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b'So before I get into this review, a few disclaimers:\\xa0\\nIf you told me a few years ago that I would actually make an effort and spend my own money to see Wayne Newton perform, I would have laughed at you. A lot.\\nIf you told me even a few months ago that I would not only see Wayne Newton perform, but also (spoiler alert!) enjoy it enough that I would recommend that others go see it, I would wonder what you were on.\\xa0\\n\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0 \\xa0Now, to be fair, I like crooners. But when I say that, I mean that I like the Rat Pack. To me, a pleasant evening is cooking dinner with Sinatra and Martin on the stereo and a glass of bourbon within reach. If I could see any concert ever in history, it would be Sinatra and the rest of the Rat Pack performing one of the Summit shows in the Copa Room at the Sands while they filmed the original Ocean\'s 11. But I have never considered myself a Wayne Newton fan.\\nWhat brought me to see Wayne Newton recently was what the kids call the FOMO, the Fear Of Missing Out. Like it or not, Vegas is synonymous with change, and like it or not, the legacy of Wayne Newton is inextricably woven into Vegas forever. So even if I did not consider myself a fan of Wayne Newton, I had to admit that he was a living Las Vegas legend, and someday (maybe sooner than we would like) the chance to see that legend perform in the flesh might be gone. As a fan of Vegas and a frequent patron of Vegas entertainment, I almost felt what can best be described as an obligation to see Wayne Newton perform. \\xa0\\n\\xa0\\n\\n"To my left is where we keep the TV."\\n\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0 \\xa0 If you\\u2019ve been living under a proverbial Las Vegas rock and don\\u2019t know who Wayne Newton is, he is also known as Mr. Las Vegas, and has been performing on Las Vegas stages and throughout the rest of the world for more that 60 years, beginning in the late 50s at the Fremont Hotel. He\\u2019s the guy that tried to woo Helen Griswold away from Clark in Vegas Vacation. When I first started making regular trips to Vegas, Newton was performing at the Cleopatra\\u2019s Barge theater at Caesars Palace. When El Dorado took over Caesars Entertainment, they closed several shows and moved Wayne over to Bugsy\\u2019s Cabaret at the Flamingo. As shows began to open up post-pandemic, Wayne Newton\\u2019s production was delayed; first due to back surgery last year, and again due to a positive COVID diagnosis later on. Since the man is now 80 years old, I was really beginning to feel like I needed to make an effort to see him as soon as possible.\\xa0\\n\\xa0\\n\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0 \\xa0 As I mentioned before, Wayne Newton, Up Close and Personal is now performing at Bugsy\\u2019s Cabernet, which is a small venue located in the center of the Flamingo gaming floor. The venue is also used for X-Burlesque, but you enter the theater through different doors for the different productions, making it seem like they are different venues and that the tuxedo-wearing, living legend isn\\u2019t sharing a performance space with a titty show. The size of the theater was a plus for me, because the small room ensured that we could see him well. It truly was \\u201cUp Close and Personal.\\u201d\\xa0\\n\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0 \\xa0 As we waited in line to get into the theater, we couldn\\u2019t help but wonder what we were getting into. We\\u2019re in our mid-forties, but we were by far the youngest people in line. Was everyone here for Wayne Newton, or had we accidentally stumbled across the Matlock Fan Convention? Ha ha! Old people\\u2026\\xa0\\n\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0 \\xa0 When most of the audience was seated, a woman stood up in front and introduced herself as the hostess. She essentially instructed us to stand up and applaud when Wayne sang his final song of the evening. I\\u2019ve seen a lot of shows, but I\\u2019ve never been told that I need to give a standing ovation. This irritated me, but it was quickly forgotten. The curtains opened, the 3-piece band began to play, and the man himself stepped out and began to sing.\\xa0\\n\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0 \\xa0 Okay, so I\\u2019m just going to cut to the chase here. His voice is not great right now. Don\\u2019t get me wrong; he sings better than I do. It\\u2019s not awful to hear, but we\\u2019re a'