Las Vegas continues to amaze and delight this small town girl. It's probably one of the few places on the planet where odds of randomly encountering a celebrity increase exponentially relative to the amount of time spent in public gatherings. The caliber and quality of random celebrity encounter, however, is a completely separate matter.
For example, anyone signed up for the Executive and Entrepeneur session of BlogWorld had the option of attending a private screening of The Kite Runner on Wednesday night. Not many did. Don't get me wrong, the event was well attended. It just wasn't a theatre filler. Too bad for the ones who missed out. Celebrity film critic, radio talk show host, political blogger, and all around media entrepeneur Michael Medved acted as master of ceremonies. The organizers didn't publicize Mr. Medved's participation, nor did they dangle the possibility of meeting the film's lead actor, Khalid Abdallah. To say I had my socks knocked off not only by the movie, but also the opportunity to press flesh with these celebs is an understatement. Afterward, Mr. Abdallah and I spoke briefly outside. Very impressive actor who really knows his craft. He's waiting for the next good project to come along. This is a guy who can afford to be choosy.
Last night, BlogWorld hosted a happening party at the Hard Rock Hotel. My chance meeting with celebrity satirist, comedian, Letterman guest, political commentator, and all around funny guy Evan Sayet was definitely a highlight. I'm not too proud to admit, Evan did not immediately register on my celebrity radar. Something about the way he looked me in the eye and said, "Don't you know me?" made me think if I didn't know him, then I certainly should.
We chatted for a while over at the slot machines. When I told Evan I liked to make fun of celebrities, he was a little reluctant to spill about himself. Luckily, I managed to steer the conversation over to politics and family. That's where he began to open up and show his more meaningful side. I don't have enough time this morning to reveal every nook and cranny. Suffice it to say, Evan is a charmer who understands the error of his youth. To sum it up in one sentence, self-indulged Americans of his era refused to acknowledge the tried and true maxim of actions have consequences. I'd say that maxim continues to hold true today, wouldn't you?
Then, there's the mysterious red bus "from Mexico" with continuously running video parked outside the Hard Rock at about 12:30 a.m. I use the quotations because who knows the true origination of this vehicle. A slew of black suited men piled out as I left the casino, leaving the impression of an impending celebrity appearance. I asked one of them who remained inside, but couldn't get a straight answer.
"Just someone from Mehico," was all he would venture in a charming Spanish accent.
"Who?" I anxiously replied. The guy stayed mum and walked away.
Must be someone really big, I imagined. With nothing better to do and no one prodding me along, I decided to stand there and wait -- all night if that's what it took -- to glimpse the big name celeb inside. Needless to say, after 15- 20 minutes, no big name celebrity debarked. In fact, the bus eventually packed up and pulled away. Either the person inside is of such high caliber celebrity they can afford to be completely full of themselves, or I'd just randomly encountered some Mexican show girl too shy to show off her ill-fitting cheap red dress and spiked heels. Either way, the experience left me feeling slightly unfulfilled, like I had just been robbed of some exciting story to tell my eventual grandchildren.
Or not.
Hey, I hear O.J. is in town for the second day of hearings on his armed robbery charges. Hmmmmm. Courthouse or BlogWorld? BlogWorld or the courthouse? Where should I go? For someone as fascinated with all things celebrity, is there really any question?
O.J.'s a hack. Everyone who's anyone is going to BlogWorld. See you people over at the Convention Center.
