The famed Las Vegas Strip has been designated an "All American Road," the most prestigious designation that can be awarded to a U.S. thoroughfare. It's the 12th road in the nation and the first in Nevada to receive the designation. To qualify as an "All American Road," the road itself must be considered a tourist destination. The 4-mile long section of Las Vegas Boulevard is illuminated with more than 15,000 miles of neon.

Diana Ross and the Supremes will perform at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on Saturday, Aug. 5. For the first time in three decades, Diana Ross, along with Lynda Laurence and Scherrie Payne, two "Former Ladies of the Supremes" will perform the songs that dazzled an entire generation. Las Vegas is the final stop on the "Return To Love" summer tour.

Tickets are $32.50, $50, $100 and $250 plus a $2 handing fee. A portion the proceeds from ticket sales will be donated to three charities. To order tickets call Ticketmaster at 702-474-4000 or log on to www.mgmgrand.com.

Bobby Vee will bring two of America's rock `n roll icons to the Riviera's Royale Pavilion to share the bill for shows on June 30 and July 1. The acts are Danny & The Juniors, featuring Joe Terry, and Shirley Alston Reeves, former lead singer and co-founder of The Shirelles.

You'll travel down memory lane with tunes like "At The Hop," "Twistin' USA," "Dedicated To The One I Love," and "Soldier Boy." Bobby and his Vees will add more hits such as "Rubber Ball," "Devil Or Angel," and "Take Good Care Of My Baby." Tickets are $35, plus applicable taxes and fees, call 702-794-9433 or click on www.theriviera.com.

Staying with nostalgia, The Golden Boys of Bandstand - Frankie Avalon, Fabian and Bobby Rydell - will perform the sounds of the 50's and 60's at The Desert Inn, July 14-16. The trio of headliners perform solo and together, singing their own hits and performing musical tributes to Elvis, Bill Haley, Bobby Darin and Rick Nelson. Tickets are $55, plus tax and gratuities, call 800-634-6909 or 702-733-4566.

Next year, the Silverton hotel-casino along Interstate 15 and Blue Diamond Road will begin the first phase of a $600 million renovation and expansion project. Phase one will cost about $200 million and include the addition of 900 hotel rooms, a doubling of the property's casino to 75,000 square feet and the construction of a 12 to 18-screen movie theater. Additionally, the expansion will add four restaurants and a 1,400-space parking garage.

No timetable has been set for the $400 million second phase, which would add a separate 1,000-room hotel tower, and a 50,000 square-foot casino on an adjacent parcel of land. It would include a wedding chapel, food court, retail shops and 15,000-square-foot ballroom.

Station Casinos Inc. is buying the Santa Fe hotel-casino for $205 million. The deal gives Stations Casinos its seventh big Las Vegas-area property and it will be renamed Santa Fe Station.

"Vocal Interpreter," Jimmy Hopper whose vocal range takes audiences from opera to rock, recently moved from the Rio's VooDoo Lounge to the Showroom at Ra in the Luxor Hotel. He's gone from Ra after six weeks, but will undoubtedly be popping up at another hotel soon. He's very talented and puts on a terrific show.

Turnberry Associates, a Florida-based developer that's building Turnberry Place next to Wet `n Wild water park on Paradise has announced plans to build another high-rise luxury condominium complex in the same area. The new $250 million project will consist of two 25-story towers with one- to three-bedroom apartments ranging in size from 985 to 1,800 square feet. They will be priced from $179,000 to $500,000, with sales scheduled to start in the winter. The gated community will feature amenities such as an outdoor pool, tennis courts, fitness center and meeting and party rooms.

The 2,600-room Aladdin Hotel will open on Aug. 17. It will be the only major resort hotel to open on the Las Vegas Strip in the year 2,000. Desert Passage, a 500,000 square foot shopping complex with an exotic North African theme, opens simultaneously as an integral part of the hotel-casino complex.

Desert Passage is a $300 million retail project that includes 130 shopping facilities and 14 restaurants. Some of the dining establishments will inlcude Lombardi's & Joseph's French Bistro, offering a Moroccan bar, Beluga Bar, and Prana, a supper-club featuring live music with DJs and a cigar bar.

For the second consecutive year the Riviera's "Crazy Girls" were chosen to do a videotaped skit with Kevin James for the national convention of CBS executives, which is held annually during the end of each June in Las Vegas. The hit sitcom star from "King of Queens," did two skits with the "Crazy Girls" that will be shown to open the convention's formal dinner. "Crazy Girls" is the sixth longest running show on The Strip and is approaching its 13th anniversary.

MGM Grand Adventures Theme Park is open seven days a week throughout the Summer from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The park features entertainment on three separate stages, an all-new 32-foot verticle climbing rock wall, plus rides. Daily park passes are $12.95 and the new Season Pass, which allows cardholders unlimited admission for the summer and $2 off any SkyScreamer flight is $42.95. For information, call 702-891-7979.

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Caesars Palace is getting a $60 million face-lift. The distinctive screen that has covered the exterior since it opened in 1966 will be removed. A Romanesque design will take its place at a cost of $20 million. Cafe Roma, which gets a new name, and the Noodle shop are moving to the pool area so construction can begin this year on a 10 to 12 villa suite complex for high rollers. The suites will be completed by May 2001. The Bacchanal Room which is closed will become a high-end Asian restaurant. The elegant Palace Court restaurant is also closed. The Magical Empire will be converted into a nightclub and separate buffet.

Olga Breeskin is one of Latin America's most talented and glamorous superstars. She will headline at The Orleans Showroom, July 6-9. Her natural talent stems from the fact that her father was a classical violinist and conductor and her mother an opera singer. She began playing the violin when she was six.

Breeskin had her first starring roll in the feature film "Cri Cri" at the age of eight. She appeared in her first television show "Wonderland" when she was nine. By age 15, she had recorded three top selling classical albums.

Breeskin broke all attendance records at the Hilton Hotel in Mexico City where she performed her nightclub show for five years straight to sold out audiences. She has appeared in fourteen feature films, five soap operas for television in Mexico, and three television series that are still being seen around the world today.

Tickets for Breeskin's shows at The Orleans are $34.95, $44.95 and $59.95 plus tax, call 702-365-7075.

Rock Hall of Famer Joe Walsh will kick off Independence Day weekend at Sunset Station with a 9 p.m. show on Saturday, July 1, at the outdoor amphitheater. The evening's events inlcude a performance by the Las Vegas band Yellow Brick Road at 8 p.m. followed by a 20-mniute fireworks show.

Walsh is an accomplished musician who began playing music as a child. In addition to guitar, he plays the oboe and the clarinet and has been performing for more than 30 years. He joined The James Gang in 1969 and released three albums with the band before leaving in1971 to pursue a solo career.

In 1976, Walsh became a member of The Eagles band and released the million-selling "Hotel California" album. The band broke up in 1980 and Walsh was again a solo act. He recorded the albums "There Goes the Neighborhood," "You Bought It You Name It," "But Seriously Folks," "The Confessor," "Got Any Gum?" and "Ordinary Average Guy." Tickets are $25, $35 and $50, call 702-547-7777.

The Galleria at Sunset mall has instituted a redemption card for shoppers, similar to slot player club cards used at casinos. The card system is called Centerlinq. Shoppers can swipe their cards for points and redeem the points for gift certificates and premiums.

The private monorail system that links two major Strip resorts, the MGM Grand and Bally's, celebrated its fifth anniversary this month. Each year since the monorail opened on June 14,1995, nearly five million passengers have boarded the free monorail. Ridership is already at more than 2.2 million for the first five months of this year.

Clark County has approved the expansion of the present monorail system and granted a franchise agreement to the MGM Grand-Bally's Monorail LLC to build a four-mile, elevated fixed guideway public transportation system along a route from the MGM Grand to the Las Vegas Convention Center and on to the Sahara Hotel.

On Sunday, July 2, Bela Tabak's Riders of the Thunderdome will attempt the incredible stunt of having five motorcycles racing at 40-plus mph within a 14'3" diameter cage made of metal mesh. This dramatic stunt will take place before the 7:30 p.m. performance of "Splash" at the Riviera. Tickets are $50 for adults and $22.80 for children ages five to 15, call 702-794-9433.

The Ringling Bros. And Barnum & Bailey Circus will take place at the Thomas & Mack Center, July 5-9. Check out the web site: www.ringling.com.

Todd Yohn will not go unnoticed when he headlines along with two other comedians at The Comedy Stop at the Tropicana, July 3-9. Yohn is a red head standing 6'4" and weighing 175 pounds. He moves in and out of two or three characters within seconds of each other making you think you're watching multiple performers.

Yohn has appeared on television and been an opening act for many stars such as Joan Rivers, Kenny Loggins, Glen Campbell, The Charlie Daniels Band and the Monkees. Tickets are $17.50 with tax, gratuity and two drinks included, call 702-739-2714.

Comedy hypnotist Justin Tranz is making hypnosis "hip" on the Strip performing his stage show at two properties. His show called "Hip-Nosis," is an R-rated adult show that never repeats itself because no two audiences are the same.

Tranz show plays at 9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday for $24.95 plus tax in The Comedy Theatre at Flamingo O'Sheas Casino, call 702-737-1343. At midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, Tranz stars in Bugsy's Celebrity Theatre at the Flamingo Hilton. Tickets are $24.95 plus tax, call 702-733-3333.

Manhattan of Las Vegas, located at 2600 E. Flamingo Road, highlights a fine selection of Italian and Continental cuisine from 5 to 10 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and to midnight on Friday and Saturday. Live entertainment is featured in the lounge on Friday and Saturday night from 7 p.m. to 12 a.m. There is no cover charge or drink minimum. For information, call 702-737-5000.

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