WE’RE CELEBRATING A LEGEND
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EDITORIAL
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Contributing Writers KYLE CHOUINARD, GRACE DA ROCHA,HILLARY DAVIS, HAAJRAH GILANI, MIKE GRIMALA, KATIE ANN MCCARVER, AYDEN RUNNELS, JACK WILLIAMS, ILANA WILLIAMS
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‘TIS THE SEASON FOR SPLENDOR
Escape to Winter Wonderland at Fontainebleau Las Vegas, featuring the Strip’s largest ice rink, a festive pop-up bar, holiday entertainment including Jennifer Hudson and Derek Hough, Santa Brunch, and more.
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SEPTEMBER 30TH -DECEMBER 23RD
WEEK’S
18 SELF-CARE & LEISURE LIFE
Skin care tips for the winter season, plus serums you can make at home.
22 COVER STORY
A legacy of stage magic is preserved and nutured in Wonderground at Area15.
A DiscoShow performer spices things up at Diner Ross. (Spiegelworld/Courtesy) 32 NEWS
A year after the overturning of affirmative action in higher education, UNLV has potential to become a diversity destination.
10 SUPERGUIDE
Jinkx Monsoon and BenDeLaCreme host a side-splitting holiday show at Virgin, and more happening this week.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
36 SCENE
The Global Gaming League gathers celebrities, video games and thrilling entertainment, all under one roof.
38 STAGE
Opera Las Vegas’ Holiday on Broadway concert returns with a mix of classic songs, surprising gems and local talent. 44 SPORTS
40 FOOD & DRINK Spiegelworld’s Diner Ross presents American comfort food classics turned upside-down and inside-out.
The return of our annual College Football Betting Awards honors the teams that stood out this season.
Photo Illustration by Brooke Everson
SUPERGUIDE
THURSDAY DEC 12
GARTH BROOKS
8 p.m., & 12/14-12/15, the Colosseum, ticketmaster.com
CODY JOHNSON
7:30 p.m., & 12/13, MGM Grand Garden Arena, axs.com
BARRY MANILOW Thru 12/14, 7 p.m., Westgate International Theater, ticketmaster.com
GARY LEFFEW’S BUCKAROO BALL Thru 12/14, 8 p.m., Downtown Las Vegas Events Center, universe.com
BELLAMY BROTHERS
10 p.m., Golden Nugget Theater, ticketmaster.com
WASP
With Armored Saint, 7 p.m., Brooklyn Bowl, ticketmaster.com
CORB LUND
10 p.m., & 12/13, the Space, thespacelv.com
DUSTY SLAY
9 p.m., David Copperfield Theater, mgmgrand. mgmresorts.com
YUNG GRAVY
10:30 p.m., Zouk Nightclub, zoukgrouplv.com
EAGLES
8:30 p.m., & 12/14, Sphere, ticketmaster.com.
SHANIA TWAIN
8 p.m., & 12/14, PH Live, thespacelv.com.
THOMAS RHETT
8 p.m., & 12/14, BleauLive Theater, ticketmaster.com.
WYNONNA JUDD
8:30 p.m., & 12/14, Venetian Theatre, ticketmaster.com.
LARRY FLEET
10 p.m., Golden Nugget Theater, ticketmaster.com.
ZACH TOP
With Red Shahan, 9 p.m., Brooklyn Bowl, ticketmaster. com.
VINCENT MASON
8:30 p.m., 24 Oxford, virginhotelslv.com.
UNLV HOCKEY VS. ARIZONA STATE
7:30 p.m., & 12/14, City National Arena, rebelhockey.com.
THE CHAINSMOKERS
10:30 p.m., XS Nightclub, wynnsocial.com.
RL GRIME
10:30 p.m., Zouk Nightclub, zoukgrouplv.com.
TRIVECTA
With Jaenga, VLCN, Honeymoonarcade, Calmastura, Forte & Mazdo, 10 p.m., Substance, seetickets.us.
BRIAN REGAN
9 p.m., & 12/14, Summit Showroom, ticketmaster.com.
JEFF FOXWORTHY
9 p.m., & 12/14, Pearl Concert Theater, ticketmaster.com.
STEVE TREVIÑO
9 p.m., & 12/14, David Copperfield Theater, mgmgrand. mgmresorts.com.
MUSIC PARTY
SPORTS ARTS FOOD COMEDY MISC
SATURDAY DEC 14
FERGUSONS TURNS 5 MARKET IN THE ALLEY
11 a.m., Fergusons Downtown, fergusonsdowntown. com
NEVADA BALLET
THEATRE: THE NUTCRACKER
2 & 7:30 p.m. (& thru 12/27, times vary), Reynolds Hall, thesmithcenter.com
EMIRATES NBA CUP SEMIFINALS
Times vary, T-Mobile Arena, axs.com
COLLEGE
BASKETBALL: JACK JONES
CLASSIC
Times vary (including UNLV vs. Pacific, 7:30 p.m.), Lee’s Family Forum, axs.com
CHARLEY CROCKETT
8 p.m., Theater at Virgin, axs.com
LYFE JENNINGS
8 p.m., House of Blues, concerts. livenation.com
FRANKY AND THE ALL NIGHTERS
9 p.m., Rocks Lounge, stationcasinoslive.com
DRAKE MILLIGAN
10 p.m., South Point Showroom, southpointcasino.com
ROSE OF SHARYN
With Pariah Was One, Haddonfield, Into Fruition, D’Angeled, 7 p.m., Sinwave, dice.fm
CHASE WRIGHT
8:30 p.m., 24 Oxford, virginhotelslv.com
ELATION 6 YEAR ANNIVERSARY
With Dustin Husain, Greg Downey, Indecent Noise, Sander van Doorn, Simon Patterson, 10 p.m., Discopussy, seetickets.us
T-PAIN
10:30 p.m., Zouk Nightclub, zoukgrouplv.com
JEEZY
With DJ Ace, 10:30 p.m., Drai’s Nightclub, draisgroup.com
DIPLO
10:30 p.m., XS Nightclub, wynnsocial.com
ROADHOUSE
10:30 p.m., Hakkasan Nightclub, taogroup.com
TYGA
10:30 p.m., Marquee Nightclub, taogroup.com
IGLESIAS
11 p.m., La Mona Rosa, seetickets.us
LAINEY WILSON
With Tracy Lawrence, Mae Estes, 7 p.m., MGM Grand Garden Arena, axs.com
YOUTH FOR YOUTH HOLIDAY CONCERT
Local teens Roxy and Skai Jones have performed holiday concerts since 2022, raising more than $50,000 for homeless youth in Las Vegas, according to their website. This year, the sisters have recruited ten of their most talented high school peers to perform and raise money for the Boys & Girls Club of Southern Nevada as well as the Forgotten Song Foundation, which supports young adults majoring in arts at the college level. “My goal is to bring young musicians together to make a meaningful difference in our community. This concert allows us to use our talents to give back, raising funds for underprivileged and homeless youth while spreading hope and joy through music,” says Roxy. In addition to music performances, there will be a silent auction and VIP reception. 3 p.m., $20-$50, Clark High School Performing Arts Theater, youthforyouth.vegas. –Shannon Miller
(Courtesy)
SUPERGUIDE
SUNDAY DEC 15
DISNEY JR. LIVE
4 p.m., Lee’s Family Forum, axs.com
ANTHONY RANERI
8 p.m., Backstage Bar & Billiards, seetickets.us
THE IRIE With The Riddims, Driftone, 7 p.m., Sinwave, seetickets.us
LEWIS BELT
7 p.m., Wiseguys Arts District, wiseguyscomedy.com
THE JINKX & DELA HOLIDAY
SHOW
Shantay, you sleigh! This weekend, drag royalty Jinkx Monsoon and BenDeLaCreme are bringing their seventh annual holiday show to the Theater at Virgin for an evening of festive, fab fun. This beloved, campy and comedic revue unites two of RuPaul’s Drag Race’s most iconic queens who truly shine through original musical numbers, side-splitting parodies of holiday classics and a theatrical storyline. Expect Monsoon’s sharp wit and powerhouse vocals to collide with DeLa’s retro glam and cheeky charm in a show that’s equal parts heart and humor. This is the perfect way to kick o your season of celebrations. Don’t miss all the jaw-dropping drag numbers, dazzling outfits and glittering holiday spirit. 7 p.m., $59+, Theater at Virgin, axs.com. –Gabriela Rodriguez
SONIA BARCELONA
When someone from Vegas finds success on the wider stage, it’s cause to celebrate. And local artist Sonia Barcelona has done just that. She’s opened for Japanese Breakfast, Sales and Deap Vally. And her song “Heart Station” was featured on episode 2 of the Netflix series The Brothers Sun, released earlier this year. “I’m stoked that they chose my music … and super stoked to share my stories for my next show,” Barcelona says. To celebrate her journey from Vegas open mics to bigger stages and screens, she’s hosting a showcase of her photography and music at an Arts District Gallery; the location will be revealed with ticket purchase. 7 p.m., $25, artofsonia.com. –Shannon Miller
LAS VEGAS RAIDERS VS. ATLANTA FALCONS
5:30 p.m., Allegiant Stadium, ticketmaster.com
LOU GRAMM ALLSTARS
7 p.m., Downtown Las Vegas Events Center, universe.com
TODD SIMON QUARTET
8 p.m., Maxan Jazz, maxanjazz.com
THE GAMBLER TAKEOVER
5-8 p.m., Amari Italian Kitchen & Wine Shop, amarilv.com
JERMAINE DUPRI
10:30 p.m., Jewel Nightclub, taogroup.com
LUENELL
9:30 p.m., Jimmy Kimmel’s Club, ticketmaster.com DO IT ALL
(Courtesy)
SUPERGUIDE
TUESDAY DEC 17
WEDNESDAY
MELODY SWEETS
8 p.m., Myron’s, thesmithcen ter.com
EMIRATES NBA CUP CHAMPIONSHIP
5:30 p.m., T-Mobile Arena, axs.com
THE SHOWDOWN AT SHADOW CREEK
1:30 p.m., Shadow Creek Golf Course, 1iota.com
HUMAN NATURE Thru 12/19, 6:30 p.m., South Point Showroom, ticketmaster.com
RETROSONIC
10 p.m., Sand Dollar Lounge, thesanddollarlv.com
NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS BURLESQUE & VARIETY SHOWCASE 9 p.m., Commonwealth, tixr.com
JEFF RETRO 10:30 p.m., Omnia Nightclub, taogroup.com
DAVID STANLEY: MY BROTHER ELVIS 5 p.m., Westgate International Theater, ticketmaster.com
BRUNO MARS
9 p.m., & 12/2012/21, Dolby Live, ticketmaster.com
REO SPEEDWAGON 8:30 p.m., & 12/20-12/21, Venetian Theatre, ticketmaster.com
CANDLELIGHT: HOLIDAY SPECIAL FEATURING THE NUTCRACKER
DJ FRANZEN
10:30 p.m., Hakkasan Nightclub, taogroup.com DO IT
6 p.m., & 12/19, 12/23, Industrial Event Space, theindustrialvegas. com
(Courtesy/The Smith Center for the Performing Arts)
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SELF-CARE & LEISURE LIFE SKIN CARE
MERRY AND BRIGHT
Tips for winter skin care
+ Make your own serums (see page 20) Shutterstock/Photo Illustration
BRIGHT
BY DIANA EDELMAN
We all know what that winter skin feels like—itchy, aky, cracked, dry. It’s one of the downsides of the more arid and mild winters we get in the desert. The Valley’s low humidity combined with indoor heating does a doozy on your skin, drawing precious moisture out of the skin’s outer layer, which disrupts its natural barrier function (particularly noticeable in the hands and face) and sometimes leaving people with skin ailments.
But your skin doesn’t have to stay that way. In fact, it shouldn’t, according to Dr. HL Greenberg, board-certi ed dermatologist and founder of Las Vegas Dermatology.
“This is the [skin] you get for the rest of your life, so why wouldn’t you treat it with respect?” Greenberg says. His advice to keep your winter skin moisturized and healthy in the winter isn’t for any speci c group of people— it’s for everyone.
The dermatologist, who shares all sorts of dermatology-related content on his 61,000-follower YouTube channel, is quick to point out that the sun is the skin’s enemy, and avoidance is key. He suggests getting your Vitamin D in pill
form instead of from sun exposure, even during the winter. And a humidi er in your bedroom or o ce can help skin keep its moisture.
But more importantly, Greenberg suggests implementing this morning routine: After waking up and bathing, moisturize your skin to replenish the oil barrier that was removed by soap. Then, if you want to keep your skin looking fresh and younger, Greenberg recommends applying anti-aging products like vitamin A and hyaluronic acid (for example, Alastin, Hydrinity or SkinCeuticals).
“The key to well-moisturized skin is repairing the skin’s barrier when it is broken down,” Greenberg says. He suggests opting for creams versus lotions, because they’re thicker and moisturize the skin better.
Folks who have cracked skin, ssures or chapped lips should grab Vaseline to help heal it. And, for people who have allergies to skin care products or have skin conditions such as acne or eczema, an at-home skincare regimen may not be enough. In that case, it’s necessary to get evaluated and treated by a dermatologist.
If you’re looking for deeper winter treatments, Greenberg suggests a Hydrafacial, a med-
ical-grade skin treatment that cleanses, exfoliates, extracts and hydrates the skin. He also suggests a broadband light treatment to remove red and brown spots, microneedling or CO2 laser or non-abrasive laser treatments for skin tightening.
“Think of topical moisturization as eating, and skin care procedures as lifting weights,” he says. “You need to do both to look your best.”
When it comes to products, Greenberg has his favorites.
“I’m liking the Alastin and Hydrinity line of products for washes and topical anti-aging treatments,” he says. “Budget options would be Cetaphil or CeraVe lines.”
SELF-CARE & LEISURE LIFE SKIN CARE
SKIP STORE-BOUGHT SKIN SERUMS BY MAKING YOUR OWN
BY DIANA EDELMAN
There are a million di erent types of serums you can get to care for your skin—from tightening to toning, reducing the appearance of wrinkles, hydration and even protection against UVA, UVB and blue light.
It’s easy to drop more than a pretty penny on these, but with a little creativity, you don’t necessarily need to.
To make your own skin serums at home, rst you’ll need a carrier oil, a plantbased oil which helps dilute your serums for topical applications. You might also like to include essential oils.
Dark colored glass bottles with droppers are best for storage and application.*
CARRIER OILS
Carrier oils are the base for crafting your serums.
Argan oil
Good for dry or inflamed skin and rich in vitamins E and A, along with fatty acids. It’s also great for reducing split ends, moisturizing the scalp and making hair shiny.
Avocado oil
A thick oil that has omega-3 and -6, vitamins A and E, and can improve skin and hair health.
Coconut oil
Contains healthy fats that can moisturize the body, and is excellent for skincare and haircare.
* People with skin allergies or sensitivities should consult a dermatologist before trying homemade serums. Be sure to test any serum and ingredients on a small patch of skin on your inner wrist before applying to any larger part of your body. Di erent skin types might react di erently to the ingredients listed here.
Grapeseed oil
Has vitamin E, omega-6 fatty acids, is easily absorbed and can be used to prevent signs of aging, dryness and even discoloration.
ESSENTIAL OILS
Castor oil
Has anti-inflammatory properties that can help reduce swelling and reduce scars and dryness.
Vitamin E oil
Has anti-aging properties and can help soothe skin issues and improve skin elasticity.
Consider adding these to your carrier oil for di erent e ects.
Geranium oil
This anti-inflammatory and antiseptic essential oil has been shown to reduce acne breakouts, skin irritations and inflammation when applied topically.
Frankincense oil
Harvested from the Boswellia tree, this essential oil has been shown to have anti-aging effects when applied to skin.
Lemongrass oil
Just as a lemon might make your lips pucker, lemongrass essential oil can have a similar tightening e ect on skin, and it works as an astringent.
(Shutterstock/Photo
(Illustration by Ian Racoma)
BY AMBER SAMPSON
Anyone who’s seen Je McBride’s 1985 mask act will swear it’s a sight of pure sorcery. The master magician engages in a kabuki-inspired spectacle, blurring traditional Japanese dance, martial arts and mime as he materializes masks and his entire wardrobe changes out of thin air. His sleight of hand too fast to detect by the human eye, McBride cinematically achieves the impossible—and that’s just within the rst few minutes. Before he’s done, he’ll have ribbon-danced in fresh face paint, performed his world-famous linking rings routine and re-established himself as one of the most in uential magicians to ever declare “Abracadabra.”
Some 40 years later, McBride still brings that level of commitment to everything he does, even if he probably doesn’t have to anymore. He’s opened for Diana Ross at the Circus Maximus Showroom at Caesars Palace. He’s fooled Penn & Teller on their own TV show. He’s headlined at the Las Vegas Hilton and established his own magic school. Yet when it comes to Wonderground, a monthly magic show and meeting of magicians that’s been running for the past 15 years, he still puts his best tricks forward.
McBride founded the show as a “kind of Magic Castle meets Burning Man,” recently passing the reins on to his magical apprentice, Will Bradshaw, who remains in awe of his mentor.
“Every month, for 15 years, Je has brought a new piece of magic every time. That’s like a composer writing a new piece of music every month,” says Bradshaw, a magician of 20 years. “There’s something really inspiring about that where you go forward and say, well, if Je can do a new one every month, I can do a new one every three months.”
At Wonderground, Bradshaw and McBride have conjured a sense of camaraderie in Las Vegas, arguably the world capital of magic. Illusionists and entertainers from around the world plan trips around it, eager to incite a little wonder of their own at this intimate variety show. One recent Thursday night at
Wonderground at Area15 draws a swell of conversation as Strip headliner Xavier Mortimer pops in. The French “Dream Maker” is ever-charming as he makes the rounds, even before he steps onstage to delight with a mind-bending phone trick. Bobby Berosini Jr., a magician whose father headlined Lido de Paris at the Stardust in the ’80s, applauds from the audience, joined by scores of other magicians who’ve set aside their evenings for the three-hour extravaganza that is Wonderground
“In order for a young magician, male or female, or variety act, to perform in Vegas, you have to fourwall a room. So we created this oasis of a community that people can step into and be witnessed, showing what they’ve worked on all their lives,” McBride says. “Magicians always are hungry to feed their imaginations with new, exciting magic that is groundbreaking, and those are the people we book. And people come from all over the world to work on our stage.”
Douglas “Lefty” Leferovich, a veteran magician, comedian and producer who leads the adults-only Late Night Magic at the Orleans, creates a similar space for magicians to do what they enjoy doing most. Leferovich has been in Vegas since 2002, back when casinos were still paying for the production of shows.
Nowadays, entertainers have to enter those four-wall agreements, meaning they rent the space and must take responsibility for the costs of the show. That puts a tremendous nancial strain on the performers. But breaking into stage magic on the Strip is tough business.
“There’s not a lot of variety spots,” Leferovich says. “If you can’t get into an Absinthe or a Spiegelworld show, or you don’t t the mold of being in a Cirque [du Soleil] show, there’s not a lot of places for a variety act.
“There [are] performers who don’t have the notoriety of winning America’s Got Talent, or they don’t have connections to bring on an investor and a producer. So there’s talented people who don’t have the resources. Their talent is what they do. With Late Night Magic, it’s great that I
can showcase a variety of performers doing their best material.”
Leferovich’s collaborations with the community run the gamut. The New Yorker has been a creative consultant for Jen Kramer’s show at Westgate and he starred as the longtime guest act of Murray Sawchuck at the Tropicana.
“Another great thing that Je did with his Wonderground show, because it was geared more toward locals, is he would give people an opportunity to try something new,”
Leferovich says. “I could have someone try something new in the middle of the show, but because it’s a ticketed show and we’re going after tourists, obviously I want the show to be as good as possible. Je really opened up the door to, ‘You’re gonna go to Europe and do a TV show. You’re working on something new. You really want to do it in front of an audience. Why don’t you come and do it [at Wonderground]?’”
Since he arrived in Las Vegas in the 1980s, McBride has tried to cultivate that sense of inclusion and connection.
“I was part of a performance art community in New York City in my teens and early 20s, and there was this guy named Tom Murrin, the Alien Comic. He would do a new
show every month,” McBride recalls. “Some of it was brilliant. Some of it wasn’t. But I would go to see his shows and say, ‘Man, this guy is creative. How does he do it?’ He didn’t do it alone. He had the community around him.”
In an industry where secrets are as good as currency, Las Vegas’ best magicians rarely keep their love for their community con dential. From the time he was six years old, when two twin sisters showed him his rst card trick, McBride has been a student. And after over 30 years of apprenticing under the late closeup magician and mentalist Eugene Burger, he’s now the teacher.
In 1991, he established the McBride Magic & Mystery School to help train the next generation and preserve the practice so many performers hold dear.
Sinking into a rustic wooden chair draped in fur in the school’s living room, McBride casually mentions some of the magicians who’ve sat in these very seats, including Lance Burton, Criss Angel, Shin Lim and his beloved student Mat Franco. Over the years, McBride has kept many mementos from the America’s Got
Je McBride (left) and Will Bradshaw. (Christopher DeVargas/ Sta )
Talent champion and longtime headliner at the Linq, who says McBride had a profound e ect on him.
“Je is the reason I’m in show business in the rst place,” says Franco, who has starred in Magic Reinvented Nightly for a decade on the Strip. “I saw him on TV in 1995 performing his world-famous mask act and his card manipulation act, and it quite literally changed my life forever.”
Before he was even a teenager, Franco, a self-taught magician from Rhode Island, traveled to Las Vegas to take one of McBride’s master classes.
“Just imagine what my teachers thought the rst week of September when I’m skipping school to go to Las Vegas for a week,” Franco laughs. “But I was very serious about it, even at the age of 12.”
“You grow up idolizing a certain singer or comedian, and now all of a sudden, you’re able to spend three
days learning from them. It was very inspiring,” he continues. “From the very beginning, all the way up until I took the plunge to do magic full-time as an adult years ago, Je was always, always really encouraging.”
Bradshaw, now master of ceremonies at Wonderground, can attest to McBride’s impact and dedication to sharing the art. At 17, he started practicing magic, observing McBride’s VHS teaching tapes. In 2004, at a Harry Houdini convention in Appleton, Wisconsin, the duo o cially met.
“My mom told me, ‘You should go up and talk to him,’ but it was unthinkable for a 17-year-old to do that,” Bradshaw says. “So I’m having this conversation with my mom, and Abby, Je ’s wife, notices and whispers into Je ’s ear. He comes over and says, ‘Hello, my name is Je McBride. I was a little too nervous to come over, but my wife convinced me. Can I do some magic for you?’” Bradshaw had originally commit-
ted to studying psychology, but this encounter shifted everything. He performed his rst magic act at a burlesque show, where he lied about his age to get in. Set on becoming McBride’s apprentice, Bradshaw spent years perfecting his craft, even as McBride kept telling him no.
“He told me this story of the young initiates going up to the Shaolin temples, and they would be thrown out three times before they would be admitted. So, you’re not ready, but don’t give up,” Bradshaw explains.
Eager to enroll in McBride’s master class in Vegas, the young magician took a gamble of his own.
“I came down to Vegas with $7.50 in my pocket, and I went down to Fremont Street, and I made a goal that within one month, I would earn enough money only doing magic to pay for the tuition for the class,” Bradshaw says.
He worked eight-hour days, six days a week, saving every last penny
from his Fremont gig.
“Two days before the class, I show up, I knock on Je ’s door, and I have a little du el bag with me, and I walk right in here,” he continues, gesturing around the living room. “I sit right where you are, and I open up the du el bag and it is lled with one dollar bills.”
“Enough to pay his tuition,” adds McBride. “It was like a trial by re down on Fremont Street. He was working there day after day after day. That’s going to get you good.”
As McBride’s apprentice, Bradshaw has traveled the world with his world-famous mentor. He’s performed at the historic Magic Castle in Los Angeles and opened for McBride in China. But there comes a time when the student must surpass the teacher.
After the pandemic, when many magic shows began to open again, the question of what would happen
Je McBride (right) and Will Bradshaw. (Christopher DeVargas/Sta )
with Wonderground came to a head.
“[Will] said, ‘Let’s keep Je McBride’s Wonderground going.’ And I said, no, if we’re going to do it, it’s going to be an example of passing on lineage, passing on the wand to future generations,” McBride says.
When the show returned to its new location at Area15 in 2024, it did so under a new name: Will Bradshaw’s Wonderground
That switch behind them, McBride and Bradshaw are now eager to share something else: a particular bookshelf in the Magic & Mystery School. It’s nondescript, if not a little forgettable at rst glance. But then McBride deals out instructions.
“You take your index nger and point it right there and say, ‘Abracadabra,’” McBride commands.
I repeat the word, and suddenly the shelving of books pushes inward, revealing a secret room hidden behind it.
“Welcome to the mystery school,” McBride says. “This is where the history of magic lives.”
And it’s not an exaggeration. Hundreds of old, dusty books line
the shelves. The spines appear worn, pages brittle, but the content of their history remains concrete and unchanging. There’s books about seasonal sorcery, alchemy and parlor tricks. Others demand a little more care, like the 1558 copy of Giambattista della Porta’s Natural Magick, one of the oldest magic books in the world, which sits on a podium.
“The best place to hide a secret is in a book,” Bradshaw says. “And so you can nd old books on magic where you can rediscover secrets which are no longer being performed. Because every 10 years or so, magic continues to go through waves of what is popular and what is not. If you go back 30 or 40 years, you can start being ahead for the next wave.”
Las Vegas’ magical history has a similar narrative. Oakland’s Gloria Dea performed the rst magic act on the Strip in 1941 at the El Rancho Vegas, but at that time, magic was still a hard sell.
In the ’60s, revues like Lido De Paris and Folies Bergère became all the rage. “And all of a sudden, the big style of entertainment turned into
“Je really opened up the door to, ‘You’re gonna go to Europe and do a TV show. You’re working on something new. You really want to do it in front of an audience. Why don’t you come and do it [at Wonderground]?’” –Douglas “Lefty” Leferovich
Douglas “Lefty” Leferovich (Shane O’Neal/ SON Studios)
John Shaw, Hollie England, Douglas “Lefty” Leferovich, The Shocker and Bizzaro from Late Night Magic (Gabe Ginsberg/Courtesy)
these staircases and showgirls with feathers, which was very French in its origin. All the casinos went feathers,” McBride says.
Shows wanted more variety acts, which is how many magicians found their inroad.
“Siegfried & Roy, a lot of people don’t know, started as a specialty act in Folies at the Tropicana. …They eventually, over time, grew with material, and then they became their own show. Same with Lance Burton,” Leferovich says. “Lance Burton did an act, I believe for nine years in Folies, and after the rst four or ve, he started doing half of his dove act. Then he would start incorporating new material. So when the opportunity presented itself, and he moved his show to the Hacienda, which is where Mandalay Bay is now, he had tested all his material.”
For a while, you could be an act but not a headliner, McBride says. It wasn’t until the ’80s and ’90s that Vegas doubled down on magic. Caesars Palace even launched Caesars Magical Empire, an immersive venue with underground catacombs, in 1996. And Vegas’ magical reputation and community of entertainers has only grown. There are currently more magicians here per capita than anywhere else.
“Magic is like the primary language here,”
McBride says.
“I saw him on TV in 1995 performing his world-famous mask act and his card manipulation act, and it quite literally changed my life forever.”
Over the last few years, Bradshaw has noticed magic getting more intimate again.
“Pre-COVID, everybody loved these big circus shows. Now, post-COVID ... magic is coming up in these really fantastic, intimate show settings. Now, people go forward and say, ‘Wait, I could go and be an ant on an anthill, or I could be one of 60 people in a show that is just for us,’ and suddenly you get more connection with the performers,” he says.
That connection, via magic, is a gift. And it’s something McBride hopes to see continue being shared in the city.
“From the earliest times, people gathered around the tribal re. Thousands of years ago, when the sun would set, people would come to where the light was, to make magic and share stories. And the same thing happens in Las Vegas each night,” McBride says. “When the sun goes down, people come to where the light is. And whether they know it or not, they’re re-enacting this very ancient, timeless ritual of sharing stories. Because where there’s light, there’s magic. And Las Vegas has more light per square inch than anywhere else in the world.”
Leah Orleans is the daughter of Chicago magicians Danny Orleans and Jan Rose, and she followed her parents into the classic world of live entertainment by training in acrobatics, contortion and more. Her touring, one-woman Tiny Big Girl Show sees Orleans juggling fire, using a bullwhip while riding a unicycle, and keeping audiences laughing and cheering.
For her next trick, she’s producing the inaugural Mystify Magic Festival, coming to Las Vegas March 10-12 at Santa Fe Station, a sort of convention festival focused on women, LGBTQ entertainers and promoting overall diversity in the magic industry. It’s being promoted as an inclusive experience where magicians, variety entertainers and magic enthusiasts of all ages, backgrounds and gender identities can connect, share skills and learn from each other.
“With this first-of-its-kind festival, I aim to send a shockwave of inspiration and encouragement,” Orleans said in a statement. “We’re here to make space for women and LGBTQ+ individuals who are ready to take their entertainment career to new heights. I believe opportunities come from people, and by being in the same room with the best in the business, the opportunities for change and growth are finally within reach.”
Among the performers scheduled to appear for panels, workshops and other events are: Alexandra Duvivier, the French female magician who fooled Las Vegas’ own Penn & Teller on their magic competition show Penn & Teller: Fool Us; Los Angeles “mystery entertainer” Krystyn Lambert, who has performed with Criss Angel; veteran British closeup magician Fay Presto; magician, speaker and author Nicole Cardoza; drag entertainer Miss Uchawi and many more.
Attendees can register for the event or find more information at mystifymagicfestival.com, and some scholarships are available. –Brock Radke
-Matt Franco on Je McBride
Nicole Cardoza (right) and Miss Uchawi (Courtesy) (Courtesy)
HOLIDAY DINNER SHOW NOV 27 – DEC 25
SCAN FOR TICKETS
IN THE NEWS
“At the Nevada Secretary of State’s office, we are committed to running the most secure elections in the country, and by incorporating blockchain technology into the certification process, we are taking this commitment to the next level.”
—Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar
HOLIDAY CHEER
A runner heads out on the annual
in Downtown Las Vegas on December 7. Thousands of runners dressed in Santa
took part in the fundraiser for Opportunity Village, a nonprofit that assists people with intellectual disabilities and their families.
(Steve Marcus/Staff)
Great Santa Run
suits
STUFF YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT
Odom leaves UNLV for Purdue
After turning around the UNLV football program and leading the Scarlet and Gray to new heights in his two years on the job, Barry Odom is leaving to become the head coach at Purdue.
Purdue announced Odom’s hiring on Sunday morning.
Odom turned UNLV into a legitimate Mountain West contender during his short stint in Las Vegas, a feat that some deemed
HEALTH CARE
impossible before his arrival. The Oklahoma native also had the Scarlet and Gray ranked No. 19 in the AP Top 25 and on the precipice of the College Football Playoff before a December 6 loss at Boise State in the conference title game.
Purdue offered Odom a major raise. Odom made $1.75 million in 2024, and his salary was set to escalate to $2.4 million in
2028, the final year of his contract. Purdue paid its last coach, Ryan Walters, $4 million in 2024, and he is still owed more than $9 million after being fired.
Odom went 19-8 overall and ran up a 12-3 record in the Mountain West. UNLV hosted the 2023 MWC championship, marking the program’s first-ever appearance in the title game.
–Mike Grimala
Nevada district attorneys escalate ‘parental notice’ abortion lawsuit
A pair of Nevada district attorneys have mounted a legal challenge to reinstate a 1980s Nevada law that would prevent minors from getting an abortion without a parent being notified.
After Planned Parenthood challenged the law in 1985, citing the then-constitutional right to an abortion, a state judge put the law on hold. But with the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022, Carson City District Attorney Jason Woodbury and Lyon County DA Stephen Rye began looking to reverse the Nevada court’s decades-old decision as well.
“Every single day, there are immature minors who would benefit from involvement of their parents that are seeking abortions,” said James Bopp Jr., a prolific anti-abortion lawyer acting as counsel for the two district attorneys. “Some of them are being exploited by sexual predators who want to
cover up their crimes.”
After hearing arguments from the district attorneys and Planned Parenthood Mar Monte of Northern California in October about whether the law should be reinstated, a federal district court responded that both the DAs and Planned Parenthood needed to address “alternative constitutional grounds” for keeping the injunction. Planned Parenthood Mar Monte’s coverage includes Northern Nevada.
In the meantime, the federal judge ruled that the law would stay dormant.
On November 21, Woodbury and Rye appealed that decision, arguing to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that it should remove the request for additional information and lift the order barring parental notice.
The judge is “setting up a situation where she would litigate other possible claims,” Bopp
said. “We just think that is completely contrary to the rules. It’s unlawful to keep the injunction in effect once the basis for it has been overturned.”
Parental notice was enforced in Illinois for nearly a decade until its state legislature repealed it in 2021. The Illinois American Civil Liberties Union fought the legislation the whole time, emphasizing that if minors couldn’t notify a limited group of relatives, they had to make their case before a judge.
“These forced parental-involvement laws impact those who are in precarious or dangerous situations—fearing physical or emotional abuse, getting kicked out of the house, or being forced to continue a pregnancy against their wishes,” the Illinois American Civil Liberties Union chapter wrote.
Planned Parenthood Mar Monte isn’t commenting on the case. –Kyle Chouinard
Power of Love Gala to honor Jimmy Kimmel
Keep Memory Alive’s 28th annual Power of Love Gala, set for February 22 at MGM Grand Garden Arena to raise funds for the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, will honor TV host and comedian Jimmy Kimmel for his accomplishments in entertainment and his support of the organization. The gala’s Community Leadership Award will be presented to Lovee and Bob Arum, founders of Top Rank Boxing, and chefs Wolfgang Puck and Thomas Keller will collaborate on the event’s menu. More info can be found at keepmemory alive.org –Staff
DINING
BY THE NUMBERS
$300,000
That’s how much federal funding the nonprofit Asian Community Development Council will receive to assist in the U.S. citizenship process for lawful permanent residents of Nevada, according to an announcement from U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen and Catherine Cortez Masto. The nonprofit will use the award to expand its citizenship preparation services, helping prepare for the naturalization process and fostering integration into U.S. society.
One of the Las Vegas Valley’s most beloved neighborhood restaurants will be closing in the spring. DW Bistro, opened in 2009 in the southwest area by Bryce Krausman and Dalton Wilson, announced it will close its doors after one final brunch service on April 6, 2025. Located at the Gramercy, the restaurant is planning a series of special events leading to the closure and is currently selling tickets for its New Year’s Eve dinner event featuring singer Skye Dee Miles. More info can be found at dwbistro.com. –Staff
MULTICULTURAL CAMPUS
A year after the overturning of affirmative action in higher education, UNLV has potential to become a diversity destination
BY AMBER SAMPSON
It’s been more than a year since the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a ruling that struck down affirmative action in colleges and universities, and the consequences of that ruling have finally reached the surface.
Last August, the New York Times reported a significant dip in Black, Hispanic, Native American and Pacific Islander student enrollment in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) 2028 class. In some cases, such as the percentage of Black students, enrollment numbers plummeted from 15% to 5% in contrast with MIT’s 2027 class. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill also saw only 7.8% in Black enrollments this fall, which pales in comparison to the 10.5% of Black first-year students of last fall, according to a UNC report. Similarly to MIT, UNC revealed sweeping drops in enrollment for Black and Indigenous students and people of color, with the exception of Asian-American students.
In spite of those drop-offs, UNLV has seen significant success that could position it as a model for diversity. In a statement immediately following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to eliminate race considerations in college admissions, UNLV officials said the ruling would not fundamentally impact the university’s open-access admission policy or its mission to champion inclusion and equality in its student body.
The school has visibly kept that word. UNLV consistently ranks among the top five most diverse universities for undergrads in the country, sharing that honor with campuses like Stanford and the University of San Francisco. But it recently celebrated another major milestone.
“UNLV welcomed our largest-ever enrollment this fall—which was driven by one of the most diverse first-year classes in our history,” UNLV President Keith E. Whitfield tells the Weekly. “This is reflective of our community’s rich diversity and a testament to dedicated staff and faculty who are committed to the
success of every UNLV student. We will continue to promote a culture of belonging for all of our students, faculty and staff, and we’re proud to deliver a worldclass education that both celebrates and serves students from all backgrounds.”
The Office of Decision Support reported a significantly diverse incoming class with 38.6% Hispanic, 16.8% Black and 3.5% Native American students enrolled.
“Urban research universities have a chance to step up like nobody’s business,” says Steven Nelson, associate professor of education policy and leadership at UNLV. “It provides an opening for us to take advantage of the students who would have ordinarily wanted to go to an Ivy League school, a public Ivy, who now will be staying closer to home for a variety of reasons.
the Commerce Clause was crucial to getting rid of slavery, and someone literally turned around to me and said, ‘How did it feel to be a slave?’ … You don’t get those types of questions when you have a critical mass, because someone else would be outraged.”
Affirmative action was originally established in the 1960s to create equal opportunity for underrepresented and marginalized people. Many, however, view it as the opposite. Oftentimes diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and programs like affirmative action are seen as unfair; a means of advancing groups based on their skin color rather than their skills and qualifications. The term “token minority” is still thrown around, even though affirmative action applicants remain highly qualified. This upended cry for equality by dismantling DEI initiatives has only spread since the Supreme Court’s June 2023 ruling.
“Four out of every five faculty members went to the same 20 schools. So even when you think about the idea of going to these select schools, most of us were trained by the same people,” he continues. “The same education you’re getting at [University of] Wisconsin-Madison is probably the education you’re getting at a UNLV. Now we have the opportunity to actually let people know that we are a legitimate research university, with renowned faculty members, and we’re doing it slightly differently.”
The desire to be in places where students feel welcome explains why enrollment at Historically Black College and Universities (HBCU), Hispanic-serving institutions and other minority institutions has also ballooned, Nelson says. “They want to see people on campus who look like them, and they want to be treated justly,” Nelson says. “No one is signing up to be ostracized and to be treated like a pariah.”
“When I went to Iowa for law school, I was the only Black male in my cohort,” he recalls. “I remember we were talking about slavery and how
As it continues to champion diversity on campus, UNLV has stepped forward in numerous ways. Its We Need to Talk series has brought community experts and faculty together to engage in open dialogues around topics like racism, education, criminal justice, Las Vegas’ LGBTQ+ history and more. It has held several student and faculty summits to continue these collaborative discussions. In 2021, UNLV also established the Equity Institute Online program to educate faculty and staff on core issues of DEI to better support students. And just this summer, UNLV’s Minority Serving Institution Task Force launched a survey to gain insight into how specific groups and underserved individuals are being served by initiatives on campus and what needs to be improved.
Now, organizations are questioning just how important DEI initiatives are across the board. This year, legislators introduced a “Dismantle DEI Act” bill that’s gaining traction. Walmart recently made headlines for rolling back its DEI policies, and the University of Michigan, once a champion of diversity, has announced it will no longer require diversity statements from faculty and potential hires.
Brittani Sterling, a social sciences and interdisciplinary studies librarian and assistant professor at UNLV, says the DEI acronym itself has been “semantically bleached” of its meaning. Some parts of it are applied, while others are completely ignored.
Sterling says she entered librarianship fully realizing the field wasn’t diverse. Around 87% of librarians are white, with Black people accounting for less than 7%. Yet, she also knew her presence in that space mattered. Defying statistics to be a Black female librarian is something to aspire to. But more than anything, she hopes more marginalized students will aspire to be faculty in general.
“D and I are easy to address, whether it’s universities, big business, government entities. But people have a real hard time being like, ‘This is what equity means.’ It means that if you are going to give people equal opportunities or give them an equal experience, that might mean getting them there in different ways, and that’s the part people don’t like,” says Sterling. “It’s almost like the E is holding it together. It’s the ampersand but people don’t want to actually acknowledge what it takes to do the E.”
“A thing we do talk about at UNLV a lot is making sure that students see faculty that look like them. What we don’t talk about is the challenge of getting faculty there. And this is why this decision is both troubling, but will have real consequences,” Sterling says. “If you can’t get students in the pipeline, you can’t get grad students. You can’t get grad students, you can’t get faculty.”
Diversifying UNLV’s faculty isn’t just the next step, it’s the natural step. Our country’s cultural makeup is changing. Without that embrace of diversity, “we stand to lose as a society,” Nelson says. “It sets us up for not fully engaging the changing demographics in this country and the changing perspectives in this country.”
“I think that’s the positive of not just UNLV, but these urban research universities,” Nelson says. “They may not be your UCLA or USC in prestige and endowment, but we are who we are, we serve who we serve, and we’re proud to do it.”
GRINDING TO GREATNESS
Global Gaming League is bringing celebrities, video games and thrilling entertainment together under one roof
From left, Jermaine Dupri, Clinton Sparks and T-Pain at a pre-launch event for Global Gaming League (Courtesy/Global Gaming League)
BY AMBER SAMPSON
With the NFL in our backyard and MLB on the way, it’s time we started thinking about another Las Vegas sports division: the Global Gaming League.
The brainchild of Clinton Sparks, a Grammy-nominated producer and co-founder of the professional gaming and lifestyle brand XSET, the Vegas-based GGL disrupts the traditional esports model by connecting competitive video gaming culture with entertainment. Imagine all the spectacle and drama of a WWE match, paired with the professionalism and prestige of the NFL and celebrity team owners calling the shots.
“You need to bring all these things together,” says Sparks. “When you see Swae Lee hanging out with Sylvester Stallone, it changes things. When you see Snoop Dogg with Martha Stewart, it changes things. It connects cultures. It builds bridges. It closes age gaps. It makes people more connected globally.”
If there’s anyone who could bring a star-studded endeavor like this to Las Vegas, it’s Sparks. The tastemaker has produced music for
Lady Gaga’s Born This Way. He’s been lowered in via helicopter to perform a DJ set in Vegas. And he’s propelled renowned esports teams like FaZe Clan forward, reining in high-profile investments from Pitbull and Migos’ Offset during a time when that seemed insane.
With the GGL, Sparks has established a wide and varying leadership team that includes everyone from rapper and avid Twitch streamer T-Pain to Las Vegas hospitality veteran Jason “JRoc” Craig. Sparks fully expects the league to ruffle esports fans’ feathers as they bring celebrities into the fold. But there’s a reason the WWE ballooned in popularity after introducing storylines and crossover celebs and creating monumental characters.
“I didn’t know much about wrestling, I just knew Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant. It was the names that started getting you excited,” Sparks says. “So basically implementing the same thing that’s worked in the most multi-billion dollar way with WWE, that could literally be transferred into gaming.”
That line of thinking also applies to the recent boxing match between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson. It was the most streamed sporting event in history, and not because all 108 million Netflix viewers were boxing fans.
GGL owns 50% of the team as well and handles all the managing, staffing and merchandising. The league then curates a group of casual and skilled gamers to participate in live competitions over a 61-match season. A fourth team member will then be selected through a global nomination process. And like any athlete, team members are compensated, in this case with a $50,000 base salary.
“When you come from the hood, like me, you look at music and sports as a way out,” Sparks says. “Gaming is a third vertical that no one’s talking about, and it’s faster, cheaper and safer. There’s nothing out here that’s showing people that or educating them or enlightening them or empowering them to participate.”
The GGL will debut its 43,000-square-foot campus at its grand opening in Las Vegas on December 14, along with the GGL Academy. “I’m really excited for that because it’s creating this new pathway for gamers to essentially become professionals where maybe there wasn’t that structure before,” Craig adds.
The same goes for the record-breaking Fortnite session
Twitch streamer Ninja hosted with Drake in 2018. That collaboration brought a whole new audience to the video gaming platform.
So far, celebrities like Jermaine Dupri, T-Pain, Lil Durk, Nick Cannon and Bryce Hall have already signed on as team owners. The
Sparks says they’ll also work with the local gaming community as the league prepares for its inaugural season launching in May 2025. He’s in talks with various streaming platforms and networks to broadcast the competitions, which will operate like “a mini ComplexCon,” with meet and greets and merch drops happening throughout the day.
The goal is to bring more legitimacy to gaming as a career and to erase the stigma that gaming is just for kids and nerds, he says.
“It’s for everybody. The average age of a gamer is 34 years old. When you tell people how many women game, they’re blown away,” Sparks says. “There’s scholarships for gaming now. It helps with critical thinking, problem solving in the future. Engineers are gamers. Studies show that it helps with depression. There’s just so much value behind gaming.”
Jason “JRoc” Craig (Courtesy/Global Gaming League)
HOLIDAY ON BROADWAY December 14, 2 pm, free. Windmill Library, operalasvegas.com.
STAGE
JOYOUS JINGLES
BY GABRIELA RODRIGUEZ
Opera Las Vegas’ Holiday on Broadway concert returns with a mix of classic songs, surprising gems and local talent
“Singing is still a very popular pastime for a lot of people … it’s great to be able to share some holiday cheer through song,” says Jim Sohre, general director for Opera Las Vegas.
For over a decade, the nonprofit organization has been bringing that cheer to the community with its Holiday on Broadway concert, an event that’s become a cherished tradition for locals.
What started as a small luncheon performance has grown into a full-fledged holiday celebration, now attracting audiences who are looking to kick off their holiday season with Broadway classics and other festive surprises.
Sohre, who’s been with the organization since 2013, recalls the early days. ”When I first started, there was a holiday winter luncheon and they were looking for entertainment,” says Sohre.
The inaugural show featured only eight “young artists”—emerging singers among the roster of professional vocalists—so Sohre and the team found a way to incorporate their talents. The idea was to have them perform holiday and winter-themed numbers from Broadway scores.
It resonated with fluctuating audiences until it became its own solidified event. “The show was 30 minutes when it first started,” says Sohre. “It’s grown exponentially each year. Now, it’s about 60 minutes long, as I find more material.”
Today, Holiday on Broadway is a festive mustsee for the community, with its 11th iteration hitting the stage this year (not including a hiatus for the pandemic in 2020).
Expect to be swept away by beloved standards like “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and “Meet Me in St. Louis,” along with some lesser known gems.
“There are some surprising songs that nobody knows or has heard of in addition to the classics.” says Sohre. The set list is to include “Cold Enough to Snow” from Wicked, “White Christmas” from the 1942 musical film Holiday Inn and “Be a Santa” from Subways Are For Sleeping For the Broadway buffs, there’s a sprinkle of
songs from esteemed composers like Andrew Lloyd Webber and Irving Berlin who will add a bit of a flair to the familiar tracklist.
But it wouldn’t be a Vegas production without a special guest. This year the audience will be treated to a performance by Michael Kaczurak, who played Buddy the Elf in Las Vegas Little Theatre’s Elf The Musical. According to Sohre, the actor is set to sing a few songs from the company’s production last year.
The show also highlights local talent, which has been a priority for Sohre and Opera Las Vegas.
“We have some really great local singers that we always like to give opportunities to,” he says. And this year, the organization is showcasing the next generation of talent.
“This is the first year that we’ve established the Christopher and Anita Murray Opera Las Vegas
Studio at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas,” Sohre says. “We have two singers that are at the university that are getting professional experience with us and are going to be featured for the first time this year.”
The showcase takes place at the Windmill Library’s auditorium, marking its second consecutive year at the venue. “We’re very lucky,” Sohre says of the location. “We have our wonderful sponsors, Bob and Shirley Kramer, that have underwritten this production, and the library has provided us some support.”
Holiday on Broadway will not only enrich your holiday season but is also free to attend, making it an ideal way to embrace the arts without breaking the bank.
“A lot of young families come to hear opera for the first time—it’s proper operatic singing telling a familiar story,” says Sohre.
Singers in Holiday on Broadway (Courtesy)
DINER ROSS
The Linq, 702-534-3419, spiegelworld.com. Wednesday-Sunday, 5 p.m.-late.
FOOD & DRINK
SATURDAY NIGHT FEEDER
(Photos Courtesy/Spiegelworld)
Disco fries are just the beginning at Diner Ross
BY GEOFF CARTER
Legend asserts that “disco fries” originated at a Trenton, New Jersey diner called the Tick Tock. The plate, a longtime menu staple, exploded in popularity when the bridge-andtunnel crowds of the 1970s, returning from late nights at New York disco palaces like The Loft and Paradise Garage, came to the Tick Tock with a boogie fever that could only be cured with a heaping plate of French fries smothered in brown gravy and mozzarella cheese. Whatever that poutine variant was called before Studio 54, it was disco fries ever after. Amen.
Whether or not that origin story is the gospel truth (there’s some variations to the disco fries creation myth), there’s no denying that disco burns a lot of calories. And Spiegelworld’s Diner Ross—food-and-bev counterpart to the company’s newest Vegas production, DiscoShow, at the Linq Hotel— provides dancefloor fuel that could earn its own legend.
Cheekily named for Spiegelworld’s “impresario extraordinaire” Ross Mollison—and for “Upside Down” singer Diana Ross, who’s represented as the goddess she is in a giant oil painting by Sara Jean Odam that’s the focal point of the space—Diner Ross’ impressive food and beverage menu was created by executive culinary director Anna Altieri and executive beverage director Niko Novick, the team delivering the “Italian-American psychedelic” menu of Superfrico at the Cosmopolitan. In that vein, Diner Ross’ menu could be described as “comfort funkadelic”— American diner classics, turned upside-down and inside-out.
Some of the tweaks are subtle. The Green Goddess wedge salad ($16) is presented as
three neat chunks of crisp romaine, each done up with a perfect ratio of bacon, buttermilk, dill, herbs, radish and Boursin. The popovers ($12), light and airy, come with cultured butter and jam ($6)—or, for a bit extra, with foie gras paté ($12). And their heaping plate of disco fries ($22) is kicked up with the addition of caramelized onions, which contributes a wonderful piquancy to the gravy.
The mains are stellar. The intensely flavorful and correctly named fancy meatloaf ($35) is made with Wagyu beef, as is the patty melt ($29). If you’d like to step beyond the classics, try the panko-breaded Buffalo chicken schnitzel ($36), the roasted wild mushroom risotto ($28) or the caper, white wine, lemon and almond-kissed Steelhead trout ($32)— this being one of the few, if only, diners in the country where ordering ambitious-sounding plates pays off handsomely. Or you can indulge in the juicy bliss of the Delancey deluxe burger ($36), a short rib patty topped with sour cherry aioli, watercress, cornichon, Muenster and pickles, with a side of the kitchen’s top-shelf gravy “for dippin’.”
If you’re pressed for time—ants in your pants, and you gots to dance—get yourself some disco fries and a few of Novick’s cocktails, priced $18-$22. The spicy, herbaceous And It Goes Like This—Las Vecinos mezcal, Miles gin, Aperol, pineapple and agave—will put hair and medallions on your chest, while the Smokey and the Bandit (not a disco movie, but we’ll let that slide) will turbocharge your moves with its medley of sesame-infused Jim Beam, Smith & Cross rum, honey, cinnamon, Cocchi di Torino vermouth and Amontillado sherry.
And the vibe is right. While the best way to take in Diner Ross is before or after DiscoShow—they are, after all, linked by tradition and the George Washington Bridge—there’s something about this cool, subdued space, appointed with bits of Me Decade bric-a-brac, that’s been sorely lacking on the Strip before now. Las Vegas is a city that’s practically made of discotheques, and it’s waited far too long for a good plate of disco fries.
During my teen years in Southern California I spent many a witching hour in a booth at Norm’s. Whenever my friends and I got out of a club, concert or theme park, there was always a Norm’s close by with stacks of hotcakes and half-pound double burgers. We had other late-night options, but Norm’s felt somehow more authentic, more diner. It connected us to a tradition of main characters taking a coffee-and-sandwich break, from Nighthawks to Pulp Fiction Vegas has its own late-night favorites, most of them inside casinos. (Also Blueberry Hill, which still offers 24-hour dining at a couple of locations. And most any Denny’s is, famously, “Always Open.”) But the Vegas arrival of Norm’s, on Charleston and Decatur, adds an interesting wrinkle to the Valley’s late-night dining landscape. The food at Norm’s is modestly good—better than Denny’s, IMHO—but their vibe is cooked to perfection, having simmered in the California sun since car salesman Norm Roybark opened his first restaurant at the corner of Sunset and Vine in 1949.
The Charleston Norm’s doesn’t look much like its iconic SoCal brethren from the outside—no boomerang roof, and its famous “flags” signage feels a bit foreshortened— but once you get inside, it’s all mid-century goodness, with plenty of the chain’s signature orange and blue.
And the menu, of course, is the same as you’ll find on La Cienega after a late-night show at the Greek: clubhouse sandwiches, sundaes with Thrifty ice cream and their classic Bigger Better Breakfast, with sirloin if you want it. And this Norm’s serves alcohol, which I’m kinda glad they didn’t offer when I was 23.
But Norm’s isn’t just for hungry club- and concert-goers. This 24-hour-a-day spot is also great for family breakfasts on Sunday mornings, handily serving the varying wants of large groups that can’t decide between omelets, strawberry-topped Belgian waffles, breakfast burritos or chicken tenders. From now on, Norm’s will always be there, always ready with a hot stove and a comfy booth. I can’t wait to go there late on a Friday, and maybe run into myself coming off a long night. —Geoff Carter
Steak frites
Honoring six teams that stood above the fray throughout the college football regular season
BY CASE KEEFER
An all-time high of 134 teams competed in the top-level Football Bowl Subdivision this season. Only six of them distinguished themselves enough to earn a College Football Betting award.
It’s the ninth annual edition of the College Football Betting Awards, and this year’s class is comprised largely of the usual upstart teams but with one mega-program mixed in. As always, the rst three categories are based entirely on results while the nal three require some subjectivity but were chosen carefully after monitoring the betting market all year. Without further ado, here are the winners.
TEAM OF THE YEAR: MARSHALL THUNDERING HERD
(Team with the nation’s best record against the spread)
Last year’s winner: Arizona
BETTING’S
(AP Photo)
The Sun Belt Conference champions were an enigma all year as their statistical pro le painted them as an average to middling team at best. But they just kept winning anyway. Marshall nished the year 12-1 against the spread including its conference championship upset victory over Louisiana. The Herd’s only point-spread loss came in a 28-23 win over Louisiana-Monroe in Week 10 as 10.5-point favorites when the Warhawks scored a touchdown in the nal two minutes. Marshall banked its highly memorable season behind a breakthrough coaching campaign from Charles Hu (who’s since left to take the same job at Southern Mississippi), a sti defense and a running back rotation headlined by A.J. Turner and Jordan Houston.
ACHIEVEMENT AWARD:
ARIZONA STATE SUN DEVILS
(Team that furthest eclipsed its over/under preseason win total)
Last year’s winner: Northwestern
The Sun Devils were picked last in the Big 12 in the preseason poll released during the conference’s media days at Allegiant Stadium in July, and sports books weren’t any more bullish. Arizona State had a Big 12-low over/under of four wins. The Sun Devils eclipsed that mark in ve weeks, and never stopped from there, going 10-2 in the regular season and then smashing Iowa State 45-19 as 1.5-point underdogs in the Big 12 Championship Game. Arizona State is now College Football Playo -bound, with a bye through the rst round, in an ascent no one could have seen coming behind second-year coach Kenny Dillingham and veteran running back Cam Skattebo. The betting market certainly didn’t see it coming.
COVERING STREAK OF EXCELLENCE: NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH
(Team with the longest current winning streak against the spread)
Last year’s winner: Ball State
The Irish have covered in eight straight games heading into their rst-round College Football Playo game against in-state opponent Indiana. Notre Dame su ered the most notorious upset of the season in Week 2, a 16-14 defeat to Northern Illinois as 28-point favorites, and then never lost again. It only failed to cover once again, a 28-3 win over Miami (Ohio) as 27-point favorites in Week 4, as quarterback Riley Leonard and running back Jeremiyah Love helped Notre Dame topple opponent after opponent. During the eight-game covering streak, there’s only been one close call—a 31-24 victory over Louisville as 6.5-point favorites in Week 5—as Notre Dame has beaten the number by at least a touchdown in every other game.
Arizona State running back Cam Skattebo (4) scores a touchdown during the first half of a big win over the Arizona Wildcats on November 30. (AP Photo)
BRIGHTEST
BETTORS’
CHOICE:
INDIANA HOOSIERS
(Team that made the most money for gamblers through point-spread victories)
Last Year’s winner: Penn State
Notre Dame took over the nation’s longest covering streak from Indiana, which beat the number in nine straight games before eking out a 20-15 win over Michigan as 14.5-point favorites in Week 11. Bettors largely took advantage, especially late in the run when rst-year coach Curt Cignetti and his transfer-heavy team (largely comprised of players who followed him from James Madison University) began getting more publicity. The Hoosiers covered all nine games in the span by at least a touchdown and recreational bettors threw out terms like “free money” to describe them colloquially. Notre Dame opened as an 8.5-point favorite over Indiana in the teams’ playo game that feels like a battle for ultimate betting supremacy.
BOOKMAKERS’ CHOICE: SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS
(Team that made the most money for the house through point-spread victories)
Last year’s winner: Alabama
There was a general skepticism around South Carolina all year. The Gamecocks continually proved it unfounded by covering in almost all of their biggest games. South Carolina knocked o College Football Playo -bound Clemson 17-10 as 2.5-point underdogs, came within two points of shocking powerhouse Alabama as 21-point underdogs and crushed Texas A&M 44-20 as 3-point underdogs. Late money came in against the Gamecocks in all three of those matchups. They nished the regular season 9-3 straight-up and against the spread. That’s not too bad for a team that had an over/under of 5.5 wins coming into the season.
UNDERDOG OF THE YEAR: VANDERBILT COMMODORES
(Team that performed the best with the odds stacked against it)
Last year’s winner: UNLV
Vanderbilt’s win total was over/under 2.5 victories but it became bowl eligible for the rst time in six years at 6-6 straight-up. The Commodores also went 8-4 against the spread—including 7-2 as an underdog—behind cult-hero quarterback Diego Pavia. Northern Illinois’ win over Notre Dame might have been the biggest upset of a blueblood program this season, but Vanderbilt’s 40-35 victory over Alabama as 23-point underdogs in Week 6 was a close second. It was the rst time the Commodores beat the Crimson Tide since 1984. Other unsuspecting outright victims of Vanderbilt’s sudden ascent were Auburn, Kentucky and Virginia Tech while it covered but lost against Texas, Missouri and LSU.
(AP Photo)
FOOD & BEVERAGE
TEQUILA BRAND IS JUST LATEST EXAMPLE OF FORMER UNLV PLAYERS’ BOND
BY KATIE ANN MCCARVER VEGAS INC STAFF
Eldridge Hudson, Eric Booker and Larry Anderson were part of the last UNLV basketball team to play at the Las Vegas Convention Center before the opening of the Thomas & Mack Center.
They are still considered among the most legendary players in program history. “We were the only show in town, basically,” Booker recalled. “We were the sports team in Las Vegas. We sold that convention center out of 22 games.”
Now, Hudson, Booker and Anderson have embarked on a new adventure together: a tequila business. The aptly named 3-Point Tequila is poised to be distributed within a month or so.
The idea for the spirit first originated more than a decade ago with Hudson and his business partner Leo Chavez. He invited Booker and Anderson into the business because they’re like his “big brothers,” Hudson said.
“When Eldridge invited me to come join the team (at) 3-Point Tequila, I jumped at it,” said Booker, who has been in the casino industry now for nearly 30 years. “I mean, there was no question about it. … He was like a little brother to me, and still is, so there was no hesitation
in my answer.”
Twelve years since the product was first thought up and despite challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Booker said it’s exciting for the team at 3 Point Tequila that the product will finally be ready for distribution soon.
“We can finally breathe,” said Hudson, who is also a local high school basketball coach.
The product’s name and bottling—which depicts a basketball going through the net—are fitting for Booker, Anderson and Hudson given their past, Booker said. The 100% blue agave tequila comes from Jalisco, Mexico.
“It’s very smooth, there’s no burn, there’s no after, ugly face when you drink it,” Hudson joked. “You don’t need salt or lime. Not only that, but it’s a very good sipping cocktail.”
Multicolored bottles of the product will be available, including one that’s pink for Breast Cancer Awareness month—an issue important to Hudson, who noted that both his mother and wife are breast cancer survivors. The tequila will also come in miniature bottles for airlines, cruise lines and more, Booker said.
With the tequila’s impending release, he added, it’s important that people in Las Vegas know about the product.
“You’ve got some local talented gentlemen right here in the area that now have another product that you can buy locally, instead of always going outside of Las Vegas and going to other distributors to buy their products,” Booker said. “Local guys right here.”
The company has many goals going forward, he said, including the addition of reposado and añejo tequilas.
“Where we’re sitting at right now, I think we’re looking pretty darn good,” Booker said.
The friends and partners have collaborated for so long, they’re like brothers, and the “sky’s the limit” on what they can accomplish going forward, he said.
“We always agree at the end,” Hudson said. “It’s just like playing basketball. You might disagree, but at the end of the day, the main goal is to win, and that is our main goal, to win. How do you do that? You trust one another. And we trust each other wholeheartedly.”
From left, 3-Point Tequila owners Larry Anderson, Eldridge Hudson and Eric Booker at Piero’s Italian Cuisine. (Wade Vandervort/Staff)
Question:
How does comparative negligence affect
my
car accident claim in Nevada?
Answer:
When both drivers are partially at fault for an accident, it can complicate your claim. Understanding how Nevada’s comparative negligence laws work can help you navigate the process and ensure you receive fair compensation. Here are a few points to consider:
• In Nevada, if both drivers are at fault, your compensation can be lowered based on how much you were responsible for the accident
• Fault can be split based on details of the accident, like road conditions and driver behavior. Solid evidence like witness statements and video footage can also help determine fault
• The more you’re at fault, the less money you’ll get
• If negotiations with insurers are unfair or if fault cannot be accurately determined, consulting a lawyer will improve chances of a fair result
Want to ensure the best outcome for your case? Scan here to learn more:
Created and presented by Benson &
Bingham
GIVING NOTES
Signs of HOPE (Healing, Options, Prevention and Education), a nonprofit organization offering hope, help and healing to those affected by sexual violence and exploitation, was awarded a $948,241 grant over three years from the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), a component within the U.S. Department of Justice charged with administering the Crime Victims Fund. The grant will support, enhance and expand services offered through the Resources and Integration for Survivor Empowerment, or RISE program, which provides crisis response and longterm case management services to victims of human trafficking. The funds will expand the organization’s reach through culturally relevant, multilingual resources. In 2023, Signs of HOPE encountered more than 1,200 human trafficking victims in the field and served more than 580 human trafficking survivors, including 107 juveniles.
Olive Crest announced the receipt of $500,000 from the Engelstad Foundation as the first installment of a $1 million matching grant supporting the Transforming Lives Campaign in Las Vegas. This contribution will enhance Olive Crest’s mission to prevent child abuse and neglect by strengthening, equipping, and restoring children and families in crisis. Olive Crest’s programs serve over 6,000 individuals annually, and this grant will help expand its capacity. The funds will contribute to the construction of a campus that will include a children and family resource center, including space for the Community Mental and Behavioral Health Program,
Local philanthropy making a difference
Aristocrat Gaming participated in Giving Tuesday by donating a total of $150,000 to Green Our Planet, Goodie Two Shoes Foundation, Project 150, R.I.S.E. Homes, Project Marilyn and HELP of Southern Nevada. Through the year-round work of the company’s Aristocrat Cares giving program, the company and its 1,200 Southern Nevada-based employees take an active role in bettering the community through volunteer opportunities and contributions. In November, team members participated in Thanksgiving meal distribution events with Casa de Luz, HELP of Southern Nevada, and 100 Black Men Las Vegas (Courtesy photo)
along with an apartment complex for the Teen and Young Adult Independent Living Program.
The Southern Nevada community came together to support Three Square Food Bank during Hunger Action Month in September, raising $703,219. The nonprofit organization will distribute 2,109,657 meals to local individuals facing food insecurity. Three Square is one step closer to a hunger-free community thanks to the following sponsors: Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Bank of Nevada, Barclays, Boyd Gaming Corporation, CSAA
Insurance Group, Desert Produce Sales, InTouch Credit Union, JPMorgan Chase Bank, Picerne Real Estate Group and the Venetian
In honor of Giving Tuesday and the 34th anniversary of the Disability Act, New Vista, a nonprofit provider of supported living arrangements for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and Carl’s Donuts gave back with a doughnut donation campaign. On December 3, Carl’s donated 100% of the proceeds from the purchase of its blue and yellow buttercream frosted doughnut bar to New Vista.
