Courier Post (Cherry Hill, NJ) - Sept. 8, 2006.

They're mega-super-duper stars, and they'll be in A.C.
By CHUCK DARROW, (Cherry Hill, N.J.) Courier Post

ATLANTIC CITY -- Historically, Atlantic City's entertainment measuring
stick has, logically, been Las Vegas. Now, the East Coast's gaming capital
stacks up against any city in the country, including New York and Los
Angeles, as an entertainment destination.

Bold words? Not when, in the space of a mere 28 days, Boardwalk Hall will
be hosting (in chronological order) Elton John, Barry Manilow, The Rolling
Stones and Barbra Streisand.

Each of these mega-superstar acts is coming to the grand old auditorium
under the aegis of gambling dens. John and Streisand will be cashing
paychecks issued by Harrah's Entertainment and performing at Boardwalk
Hall, while Manilow is sponsored by the Atlantic City Hilton and Resorts
Atlantic City, and the Stones are being presented by Borgata.

That glittering quartet is enough to pronounce the Fall 2006 entertainment
lineup as, arguably, the most potent of the casino era. But, as they say
on TV infomercials: Wait! There's more!

Joining that august group are the likes of classic-rock icons Santana
(Sept. 23-24, Borgata) and The Who (Nov. 24, Borgata), R&B titan Patti
LaBelle (Sept. 30, Hilton) and übercomic Jerry Seinfeld, who will make
AyCee history on Oct. 7 by gigging at the Hilton and Resorts.

Beyond that, the autumn casino roster is a typically crowded, something-
for-nearly-everyone grab bag that is especially heavy on classic rock.

In addition to the Stones and Who, the schedule includes a slew of Borgata
dates highlighted by Steve Winwood (Oct. 6); Ian Anderson serving up an
evening of Jethro Tull music in an orchestral format (Oct. 7); Greg Allman
& Friends (Oct. 20); Dweezil Zappa playing the music of his late,
celebrated dad, Frank (Oct. 27); Styx (Nov. 17) and the re-scheduled show
by The New Cars, featuring veteran singer-songwriter Todd Rundgren backed
by members of The Cars.

Other notable acts from that era are Art Garfunkel (Sept. 16, Harrah's)
and Greg Lake (Emerson, Lake & Palmer and King Crimson), Alice Cooper and
Little Feat (Oct. 20, Oct. 28 and Nov. 16, respectively, House of Blues).

House of Blues is again leading the way in attracting the younger
generation, booking hot-and-getting-hotter R&B popster Rihanna (Sept. 22)
and hook-happy rockers The Raconteurs (Sept. 24).

The traditional casino crowd isn't being ignored either. Such longtime
favorites as Paul Anka (Oct. 13-14, Borgata), Johnny Mathis (Oct. 27-28,
Tropicana) and Frank Sinatra Jr. (Nov. 17- 18, Trump Plaza) are booked, as
is Louis Prima Jr., who's presenting a tribute to his legendary father at
the Hilton Sept. 24-28.

Of course, the comedy realm will be represented well beyond Seinfeld.
Among the jokesters hitting the boards are musical impressionist Gordie
Brown (Sept. 24-28, Resorts); Dennis Miller (Sept. 29-30, Caesars); Kathy
Griffin (Sept. 30, Borgata); Richard Jeni (Oct. 7, Taj Mahal) and Rober
Schimmel (Nov. 25, Trump Marina).

On the production show front, beginning Sunday, Tropicana presents "Viva
Casino II," a somewhat different version of an old-school revue that
premièred there in 2005. And a week later, Harrah's raises the curtain on
a production of the popular "Spirit of the Dance."

And, don't forget that soon enough, the holiday season will be upon us.
Helping ring in the Yuletide will be "The Fifth Annual Brian Setzer
Orchestra Christmas Extravaganza" (Nov. 24, House of Blues), the "Kenny
Rogers Christmas Show" (Dec. 8-9, Taj Mahal) and the "Tony Orlando Holiday
Show" (Dec. 10-15, Bally's Atlantic City).