One of the joys of living here in Las Vegas is that anyone with a pulse can still show up and do a show; we get them all.
The rule of thumb is that you get what you pay for…if the tickets are cheap for that act that you loved years ago, they probably suck now. If the tickets are not cheap, they still have some talent left.
I can remember getting free tickets to see America (remember the song, “Horse With No Name”?) and they were horrible - not worth a free ticket. The large audience was leaving in droves after about the second song.
Then there are those who just want to re-live the old days; hence Donny and Marie Osmund at the Flamingo, or Barry Manilow at the Hilton - they still perform as well/bad as they did years ago, and you pay a lot to see them. Wayne Newton’s voice died years ago, but he still talks through songs and appears sporadically in casinos when they have a stage free…tickets are usually very cheap now.
Vegas casinos are not stupid…they know if their customers are going to get their money’s worth or not…so again, if the show is cheap, you get what you pay for.
If the buffet is cheap, you get what you pay for.
If the room is cheap, you get what you pay for.
Welcome to Las Vegas!
Oo, oo, I can!
He was headlining in a casino in Biloxi, MS in '95 or '96, and my Mom and Dad were visiting me there. So I ponied up the money to take them, since my Mom luuuuurrrves him ever since “Dankeshane” (sp?) I was prepared to be miserable and bored. Surprise - the guy was a fabulous showman! It was one of the best concerts I have ever seen, and nobody could’ve been more surprised than me. It was a great night, and I wouldn’t mind seeing him again.
On subject, Carrot Top throws so much crap out so fast the the law of averages says at least every third or fourth one will tickle you.
Back when I lived in LV, some casinos had free lounge acts. And yeah, they were not underpriced. On the other hand, Circus Circus had free circus acts on the second floor, and they seemed to be worth watching. I really enjoyed that second floor, as it was basically an old fashioned midway, and I don’t particularly enjoy gambling.
Carrot Top will require the services of a female masseuse. All arrangements [del]and costs[/del] are the sole responsibility of the Purchaser or Promoter. Masseuse will provide the following: Massage table with clean sheets and oils.
I would have loved to hear the “we’re not paying for your whores anymore, Carrot Top!” conversation that led to that strikeout.
Heh. I saw a lot of strikeouts in that rider. I wonder if he/his agent ever actually got all that stuff, or if he thought that it couldn’t hurt to ask?
Bob Claypool was a music critic in Houston–writing for the Chronicle & the (now defunct) Post. He was a respected writer with a deep love for excellent music of all types–mostly “rootsy.” One of the Chieftains was just interviewed for an upcoming concert here; he had to recount his Claypool story.
As a young reviewer, one of his first assignments was a Liberace show. As he recounted just after the great Vegas entertainer’s death, he was not looking forward to it. That was definitely not his type of music. But he had to say that Liberace did an excellent show. His audience loved him & he earned their love. Claypool had seen a few too many shows by his musical heroes who couldn’t be bothered to acknowledge their fans. Or show up sober. Or remember the lyrics…
Yakov Smirnoff has his own THEATER (YAKOV) and you worry about Carrot Top? It is clear that God has a sense of humor when these guys do so well while Emo Philips and Jake Johansen have to make the rounds.
Thanks for that link- fascinating stuff! Makes you look at some of the other Riders for the other celebs as well, and realise how some of them are surprisingly reasonable (Robin Williams or Penn & Teller, for example), and how some of them are… well, it’s more fun if you go and look for them yourself.
I also noticed the “People You’ve Never Heard Of Are Huge In Las Vegas”- there was a comedian by the name of George Wallace who had billboards everywhere billing him as having the “Best 10pm Show!” and generally advertising his show. And I’d never heard of the guy before, and as soon as we left Las Vegas I never heard his name mentioned again. It’s kinda weird; usually local celebrities don’t have billboards advertising whatever they’re famous for at every other intersection, at least in my experience…
I was given tickets to a show of his for my birthday a couple of years ago. When my MIL gave me the tickets, my first thought was “but…I thought you liked me.”
Turns out the rumors are true. The guy sucks 18 ways to Sunday on TV, and absolutely kills live.
Side note: For my birthday a few weeks ago, my MIL gave me tickets to see Wanda Sykes. Again, I thought she liked me. But, we’ll see if Sykes is another loathesome individual who is actually funny live in a few weeks.
There are regular Vegas headliners - acts like Carrot Top, or Danny Gans, or Penn and Teller or Rita Rudner or Wayne Newton - they play Vegas five or six nights a week, forty eight (or whatever) weeks a year. They are seldom top drawer (I love Penn and Teller, and while I’m no Celine Dion fan, she does have a great voice). Its apparently a good entertainment gig - pays well, you don’t need to tour - but five nights a week at the Mirage is not the same as being a “star.”
Then there are the Vegas headliners that come in for a week or two and sell out the Forum. Cher. Seinfeld. Billy Crystal.
When Leno gets a regular five night a week gig at MGM Grand (and I think he did something like that twenty years ago before he got tagged as the Tonight Show Host) then you can compare Leno and Carrot Top. Until then you need to compare Carrot Top to Rita Rudner. And that isn’t much of a stretch.
I do remember a comedian from TV in the 90s or so named George Wallace. I always thought he was pretty funny–I remember his name because he’s a black guy named George Wallace . I don’t remember what show he was on, but I kind of remember what he looked like and that he had a sort of gruff-sounding voice. So granted, he may be kind of obscure, but I do think he’s above the level of “local celebrity.” I would’ve gone to the show, simply because of the name recognition.
George Wallace puts on a very good show. So does Rita Rudner. So does Danny Gans, for that matter. No, if they are headlining a Vegas casino, they still have some talent and a show. It’s when they show up for one night at an off-Strip place for $2 that you have to worry.
They are not necessarily comedians. Lots of magic acts and ventriloquists take themselves seriously. The Amazing Johnathan has a funny magic act. But that is rare.
Danny Gans is one of those guys who you’re like, “Who?” because he only does Vegas.
I’ve stayed at the Flamingo, and they have Rita Rudner (whom I’ve never, ever found funny) and George Wallace. The Wallace posters would make me and my buddies laugh every time we passed them, as he’s advertised as “The Best 10 o’clock Show On The Strip!”
Vegas gets good acts from time to time-- it certainly gets them on tour, all the great concerts pass through there-- but the “regulars” can vary greatly in quality. While Vegas was booming over the last decade it got pretty good there for a while-- Elton John, for one, had his show going-- but there is still a lot of Z-grade entertainment to be had.
Still, you want to see sad, you need to go to Atlantic City. At least in Vegas you’ve heard of the acts before.
Jesus, out of curiosity, I checked out his Wikipedia page and discovered that he’s 2 years to the day younger than me, and I also have red hair, but I swear to all that is holy that I look absolutely nothing like him in any way, shape or form.
And of course, let’s keep in mind the obvious – it’s Vegas, a bizarre topsy turvey place where you eat club sandwiches at six in the morning and bacon and eggs at midnight, where you hand your bags over to men in pirate suits. I’d never think of going to see Carrot Top at home, but who knows what I’d do in Vegas.
My only question about him is when and why did he start looking like the Terminator? I think that actully hurts him comedically a little bit. A skinny, geeky dude doing prop comedy is one thing. A hulked out steroid monster doing it is just creepy. Why on earth did he think going on the juice was the career move he needed?
I went and saw The Amazing Johnathan and wasn’t impressed. I remember thinking he was pretty funny when I saw him on TV 10 years ago. Turns out he has almost the exact same set now. Maybe that’s to be expected, but I assumed he’d have more material by now.
. I don’t remember what show he was on, but I kind of remember what he looked like and that he had a sort of gruff-sounding voice. So granted, he may be kind of obscure, but I do think he’s above the level of “local celebrity.” I would’ve gone to the show, simply because of the name recognition.