso that if I couldn't book the rest of the weeks, that I didn't have to go forward.

"And her agents at CAA had promised that they would help. We had discussed a group of artists that they would be able to get at a price range that we had proscribed, which would allow me to build this theater for Bette which would be like the one at Caesars.

"And I was thrilled because I think Bette Midler is the most spectacular performer there is today. ... But the other acts did not come into focus. I could not fill 40 weeks a year with acceptable alternatives at prices that represented any chance of recovering the cost of operations and making a buck. I had (the theater) designed and everything. It would've gone behind Encore. But at the end of the day, I stopped the deal, and that freed Bette up to do what she wanted."

(She signed a two-year deal with Caesars Palace that begins next year.)

Wynn also disclosed that Andrew Lloyd Webber has written a song for "Le Reve" that Wynn plans to have inserted into the show soon. The two have become friends but have not been discussing bringing a Webber show to Wynn or Encore. Webber, Wynn said, wrote the song after seeing "Le Reve."

"Lord Webber is a helluva guy, and we've become friends. He wrote a theme song for me. I'm gonna get an orchestration. He just said to me, 'Here, Steve, after seeing 'Le Reve,' this melody reminds me of 'Le Reve' and he sent it to me on a tape."

Webber told Friess last year that he believed "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" could make a good Vegas show. However, Wynn disagreed in his podcast interview, saying, "It strikes me that 'Joseph' is for young people. It's for children."

THE SCENE AND HEARD

Eighties group Spandau Ballet is reported to be re-forming for a one-shot deal in Las Vegas. The English band had a major hit with "True" in 1983 but split in 1990 after a long-simmering feud. ...

Caesars Palace has given a big break to The Clydesdale, a local band on the brink of a breakout. The punky country group has been booked to play at Cleopatra's Barge through Sunday. The show is from 10:30 p.m. to 3:30 a.m. daily. "This definitely takes us to another level," said Paige Overton, the beehive-coiffed lead singer. There's no cover charge. ...

Matt McCarthy, a member of the little people troupe in Beacher's Madhouse, is up in arms over Floyd Mayweather Jr. for using the m-word. Mayweather called British fighter Ricky Hatton a midget this week during the runup to Saturday's fight at the MGM Grand. McCarthy is threatening to "kick his ass ... on behalf of all the little people in the world" who find the word offensive. McCarthy was hauled out of Hogs and Heifers Saloon last week in his Oompa Loompa costume after he slugged the backside of a patron who called him a midget.

MAY I RECOMMEND

Stoney's Rockin' Country and South Point are two new hot spots for the 10-day run of the National Finals Rodeo. Stoney's has filled the void with the closure of Gilley's at The New Frontier, and South Point is the new site of the nightly NFR go-round buckle presentations. Stoney's opens at 6 p.m. weekdays (5 p.m. weekends) and goes until the cows come home.

SIGHTINGS

Hatton, getting a manicure Thursday at Color, Michael Boychuck's new salon at Caesars Palace. ... Country star Toby Keith and comedian Rodney Carrington, waltzing into Stoney's Rockin' Country about 1:30 a.m. Thursday. ... Reality show train wreck Brigitte Nielsen, in the audience Thursday at "Dog Gone Silly" at Harmon Theatre at Krave. ... Mary Murphy, choreographer and judge for Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance," at the Luxor this week for the Holiday Classic Ballroom Dance Competition.

THE PUNCH LINE

"Your last match was promoted as 'The Snooza in Tuscaloosa.' " -- From David Letterman's Top Ten Signs It's Time to Retire From Boxing

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