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,, Longview, Texas MORNING JOURNAL (Cir. D. 14,267 S. 23,988) octi-iss'/ LAS VEGAS LIMELIGHT 5 By Barney Glazer wmmm All that jazz, razz, mdazz buzzin' 'round Las Vegas points to "PZAZZ! '68," which opens Thursday, Sept. 28, at the Desjed, Inn. The hotel has overhauled its bolires to present a mini, mod, mad revue that has no psychedelic parellel on the Strip, not even a soul brother in the entire county. Created, staged and directed by Donn Arden and produced by Frank Sennes, the musical goes va-va-voom with costumes that make mink look like rabbit, music with an obvious status edge, cosmic sounds that out- kick 80-proof tequilla and individual acts that rhyme with the rest of/the dazzling production. >/ "PZAZZ! '68" presents a Fred ^?√ß?╟≤^Astaire-Ginger Rogers tableau without the stars and a thundering waterfall that also salutes the film industry. A Boom Town episode burns an oil field. The revue's big finale flips back to the days of Beau Geste and the Foreign Legion. The Snyder Brothers ride the rapid transit to comedy with songs and dances. International juggler Rudy Cardenas proves as tricky as a cavalry captain wearing a monocle. Production numbers frame 70 dancers, singers and showgirls. Adding a timely dimension to the revue, the Dance Educators of America, composed of the country's dance teachers, recently honored Donn Arden with an award for his contributions to the dance, staging and choreography. Bambi McCormick, 23-year-old featured singer in the Desert Inn show, is a grandniece of the late renowned operatic tenor John McCormack (note the spelling difference.) Frank Sennes signed Bambi after hearing the youngster sing with Don Cornell at the Stardust. Mad, mod "PZAZZ '68" fea- Hollywood, Calif., Van Nuys Edition Valley Adv. Herald Tribune & Adliner (Cir. 2/W T. .93,281 S. 87,696) nov % raw. Jlllens P.C.B. Est. /Pzazz! '68' at Desert Inn Lavishly Produced Show "Pzazz! '68" at the Las Inn features Vegas Desert some of the most lavish production numbers ever staged on the Vegas Strip. For the mirrored ballroom in the "Tribute to Fred Astaire," four tons of mirrors are used. A crew of six men must thoroughly clean and polish these mirrors between each show due to the smudge and smoke from the "Boom- town Today" scene. More than 2,5000 gallons of water per minute flow over the gigantic waterfall in the "Polynesian Paradise" scene. Lush tropical foliage provides an enchanting background for exotic costumes and ritual dances. Flower-bedecked baskets carried by native girls in this scene are topped by live birds, vividly tinted. Featuring Pa and Ma, the Corn Tappers and the Mountaineers, "Tu'baccer Road" is an amusing spoof following the "Road to Morocco" and "Road to Zambesi" scenes. Art Johnson portrays Bing Crosby, Fred Bennett plays Bob Hope, and Janice Hague is Dorothy Lamour for this segment. A fortress rises from the desert and is surrounded by excitingly costumed "Pzazz" girls as Foreign Legionnaires. The entire cast participates in the finale, a salute to the "Beau Geste film epics ending in spectacular fireworks. tures 350 costumes, ranging from mini-burlap to full-length, deep- cut evening gowns. Designed by Bill Campbell and executed by Berman of Hollywood, the costumes add a Tiffany setting with spectacular beads and sparkling stones. Like Marco Polo, Campbell imported exotic materials from the four corners of the earth: elasticized cloth from London, woven brocades and chiffons from Paris, satins from Italy, silks from the Orient and ostrich plumes from South Africa. Seeing "PZAZ! '68" after previous Desert Inn productions is like slumbering in a feather bed after sleeping on wooden boards, like dating Brigitte Bardot after playing with Chatty Cathy dolls, like running to a touchdown after being thrown.for a loss all afternoon. Whether you're a salty individualist or timid knight, I^PZAZZ! '68" will earn your E for entertainment. It's even more inspiring than that old time religion, that is, if you don't have any. STARTING Oct. 2, the Bonanza stars not one but two sex- \ pots: Mamie Van Doren in the [j Opera House and Candy Barr in \tae afternoon, "Watusi Stam- v-pede" . . . Harry Belafonte is the current Caasars Palace psychology major in music . . . Xaviar Cugat, the satin Latin, leads his band in Caesars' Nero's Nook. Hypnotist Pat Collins and comedian Richard Pryor catch the true carnival spirit at the Aladdin . . . Bobby Darin, the young whippersnapper, adds the vocal scenery to the Flamingo's postcard . . . "Europe '68" makes a significant entertain-^ I ment breakthrough at the Frontier ... At the Sahara, Robert , Goulet sings in a nightclub for mmmmtt the last time in a long time before opening in a new stage musical at the L.A. Music Center. Mel Torme and Alan King pick up where Frank Sinatra left off at the Sands . . . Ginger Rogers and Dorothy Lamour dolly in and out of "Hello, Dolly" at the Riviera . . . The Dukes of Dixie land ride rough shod in Dixie jazz in the Tropicana's Blue Room, while the Folies Bergere dazzles in the Trop's main room. Casino de Paris at the Dunes is attracting crowds like free beer . . . Le Lido de Paris at the Stardust is the next best thing to owning a seat on the N.Y. Stock Exchange.