A recent
fundraiser for the Foundation for the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute was held at the
Bellagio Resort in Las Vegas, featuring Siegfried and Roy, and it was also a
celebration of the famous performers’ lives, yet it was also their public
farewell show.
The gala
event had a price tag of $2,000 per ticket and it was a sellout.
Celebrity
guests included Teri Hatcher, Muhammad Ali, Leeza Gibbons, Hilary Duff, Steve
Schirripa, Robin Leach, Wolfgang Puck and wife Gelila Assefa, along with Larry
Ruvo, the founder of Keep Memory Alive.
Ruvo’s
father is the namesake of the medical facility that is opening in downtown Las
Vegas soon. It will be a comprehensive treatment and research center that deals
with brain injury and disorders, including Alzheimer’s, Huntington’s disease,
Parkinson’s, ALS, and memory degeneration.
Frank
Gehry, the acclaimed architect of the unique design for Ruvo’s building, was
also there.
The icons
of illusions, known throughout the world as blonde Siegfried and dark-haired
Roy, levitated magic to a level that no other duo had ever accomplished in the
history of the profession. Roy Horn, who was critically injured in an attack
onstage when one of his big cats turned on him several years ago, causing
life-threatening, massive head and neck wounds, resulting in years of
recuperation and therapy. Siegfried Fischbacher did not continue performances
after the incident.
“Roy had
tested his fate with his lions and tigers,” stated Las Vegas Strip headline
magician Dixie Dooley. “Even though he [Horn] had slept with his animals from
the time they were babies, you can never fully trust an animal’s instincts. They
can turn on you any second. I know; I had a leopard in my earlier shows. He was
like a baby until his tummy was empty, then he was very difficult to handle,”
Dooley added. He was among the well-wishers over the years and bids his fond
farewell to the duo.
I spoke
with some of the celebrities arriving on the red carpet.
Leeza
Gibbons responded to my question about how she combated her struggles.
“It’s
about getting rid of toxic people in your life,” she stated. “Those negative
vibrations, you have to eliminate.”
Gibbons,
who said she was humbled by this event, believes in the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute
and said that it was a blessing. Gibbons lost her grandmother and mother, who
died recently, to degenerative brain disorders. She set up a website,
www.leezasplace.org, and a foundation for “education, empowerment and
energy” to help families, caregivers and others involved in finding solutions
and help for the medical problems and special needs.
Hilary
Duff was delighted to be there to bid good-bye to the famous illusionists. “I’m
stoked. I’m so excited. I remember seeing Siegfried and Roy when I was eight.”
Although
there were certainly a host of famous names and faces, the event drew hundreds
from the business and political community, as well as people who personally
support the lifesaving work of the institute.
It was Las
Vegas’ chance to say how much everyone appreciated the many decades of
entertainment by the legendary Siegfried and Roy and to support a vitally needed
new brain healthcare facility.
PHOTO CREDIT(s) FROM RED
CARPET: Curtis Dahl Photography KMA
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My book of poetry
entitled "Messages" was inspired by my dear friends C.J. Cansler along
with Victoria Boone and Beryl Warren.
The group of poems
along with some beautiful photographs are to inspire the reader.
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