Oprah’s out to conquer the world…or at least part of Chicago.
Mayor Daley today said closing a three-block stretch of Michigan Avenue for two days next week for the Oprah Winfrey show will be a great public relations boost for the city.
Daley said the talk show host will reimburse the city for the costs of the show, which will shut down Michigan Avenue between Ohio Street and Wacker Drive from 12:01 a.m. Monday, Labor Day, until 5 a.m. Wednesday.
Daley said the taping of the Oprah show will help create jobs and bring worldwide publicity to the city.
Asked by reporters about the inconvenience to downtown motorists, Daley said it’s worth it.
The event, a kickoff for the 24th season of “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” will tape on Sept. 8 at the intersection of Michigan Avenue and Ohio Street and will be open to the public on a first come, first serve basis, according to show officials. Daley echoed the invite. The list of guests has yet to be released, but the show will feature an appearance by the Black Eyed Peas. The episode is scheduled to air Sept. 10.
It’s a touch of old Vegas: Vintage neon signs are being restored and will adorn a stretch of downtown’s Las Vegas Boulevard.
About 17 signs, some from casinos dating to the 1950s, will be part of the boulevard’s Scenic Byways Plan, said Danielle Kelly, operations manager for the Neon Museum, which is providing the signs.
The signs — including the horseshoe that once topped Binion’s Horseshoe casino and the slipper from the Silver Slipper next to the New Frontier casino — recall earlier years of the city that grew out of the desert to become America’s gambling mecca.
The Hacienda horse and rider from the Hacienda Hotel, where the Mandalay Bay stands today, was already on display. Other sign candidates include those from the Algiers Hotel, the Black Jack Motel and the City Center Motel.
So far the project has gotten $240,000 from the sale of Las Vegas Centennial license plates to refurbish three signs. About $900,000 from the city went for median improvements in the Cultural Corridor.
John Mayer has indeed delivered good on a recent Twitter bet he made with TMZ.com. The celebrity news website was tasked with finding John’s 2001 mug shot, in exchange for a sizable donation from the singer to the charity of TMZ.com’s choice. The picture in question was uncovered and, as promised, John has issued checks to two different animal rescue organizations.
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