Tag: Gordie Brown

Gordie Brown At Venetian

I’ve seen ads for Gordie Brown for a while here in Las Vegas. It wasn’t until I saw him on Letterman that I decided maybe he’d be fun to see. Tonight was our night.

We caught the monorail (after I spent ten minutes looking for our ten trip pass) and headed to the Harrah’s/Imperial Palace station. It’s still quite a walk to the Venetian.

Why wasn’t the monorail run right down the center of Las Vegas Boulevard, where it would be an instant hit and remove a great deal of the vehicular traffic and congestion? It was poorly placed.

The big act at the Venetian is Blue Man Group. Gordie Brown is almost an afterthought. It’s an excellent show, performed tonight in a room 2/3 empty! That’s embarrassing for a Friday night.

Gordie is a singer/impressionist. Here in Las Vegas, the obvious comparison is Danny Gans. Gordie Brown compares favorably.

It’s obvious this show isn’t getting the same kind of support bigger shows get. There were four piecees in the band, plus Gordie who plays guitar. The staging is stark and modern in a hotel that’s mainly Italian and somewhat over-the-top.

The theater itself is very nice. I would guess around 7-800 seats. We were front row center.

Considering the audience was anywhere from 21 years old to death, Gordie took a lot of chances. Did they know Alanis Morisette? How about Eminem?

When the impressions weren’t 100% on the mark, the material was funny enough to cover. Among his best, Kenny Rogers, Sammy Davis and Michael Jackson.

It was 90 minutes of fun. I’m glad we went.

Off To Vegas

We ended our big October Southwest trip in Las Vegas, where I promptly got good and sick! I’ll spare you the details, except to say I never saw the face of the doctor who came to our hotel room to administer an injection in my butt&#185!

We’ve always enjoyed Las Vegas, but this trip left Helaine a little shaken. She was reticent to go again.

Long story short, the opportunity arose, we’ve got free Southwest tickets, and we leave tomorrow. We’re going to undo the jinx of October.

We’re staying at the MGM instead of our ‘usual’ Mirage.

Of course I want to play poker, but we’re also going to a few shows: Barry Manilow (who we saw on our first date!), Gordie Brown and Roseanne Barr.

I know Manilow has supporters and detractors with no middle ground. It will be interesting to see what he does as a ‘house act’ at the Hilton.

Gordie Brown is also a house act. He’s an impressionist who plays the Venetian. In fact, I first saw him during “Impressionist Week” on Letterman and was favorably impressed. Helaine, who scours the Vegas trip report boards when a vacation approaches, has read lots of good things.

Our last choice is much more chancy. Roseanne Barr has become another house act. She’s just opened at New York New York. Both Helaine and I watched her first appearance on the Tonight Show, blown away by how funny she was. Then her career skyrocketed and crashed.

Is she still funny? Has she seen the error of her ways? I’ll let you know.

Keep your fingers crossed for good weather at Midway in Chicago. We’re on a one-stop.

&#185 – The doctor’s bill was declared ‘off network’ and originally rejected by my insurance carrier. If you’re really sick, you’re entitled to get a doctor without shopping for one who has signed the right papers. After lots of grousing, and two internal reviews, they paid it all, save the co-pay.

The insurance company, in Rhode Island, neither knew nor cared who I was.

Bottom line – If you’re in the right, don’t give up. That’s $435 in my pocket, not theirs.