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Your daily events planner, starring Spider-Man, Bruno Mars, Michelle Johnson, Top 25 college hoops squads and more.
18 36 40 42 48 COVER FEATURE
NIGHTS
NOISE
FOOD & DRINK
VEGAS INC
The year in local photos—and the stories behind the shots.
Vegas DJ Mikey Francis makes his big-room move.
Chatting with both Black Pumas before the group’s first-ever Las Vegas gig.
Saffron brings new vegetarian delights to Spring Mountain.
How TikTok sweetened sales for North Las Vegas’ Tsp. Baking Company.
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SPORTS Case Keefer hands out his annual College Football Betting Awards, recognizing the season’s top covering teams.
WANT MORE? Head to lasvegasweekly.com.
Floating gyoza at Saffron, the Vegetarian Eatery (Christopher DeVargas/Staff)
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SUPERGUIDE MUSIC
SPORTS
PARTY
THURSDAY 16
ARTS
FOOD + DRINK
COMEDY
MISC
DEC.
DEREK HOUGH Thru 12/19, 7:30 p.m., Venetian’s Summit Showroom, ticketmaster. com. (Patrick Grey/ Erik Kabik Photo/ Courtesy)
DJ RUCKUS With Georgia St. Clair, 10:30 p.m., Zouk Nightclub, zoukgrouplv. com. SOFIA NINO DE RIVERA 7 p.m., House of Blues, ticket master.com.
THIS WILD LIFE With Taylor Acorn, Arrows in Action, 8 p.m., Backstage Bar & Billiards, eventbrite.com. WORSHIP THURSDAYS WITH DJ SPIDER 10:30 p.m., Tao Nightclub, taolvnc. taogroup.com.
MOONLIT WITH MR. CARMACK With Moose, JDHD, 10 p.m., Discopussy, discopussydtlv. com. KELLY CLINTON 7 p.m., Nevada Room, vegas nevadarooms. com. TERMINAL 51 WITH JORDAN SUCKLEY With Erika K, Jay Sanada, 10 p.m., Commonwealth, elationlv.com.
DINGLE BELLS
S U P E R G U I D E
The producers of Halloween circus Mr. Bizarro’s Big Top Boo Bash and the international variety act showcase Viva Fest—returning to Las Vegas in April 2022, by the way, and much recommended—bring a holiday happening to Downtown Las Vegas. Dingle Bells, “an enchanting circus adventure,” runs now through December 24 inside a tent located next door to Downtown Container Park. And if the Viva folks are bringing their usual commitment to quality entertainment to this Fremont Street pop-up, Dingle Bells will be one of the must-do events of the season. The plot is light: Dingle, the youngest member of the family,
F O R M O R E U P C O M I N G E V E N T S , V I S I T L A S V E G A S W E E K LY. C O M .
falls “into a mystical and festive world full of wonder and surprises,” a la Alice in Wonderland or The Nutcracker. But the story is just a mantlepiece upon which the circus acts are hung with care: aerial acts, balancing acts, comedy and much more. Dingle Bells allows you to see performers from Cirque du Soliel and other Strip productions in a locals- and family-friendly setting, and at a irresistible ticket price. What could be a better Vegas gift than that? Through December 24, times vary, $25-$55, 723 E. Fremont St., dinglebells.eventbrite. com. –Geoff Carter (Courtesy)
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CHRIS ISAAK BRUNO MARS 9 p.m., & 12/18, Dolby Live, ticketmaster.com. (Photo Courtesy)
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THE RAYFORD BROTHERS 10 p.m., Sand Dollar Lounge, thesanddollarlv. com.
The music of The Allman Brothers Band lives on in the hands of a “family” band featuring Devon Allman (son of Gregg), Duane Betts (son of Dickey) and Berry Duane Oakley (son of Berry). Also onboard: such bluesrock guests as Robert Randolph, Donavon Frankenreiter, Lilly Hiatt and Joanne Shaw Taylor. Start practicing those “Whipping Post!” shout-outs. With The River Kittens, 7:30 p.m., $25-$125, the Theater at Virgin, axs. com. –C. Moon Reed
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HO HO HO! A VERY DRAG CHRISTMAS 12:30 a.m., the Garden, thegarden lasvegas.com.
CHASE B 10 p.m., Drai’s Nightclub, draisgroup.com.
ALLMAN FAMILY REVIVAL
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ROD WAVE 8 p.m., Thomas & Mack Center, unlvtickets.com.
THE BITTERS With The Psyatics, Stagnetti’s Cock, 10 p.m., Double Down Saloon, doubledown saloon.com.
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HUMAN NATURE: CHRISTMAS, MOTOWN AND MORE Thru 12/19, 7:30 p.m., South Point Showroom, ticket master.com.
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RED JUMPSUIT APPARATUS With Eyes Set to Kill, Dead American, The Wildfires Projekt, Mineral Point, TRVLRS, Sevial 8 p.m., Backstage Bar & Billiards, eventbrite.com.
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It’s been a minute since “Wicked Game” slid into Billboard’s top 10, so in the event that you’re not familiar with the man who wrote it, sang it and canoodled with Helena Christensen in its blackand-white music video, here are a few things you should know about Chris Isaak. First and foremost, he’s a throwback, a man out of time; he could have shared a bill with Elvis Presley or Roy Orbison and fit right in. His stage banter, dry and deadpan, is hilarious. He’s got serious cult cred, having acted in films by David Lynch and Jonathan Demme. And the dude can sing like an angel. Wynn should offer him a full residency. December 17-18, 8 p.m., $45-$125. Encore Theatre, ticketmaster.com. –Geoff Carter
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SATURDAY 18 DEC.
CBS SPORTS CLASSIC MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL North Carolina vs. UCLA, Kentucky vs. Ohio State, noon, T-Mobile Arena, axs.com (AP Photo/ Photo Illustration)
S U P E R G U I D E
SPIDER-MAN MULTIVERSE PARTY Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield and Tom Holland walk into a bar … That’s quite possible at Millennium Fandom’s Spider-Man Multiverse Party, where cosplayers will celebrate their favorite version of the friendly neighborhood hero and all of his famous foes. Fresh off the December 17 release of Spider-Man: No Way Home, this party is sure to spark a few impassioned debates. Will Holland stop spoiling his own Marvel movies? Were Maguire’s emo bangs really that bad? Will Garfield ever not just be the guy who created Facebook in The Social Network? Suit up and join the conversation. 8 p.m., no cover, Millennium Fandom Bar, fandombar.com. –Amber Sampson (Shutterstock)
BLACK PUMAS 7 p.m., House of Blues, houseofblues. com. JOURNEY 8 p.m., the Colosseum, ticketmaster. com. 50 CENT 10 p.m., Drai’s Nightclub, draisgroup.com.
DAVID PERRICO POP STRINGS ORCHESTRA 7 p.m., Myron’s, thesmithcenter. com. ELATION: FLEMING & LAWRENCE 8 p.m., Blvck Box Studios, 2901 S. Highland Drive #13C, see tickets.us.
UNIQUE MASSIVE 10 p.m., Sand Dollar Lounge, thesand dollarlv.com.
CASH CASH With Dee Jay Silver, 10:30 p.m., Zouk Nightclub, zoukgrouplv. com.
MURS With Oswin Benjamin, Creed Chameleon, Kap Kallous, Backstage Bar & BIlliards, 8 p.m., eventbrite.com.
UNLV WOMEN’S BASKETBALL VS. PACIFIC 2 p.m., Cox Pavilion, unlvtickets. com.
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TECH THE HALLS: TERRACE FAM JAM Midnight, Terrace Afterhours, terraceafter hoursvegas. com.
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MICHELLE JOHNSON’S VINTAGE CHRISTMAS
SUNDAY 19 DEC.
The Smith Center has been the home for holiday entertainment so far this month, and local jazz singer Michelle Johnson takes her turn Sunday afternoon with the sounds of Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole, Rosemary Clooney and more. The Strictly Taboo Big Band will set the tone for Johnson and several special guests during a nostalgic, spirited show. 3 p.m., $29-$45, thesmithcenter. com. –Brock Radke (Courtesy)
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DEC.
DJ KARMA 10:30 p.m., Jewel Nightclub, hakkasan group.com.
K-VON With Justin Rivera, thru 12/24, 8 p.m., Laugh Factory, ticketmaster. com.
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DJ MONDO 10:30 p.m., Omnia Nightclub, hakkasan group.com.
ARTS
FOOD + DRINK
COMEDY
DEC.
THE NUTCRACKER 7:30 p.m., thru 12/26, times vary, Reynolds Hall, thesmith center.com. UNLV MEN’S BASKETBALL VS. SAN DIEGO 7 p.m., Thomas & Mack Center, unlvtickets.com.
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UNLV WOMEN’S BASKETBALL VS. HAWAII 2 p.m., Cox Pavilion, unlvtickets. com.
The Golden Knights have been pretty great the past two seasons, reaching the NHL’s final four both times. Who’s been better? The Lightning, winners of backto-back Stanley Cups. At press time, Vegas had most of its injured stars back on the ice, so a matchup like this should serve as a good midseason barometer, especially if Tampa goes with stud goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy between the pipes. 7 p.m., $40+, T-Mobile Arena, axs.com. –Spencer Patterson
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DAPHNIQUE SPRINGS With James Mattern, Julian McCullough, Michael Yo, 7 & 9:30 p.m., Comedy Cellar, comedycellar. com.
PARTY
BRIAN MARTINEZ: INTERLUDE Artist Brian Martinez is nothing if not ambitious. The painter recently earned his bachelor of fine arts degree from UNLV, but he didn’t wait to graduate in order to start his career. Interlude, his new solo exhibition, is the young man’s fifth so far. But Martinez is interested in more than just aesthetics and accomplishment. He works to represent his lived experience. In a press statement, Martinez says that he wants to “incorporate more brown in his work, meaning not just the color, but also of the people—especially Chicano culture.” With Interlude, he’s well on his way. Thru January 18, free, East Las Vegas Library, 2851 E. Bonanza Road, lvccld.org. –C. Moon Reed (“Dragonball Durag” by Brian Martinez/Courtesy)
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THE NOISE PROJECT 1028 Fremont St., thenoise projectlv.com. Tuesday-Friday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
A CUT ABOVE
Amber Harlan gets to the root of mental health at the Noise Project hair salon BY AMBER SAMPSON
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Amber Harlan, founder of the Noise Project (Christoper DeVargas/Staff)
What advice can you give to someone who might be struggling mentally? Take care of yourself, whatever that looks like for you. If it’s getting away, get away. Nurture yourself in whatever way you need to take care of yourself, and f*ck everyone else if they don’t see what is right for you. Everyone has an opinion on what they think that they should do for your life, and that might work for you, but that might not work for me. Finding that within yourself and within your soul, that’s what’s going to heal you quicker.
Q & A
What’s the connection between mental health and hair? The hair is the covering of the brain, and we have so many nerve endings in the brain, so many
Do you think that connection is why so many people feel emotionally liberated when they drastically cut their hair? Oh, yeah. Through quarantine we had seven people in one week just shave their hair off. This whole year has been so transformative in how people view themselves, I feel like they’ve looked in the mirror longer from sitting with themselves for months. They are ready to get it off and ready to see something different within themselves. I remember that first week back to work [after reopening], I just cried. I cried that whole week, because people were just wanting human touch. And it was weird, because I was ready to hug everyone, and we couldn’t hug everyone. So there was that experience of not having human touch, but wanting it and needing it so much that I think just having a place for people to come into after that was like, shedding. People could talk about their mental health. More and more today, we need to normalize it. We need to talk about it. Not a lot of people are doing well.
Tell me about a client you’ve positively influenced with the Noise Project? I have a beautiful client, one of my favorites, who has BPD. She came to see me on day four of no sleep, because she was hyper manic and very sad. We sat together in the chair, and she just cried and cried and cried. Then, before she left, I made her an appointment at my mental health provider. I called my therapist. I set her up for an appointment. I said I was gonna take care of her first initial [session], however much it [cost]. Now, she’s medicated properly. She goes to see her therapist every month. She’s still living with BPD, every day is a struggle, but she’s doing the work. I just gave her resources. That’s what I do.
W E E K L Y
How did you come up with the name the Noise Project? It was created about four years ago when I was going through all my stuff. My mind wouldn’t stop, the noise in my mind just wouldn’t honestly f*ck off. But it was the hyper stage of mania—hypertension and a [euphoric] feeling [that] I could achieve and do anything I wanted. I had to learn how to listen to the noise and how to dissect the noise, and nurture the noise and break down the noise, so I could use the noise to help create the path that I wanted to create. My first class that I taught was called Turn Down the Noise. It was about listening to the noise and being able to sit with it and be present with it, but also not turn it away, but move through it; be able to take it in, nurture it and then let it move through you.
connectors, so much trauma that lives in the brain that needs to be nurtured. The beautiful thing with hair is, it’s so transformative that we get to push through those barriers with people and really landscape features, highlight different things and change how people see themselves in order to move forward from that pain or trauma that they’ve been holding onto. We have a lot of [clients who are] trans or transitioning, and that’s been a beautiful process for me. It’s being a part of that journey for them, because a lot of them are on estrogen or T or different hormones, so they are less in control of their outer appearances. So to kind of shape and mold that experience for them is really cool.
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our years ago, Amber Harlan had no idea what was happening to her. Resurfaced trauma from childhood, the death of a friend and the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting triggered a series of manic episodes, landing her in a mental institution. “I lost my job [and] I lost a lot of my family members, because nobody knew what to do with me,” she says. The hair stylist was later diagnosed with bipolar disorder and has since received the help she’s needed all along. Now, as the founder of the Noise Project hair salon, Harlan has set out to normalize the conversation around mental health and emotionally unburden her clients—one haircut at a time.
For more of this conversation, visit lasvegasweekly.com.
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This year was another strange one, but our photographers caught its best side
Pandemics and protests, victories and upsets, grand openings and unexpected closings … This past year in Las Vegas was so unpredictable and weird, words sometimes couldn’t fully describe it. Fortunately, the Weekly also has pictures, and some of the most talented photographers in this Valley are out shooting them for us, day after day, week after week. The Weekly’s art and editorial departments have selected their favorite images shot by our photographers throughout 2021. We present those images here, with a few words from the people who shot them: Yasmina Chavez, Christopher DeVargas, Steve Marcus and Wade Vandervort. It might not have been the best year in human history, but it has a great-looking yearbook.
F E A T U R E
2021 IN PHOTOS
BY GEOFF CARTER
LUXURY FURNITURE STORE
Local shoegaze band Luxury Furniture Store don lampshades and light up on March 26. This is a single image, not a composite; Chavez set up multiple flashes with color gels to get this striking multiple exposure. “I’ve done this a lot in my own artwork, long exposures and playing with light and movement, so I knew what I was getting myself into.” And the band members, visual artists themselves, gladly cooperated, one of them from past experience: “One of the band members [Holly Haywood] was in my intermediate class at UNLV. I was, like, ‘Oh, Holly! I haven’t seen you in forever.’”
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YA S M I N A C H AV E Z
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Participants in the 2021 Las Vegas Polar Plunge show off their bee costumes in front of a vintage swimsuit billboard at Cowabunga Bay on March 27. The event was a fundraiser for Special Olympics Nevada. “It’s just so funny, the juxtaposition,” Chavez says. “The best shots are always the candid ones, where things just fall into place and they’re not actually aware that you caught something.”
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A passerby watches the departure of the “No Ifs, Ands, or Butts” statue from Planet Hollywood on June 15. The Michael Conine statue, used to promote the show since its original run at the Riviera, will be stored until the Crazy Girls show, which closed as a result of the pandemic shutdown, finds a new venue. “[This] is so Vegas to me,” Chavez says. “If you’re gonna describe Vegas, that’s where I would be, like, ‘Imagine a statue of butts being hauled down a really populated city sidewalk.”
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YA S M I N A C H AV E Z
FEET OF SNOW
F E A T U R E
Footprints— human, avian and canine—weave through fallen snow at Centennial Hills Park on January 26. “One of my favorite things in photography is [shooting] the remnants of an event, or the evidence of something having happened,” Chavez says.
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Student ambassadors line up for the first day of school in Henderson on August 9. This was a twofold special occasion: the opening of the new Hannah Marie Brown Elementary School and a return to in-person schooling. “These were second-graders, but for a lot of them, it was their first time at school,” Chavez says. “They were just so adorable.”
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The Sandy Valley wildfire rages on June 10. Chavez took this photo from the intersection of State Route 160 and Sandy Valley Road. The dramatic purple lighting is from a parked police vehicle that had its red and blue lights on. “It’s a long exposure, so the light sort of blends,” Chavez says.
P H O T O S
FIRE ON THE MOUNTAIN
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THE LOOP On this spread
ST E V E M A R C U S
HALO-HALO
F E A T U R E
Filipino restaurant Full House BBQ serves up a Flaming Halo-Halo dessert on January 9. “I don’t know if I want to give away all the trade secrets or anything, but all my food shots are kind of the same: I give it a main light, a fill light and then a strong back light,” Marcus says. But this time, he couldn’t do that; too much light would create excessive contrast with the flame. “So, in this case, it’s minimally lit, with a slow shutter so that you can see the flame flickering.”
A Tesla electric car cruises through the tunnels of the Elon Musk-conceived Las Vegas Convention Center Loop on April 9. The Loop, the first commercial project by Musk’s Boring Company, might soon be extended throughout the Strip resort corridor. The tunnels are lit with color-changing LEDs, which Marcus appreciated. “From the photographer’s point of view, it’s just very pretty,” he says. “Kudos to [LVCC and Musk] for putting a little bit of extra money into the lighting.”
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SUDDENLY STREAKING TIPS FROM THE WEEKLY PHOTOGRAPHERS
UNLV running back Charles Williams holds up the Island Showdown Trophy after a 27-13 win over the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors at Allegiant Stadium on November 13—the team’s second victory in a row after snapping a 14-game losing skid. “They get pretty excited over any wins these days at UNLV football,” Marcus says, a bit ruefully. “And Williams was the star player of the game.”
Manny Pacquiao fights Yordenis Ugás at T-Mobile Arena on August 21. Ugás, a replacement for the injured Errol Spence Jr., won the fight by unanimous decision, surprising many—including Marcus. “Everybody was thinking that Ugás wouldn’t be a great challenge for Pacquiao, but the truth is that Pacquiao is 42 years old now, and his legs don’t move as quickly as they used to,” Marcus says. Retired from boxing, the legendary fighter is now running his various businesses and, oh yeah, also running for the presidency of the Philippines.
LIGHTNING Lightning creases the sky over the Strip on July 25. Marcus says there’s a piece of photographic equipment that automatically detects when a lightning strike is about to occur, but he doesn’t use it. “If I’m shooting at 100 ASA and the exposure on a casino is, like, one minute and [an aperture of] 5.6, I just keep taking one-minute pictures of the casino until some lightning falls into it,” he says. “You can kind of tell where the lightning is, though sometimes you get screwed because you’ll be facing this way and then the lightning will be over there—not in your picture.”
Shoot night images with your phone “I’ll tell you how to take an interesting nighttime picture: Turn on your flash and run, then take the photo [laughs]. Turn on your flash, hit the shutter, move the phone a little and maybe keep your subjects centered, and you’re gonna get these really cool light streaks even with the phone because [the flash] actually does slow that shutter down. You get blur and some things that get exciting.” –Yasmina Chavez “Make sure you wipe off the lens of the camera. A lot of people don’t do that. Especially at nighttime, when there’s street lights or any kind of lights, dirt or smudges on the lens of your camera’s phone will create these weird streaks of light, flares or halos.” –Christopher DeVargas
P H O T O S
“Look out for people hiding behind each other. You’ve got to get everyone in line, or stagger people on different levels. Or shoot them from a higher angle.” –Wade Vandervort
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How to arrange a good group photo “Make sure you take a lot of photos before people start to move around. If you get a group together and everybody’s smiling, take three or four photos in a row, because in at least two or three of those photos, somebody is going to have their eyes closed. … And sometimes, the more candid photos are better, as they’re talking amongst themselves and getting ready to take the photo. Just keep shooting, before and after the pose.” –Christopher DeVargas
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Want to shoot cover-ready images of holiday lights with your phone, or simply take a family group photo that could serve as next year’s card? Our photographers can help.
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On this spread
F E A T U R E
WA D E VA N D E RVO R T
LAUGHLIN CADDISFLIES
Caddisflies fly around the Colorado River in Laughlin on May 26. City officials are taking steps to reduce this overwhelmingly large insect population, which is impacting their tourism. “They just cover all the casinos down there. The windows are covered with caddisflies,” Vandervort says. “There are dead ones, living ones everywhere. I took this with a flash to freeze them as best I could. And by the end, [writer Hillary Davis] and I were covered in caddisflies, too.”
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Muhammad Ali’s grandson trains at Top Rank Gym on July 12. Walsh, 21, only began his boxing career in August and had a 3-0 record at press time. “I got in the ring with him, and he basically punched towards my lens, because I wanted to get a shot like this,” Vandervort says.
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The Rolling Stones’ Ronnie Wood (left) and Mick Jagger perform at Allegiant Stadium on November 6. “We got to shoot the first two songs, and I’ve never shot so many photos in such a short amount of time … because it’s Mick Jagger, you know?” Vandervort says. “And you can tell from this picture that he’s still an animal. He knows how to rock.”
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WA D E VA N D E RVO R T
PRIDE! A member of the North Texas Pride Foundation spreads his wings at the annual Las Vegas Pride Parade in Downtown Las Vegas on October 8. “That was some of the happiest, most fun people I’ve ever seen,” Vandervort says.
F E A T U R E
SPRAY IT DON’T SAY IT The Gazillionaire, from Spiegelworld’s long-running Caesars Palace show Absinthe, cools down in the resort’s iconic fountains on March 30. Vandervort, working with an assist from Yasmina Chavez, put on swim trunks and water shoes and stepped into the fountains with him. ““He stayed in the water with us the whole time,” Vandervort says, “even though it was really cold.”.
BRETT BOLTON Multimedia artist Brett Bolton poses during a Weekly cover shoot on June 24. Bolton created the projection-mapped images on his face. “He’s like a scientist,” Vandervort says. “This was a very trippy photo shoot. Every time he’d move his hands, all these lights would follow his movements.”
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CASH THE DALMATION Cash, a Dalmatian belonging to a Weekly staffer, is coaxed into posing for our September 23 “Pets” issue. “That was probably the hardest photo shoot I’ve ever done,” Vandervort says. “He didn’t listen at all. This is us trying to get him to come onto the backdrop so we can get some pictures.”
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LA NETA COCINA The Lobsta B.F.T.—short for “big f’n taco”— tempts at La Neta Cocina on November 17. “When you’re shooting food, you can experiment a lot more; you can use harder lighting,” Vandervort says. “Food doesn’t get impatient with you.”
ERICA VITAL-LAZARE Local writer and scholar Erica Vital-Lazare poses at UNLV’s Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art during Seeing/ Seen, a group show that she curated, on August 27. “I saw her nails and I thought they were so colorful and cool, and we had this nice backdrop,” Vandervort says. “I wanted to do the complementary color thing here and get those colors poppin’.”
P H O T O S
KIND CARE
Samantha Russell breathes pure oxygen in a pressurized hyperbaric chamber at MountainView Wound Care & Hyperbaric Center on April 21. Russell received a cancer diagnosis at the start of the pandemic in 2020 and was anxious about being able to continue treatments, but has pushed through with grace and relative calm, Vandervort says. “It’s kind of a scary picture, but she was the sweetest person ever. She just sat there watching TV.”
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Mulberry Street Pizzeria owner and founder Richie Palmer chats with boxing great Mike Tyson following the unveiling of a Tyson statue outside the Resorts World restaurant on October 21. “The two of them just kind of leaned in and had a quiet little conversation in front of the statue,” DeVargas says. “It was a pretty nice, candid moment.”
WINK WORLD Chris Wink, co-founder of Blue Man Group and Area15’s “director of content and cool sh*t,” leads a January 7 tour through Wink World, his immersive, glowin-the-dark art experience at the popular dining, retail and experience com-
plex. This was a completely candid shot. “That’s the hallway you walk through to start the attraction. These were just natural moments of him leading us through,” DeVargas says. “It was really cool to see his excitement and enthusiasm.”
On this spread
C H R I STO P H E R D E VA R G A S
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SUMMER HEAT
A lone security guard stands between a massive opening-night crowd and Resorts World on June 24. “To the left and right of him are the main doors, which are blocked off with, like, a piece of paper,” DeVargas says. “Once they let them in, the crowd just busted through that.”
P H O T O S
A dancer from Extravaganza: The Vegas Spectacular performs for a limited audience at the Jubilee Theater inside Bally’s on March 12. The cast and crew of the show maintained strict COVID-19 safety practices. “They were spraying down the seats and doing all kinds of proper procedures to make sure that it was clean and safe for the audience,” DeVargas says. “It was very interesting to see performers onstage with masks on.”
A NEW WORLD AWAITS
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In the midst of one of last summer’s excessive heat warnings, a man cools off in the water misters in front of Paris Las Vegas on June 14. “Occasionally, people would walk by and wave their hands in the mist; they’d stop there for a split second,” DeVargas says. “This gentleman stood there for almost a minute, soaking his head, soaking his hat. I thought it was a pretty dramatic image.”
Unrivaled in taste,
potency and effect.
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IN THE
NEWS
WATCH THIS The Raiders play at Cleveland, December 18 at 1:30 p.m.
SPORTS
THE SUPER BOWL IS COMING TO LAS VEGAS CITY EXPECTED TO GET THE GAME A YEAR EARLY When Allegiant Stadium was built near the Strip, the general consensus was that Las Vegas would be in line to host the Super Bowl at some point. That point appears to be 2024, one year earlier than anticipated. Las Vegas was believed to be a favorite to host the game in 2025, with New Orleans already locked in for 2024. But when the NFL increased its regular season from 17 weeks to 18 weeks, that pushed the Super Bowl back a week, which conflicted with Mardi Gras festivities in New Orleans. Las Vegas, with its nearly $2 billion stadium, has become a landing spot for high-profile NFL events. It will host this year’s Pro Bowl on February 6 and the NFL Draft in late April. The draft was originally pegged for Las Vegas in 2020 but was held remotely because of the pandemic. The Super Bowl was the natural next step. Landing the Super Bowl—arguably the most notable event in all of sports—is big business for a city. The 2020 game in Miami had an economic impact of $571.9 million and created 4,597 full- and part-time jobs, Miami Today reported. Eight other NFL stadiums have opened since 2006, and they’ve all hosted a Super Bowl within their first four years. That includes LA’s SoFi Stadium, which opened in 2020, and will host the 2022 game. –Ray Brewer
From left, Governor Steve Sisolak; Rory Reid, eldest son of former U.S. Sen. Harry Reid; Clark County Director of Aviation Rosemary Vassiliades and Clark County Commissioner Tick Segerblom watch the unveiling of renderings of new airport signage on December 14. (Steve Marcus/Staff)
NEWS
HARRY REID INTERNATIONAL BECOMES OFFICIAL It’s official: Visitors to Las Vegas are now landing at Harry Reid International Airport. Dignitaries, including Gov. Steve Sisolak, gathered today at Terminal 3 of the former McCarran International Airport to mark the switchover to honor the retired Democratic U.S. Senate majority leader and one of the most influential Nevadans. Reid, 82, did not attend the event but issued a statement saying it was the “greatest of honors” to have his name on the airport and thanking the people
of Nevada for letting him serve. Reid said he has been flying in and out of the Las Vegas airport since the first time he got on a plane in 1958. “This airport has been my gateway to the world” and “long ago became synonymous with home,” he said. Clark County Commissioner Tick Segerblom led the charge last year to rebrand the county-controlled airport in honor of Reid, who served in the House from 1983 to 1987 and in the Senate from 1987 to 2017.
The commission unanimously agreed to the change. “My dad was born in a tworoom shack in a lonely spot in the Southern Nevada desert,” Reid’s eldest son Rory told the crowd gathered for the dedication, held in a terminal his father championed be built even during the throes of the Great Recession. “All he had was a work ethic and a small circle of people who loved him.” From that, Reid rose to one of the most prominent politicians in the country. –Hillary Davis
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DEVELOPER J DAPPER IS GIVING AWAY A DOWNTOWN DINER It’s been a while since Downtown Las Vegas’ Huntridge Center has had anything like a diner, but J Dapper, the owner of the 60-plus year-old shopping plaza, has always wanted “a gathering place in the Huntridge neighborhood where everyone can sit and relax and have great food.” He considered a number of operators for the center’s 3,000-square-foot diner space, but nothing quite connected. Now Dapper is turning up the heat. The Great Las Vegas Coffee Shop Giveaway is exactly as it sounds: Dapper will build out the space—providing furniture, fixtures, equipment, branding, signage and even a marketing plan—and hand the keys to a deserving chef or restaurateur. Entrants are invited to submit a diner concept for contest judges Dapper, Cory Harwell (Carson Kitchen), John Simmons (Firefly) and Marc Marrone (Graffiti Bao) before February 1, 2022, at which time things will move on to a Vegas Test Kitchen cookoff. Visit lasvegascoffeeshopcontest.com for details. –Geoff Carter
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$1.075B The amount for which MGM Resorts International announced December 13 it would sell the Mirage casino operations to Hard Rock International. Hard Rock plans to build a guitar-shaped hotel on the property.
12.12.2021
KNIGHTS ON A ROLL Defenseman Zach Whitecloud, center, scored two goals to help the Golden Knights to a 6-4 win over Minnesota. Vegas went 3-1 during its four-game homestand and had won 15 of its last 21 games at press time to move into a third-place tie in the Pacific Division, five points behind Anaheim. (Ellen Schmidt/AP)
PUBLIC HEALTH
COVID ACTIVITY RISING IN NEVADA, BUT STILL BELOW 2020 LEVEL Nevada’s coronavirus activity has been inching up since the Thanksgiving holiday but still remains just a fraction of what it was last year at this time. As of December 13, the state averaged 560 new daily cases of COVID-19 and a 7.6% test positivity rate, according to data from the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services. Statewide, 659 people were hospitalized with a confirmed or probable case of the virus. On November 25, those numbers were 523 new daily cases with a 7.5% test positivity rate and 616 hospitalizations, state data show. Contrast that with December 13, 2020, when the state saw 2,738 cases, a 20.1% test positivity rate and 1,804 hospitalizations. This was in the thick of by far the most devastating virus wave and before the vaccine was available even to health care workers. Current activity, though climbing, is also still well below this summer’s delta variant-fueled surge, which peaked in August with roughly 1,100 new cases a day in Nevada. The new omicron strain of the virus had been confirmed in 30 states as of December 13. Experts say preliminary data suggests that it may cause milder cases than delta, however.. –Hillary Davis
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TUNNEL
A N A L Y S I S
VISION A Tesla electric car heads into a tunnel during a tour of the Las Vegas Convention Center Loop on April 9. (Steve Marcus/Staff)
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Elon Musk’s Loop is ambitious, but Las Vegas needs more in the way of public transit
entered into a special use permit and franchise agreement with Clark County to expand the LVCC tunnels into a 29-mile network of tunnels, serviced by Musk’s autonomous electric vehicles. The Vegas Loop is a staggeringly ambitious proposal, one that would link more than 50 venues, from Allegiant Stadium to the Fremont Street Experience. (An airport connector falls under a separate proposal.) Musk’s company says it’ll cover the development costs for the tunnels, while individual properties would foot the bill for their own stations. The LVCC connector, now in operation, runs from the south end of the convention floor to the newly built western end—a 25-minute walk, knocked down to two minutes. It’s exciting to imagine what that speed and convenience might feel like spread
Traffic heads southbound on I-15 near Sunset Road. (Steve Marcus/Staff)
built, underprepared metro are already becoming evident: daily traffic snarls on the recently-widened I-15, surface streets jammed beyond their limits. We can vent our spleens about growth on Twitter all day long. “It’s the [expletive] Californians,” “Carpool lanes are tyranny,” that kind of thing. But it won’t stop Las Vegas’ growth. We can only hope to manage it, and that means a rapid transit network that goes far beyond tunnels connecting resorts to each other. Most Las Vegans I know have no use for transit. (One proudly told me, “I’ve never taken a bus, and I never will.”) But in other cities where it’s become a part of daily life, rapid transit is not viewed as something that caters to the poor and car-less. It’s a multi-modal thing—bicycles, scooters, buses, light rail, taxicabs, car share, ride-share— intended to get you to your job or school in less time than it takes to get into your car, slog through traffic and find parking. It’s also a fortification against fluctuating gas prices; I lived in Seattle for a decade, using buses and trains to get around, and checked the numbers at the pump maybe a dozen times. Arguably, Las Vegas hasn’t needed transit solutions like these until recently, when the sprawl of single-family residences finally scraped up against the red rocks. Judging by Friday rush hour, we need them yesterday. And while the Vegas Loop network could be a net good, we can’t allow ourselves to slack on planning for light rail, or in making sure that the RTC has the funding it needs to accommodate the 500,000 more bodies that are even now eyeing our low-compared-to-California cost of living and bitchin’ new football stadium. Picture our big city as it should be—complete.
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icture a stereotypical big city. Consider all the things that make it so: tall residential and office buildings with street-facing restaurants and retail; huge public gathering spaces in the city core, where festivals (and protests) can take place; beloved institutions, like sports teams, local nightlife districts and museums; and lots and lots of people, riding to and from these things on commuter rail. The Las Vegas metropolitan area, which boasts some big-city numbers—approximately 2.5 million people now live in the Valley, which puts us on par with metros like Cincinnati and Salt Lake EXTENDED City—has some RESIDENCY of these puzzle BY GEOFF pieces, but not CARTER all of them. We’re putting up taller residential buildings. We have major sports franchises—two and counting. The City of Las Vegas is currently considering design proposals for a civic gathering plaza adjacent to City Hall (see them at bit.ly/3FY6fN7). And things are happening on the transit front, too. The Boring Company, the Elon Musk-founded company that built a pair of underground tunnels connecting the two far-flung ends of the sprawling Las Vegas Convention Center, recently
out to the entire resort corridor, say, leaving a Knights game at the Fortress and immediately going to the Cosmopolitan for a celebratory round of drinks … or better still, going to a venue with a less-congested cab and rideshare stand. And just imagine what the Strip could look like if much of its tourist traffic moves underground, forgoing gridlocked rental cars for underground zip. It’ll be a while before we experience that, assuming it happens at all. (Musk could simply pull stakes for Mars tomorrow; I imagine its corporate tax rate is favorable.) But the Boring Company proposal only solves a resort corridor problem—a problem that’s already partially addressed by a monorail and several resort-to-resort shuttles. It’ll be a boon to conventioneers who intend only to travel between their hotel and the LVCC, and tourists who aren’t interested in leaving the Strip or Fremont Street. Meanwhile, the Valley is growing at a rate that no amount of road-widening can accommodate. A June 2021 report by UNLV’s Center for Business and Economic Research predicts that the population of Clark County could swell to 3 million people in the next decade or so. The telltale signs of an over-
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B Small but
MIGHTY Encore Theater continues to evolve into an impactful Strip entertainment BY BROCK RADKE
illboard magazine released its annual list of Top Grossing Venues this month, and Wynn’s Encore Theater—which has hosted comedian Nate Bargatze and big band Pink Martini in recent days and stages concerts by Chris Isaak on December 17 and 18—ranked fourth in the world among performing arts venues with a capacity under 5,000. Drilling down further, the 1,480-seat room situated in the retail promenade between the Wynn and Encore resorts was the top-grossing venue in the world under 3,000 capacity this year. Those achievements aren’t due solely to the challenging, sorta-post-pandemic circumstances of 2021. In 2019, Encore Theater ranked 10th on that under-5,000 capacity list. Its size and intimate setting has helped the venue respond this year, and a partnership between Wynn Resorts and AEG Presents has grown Encore Theater into one of the most prominent live entertainment spaces on the Strip. “Being No. 4 among all ven-
ues under 5,000 seats … shows that the entertainment is high quality and there have been so many shows that are really resonating with our customer base,” Wynn President Brian Gullbrants says. “This is a special place to see any type of entertainment, because you feel like you are part of the show.” Encore Theater is by no means an underdog of a venue, even in terms of the Strip, with its multiple arenas and much larger, residency-focused rooms. After all, it’s the place where Garth Brooks performed his legendary big-ticket acoustic residency from 2009 to 2014, not to mention the home of Beyoncé’s 2009 limited-engagement residency that spawned her I Am… Yours live and video album. More recently, it has seen concerts from Diana Ross, Tony Bennett, John Fogerty, Harry Connick Jr., Lionel Richie, Robbie Williams, Alabama and others, and successfully added headlining comedians to the mix. Now, it’s diving all the way into the funny stuff, bringing back stars like Sebastian Maniscalco, Jo Koy and Jim Gaffigan and incorporating up-and-comers like Bargatze, Leanne Morgan, Chris Distefano and Taylor Tomlinson. “It’s something we thought we’d try out at the beginning of 2019,” says AEG talent buyer Chris Hammond. “We brought in Chris Tucker, and we were all
Brad Paisley (Paul R. Giunta/AP Photo)
a bit nervous about how it’d feel in the room, but he just killed it. We walked out of there thinking this room is perfect for comedy, and just kept building and building.” The theater offers proximity to the stage from every seat while maintaining Wynn standards of luxury and service, making it a unique comedy setting on the Strip. Those elements have also contributed to AEG’s confidence in booking rising comedians, which can be difficult in Las Vegas. “And it’s no different with music,” Hammond says. “There are bands and acts that would sell out in most major cities that we can’t really build here. Las Vegas is not traditionally known to support up-and-comers, but I think we’ve built some trust with our fanbase and with agents and managers of artists.” Since things have reopened, Wynn and Encore have made a concerted effort to increase connectivity among their entertainment offerings, from clubs to the new outdoor pavilion space to flashy restaurant Delilah, where theater headliners sometimes pop up onstage for a late-night encore. “Everybody has worked really hard to make sure we’re maximizing opportunities here,” Gullbrants says. Recent Encore Theater headliners Brad Paisley and Bryan Adams will be back for more in 2022. And sometime in 2023, the adjacent theater space— formerly home to shuttered spectacular Le Rêve—is expected to relaunch. For now, specifics for the new show headed for that renovated venue are being kept under wraps. “I can tell you there is something under development that is going to be phenomenal,” Gullbrants says. “There is an unbelievable creative team working on something special like no one has ever seen before.”
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1 2 .1 6 . 2 1 Mikey Francis (Chris Fulcher/Courtesy)
SURGING THROUGH
CHAOS
N I G H T S
MIKEY FRANCIS December 18, 10:30 p.m., $25-$40. Hakkasan Nightclub, hakasan group.com.
Las Vegan Mikey Francis makes the most of his headlining club gigs BY BROCK RADKE
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he dancefloors and bottle-service booths might be packed just like the before-times, but the pandemic will continue to impact and change the Las Vegas nightclub industry for the immediate future. Some club hoppers have noticed that many support acts—veteran DJs who open and close for big-name headliners—have catapulted to the top of the bill during busy weekends. One of the most familiar names to make that jump recently is Mikey Francis, a Las Vegan who conquered the local music scene and toured nationally with former acts Afghan Raiders and Black Boots before he hit the Strip for DJ residencies at Omnia and Jewel. “During the pandemic, everyone lost so much work, and then had to start from square one,” Francis says. “In March, [Hakkasan Group] gave me a call to help open up the Terrace at Omnia, just to try it, and nobody knew how it was going to go. But it snowballed into everything that’s happening now, and this has probably been one of the best years of my career.” Now in his seventh year playing Hakkasan Group venues, Francis will star at Hakkasan at MGM Grand on December 18 and appear next at Omnia at Caesars Palace (in the big room, not the tiny Terrace) on January 25. When there were no gigs to be had, he spent a lot of time at home writing music and honing in on his production skills, while also logging valuable family time and getting a real estate license. “The ramp-up was intense,” he says, reflecting the general consensus that the Vegas club comeback moved more rapidly than anyone anticipated. “Once things started moving again, and they didn’t have the big headliners yet, they gave me some opportunities and the next thing I know, I had these headlining slots going.”
It’s been an interesting transition for many local, experienced DJs, often underappreciated and unsung talents who “know the rooms, know how to do it and put in long hours,” Francis says. “It was a no-brainer for us and for the clubs, too, which didn’t have to spend those crazy [headliner] dollars. “Ultimately, it comes down to demand. Were people going to come? But it was like opening the floodgates—people were so excited to [come back],” he continues. “It was a really golden time from March to May, and the [audiences] were mostly people who really wanted to connect with others and just be there for this really magical time.” Things are cycling closer to normal now, but it’s likely you’ll still see Francis and names like Kid Conrad, Karma, Mondo and C-LA atop the marquee at these venues next to Steve Aoki, Lil Jon and other luminaries for quite some time. And Francis is working to continue to expand his musical footprint, possibly taking advantage of the Tao-Hakkasan merger to spin at other venues (“I would love to play Marquee, but ultimately Omnia is home for me,” he says) while branching out with streaming on Twitch and gradually collecting an album’s worth of new tracks. “I’ve been definitely working a lot in the studio, and I think next year will be a big year for me getting some releases out,” he says. “As a DJ that kind of plays everything. It can be a little convoluted with where you want your music to go, but for me, I have to stay true to my roots. I like the tech-house sound mixed with my vocals, and I’m just trying to be on the cutting-edge of something new. That’s my goal musically, and I’m not in a huge rush, but I feel like I’m close to some really good stuff.”
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1 2 .1 6 . 2 1 BLACK PUMAS With Aaron Frazer. December 18, 7 p.m., $50+, House of Blues, ticket master.com.
Adrian Quesada (left) and Eric Burton (Jackie Lee Young/Courtesy)
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BY AMBER SAMPSON
A
lbums rarely unfurl the way Black Pumas’ debut LP does. Opening track “Black Moon Rising” unlatches a time capsule. As the drumroll rises to the rich, velvety timbre of Eric Burton’s voice, you’re transported back to the sounds of early ’70s soul and a firm foundation of funk. Pumas guitarist and producer and guitarist Adrian Quesada also contributes significantly to the slow burn magic, his style pronouncing itself in every lick and groove. Four Grammy nominations later, that 2019 self-titled debut shines as a work of modern art. The iconic Austin duo manages to appeal to the youth of today without ever diluting its gritty, Motown-era sound. The Weekly caught up with Burton and Quesada ahead of their first-ever Las Vegas show, December 18 at House of Blues. Everything happened pretty fast for you two. Did that rapid success come as a surprise? Burton: I think that we both had faith and a healthy level of confidence in ourselves individually and as a unit. With that said, I think every little thing that has happened chronologically has been a pleasant surprise for both of us. We probably make music in the same vein, that is, to entertain ourselves. So it is really interesting to create such music in our bedrooms, so to speak, and to then be met at the front door with the world and people who are interested in having some insight into our process. Each song has a different feel, but there seems to be an underlying essence to them all. Did you go into this album with any story
lyrically. Burton: I do what I do, as we create, from a place of love. So for me, the writing is about discovering new ways of being in love with life and/or with a person, an opportunity or nature, and creating a world of love in all of that. It’s about creating something that you can’t quite see at face value without the poetry that is music and lyrics.
‘ELECTRIC CHURCH’
Black Pumas arrive in Las Vegas ready to take you higher
or anchoring themes in mind? Quesada: The first day we did “Black Moon Rising” and “Fire,” I remember there was a certain mood out of it. They had a little bit of mystery to them. Even the most overt lyrics or song that is
overtly expressing an emotion has a little bit of mystique to it. We’re letting the listener put on headphones and kind of go into their own world, whether it’s off of a lyric or a feeling or a keyboard track. That was one thing I noticed
Eric, you busked and were into musical theater before joining Black Pumas. Do you feel like those skills translated into your stage presence today? Burton: Oh, yeah, it contributes quite a bit. At a young age, I learned how to develop characters and situations they’re in, and I think that it translates musically, especially in the live setting. You become something a little bit higher. To me it feels like connecting with my highest self, performing and being naked, so to speak. In a lot of ways, the theater definitely dictates how I create the music and how I move. I almost want to start wearing costumes, because it’s almost interpretive as opposed to this direct message, even physically. What can we expect from your Vegas show? Burton: Excitement. An electric church. When I take to writing the music and performing it, it’s like a big prayer to me. The show feels like I’m praying. There’s a lot of honesty, mixed in with some rock ’n’ roll. [That’s] what it comes down to live with Black Pumas. For more of this conversation, visit lasvegasweekly.com.
N O R D I C I N S P I R E D L O N D O N D RY G I N A S K U R G I N . C O M
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L A S V E G A S W E E K LY
1 2 .1 6 . 2 1 SAFFRON, THE VEGETARIAN EATERY 3545 S. Decatur Blvd., 702-201-1926. Tuesday-Saturday, 5-10 p.m.
C U L T U R E
Floating gyoza, Bo Chay Cay noodles, Saffron red curry and beet tartare, plus cocktails (Christopher DeVargas/ Staff)
Distinctive
STYLE
Saffron adds more vegetarian contrast to Chinatown
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BY AMBER SAMPSON
A
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Seafood ramen at Kyara (Wade Vandervort/Staff)
F O O D &
SATISFYING SWITCH UP
■ One of the Valley’s most popular izakayas is no more, but a cozy new concept has replaced the 10-year-old Kyara Japanese Tapas just off the southwest Beltway. As one can imagine, serving a vast array of flavorful small plates with tons of different ingredients and suppliers requires a big staff and many other moving parts. So when COVID pushed it to the edge earlier this year, Kyara skillfully converted into a ramen bar. It’s obviously a very different dining experience but still one deserving attention, especially now that things are finally getting wintery in Las Vegas, when soulful soup is a prized meal. The concise menu includes one dish most other ramen spots don’t offer. Kyara’s seafood ramen ($15) is stacked
with shrimp, scallops, mussels and clams in a mildly buttery and garlicky broth reminiscent of linguine and clams at your favorite neighborhood Italian spot. It’s a fun alternative that takes on other fantastic flavors when you spice it up with black garlic oil ($1) or free ground chili pepper. More familiar tonkotsu or miso bowls with tender pork chashu ($12) are also available, along with addictive steamed chicken gyoza ($7) or chashu ($5) or mentaiko ($6) rice bowls as side dishes. Recent specials have brought Tokyo-style shoyu ramen and garlic ramen into the mix. If the weather has you heading back to your favorite noodle soup parlor, throw Ramen Kyara into the mix and see how it feels. –Brock Radke
RAMEN KYARA 6555 S. Jones Blvd. #120, 702-434-8856. Monday-Saturday, noon-9 p.m.
D R I N K
unique new culinary treasure is hiding in plain sight at Decatur and Spring Mountain: Saffron, the Vegetarian Eatery. Owner Tony Nguyen opened the Southeast Asian restaurant in early July after a vegetarian meal he enjoyed in Vietnam inspired him to bring a similar concept to Las Vegas’ Chinatown. Saffron isn’t the first to serve vegan and vegetarian cuisine in the area, but it offers an intimate, upscale dinner experience away from the Strip. The atmosphere is magnetic. Bold burgundy accents and earth tones elevate the room, which features an illuminated, handcrafted flower sculpture hovering at its center, along with handcarved tiles imported from Vietnam. At 3,300 square feet, the space is expansive, and its second floor accommodates private gatherings, with sweeping views of the Strip skyline. “It’s like going down a rabbit hole,” says Louross Edralin, Saffron’s corporate chef, who also leads the restaurant group’s Shokku Ramen. “We want to make sure that for the two hours you’re spending time with your friends, your loved ones or your family here, you forget that you’re in Chinatown.” A former contestant on Hell’s Kitchen, Edralin brings 20-plus years of experience to the kitchen, having worked with chefs from all over Asia. Meanwhile, lead mixologist Donnell Ingram serves up
inventive cocktails like the Empress Gin Sidecar ($18)— Empress gin, basil, mint, lemon juice and simple syrup—a standout for its vibrant glow and balanced finish. Mushrooms, from local farm Sundown, play a starring role in the fragrant and tangy tom kha gai soup ($16), and create a tasty base for the shredded meat-like texture in the mushroom dumplings ($14). Edralin has mastered the art of layering flavors in such dishes as the Saffron red curry ($18), which features eggplant, sweet potatoes and bell peppers. Another must-try dish is Edralin’s clever take on traditional salt and pepper chicken ($24), made with black pearl mushrooms. It’s crispy and savory enough to fool any carnivore. “We wanted a menu that was approachable to people who were skeptical of trying new things,” says Arianna Pittard, Saffron’s CEO. “People could come in and eat in a fine-dining atmosphere, receive fine-dining service and not even miss the meat in their meal.” It’s less about catering to vegans and vegetarians, Pittard explains, and more about championing healthy lifestyles. Even bodybuilders visit Saffron for a guilt-free meal, Edralin says. Most of the staff eats meat, but understanding how to make great food, no matter the ingredients, is key. “That’s all we’re trying to do,” Edralin says, “make people’s bellies happy.”
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L A S V E G A S W E E K LY
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North Texas players celebrate during a win against UTSA. (Andy Jacobsohn/AP Photo) (Photo Illustration)
MONEYMAKERS
The College Football Betting Awards return, recognizing the nation’s top covering teams BY CASE KEEFER
I
t’s awards season in college football with our annual (well, typically annual) gambling version ready to jump back in the fray. ¶ The College Football Betting Awards took a year off in 2020 because of the uneven schedules and altogether disjointed nature of the
mid-pandemic season. But things were almost entirely back to normal on the field this year, making it appropriate to present the sixth edition of the awards. ¶ Here are the teams
that stood out the most at sportsbooks in our six traditional
C U L T U R E
categories heading into bowl season.
Team of the Year: Michigan (Team with the nation’s best record against the spread)
(AP Photo)
■ The Wolverines’ stock could hardly have been any lower coming into the season, with complaints over coach Jim Harbaugh returning for a seventh season far outnumbering bets of any kind written on his team. But Harbaugh finally built a reliable offense, led by quarterback Cade McNamara, to go with his usual strong defense, led by Heisman Trophy finalist Aidan Hutchinson, to not
only reach the College Football Playoff but crush betting lines. The Wolverines sit at 11-2 against the spread going into a semifinal game against Georgia on New Year’s Eve as 7.5-point underdogs. 2019 winner: Clemson Achievement Award: Utah State (Team that furthest eclipsed its over/under preseason win total) ■ The Aggies were pegged to be one of the worst teams in the Mountain West in coach Blake Anderson’s first year but ended up winning
the conference. Their over/under win total was set at three victories, which they matched in the first three weeks, part of a 9-3 regular season. They added a 10th victory in the conference championship game against San Diego State. Anderson brought some of his own players from Arkansas State, including quarterback Logan Bonner, but many holdovers also made key impacts, including local Centennial High graduate wide receiver/returner Savon Scarver. 2019 winner: LouisianaLafayette
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■ The Spartans were also runners-up in the achievement award, going 10-2 on the season after their win total was set at 4.5. Bettors caught on to Michigan State being better than anticipated faster than bookmakers. The Spartans didn’t lose against the spread for their first eight games (though they did have two pushes), including popularly bet spots like a 20-15 win against Indiana as 3.5-point favorites. They finished the year 8-2-2 against the spread heading into a pick’em Peach Bowl against Pittsburgh on December 30. 2019 winner: Ohio State
o)
Bettors’ Choice: Michigan State (Team that made the most money for gamblers through point-spread victories)
■ Even in a year with long-shot power-conference champions like Pittsburgh in the ACC and Utah in the Pac-12, Baylor stood alone as the biggest surprise after coming into the season 80-to-1 to win the Big 12. The Bears largely did it by beating teams they weren’t supposed to, going 4-1 both straight-up and against the spread as underdogs. And they avenged the one loss in both categories, to Oklahoma State, by beating the Cowboys 21-16 as 7-point underdogs in the conference championship game. 2019 winner: Kansas State
(A
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RAIDERS Report
n LAST WEEK: CHIEFS 48, RAIDERS 9 In their fifth loss in the past six games, the Raiders hit rock bottom in Kansas City. Running back Josh Jacobs fumbled on the first play from scrimmage, and Chiefs cornerback Mike Hughes returned the takeaway 22 yards for a touchdown—yet the worst was still to come. The Chiefs led 35-0 before halftime after two more Las Vegas turnovers. The Raiders finished with five total giveaways— four lost fumbles were more like five after Foster Moreau bobbled a pass that was intercepted—and even gave up a final touchdown when Kansas City appeared to be attempting to run out the clock. The 39-point margin of the victory was the archrival Chiefs’ largest ever in the contentious series. n This Week: Raiders (6-7) at Browns (7-6) When: Saturday, December 18, 1:30 p.m. Where: FirstEnergy Stadium TV: NFL Network Radio: 920-AM, 92.3-FM Betting line: Browns -6.5, over/under 42.5 n Matchup: Though the Browns’ record is one win better than the Raiders’, the teams’ seasons have been similar in that Cleveland has had its share of baffling performances, including blowout losses and closegame collapses. It looked like the Browns, who once led 24-6 in the second half Sunday against Baltimore, were headed toward another collapse when they failed to recover a late onside kick to give the Ravens a chance for a game-winning drive in the final minute. Cleveland, led by Defensive Player of the Year candidate Myles Garrett at edge rusher, escaped with a 24-22 victory to keep its playoff hopes alive. Las Vegas won at FirstEnergy Stadium 16-6 early last season.
n Raider to Watch: Linebacker Divine Deablo The Raiders still technically have a chance to reach the postseason, but realistically, it seems next to impossible with how poorly they’re playing. The more important task for the next four weeks will be evaluating young players to see how they fit going forward. Deablo has been a bright spot in that regard; the rookie thirdround draft pick has shown flashes of playmaking ability the past two weeks. Injuries have thrust Deablo into the linebacking rotation, and he has more than held his own. The Raiders were looking to transition him from safety, where he played in college, to more of a hybrid linebacker, and Deablo might be ahead of schedule. –Case Keefer
47 I
Kansas City’s Juan Thornhill (22) and Charvarius Ward (35) tackle Raiders running back Josh Jacobs December 12 in Kansas City. (Peter Aiken/AP Photo)
S P O R T S
The final three awards are more subjective but were chosen after careful consideration from closely monitoring the betting market all season.
Underdog of the Year: Baylor (Team that performed best with the odds stacked against it)
ot
■ The Mean Green caught fire over the final month and a half of the season, covering five straight and winning their last four, including a regular season-closing 45-23 blowout win against Conference USA champion UTSA as 10-point underdogs. The run improbably led North Texas to bowl eligibility, and it will now have a chance to extend the nation’s longest covering streak to six games against Miami (Ohio) in the Frisco Classic. It also saved the job of coach Seth Littrell, who was considered a lock to be fired midseason. 2019 winner: Baylor
■ The Razorbacks had a knack for covering as underdogs in high-profile spots, like Week 2 against Texas (a 40-21 win at +6), Week 6 at Ole Miss (a 52-51 loss at +5) and Week 12 at Alabama (a 4235 loss at +20.5). Arkansas’ worst performance of the year was a 37-0 loss to Georgia as a 17-point underdog, but the Razorbacks were actually a popular bet, with the line moving in their direction ahead of that Week 5 showdown. In other words, Arkansas’ games usually ended with a lot of bettors crumbling up tickets and bookmakers raking in cash. 2019 winner: Auburn
Ph
Covering Streak of Excellence: North Texas (Team with the longest winning streak against the spread)
Bookmakers’ Choice: Arkansas (Team that made the most money for the house through point-spread victories)
L A S V E G A S W E E K LY
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VEGAS INC BUSINESS
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INDUSTRY
SWEET SIDE OF SOCIAL MEDIA: TIKTOK EXPANDS REACH OF ‘NEIGHBORHOOD’ BAKERY
A
BY BRYAN HORWATH VEGAS INC STAFF
TikTok user with a big following posted last year about the cookies at Tsp. Baking Company, which led to what owner Kari Garcia called an “explosion” of popularity on the platform. As of earlier this month, the North Las Vegas bakery had accumulated about 4.4 million likes on TikTok, directly helping increase the number of visitors to the business on North Decatur Boulevard and the 215 Beltway. Customers often tell bakery workers they wanted to stop in because they learned of the shop through social media. “What you can do with social media is amazing,” Garcia said. “I encourage any small business owners to utilize it. You never know when a post might blow up and who’s telling other people. If I’m not busy, I’ll do a TikTok video with a customer.” Last month, Tsp. received the inaugural Nevada Department of Agriculture’s Small Business of the Year award, beating out more than two dozen other candidates. “I never went to culinary school; I’m a home-taught baker,” Garcia said recently from her shop, which features a disco ball in the front customer-facing area. “In high school and up, I baked for fun, and I just got to the point where I knew I could do it professionally. I dove headfirst into it.” Garcia always wanted to run a neighborhood bakery. That’s what she feels Tsp. Baking Company—which she opened five years ago with her husband, Air Force Master Sgt. Richard Garcia—has grown into. Repeat business has been a staple of the shop.
In just a few years, Garcia and her staff have seen “quite a few” young couples get engaged, married and welcome children, all while celebrating with the bakery’s creations. Garcia also said the shop gets a lot of “military support.” “There aren’t a lot of mom-and-pop places around any longer,” Garcia said. “In Las Vegas, a lot of people come and go, so it’s not easy to have a neighborhood bakery. People tell me I should expand, but being here is my favorite part. If we had seven locations, I couldn’t do that.” Dillon Davidson, a senior trade officer with the Nevada Department of Agriculture, said Tsp. stood out among other applications for the
statewide award for several reasons. “They’ve been able to grow their business with the help of social media, and they source local ingredients and contribute to charitable organizations in the Las Vegas area,” Davidson said. “We wanted to find a Nevada business that exemplified why Nevada’s agriculture, food and beverage businesses are integral to the state.” While in the depths of the pandemic last year, Tsp. stayed afloat by offering pickup and delivery orders. Garcia also made use of pandemic-induced government small-business loan programs, which helped provide a financial cushion. Sometimes, Garcia said, regular customers would stop by at the height
of the pandemic to shove envelopes with money under the door. The biggest boost, though, has come from the success on social media, especially TikTok, an idea that came from Lucy Haskell, Garcia’s 16-year-old daughter, a junior at Arbor View High School. Lucy and her sister, Abbi Haskell, 23, a recent graduate of UNLV’s hospitality college, work at the bakery. “Lucy has been on [social media] since she was 9,” Garcia said. “I loved social media anyway, but when Lucy told me about TikTok, I was like ‘Oh, I can do this.’ ” And once they get in the door, Garcia—with her glittery eye makeup and an infectious positive outlook— does the rest. After helping a mother find the right cake—a “dirty cookie drip” cake stuffed with Oreos—for her 5-year-old son’s birthday party, Garcia pondered what she believes it means to be a small-business owner. “The dream is to be connected to the community, not to be capitalizing on the community,” she said. “I mean, we sell sugar, so how bad could any of this be?”
From left, Tsp. Baking Company counter manager Abbi Haskell, owner Kari Garcia and cake decorator Lauren Poulos (Wade Vandervort/Staff)
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VegasInc Notes The Neon Museum announced the promotion of Rob Wilson to guest experience director. He will oversee the museum’s largest and most critical department, which welcomes and interWilson acts with all visitors. Henderson Hospital received an “A” Leapfrog Hospital safety grade for fall 2021, marking its seventh consecutive “A” grade. This national distinction recognizes the hospital’s achievements in protecting patients from harm and error. Additionally, the hospital was named a Top Teaching Hospital by the Leapfrog Group for the second consecutive year; it had previously been named a Top General Hospital in 2018 and 2019. The Leapfrog Top Hospital award is one of the most competitive awards American hospitals can receive. Howard & Howard was named to the 2022 U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers Best Law Firms list in the following areas: Metropolitan Tier 1 for commercial litigation, construc-
tion law, franchise law and trademark law; Metropolitan Tier 2 in corporate law, labor law – management, litigation – construction, litigation – intellectual property, patent law and real estate law; and Metropolitan Tier 3 for employment law – management, litigation – banking and finance and litigation – labor & employment. The Commercial Alliance Las Vegas announced its newly elected officers and directors for 2022, with Angelina Scarcelli, CCIM, CPM of Colliers International becoming president Scarcelli of the commercial real estate organization starting January 1. Other newly elected members include: president-elect Natalie Allred, CPM, ARM, vice president of property management for American Nevada Company; treasurer Bridget Atterbom, CNE, a commercial broker at Keller Williams Commercial; director Nolan Julseth-White, CCIM, managing director of SVN, the Equity Group; and director Jennifer Weinberg, a residential and business
broker with BHHS Nevada Properties. Ferrari Public Affairs announced that the firm changed its name to Ferrari Reeder Public Affairs. Brian Reeder became the firm’s first partner in 2020 and the new name is reflective of his advancement in all Reeder aspects of company operations and the future direction of the firm. Additionally, Jimmy Lau was promoted to vice president. Loving Hearts Adoption Services hired Brittney Plichta as an adoption family care consultant. Plichta holds an associate degree in human services from Fullerton College and is Plichta pursuing a bachelor’s degree in social work from UNLV. At Loving Hearts, she will perform administrative and office support duties as well as aid with community and client/family outreach. The City of Henderson announced it received a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Municipal Equality Index for 2021. The index examines how inclusive municipal laws, policies and services are for the
VEGAS INC BUSINESS
LGBTQ+ community members who live and work within the surveyed cities. Criteria evaluated include nondiscrimination laws, the municipality as an employer, municipal services, law enforcement, LGBTQ+ equality leadership and more. Borg Law Group welcomed new associate Haley Price to the firm. She will focus on probate and estate law. Steve Westerman was named vice president of Cox Business, Las Vegas, consistently ranked among the top Cox Business markets nationwide. He leads sales and leadership efforts in the SouthWesterman ern Nevada commercial market, including small, medium and large businesses, government and community institutions. Westerman was previously senior director of business process for Cox Business in Atlanta. Natalie Allred joined American Nevada Company as vice president of property management. This is her second stint with the company, as she previously worked in the same capacity for Allred 18 years prior to 2014.
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