The Kats' out of the bag about Steve Friess' Las Vegas "tribute" to Michael Jackson

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Rolling out act after self-congratulatory act while a flurry of tweets about its wonderfulness was unleashed by its producer and his friends, beauty queen-turned televisioon entertainment reporter Alicia Jacobs and Norm Clarke of The Las Vegas Review-Journal, the “Michael Jackson’s Untimely Death Was The Best Thing That Could Ever Have Happened To Michael Jackson’s Music Show" went off as scheduled at the Palms resort in Las Vegas yesterday-- but not without some serious questions aimed at its producer and promoter, Las Vegas blogger, New York Times stringer, Gay Vegas author and comp queen Steve Friess.

The questions came from Tabloid Baby.

Friess gave his answers to the Las Vegas Sun.

One thing the Danny Gans case has made clear is that journalists working in Las Vegas read Tabloid Baby, and while some curse us for calling them out on their cowardly refusal to investigate the big questions while hyping some questionable enterprises, they do take our criticism to heart-- and when they can slip it past their editors, take up our challenge.


In this case it was John Katsilometes of the Las Vegas Sun who, in a promotional piece on the Jackson "tribute," cornered Friess about his obvious conflict of interest, if not the bizarre notion of his producing a "tribute" that he insisted was not a tribute to Jacko the man, even though the tribute took place on Jacko's birthday, with Jacko's father as a guest.

Kats gets Friess to answer the questions we have asked in this space, and in many unanswered emails to Friess, including:

Was Joe Jackson paid to attend the tribute?

How much does he plan to raise in total?

How much money will go to ""production costs" and expenses?

Either Katsilometes asked the questions or Friess used the friendly reporter to give his answers, unchallenged.

Writes Kats:

"Friess finds himself performing something of a moonwalk between the Jackson death investigation and the Palms benefit. His role in covering the Vegas angle of the Jackson story has coincided with his involvement in organizing a charity show that is essentially authorized by the Jackson family. Friess, who writes regularly for Las Vegas Weekly (a Greenspun Media Group publication) among his freelance gigs, allows that it has been an interesting summer ever since the details of Jackson’s death spilled out to include Las Vegas.

“'There’s no doubt it’s weird for me,” Friess said today. 'When this was conceived, it was just a couple of days after his death. Nobody believed it would be a homicide at that point, that it would be anything this controversial connected to Las Vegas... Journalists don’t have to divorce themselves from their communities.' (Friess plans to write of his shifting between journalist and benefit producer in next week’s L.V. Weekly.)

"Friess finds himself performing a moonwalk
between the Jackson death investigation
and the Palms benefit. His role in covering
the Vegas angle of the Jackson story
has coincided with his involvement in
organizing a charity show that is essentially
authorized by the Jackson family."
--Las Vegas Sun

"Soon after Jackson’s death, Friess was approached by Bergen, a friend who is a lifelong Jackson fan, to assist in organizing the benefit show. Bergen has invoked an audio clip of himself at age 4 singing 'Man in the Mirror' during his performances at the Liberace Museum and has written a piece for the Sun relating Jackson’s influence on his career. It was Bergen who first thought to turn Jackson’s untimely death into a means of raising money for local arts programs, and both organizers have said that the show is to honor the creative work, not the mercurial and ultimately tragic lifestyle, of Jackson.

"At this writing, about $90,000 in advance ticket sales have been raised, Friess said. The goal is $100,000... Friess says that all money taken in after production costs will be donated to the Public Education Foundation to fill such needs as instruments, maintenance of instruments, sheet music, supplies and specialized tutoring (the books will be opened to anyone who wants to review how the money was allotted, he said, adding that the Jacksons did not ask for fees to appear at the show or dedication ceremony)."

If Steve Friess is indeed writing another apologia for his actions in the Las Vegas Weekly, we hope it is as amusing and mind-boggling as his "A Fine Restraint" excuse for not investigating the death of local superstar Danny Gans.

Meanwhile, we should point out that Michael Jackson's death was suspicious from the start, his personal physician, Dr. Conrad Murray of Las Vegas, was sought for questioning from day one, after he disappeared from the emergency room hours after Jacko's death, and Friess, who wrote in the Weekly's July 2nd issue that "Michael Jackson’s untimely death was the best thing that could ever have happened to Michael Jackson’s music," was covering the Las Vegas investigation of Murray weeks after he began producing the birthday part for the man whose "baggage" he claimed "imprisoned and stigmatized" his "product."

Media's coverage of Michael Jackson's death exposes the failures and corruption of the Las Vegas news media in covering the death of Danny Gans

“In New York and Los Angeles, when a major star
drops dead of unknown causes, there is a repulsive
ritual that takes place. A certain breed of journalist
will begin a vigil outside the deceased’s residence,
will rifle through their trash, will bribe all sorts of people
for all sorts of reasons and will call up anyone and
everyone even questionably related to the person for
even the most unlikely comment.

“In Las Vegas, when left to our own devices,
we do things a little differently.”

--Steve Friess, Las Vegas Weekly

Someone asked us about the parallels between the deaths of Michael Jackson and Elvis Presley. We're more interested in the parallels between the news media's respeonse to the deaths of Jacko and Danny Gans (who imitated Jacko in his show): the biggest star in the world (consummate showman and Christian), and the biggest star in Las Vegas (consummate showman and Christian).

The actions of public officials and the Fourth Estate in each case reveal a stark contrast in transparency and fulfillment of responsibility:

Michael Jackson, genius performer, dead at 50.
Danny Gans, genius performer, dead at 52.
Michael Jackson, found not breathing at home in his bed
Danny Gans, found not breathing at home in his bed.
Michael Jackson, pulled to the floor for CPR as a 911 dispatcher gives instructions.
Danny Gans, pulled to the floor for CPR as a 911 dispatcher gives instructions.
Prescription drugs are immediately suspected as the cause of Michel Jackson's death.
Prescription drugs are immediately suspected as the cause of Danny Gans's death.
Police say they want to speak to Michael Jackson’s many doctors immediately.
Police do not seek out Danny Gans’ many doctors.
Police impound the car of one of Michael Jackson’s doctors in search of drug evidence.
Police allow Danny Gans’ wife to gather “all of her husband’s medications” for them to examine.
The world media swarms onto the Michael Jackson story.
The Las Vegas media tiptoes around the Danny Gans story.
Michael Jackson’s “secret” dependence on prescription drugs is immediately laid bare by journalists and their editors, who can finally publish what they’ve known for years.
Danny Gans’ “secret” dependence on prescription drugs is immediately covered up by journalists and their editors, who decline to publish what they’ve known for years or to investigate further.
Michael Jackson’s family members, friends, doctors and colleagues say they knew about his drug problems, but were helpless to save him.
Danny Gans’ friends and colleagues lie about him and claim ignorance, and the gullible and cynical local media print and broadcast what they know is not true.
Respected publications like The New York Times and Los Angeles Times go with major front-page splashes on Michael Jackson’s death, with details about his final hours and many sidebars about his secret life and speculation about what killed him.
Publications like the Las Vegas Review-Journal publish major front-page splashes on Danny Gans’ death, but report only the information that was handed to them.
The Michael Jackson 911 tape is released immediately and analyzed by police, journalists and the public.
The Danny Gans 911 tape is kept under wraps.
Journalists investigate the actions of the paramedics who treated Michael Jackson and get immediate answers, erasing any mystery.
Las Vegas journalists go with the official statements, with one (who is a stringer for The New York Times) stating that it is improper to “harass” the paramedics who attended to Danny Gans, adding to more mystery.
Police and the coroner hold a press conference in which journalists ask many obvious questions about Michael Jackson’s habits and cause of death.
Police, the coroner and Danny Gans’ boss Steve Wynn issue terse statements regarding Danny Gans’ death.
Police and the coroner answer all of the questions they can in the case of Michael Jackson.
Local journalists ask no questions at all in the case of Danny Gans.

Newspapers and media cover every aspect of Michael Jackson’s life, art, influence and legacy, filling column inches for days with fascinating detail about the troubled superstar.
Local newspapers and media get reactions from people like Carrot Top and run out of Danny Gans coverage in a day and a half.
Newspapers and media offer forums for fans to vent their grief and confusion over Michael Jackson.
Las Vegas media outlets censor any correspondence criticizing their performance, publishing only letters that demand the Danny Gans details be kept private.
The coroner says it will take four to six weeks for the toxicological report to reveal exactly what killed Michael Jackson, but with all bases covered and all secrets laid out, there will be no shock or mystery when the details come out.
The coroner says it will take as long as six weeks for the toxicological report to reveal exactly what killed Danny Gans, and the local media close their notebooks and walk away, claiming they are helpless to report or publish any of the easily-verifiable information about the superstar until the government official hands them his statement. When the coroner’s report turns out to be a politically-parsed, incomplete, confusing explanation that only deepens the mystery, the local media whine for a day and then drop the story.
In the Michael Jackson case, members of the news media show what they do best, clearing away mystery, cutting through the spin and laying out the unpleasant truth.
In the Danny Gans case, members of the local news media reveal their corruption, adding to the mystery, clouding the truth and holding back what they know to be true.
Fans understand that the great Michael Jackson was only human and love him only more.
Fans wonder if the great Danny Gans they loved was actually a fraud, and their perception of him darkens amid the coverup.
Revealed as myth and man—thanks to the news media-- Michael Jackson’s legacy is burnished.
Transformed from man to mystery—thanks to the local news media-- Danny Gans’ legacy is tarnished.

Yes, in Las Vegas, when left to their own devices, they do things a little differently. But is the public or the subject well-served by their fear to offend? It seems that the responsible and aggressive coverage of the newspack in the Michael Jackson case puts the lie to Steve Friess' excuses and proves there's a big difference between Reporting 101 and bribery. What do you think? And can you think of other contrasts in the case? Add your own!

COMING SOON: Analysis of the Danny Gans 911 tape and investigator’s report... They closed the case after this??

"Appearance of conflict": Steve Friess attempts to reconcile his roles as Michael Jackson reporter and exploiter

Las Vegas blogger, New York Times stringer, Gay Vegas author and comp queen Steve Friess knows he violated journalistic ethics when he produced his “Michael Jackson’s Untimely Death Was The Best Thing That Could Ever Have Happened to Michael Jackson’s Music Show” at the Palms over the weekend. This morning, in a piece called "What did I just do that for?", he calls his actions “journalistically complicated,” admits that he’s “duty-bound to stay out of the news, not to make it, to observe and analyze, not to participate,” that “the two roles caused me plenty of angst,” and that “I also knew there could be an appearance of conflict.” But no worries. Steve Friess reasons his way out of the mess! And he also promises to open his books to us... It seems that Steve Friess always has a lot of ‘splaining to do. He’s a music critic who has a severe hearing disability; a media critic who sleeps with a local television news producer; a supposedly unbiased Vegas correspondent for many out-of-town outlets who’s known to cadge free show tickets whenever relatives are in town, then mentioning the show on his blog to legitimize the scam. He’s also the guy who called us “a**hole” and other names and then attempted to have the TabloidBaby.com site shut down, after we emailed privately to ask why his colleagues in the local Las Vegas news media were not investigating the recent, very mysterious death of Strip headliner Danny Gans. In the weeks to follow, he and other Gans friends would campaign to mislead and distract from the facts about Gans’ death. After it was revealed that Gans died from a dose of Dilaudid (AKA “drugstore heroin”), he followed up with an apologia in the Las Vegas Weekly (which looks like an alternative paper but is really a screeding and story dumping ground for reporters and columnists for the daily Review-Journal and Sun and establishment freelancers like Friess) that was meant to put the matter to rest, but instead was viewed as an instant camp classic of hilarious, infuriating, self-deluding justification.

"The records of revenue and expenses will be available soon for any legitimate journalist who asks.”

This morning, it’s Michael Jackson, and how he came to cross journalistic lines, violate basic journalistic ethics and reveal a gross hypocrisy by promoting a Michael Jackson “tribute” show while simultaneously covering the federal probe of his death, and negotiating and schmoozing with Jacko’s father and associates after writing that "Michael Jackson’s untimely death was the best thing that could ever have happened to Michael Jackson’s music." Friess claims it was magical serendipity after a performer named Erich Bergen, whom Friess says he befriended after devoting a column to him) “tweeted something vague about wanting to do a tribute show… and I called Erich to find out more.” And just like that: “I was suddenly co-producer of a benefit that, at that point, we thought would maybe fill the Liberace Museum showroom. “Whoa! Aren’t I a journalist? Aren’t I duty-bound to stay out of the news, not to make it, to observe and analyze, not to participate? “Fair questions, all. And given what has happened to the Jackson story since then—that the death is considered a homicide and that a Vegas doctor is at the probe’s epicenter—those questions are even more pertinent. But when this started, it was a few days after Jackson’s death, and nobody I knew imagined it would be a criminal matter. It took weeks before any national media outlet recruited me to dig into Dr. Conrad Murray’s background and a month before his office and home were raided…” As Fries says: “Whoa!” “When this started, it was a few days after Jackson’s death, and nobody I knew imagined it would be a criminal matter”? Friess has tried that line in his own column, and still rings demonstrably untrue. The LAPD was all over Jackson’s death from the moment his doctor, Conrad Murray, ran away from the emergency room of UCLA Medical Center within minutes of the official death call. Police towed Murray’s car from Jackson’s driveway that very first day with full knowledge that Jackson’s death was suspicious and by the time Friess announced his Jacko show, the investigation was in full swing and publicized widely Friess gets to the point when he claims: “When I informed my editors at various outlets of the concert, they just told me not to write about it in their publications. Good help, evidently, is hard to find in Vegas.” Once again, Tabloid Baby was the only journalistic organization to criticize Friess for covering the investigation of Dr. Murray after celebrating Jackson’s death in print and then churning up a money-making scheme to capitalize it. Friess ignored our requests for comment. At one point, he emailed us an hysterical attack. Yet, he reveals this morning that he took our criticism to heart: “The two roles caused me plenty of angst. I knew there was a distinction between a charity show and a death investigation, but I also knew there could be an appearance of conflict. I don’t dismiss such concerns— they’re valid and part of every journalism school’s curriculum— but it’s telling that every nonjournalist I groused to viewed one as having little to do with the other. Did putting on a show have any bearing whatsoever on the criminal probe, or vice versa? Of course not. I agree that journalists shouldn’t become involved in political causes, but must we never do charitable works?” Let’s put aside the encouragement Friess says he received from the “nonjournalists” he associates with in Las Vegas. “Did putting on a show have any bearing whatsoever on the criminal probe, or vice versa?” We’d say the question deserves more debate than the “of course not” Friess inserts before the reader can make up his or her mind: Steve Friess was assigned by the New York Times on July 28th to cover the probe of Las Vegas doctor Conrad Murray in regard to alleged illegal prescriptions and the possible homicide of Michael Jackson. Friess, who wrote on his blog that he spent time “chilling” in the newsvan of the local NBC affiliate (“Miles’ TV station”—Miles being his unofficial husband). On July 11th, Friess’ friend and mouthpiece Norm Clarke had written in the Las Vegas Review-Journal: “How widespread has the practice of doctor-shopping become in Las Vegas? Will the investigation into Jackson's prescription drug abuse lead back to the Las Vegas medical community, given Jackson spent a good deal of time here in recent years?” Surely. a probe that exposed widespread prescription abuse among Las Vegas entertainers would harm Friess' show. Any local show business criminal probe, especially one related to Michael Jackson, could have bearing on his ticket sales. Friess went beyond reporter’s role on August 19th when, on his blog he criticized ABC News for assigning a reporter to cover Dr. Murray's movements.

"Any credible reporter could have quizzed me"

Then again, Friess admits more while again attempting to justify his actions:: “True, we relied on contributions from many whom I cover, but that cut both ways. Erich did virtually all of the asking, often leaving me out of it to avoid being denied because of something I had written. My coverage has accrued me plenty of detractors in the hotel and show industries, a fact I wear as a badge. I avoided offering myself for interviews until the last week, when Erich became overwhelmed with creative duties. Not because I feared journalistic criticism—any credible reporter could have quizzed me, but only one, my own Weekly colleague John Katsilometes, did—but because I thought I could harm the effort.” Again, Friess is not being candid. The credible journalists at TabloidBaby.com have criticized and quizzed Friess for weeks, sending him lists of questions and interview requests that he ignored before Katsilometes took them to the source. Thanks, Kats.

“I co-produced this show to learn what it takes to put on a production like those I cover. To me, this was the equivalent of a cop reporter going to the police academy.”

Friess winds up with two final stabs at justifying his actions. One is an alternative reason for putting on the show: “I co-produced this show to raise money for kids, but also to learn what it takes to put on a production like those I cover. To me, this was the equivalent of a cop reporter going to the police academy. In this crash course, I learned the costs of everything involved with putting on just one show, much of which never occurred to me, and discovered all the legal and logistical elements of such an effort..." The other is an ungracious attack on those who didn't go along with his plans, as if his use of obscenity would somehow prove he's still got his journalistic cred: “…I also learned who in Vegas is for real and who is full of shit. That means those of you who claimed you could get us Celine Dion, Brandon Flowers and even Taylor Dayne. That means you, ‘journalists’ from TMZ, who promised coverage when really you were gunning so obviously for an entirely different story. That means you, singer Earl Turner…” Friess ends with a promise, though with a caveat that he’s bound to use as an excuse: "The records of revenue and expenses will be available soon for any legitimate journalist who asks.” As soon as this item posts, we will “ask” for the revenue and expense report. We expect that Friess will refuse us. We will, however, obtain the records and present them to you. So in the end, does Steve Friess realize that his actions in the Danny Gans and Michael Jackson cases hurt his credibility and legitimacy? Sure. But in Las Vegas, does it matter? Probably not. Friess can say anything he wants in today's column because he's protected by the code he revealed in his Danny Gans apologia: "In Las Vegas, when left to our own devices, we do things a little differently.” Read Steve Friess’ entire Michael Jackson apologia here. We welcome your comments.

Will the DEA enter the Danny Gans case?

Is the Drug Enforcement Administration entering the investigation into the drug overdose of Las Vegas superstar entertainer Danny Gans?

After all, the musical impressionist died at 53 after ingesting a powerful opiate he did not have a prescription for — "drug store heroin” that was given to him by an associate or pusher, or acquired by a doctor under an assumed name. Such illegal activities are currently being investigated by the Los Angeles Police Department in the apparent drug overdose death of superstar entertainer Michael Jackson. The LAPD has reportedly asked federal drug agents to help them find out who was feeding painkillers to 50-year-old Jacko. But will the enablers, pushers and Dr. Feelgoods who helped grease Danny Gans’ skids to oblivion at 53 be brought to justice? Not very damn likely. CASE CLOSED Police in Henderson, Nevada closed the case on the same day Jacko died, despite glaring clues and questions raised by their incident report, and after eight weeks in which the lead detective apparently did the same thing the corrupted Las Vegas news media did: sat back and waited for a politician to give him the news. We decided to give the Las Vegas news media a week to let the police report sink in, and react in some investigative way to the fact that police closed the case with minimal investigation. With the events unfolding in the Michael Jackson in such stark contrast to the secrecy and palm-greasing so evident in the Gans aftermath — and the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which still has not reported what its journalists know about Danny Gans’ habits and lifestyle, reprinting Associated Press reports that detail allegations and findings about Jackson’s drug abuse (even though the toxicology report is still pending), they’d be bound to come up with something. They didn’t. Danny Gans is past history in Las Vegas now, swept under the sand like those bodies in the desert. The Vegas journalism ambassador and symbol of all that’s wrong in “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” local media scene, national freelancer, comp queen and Gay Vegas author Steve Friess (above right) celebrates Jacko’s death in today's Las Vegas Weekly, stating that “Michael Jackson’s untimely death was the best thing that could ever have happened to Michael Jackson’s music” because “a dead Michael Jackson provides show producers in Vegas… no more surprises.“ Enough (for now) with these bozos with buffet coupons.

NEVER MIND THE 911 CALL Ponder this line from the skimpy police report typed up by Detective Chad Mitchell, of the Henderson Police Department, the lead investigator in the Danny Gans death case: “Julia told me at the direction of the Henderson Police she had gathered and placed all of her husband’s medications on a table located directly outside of the master bedroom doorway so that they could be examined. "Henderson Crime Scene Analyst Jennie Ayers then responded to the scene to complete the procesing and collection of evidence...” "Julia" is better known as Danny Gans' wife Julie, and with all due respect to her, in the case of a premature death in the initial hours of investigation, especially one as high-profile as that of Danny Gans, the wife is often regarded as “the first suspect.” Yet in this case, she was allowed to go alone into what we’d assume would be the bathroom, and come out on her own with a selection of medications to be examined. What, if anything, did Julie Gans choose to not show the police officers? Detective Chad Mitchell also indicates he did nio further investigation while awaiting the autopsy: "ENTERED DATE 5/5/2009 “Upon conducting the autopsy, (pathologist) Dr. (Gary) Telgenhoff was unable to determine the cause of death and told me that he would need to wait for the toxicology results to rule the cause and manner of Daniel’s death. Dr. Telgenhoff did not feel that foul play was involved in the death. This case will remain open until the results of the autopsy are available.” By all indications, Detective Chad Mitchell did what the Las Vegas news media did in the six weeks between Danny Gans’ mysterious, untimely death and Mike Murphy’s press conference: He waited. When Tabloid Baby’s man in Las Vegas tried to obtain a copy of the police report on June 22nd, he was told, and we broke the news, that the case was still open. As it turned out, Detective Chad Mitchell was not out doing shoe leather research all that time-- he was on vacation. At our prodding, he typed out the final entries in the report and Henderson police released the report and the long-withheld 911 tape on Thursday, June 25th, only to be overshadowed by the deaths of Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson the same day. "ENTERED DATE 6/25.2009 “The Clark County Coroner has ruled the death iof Daniel Gans an accident. The case will be closed non-criminal.” The autopsy on Michael Jackson was inconclusive, as well, but in the week since his body was found unresponsive in his bedroom, journalists and police alike have worked to uncover leads in the case without waiting for a toxicology report from the coroner. Friends and associates have been interviewed, property has been searched, and most important, the hunt is on for the person or persons who supplied Michael Jackson with the drugs that killed him. One of Danny Gans’s doctors stepped forward shakily after the coroner’s findings to insist he wasn’t currently prescribing Danny Gans any hydromorphone and that his own search of computer records showed no doctor in Nevada or California was either. Despite the doctor’s cockamamie single-bullet theory that Gans was done in by an accidental dose from a five-year-old prescription, the revelation should have been enough for Detective Chad Mitchell to strap on his shoulder holster and do some investigating. Detective Chad Mitchell’s not talking. Neither is the crime scene analyst. But it has been stated that Julie Gans and her family do not want to know more, and do not want the public to know more, than the scant details released by the coroner. JUSTICE From the start, we've been talking about "justice" for Danny Gans. It doesn't matter that he didn't practice the clean life he preached. He was an entertainment giant who employed many people, added a new facet to the Las Vegas scene and chose cannily to market himself to two of the biggest niche audiences in the Western world: tourists and evangelical Christians. It's the police's job to find out who gave him the oxymorphone that killd him-- as well as all the other drugs in his body that the politician coroner wouldn't reveal. It's the job of the news media to be the watchdogs and sniff out evidence on their own. For now, there is no justice for Danny Gans. His killers remain at large. We'll leave it to the mayor of Las Vegas, and his words on the day Danny Gans died-- and the comments from our readers on the day the Dany Gans case was closed:

"He lived the life he preached. It was always a clean show, it was always a wholesome show. That's the way he really lived. That's unusual in and of itself. Most people are a little bit phony about that, but Danny Gans was not a phony,"

--Las Vegas mayor Oscar Goodman

Anonymous said... I find it odd in the 911 call that the wife is clearly talking directly into the phone (not on speaker)-- how was she able to do that while using both hands to do chest compression? Couldn't hear any of the children's voices or the son's when they were moving him from the bed to the floor but you can hear her direct in the phone when she is compressing with both hands - huh?? No background voices, no emotion, very odd. Thursday, June 25, 2009 5:02:00 PM PDT Anonymous said... I know people respond differently to a crisis, but honestly, could she sound any more bored or like this was routine? Thursday, June 25, 2009 7:52:00 PM PDT Anonymous said... You mean that the Gans death gets a pass on drug enablers, unlike Michael Jackson ? Wow, the Vegas Press and Police really CAN be bought off by casino owners ! In the wake of the Michael Jackson death, they are going after the drug "enablers" or "drug peddler" that surrounded Michael and caused his death. This is a manslaughter charge in any state...except, apparently, in Nevada. ...It is a disgrace that this case is not being investigated. Wednesday, July 1, 2009 1:36:00 PM PDT

Money questions haunt the “Michael Jackson’s Untimely Death Was The Best Thing That Could Ever Have Happened To Michael Jackson’s Music Show" in Vegas

With Las Vegas columnist Norm Clarke confirming that Michael Jackson's father Joe Jackson "has committed to attending" the controversial “Michael Jackson’s Untimely Death Was The Best Thing That Could Ever Have Happened To Michael Jackson’s Music Show" at the Palms on Saturday afternoon, new questions are being raised about the "costs" of the concert and what the pre-net money is being spent on.

The show's producer and promoter, Las Vegas blogger, New York Times stringer, Gay Vegas author and comp queen Steve Friess, promises in a recent press release that "100% of the proceeds after costs benefit music education programming in Clark County Public Schools" --while at the same time "raising funds to help kids across the U.S."

As more local entertainers are joining the afternoon lineup on August 29th-- Jacko's birthday-- it's unclear how much money is being spent on the show and "after party"-- and whether anyone is being paid for appearing. The involvement of Joe Jackson brings the issue to a head, in light of reports that he was paid by the city of Gary, Indiana to appear at a Jacko tribute there.


Friess, who had celebrated Jackson's June 25th death as "the best thing that could ever have happened to Michael Jackson's music" and led the media coverup in reporting the prescription painkiller death of local superstar Danny Gans, was among the first in the nation to rush to capitalize on Jackson's death by scheduling the tribute show for a "tribute" show that he has pointedly insisted "will commemorate and celebrate Jackson’s art" and not his life.

Friess has claimed that he hopes to "to raise $100,000 for public schools music programs," but he has not revealed how much he hopes to raise through ticket ales and donations.


On Monday, August 17th, Friess wrote on his blogsite about his meeting with Joe Jackson at the Palms, and while he did not go into specifics about what it took to get Jackson to "promise to get to the Palms for at least the end of our show" and "the after-party," he did admit to blurring his roles as journalist and concert producer by selling to the New York Daily News the personal information Joe Jackson revealed during the negotiations.


The afternoon event at the Palms Hotel & Casino has grown in scope as it is being bunched with other local tributes, including the declaration of "Michael Jackson Day" in Las Vegas and the appearance of Joe Jackson and former manager Frank Dileo a special celebrity star tribute at a theatre at the Palms.


Friess has raised eyebrows as he covers the Las Vegas angle of the Jackson story for The New York Times while doing business with Joe Jackson and other members of the Jackson family. He recently criticized ABC News for stationing a stringer outside the home of Dr. Conrad Murray, who's being investigated in Jackson's death.

We've reached out to Steve Friess for comment, but he has not responded.

Las Vegas writer who applauded Michael Jackson's death now producing a concert in Michael Jackson's name

The Las Vegas blogger, New York Times stringer, gay guide writer and noted comp queen who led the fight to prevent journalistic investigation of Danny Gans' overdose death has moved quickly to be the first Sin City personality to capitalize on the tragic passing of Michael Jackson.

Steve Friess, who wrote earlier this month in the Las Vegas Weekly that "Michael Jackson’s untimely death was the best thing that could ever have happened to Michael Jackson’s music," is producing and promoting a concert at the Palms Hotel & Casino on August 29th called "Las Vegas Celebrates Michael Jackson."

According to Friess' website, the show at the Pearl concert venue will celebrate "the music of the King of Pop on the occasion of his 51st birthday" and is "a benefit concert to raise money for music education in public schools.

"My partner in this venture, 'Jersey Boys' star Erich Bergen, is really the visionary behind all of this as well as the true MJ die-hard, but I jumped in because it seemed like a terrific, timely and dignified way to use this pop-culture moment to do some real good."


Friess is promoting the show with a separate website and on Facebook. He has not announced ticket prices, talent, or what charities will benefit, though he claims: "Every dime is going to the causes we choose -- VH1's Save the Music Foundation is the leading contender at this point."

I’m just going to come right out and say it:
Michael Jackson’s untimely death
was the best thing that could ever
have happened to Michael Jackson’s music.

--Steve Friess, Las Vegas Weekly

Tabloid Baby has contacted Friess several times in an effort to determine what charities will be benefited by the show, the details of his relationship with the Palms (site of his unofficial marriage to and honeymoon with local TV news executive Miles Smith), and whether he finds it unusual for a New York Times reporter to be sponsoring such an event (especially after his aggressive stand against "exploiting" Danny Gans).

He has not responded, beyond referring to our reporter as a "stalker extraordinaire."


Still unclear is why Friess would want to honor Michael Jackson. Last week, Friess floated a story by Gans' manager Chip Lightman that Jackson's brothers were angling to take over Gans' spot at Steve Wynn's Encore Theatre. Last month, he wrote an astounding column in the Weekly that commended his fellow local journos for avoiding coverage of the mysterious death of Strip headliner Gans, noting that "in Las Vegas, when left to our own devices, we do things a little differently."

Did his involvement in Vegas Jacko tribute get Steve Friess' producing partner fired from Jersey Boys?

Las Vegas Sun

Erich Bergen, who was the frontman and star of the Las Vegas Michael Jackson birthday tribute he produced along with Las Vegas blogger, New York Times stringer, Gay Vegas author and comp queen Steve Friess, has been fired from the Las Vegas production of Jersey Boys-- and in the words of one Vegas columnnist, caused a media "kerfuffle" in the process.

Bergen, who portrayed Four Season Bob Gaudio in the show at the Palazzo Hotel & Casino on the Strip, has turned himself into a Vegas personality, performing at the Liberace Museum (his version of Britney Spears' "I'm Not A Girl, Not Yet A Woman" is a YouTube staple), and then going national with his flogging of the “Michael Jackson’s Untimely Death Was The Best Thing That Could Ever Have Happened to Michael Jackson’s Music Show” while his partner Friess stayed in the shadows.


His surprise axeing was reported in the Las Vegas Sun and in an angry Twitter from Friess' BFF, beauty queen-turned-TV entertainment reporter Alicia Jacobs:

I am SO FURIOUS! Just heard that my friend.
ERICH BERGEN was "let go"
from JERSEY BOYS!
Told not 2 return from his vacation!
Wow. BIG MISTAKE

When respected Las Vegas writer Richard Abovitz Los Angeles Times blog item expressed wonderment over such a fuss over a common cast change in an ensemble Vegas show, a supporting player at that, Freiss responded with a tantrum on his own Vegas blog.

Oddly, Friess, who claimed loudly that the mysterious overdose death of Vegas headliner Danny Gans was not a story worthy of investigating or reporting, claims that the departure of a supporting castmember of an ensemble show is actually big news:

"... it's odd to me that Abowitz overlooks the fact that Erich's name has been in the papers for most of the time he's been in Vegas, an unusual feat for even the stars of shows with more singular performers. He's been pivotal in turning the Liberace Museum's showroom into a hip place for young Strip talent to jam, he raised $103,000+ less than a month ago for Las Vegas schoolkids in a show that drew massive amounts of international news coverage and he was the mouthpiece for 'Jersey Boys' only a fortnight ago on one of the most-watched TV shows of the summer.

"When someone makes a name for themselves, we call them celebrities. And when celebrities are summarily dismissed from the jobs that made them celebrities, the public is understandably curious. Fame + Controversy = Newsworthiness. Is it really that baffling?"

The pompous use of the word "fortnight" notwithstanding, Friess neglects to address the elephant in the room: whether Bergen got the axe because of his association with Friess and his involvement in the controversial exploitation of Michael Jackson's death.

We've emailed Friess. He has yet to respond.


(Fame + Controversy = Newsworthiness? Unless it's Danny Gans, we suppose...)

Danny Gans and doctor shopping: Gossip columnist blows the lid off Las Vegas news media's cone of silence

How widespread has the practice
of doctor-shopping become in Las Vegas?
Will the investigation into
Jackson's prescription drug abuse
lead back to the Las Vegas medical community,
given Jackson spent a good deal
of time here in recent years?
Will the intense scrutiny uncover more leads
in Danny Gans' drug-related death?

--Norm Clarke, Las Vegas Review Journal

Norm Clarke of The Las Vegas Review-Journal has brought up the subject of "doctor shopping" in the Danny Gans death case. The gossip columnist and compulsive Twitterer buries the reference in story about Michael Jackson, but his column reveals once again that Las Vegas journalists are covering up a huge story bubbling under the drug overdose ten weeks ago of the biggest star on the Strip and the most unique entertainer in the country.

Norm's column, in which he interviews an anonymous doctor who claims Jackson's handlers once tried to intimidate him into prescribing painkillers under someone else's name," directly connects Jackson's apparent overdose death to Gans'.

Norm also extends the accusation of "doctor shopping" (requesting care from multiple physicians, often simultaneously, without making efforts to coordinate care, usually due to a patient's addiction to prescription drugs) in Las Vegas to at least one "high profile casino executive."


The column is all the more extraordinary for several reasons:

* The exact cause of Jackson's death won't be known for weeks, until toxicology reports are completed;

* The Las Vegas news media had refused to speculate about or investigate Gans' untimely death, claiming they could do nothing until toxcicology reports were completed;

* The talk of the town in Vegas was and is Gans' alleged use of steroids and prescription drugs;

* No one in the mainstream Las Vegas news media opened the floodgates of revelations about Gans once it was revealed that the supposedly Born Again Christian former athlete had died from a dose of hydromorphone, otherwise known as Dilaudid or "drug store heroin."

Leave it to the gossip columnist.

Just as his jaunty eyepatch is key to his image, Norm's candid reporting is a hallmark of his work. As a gossip columnist, he is known to plant unconfirmed items from publicists-- or, in the Danny Gans case, from Gans' manager and close female friend who were on a campaign to mislead the public about the musical impressionist's lifestyle-- but his job also frees him to write whatever he wants to fill the space (after the coroner's report on Gans was released, he was the only one to copy our report that Gans was now linked to Vegas legend Elvis Presley though Dilaudud).

This morning he writes about a doctor who claims he was called to Jackson's suite at the Mirage Hotel & Casino in 2003 (owned at the time by Steve Wynn, and the home of Danny Gans' show ):

"The doctor's experience with Jackson raises several questions: How widespread has the practice of doctor-shopping become in Las Vegas? Will the investigation into Jackson's prescription drug abuse lead back to the Las Vegas medical community, given Jackson spent a good deal of time here in recent years? Will the intense scrutiny uncover more leads in Danny Gans' drug-related death?

"'Doctor-shopping 'has become very common,' he said.

"The meeting with Jackson wasn't the first time the physician felt pressured to accommodate a VIP.

"He treated a high profile casino executive who wanted sleeping pills. A week later, the executive wanted a refill and a week after that he requested another refill 'and I said no -- and my services are no longer required.'

"The sad thing, he said, is that someone else filled the void.

"'It's Elvis Presley all over again.'

Though we've criticized Norm for the recent Gans factoids he spread, the joy with which he covers his beat and his excitement over getting a scoop-- see his constant, compulsive Twitter posts-- sets him apart from the corrupt editors and scaredy-cat reporters who are content to keep their heads down so they don't join the ranks of the laid-off.

The speculation in Las Vegas-- and knowledge among many reporters and editors-- is that Danny Gans got his prescription drugs from more than one doctor, as well as from members of his entourage.

Norm's single sentence in the nineteenth paragraph of a gossip column, could be the spark that sets off the explosive coverage that will blow this lid off off a scandal that goes far beyond the hypocrisy of Danny Gans.

The realization of what slipped through on the weekend will surely cause editor Tom Mitchell to tear off his three-beaver Resistol, toss it on the floor and jump up and down on it, yelling, "Dag nab it! Dad burn it!"

Norm's column could also convince a reporter to interview a doctor or musician under the cover of anonymity.

It could even lead to some real independent journalism in a city where journalism isn't merely dying, but slowly killing itself with painkillers.

Las Vegas media's Danny Gans death coverup mob join forces to promote Michael Jackson birthday "tribute" concert

The group that allied to mislead the public about the life and death of Las Vegas superstar Danny Gans is joining forces for the August 29th Las Vegas “tribute” concert to Michael Jackson.

The benefit show at the Palms Hotel and Casino (where Jackson last recorded) on what would have been Jacko’s 51st birthday is produced and being promoted by Steve Friess, the New York Times stringer, Gay Vegas author, local entertainment blogger and comp queen, who attacked Tabloid Baby, and made attempts to have this site shut down, because we were investigating the mysterious death of Gans on May 1st, and who, in the days following Jackson’s death, applauded the tragedy as “the best thing that could ever have happened to Michael Jackson’s music.”


According to a press release issued yesterday, the 3 pm show at the Pearl showroom will feature video montages and “cast members of Jersey Boys, Lion King, Peepshow and Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular.”backed by a 10-piece band comprised of musicians led by Las Vegas’ own Joey Melotti.”

Tickets, which go on sale Saturday, are $29, $54, $79, $104 and $129, “plus applicable box office fees. A VIP package is available for $504.” Proceeds are said to go to “Music Education programming in Clark County Public Schools.”


Details of the show were promoted on television this week by Alicia Jacobs, the beauty queen turned entertainment reporter who was Gans’ longtime close personal friend and who, with Gans’ manage Chip Lightman, led a spin campaign to divert attention from Gans’ drug use that led to his death by overdose of the powerful painkiller hydromorphone. Jacobs’ boss, KVBC News executive producer Miles Smith, is Friess’ unofficial husband (the couple were married at the Palms, though same-sex unions are not sanctioned in Nevada).


Friess’ show was announced last week by Las Vegas Review-Journal columnist Norm Clarke. (whose paper has deliberately downplayed the Gans story). In the weeks before the cause of Gans’ death was announced, Clarke was used by Jacobs and Lightman to plant items that painted Gans as a clean-living, drug free, and spiritual figure.

Friess came to our attention in the days following Gans’ death, when he launched a vicious public attack against Tabloid Baby (and took steps to have this site shut down) after our correspondent emailed to ask why the local news media was not investigating the circumstances of Gans’ tragic death. Friess later admitted he knew of rumours that Gans was a steroid user, and that he was involved in spreading false stories about the tragedy to throw reporters off the scent.

Not Michael Jackson, but Danny Gans in an incredible simulation

While Friess has switched his “journalist” hat for one of show promoter, most of the talk in Las Vegas media circles concern his motivations for celebrating Jackson’s birthday, since he has expressed a disdain for the life of the late singer.

Some suggest it would be more appropriate for him to take the time to plan a tribute to Danny Gans, whose birthday is October 25th.

(Tabloid Baby classic: Click here to read "The Danny Gans daisy chain: Steve and Chip and Alicia and Norm and Miles and--")

"Did Danny get any of his prescriptions from this company?" Alicia Jacobs asks the tough question about Danny Gans' drugstore

Did Danny Gans get his fatal dose of prescription drugs from the pharmaceutical supply company he partly owned? His longtime close personal friend, the beauty queen-turned-television entertainment reporter Alicia Jacobs asked the question on Las Vegas television, and the answer was, “I don’t know.”

Jacobs took control of the story last night after it was reported earlier on her KVBC-TV News that Gans, who'd overdosed on a powerful opiate May 1st, was a minority owner of Green Valley Med, a "healthcare and specialty pharmacy" in the Las Vegas suburb of Henderson, where Gans had lived. She expanded the story to report that in the first week of June, the Nevada Board of Pharmacies had raided the place and seized “all of Danny’s records.

“They have yet to return them.”

Jacobs said that the company’s owner, Scot Silber, told her off-camera (because he “was not comfortable speaking on camera”) that “there are five investors in the company and that Danny is the second largest owner.”

Referring to Gans as “Danny” and in the present tense throughout, Alicia Jacobs said, “It began back in 2003. Silber owned Green Valley Drug, which Danny frequented. Silber was expanding his business and approached Danny about investment opportunity, which included selling medical supplies and pharmaceuticals.”


And though Jacobs pointed out that Green Valley Med “is not a place to fill prescriptions,” she asked Silber’s attorney, Bob Massi, on camera:

“It begs the question. Danny died of a drug toxicity. Now we find out he has ownership in a pharmaceutical company. Do we know? Did Danny get any of his prescriptions from this company?”

Massi replied:

“Well, I have no personal knowledge if he did. But the fact that any pharmacy would dispense medication doesn’t mean that they did anything wrong. I’m sure through the pharmaceutical board, you could find out whatever information that you want. Certainly.”

Besides letting slip that Gans had multiple prescriptions (something the coroner did not address when he said that Gans, a former athlete who’d had his share of injuries, had died from taking hydromorphone, which is sold as Dilaudid and known as “drugstore heroin") Jacobs also concluded that there is indeed a connection between Gans' case and the Michael Jackson death investigation.

Alleges link to Jacko death probe

Silber, Jacobs said, had considered buying Applied Pharmacy Services, the operation that federal agents had raised in their investigation of Jackson’s doctor, Conrad Murray.

Martin Singer, attorney for the Gans estate and other related interests, informed Tabloid Baby that Danny Gans had never been treated by or prescribed medication by Dr. Murray, and we issued a retraction to our story suggested that a possible connection be investigated by the Las Vegas news media.

As KVBC’s newscast tease of a “Michael Jackson connection” was far more misleading than the questions we raised, we wonder if KVBC will also be asked to issue a clarification.


As for Alicia Jacobs, it appears she may be attempting to salvage the credibility she squandered in trying in the weeks after Danny Gans’ death to help spin it into something other than the tragedy it was. Some say that fellow Born Again Christians and those, who, like Alicia Jacobs, saw Danny Gans as a religious leader, should have been the first to shout that the fact that he was a human being who’d suffered to the point where he needed medication takes nothing away from the philanthropy and honest values he espoused, or from the brilliant, unique, family-friendly talent he displayed onstage.

Gans family leaves Las Vegas

As Massi added somehwat superfluously in Jacob's report: “I don’t think you could classify Michael Jackson’s way of life with the Danny Gans way of life. That would be a real tragedy. That would be Shakespearean tragedy. Danny Gans was the antithesis of a Michael Jackson. From start to finish.”

Alicia Jacobs revealed that Gans’ ownership in the company has shifted to the Gans family trust, where it remains, and added a footnote that any local reporter and McCloud-imitating editor would find newsworthy: Gans’ wife Julie and her three children have moved out of their estate in Henderson, and “left Las Vegas for good.

“They’ve moved back to Los Angeles.”

Alas, the rest of the Las Vegas news media has yet to pick up on this latest twist in the Gans saga. While the story of the swimsuit-model-in-the-suitcase leads the mainstream agenda, one respected reporter told us that there is more concern about Time magazine’s cover story in which Joel Stein paints Las Vegas as a burnt-out shell “in the deepest crater of the recession.”

We’d hoped that there would be one strong truth-seeking reporter amid the beholden pack in Sin City. We did not expect her to be Alicia Jacobs. We’ll watch what happens next.