Las Vegas Review-Journal - News

During a commercial break at the Colosseum, Oprah raved about a sexy snowmobile ride she had with Cruise in Telluride, Colo., during a stopover on her way to Las Vegas.

"I see what happened to Katie (Holmes)," Oprah said.

"There's something about the guy's butt, and you're scooched up there. ... You're like, 'Take me home. Anywhere else you want to go, Tom? I'm free this afternoon."

Oprah made a point of acknowledging that her gal pal Gayle King was seated in the front row.

On camera, Oprah said Cruise told her to say hi to Cher, who acknowledged she had a thing for Cruise, too.

Cher said she went out on a date with Cruise just once, but that it was "a long date," a comment that went over big with the mostly female crowd of about 3,000.

That was back when Cruise was poor, Cher said. He was shy and sweet, and "I was crazy about him." Cher recalled that she and Cruise were in a New York restaurant when Cruise saw a woman he knew from his high school days. Cruise told Cher: "She wouldn't give me the time of day (back then). I was such a boob."

Oprah told the audience that Cruise's home in Telluride is the most spectacular she has ever seen. She joked off-air, "I did not jump on his couch."

Oprah's CBS show featuring Cher and Tina Turner, will air May 8, two days after Cher opens her three-year, 200-appearance show at Caesars.

After Cher opened the show with "Take Me Home," Oprah told the invite-only crowd, "That's what 61 looks like."

Oprah added, "That's enough to keep me off the burgers."

WYNN'S 'SPECTACULAR' PLAN

Steve Wynn revealed his grand plan for the golf course land at Wynn Las Vegas last week, and the message is clear: he's going after Sheldon Adelson's domination of the convention business.

Wynn told local reporter Steve Friess that he is planning to add two hotels as bookends for "probably the most spectacular meeting and convention center in the world."

The addition of 5,200 hotel rooms will give Wynn 10,000 rooms on the former Desert Inn property, 1.5 million square feet of convention space and a lake twice the size of Bellagio's dancing fountains lake "with special effects," Wynn told Friess on his podcast vegashappenshere.com, formerly thestrippodcast.com.

The exhibition hall and ballroom will be on the lake.

Adelson's Las Vegas Sands properties, which include the Palazzo, The Venetian and the Sands Expo and Convention Center, offers 2.25 million square feet of meeting space and has been named the MEGACENTER.

THE SCENE AND HEARD

Mexican entertainer Veronica Castro will become the first Hispanic woman and 24th overall nominee to join the Las Vegas Walk of Stars. The private star ceremony will held Thursday at Bellagio. Castro performed in Las Vegas for many years.

SIGHTINGS

Actress Lindsay Lohan, dining at Koi in Planet Hollywood Resort with gal pal and deejay Samantha Ronson on Saturday night. They were also seen having lunch at the hotel's Planet Dailies cafe. But Lohan did not show up for the second night in a row for Ronson's deejay appearance at Hawaiian Tropic Zone. ... Oscar winner Adrien Brody, dining with his father Saturday at N9NE steakhouse in the Palms. ... At Pure nightclub in Caesars Palace on Saturday: Actor Wilmer Valderrama and former BMX star Carey Hart. ... Raven-Symoné, of "The Cosby Show" and "That's So Raven" fame, washing down her popcorn with a nonalcoholic frozen drink Saturday at "Zumanity" in New York-New York. ... At LAX nightclub Saturday in Luxor: Raven-Symoné and singer Jesse McCartney. ... Music producer Scott Storch and former NFL stars Richard Dent and Eric Dickerson, at Prive nightclub Saturday in Planet Hollywood Resort.

THE PUNCH LINE

"Allegedly, Barbra (Streisand) doesn't allow her employees to make eye contact with her. Here, it's the other way around. My employees don't allow me to make eye contact with them." -- Craig Ferguson

Norm Clarke can be reached at 383-0244 or norm@reviewjournal.com. Find additional sightings and more online at www.normclarke.com.