JointheFitnessCraie I LISTENING POST I BEST OF EVERYTHING I A Restaurant Boss' Wife Puts On A Show For The Opera DANNY RASKIN Local Columnist I Annual Memberships Just *5199.95 Corporate Memberships Begin at *$179.95 • • • • • Heated Indoor Pool Sauna - Men's and Women's Whirlpool Weight Resistant Equipment Private Locker Facilities r- 41111111h. 1 Clarion Clarion Hotel & Executive Suites Farmington Hills 31525 W. Twelve Mile Road Farmington Hills, Michigan 48334 (313) 553-0000 /*11 fr—A ---- 410('" '111 Air) C41111 ■ 4- ■ 41111 ' Lobster's are here again VARIETY IS THIS YEAR'S SPICE OF LIFE Surf n' Turf 6 oz. Lobster Tail Twin Tails Lobster Salad Lobster Bisque 12" 1095 1 8 95 895 3 25 Steak & Lobster Stirfry 12" I Pound Lobster Tail 24" Chicken & Lobster Stirfry 12 95 1 1 /4 lb. Whole Live Lobster... 1 4 95 Chicken Oscar 1 2 95 NORMAN S R•E•S•T•A•U•R•A•N•T•S IVA7 . 1.41111 NIFTY NORMAN'S NORMAN'S ETON ST. STATION NORM'S OYSTER BAR 647-7774 357-4442 411 , V ... ....................... 111.40111i -. . - • - ■ I .0 74., 1p lit 1 1 \ ■ _. 1 11, 1 4 CUSTOM CATERING • Weddings • Bar & Bat Mitzvahs • Showers • All Receptions, • Open Houses Wedding, etc. TRAY CATERING FOR ALL OCCASIONS COMPLETE WEEKLY DINNER SPECIALS CARRY OUT Si. DELIVERY AVAILABLE 74 FRIDAY, OCTOBER 5, 1990 737-5190 32839 Northwestern Hwy. Tiffany Plaza Bet. 14 Mile Rd. & Middlebelt Rd. Farmington Hills s that the boss' wife? She's better than I thought — a lot better. In fact, she's really good!" .. . and so went the comments. Yes, Nina Machus may be Machus CEO and President Bob Machus' wife, but for sure she wasn't performing because of this . . . Michigan Opera Theatre could ill afford to chance just any songster as its featured artist for the 250 attendees at recent Machus Red Fox Silver Anniversary to benefit Michigan Opera Theatre's Department of Community Programs. Nina is an excellent singer with voice clarity of wide range . . . In this instance, be- ing the boss' wife could have been more of a hindrance to the occasion if Nina wasn't so good. The newly-decorated Red Fox was set up with a screen in front of a fireplace across from its main dining area .. . Nina did a duet on "Make Believe" and soloed with "It Had To Be You," "Falling In Love" and "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered." Two girls and two gentle- men were very entertaining as they sang and acted light songs of yesteryears . . . 5 p.m. performance included scene from Phantom of The Opera, which was replaced at 7 p.m. show by a George Gershwin medley. Ice carvings of open clam, harp and hunter's horn adorned the lavish buffet table with its "floral" baskets made with vegetables . . . These were works of very talented Joe Schoenemann, sous-chef at the Palace Grill, operated by Machus . . . He and Marty Singer, Red Fox chef de cuisine, prepared the beautiful food table. While at Roman Terrace before it burned down, her name was Pam Brie . . . lbday as a top-notch Red Fox waitress, her married name is Pam Jump . . . Elaine and Harris 0. Machus started it all 25 years ago with their lit- tle Machus Bakery on Maple in Birmingham. Good to see Mary Jo Cinador, Rosanne Schlussel, TDdd Stewart, Valerie Straith, John Wood, Mary Lou and Mort Zieve, Karen and David DiChiera, Rebecca Happel, Red Fox general manager David Page, Millie Pastor, Sylvia (Gershenson) and Nor- man Sloman. Machus Red Fox, flagship of the Machus fleet, opened in 1965 and celebrated its silver anniversary . . . Michigan Opera Theater's Department of Community Programs benefited from the proceeds . . . and the boss' wife showed them that fighting this image can be rough . . . unless you're good . . . and that Nina is. ENGAGEMENTS with a flair seem to run in the fami- ly of Joe and Barbara Lieb .. . Last year it was daughter Cheryl being brought her ring from Ronald Stern in a mound of ice under a silver tray at the Whitney Restaurant . . . Recently, another daughter, Lisa, had her boyfriend's proposal to marry him for over 100,000 people to see . . . It was at the University of Michigan vs. UCLA football game that Bobby Raitt, son of David and Lois Raitt, rented an airplane to fly over the stadium during the game's third quarter in Ann Arbor . . . Back of the plane soared a banner that read, "Lisa, I Love You. Will You Marry Me? Bobby." After Lisa had gotten over the shock and said yes, he pulled a ring out of his pocket and put it on her finger .. . She attends U of M and Bob- by is at Wayne State U. Law School . . . They have been dating almost seven years and plans are for an August 1991 wedding. RICHARD KOSLOW, noted local artist, is responsi- ble for the beautiful labels on Chuck Muer's 25th anniver- sary wine bottles . . . chardon- nay and cabarnet sauvignon . . . The labels are in floral pattern, done by Richard in his Royal Oak studio . . . A toast to you, Chuck, on number 25. ABOUT 350 attended the recent Tribute to Excellence dinner by Arthritis Founda- tion, Michigan Chapter, at Dearborn Inn, Marriott .. . but the count would have been more among the local community if it had been better known that the honoree, Paul Oreffice, chair- man of the board, Dow Chemical Co., and his wife, Franka, were Jewish. The Dearborn Inn white glove service dinner was superb, and Mel Ball and Col- ours played dining music as it should be, soft, mellow and recognizable. CONGRATS ... to Mark Shapiro . . . on his 23rd birthday. ALEXANDER ZONJIC, considered among the na- tion's top jazz flutists, brings his quintet to Duffy's Water- front Inn, Union Lake, Oct. 12 and 13 . . . Ortheia Barnes, soul and blues queen, will belt out her rhythms at a candlelight cabaret concert, Oct. 11, at Birmingham Tem- ple . . . Open Jazz Night is now at the Rhinoceros Bistro and Cafe on Riopelle, with vocalists and musicians in- vited to display their talents Monday evenings .. . Bryan Poirier and Shawn Riley perform live "Outdoors On The Deck" at Key Largo The newly- decorated Red Fox was set up with a screen in front of a fireplace across from its main dining area. Restaurant Wednesday, Fri- day and Saturday nights through October . . . Bryan is Wednesdays and Shawn Fridays and Saturdays . . . both are singer/guitarists .. . "Oldies & Goodies Revue" continues Fridays and Satur- day evenings at Southfield Performing Arts Center in Days Hotel, Southfield . . . The Las Vegas style revue is a salute to the groups that created and made great hits of the '60s and '70s. THE NEWS WAS an ins- tant big hit when pharmacist Marty Benson came out with his sugar-free Slimmery soft serve ice cream . . . Now the owner of American Bulk Food, West Bloomfield Plaza, Orchard Lake Road and Maple, has made himself a hero with many more . . . Slimmery is now not only sugar-free, but also fat-free and cholesterol-free in a lot of yummy flavors. EVELYN ORBACH, ar- tistic director, was mighty en- thused last year when telling about the opening of JET (Jewish Ensemble Theatre) at Jewish Community Center . . . with one season under her