Vegas an odd stop for Cohen

Larry King's brief reign as Most Unlikely Vegas Headliner Ever was short-lived. There's a new champion.

Monday brings the start of ticket sales for a Nov. 12 date by Leonard Cohen. The 74-year-old singer-poet apparently tours only because he was ripped off by a manager, and undoubtedly is the last person to think he would live to play the same stage as Cher and Celine Dion.

It would be nice to say Las Vegas has matured to the point where this one isn't an eyebrow-raiser. But the Colosseum at Caesars Palace has done more than any other venue in town to reinforce the sequined stereotypes of Vegas showbiz.

It turns out there's no big story to explain it; a lot of little things just added up, says Kris Lingle of AEG Live, which operates the venue. AEG promoted Cohen's recent North American tour, which surprised some people with its sell-out numbers. The date just happened to fall on a dark night for Bette Midler. Cohen's "Live in London" will air on PBS next month.

"The stars all aligned," Lingle says.

One thing the ghostly voiced singer will share with the divas: tickets that top out at $275, albeit with five price points. ...

Jerry Seinfeld is the latest Colosseum show at Caesars Palace to receive a "musical chairs" locals promotion this weekend. Nevada residents who pay for tickets in one pricing tier can get bumped to the next-best tier of seating. ...

Before anyone really knew it was there, "Rockstar: The Tribute," already is a goner at the Steve Wyrick Theater in the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood. One disgruntled father says his daughter and other local teens weren't paid for distributing fliers for the show around town. ...

Interstate 15 is getting louder with concerts by rival M Resort and the Silverton. But there's a contrast: M finally found some shows to put on a carefully considered outdoor stage; Silverton is doing poolside shows because there is nowhere else to put them.

The plan to put up a prefab building for concerts has been delayed, so Silverton shows will remain outdoors until otherwise announced; that could take them to and beyond Creedence Clearwater Revisited on Oct. 11.

After sitting out the first half of summer, M is in the game with Alan Jackson Aug. 8, Crosby, Stills & Nash on Sept. 26, Journey on Oct. 3 and Tim McGraw on Oct. 23. ...

Hypnotist Anthony Cools is assured by a four-year contract extension that he doesn't have to keep his show portable. He has made further improvements to his Paris Las Vegas venue, which started out as a tour and travel lobby. And he's the first live act to jump in on the revived 3-D craze in movies. A 41/2-minute 3-D film to open the show has its official debut today.

Locals can check out Cools for $20 tickets through the end of August by using the promotion code "ACLOC" when they buy tickets. ...

World-traveling comedian updates: Louie Anderson, who spent last weekend in Montreal performing at the Just For Laughs comedy festival, has signed a three-year extension at the Excalibur with producer Adam Steck.

Bobby Slayton also is back in his showroom at the Tropicana after hosting "The Nasty Show" at the festival.

And here's a switch. Mac King, who usually commutes a few miles to Harrah's Las Vegas, is in China for a big magic convention, courtesy of the Chinese government.

Nick Lewin, the comedy-magician who takes his act as far as Siberia on cruise ships, seldom gets to sleep at home in Henderson. But he will get his land legs back by filling in for King through Aug. 6.

Contact reporter Mike Weatherford at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0288.