The press corps gathers at the Cherry Creek Shopping Center tonight to take a gander at the hundreds of painted masks – from local bold names to Hollywood types. Proceeds from the April 22 gala go to the Hospice of Metro Denver.
The party has a Las Vegas theme – so look for Las Vegas entertainers to fly in, impersonators of such luminaries as Cher, Elvis, Tina and Norm.
Norm! Wait a minute. It’s the real Norm Clarke, former Denver itemizer and now Las Vegas’ best known gossip columnist. And he’ll be here in person as a special guest. Who better to get you in the Las Vegas spirit than Norm?
I saw most of the masks the other day – and I have to agree with organizer Lisa Herzlich that people “went all out this year. It’s the best collection yet.”
Some masks to look for: Michael Floorwax as an 8-ball, Donald Trump’s skyline, Dolly Parton’s butterfly, Peter Boyles’ biker dame at Sturgis, four Mr. and Mrs. Potato Heads, “Bachelorette” Trista Sutter, John Elway, Pat Bowlen, Mike Shanahan, LeAnn Rimes, George Strait, John Glenn, Jay Leno (a very cool mask) and late addition Celine Dion. Steve Chotin says he will again this year get his friends to bid up his mask to make a bundle for the charity. Last Mask Project he raised $50,000.
Surf’s up!
“The Surfer King” was filmed in Colorado and Water World in August 2004 – and skedded for release spring 2005. It finally arrives for a premiere 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Buell with stars Alan Thicke and Lindsay Wagner on the red carpet, then at the beach party at the Seawell Ballroom after the movie.
Producer Bernie Murray doesn’t yet know if the super low-budget “Surfer King” will find a national distributor, but he’s proud of the movie. For a tryout, it’s playing five Denver-area theaters starting April 7.
Napoleon complex
Giant magazine gives “Napoleon Dynamite” star Jon Heder the cover this month – and I found out that the kid is from Colorado.
Seems he was born of strict Mormon parents here, then raised in Salem, Ore. That’s why he says “freakin’ idiot” instead of, well, you know. He may be a Hollywood movie star, but he’s a strict Mormon who values the purity of his body, as do I. According to Giant, Heder “does not drink, do drugs, smoke, or, excluding the occasional Dr. Pepper lapse, drink caffeine. Beneath his regular clothes he wears the ritual long underwear.”
Rollie rolls to Denver
Rollie Wesson, who fell from grace with the Broadmoor people before he could open the touted Summit, is the new chef at Via in the Ice House. He’s the son-in-law of celeb chef Jacques Pepin and husband of Claudine Pepin. In a call Wednesday, Wesson said the Italian restaurant would remain much the same – with the menu more understandable and approachable. The couple wanted to stay in Colorado, so Via is good news.
City spirit
Sightem: Former Tante Louise owner Corky Douglass in Rodney’s Cherry Creek Tuesday night. Would he ever go back in the eats biz? “Not a chance,” he said … Sez who: “I have kites to fly and fish to fry.” Jeannette Walls
Bill Husted’s column appears Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Husted also appears Tuesdays and Fridays on “Good Day Colorado” on Fox 31. You can reach him at 303-820-1486 or at bhusted@denverpost.com.
