Lily Tomlin’s charm and unique comedic style is as brilliant as when she appeared in Rowan and Martin’s television series “Laugh In” in the 70’s. Having been a fan of hers, I really looked forward to seeing Lily in person for the first time at the MGM Grand Hotel. Lily’s performance was stellar, even better than I remembered.

The audience has a chance to experience the many worlds of Lily Tomlin, as she moved seemingly effortlessly from one of her lovable characters to another. There were even several characters, on video and others Lily performed in person, which I had never seen before.

Introduced with the song “When you wish upon a Star”, Lily discussed her own wish to go to Hollywood and become a star and added, “I am proud to be here.”

Her expression of being “Hot Wired to Worry” brought Lily into a sequence of one liners and fresh new material. It was so entertaining to hear her slant on life. “My parents told me so many things that were not true.”

Then Lily began her impressions. Instead of just performing impressions by changing her voice and facial expressions to suit each character, she went much farther. Lily developed a persona with outfits and elaborate skits for each of them. Whether it was Ernestine, the telephone operator, the child Edith Ann, or any of the others, she actually became the character. We get to know their personalities and the comedy in their lives. It is fun watching as each new character’s story unfolds.

She kept all of those idiosyncrasies her fans loved. The gum chewing, snorting, Ernestine, the telephone operator, answered with, “One ringy dingy, two ringy dingy” before she would be rude to the caller. Lily suddenly became young again with Edith Ann, the bratty child, sitting on a mega-rocking chair who always used the expression “And that’s the truth!” Lily’s Judith Beasley, the spokesman for national products of the highest quality, was a true salesman.

There are not many female impressionists, especially performing with full character enactments and sketch monologues, and after a career of over 40 years, Lily Tomlin has won two Tony Awards for her hit Broadway show “The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe”, Jane Wagner’s critically acclaimed play, a GRAMMY for her comedy album, “This is a Recording”, two Peabody Awards for Edith Ann’s animated special, “Just Say Noel” and the HBO documentary film “The Celluloid Closet”, and the prestigious Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Her talents also range from the stage and television to appearing in films. Lily made 18 films including “9 To 5”, “Nashville” (nominated for an Oscar), and many other memorable films.

Join Lily Tomlin’s world of characters; do not miss her live appearance “Not Playing with a Full Deck” at the MGM Grand Hotel’s Hollywood Theater, from April 29 to May 5. For information, call 891-7777. 8 pm nightly. Tickets: $80.50- $58.50, and the Golden Circle- $168.50 front row Meet and Greet/ photo after the show (Including Fees). www.lilytomlin.com www.mgmgrand.com

Sandy Zimmerman is a syndicated features columnist published in Dubai, Japan, England, South America, as well as other countries and in the United States;

She is talk show host of the Las Vegas Today Show programs and Discover the Ultimate Vacation travel specials taped on location in Las Vegas and around the world;

Sandy won the Award of Excellence for her All American Burger commercial- John and Marsha, a soap opera, by the Greater Las Vegas Advertising Federation;

Celebrating 29 years as the longest running talk show host, columnist, and entertainment reviewer in Las Vegas, Sandy also covers dining reviews, travel, spas, health and lifestyles;

For information, contact: sandyzimm2003@yahoo.com