Beverly Hillbillies star Max Baer Jr. may be a long way from his days on the popular 1960s sitcom but he hasn't given up the character of Jethro yet. Baer, who is 71, is looking into buying a closed hotel-casino in Sparks, Nevada and turning it into Jethro's Beverly Hillbillies Hotel and Casino. The mayor of the town says that Baer has met with city officials and councilmen on the possible purchase of what was the Silver Club. Baer already has a home at Lake Tahoe.

The former actor has had this idea for a while and already had approval to build his casino in another location, next to a retail complex being built in northern Douglas County about 30 miles south of Reno and Sparks. But the construction of the retail complex has stalled and so Baer, who feels the pressure of age and the economy, is looking at other options.

The Silver Club is one is six Holder Hospitality casinos in Nevada that have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization and all the properties are for sale. Baer's casino plans as shown on his website include a facade that looks like the Beverly Hillbillies mansion and a large oil derrick sign. That sign would be a problem in Sparks because it would be 200 feet tall and the municipal code only allows signs that are about 50 feet tall. His desire to build a huge derrick with a flame on top kept him from building this project in Reno around 10 years ago.

According to his website the multi-million dollar project will feature unique applications of The Beverly Hillbillies theme including Granny's Shot Gun Weddin' Chapel, Jethro's All-You-Ken-Et Buffet, the Cement Pond, Granny's White Lightnin' Bar complete with rain & lightning, Elly May's Buns (Bakery), gourmet meals from Drysdales' Fancy Eatin' Fo Da Richins and Granny's Vittles & Hog Jowls Coffee Shop.

Nevada, like so many other states, has a smoking ban for establishments that serve food. This changed life for a lot of cigar smokers, a fact realized by Susan and Jeff Melvin. So, they opened Jimmy G's Cigar Bar in downtown Carson City last month, bringing a new alternative to those of us who enjoy a good cigar every now and then. Though Jimmy G's doesn't serve food, guests can order meals from Garibaldi's or Kim Lee Sushi, which are nearby and deliver.

In addition to serving a wide variety of spirits, the new cigar bar has 4,000 cigars available, representing a wide range of prices. So, there should be something on hand or just about every taste and budget. Televisions have been installed, along with wireless internet access, all at the request of customers. Hell, the proprietors even cut martini prices based on feedback from guests, so you can be confident that your opinions will be taken seriously at this lounge.

This is the second Jimmy G's Cigar Bar, with the first in Minden, Nevada, which switched from restaurant to cigar bar in 2006.

In the hills above Las Vegas, luxury homes abound. In the gated community of Dragon Ridge is where you'll find this home on Lairmont Place. And what a lair it is. This six-bedroom palace features one incredible feature in the main space, a three-story waterfall. The property is oriented toward the view and features large glass windows for observing the desert and the city in the distance. The family room opens out onto a large patio. Take the elevator down to the lower level of the home and you will discover a massage room, wet bar and lounge and a home theater. The owner's suite has a balcony, beautiful views and a large bathroom with marble accents. It is listed at $10 million.

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In good times when money is flowing and everything's coming up roses sometimes the impossible seems not just doable but necessary. A manmade lake surrounded by an Italian-style village in the middle of the desert starts to sound not like some sort of fevered heat fantasy but like a smart business decision (and you can even throw a floating ice rink on that lake for good measure). But the development at Lake Las Vegas is starting to look like a stock market mirage. The LA Times has a great piece assessing the damage and chronicling the decline of a neighborhood that has been home to Celine Dion and a Ritz-Carlton.

The trouble began last year as Las Vegas real estate continued to sink. The developer, Transcontinental Corp., lost the property in foreclosure after defaulting on $540 million in loans and the new owners of Lake Las Vegas filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last summer. The Ritz-Carlton owned by Village Hotel Investors LLC, also filed bankruptcy and was been sold to new owners and one of the area's golf courses has been abandoned. The Ritz-Carlton remains open is offering a variety of deals that include free nights and special rates.

Cigar company C.A.O. International is partnering with custom motorcycle builder Sucker Punch Sally's to put a lucky cigar smoker on the back of a new bike. The ride, which hasn't been created yet, will be inspired by C.A.O. cigars and should be a dream for anyone with a passion for sticks and speed. The design reaches back to the 1950s, with a minimalist approach and a shortened rear fender – from which the appellation "bobber" is derived.

So, which cigar inspired what will undoubtedly be a monument to manliness and power?

The C.A.O. America cigar is the culprit. It's a full-bodied smoke that is best consumed after you've had a meal (even if you normally enjoy heavier cigars. It's made in Honduras with two wrapper leaves: one's Connecticut shade, and the other is a chocolate brown broadleaf.

Before a lucky winner receives the motorcycle, it will be taken around the United States – to both bike rallies and cigar shops. If you're in Henderson, Nevada on June 4, look for it at the Tobacco Leaf. Finally, next spring, the bike will be given to a randomly selected winner at a party to be held at C.A.O. headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee.

The latest luxury project to ruffle feathers on the shores of Lake Tahoe is the Tahoe Beach Club. The new development is a planned project of condos and estate homes to be located on the site of the existing Tahoe Shores Mobile Home Park, a fact that upsets and uproots the 30 remaining residents of the park. The developers, who plan to sell the 124 condominiums at over $1 million each, are constructing a green-friendly project that will include a water treatment system. The $200 million to $250 million project will have stone-and-wood lodges with lofts and porches and there will be a private beach club including a fitness center, snack bars, restaurant and a private sandy beach. The residents of the trailer park have been offered various buyout plans including a $5,000 payment, a move to another park or the fair appraised value of their trailers but are currently holding firm even though they know they will inevitably be forced to move.

Lake Tahoe, the 22-mile long natural wonder in the Sierra Nevada mountains that's a renowned vacation spot - and site of this amazing Estate of the Day, among others - is the subject of a beautiful new book by photographer Thomas Bachand. Lake Tahoe: A Fragile Beauty (Chronicle Books, $35), features a decade's worth of Bachand's images presenting "a timeless vocabulary of water, rock and sky," as well as "the transition that the lake and its surroundings are undergoing due to tourism and development." Pictured above is a sunset storm at Sugar Pine Point State Park. A must-have for anyone "enchanted by Tahoe's beauty, engaged by its history, and concerned for its welfare," the book goes on sale in a couple of weeks but you can pre-order it on Amazon now.

The Lake Las Vegas Resort is expanding by leaps and bounds. Already home to a Ritz-Carlton, the Loews Lake Las Vegas Resort and the charming MonteLago Village Resort, the resort will now have a 200-Unit Hilton Grand Vacations timeshare resort and a 50-Unit Waldorf=Astoria fractional project. The project will be developed on a 17.5 acre lakefront parcel overlooking the 17th hole and the 18th tee of the Jack Nicklaus-designed Reflection Bay Golf Course. The Waldorf=Astoria project at Lake Las Vegas Resort is the first fractional lodging product to be developed by Hilton (we mentioned the creation of this brand last year). Development of the project is currently in the design phase, with groundbreaking targeted for early 2008 and an opening date projected for fall of 2009.

This home on the West Shore of Lake Tahoe won me over with its architectural style. The five-bedroom home has a a ski house feel but with ample glass to take advantage of the waterfront location. The result is a home that is both traditional and modern, The impressive floor-to-ceiling windows showcase the lake and sky views. The home has 135 feet of waterfront and has a shared pier There is also a two-car garage. It is listed at $7.9 million. After the jump, curtains, who needs curtains?

There's just something about a house that has been restored with love rather than with an eye toward the quick sale. I'd like to think that the Caughlin Ranch House in Reno, Nevada was restored by those who actually planned to live there. It seem to capture the mix of frontier tradition and Nevada glitz. The ranch is on nearly four acres and the grounds include both the three bedroom main home and a three bedroom guest house as well as five car garage parking, a workshop and separate studio space. The interior is a teensy bit Pottery Barn chic but still there is something about this place I like. The surrounding land looks a bit untended but the home has eight acre-feet of water rights included so perhaps the right owner could make the ranch more of a ranch. It is listed at $3.95 million. After the jump, are two smaller houses worth as much as one big one?

Imagine for a moment that you are a chef in one of the hottest restaurants on the Las Vegas Strip. You would want a home that is beautiful, perhaps removed from the hubbub of downtown but not too far. You might also be in search of a kitchen where you could create gastronomic indulgences for your lucky guests. Welcome then to 5 Misty Peaks, a five-bedroom contemporary home designed for the entertainer. It has a contemporary look with big glass windows facing the Strip in the distance. The home also has multiple wine refrigerators, a private screening room, electronic drapes. surround sound and a game room with a large wet bar with custom cabinets.. The star of the house however is the culinary kitchen which includes a Wolf range, Fisher Paykel dual stacked dishwashers, a Sub-Zero refrigerator and U-line refrigerated drawers. The long breakfast bar features blown glass lighting features. After a hearty meal you can step outside to the infinity pool flanked by fire woks. It also has a outdoor kitchen, gas fire pit, plasma televisions, fireplace and a misting system. This home is listed at $9.45 million and was part of the 2006 Las Vegas Parade of Homes. After the jump, install cameras and film your own cooking show.

Here we go again, another luxury Valentine hotel package. This one doesn't jet you around the world. The Love At Las Vegas romance package at the Ritz-Carlton, Lake Las Vegas includes a two night stay in The Ritz-Carlton's 2,400 square-foot Presidential Suite, a limo ride from the airport, helicopter ride to Lake Las Vegas with champagne, gondola ride, Cristal Champagne and gourmet picnic basket upon arrival and two private dinners one in your room and one about a Lake Las Vegas yacht. Other treats include a private butler, Prada Beauty spa treatments, personalized bath robes and monogrammed pillow cases. The package costs $100,000 but most of that is spent on the $50,000 shopping spree at Neiman Marcus and a $5,000 line of credit at the MonteLago Casino. The package is available starting February 1.

Mancation, baby! How much do you love your guy friends? Enough to spend nearly $50,000 with them in Vegas? The JW Marriot Las Vegas Resort in Summerlin, Nevada has come up with what they call the ultimate mancation. The four-day trip includes $1,000 per person in gaming chips, two oversized two-bedroom suites, the chance to drive a Ferrari 360 Spider, a day at a race track, a day at the golf course with lessons from the pros and spa treatments for all your metrosexual manscaping needds and to top it all off, a seven-course meal on the last night of your stay. Each man also gets to take home a new set of golf clubs worth $2,000 per person. The entire package costs $49,000. Sounds like the the sort of thing Kid Rock needs to help him get over his divorce.

The community of Spanish Hills is one of the most luxurious communities in Las Vegas. The southwest Las Vegas enclave is home to some of the most famous celebrities who reside in Las Vegas.. This home in this guard-gated Las Vegas community is exceedingly lavish. The five-bedroom home is 16832 square feet which includes a home theater and game room. Other details include a racquet ball court with an electronic basket ball hoop, a 12+ car garage, two saunas, commercial elevator and a pool. There are views of the Vegas Strip glittering in the distance from several rooms. This home is listed at $9.95 million. After the jump, cook dinner with the Strip in the distance.