The Morning Groove w/ John Nasshan

0:00:00
Hey, Nashen here, and I'm glad you've tuned in to the Morning Groove podcast. And my guest today is a guy that's got a lot of history in Las Vegas and some politicians and celebrities in his past and all kind of great things. His name is Bruce Marin. He is a big fan of the radio station. I want to thank you for coming in. Hey, Bruce.

0:00:23
Listen, I love, I said listen, which is interesting. I love K-U-N-D. As you know, I have it on every morning in my office. My office is on Decatur and Flamingo, but you are my favorite, and you do such a great job and I love the music and everything about it. And yes, when it comes to the history of Vegas, I owe everything to Las Vegas, so happy to be here. Give the listeners the short course on where you were born and how you got to Las Vegas. Sure, well I was born as they say back there Louisville and my first sports client was Muhammad Ali so he loved that I was born in Louisville. Our family moved here John in 1956. I was in junior high going to John C Fremont junior high. My best friend was Bob Miller the future governor but the way that I wear everything to Vegas my dad ran the Flamingo Hotel. He was the executive VP and general manager of the Flamingo and thanks to him, I was in Junior Eye, they took me to every big show in the 50s. So I was in the front row to see Sammy Davis and Judy Garland and Ella Fitzgerald and Lena Horn, Frank Sinatra, on and on. Was your dad still there in the 60s? No, we were here two full years and the reason we left, because we love Vegas and my dad loved it, my dad was in the owners meetings every month here in Vegas with all the people like Moe Dalis and after two years here, even though my dad never did anything nefarious, but he knew so much. He was very worried having three sons that he knew too much. So after two amazing years in Vegas we moved to Sherman Oaks, California. But the two years I'll never forget in Vegas.

0:02:07
The reason I ask is my favorite album ever was recorded at the Sands and it's Sinatra and Basie live at the Sands.

0:02:16
I'll never forget the first time mom and dad took me to see Frank Sinatra. I was young enough, I was in junior high, but I loved Frank Sinatra. He and Sammy were probably, and Judy Garland, I say those three were my three favorites, but at the Sands Hotel, John, oh my God, yes.

0:02:33
You know, I worked in the showrooms as a drummer and percussionist for many years, and the only time I remember truly being speechless is when somebody introduced me and I shook hands with Frank. I'm like, oh my God, this is Frank Sinatra.

0:02:48
Yes, no, I agree. I'm such a big fan. I love all of his music and I'm old enough that I still have all of his albums as LPs. But Frank Sinatra was just incredible.

0:02:59
Well, yeah, and one of my connections to the Sinatra and Basie is that the arranger was Quincy Jones for all that.

0:03:06
How many Grammys? Over seven, right?

0:03:08
Oh, yeah, and Quincy was the third trumpet player in my grandfather's big band in Chicago when Quincy was like in his 20s.

0:03:16
That is amazing. By the way, go Bears. I had to say that.

0:03:19
Yeah, I hope so. They laid down the law. Justin Fields said, if you bring in that quarterback from Ohio State, I want to be traded. So the Bears kept him, and the guy from Ohio State went elsewhere. Yeah, I like what they've done. I do too. They got DJ Moore to receive his passes.

0:03:35
So wonderful.

0:03:36
We'll see. So now you moved to Sherman Oaks.

0:03:39
When did you come back to Las Vegas? I've been back 31 years now because Las Vegas was always in my heart. Those two years when I was in junior high and when I got to see all the entertainment. In fact, you'll get a kick because you're such a great entertainer. You're one of the best drummers in the world. This is what changed my life in entertainment. When mom and dad took me to the Sands to see Sammy Davis Jr. and I was in the eighth grade at the time, John. Sammy Davis Jr. and I was in the eighth grade at the time, John. So I sat in the front row and Sammy sang Mr. Bojangles and at the end, because it was my mom and dad, they took me backstage. I was starstruck, but I shook Sammy's hand and I said, Mr. Davis, I know now that I want to work in entertainment.

0:04:22
So Sammy Davis literally had a part of my life. I had something happen backstage at Caesars with Sammy that is still one of the funniest things I've ever experienced. We were talking in a group of people and Sammy was standing nearby and one of the guys says, does somebody have change for a 20? And Sammy walked up and said, baby, a 20 is change.

0:04:41
That is a great line. It's true. That is a great line. And because you mentioned Frank Sinatra and we're both big, big fans. Frank has different images with some people. He was very generous. I'll just share a quick story. My dad, when we moved to California, produced a show called Sports Challenge. But one of his clients and one of my clients was Sugar Ray Robinson, the great, great fighter. So here's the Frank story. We did the telethon to raise money for Sugar Ray's Youth Foundation in California. We got Johnny Carson to be the host. And anyway, Dad and I, and it was more Dad than me, I was probably in my young 20s, we went to Frank Sinatra and we said, Frank, would you help support the telethon for Sugar Ray Robinson? He took out his checkbook and wrote a check for $25,000. But he said, only one thing, I don't want to take any credit on this. It's for Sugar Ray, but I don't need the notoriety. This is for Sugar Ray." But that's a Frank Sinatra story.

0:05:44
Well Frank was good about that stuff. I mean, I've always told people, Frank is one of the main reasons why the black entertainers were allowed to live on the strip and eat on the strip. Because he went to the bosses at the Sands and said, if Sammy can't live here, I can't

0:06:00
work here. And I heard you tell that story on your morning show because I listen and it really touched my heart because at the Flamingo where my dad ran the Flamingo Pearl Bailey was a very big star there and she headlined and she used to come to our home and she was so sad because she could never live at the Flamingo Hotel and the first day that she finally got to sleep as a headliner at the Flamingo we were all there with her and she was crying John like a baby she says I cannot believe that I can finally stay at the Flamingo where I headlined but your story on your show

0:06:36
oh yeah that was amazing one of the funny things about the segregated era on the strip is that the Fletcher Henderson band from many years ago Gerald Wilson was in the band and they were all black guys in the band. And they played the Flamingo Lounge and they just kind of walked in the front door and nobody stopped them. He said, we didn't know any better when I interviewed Gerald.

0:07:00
Yeah, that's interesting.

0:07:01
And it was funny because he didn't come back here for like 50 years. We brought him in for a concert with the Jazz Society and I drove him down the strip and he just couldn't believe what he was seeing. I mean, you and I have seen a lot of the growth. I moved here almost 46 years ago, 48 years ago, when there were a hundred and seventy thousand people in the whole valley. Yes, yes. And you had to do a lot of walking to get from the Sands to the Tropicana with nowhere to

0:07:29
go inside for a while. No, you're right and I'll share because again it was so nice that you share that story about the black entertainers. So imagine for the people that are younger that don't understand, Sammy Davis Jr. and Lena Horne and Ella Fitzgerald and on and on, Pearl Bailey, none of them could stay at the hotels where they headlined. One of the biggest stars in the industry at the time was Dorothy Dandridge. Yes, yes, you're right.

0:07:55
And she couldn't do it either.

0:07:56
Yes, you're right.

0:07:57
You know, it's amazing what the city has done to change, mostly for the better. Yeah. And I personally think it's a little overcrowded, but that's okay. We need growth. Yes. Now what got you into the business of PR and promotion and handling all these great entertainers?

0:08:14
Yes, I am so blessed. I owe everything to my mom. My mom was a really big pioneer in public relations. So in the 1960s, John, in Hollywood, she was one of only two women that helmed a public relations entertainment firm. And she was representing a lot of big-name celebrities. This was in the 60s going into the 70s. So to finish the story, when I graduated the film school from UCLA, I was working at MGM Studios and it was a great job, but my mom called me and said, Bruce, I know you're happy at MGM, but if you think about joining me at the studio, because she had an office at General Service Studio, a big movie studio. So I joined my mom, and literally, John, for three years, my mom taught me the entire business. And one quick story that I think you'll enjoy, because I was a film grad, I knew all about films. So the first week I walked into my mom's office, and I recognized Joan Crawford seated at my mom's desk. I knew it was Joan Crawford, and Joan stands up. The Oscar winner gives me a big hug. She says, Bruce, your mom is the best PR representative I've ever had. That was my introduction to PR. So for three years, my mom taught me everything.

0:09:31
So now, what does a PR, a public relations person do? What's the main responsibility? Because I know what personal management is. Yes. But what you're doing is different.

0:09:41
Yes. Well in public relations, to use my mom as an example, one of the clients she had was Simon & Schuster, the biggest book publisher in the world. So every month, to give you an idea, every month with Simon & Schuster, the biggest name author with Simon & Schuster, they were our client. So what our responsibility was, we had to write the news releases and then send them out and get as many TV and radio and newspaper and magazine interviews as we can. And then back in the day of course it was Johnny Carson and Merv Griffin and Phil Donahue and getting exposure for our clients in publicity that's what it's all about. Now of course we have social media and a lot of other things, but I will share radio and TV are my two favorites for publicity.

0:10:30
Mine as well. I actually, I post and I do what I need to do, but I'm not a social media fan. Because it can be so misunderstood. It's like I had a friend that wanted to carry on a friendship via text and Facebook Messenger

0:10:48
and I said, forget it. I totally understand.

0:10:51
It doesn't work. Yes. You know and then there was someone I know that was posting in capital letters all the time, and I said Do you understand why nobody replies? And he said what do you mean? I said well, why do you use all caps? He said because I can't see that well. I said but people on social media think you're yelling. Exactly. You know there's so much protocol and nonsense at times. You are so, so right. Because I'm in radio, it's the most immediate media. It can happen now. I don't need a makeup artist and a producer and a director. We can just do what we do. I think radio is a great way to reach people.

0:11:33
Unbelievable. A radio story, again, going back to my mom, talking about Simon and Schuster and the celebrities like Joan Crawford. We lived in Southern California when KABC radio was the number, that was the number one station, talk radio, 79 AM. So we had our clients at KABC all of the time, Michael Jackson and on and on, Ken and Bob. So that was my entree into talk radio. And in LA there was KFI radio. So I love radio because of the live quality. There's nothing like live radio.

0:12:09
Oh, I know. It's immediate and it's now. And I always tell people, what are you gonna do if there's no radio and heaven forbid there's a disaster?

0:12:19
Yes.

0:12:20
Because television takes longer than we do. Right. I can get to you now. Yeah. You know, and so you've had a lot of big clients. You said Muhammad Ali.

0:12:29
Yes, in sports, my first two sports clients were Muhammad Ali and Jackie Robinson, and what a blessing that was.

0:12:37
I've also seen photos of you with Elvis.

0:12:39
Oh, Elvis. Elvis is certainly one of my biggest favorites. I met Elvis, John, at MGM Studios when I was there, and I think you'll get a kick out of this. I was a young kid out of the film school at UCLA. The president of MGM comes up to me and says, Bruce, how would you like to have lunch in the commissary with Elvis? I said, are you kidding? He's my favorite. They said, we have a new film and it's called Elvis on Tour. And to this day it's a really great, you know, great film to see. So I walked into the commissary and met my hero Elvis and we shook hands and I said to him Elvis we're gonna really get along we're both mama's boys because I knew that he was such a mama's boy. Oh yeah. And I've never heard a bad story about Elvis Presley. I'll tell you he is one of the most amazing gentlemen that I've ever met. Generous, kind, and so polite the way

0:13:32
he treated women like a southern hospitality. Well he came into the Hilton, and actually it was the International then, and had never worked with a big orchestra. And he enjoyed it so much he took them all on tour. I worked at the Golden Nugget when Joe Garcia was the conductor. And Joe was the piano player and conductor with Elvis. And he told me, he said he came in and was so thrilled, he said, can you all travel with me and they all went. And they had a great time. Many times on the road Elvis would buy out the top two floors of a hotel for the band. So generous. The same thing on the films. Because I work with him on a lot of his films.

0:14:06
He would give golden watches, the most beautiful gifts to everybody. The grips and the electricians. And I'll say, because you're great in the entertainment field, the trilogy is one of my favorite all-time things that I've ever heard in a showroom. I remember the first time I just got goosebumps just thinking at the International the first time I heard

0:14:31
Elvis sing the trilogy. It is like unbelievable. There was a time when his drummer who was Ronnie Tutt, oh yes, at the time Elvis found out that Ronnie was parking in the general parking garage. So Elvis bought him a forest green Jaguar with leather interior and told the vice president of the hotel, you can't park there anymore, my drummer's going to park there.

0:14:54
That is such a great story. I love it. I love that. But yes, he was very, very generous.

0:14:59
And I have one more favorite Elvis story. Yes, please. It happened. Yes. I had a couple of friends that we would get together and do Christmas together when we were single guys years ago. And one Christmas, we're cooking, the doorbell rings, and I went to answer the door and there's Elvis. He's in a hat, sunglasses, jeans and a t-shirt. And he says, you got any food left? So he did Christmas with us. It was a great time.

0:15:25
That is incredible.

0:15:26
And of course back then we didn't have iPhones with cameras.

0:15:30
There's no picture. I know. I know. And his smile, right, John? His smile. He was just a gentleman. Yeah, that's the word. He was a total gentleman. Yes. And there's just so many people that have bad stories and we know so many that have great stories. Oh yeah. And I... The industry is full of both. I mean we have to admit that. There's people that take advantage of their celebrity and their notoriety and

0:15:52
their wealth.

0:15:53
No, I agree. And the last thing I want to share with you because when you talk about people that impacted my life, my mom was number one, but Michael Landon and Johnny Carson were the other two, because I took my client Michael Landon when I was young to the Carson show, and after he was done with his appearance, Johnny came backstage and said, Michael, how would you and Bruce like to come to my home in Malibu and have dinner? And I said to Michael, my God, this is incredible. So we went to Johnny Carson's home, a beautiful home right on the ocean and Johnny took out a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon and he toasts us and he says, Bruce, I think you should start a celebrity speakers bureau. This is 50 years ago, John, 50 years ago. And so I said, well, Johnny, you know, I'm a PR guy. We do PR. He said, well, I'll make it easy. I'm going to be your first client. And then Michael says, I'll be your second client. And then Ed McMahon calls me the next day. And that that's how my celebrity bureau started 50 years ago tell us a little more about the celebrity bureau yeah the celebrity bureau is so much fun for me we mainly deal in the corporate arena with meeting planners that had big events and for those events they need to book a speaker or an entertainer or performer so for 50 years we've been booking whoever they wish. The other area passed presidents, starting with President Reagan. I booked President Reagan and all of them. So depending upon what the audience needs are, we'll provide a speaker or an entertainer that'll make everybody happy. And here in Vegas, as you know, we're the number one destination travel in the United States, John. Yeah, there's a couple of people I've heard speak at corporate events that really were amazing and I didn't expect it from one of them. I expected it to be amazing when Colin Paul was the keynote speaker for the National Association of Home Builders. I didn't expect Terry Bradshaw to be as good as he was. Yes and I have booked Terry and I agree with you. He's brilliant. He is good. He's funny and he's topical. His sense of humor is wonderful so I totally agree and listen you being in Chicago I share this with you, but I got to tell you I booked every big sports star you can name, but when I booked Walter Payton in Chicago sweetness sweets Oh, that was such a thrill for me because as you know as a fan

0:18:15
He's literally one of the greatest ever ever a friend of mine was at Walter's bar in Chicago one day and Walter was there Wow, and it was after his playing career had ended and Marty said, you know, my son really is a big fan. Do you have any jerseys or anything? And he said, well, come on. He took Marty in the office, pulled out a game jersey that he had worn in a game, signed it and gave it to him.

0:18:41
Wow.

0:18:42
That is to say Marty's son never got the jersey. Marty framed it and put it in his house.

0:18:47
Oh, I don't blame him. And by the way, Mike Ditka, I booked him many times and he's a very good speaker as well. You know, John, some of the sports stars, they may be very famous, but they're not good speakers. Mike really is good and whenever I've booked him, people have loved him.

0:19:04
Well, my experience meeting some of those big bear stars goes back to Dick Budkis. Sure. Absolutely. I remember when I met him, my dad ran a chain of stores in Chicago called Dominick's Finer Foods and he was friends with all the athletes. So we knew Keith Magnuson and all the hockey players. We knew Butkus and all these guys. And you take away the uniform, the helmet, and the football, Butkus was one of the most mild-mannered people I have ever met. Isn't that fascinating?

0:19:33
Yet you put him on the turf.

0:19:36
And just get out of the way.

0:19:37
And he's absolutely one of the greatest of all time, no doubt about it. You do regular luncheon events, don't you? We do. Right here in Vegas, I have every two weeks we have a lunch at Larry's. It's a business networking group and I book all kinds of different speakers and it's it's great because it's a chance for people in the business community to do business networking and I've always been a fan of business networking and getting to meet people.

0:20:04
And is it on a set day every time?

0:20:06
Yeah, it's every two Wednesdays right at Larry's, very close by to here. Larry's on Flamingo.

0:20:12
What time do you do them?

0:20:13
Yeah, we do that, it starts at 12 noon every other Wednesday and we love it. That's great.

0:20:20
Yes. Yeah, because I've seen it all the time, when you post about it all the time, it's great.

0:20:24
Great idea.

0:20:25
A lot of fun. And it's very modestly priced.

0:20:27
Yes, it definitely is. But I've got to congratulate you on your drumming. How many decades? It's been decades.

0:20:33
Well, yeah, I've been doing it since I was a little boy. But I did it on the strip for about 40 years in the showrooms. Amazing. You know, I did some years with the Jubilee Show, and I've been on the bands with Johnny Haig at Caesars and Lou Elias at Desert Inn, Jack Egglash at Desert Inn again.

0:20:53
I remember him.

0:20:54
Yeah, Jack was a good guy. And in fact, Jack, I met him when I first came to town. I was playing in the lounge at the Sahara. He was not only the conductor in the showroom but vice president of the hotel of entertainment. And I went up to Jack and I introduced myself, gave him my card, said, if you ever need a drummer, I would appreciate if you would give me a call. And he said, well, you know, I've got a guy that I've been using, and of course it was the guy he'd used for decades. I said, but if he's ever not available, I'll call you. Twenty-two years later, the phone rings, and he said, this is Jack Egglash. I said, yeah? He said, you want to work for me? That is incredible. And I said, you remembered. He said, I don't forget.

0:21:39
What a compliment. That is a great compliment. And you as a great drummer, you'll appreciate this. Again, Pearl Bailey was headlining at the Flamingo. She and Louie Belson used to come to our home. And Louie is certainly one of the greatest. See now, my grandfather and Louie studied with the same teacher in Chicago. And they met every Saturday after their lesson for a quick lunch. That is amazing.

0:22:03
With one other drummer that people heard of, Gene Krupa.

0:22:05
Oh my God. Two, absolutely two of the greatest. And us talking about Vegas, the other thing I would do is shout out to the people that know old school Vegas, the Lounge Acts. When I was here, Louis Prima and Keely Smith, oh my God, they were amazing. And they were in Boats Lounge Acts. I never got to see them, but I did see Sam Butera and his band. When he had Sam Butera and the Witnesses and then the Wildest later on. I worked in the lounge with a girl named Penny France and her partner was Ann Sidney. Oh, wonderful. Originally known as the London Bells, but they changed their name to Penny and Ann.

0:22:43
That is great. Yeah, we were at the Sahara Lounge. That was my first job in Las Vegas.

0:22:47
That is great. And the Checkmates are another, in quotes, lounge act. But we don't really have a lot of that now.

0:22:55
Oh, I know. I actually did a brief stint with the brothers, Tommy and Donnie.

0:23:00
Oh, wow.

0:23:01
That's incredible. Tommy Ronca and Donnie Moore. Amazing.

0:23:06
Amazing. And then the Showcases were something else. And so many great people have been through town. So what's coming up for you in the future? What do you want to do?

0:23:15
Are you going to retire? No, here's the thing. I'm very blessed with good genes. My dad lived to be 99 and a half and mom lived to be 98 and a half. And I've never smoked, I've never taken drugs. I'm not trying to be a goody two-shoes, but that's me. So no, I love, I'm so passionate about what I do, John, that I'll never retire. And on the speaker side, I love that I can send people out that really impact the lives of everybody else and on the PR side it's so fun and a big shout out to you because I just talked to them Al Sapienza and Deborah Renard say a big hello to you.

0:23:51
Oh wow, I haven't seen them in a long time.

0:23:53
Yeah, you were wonderful. They really enjoyed the interview with you and you'll get a kick talking about music. Their next show is going to be in New Jersey, 6,000 attendees with Herman and the Hermits. Oh wow.

0:24:06
Peter, with Peter. Okay. Yes. Okay. Yeah, that's funny. You know, there was a vicious rumor circulated recently that has been debunked. Yes. Somebody said Jack Johns had passed away, and it's wrong. He's still very active. He's still very alive. I worked with Jack for a couple of years.

0:24:23
Oh, I love Jack.

0:24:24
And it was one of the most musical periods of my career.

0:24:27
I loved him.

0:24:28
He was so sensitive and wonderful. And we played beautiful clubs and big places and little places. It was great.

0:24:37
His cover of Impossible Dream was one of my favorite covers. I mean, so many people, Robert Goulet, but I was a big fan of Jack Jones.

0:24:45
Funny story. We're working at the Orleans. No. No, we were working out at Suncoast with the trio and Jack and he would close the show with Impossible Dream and he would turn his back to the audience and put on the armor plate and the goatee and one night he looked at me after he did it and I kind of laughed a little bit and while we were playing the intro he said, what's the matter?

0:25:11
I said, dude, you look like Colonel Sanders. That is so funny and the Impossible Dream and Man of La Mancha mean the world to me because my dad was one of the Producers of man of La Mancha on Broadway at the Anta theater this was with Richard Kiley and Joan Diener and I was there for the The premiere so the impossible dream of course for a man of La Mancha that That was a song that we're talking about so your dad was a Broadway producer Oh wound up after that being a Broadway producer. Wow. Yeah. Because I have a true love of the Broadway musical. Oh, nothing like it. I've played many shows and I love playing them. The first show I ever played, I was 15 years old and my teacher plopped me down in the pit to play Guys and Dolls. Oh, one of my favorites. Rock the Boat. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, I love that show. And I remember years later talking to him and I said, Randy, I want to thank you for putting me in the hardest show there is to play other than West Side Story for my first show. I said, you scared me. Oh no, that's a great story and musical theater. I love all forms of entertainment but boy, Broadway and we gotta give a shout out to the Smith Center. Now we've got these amazing musicals like Wicked and you name them that are coming here.

0:26:28
Well, one of the unsung heroes of the Broadway show is Bill Fane. Yes, oh! A genius! Because he's never giving up. He's always trying to bring Broadway musicals to the people.

0:26:40
I admire him so much.

0:26:41
I've done a lot of shows with Bill and I've got some coming up in the future. And he's got a great spirit and he loves musicals.

0:26:49
I love him. And I just flashed thinking about Vegas. I remember when Chicago the musical was here on the strip and we've had some musicals on the strip. Now with the Smith Center it's amazing. Yeah, well I first met Jack Jones at the Desert Inn when he was in Guys and Dolls. Yes, absolutely. With Frank Gorshin. Yeah, oh Frank Gorshin what an entertainer. And one thing, when you mention Desert Inn, when I moved back here to Vegas in 1991, one of the first shows was seeing Barry Manilow at the Desert Inn. That was a great showroom, wasn't it?

0:27:23
Yeah, it was. Yeah. I played in that room for about six years.

0:27:26
Oh, wow.

0:27:27
I had a blast in there. I played in there with Petula Clark.

0:27:30
Oh, my goodness.

0:27:31
And a few other people, Don Rickles and a few others.

0:27:34
That is so great.

0:27:35
And, you know, there's another misunderstood guy. Everybody thinks Rickles is a jerk. Well, he never was.

0:27:41
He's a genius.

0:27:42
He's one of the sweetest men I've ever met. And what people need to know about this guy that was so busy with the insult humor is that every week, every musician on stage and every crew member received a $50 tip from Don. Yes, yes. With a hand-signed note from me and his wife that said, thanks for being nice to us. Yes. Barbara and Don Rickles.

0:28:07
No, I love that. I love that. No, I think he's one of the biggest comedic geniuses of all time. He and Robin Williams are at the top of my list. So I love him.

0:28:16
Yeah, Robin will always top my list.

0:28:18
Yes, he's number one for me as well.

0:28:21
Yes. And then I also had the pleasure of working with a comedy duo that was way ahead of their time on television. That's why they didn't succeed on TV, and that's the Smothers Brothers.

0:28:31
Oh, I agree with you.

0:28:32
They were so political and so hip that people just didn't get it at the time.

0:28:37
I agree with you, but I'll share. When I first moved to Vegas in 91, right close to that time, you remember before the Stratosphere, it was Vegas World? Yeah, I do. And I worked with Alan and Rossi. They had a show at Vegas World. And oh, what a thrill that was, working with them.

0:28:54
Yeah, I played the Vegas World showroom with Bob Anderson.

0:28:57
Whoa, he's amazing.

0:28:59
We were in there for a long time.

0:29:00
Bob Anderson's amazing. Wasn't his show at the Venetian good?

0:29:04
Yes, it was.

0:29:05
He was incredible.

0:29:06
Yeah.

0:29:07
And, you know, there's so many things going on, and I think the city is back in an upcycle on the Strip. I think the entertainment is getting better. Yes. I think it's a little overpriced perhaps. I would really love to see Bruno Mars, but sorry, I'm not going to pay a thousand dollars to get a decent seat.

0:29:28
No, I agree. Some of the prices are nuts. And the only thing, me, just personally speaking, the Cirque shows are good, but I wish there weren't eight Cirque shows, because it takes the showrooms away from some of the great entertainers and the Cirque shows are good. I'm not knocking Cirque. It's just that I think eight is a little bit much. Well and some of the great old entertainers are still doing it. Yes. Have you seen Frankie Valli recently? Oh. He's killing it. Yes. He's an 86 year old rock and roller. Amazing. You know I saw Barry Manilow a couple of weeks ago. It was a wonderful show. Yes I agree with you. You know and just so many things going on and you're in the middle of it so much. Yes, and when you mention Barry, I remember having the 8-track of Barry Manilow in our Cadillac Seville in the 80s, you know. But Barry Manilow, and you know the story with Bette Midler, right?

0:30:16
Yeah.

0:30:17
That's how Barry started.

0:30:18
Yes.

0:30:19
In the bathhouses in New York with Barry playing piano.

0:30:22
Exactly, but I agree. Some of the older guys still are really good. Frankie Valli is amazing.

0:30:27
Yeah, he is. He really blew me away. I saw him. It was a funny night. I saw him at the Smith Center a couple years ago and they were getting close to the closing number and he looked at his keyboard player and he said, how long are we going to be here? He said, well, Frank, we leave tomorrow. He said, why didn't we stay longer?

0:30:45
That is a great story. And one other, I'll just share because I know you do a lot of things with South Coast Tony Butala and the Letterman we do PR with Tony and they still sound at just like they did years ago See, I remember when I was a kid my mother was managing bands, yes and She had bands that you may have heard of the Buckingham's. Oh my goodness, 60s, yes, of course. And the band that rehearsed in our house before they moved to LA was Chicago. Oh my God. One of my favorite all time. She set them up with their producer James Gursio at the Chicago Teen Fair. They were in the battle of bands and my mother found this guy at Navy Pier and dragged him over and said, you've got to hear these kids. That is amazing. What a story. Oh yeah. Is your mom still alive? No. I was thinking she should write a book. I know. Well, I think I'm going to. My mother passed in 2020 with COVID. I'm so sorry. She was ready. My dad was gone a long time from that, from his heart thing. She was ready to see her husband again. I totally understand that. What she did with Chicago, one of the best that I've ever seen was at Caesars Palace. Chicago at Caesars Palace. I mean, if any of the listeners have not seen them live, it's amazing. But mom was 87.

0:32:14
Wow.

0:32:15
I'm somewhat blessed. My grandmother was 93. My grandfather was 92. In his late 80s. Blessings, for sure. Dad was really young, but that was what he did. That was his thing. He worked hard and played hard. Sure, I understand. He was in the grocery industry and those business guys. Takes a lot out. Yeah, they did a lot of drinking back then. Oh goodness. You know, a lot of us did a lot of drinking back then and now we don't. And so you've got twice a month you got a lunch. Yes. Give them the name again and the location.

0:32:49
Yeah, it's called Bruce Maron's Celebrity Speakers Entertainment Business Luncheon. And it's a networking group and we have a lot of fun. And I bring in a lot of different guest speakers. Some are local media people. I've had a lot of the Channel 8 media. I mean on and on. Chet Buchanan, on and on.

0:33:06
And website for that?

0:33:08
Yeah, it's Bruce Maron's Celebrity Speakers dot com. Bruce Maron's Celebrity Speakers dot com.

0:33:14
And it's M-E-R-R-I-N.

0:33:16
Yeah, and there's just an S on our website, BruceMaronCelebritySpeakers.com. But, John, you're amazing.

0:33:24
And I want to thank you for coming in.

0:33:26
Oh, it's a pleasure.

0:33:28
Have a great, great week.

0:33:30
Yes, drumroll, a drumroll for you. Thank you, John.

0:33:33
And I thank you again, and I thank all of you for listening. And this is the podcast for The Morning Groove. You can find us at themorninggroove.transistor.fm. This is John Nashen. I've been here with Bruce Marin, and I want to thank you. This is John Nashen. I've been here with Bruce Marin, and I want to thank you. Have a wonderful day, and be blessed, every one of you.

Transcribed with Cockatoo