Philip Potempa, 219-852-4327, ppotempa@nwitimes.com

DATELINE -- Colorado -- Columnist Philip Potempa is reporting from Vail this week.

Image of insults

It was just in this past Saturday's column that I reported Joan Rivers would be making a rare visit to our area to perform her stand-up comedy show May 5 at The Rialto Theatre in Joliet. I mentioned also featured on the double-bill would be the one and only Don Rickles, the funny king of barbed insults.

So, it's ironic that when I flew into Denver Sunday and then made the (unexpected) 2-1/2-hour trek by auto up the mountains to Vail, I discovered Rickles also was here with wife Barbara to be honored at HBO's 13th Annual U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen.

As 80-year-old Rickles would say, the 13-year-old festival is "an infant" compared to his age and the fact that he's about to celebrate his 42nd wedding anniversary March 14. Joining the salute to Rickles during the four-day festival weekend, which ended Sunday, were comedians Stephen Wright and Stephen Colbert and actress Jill St. John and hubby Robert Wagner (the couple, both avid skiers, have a beautiful home in Aspen where they live part of the year).

However, one of the most important celeb guests was delayed over the weekend. Bob Newhart, like many visitors arriving late to Vail and Aspen destinations, was hampered by the weather, which diverted all flights from landing at the Vail and Aspen airports to Denver. Newhart, 77, who presented Rickles with this year's Pinnacle Award for his 50 years in comedy, lost his luggage in Denver and had to spend one night in Vail before finally making it to Aspen just in time.

Also attending the Rickles salute was producer John Landis, who is currently filming "The Don Rickles Project," a documentary about the comedian's career that will showcase favorite moments and clips from his many appearances on Dean Martin's TV roasts and with Johnny Carson on "The Tonight Show."

All hail Vail

The countrywide American Ski Classic will celebrate its 25th anniversary March 21-25 by honoring its longtime host and our late 38th U.S. President Gerald R. Ford and his family with "The 2007 Legends of Honor" salute. Despite the images of clumsiness portrayed of President Ford by Chevy Chase on "Saturday Night Live," First Lady Betty Ford, who turns 89 next month, used her husband's expert ski abilities to disprove those klutzy impersonations.

While I was skiing with my instructor at Beaver Creek Resort in Vail Monday, we skiied past President Ford's home, (which sadly the family has put up for sale), on a black diamond-level run formerly called Pitchfork, now renamed President Ford run.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer. He can be reached at ppotempa@nwitimes.com or 219.852.4327.

celebBirthdays

TV personality Ed McMahon is 84. Former Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan is 81. Country singer Doug Dillard is 70. Actor Ben Murphy is 65. Singer Mary Wilson of The Supremes is 63. Drummer Hugh Grundy of The Zombies is 62. Singer-guitarist David Gilmour of Pink Floyd is 61. Actor-director Rob Reiner is 60. Singer Kiki Dee is 60. Businessman and Oprah's beaux Stedman Graham is 56. Actor Tom Arnold is 48. Actor D.L. Hughley ("The Hughleys") is 43. Country songwriter Skip Ewing is 43. Actress Yvette Wilson ("The Parkers") is 43. Actress Connie Britton ("24," "Spin City") is 39. Actress Moira Kelly ("One Tree Hill") is 39. Actress Amy Pietz ("Caroline in the City") is 38. Basketball star Shaquille O'Neal is 35. Pedal steel player Shan Farmer of Ricochet is 33. Rapper Beanie Sigel is 33. Rapper Bubba Sparxxx is 30.