The research & collecting of photos and memorabilia from the El Rey Club never stops! Please contact me at 702-465-5604 or email me at andy@andymartello.com if you have stories or memorabilia to share.
I love being able to find new and fun things to do in Las Vegas. Recently, The Chuck Jones Experience opened up at Circus Circus and few people could be as happy as I was to hear that bit of news!
If you miss the Warner Brothers stores at your shopping malls, are a fan of the GREAT Chuck Jones, or have always wished there was a museum you could play with, then this is your lucky day.
Fun, educational, & interactive, The Chuck Jones Experience features tons of original artwork and sketches from throughout the career of one of the greatest names in animation. You'll feel like you're inside a Looney Tunes cartoon and enjoy learning about the man behind some of the world's most memorable characters.
Full of exhibits that will appeal to any age guest, this is easily one of my favorite new things to do in Sin City. They opened two weeks ago and have a ten-year lease at the hotel. Here's hoping they are there the entire time and drawing big crowds every single day.
I am very pleased to announce that Sinsation The Show is returning to Las Vegas in a new location. Of course, I am more pleased to say that I will be returning as their featured comedic/variety performer.
Sinsation is a most excellent comedy/burlesque show with music, comedy, beautiful dancers, and of course...yours truly!
You can watch me (OK, you'll probably be watching the girls) during the debut weekend at their new home, The Royal Resort, 99 Convention Center Drive (adjacent to the Strip) in Las Vegas. Don't miss the fun January 13, 14, & 15 at 7:30PM. For tickets please call 702-735-6617 or visit the Sinsation website.
I was FINALLY able to see Jerry Lee Lewis perform! You may recall I was supposed to see him in Primm, NV a few years back, but had to miss it so I could travel to West Virginia to open for Gladys Knight. (Not a bad reason, actually).
Well, Jerry Lee played the Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend and I was there! A great show to say the least.
Not only was this a dream come true moment for me, but we were allowed to bring camera. So I videotaped the whole show!
Eventually all of the great performances by Linda Gail Lewis, Annie Marie Dolan, Kenny Lovelace, and The Last Man Standing Himself will be online. For now, enjoy these clips and check back for more.
Also, thanks to Thomas Rund for re-posting my videos and adding some amazing photos at his blog. CLICK HERE to see what I mean.
Spike and Hammer; "One of the BEST shows I've seen in 17 years in Las Vegas!!!"
From our Facebook page, a couple more reviews. These from Las Vegas locals, who certainly get to see more than their fair share of shows ou here
The first is the subject of this post and it was sent to us by Sandy Singer.
"One of the BEST shows I've seen in 17 years in Las Vegas !!!!"
Also a lovely comment from Lisa and TJ, a mother and son from Las Vegas...
"My son and I super enjoyed your show today! :) (Well, I enjoyed it... Pretty sure he did too, but he was busy clapping, and telling me to stop warning him not to eat the razor blades). :)"
Here are just a few more reviews in the form of comments left at the Spike and Hammer FB page regarding the show. As always, we're humbled by the kind remarks, honored that people came to the show, and happy to have a venue to bring our oddball style of comedy and magic to audiences every week.
Thanks so much to everyone for being our friends and fans!
"We loved your show!!!:-)" - Britni Lovato, Thornton, Colorado
"Great show, guys. It was a lot of fun." - Jason Walker, Elko, MN
"Thanks for the great show!!!" - Juan Garcia, Littlefield, TX
"I never cease to be amazed at how well you two work off each other, and work off the audience. You make the best use of "volunteers" I have ever seen in a Vegas show! Your humor is drop dead funny, and razor sharp accurate! I've never see the same show twice when I've come to see Spike and Hammer. And your comedic timing is amazing!" - "Uncle" Charlie U., Laughlin, NV
Yeah I know that official media reviewers are "real people". I just mean that it somehow means more to me to hear great things form everyday people who come to see our show and are genuinely happy they did.
Soon after receiving such a heartfelt and glowing review on City-Data, some folks decided to check out the show for themselves. Even better was the fact that they felt compelled to respond on that bulletin board and add their own review.
We are always grateful for anyone who tries to spread the word and this instance is no exception. We always encourage fans to tell their friends in whatever manner they see fit. We also know not every review will be stellar...but we're sure happy that most every one we've seen thus far has been so positive!
Here's a follow-up post found on City-Data.com
"I just got back from the show. I spoke to them afterward... they remembered you and appreciated the review you posted here.
You were right.... they are fantastic and funnier than hell. My stomach hurt several times from laughing so hard. I highly recommend spending an afternoon to go see them. Great show - they definitely deserve a bigger stage!"
I really love it when we strike such a powerful chord with our audience. I know not all reviews will be this great, but it is sure heart-warming when they are.
Thanks, Scott!
Spike & Hammer - A Fantastic Show Downtown
As you know, I'm relatively new to Vegas, so some of you may already be aware of this, but I wanted to advise everyone of a fantastic afternoon show at the Four Queens downtown: Spike & Hammer. These guys put on a hilarious comedy magic act in the LA Comedy Showroom at 4:00pm.
First of all, let me emphasize that I am not usually a fan of magic acts, and would never spend good (or bad) money to see a magician. And in fact, going to the show yesterday was not my idea, but I was with a group of people who wanted to see it, so I figured that I would suffer through it for what I thought would be a poor-to-mediocre 30-45 minute magic show. Boy, was I wrong!
From the opening minutes, this show was a non-stop laugh riot, pausing only for some serious magic acts where laughter would not be appropriate. There was also a lot of audience participation (including my wife and myself) in the acts that added to the great time had by all. Spike and Hammer are both funny and talented, and are very personable, as demonstrated by their constant interaction with the audience.
We've spent hundreds of dollars for tickets to shows on the Strip and not had as enjoyable a time as we had yesterday afternoon for a fraction of the cost. Regular price for the tickets is only $14.95, although our group had received discount coupons that were being handed out at the entrance to the Four Queens on Fremont Street that reduced the cost to $9.95, which included a drink from the bar in the showroom.
The only disappointing aspect of the afternoon was the small size of the audience. I don't think that there were more than 30-40 in attendance. But I guess that is understandable given that I, myself, had to be coerced into going. But that was just because I was clueless as to how good the show was going to be. These guys definitely deserve a larger audience and I am doing my part to make it so! If you go to the show based on my recommendation, not only do I guarantee that you won't be sorry, I'll wager that you'll come back to this board and post a thank-you to me!
I know that whenever we have visitors in the future, we will definitely take them to see Spike & Hammer. In fact, we may not even wait for visitors; next time we're downtown we'll probably drop in to see them again. And this time, I won't need to be coerced!
If you're interested in seeing a little something of what I've been raving about, here's a link I came across to a short video on their own website:
P.S. What I thought was going to be a 30-45 minute show, actually turned out to be almost an hour-and-a-half. Ten bucks, a drink, and 1 1/2 hours of entertainment!
Afternoon Comedy Magic Show Starring Spike and Hammer: Now HERE'S a REVIEW!
Charlie U. has been a supportive fan almost form the very beginning of our run at the Four Queens. He's come to see the show many times and has even brought friends. He is clearly a lover of comedy and magic and has seen a lot of shows in Las Vegas. Recently he posted this review on a popular travel website (without us having to bribe him with free tickets, booze, or any sort of payola either!).
"I've seen this show a few times in the past 10 weeks that it has been running at the Four Queens. It's an upbeat afternoon of fun! I don't think I've ever seen a better use of audience volunteers on any downtown Vegas stage! The comedic energy flows from the moment Spike and Hammer come on stage, and doesn't let up throughout the show until the applause dies down and the audience exits to greet the performers.
Spike and Hammer play off each other with a freshness and creativity that is awesome to watch. Spike's deadpan comedy rivals Hammer's expressive face as they go from one stream of thought to another with ease and alacrity! It's a real family show....the audience is always treated with respect. The magic is amazing, the comedy is plentiful, the performers are just plain fun to spend an afternoon with at the show.
See this show.....you will be doing yourselves a real favor in uplifting your spirits and bringing more smiles to your faces that you can possibly imagine."
Thanks so much, Charlie for being a great friend and fan of Spike and Hammer!
MORE REVIEWS: Afternoon Comedy Magic Show Starring Spike and Hammer
The following are some of survey results and reviews found at a popular tickets website. For privacy reasons (this is a paid membership-based website), the names are not included in these reviews.
100% of the people who watched the show rated the show "GOOD! I really enjoyed it!"
100% of the people who watched the show would recommend it to others
100% of the people loved the length of the show and the production value.
A few of the comments included...
"The show was fun and very kid friendly. I appreciated that."
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"VERY GOOD SHOW, BOTH SEEM PERSONABLE AND ARE VERYENTERTAINING. GOOD HUMOR FOR ADULTS AND KIDS."
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"Good show. Great interaction with the audience. Not only geared towards big kids but little ones also."
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See what all the fuss is about!
Afternoon Comedy Magic Show Starring Spike and Hammer
can be seen at the Four Queens Hotel on Fremont St (Downtown Las Vegas) every Wednesday through Sunday at 4PM
Vegas Seven magazine is trying to find out who is the best comedian in Las Vegas. Among the people on their list of choices are Terry Fator, who is a ventriloquist (not a traditional stand-up comic) and Frank Caliendo who does voice impressions (also, not a traditional stand-up).
REVIEWS: Afternoon Comedy Magic Show Starring Spike and Hammer
Here are just a few of the comments we have received since our show began at the Four Queens on March 17, 2010.
Thanks to everyone for taking time to spread the word and say such good things!
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"One of the funniest comedy magic teams you’ve ever seen. I laughed myself silly and I can’t recommend it enough. It’s a wonderful show." -Charlie Bass, Vegas Talk Radio
"The show is called "Afternoon Comedy Magic Show starring Spike & Hammer" at the Four Queens. This show is Hilarious, if you have some friends or family in town take them to this one! This show had Magic, Comedy, Parlor Tricks, Plate Spinning, Everything a good show needs." -Adam Walden, Las Vegas
"It was a great show! You guys are hilarious! :) And the kids have been practicing magic all day. Thanks guys :)" -Lauren Rockwell
""Had a brief stay at the Four Queens. Best part of my stay was the new afternoon show, Spike and Hammer. Loved it. Family friendly Magic-Comedy act that had me laughing and wanting more. A must see & very reasonably priced" -Anonymous, Expedia.com
"Show was awesome!!!! Thanks so much for the great afternoon!!!!! We look forward to seeing you again next year!!!!!!" -Deb Blum, Omaha, NE
"Great show guys!" -Don Barnhardt, Las Vegas
"Your show was fabulous!! Great Magic! You two have great showmanship, and are terrific Magicians!" -Mary Z. Luby Stands, Vancouver, WA
"Saw this show today with the family. Great act! Really funny with great magic. Highly recommended!" -Richard Duggan, Las Vegas
"Great Show! The Whole family loved it!" -Robb Weinstock, Las Vegas
"My husband and I saw your show on Thurs afternoon, you borrowed his watch..lol..Just wanted to let you know it was awesome." -Sherri Niles Butler
Been awhile since I've had any sort of free time to post anything. Perhaps now you'll better understand why.
I am proud to announce that Spike and Hammer (the comedy magic act I'm in...I'm Spike) has recently started our new HEADLINING ENGAGEMENT at the fabulous Four Queens Hotel & Casino in Downtown Las Vegas!
Here are the details...
WHAT: Afternoon Comedy Magic Show Starring Spike and Hammer
WHERE: Four Queens Hotel & Casino on Fremont St. in Downtown Las Vegas
WHEN: Wednesday through Sunday at 4PM (with a second show being added soon)
This has been a long time in the making and I can't be happier, if not a bit tired. It is all worth it though as this show is a great deal of fun for me and a great value for the folks in Las Vegas.
PLEASE spread the word to friends or family visiting Vegas. This show is just the beginning. Expect to hear some more great news in the near future.
PS: I will have a couple of days off a week to dedicate to the EL Rey project once the show is fully settled into the new home. Stay tuned!
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