The iconic fountains handily beat every attraction it faced including the Springs Preserve, The Mirage Volcano, the Bellagio Conservatory, the Eiffel Tower at Paris Las Vegas, and in the final showdown the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign.

You can see the entire bracket and how we got to the winner on the Attractions Showdown page.

But the Bellagio Fountains are not the only winner. Before the voting started I had readers submit their guesses as to what would come out on top. Of all the entries I got, only nine people picked the Fountains as the ultimate victor. I randomly selected one person from those nine (literally put the names in a hat and drew) to win an autographed copy of my Frommer's Las Vegas 2012 guide book and that winner is... Leslie Hullinger!

Thank you to everyone who voted!

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The rule change came with a big caveat: before they can do it, the casinos have to figure out a way to rule out any possibility of cheating or manipulation and they apparently haven't yet.

Prior knowledge of the results and the possibility that someone could mess with the results are really the big sticking points here.

In sporting events like football or basketball, both of which you can bet on, the outcome of the game is not known until it happens. For instance, everyone will know who wins the Super Bowl at the exact same moment.

But in a competition like the Oscars, there are people who know who has won the various prizes before those awards are announced. This includes the people in the accounting firm who count the actual votes and a select few people associated with the Academy Awards themselves. If betting was allowed on the Oscars, any of these people could walk off with a big wad of cash based on that foreknowledge.

The other problem is the idea of people trying to fix the game. In a competition like American Idol, for instance, computers can be set up to flood the phone and online voting mechanisms to such a level that it could affect the outcome. The producers of shows like this say that security is in place to prevent this from happening but exactly how is a secret. Unless they are willing to share the secret to ensure that vote-rigging is not possible, the betting can't occur.

And yes, it is possible to fix a sporting event, but that usually would require a huge conspiracy of people instead of one really smart person who knows how to hack into a database.

The casinos really want to figure this out because they think it will be a big new source of revenue for them, especially with women who are not as likely to engage in sports betting now. But until they can solve these problems, the odds will remain just for fun.

The Artist for Best Picture; George Clooney for Best Actor in The Descendants; Christopher Plummer for Best Supporting Actor for Beginners; and Octavia Spencer for Best Supporting Actress for The Help are all the favorites in their respective categories and all won similar prizes at the Golden Globes.

The only two categories in which Avello is diverging are the races for Best Actress and Best Director, which he is tipping to Viola Davis (for The Help) and Michael Hazanavicius (for The Artist) respectively instead of Meryl Streep and Martin Scorsese who won at the Globes.

The safest bet seems to be Christopher Plummer for Best Supporting Actor. He is coming in at 1 to 9 odds, meaning if you were allowed to bet on the Oscars and put down $100 you would win a whopping $11 if Plummer walked away with the trophy.

The longest of long shots goes to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close in the Best Picture race, which Avello is giving 75 to 1 odds. That means the same fictional $100 bet would net you $7500 if the movie pulled out a major upset.

So since you can't bet on this stuff, what can you do with these odds? Well, if you have an office pool, following Avello's odds could make you a winner there. I took a look at the odds that Avello released around this time last year for the 2011 Oscars and of the six major categories, the four he picked as the frontrunners won their respective races. This included Colin Firth for Best Actor, Natalie Portman for Best Actress, Christian Bale for Best Supporting Actor, and Melissa Leo for Best Supporting Actress. The ones he got wrong were Best Picture (he picked The Social Network and it went to The King's Speech) and Best Director (he picked David Fincher and it went to Tom Hooper).

Odds to Win at the 84th Annual Academy Awards, Sunday February 26, 2012 at 7pm Easter, 4pm Pacific on ABC

BEST MOVIE
The Artist: 2 to 5
The Descendants: 7 to 1
The Help: 9 to 1
Hugo: 10 to 1
War Horse: 25 to 1
Moneyball: 30 to 1
Midnight in Paris: 40 to 1
The Tree of Life: 65 to 1
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close: 75 to 1

BEST ACTOR
George Clooney – The Descendants: 5 to 6
Jean Dujardin- The Artist: EVEN
Brad Pitt- Moneyball: 14 to 1
Demian Bichir- A Better Life: 25 to 1
Gary Oldman- Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy: 40 to 1

BEST ACTRESS
Viola Davis- The Help: EVEN
Meryl Streep- The Iron Lady: 6 to 5
Michelle Williams- My Week with Marilyn: 9 to 1
Glenn Close- Albert Nobbs: 20 to 1
Rooney Mara- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: 50 to 1

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christopher Plummer – Beginners: 1 to 9
Kenneth Branagh – My Week with Marilyn: 16 to 1
Nick Nolte- Warrior: 18 to 1
Max Von Sydow- Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close: 20 to 1
Jonah Hill- Moneyball: 50 to 1

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Octavia Spencer – The Help: 1 to 5
Berenice Bejo – The Artist: 7 to 1
Jessica Chastain – The Help: 15 to 1
Janet McTeer- Albert Nobbs: 20 to 1
Melissa McCarthy – Bridesmaids: 25 to 1

BEST DIRECTOR
Michael Hazanavicius- The Artist: 6 to 5
Martin Scorsese – Hugo: 8 to 5
Alexander Payne- The Descendants: 8 to 1
Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris: 10 to 1
Terrance Malick – The Tree of Life: 20 to 1

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Avello has released his "for entertainment purposes only" odds for who will win at the Grammy Awards on February 12 and Adele is the odds-on-favorite for Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Solo Performance.

The Band Perry is getting the best odds to win Best New Artist while a couple of Ladies - Gaga and Antebellum - are being selected as the front runners to win Best Pop Vocal Album and Best country Album respectively.

If you could actually bet on this and wanted to go with some long shots, you'd put your money down on Skillrex to take Best New Artist or Cee Lo Green to Win Best Pop Vocal Album. Both are at 50 to 1.

Odds to Win at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards, February 12, 2012 at 8pm on CBS

RECORD OF THE YEAR
Rolling In the Deep – Adele: 2 to 3
Grenade – Bruno Mars: 2 to 1
The Cave – Mumford and Sons: 8 to 1
Firework - Katy Perry: 14 to 1
Holocene – Bon Iver: 20 to 1

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Adele – 21: 1 to 2
Lady Gaga – Born This Way: 9 to 5
Bruno Mars - Doo Wops & Hooligans: 12 to 1
Rihanna - Loud: 15 to 1
Foo Fighters – Wasting Light: 25 to 1

SONG OF THE YEAR
Rolling in the Deep – Adele: 2 to 5
Grenade – Bruno Mars: 5 to 1
All of the Lights – Kanye West: 10 to 1
The Cave - Mumford and Sons: 12 to 1
Holocene - Bon Iver: 20 to 1

BEST NEW ARTIST
The Band Perry: 7 to 5
Nicki Minaj: 8 to 5
J. Cole: 40 to 1
Skrillex: 50 to 1

BEST COUNTRY ALBUM
Own the Night – Lady Antebellum: 6 to 5
Here For A Good Time – George Strait: 4 to 1
Red River Blue – Blake Shelton: 5 to 1
Speak Now – Taylor Swift: 6 to 1
My Kinda Party – Jason Aldean: 10 to 1
Chief - Eric Church: 25 to 1

BEST POP VOCAL ALBUM
Born This Way – Lady Gaga: EVEN
21 - Adele: 6 to 5
Loud - Rihanna: 12 to 1
Doo Wops & Hooligans – Bruno Mars: 20 to 1
The Lady Killer - Cee Lo Green: 50 to 1

BEST POP SOLO PERFORMANCE
Someone Like You – Adele: 6 to 5
You and I – Lady Gaga: 5 to 2
Firework – Katy Perry: 5 to 1
F***in’ Perfect – Pink: 6 to 1
Grenade - Bruno Mars: 20 to 1

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The latter is Iris (pronounced ee-rees), which celebrates the world of cinema, which is appropriate considering that it's in Hollywood at the theater in which the Academy Awards are held each year.

Seeing a Cirque show in Los Angeles is different than seeing a Cirque show in Las Vegas. Certainly the basics are all the same - you buy a ticket, you go, you sit, you watch, you applaud (hopefully), and you leave. But along the way are some differences that were obvious, at least to me.

The first is the audience and their relationship with the show. In Las Vegas, a show is usually only part of an evening of entertainment. There's often a dinner before or after; some sightseeing, perhaps; some gambling, almost certainly; drinks at a bar or perhaps dancing until dawn; who knows, maybe a strip club. Although many people may plan their evenings around the show, the show itself is often just a component of a bigger picture.

In Los Angeles, with Iris, the impression I got is that the show was the main attraction in most people's evenings. They may have been doing other things before or after making the show a component of the bigger picture but it was the key component - the reason they left their homes that night. While there were definitely tourists in attendance for whom that may have been different, the bulk of the audience was made up of local residents who went out for a night at the theater.

This is important because it creates a totally different vibe in the theater. In Vegas, I often sense that people are anxious for the show to start but it often seems as though it's because they are anxious for the show to be over so they can get back to the slot machines or craps tables or the strip club or whatever. Before Iris, I felt the audience's anticipation; an excitement about the event that was about to unfold in a way that I don't usually feel in Vegas. People wanted to be there and nowhere else.

As evidence, I present a concept totally foreign to most Las Vegas shows: the intermission. Most productions in Las Vegas don't have an intermission, even going so far as to cut out key scenes from Broadway shows just to get the running time down to a level that most audiences can get through without a break. They do this because they know there are too many other distractions waiting for the audience outside the theater doors that may lure them away before the second act.

It was so unexpected to me that when the lights started coming up about 50 minutes into the show, I thought "Wait, that's it? It's over?" Then the "20 minute intermission" sign came on and I said, "Ohhh, I remember those!"

As far as the show itself, it is impossible to compare it to the Vegas productions since they are all very different. Having said that, if you have seen a Cirque production in Vegas (or anywhere else for that matter), this one will feel very familiar in both good and not-so-good ways.

The show has a loose storyline, wherein a love-struck young man spends most of his time searching for a young starlet through the Hollywood of days gone by. There are dictatorial directors, desperate screenwriters, fame-hungry actors and actresses, and an acrobat or 30.

There are several wholly unique acts including one stunner in which a cast of identically dressed dancers and actors move through a series of large connected rooms that makes it appear as if you are watching frames of a film moving across the stage. The timing involved is jaw-dropping and the affect is really cool.

But the bulk of the acts reminded me of others in the Vegas productions. Two men soar on bungee cords above the audience, a version of an act in Zumanity and Love; four female contortionists twist their bodies into unbelievable shapes, similar to an act in O; a bunch of gymnasts bound around the stage via trampolines just like in Love and Viva Elvis. The details are different of course. For instance the trampoline act here is staged as a film noir chase across rooftops between the police and bad guys instead of the London police chasing counter-culture hippies in Love, but the concept is basically the same. Granted, I've seen all of the Vegas Cirque shows multiple times so these similarities are not going to be as obvious to the casual viewer.

And it doesn't make them any less impressive. The guys on the bungee cords are gasp-inducing in the way that people appearing to fly always is and the acrobats who flip, twirl, and land on each other, creating human pyramids of impossible construction, will have you clenching your armrest in anticipation of their derring-do.

The comic relief standard in most Cirque shows is also especially fun here, with the aforementioned Hollywood wannabes going to great lengths to "make it." A riff on the Oscars with a guy in a dress and a strategically placed banana is not only laugh-out-loud funny but quite meta considering that it is taking place on the very stage on which they hand out the Academy Awards.

My biggest critique of Iris is one that I have of several other Cirque productions in that they simply try to do too much at once. There's one segment that evokes a Hollywood movie set in which the entire cast is on stage dancing, jumping on teeter totters, swinging from the rafters, contorting, cavorting, parading, and posing all at once, making it impossible to know where to look. There was something to see no matter where my gaze landed but it made me feel like I was missing something better where I wasn't looking. Even the parts where there are fewer people onstage often have multiple focus points, such as the trapeze artist flying around above the stage while a guy did tricks with a broom on the stage. I know people's attention spans are short these days but there is absolutely nothing wrong with trying to focus on one thing at a time.

Iris is a good entry point for people who haven't seen a Cirque show or for the casual fan who wants to see how they handle a different theme. If you're in Los Angeles and are looking for something to build a night on the town around, this would be a good choice.

Iris by Cirque du Soleil
The Kodak Theater
6801 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90028
877-943-4747
website

Show Times:
Tues-Fri 8pm
Sat 2 & 8pm
Sun 1pm

Tickets:
$33-$253

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The Not Fighting Fare Award of the Week goes to reports that a few cab drivers have actually resorted to holding their passengers hostage in return for tips. The Las Vegas Review Journal reported at least six incidents over the last couple of months where drivers locked passengers in the cars until they forked over a gratuity, or in some instances a bigger one. As if it actually needed to be said, this is illegal - so if it happens to you, call the police.

The Let's Dance Award of the Week goes to Hakkasan Las Vegas, the new nightclub and restaurant that will replace Studio 54 at the MGM Grand. The new venture is a co-venture between Hakassan, an Asian restaurant chain with outlets in Miami, New York City, Dubai, and Mumbai (among others) and Las Vegas' Angel Management Group, the company that runs Pure at Caesars Palace. The restaurant/club will have multiple levels including an outdoor space overlooking The Strip. It is due to open by December of 2012.

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But no worries for Mr. Goodman - he has enough to do these days as the de factor Las Vegas Ambassador for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and running his own steakhouse and speakeasy at The Plaza in Downtown Las Vegas.

The restaurant is really three different experiences in one. The main restaurant, Oscar's steakhouse, is located in the iconic Plaza dome at the head of Fremont Street, which started life as the hotel's pool but has been a succession of restaurants for the last few decades. It has gotten a makeover and is now a warm space with leather booths, tables, and chandeliers but one thing has not changed: it is still a fantastic place from which to watch the Fremont Street Experience light and sound show happening right across the street.

A second restaurant, Simpatico, is hidden away speakeasy style behind an unmarked door off the main entrance. It serves classic Italian fare and acts as a special events room for the main restaurant.

There's also a big bar that features a wide variety of signature cocktails, including the Mayor's favorite martinis.

The menu at Oscar's is mostly unsurprising steakhouse fare with starters like shrimp cocktail, crab cakes, steak tartare, Caesar salad, and onion soup and a variety of steaks, seafood, and chops for the main courses. There are a few originals thrown into the mix like a seared Ahi tuna appetizer, beef barley soup, a blackened Cajun shrimp entree, and even Oscar's version of "Weiner" Schnitzel, which is a bone-in veal chop topped with radicchio, arugula, and endive.

We started with the onion soup, which was of the sweet variety and kicked up with a sherry infused white veal stock. The presentation was interesting - instead of the typical cheese coated bread on top it had the cheese stuffed into a bready puff, which if nothing else made it easier to eat. I can't say it was my favorite example of the dish ever but it was a more than satisfying way to start the meal.

Prime rib and a small filet were the main course selections along with the seared Ahi tuna, which acted as such for the light eater at the table. The beef was prepared perfectly and both had a rich bodied flavor that didn't necessitate any of the available toppings (which include blue cheese, mushrooms, caramelized onions, and more). The tuna probably could've done with a little bit more searing - it was only a few degrees past raw - but was still deemed a success.

Everything is served ala carte and for sides we tried the mac and cheese, which was baked into a deliciously gooey mess, and the house made latkes, which were like the best hash browned potatoes you will ever eat.

For the food portion of the program I'd give the meal a solid B, but I have to move that up a few notches for a couple of reasons. First is the cost. Those who have gotten used to the insanely priced steakhouses on The Strip will breathe a sigh of relief here, with appetizers all below $15, soups and salads all under $10, entrees topping out at $46 (with many under $30), and sides all in the $5-7 range. Our bill with drinks, tax, tip, and dessert came in at around $200 for three people. Contrast this with the steakhouse on The Strip we ate at the following night were the bill was double that.

The second reason to bump Oscar's up in my estimation is the atmosphere and ambience. Not only is it one of the most interesting dining rooms in town - the view of Fremont Street is killer! - the staff goes out of their way to make eating here a special occasion. It's one of those cool, "only in Vegas" experiences that all visitors look for.

Oscar's
The Plaza Las Vegas
1 Main Street
Las Vegas, NV 89101
702-38-OSCAR
website

Hours
Daily 5pm-close

Restaurant Type: Steak/Seafood

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