Saddle Sore at Super Bowl: Naked Cowboy Hits New Orleans Still in Arrears

During his exhaustive research into Super Bowl activities in New Orleans, Times sports columnist T.J. Simers casually mentioned that he glimpsed the Naked Cowboy.

But Simers, who is admittedly more interested in catching a glimpse of actress and sports fan Salma Hayek, didn’t furnish any details.

So we don’t know whether the guitar-toting chap will be among those performing during halftime ceremonies Sunday (I mean the Naked Cowboy, not Simers).

A street musician who wears nothing but jockey shorts, boots and a hat, the cowpoke (a.k.a. John Burck of Cincinnati) played L.A. a few years ago--at the prestigious venue known as the Venice Beach boardwalk.

During the visit, Burck sadly told how he had sought fame in Hollywood fully clothed.

“I was totally ignored,” he said. “I made, like, $1.”

Off went (most of) the clothes, and he has since hitchhiked around the country in the near-buff, playing on street corners, outside sports stadiums and, occasionally, on daytime TV shows.

The “Trail of Events” page on his nakedcowboy.com Web site lists such career highlights as:

“11-03-01, Times Square: Britney Spears stops and says, ‘Hi, Naked Cowboy!”’ It doesn’t get any better than that.

Naked Cowboy (cont.): He’s also hawking a line of products on his site. I hate to say he’s not living up to his name, but I find it distressing that he, of all people, would be selling Naked Cowboy T-shirts ($25 each).

Don’t party too hearty: Every year at this time I think of one snapshot in my collection and wonder if it was intended as a subtle reminder not to overeat and over-drink (see photo).

And if you do have a hangover Monday ... : I’m not sure I’d try any of the herbs found in a product by Gerald and Monica Klose (see accompanying).

Department of Redundancy Dept.: Rich Schieber of Woodland Hills said he was in Laughlin, Nev., trying to figure out if his hotel’s restored train ran that day. “Then I realized ... well, you see the result,” he said (see photo).

Recognition everywhere: What a weekend for Mariah Carey. On Sunday, she’s singing the national anthem at the Super Bowl. And the night before, she’ll be honored in absentia in Hollywood at the Golden Raspberry Foundation’s preview night of the Razzies.

The Raspberry foundation pays tribute to the worst performances in the movies. And Carey is considered a shoo-in for a worst actress nomination for her role in the flop “Glitter.” The Razzie folks point to research by the illustrious Rotten Tomatoes Web site, which found that 56 out of 59 reviewers thought the movie was a bomb.

miscelLAny: Last February, the L.A. Zoo held an “Adults-Only Prime Mate Party” in honor of Valentine’s Day. For $60, couples were treated to a slide show about “animal mating habits” as well as a docent-led tour of the zoo’s “most successful” breeding partners. Alas, attendance fell below expectations, so the show won’t be staged this year.

I doubt that the gorillas will be disappointed.

Steve Harvey can be reached at (800) LA-TIMES, Ext. 77083, by fax at (213) 237-4712, by mail at Metro, L.A. Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A., 90012 and by e-mail at steve.harvey@latimes.com.