Latest / Vegas Revealed / Desert Snow and Old Vegas Stories | Ep. 54

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Desert Snow and Old Vegas Stories | Ep. 54 · Vegas Revealed

• 0:00
  Sean McAllister: Welcome to Vegas Revealed, episode 54.
• 0:03
  Dayna Roselli: Hey, the big news this week is Las Vegas gets snow.
• 0:07
  Dayna Roselli: That's right, you might have seen some of the pictures, and we're talking with the folks up at Lee Canyon.
• 0:12
  Dayna Roselli: Yes, we have a ski resort here in Las Vegas.
• 0:15
  Dayna Roselli: All the details coming up.
• 0:16
  Sean McAllister: Man, we got dumped on.
• 0:18
  Sean McAllister: Plus, we are hearing old Vegas stories from a longtime entertainer who just might be able to spice up your Valentine's Day festivities.
• 0:28
  Dayna Roselli: That's right.
• 0:29
  Dayna Roselli: We've got options for you folks.
• 0:30
  Dayna Roselli: It's all coming up on Vegas Revealed.
• 0:46
  Dayna Roselli: Welcome to Vegas Revealed episode 54 on this snowy week here in Las Vegas.
• 0:52
  Dayna Roselli: I'm Dana Roselli.
• 0:53
  Sean McAllister: And I'm Sean McAllister.
• 0:54
  Sean McAllister: I know Dana, this is kind of giving us a taste of our Western New York roots, isn't it?
• 0:59
  Dayna Roselli: I know.
• 0:59
  Dayna Roselli: It is.
• 0:59
  Dayna Roselli: Everyone's so excited about the snow, and I'm like, eh, been there, done that.
• 1:03
  Dayna Roselli: It's okay.
• 1:04
  Sean McAllister: Once you live there for 20 years and you have to scrape the ice off your windows and your car doors are frozen shut and you have to shovel and snow plow.
• 1:13
  Sean McAllister: It gets old after a little bit.
• 1:15
  Dayna Roselli: I know.
• 1:15
  Dayna Roselli: Well, we want to quickly mention a couple things we have coming up.
• 1:18
  Dayna Roselli: So if you want to stick around and listen to a bunch of great content we have coming up, we've got an interview with Jeff Diamond, okay?
• 1:26
  Dayna Roselli: He's a longtime Vegas entertainer and he he played back in the old days, like back at the Moulin Rouge and great stories.
• 1:33
  Dayna Roselli: We we dialed him up and we talked to him about his history here in Las Vegas and what he's doing right now.
• 1:40
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, and uh he name drops some of the famous music stars that he's rubbed elbows with.
• 1:47
  Sean McAllister: That interview is still to come.
• 1:49
  Sean McAllister: Plus, we're gonna be hearing from uh a person who I would call a Las Vegas institution, Mr.
• 1:57
  Sean McAllister: Larry Ruvo.
• 1:58
  Dayna Roselli: That's right.
• 1:59
  Dayna Roselli: So Sean and I produce a podcast for Vegas headliner Matt Goss, and it's called Conversations with Mac Goss, and he does an interview with Larry Ruvo on this week's episode.
• 2:11
  Dayna Roselli: And we said, can we borrow a little clip and tease this?
• 2:13
  Dayna Roselli: Because he really talks about some cool Vegas things.
• 2:17
  Dayna Roselli: And so we're gonna share that with you in our tips.
• 2:19
  Dayna Roselli: Now, Larry is the head of Southern Glaciers Wine and Spirits, which is based here in Las Vegas.
• 2:26
  Sean McAllister: Like the world's biggest liquor distributor.
• 2:28
  Dayna Roselli: Biggest, largest, yes.
• 2:29
  Dayna Roselli: And also he also started the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute, which is here, and some major developments uh coming up about the cure for Alzheimer's disease.
• 2:40
  Dayna Roselli: And he's also was friends with Frank Sinatra himself.
• 2:44
  Dayna Roselli: So some great stories there.
• 2:46
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, so we have some breaking medical news plus some old blue eyes.
• 2:49
  Sean McAllister: You can't beat that.
• 2:50
  Sean McAllister: That's coming up in our tips.
• 2:52
  Sean McAllister: But Dana, let's say uh we jump right into some happenings here in Las Vegas this week.
• 2:58
  Sean McAllister: We had a very special visitor in town, the guy behind Tesla Motors.
• 3:03
  Sean McAllister: Elon Musk was here along with his kids, and he went underground to inspect his latest project here on the strip.
• 3:12
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, and then as usual, he posted a picture on social media, so we got to see what it looks like.
• 3:16
  Dayna Roselli: It's cool to see him and his kids standing there and what was created.
• 3:20
  Dayna Roselli: You know, this is a construction project that a lot of times we get to drive by and see how it's going and watch it get developed.
• 3:25
  Dayna Roselli: But this is underground, so we haven't been able to actually see the final product, but they have shared some videos.
• 3:30
  Dayna Roselli: But this is complete, and this is gonna connect the old convention center, uh, which will still be there and be used, to the brand new convention center, which is incredible and I think pretty much like 99% complete at this point.
• 3:44
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, so this project is called the Hyperloop.
• 3:46
  Sean McAllister: It's essentially they've bored these tunnels underground to connect the convention center.
• 3:53
  Sean McAllister: What they're gonna be doing is having Tesla cars zooming around inside of these tunnels to move people back and forth at a much higher rate than they they normally could now.
• 4:03
  Sean McAllister: But the cool part about it is that there are now plans to expand the this tunnel system down the Las Vegas Strip and connect the convention center to all the resorts and even to uh Allegiant Stadium and potentially to McCarran Airport.
• 4:20
  Sean McAllister: So this could be the future of transportation here in Las Vegas.
• 4:24
  Dayna Roselli: And I think downtown Las Vegas too, which is cool because so many people, when they come to visit the strip, they go, should we hit downtown?
• 4:30
  Dayna Roselli: You know, like it's their first time, and and this will be an easy way for folks to get back and forth.
• 4:35
  Dayna Roselli: So I think it's gonna be good all around.
• 4:37
  Dayna Roselli: Super excited.
• 4:38
  Dayna Roselli: And I believe it's a first, right?
• 4:40
  Dayna Roselli: We're like the first ever with this, and we love to be first.
• 4:43
  Sean McAllister: That's right.
• 4:44
  Sean McAllister: So uh the world really is watching what's happening here with this Hyperloop project.
• 4:49
  Sean McAllister: And of course, that is in anticipation of visitors and conventions coming back to Las Vegas.
• 4:57
  Sean McAllister: We all know that that has not been the case for the better part of the last year.
• 5:03
  Sean McAllister: It's going on uh a year coming up in March, but we did just get some new numbers out of Las Vegas that shows really what what a hit Las Vegas has taken from the lack of tourism.
• 5:17
  Dayna Roselli: They really have, but it's interesting.
• 5:18
  Dayna Roselli: Some of the comments undergoing, well, I thought we would have actually suffered more.
• 5:22
  Dayna Roselli: So we have the numbers.
• 5:23
  Dayna Roselli: I follow a site called uh CDC Gaming Reports, and it's a great casino industry news and kind of uh analysis report.
• 5:31
  Dayna Roselli: And Howard Stutz, who is great, been covering gaming for years here in Las Vegas, he reported that the Las Vegas strip visitation fell 55.2%.
• 5:42
  Dayna Roselli: Now, to over 19 million visitors in 2020, right?
• 5:46
  Dayna Roselli: So Vegas last saw 19 million annual visitors, just that amount, all the way back in 1990.
• 5:53
  Dayna Roselli: That's the last time that we had that low of a visitor number here to Las Vegas.
• 5:58
  Dayna Roselli: But then some people are going, well, I'm shocked 19 million came.
• 6:01
  Dayna Roselli: But we did kick off the year.
• 6:03
  Dayna Roselli: We had what, like a couple months before the pandemic hit.
• 6:06
  Dayna Roselli: So we did get a lot of visitors around that time.
• 6:09
  Dayna Roselli: Did we have a Super Bowl and all that?
• 6:10
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, there was Super Bowl.
• 6:12
  Sean McAllister: The the shutdown happened right at the beginning of March Madness.
• 6:15
  Sean McAllister: So we had uh all the sports visitors who came to town.
• 6:19
  Sean McAllister: Of course, we had you know the the holdover uh travelers from New Year's Eve going into 2020, so a big chunk there.
• 6:28
  Sean McAllister: But then once resorts opened, uh there there was still a steady flow of people coming in, but certainly not at the numbers we've seen.
• 6:37
  Sean McAllister: No.
• 6:37
  Sean McAllister: And without uh convention business, that really that really takes a bite out of the numbers of people that that come to town.
• 6:45
  Sean McAllister: But when you say that it goes back to numbers from 1990, I mean Las Vegas was a completely different town in 1990 compared to what it is now.
• 6:57
  Dayna Roselli: I know, so yeah, startling to see that.
• 7:00
  Dayna Roselli: And I just wanna I want to make sure I said that right.
• 7:02
  Dayna Roselli: So 19 million visitors in 2020, and we had 42.5 million visitors in 2019.
• 7:09
  Dayna Roselli: So huge decrease.
• 7:10
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, and then so Sean, the the the next lowest number would be 18.1 million visitors, and that was in 1989, so we're going to the 80s.
• 7:20
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, well, we're hoping that as we go through, especially the back end of 2021, that we'll see those numbers uh jump right back up to where we'd like to see them.
• 7:33
  Sean McAllister: But Dana, you know, my eyes have been uh looking up toward the sky this week for a very good reason.
• 7:40
  Dayna Roselli: Well, I feel like the biggest story in Las Vegas recently has been the snow.
• 7:45
  Dayna Roselli: It gets so many people excited, and we decided we gotta dial up Jim Seely from Lee Canyon to see what it's looking like up on the mountain.
• 7:54
  Dayna Roselli: We're talking Mount Charleston.
• 7:55
  Dayna Roselli: Welcome.
• 7:56
  Dayna Roselli: Hi.
• 7:56
  Dayna Roselli: It looks beautiful where you are.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_08: Absolutely.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_08: It's been a great week.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_08: Uh, you know, like starting uh last week, uh we had this like system move in that gave us around you know more than two feet of snow.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_08: Uh today it's looking like another foot of snow.
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_08: Uh so man, three feet of snow, like within a week or so, it's just beautiful up here.
• 8:16
  Sean McAllister: And Jim, a lot of our listeners are from outside of Las Vegas, they're from around the country, other countries, and they may not realize that Las Vegas actually is a destination for winter sports.
• 8:30
  Sean McAllister: You you take the time to go 45 minutes off the strip and you're in a whole new world.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_08: Absolutely.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_08: It's uh it's great to be this like unique facet uh of Las Vegas and what Las Vegas has to offer to uh you know, to people coming here, uh experienced seekers uh looking to do anything from the Grand Canyon uh to Red Rock, and you know, they can they can come ski too, which is amazing because you know, comes springtime, uh you could ski in the morning and then probably hit the lake in the afternoon at Lake Mead.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_08: So uh, you know, we love being uh you know part of the Las Vegas community uh and offering, like I said, this unique escape uh to anyone from locals, you know, to to uh visitors to Las Vegas.
• 9:13
  Dayna Roselli: And it always helps when you have you know Mother Nature dumping snow, you know, real snow.
• 9:19
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, it's always exciting for you guys.
• 9:20
  Dayna Roselli: I know you sit around and wait and you and you're like, come on, man, we want a great season, and it looks like it's gonna be one.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_08: Absolutely.
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_08: So uh, you know, we we took our time opening uh to make sure we did it right, obviously with the pandemic and and COVID protocols.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_08: Uh so we got all of our chairs running, making sure that everyone can spread out.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_08: Uh, but then we we did have to wait for snowfall a little bit.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_08: So, you know, we used our our snow making capabilities in the beginning of the season, uh, and then you know, that got us through uh December.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_08: Uh, and then here we are, kind of like trailing into uh you know, trailing off of January, and then finally Mother Nature uh you know gives us this gift of like all the snow, and and that's gonna make it for a great rest of the season.
• 10:03
  Sean McAllister: Well, and and for people who immediately think of of Las Vegas, they think of it as a warm destination.
• 10:10
  Sean McAllister: But as you go uh up in elevation, there's uh a lot of different like climate zones that you that you go through to get up to the level where where you are right now, aren't there?
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_08: Absolutely.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_08: So, you know, Lee Canyon's located in the Spring Mountains, and uh our base level is actually at 85, 8,600 feet.
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_08: Uh so that's pretty high.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_08: Uh and we need to be that high to have snow because we are a little bit south uh compared to you know Colorado, Utah, uh other you know major destinations for ski resorts.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_08: Uh and you'll actually travel through several different climate zones.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_08: It's actually really interesting to see all the foliage change when you're driving up from the Vegas Valley up into the elevations, and then looking up a little bit further up at 10,000, you know, uh you know, 10,000 feet in elevation, then you'll see you know bristle cone trees which don't grow below 10,000 feet basically.
• 11:06
  SPEAKER_08: So uh but it's it is truly an island in the sky up here at Lee Canyon in the Spring Mountains.
• 11:12
  Dayna Roselli: And I feel like a lot of people are looking for different kinds of activities lately because you know we don't have as many choices.
• 11:18
  Dayna Roselli: And so I'm sure there might be a lot of people that want to come up to the mountain and maybe they're a beginner.
• 11:23
  Dayna Roselli: And I know you guys are a great place for that, right?
• 11:25
  Dayna Roselli: You guys do you do one-on-ones?
• 11:27
  Dayna Roselli: Do you do lessons?
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_08: Yes, absolutely.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_08: We did have to make some adjustments because of Kobe protocols.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_08: Uh and you know, one of the things that we can offer this year is uh our learn to lesson, and that basically is you know for you or up to four people, uh a beginner one hour lesson that kind of gets you started.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_08: That's a private, you have a private instructor um, you know, for you or your group of four, uh that will just dial you in.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_08: That'll get you on the slopes, that'll get you skiing, uh, and you know, get ready to enjoy outdoor recreation.
• 11:57
  Sean McAllister: And I know you mentioned the the measures that have been taken to to keep people safe.
• 12:02
  Sean McAllister: And it's a a campaign that you're calling safe Lee.
• 12:06
  Sean McAllister: What are some of the other other things that that you're that you've undertaken to make sure that people can come enjoy Lee Canyon, but still do it in a in a safe way?
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_08: Absolutely.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_08: So uh, you know, Operation Safely.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_08: What's interesting is ski resorts are a little bit more complex than say uh a retail shop or or a restaurant where it's just you know this uh there's a percentage of occupancy.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_08: So you know, we have this great outdoors where everyone can spread out.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_08: Uh and we do have you know food and beverage outlets here as well as retail.
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_08: So we're monitoring all those, you know, as far as following the guidelines of occupancy uh you know for our indoor space, just like you know, any establishment in Clark County uh in Las Vegas.
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_08: Um but then there's the outdoors, and then uh and and how we're doing it is basically we're regulating uh our capacity, you know, to our level of COVID uh uh capacity, you know, through our parking.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_08: So, you know, we uh we require that everyone comes up with uh a parking reservation, and then that's that's how we kind of monitor how many people uh can get here, get on the slopes.
• 13:14
  SPEAKER_08: You know, we do watch obviously like how many lift tickets we're selling too, but we still want to be accessible.
• 13:19
  SPEAKER_08: We and especially we want to be accessible to our season pass holders in the local Las Vegas.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_08: So um, you know, we want to make sure that we're not limiting too much, but we're we're making sure that we're staying, you know, at COVID capacity and not overloading or overcrowding the resort.
• 13:33
  Dayna Roselli: Well, I'm glad you guys were able to make the adjustments.
• 13:35
  Dayna Roselli: I know it makes you know it comforts people knowing that when they're coming out to an attraction that you've got different rules in place.
• 13:40
  Dayna Roselli: So and you guys were featured in Ski Magazine.
• 13:43
  Dayna Roselli: What was that about?
• 13:44
  Dayna Roselli: I love it.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_08: Oh yeah.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_08: I mean, we love the press, all the press we can get.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_08: So um, you know, like from that to to you guys and everything.
• 13:51
  SPEAKER_08: But you know, we just love to make sure that everyone knows uh that we're here in Las Vegas and and uh you know we're ready to welcome everyone to the snow community in Las Vegas and the Lee Canyon community.
• 14:02
  Sean McAllister: Well, and and what do you say to people who when they think about going skiing, automatically think of taking a road trip to California or getting on the road and going hours to a resort in Utah?
• 14:17
  Sean McAllister: What do you say to those people?
• 14:19
  SPEAKER_08: We have the best Apre ski town in the world, and that's Las Vegas, right?
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_08: So uh so really though, you know, for for uh experienced seekers coming to Las Vegas, you know, we're uh we're a check on their bucket list maybe on things they can do while they're in Las Vegas.
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_08: Um and I mean and it and it's great to see you know someone from Hawaii like on our bunny hill that uh that you know like skis or not not skis, but surfs normally, but they want to try snowboarding for the first time.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_08: So uh, you know, we love you know being accessible, you know, to anyone that comes and visits Las Vegas.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_08: And then you know, for the Las Vegas community, obviously, um, you know, that's who we really cater to as well.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_08: You know, we want to make sure that they're uh they're coming up and and they're using us as uh an escape to the real like regular daily life of Las Vegas, or if they felt a little confined because of the COVID panel, like because of the pandemic, um, you know, we're here uh you know for them so they can escape for the day uh and get out, breathe some fresh air, um, you know, and and just enjoy nature.
• 15:26
  Dayna Roselli: And and real quick, I know you mentioned um snowboarding.
• 15:30
  Dayna Roselli: So I mean, there are other activities to do in the snow at Lee Canyon, and you've got restaurants and other things open as well, right?
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_08: Right.
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_08: So this is the second season of our uh new Hillside Lodge.
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_08: So that's a 10,000 square foot addition.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_08: Uh and that what like what that did is basically it offers a couple different experiences that we couldn't offer in the past.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_08: So we have you know our upstairs area uh where the bar is, but then also serves food.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_08: Uh so there's that restaurant.
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_08: Downstairs we have uh this new quick serve um you know coffee house.
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_08: So you can get your lattes and hot chocolates as well as you know a quick bike to eat.
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_08: And then uh and then our main restaurant, you know, uh like in the main lodge.
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_08: So we have all these different little experiences um that you can come up here and just enjoy.
• 16:14
  SPEAKER_08: Um right now, you know, we do uh we do stress or hope that everyone that comes up is a skier snowboarder, uh, because we do have to limit a little bit uh the traffic because of the pandemic and capacity uh protocols within Lee Canyon itself, like just below uh the Lee Canyon ski area.
• 16:35
  SPEAKER_08: I mean, there are campgrounds, uh there is our the foxtail play area uh and uh and then also like a day campground too, so people can enjoy you know like nature just up here.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_08: Um, you know, like I believe next week, uh, you know, so we're looking at February that we'll have um snowshoeing available and in one of the rec sites uh right below the resort.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_08: And then yeah, the foxtail is our is the uh snow play area where people can go play in the snow, bring the kids, uh maybe go sledding.
• 17:05
  Sean McAllister: I know, and I grew up skiing.
• 17:07
  Sean McAllister: And Dana, I don't know if you did.
• 17:09
  Dayna Roselli: Um I would watch, but I grew up in ski country.
• 17:12
  Sean McAllister: So so you would go to the lodge.
• 17:13
  Sean McAllister: You were one of the one of the lodge watchers.
• 17:15
  Sean McAllister: Okay.
• 17:16
  Sean McAllister: All right.
• 17:16
  Sean McAllister: Well, I know that growing up skiing, it just was so refreshing moving out here uh 15 years ago to find out that there was such a great skiing escape.
• 17:28
  Sean McAllister: I thought that skiing was gonna be in my past, but you know, it's great that you guys are here.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_08: No, it's great, you know, and and Las Vegas itself is is starting to turn into this hub of outdoor recreation.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_08: And, you know, we love being a part of that.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_08: But uh, but again, like the like the geographical location, I think, of Las Vegas is you know, you do have great ski resorts um, you know, within driving distance, you you have um you have access to all these bike trails in Las Vegas.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_08: Uh, you know, like Las Vegas is also a pretty good hub for rock climbing uh and the rock climbing community.
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_08: So uh it's really great to see people wanting to get outdoors, wanting to enjoy outdoor recreation, whether winter or summer, uh, and you know, really kind of key in on all the different aspects and facets of Las Vegas and what recreation is in and around you know, like greater Las Vegas.
• 18:20
  Sean McAllister: And for for people who haven't been up to Lee Canyon, give us kind of an overall idea of what you have in terms of lifts, runs, all that.
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_08: We have around 200, 250 acres of skiable uh terrain that's accessed by our uh three chair lifts.
• 18:38
  SPEAKER_08: Uh if you know someone's feeling a little bit adventurous, there is like hike two terrain uh that can basically expand like a to another 200 acres or so.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_08: So, you know, when we're fully open, and you know, obviously we're looking to open uh hopefully you know more trails uh because of this snowfall.
• 18:56
  SPEAKER_08: Uh, you know, like that'll that'll give us like a I believe around 27 trails or so that'll be open when we're fully open.
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_08: Uh and that's that's a pretty good uh amount of terrain for people to come have fun uh explore and get up in nature up here.
• 19:09
  Sean McAllister: Well, Jim, we appreciate the time.
• 19:11
  Sean McAllister: Now get back out there and enjoy all that fresh powder.
• 19:14
  Sean McAllister: And do, thank you very much.
• 19:16
  Dayna Roselli: Great to talk to Jim.
• 19:17
  Dayna Roselli: He's been around uh working here at the resort for a long time, so he knows his stuff.
• 19:23
  Sean McAllister: I'm a little jealous that he gets to go play in the snow right now.
• 19:26
  Sean McAllister: My gosh.
• 19:27
  Dayna Roselli: All right.
• 19:28
  Dayna Roselli: Well, yeah, when he said bar, there was a bar there, I was like, I'm in.
• 19:31
  Dayna Roselli: Uh but anyway, yeah, people love it up there.
• 19:34
  Dayna Roselli: It's gorgeous.
• 19:34
  Dayna Roselli: And even if you just want to go and take a glance, I know he said he's trying to keep people, you know, that away that don't want to take part in the activities.
• 19:42
  Dayna Roselli: The looky-loos.
• 19:43
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, but you could do a drive-by, you know, look at the snow or go up to Mount Charleston Lodge as well.
• 19:49
  Dayna Roselli: Coming up next, we're interviewing the human jukebox, Jeff Diamond.
• 19:53
  Sean McAllister: He's a longtime Vegas musician with some really great stories about some entertainers back in the day.
• 19:59
  Sean McAllister: We're gonna be talking with Jeff Diamond and how he can add a little spice to your Valentine's Day festivities.
• 20:06
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, you may want to book him for a little virtual concert inside your home.
• 20:10
  Dayna Roselli: All the details coming up.
• 20:13
  Dayna Roselli: Okay, we've gotta get it in there.
• 20:14
  Dayna Roselli: We love your ratings and reviews, and we need more of them.
• 20:18
  Dayna Roselli: John and I have joined this app called Clubhouse.
• 20:20
  Dayna Roselli: We were in a podcaster's kind of room, and they were telling us you need more reviews and ratings so that you show up on the searchability.
• 20:29
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, so that's what we're asking you for.
• 20:31
  Sean McAllister: If you can please just take a moment to go and click the the number of stars that you would like to give us, preferably five, and then just leave a quick review down on whatever platform you're listening on.
• 20:44
  Sean McAllister: Let us know what you think of Vegas revealed, or even if there's topics that you want to hear more about or something that you haven't heard yet that we can investigate for you.
• 20:55
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, we would really, really appreciate it.
• 20:57
  Dayna Roselli: So again, rate review.
• 20:58
  Dayna Roselli: We love you all, and anything you can do, we'll give you a shout-out too.
• 21:03
  Dayna Roselli: Once we see your username, we'll shout you out here on Vegas Reveal.
• 21:09
  Dayna Roselli: All right, well, he has been based in Las Vegas for a very long time, but we decided to dial him up and have a chat via Skype.
• 21:18
  Dayna Roselli: We're excited to talk to Jeff Diamond.
• 21:20
  Dayna Roselli: I just call it Jeff Diamond Music, the human jukebox.
• 21:23
  Dayna Roselli: He's got so many different names.
• 21:24
  Dayna Roselli: So many.
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_06: And Jeff, how's it going, man?
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_06: It's great to see you.
• 21:28
  SPEAKER_06: Oh, thanks.
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_06: Great to see you guys as well.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_06: Actually, I I'm not in the witness protection program.
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_06: It's the way you kind of say that so many different aliases.
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_06: You know, they kind of relocated me to the uh upper Midwest here for a while.
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_06: But uh no, it's great to be with you guys as well.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_06: Thanks for having me.
• 21:47
  Dayna Roselli: Uh listen, I'm I'm noticing you got the the glasses going, the the suit, you got even the the jewelry, the ring, the bracelet.
• 21:53
  Dayna Roselli: You are Vegas all the way, man.
• 21:55
  Dayna Roselli: Look at that watch.
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_06: I gotta you're right.
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_06: I mean Z Diamond has to bring the bling, right?
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_05: Right.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_06: Gotta gotta do it.
• 22:07
  SPEAKER_06: And you know, the reason they call me the human jutebox is I do in my show so many songs and a lot of different artists.
• 22:15
  SPEAKER_06: That's and I used to work in radio as well.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_06: So again, all that uh as far as experience or the the songs that I know, I just do quite a few and a lot of different genres from many different uh decades and a lot of different people.
• 22:29
  SPEAKER_06: So that's why they call me the human shootbox.
• 22:32
  Sean McAllister: And as Dana mentioned, you have a long history of performing here in Las Vegas.
• 22:39
  Sean McAllister: Give us a a rundown of uh the properties where you've played and worked and where you have experience.
• 22:47
  Sean McAllister: And and a lot of these are properties that aren't around anymore, but have such an iconic place in Vegas history.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_06: Very true.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_06: Um, I first my first trip to Vegas was with my dad that went on a junket from the Minneapolis-St.
• 23:04
  SPEAKER_06: Paul area, and he used to go to the international that turned into the Las Vegas Hilton.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_06: And that first time there, my God, I I met Red Fox when I was there at the Kino Lounge at the Las Vegas Hilton.
• 23:19
  SPEAKER_06: It was really funny.
• 23:20
  SPEAKER_06: And Aretha Franklin, who I had met a couple different times, I didn't meet her there, but I saw the show.
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_06: It was um Aretha and Red Fox had opened up for her, but I mean it just brought back a lot of memories.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_06: And I said, you know what?
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_06: I really want to go to Vegas and stay there and live there and work there.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_06: And I got a call to go to Vegas to work with the coasters.
• 23:46
  SPEAKER_06: And he said, I was with Cornell Gunther's Coasters, and that was with Charlie, and Charlie's still in town, and Edwin and um actually was Cornell, and we worked a lot of different places.
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_06: We worked at the Dunes and we worked Barbary Coast and we were up in Reno, and we traveled, we were in Nashville, we were in outside of Chicago, uh, so we did do a little traveling as well.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_06: Uh so that was my actually first time moving to Las Vegas.
• 24:17
  SPEAKER_06: Uh oh man, I I had such a great time working um with the coasters and working with another friend of mine, Doug Taylor, who is now still around town.
• 24:30
  SPEAKER_06: And we became really, really good friends.
• 24:32
  SPEAKER_06: And Doug is working right now at the um, he works around town, but he does he does a sound for that bella strings.
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_06: You've heard of Bella Strings.
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_06: Oh, absolutely.
• 24:43
  SPEAKER_06: Yep.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_06: And he also plays piano at the bootlegger.
• 24:47
  SPEAKER_06: And uh that to me, that bootlegger is that brings back the feel of Vegas, the way it was way back.
• 24:55
  SPEAKER_06: I mean, again, not back in the 50s or 60s.
• 24:57
  SPEAKER_06: I was too young then, but even back in the 80s, nine.
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_06: I mean, that is a great place.
• 25:02
  Dayna Roselli: And Doug works there so you even worked at the Moulin Rouge.
• 25:05
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, what was Vegas like then compared to now?
• 25:08
  Dayna Roselli: What do you think was the is the biggest change?
• 25:11
  SPEAKER_06: Oh my god.
• 25:12
  SPEAKER_06: That's you know, it's like uh they the the people that are in there, the the corporate people need to get a grip and understand what it is that really made Vegas tick and really uh I would love to see Vegas back the way it was years ago.
• 25:32
  SPEAKER_06: And just to give you a story about that, you mentioned Moulin Rouge.
• 25:36
  SPEAKER_06: Thank you for bringing that up.
• 25:37
  SPEAKER_06: That was one of the greatest gigs I had.
• 25:38
  SPEAKER_06: I worked with um James Tony, who was B.B.
• 25:42
  SPEAKER_06: King's uh keyboard player for many, many years.
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_06: And his his um uh James Tony's wife was B.
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_06: King's assistant for a long time.
• 25:54
  SPEAKER_06: I had the most fun at the Moulin Rouge.
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_06: When I grew up starting on guitar, and even throughout my career, I loved playing soul music, the RB, the jazz, and played uh this kind of music, the funk, the soul, RB, the jazz.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_06: I mean, it was great.
• 26:12
  SPEAKER_06: But you never know who would who would come into um uh the Moulin Rouge.
• 26:18
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, we'd be working, and so we would do the come on, Jeff Diamond, name drop, name drop.
• 26:24
  SPEAKER_06: Can I name drop a I'm good at that?
• 26:28
  SPEAKER_06: I'm good at that.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_06: Sammy Davis Jr.
• 26:30
  SPEAKER_06: might have dropped in, uh Temptations, Gladys Knight, uh B.B.
• 26:37
  SPEAKER_06: King himself might have come down, four tops, aretha.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_06: I just just never knew who who would drop in.
• 26:44
  SPEAKER_06: Because we would do the late shift, and when I say late shift, we'd do like two in the morning till six in the morning.
• 26:52
  SPEAKER_06: And we had keyboard, James B3, I'm on guitar, Cherie was singing.
• 26:57
  SPEAKER_06: I remember Richie Ibora was on drums.
• 26:59
  SPEAKER_06: Great time.
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_06: Just great, great, great time.
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_06: And it was so much fun, so much fun.
• 27:04
  SPEAKER_06: So it brings back a lot of memories, the way Vegas uh again used to be.
• 27:09
  SPEAKER_06: And I it's it's just it's it's not the same.
• 27:11
  SPEAKER_06: It's it's just not the same.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_06: Because I don't, I don't know, people are just uh the corporate guys now, it's just they don't treat people, even the locals uh like myself, or even people coming in.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_06: It's just not an I'm hoping that it gets back to where it was, at least some assemblance, you know, something uh uh resemblance of the way it used to be uh a while back.
• 27:37
  SPEAKER_06: I mean, that's that's my hope.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_06: I mean, charging this and charging that, they've got to learn that, you know, they'll get it back two, three, four times, you know, if they just know how to treat people correctly.
• 27:46
  Sean McAllister: You know, and that's and when you have great entertainment in one of my favorite environments, is in a lounge environment where people are sitting down, having cocktails, they're there to converse with the table next to them, work the room.
• 28:03
  Sean McAllister: They're making a commitment to stay there, they're making a commitment to the establishment and to the musician.
• 28:10
  SPEAKER_06: Oh, that's true.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_06: Do you all remember?
• 28:13
  SPEAKER_06: I don't think you were there when like Keely Smith.
• 28:16
  SPEAKER_06: Do you remember Keely Smith and Louis Prima?
• 28:19
  Dayna Roselli: Mm-hmm.
• 28:20
  Dayna Roselli: And you remember my dad loved Louis Prima.
• 28:22
  Dayna Roselli: We know Louis Prima Jr.
• 28:24
  Dayna Roselli: Jr.
• 28:24
  Dayna Roselli: Yep.
• 28:24
  SPEAKER_06: Okay, okay, sure, sure.
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_06: I mean, but that the those were the days, I mean, as far as the the lounge acts as you mentioned, Sam Butera and the witnesses, just fabulous.
• 28:36
  SPEAKER_06: That at the Desert Inn.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_06: Um, so a lot of the places that uh, you know, you mentioned a few other uh a couple other spots that I worked that I was trying to remember.
• 28:45
  SPEAKER_06: I worked at uh at the MGM with Khalid Galab, another entertainer there.
• 28:51
  SPEAKER_06: I believe he passed away a few years ago.
• 28:53
  SPEAKER_06: Those were the days, again, just you know, some of the great days that bring back some of these memories and so much fun, you know, so much fun doing that where we would we would be doing that.
• 29:03
  SPEAKER_06: So yeah.
• 29:04
  Dayna Roselli: And you you know we've seen some of your work and been able to watch some videos of you jam into guitar.
• 29:11
  Dayna Roselli: What a guitar player you are, and you know, showman, and and I know that you want to help bring that to people's homes.
• 29:19
  Dayna Roselli: And Sean and I were chatting and saying, I mean, what a perfect thing for the time that we're in and Valentine's Day coming up, or just really even like a date night or a family night.
• 29:31
  Dayna Roselli: So we can actually book you to do a virtual show for us.
• 29:38
  SPEAKER_06: Right, right.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_06: Now, when you say guitar, yeah, that that's that's a love of mine, right?
• 29:42
  SPEAKER_06: But I've you gotta remember that I sing quite a bit now.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_06: Something I didn't do years and years ago, but I do quite a bit of that now.
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_06: Well, you don't get the name the human jukebox just by playing the guitar.
• 29:54
  SPEAKER_05: Yeah.
• 29:56
  SPEAKER_06: I do I do quite a few tunes uh from a lot of different uh artists, a lot of different genres.
• 30:02
  SPEAKER_06: I have my own originals, so I'm covering everything from the 50s to current.
• 30:06
  SPEAKER_06: So I'm doing anything from, let's say, the chairman of the board, Frank Sinatra, to Bruno Mars, to uh oh my god, to Prince, to Tony Bennett.
• 30:20
  SPEAKER_06: I can even sing some uh girl stuff.
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_06: Uh I can do some share stuff, or maybe do some Cindy Lauper, you know, going uh to yeah, I just do I just do a little bit of everything, do some chick groups, uh uh groups.
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_02: I love that.
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_06: Do some Supremes, do yeah.
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_02: So how about how about you give us a little 30-second tune?
• 30:42
  SPEAKER_02: Can we hear a sample?
• 30:44
  SPEAKER_06: Oh my god.
• 30:45
  SPEAKER_06: Now, how did I know you were gonna ask for that?
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_02: Because I told you before the interview I was gonna ask for this.
• 30:50
  SPEAKER_06: You did.
• 30:51
  SPEAKER_06: You did, you did, you did.
• 30:53
  SPEAKER_06: Um well, we could talk about uh, you know, doing like a Wayne Newton song or a Bobby Darren song.
• 30:58
  SPEAKER_02: What does it look like?
• 31:00
  SPEAKER_02: We want to see the best of.
• 31:02
  SPEAKER_06: Okay, well, we can have let's let's try it.
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_07: Oh, the shark babe has such teeth, dear, and it shows them pearly whites, just oh Macal Mackie babe, and it keeps it out of sight.
• 31:28
  SPEAKER_07: You know what that shark bites with its teeth pain, scarlet pillows start to spread, fancy clothes.
• 31:42
  SPEAKER_07: Where's old Mackee?
• 31:46
  SPEAKER_07: So then never, never, never trace of breath.
• 31:52
  SPEAKER_07: How's that?
• 31:53
  SPEAKER_02: That was great.
• 31:54
  SPEAKER_02: I love it.
• 31:55
  SPEAKER_02: I'm in the mood.
• 31:56
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, darn, we're recording this on a Wednesday.
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_02: It feels like a Friday night.
• 32:00
  SPEAKER_02: You've even got the champagne out tonight, right?
• 32:02
  SPEAKER_02: Sean's got his rum and coke.
• 32:03
  SPEAKER_02: We're all set.
• 32:05
  SPEAKER_06: I'm gonna get him a refill here in a second, but uh we think we can take care of that.
• 32:10
  SPEAKER_06: That's not a problem.
• 32:11
  SPEAKER_06: So if if you'd like to book me for that, it'd be perfect.
• 32:13
  SPEAKER_06: Uh virtual show, which I can do.
• 32:16
  SPEAKER_06: Not a problem.
• 32:16
  SPEAKER_06: We'll set it up.
• 32:17
  SPEAKER_06: I can customize something for y'all.
• 32:19
  SPEAKER_06: Um, you can get a hold of me one of two ways.
• 32:24
  SPEAKER_06: You can go right on my website, which is Jeff Diamondmusic.com, and just hit me from just hit me from the contact page and I go in all lowercase uh jeffdiamondmusic.com.
• 32:37
  SPEAKER_06: Or you can go on gig salad, that's a uh booking agency that I use, and just plug in Jeff Diamond, and that's another way to do it as well.
• 32:46
  SPEAKER_06: So whichever way you all want to do that, that's fine.
• 32:48
  SPEAKER_06: Jeff Diamond Music.com or gigsalad.com and just put in uh Jeff Diamond and and we're and we're good to roll.
• 32:56
  Sean McAllister: So again, if you are craving that taste of Vegas, Jeff Diamond can bring it directly to your home.
• 33:02
  Sean McAllister: Again, we have all of the links so that you can book Jeff Diamond for a private show uh in our listener notes.
• 33:08
  Sean McAllister: So just click on those, click on the link, and uh check out Jeff's availability because I have a feeling, Jeff, that the time slots are going to be going fast as we approach Valentine's Day and move into wedding season.
• 33:21
  Dayna Roselli: Well, listen, Jeff, we hope to see you also back in Las Vegas.
• 33:24
  Dayna Roselli: We hope to to meet you, we hope to watch you jam, sing, do whatever, do whatever you're you're up for in person.
• 33:31
  Dayna Roselli: But for now, this is such a great option.
• 33:33
  Dayna Roselli: Thanks for doing this for people because I think people are looking for things to do, but they still want to be safe and stay home, and this is great.
• 33:41
  SPEAKER_06: Sure, sure.
• 33:42
  SPEAKER_06: And again, uh that's uh the best way to to handle things at this time.
• 33:47
  SPEAKER_06: And I'm hoping that Vegas things turn around and we get back to where at least where it was you know a couple of years ago.
• 33:56
  SPEAKER_06: I just I just want to see it really turn around because I I love Las Vegas and I I I I think again, just with all the talent there and uh and everything, just obviously I just want to see it turn around and do well.
• 34:10
  Dayna Roselli: Well, that was a lot of fun uh hearing from Jeff Diamond.
• 34:12
  Dayna Roselli: Thanks again so much for joining us.
• 34:14
  Dayna Roselli: All right, it's time for Dana and Sean's tip.
• 34:17
  Sean McAllister: And this week we're talking about a podcast that we actually produce aside from Vegas Revealed.
• 34:24
  Sean McAllister: It's called Conversations with Matt Goss.
• 34:27
  Sean McAllister: Matt is another longtime Vegas entertainer, headliner.
• 34:32
  Sean McAllister: He's been at the Palms, he's been at Caesars, he's been at the Mirage.
• 34:35
  Sean McAllister: And uh now he's sitting down and going in depth and really hearing from his fans and going off of their suggestions and their comments and their questions and getting pretty deep.
• 34:49
  Dayna Roselli: It's a great podcast, and it just kicked off.
• 34:51
  Dayna Roselli: So he's uh about to post episode five.
• 34:55
  Dayna Roselli: And Sean and I produce this podcast, and the great thing is, is when we sit there and we listen to him do these interviews, sometimes we're like, wow, this is a really good interview.
• 35:02
  Dayna Roselli: We want to share it on Vegas Revealed.
• 35:04
  Dayna Roselli: So we asked, can we post a little clip of this great interview he does with Larry Ruvo, who created the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute here in Las Vegas, which is partnered with the Cleveland Clinic, and they're making huge strides in Alzheimer's and dementia.
• 35:17
  Dayna Roselli: Also, he used to be friends with Frank Sinatra himself, and they were had kind of like a support system going on.
• 35:24
  Dayna Roselli: Also, he runs one of the biggest, you know, wine and spirit companies out there, and so they supply to all of our Vegas casinos and our bars and restaurants on and off the strip.
• 35:35
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, so Larry is a businessman, a philanthropist, a great storyteller, a rich history here in Las Vegas.
• 35:44
  Sean McAllister: And uh here's a bit of what he had to talk about on conversations with Matt Goss.
• 35:50
  SPEAKER_00: If you could say one thing to Las Vegas as if it was a person, what would you say?
• 35:56
  SPEAKER_01: I wouldn't have to say anything.
• 35:57
  SPEAKER_01: I'd go up and give it a biggest hug and a kiss, and then I'd say thank you.
• 36:03
  SPEAKER_01: You changed my family's life.
• 36:05
  SPEAKER_01: You changed my life.
• 36:08
  SPEAKER_01: And uh your fortitude and your remarkable tenacity and reinventing yourself is something I'm so proud to be a part of.
• 36:21
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you, Las Vegas.
• 36:23
  Dayna Roselli: All right, again, if you want to hear that full interview, go to Conversations with Mac Goss.
• 36:27
  Dayna Roselli: It's available on all the digital apps like we are Apple, Spotify, iHeart, Google, you name it, and that's where you can find that interview to listen more.
• 36:36
  Sean McAllister: Uh, thanks for joining us this week on Vegas Revealed.
• 36:39
  Sean McAllister: Once again, if you want to have Jeff Diamond come into your home for a virtual concert, just go to Jeff Diamond Music and click on uh the contact button, and you can book Jeff and he'll sing his heart out just for you.
• 36:55
  Dayna Roselli: That's right.
• 36:56
  Dayna Roselli: And listen, uh, next weekend Super Bowl, uh, who do you got?
• 37:00
  Dayna Roselli: I've got Tom Brady in the in Tampa Bay.
• 37:02
  Dayna Roselli: Who do you have?
• 37:03
  Sean McAllister: I think I'm going Tom Brady too.
• 37:05
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, I mean, incredible.
• 37:06
  Dayna Roselli: What is this, his 10th Super Bowl?
• 37:08
  Sean McAllister: Well, uh, you know what's funny?
• 37:10
  Sean McAllister: His first Super Bowl ring is now 18 years old.
• 37:14
  Dayna Roselli: Oh my gosh.
• 37:14
  Sean McAllister: Isn't that crazy?
• 37:15
  Dayna Roselli: It's crazy, you know.
• 37:17
  Dayna Roselli: I mean, and this is interesting because they're it's an NFL record.
• 37:20
  Dayna Roselli: They're gonna be playing the Super Bowl at home.
• 37:24
  Sean McAllister: Yeah, it's the first time that uh there's been home field advantage in a Super Bowl.
• 37:30
  Dayna Roselli: Yeah, so good for Tampa Bay.
• 37:32
  Dayna Roselli: What a fun time that will be, you know, for them.
• 37:34
  Dayna Roselli: And then, you know, good luck to Kansas City too.
• 37:36
  Dayna Roselli: Or no, we're not being haters to Kansas City, but we're just going with Tom Brady and the Bucks.
• 37:40
  Sean McAllister: So we'll get into all of that, everything Super Bowl related happening here in Las Vegas, coming up next week here on Vegas Revealed.
• 37:49
  Dayna Roselli: Have a great week, everyone.
• 37:50
  Dayna Roselli: And if you're interested in signing up for creating a podcast, go to Buzz Sprout.
• 37:55
  Dayna Roselli: We have a link in our listener notes there where you can get a$20 Amazon card if you sign up.
• 37:59
  Dayna Roselli: They offer everything that you need to create a simple podcast.
• 38:03
  Dayna Roselli: Let me tell you, if you're thinking about it, this is the way you want to do it.
• 38:07
  Sean McAllister: So click those links, check out our show notes, and we'll see you next week.
• 38:20
  unknown: Let's go ahead, it's baby.
• 38:22
  unknown: Let's go ahead.