Borgata just added Interpol to their schedule Saturday, July 20 at 9pm. Tickets go on sale this Saturday, June 2 at 10am. Over at the House of Blues The Aggrolites are penciled in for Thursday, July 26 and Reggaeton star Calle 13 performs Thursday, July 12. Those shows also go on sale this Saturday at 10am.
According to the Associated Press, Mike Tyson is hoping to be in Atlantic City this Saturday night working the Briggs-Ibragimov fight. The heavyweight bout will take place at Boardwalk Hall and is to be shown on Pay-Per-View.
Before the Carrie Underwood debut Friday, May 25 at Caesars Circus Maximus, media members were invited to a dinner at Mia. Fashionably late, thanks to a five hour limo ride from New York City, was famed Village Voice gossip columnist Michael Musto. I’ve spent hours stuck in holiday Parkway traffic, so I felt his pain. For someone who mingles with the rich and infamous, Musto was down-to-earth as he chatted with his tablemates.
Since he was sitting across from an AC local, he asked about the obvious changes in AC in the past few years and I was happy to catch him and his companion up on the World’s Playground (I’m old school and I like AC’s old nickname).
I’ve been a fan of Musto and his La Dolce Musto column in the Voice since his first byline in the early 1980s. Check out his latest column here.
Dinner, by the way was delicious, especially my scallops and lobster tail with fingerling potatoes, and the selection of mini-desserts that included a yummy crème brulee.
Carrie Underwood opened the newly retrofitted Circus Maximus Theater at Caesars last weekend, May 25 and 26. No longer a nightclub, the Circus Maximus has 1,600 forward-facing seats covered in maroon velour, and a $1 million sound system. Oddly enough, the disappearance of the nightclub tables gives this huge space a more intimate feel.
The sound in the new showroom certainly reaches the back of the house.
Carrie Underwood has a fantastic voice, but just two years removed from her American Idol win, she needs more seasoning to improve her skills as an entertainer.
The Atlantic City Surf opened its 10th season and first in the Can-Am League with a come from behind 5-4 victory over the league’s touring team The Grays. The level of play was several notches below the Surf’s former Atlantic League environs. The throws were not as crisp, the pitchers featured an array of wild pitches and hit batsmen, and the fielders seemed less sure of themselves. Of course opening night is always nerve-wracking.
Both teams were big on stolen base attempts. The Surf scored their first run without a hit thanks to a hit batter, a stolen base and two wild pitches.
One player who does have a strong arm is Surf centerfielder Lucas Taylor, who scored the first run noted above. In the top of the second with the bases loaded, a hard single was hit to center. Taylor charged the ball and threw a perfect strike to catcher Mischa Dworken, who successfully blocked the plate, which is more that Phils’ catcher Rod Barajas did the other day.
With next Friday (June 1) being the official start date of the 2007 hurricane season, Courier Post writer Jeanne Ridgway reports on summer plans for a test evacuation of the AC Expressway, announced yesterday by area emergency officials. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Climate Prediction Center is forecasting an “above normal” 2007 Atlantic hurricane season.
As expected the American Idols finale was anti-climatic with Jordin Sparks taking the mantle. The show was okay. I enjoyed seeing the boys as the back-up singers for Smokey Robinson and the girls doing the same for Gladys Knight. The vocal highlight was Melinda Doolittle sharing the stage with Bebe and CeCe Winans for a gospel song. Melinda had been a back-up singer for Bebe. Doug E. Fresh with Blake in a beat-boxing frenzy was fun too.
Bette Midler looked great but it sounded like she hadn’t sung in awhile. Her chops were a bit stale as she performed her ultra sentimental “Wind Beneath My Wings.” I wonder who’s providing the wind for Simon Cowell? By the way, did we really have to see Fox star Jeff Foxworthy every five minutes? Maybe I should ask him when he comes to Harrah’s June 2.
Mostly the show was a plug for the Idols tour, which comes to AC Sept. 8. My bad luck is that I will be in Toronto. Bummer.
Awesome. Awesome. Awesome! The Lost finale absolutely redeemed what has been an up and (mostly) down season. Jack’s showdown with the master manipulator Ben was a face pulverizing and richly deserved smackdown. The whole flash forward/dream in which Jack finds out that going home isn’t exactly what he expected—therefore confirming Locke’s view of island life—was a spectacular twist. Frenchy finally meets her daughter and Walt (looking very grown-up making a visit to Locke), provided two more great moments.
Alley Cat Allies is a national organization that promotes Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) as the only humane, effective method to reduce the feral cat population. The organization is looking for volunteers to help with an Atlantic City event. Alley Cat Allies and Dr. Suzanna Brown/Best Friends Veterinary Hospital of Mays Landing will be hosting a Feline Frenzy! to spay or neuter and vaccinate at least sixty cats from Atlantic City. Volunteers are needed to humanely trap the cats, transport them to the clinic and return them to their habitat after surgery. As a cat lover and Animal Planet junkie, I’ve signed up and am looking forward to helping the lives of these cats. Please join me. The cat pictured above is a content kitty from the AC boardwalk program.
ACA, based in Bethesda, MD, has managed a successful TNR program on the Atlantic City boardwalk for six years, but this event will expand their efforts to other parts of the city. Volunteers are needed from Friday, June 8 to Monday, June 11. Exact location and times will be assigned based on skills and availability of volunteers. To volunteer, call 1-866-309-6207 or E-mail alleycat@alleycat.org. For more info on ACA, visit their Web site
After last night’s American Idol smackdown, there should be no doubt that Jordan Sparks is the winner. Her vocal superiority was evident. The litmus test was the interpretation of the new song, “This Is My Now,” that will be the winner’s first single. 
When Blake Lewis sang the song, all its cheesiness and sentimentality came out. It seemed bland and boring, and Blake appeared uncomfortable, knowing the song was a dud.
However, when Jordan sang the song she put so much vocal variety and emotional context to the song, she made it remarkably palatable. I decided that maybe the song wasn’t as sappy as I thought it was.
Blake will have a career anyway, and so will Melinda Dolittle, the best pure singer of the group. Phil Stacy is also likely to slip into a country recording slot, and Sanjaya will continue his talk show circuit for a few months before he uses up his 15 minutes of fame.
The American Idols are in Atlantic City Sept. 8 at Boardwalk Hall. For tickets go here.