Jay White (impersonator)
Jay Albert White is a Canadian impersonator performing concerts in Las Vegas, Nevada. He is a singer, musician, actor and performer.
Career
[edit]Born in Kitchener, Ontario, White's career as a Neil Diamond tribute artist began in 1983 in the Salute to the Superstars show at the now-defunct Mr. F's Beef & Bourbon in Sterling Heights, Michigan.[1] He had performed at the club for five years when a mutual friend sent word to Legends in Concert producer John Stuart in Las Vegas, NV.
White was offered a seven-week gig at a Reno casino, and it went so well he packed up and moved in 1989 to Vegas, where he did Diamond duty – 50 weeks a year for nine years – in "Legends in Concert" at the Imperial Palace Hotel and Casino.[2] Jay would become the longest running act at Legends, performing in the hotel for almost nine years. White also was the first person to ever perform with Legends as a "living" legend (a musician still alive). After Legends in Concert, Jay went on to play corporate functions, cruises, and venues as a solo performer with a live band.
Jay left performing as a solo act at the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas after a successful 8-year run (2000 shows). Performing as a solo tribute headliner in one venue, Jay's was the longest running act of its kind in the U.S.[3]
In 2008, Jay appeared as Neil Diamond in the Ron Howard-directed movie Frost/Nixon.[4][5] In 2011, he appeared as Noah Kaminsky in the independent movie Beautiful Noise.[6]
Personal life
[edit]Jay is also an accomplished hockey goaltender. He has been playing goal since he was eight years old. His dream was to make it to the NHL one day; the farthest he took his hockey career was a pair of preseason games with the IHL Kalamazoo Wings.[7] White has also played as a backup goaltender for the IHL's now-defunct Las Vegas Thunder, and the ECHL's Las Vegas Wranglers and Florida Everblades.[8]
References
[edit]- ^ Hotts, Mitch. "Jay White brings Neil Diamond show to Andiamo Showroom". Macomb Daily. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
- ^ Brown, Joe. "Diamond songs sung true". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved August 19, 2008.
- ^ "Jay White official home page".
- ^ "Frost/Nixon IMDB page". IMDb.
- ^ Fink, Jerry (December 21, 2007). "Neil Diamond becomes him" (PDF). Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
- ^ "Beautiful Noise (2011) on IMDB". IMDb.
- ^ Wyshynski, Greg (October 30, 2013). "ECHL Las Vegas backup goalie is Neil Diamond impersonator; yes, he'll sing 'Sweet Caroline' for you". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
- ^ Aug, Matt. "A (Neil) Diamond on the Rink". Adult Hockey. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
External links
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