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EDITORIAL
Goodman rides off
Tools
We knew it had to be for real when the mayor started giving away his office supply of gin.
Term limited after 12 years, former criminal attorney Oscar Goodman will ride off into the sunset this week.
Well, not too far into the sunset. In what's at least in part a voter tribute to the man who turned the mayoralty into the primary national public relations bullhorn for all things Las Vegas, Mr. Goodman will be succeeded by his wife, Carolyn.
And Oscar says his main goal is to stay busy -- promoting the town for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Bureau, for one thing.
"I have an agreement in principle that I'll be doing a part-time job as the 'brand' of Las Vegas," he said last week.
When he first ran for the office, 12 years ago, we wrote an editorial headlined "Anybody but Oscar," warning that the mob lawyer was precisely the wrong man for the job.
The background was indisputable. Mr. Goodman for 35 years had been the nation's pre-eminent defense attorney for violent gangsters including Meyer Lansky, Anthony Spilotro, Frank Rosenthal and Phil Leonetti. Las Vegans knew these characters hadn't been mere actors in some TV show, who took off the black shirts and white ties after the evening's final Ford ad.
But Oscar proved us (and the other doubters) fabulously wrong. The furthest thing from a calculating politician, the Happiest -- and most entertaining -- Mayor in the World became widely loved simply for "being Oscar."
No one was really very outraged when the city's biggest teddy bear said graffiti artists who cost the town millions in new paint should have their thumbs cut off. OK, maybe a few folks really did cringe when he told school kids the one thing he'd want on a desert island would be his bottle of gin.
But when millions tuned in the "Today" show to watch the mayor of Las Vegas cavort with the California Raisins, Las Vegans knew they'd found the guy to promote their national brand without apology.
Will the downtown redevelopment projects he promoted continue to prosper? Hopefully. But the mayor was pragmatic, concentrating on what was do-able in the short term.
Would some of it have happened without Oscar? Probably. But he was the tireless promoter.
What now? A book? A reality show? Oscar's Steakhouse?
Mayor Goodman has earned a rest, if he wants one. But we'd bet there are still a few show girls and martinis in his future.
"I understand that there's a 'CSI' part that's being written for me which will be filmed in August," the mayor says, referring to the television show "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation." But that'll be just a "one-shot deal," he explains. "I think I get killed."
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VegasDud, go back under your slimy rock.
Oh for crying out loud...All you haters need to sit down and shut UP! You got VegasDude2010...WOW slick name...Was VegasCrybaby2010 gone?...jr62 can't even get his letters capitol or spell for that matter...And lvfacts 101 lamenting about a fact we have heard for years...Like a broken record...At least your libitard rag (the LVRJ) has the respect to say goodbye...Goodbye Oscar, it's been fun!
"Goodman rides off". count the silverware.
lvfacts, you realize that you live in vegas? People go to vegas to have fun, for many this includes having a drink or two. Oscar was a walking billboard for the town with his gin in hand.
Until Las Vegas votes in a real businessman for mayor, the city will flounder. We've had one schmuck after another as mayor. Now we have a ex-mayor's wife in office. Egads....
Thank God this clow is Gone.............. Now his wife....... Worst
What ever his good points, his endorsement of an alcoholic beverage was an outrage considering the damage alcohol does to individuals, families, innocent bystanders and motorists. This was a serious lapse in judgment on his part. I have no respect for Oscar "Mighty Mouth" Goodman and am thankful that term limits finally got rid of him!
Well done Oscar!
Mr. Goodman has been the best PR man the City of Las Vegas ever had. Good luck to him and hope he keeps doing what he has for us to keep the city growing. Hopefully his wife will remember the East side of this city exists and keep things improving as her husband has in the last couple of years.
If and when they ever build a sports stadium downtown my bet is that it will be named: Oscar Goodman Memorial Stadium. Instead of a statue of him outside the stadium we will see a gold bottle of his favorite GIN. What a memorial, what a monument! Truly a great way to remember 'The Happiest Mayor in the Universe!'