The Palms, Celebrity and Fantasy Suites
09:02 AM PT, May 8 2006
The Palms opened its jaw dropping Fantasy Tower on Saturday night. The themed hotel rooms include: The Erotic Suite, The Kingpin Suite (with two lane bowling alley) and The Pink Suite. As spectacular as the rooms are the full glass wall view they offer (placed in the 25-26 floors) of the Strip is breathtaking. It used to be that suites like this existed only for whales. For a period, the MGM officially denied its Mansion even existed like it was the Area 51 of the Strip. There was no reason to talk about it, because the rooms weren't for rent. This story is probably apocryphal but it carries a spiritual truth: A casino host (assigned boot lickers/salesmen for top gamblers) once told me that Bill Gates tried to rent a room at MGM's Mansion for one night when he was to give a keynote address at the Comdex convention. The richest man in the world allegedly offered $50,000 for an evening's lodging and was bluntly told, "We are not looking for $50,000 a night; we give those rooms to someone betting $50,000 a hand." Anyway, the times have changed and The Mansion is now totally publicly accessible and available to any super rich person (even one who does not gamble). Still, a celebrity studded, press packed opening for high roller suites is pure Palms. And, when I showed up to cover the event, Larry Fink, Director for Public Relations for the Palms first words to me: "You never write about the Palms." That is not literally true. I have covered the Palms a lot: from Rolling Stone to Las Vegas Weekly. But back to that spiritual truth thing. Usually I am covering how other properties (from Green Valley Ranch to The Hard Rock) are trying to respond to the changes The Palms brought about in Las Vegas. Everyone credits Steve Wynn with creating modern Las Vegas and that is certainly the case. But a good argument could be made that contemporary Las Vegas has a lot more to do with the vision of George Maloof (pictured above.) When The Palms (located west of the Rio)opened in 2001 it redefined what a local casino could be and very quickly the resorts on the Strip jumped on board with the Palms way of doing things, too.
The Palms understood first how to facilitate Vegas-worshiping TV shows (from "Real World" to Jenny McCarthy's wet kiss of a show to even one on the tattoo parlor inside the casino) combined with the shrewd marketing of a celebrity presence on the property. Both of these (booster "reality television" and stacking the deck with lots of advertised celebrity in house) have become SOP in Vegas.
In fact, the Palms is so fantastically good at presenting what is going on there I usually feel 
extraneous in covering it. According to Anthony Curtis (publisher of consumer newsletter The Las Vegas Advisor) who was also at the opening of the Fantasy Tower, "The George Maloof way is to be very, very public. George leverages everything with the media very well. He takes what he has got and instead of keeping it for the privileged, he wants the world to see it. He knows these are the things that make front pages." And, so I guess, if I have stinted the Palms in coverage it is only because every other reporter seems to always be there and I hate traveling with the herd which is exactly how I felt at the opening of the Fantasy Tower Suites positioned next to reporters from People and US. "What is LA Times doing here?" one said. She was here from LA. "You guys never cover things like this in Vegas." Actually, the truth, I say, is that what happens at the Palms usually happens past my bedtime since celebrities tend to not reach worth writing about outrageousness until around 3 am.
extraneous in covering it. According to Anthony Curtis (publisher of consumer newsletter The Las Vegas Advisor) who was also at the opening of the Fantasy Tower, "The George Maloof way is to be very, very public. George leverages everything with the media very well. He takes what he has got and instead of keeping it for the privileged, he wants the world to see it. He knows these are the things that make front pages." And, so I guess, if I have stinted the Palms in coverage it is only because every other reporter seems to always be there and I hate traveling with the herd which is exactly how I felt at the opening of the Fantasy Tower Suites positioned next to reporters from People and US. "What is LA Times doing here?" one said. She was here from LA. "You guys never cover things like this in Vegas." Actually, the truth, I say, is that what happens at the Palms usually happens past my bedtime since celebrities tend to not reach worth writing about outrageousness until around 3 am. I also don't watch a lot of television so didn't recognize any of the celebrities streaming by me. Then I saw someone I didn't just recognize but that I actually knew: Deryck Whibley (above)leader of Sum 41. Years ago I reviewed a concert by his band for Rolling Stone back when they were first breaking. The next time Sum 41 passed through Vegas a concert promoter insisted on introducing us and we had a friendly exchange. I remember him as young and exuberant and as immature as his band's album titles like "Does this Look Infected?" After that, Sum 41 almost died in the Congo and cut a disc that featured more politically charged material that didn't do so well and then I lost track. Anyway, suddenly, Deryck, beer in hand was being held up by the wall next to me. (Photographer 
Sarah Gerke tells me that as he walked the Red Carpet a publicist took the beer out of his hand so it would not be in the photos.) I greeted him and reminded that we had met before. "I don't know," he said. "I don't read Rolling Stone." Sadly, I hadn't mentioned the review.
Sarah Gerke tells me that as he walked the Red Carpet a publicist took the beer out of his hand so it would not be in the photos.) I greeted him and reminded that we had met before. "I don't know," he said. "I don't read Rolling Stone." Sadly, I hadn't mentioned the review. And the interview got no better from there. I asked him if he felt odd at a glitzy casino opening: "I try to be in the background as much as possible. I can have a good time anywhere as long as they have free alcohol." I asked him what was up with his band, "Um, we were really burned. We were over everything. So, we took a long break, and we're starting to get back into it again. We're just starting." All of the sudden a flurry of activity happened around us as the People and US reporters both started shouting questions at a group of passing ladies. The elevator opened for the ladies and a few turned around yelling: "Come on Deryck!" He stumbled into the elevator as my colleagues pointed out to me I had just missed my chance to interview the real star, his finance, Avril Lavigne. While Deryck and I had been talking, Avril and her bud, actress Missy Peregrym ignored him to keep posing on the carpet. He was lucky they held the elevator they seemed so uninterested in him.
On the way out of the Palms guess who I ran into? Paris Hilton. Were you right? I asked her if she would ever stay in one of these VIP suites "I have one right now." Of course, she does. "The Maloofs know what they are doing," Paris says. And, Paris and I are in complete agreement on that.
photos by Sarah Gerke
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From what i seen from the palms it looks plain inside. no wonder why the kids like it. wooden floors when you walk in , cheap food court like the mall, cheap looking slot machines . not my kind of taste.
Posted by: mark | May 09, 2006 at 03:04 PM
Avril is so stunning...
Posted by: Andre Mouraria | May 09, 2006 at 03:58 PM
Embarassing isn't it, the state of modern American popular culture, in George W. Bush's bubble-worshiping 21st century. You have to read dopey celebrity columns like this completely moronic LA Times blog to "keep up"-- even the writer himself hasn't a clue as to who the hell these so-called celebs are. And since Nature abhors a vacuum, a total talentless nobody like Paris Hilton rises to the top. Of course though, a money-loving/grubbing little mouse like Maloaf will always be in the corner, to collect the cash crumbs that fall by the wayside as the crowd rushes forever forth ..
Posted by: RussBBinVegas@aol.com | May 09, 2006 at 07:18 PM
Childeren are starving to death while these pigs parade around with enough money to save literally thousands of lives!
I would bet my life that they are aware of this fact, Ignorance is bliss.....
Posted by: sanzen | May 10, 2006 at 07:33 AM
All that may be true, children are, in fact, starving, etc. But like Andre said above, Avril is hot! (And she plays hockey.) Good call, Andre.
Posted by: Gump | May 10, 2006 at 01:26 PM