As they are always prone to doing, Penn & Teller made their contract with the Rio official not by cutting a ribbon but by staging a grandiose strange illusion in the hotel's parking lot. A crane lifted a 225-cubic foot Plexiglas and steel container filled to the brim with 25 tons of quarters marking or "coining" their $1 million signing bonus. When the crane was lifted, all the coins spilled everywhere and the two eccentric guys were revealed from their positions inside the box. For at least the next two years, Penn & Teller will headline in the Rio's Samba Theatre nightly except Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. Their show will also be dark Oct. 13-15 and 31, and Nov. 17-21. Tickets are $65 plus tax, call 1-888-746-7784. The duo has also created a 32-page program book for their Rio gig with lots of background information. Describing a Penn & Teller performance is a challenge. They are not magicians in the truest sense. It's better to view their tricks as puzzles because they always have a bizarre twist. The process of getting to the conclusion of the illusion is where the fun and laughter take over. David Letterman has dubbed them "evil geniuses" and "Entertainment Weekly" has called them "two of the funniest people alive." Either way, they are great!

Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers along with special guest Jackson Browne will appear in concert at the Aladdin Theatre on Friday, Nov. 1. Tickets are $55 and $85, call 702-785-5000. Petty and group are touring in support of their new album, "The Last DJ," which was released by Warner Brothers on Oct. 8. Brown is slated to release his new album, "The Naked Ride Home," later this month.

The 720-room Tuscany Hotel with 600-square-foot suites that opened earlier this year on a 27-acre site on East Flamingo Road is already expanding. The property is adding a 60,000-square-foot casino with 750 cashless slot machines and 12 table games. There will also be 35,000 square feet of convention and meeting space in addition to an existing 7,000-square-foot meting hall. The new convention area is being designed for small association and corporate meetings. The addition will also have a coffee shop-buffet combination and a food court. Next spring, the addition will get a second-phase expansion with a small entertainment venue and an oyster bar and seafood restaurant. Meanwhile, the Tuscany offers a daily Happy Hour from 5-7 p.m. with 2-for-1 cocktails and appetizers.

Actor Burt Reynolds has signed on for more Las Vegas dates in 2003; however, they will be at the Stardust instead of The Orleans where he worked a few months ago. A couple bookings in the Stardust Pavilion are the "Rockin' Roadhouse Tour" featuring Mark Chesnutt, Joe Diffe and Tracy Lawrence, Oct. 25-26, and Ricky & The Redstreaks during the National Finals Rodeo from Dec. 5-15. At Paris Las Vegas in the Le Theatre des Arts Tony Bennett is scheduled this week, Oct. 10-13. He's been charting new albums for an unheard of five decades in the business. Music icons David Crosby and Judy Collins have set a co-headlining gig at Paris, Oct. 25-27. Comedian Dennis Miller will take over the Danny Gans Theatre at The Mirage the weekend of Nov. 8-9.

Australian show business legend John St. Peeters will make his Las Vegas debut at the Stardust on Friday, Oct. 11. His lifelong celebrity status as a musician, singer and composer began as a musical prodigy when he achieved notoriety at age seven playing accordion on national television variety shows. His enduring popularity in his native country experienced anther upsurge this year with the release of a new CD, "In So Many Ways." It included a contemporary version of the title tune, now considered an Australian pop classic. Re-released as a single, St. Peeters has recorded the song in Spanish, French and Italian. Tickets are $19.50 plus tax, call 1-888-217-9565.

Two shows have closed in the Le Bistro Theatre at the Riviera. Comic impressionist Stephen Sorrentino wrapped up his "Voices in My Head" show and is optimistic that he'll relocate somewhere else in town. Meanwhile, he'll tape a 30-second talent segment for "30 Seconds to Fame" on Oct. 7 doing his puppet impressions of both Luciano Pavarotti and Sonny & Cher. The show will air sometime this month. Furthermore, he will be Dana Carvey's opening act when he appears at Paris Las Vegas in November. The other show to close after only one month is Ricci Martin doing his moving tribute show to his father. Unfortunately, he had an almost impossible 11:30 p.m. time slot.

This is good news. The imaginative, dream-like equestrian show called "Cheval" will return again this year by popular demand on Nov. 27 and run through Jan. 5. Former Cirque Du Soleil executive Gilles Ste-Croix directs this production that is fabulous for the whole family especially over the holidays. The set up will once again be on the vacant land behind the Seven restaurant / nightclub located on the Strip south of Bellagio. "Cheval" features an international cast and 15 different breeds of horses performing under a dramatic 1,500-seat hand-painted big top that replicates a castle in the Loire Valley of France. Prior to the show, the experience begins when the audience walks through a stable in a pre-entry tent. Tickets range from $44 to $59 and$24 to $29 for children 12 and under, call 1-800-361-4595.

Sunny, who has been the star of "Showgirls" at the Rio since it opened last March and is the wife of the show's producer Greg Thompson, has left the show. Her replacement is a trio of female singers billed as Stars. They preserve the show's historical format by paying tribute to "girl groups" like the Supremes and En Vogue, etc.

The famous AFLAC "pitch" duck just shot its latest commercial with entertainer Wayne Newton in his showroom at the Stardust.

TOP OF NEXT COLUMN

After only a couple weeks, "Beats of Passion" closed at the 550-seat Blue Note nightclub even though the revue had been fairly successful at the Showroom at the Venetian.

More news about the revolving shows at the Venetian. Now a magic show is opening in the famous "room-for-rent." The husband-and-wife team is Gregory and Kristi Gleason. They used to do the "Wizard's Secret" magic show at the MGM Grand when it had a "Wizard of Oz" themed area.

The Tropicana has introduced "Air Play," a daily entertainment display of high flying performers, jugglers, contortionists, acrobatics and other acts. Each act performs for approximately 20 minutes on a 20' x 20' stage located below the historic Tiffany glass ceiling and surrounded by slot machines. Show times are 3, 5, 7:30 and 9:30 p.m.

The 12th annual Las Vegas Metro Police K-9 Trail will be held on Sunday, Oct. 20, at the MGM Grand Garden from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The trial is the largest K-9 event in the United States with more than 40 teams entered from across the country. The dogs and their officers compete in six categories and a Top Dog is also selected. Admission is free.

Magicians Siegfried & Roy, longtime supporters of Metro's K-9 unit, will again sponsor the awards program.

The historic Mount Charleston Lodge nestled amongst tall pine trees at nearly 8,000 feet elevation is celebrating the traditional Oktoberfest harvest festival on Friday, Saturday and Sunday through Oct. 20. From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Oktoberfest buffet prepared by international chef Yves Menez is served for $14.50 per person. On Sunday afternoon from noon to 4 p.m., the Dumkopfs, an oom-pah band, perform and encourage people to participate in the chicken dance. For information, call 702-872-5408 or visit www.mtcharlestonlodge.com.

At the MGM Grand's Studio Walk is now serving lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily. At the other spectrum, after the dining room closes for dinner, a bar menu is available in the lounge until the wee hours of the morning on the weekends. For information, call 702-891-7775.

"Wine Spectator," for the first time in its 21-year history, will bring its fine wine and dining extravaganza to Las Vegas from Oct. 17-20 at the Venetian. Individual tickets are available for the sell-out evening benefit events. Tickets are $225 for Grand Tasting evenings, $350 for the Grand Award Banquet, and $1,550 for the complete weekend package. For information fax 212-481-1523, see the ad in the magazine or visit winespectator.com.

Santino Virga, who hails from Italy, and Grace Abarca from Costa Rica are making their debut appearance in the Top of the World Lounge at the Stratosphere. Each of them has toured internationally and they sing in five languages. The lounge where the duo is performing Thursday through Sunday beginning at 8:30 p.m. is located in the Stratosphere Tower directly above the Top of the World.

Christopher Titus, the star, executive producer an co-creator of the FOX sitcom, "Titus," will return to the Top Of The Riv ballroom with his edgy material on Oct. 11 and 12. "Titus" is a dark comedy series based on his one-man show, "Norman Rockwell is Bleeding." Tickets for the 10 p.m. shows are $29.50 plus tax and fee, call 702-794-9433.

The award for the year's best casino company promotion at the Global Gaming Expo was given to the chicken tic-tac-toe program at the Tropicana. Ginger the chicken at the Tropicana recently lost $10,000 to another consumer challenger. This was only the second time a human has beaten Ginger since the game made its Las Vegas debut on May 31, 2002. You can test your skills with the live chicken daily at the Tropicana from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

The next Casino Legends Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Oct. 11 will introduce a new award honoring distinguished journalists of the Las Vegas community. The first award will be given to Joe Delaney and also be named after him. Delaney worked as an entertainment columnist for the Las Vegas Sun for the past 35 years until his recent death. He covered many of Las Vegas' "Golden Years." His award plaque will reside in the Casio Legends Hall of Fame museum the Tropicana and other names will be added in the future.

The Imperial Palace Hotel & Casino's Golf Classic VI with $10,000 in prize money will take place on Saturday, Oct. 12. It will be a two-man scramble at the Revere at Anthem Golf Club. The $275 entry fee includes a three-day / two-night stay, opening reception, awards party, tee gifts, hole prizes, transportation to and from the course and lunch. For information call 1-800-351-7400, ext. 1, or email: casino@imperialpalace.com.

As of Oct. 1, Red Rock Canyon's 13-mile scenic drive and picnic area are closing at 7 p.m., an hour earlier than during the summer schedule that runs from April through September. From November through February, closing time will be 5 p.m. The 6 a.m. opening time remains the same.

The Palms has introduced limited-edition poker chips to mark the new season of the CBS crime drama "C.S.I." The premiere was filmed at the hotel. The resort is also distributing a series of chips to mark the 20th anniversary of Playboy's home video collection. On Oct. 25, the Ozzy Osbourne chip will be released on the same day when he appears at Rain.

The Guardian Angel Cathedral off Desert Inn and The Strip is celebrating its 25-year anniversary. It is an impressively designed triangular-shaped structure built in 1963 with large, intricate stained glass windows, mosaics and murals. It became a cathedral in 1977 and was built on land donated by legendary Desert Inn owner Moe Dalitz. Seventy-five percent of the church's visitors are tourists.

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