SHOOTING STARS: Holly Madison’s reality check starts today
Holly Madison may be busy headlining Planet Hollywood’s “Peepshow,” but she’s not busy enough — because she’s also got time to shoot a self-titled reality series for E!
Production begins today and will continue for “a couple months,” Madison says. Of course, she’s been down this road before, as one of E!’s “Girls Next Door,” which originally focused on Madison, pictured, and her fellow Playboy Mansion residents.
“It was always kind of planned that the three of us girls would develop spinoffs” as each followed a “new career path,” she explains.
Madison’s career path has brought her to Planet Hollywood — and beyond.
Although “there’s definitely going to be a little bit of ‘Peepshow,’ ” most of the new series will focus on Madison’s other around-town activities.
And not the usual things TV viewers see on Las Vegas-based reality shows, she adds.
“When Vegas is shown on TV, it’s usually clubs and restaurants — the new, expensive trends,” observes Madison, who hopes to focus on “the quirkier day-to-day things.”
“Red” alert: The homegrown murder mystery “Red Herring” initially planned to call it a wrap this week. But movie schedules are like Spandex, with built-in stretch — which explains why “Red Herring” isn’t going to make its original end-of-production date.
Last week’s shooting went until 4 a.m. one night (make that day) and 2 a.m. the next, so it’s no wonder the planned Thursday wrap date is “not going to happen,” acknowledges writer-producer Joshua Cohen of Cohencidence Productions. He now hopes the shoot will be completed Saturday or Sunday.
This week’s locations range from a North Las Vegas motel and restaurant, the front of which will match the rear of another restaurant which was filmed earlier. (Ah, the magic of the movies ...)
An office building interior will play a police “precinct” for three days, Cohen adds.
But the week’s most interesting scenes may take place Friday, when a mixed martial arts fight will have an expert presence: MMA fighter Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva, pictured, whose gym will provide the location for the confrontation.
Silva will play himself in a quick scene (joining Mayor Oscar Goodman on the movie’s roster of cameo players), doing some “fake fighting” with one of the movie’s cast members before giving way to another performer, Cohen notes.
Big ‘Deal’: After a brief breather, “Let’s Make a Deal” returns to the Tropicana Pavilion this week, with Wayne Brady overseeing the action.
This week’s call times for audience members: 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. (Come in costume, or purchase one on site, to improve your chances of competing for the big deals.)
Free tickets are available by calling the Trop’s “Let’s Make a Deal” information line at (800) 706-8767 or going online to www.cbs.com/daytime/lets_make_a_deal and clicking on “Online Ticketing.”
Reality bites: History’s “Pawn Stars” and TLC’s wedding-themed “Happily Ever Faster” (based at Chapel of the Flowers) are shooting this week for Leftfield Pictures, reports Brent Montgomery, owner of the company that produces both series, New York-based Leftfield Pictures.
In addition, Leftfield’s “currently casting/developing a couple other Vegas-based projects we hope to be able to announce” when contracts have been signed, Montgomery says.
Catching up: In between last week’s Shooting Stars and today’s column, some notable projects were scheduled to hit town. Among them: a holiday-themed “Throwdown With Bobby Flay” for the Food Network, at Rao’s Restaurant in the Forum Shops at Caesars, where the Pellegrino family was expected to challenge the program’s grill-happy host to a Feast of the Seven Fishes Throwdown. And Oscar-winning rappers Three 6 Mafia planned to shoot a music video, “Feel It,” primarily at Bellagio’s Bank and The Mirage’s Jet nightclubs.
