Question of the Day - 12 February 2018

Cook E. Jarr’s real name is Anthony Pettine and he’s a native of Philadelphia. He trained as an auto and aircraft mechanic before launching a showbiz career as a singer and band front man. He was a fixture in Las Vegas for decades, the ultimate lounge lizard, the kind of cheesy performer Vegas visitors expected to see in the ’80s, ’90s, and even (as a throwback) well into the 21^st century.

Cook E. Jarr first appeared in Las Vegas with his backup band the Krums (guitar and keyboards) in Nero’s Nook at Caesars Palace (which become Cleopatra’s Barge) in 1969 on the days off of the house act, the Checkmates. But he was about 10 years ahead of his time and didn’t go over at all. Caesars paid off his contract and sent him packing back to the East Coast, where he established himself in Atlantic City and performed there throughout the ’70s.

In 1982, the Cookster returned to Vegas for a stint at the Sands; he planned to stay for the two weeks of his gig, but he never left. Over the next 30-odd years, he performed in the lounges at the Silver Slipper, Dunes, Holiday (now Harrah’s), El Rancho, Continental (now Silver Sevens), Tropicana, Bally’s, Caesars again, MGM Grand, even the Tap House banquet room, right after Fellini’s opened next door.

The Continental and Harrah’s issued commemorative chips in his honor.

Looking like a cross between a young Buddy Hackett and Moe of the Three Stooges, Jarr’s trademarks were his helmet hairstyle (thanks to cans of Aquanet), a chestful of chains, customized jeans (most with his name embroidered down one leg), and a perpetual tan so deep that he looked like he’d just returned from a visit to the surface of the sun.  

For most of his career, he sang along to pre-recorded backing tracks of an astonishing variety and styles of music. His stage presence was memorable, ad-libbing, kibbitzing with the audience and passersby, deprecating his self, particularly his daily sports-betting habit, and generally regaling the crowd with Jarrisms. He was also known for his sound effects, such as dog barks and engine revs. At every performance, he draped himself in an American flag and sang at least one patriotic song. And of course, his tip jar, “Feed the Jarr,” was legendary: a cookie jar in the shape of a slot machine.

Cook E. started to fade away around 2008, but his career was re-energized in 2009 by Jimmy Kimmel, who grew up in Las Vegas and aired him singing Nelly’s “Hot in Here” at Harrah’s. Subsequently, Jarr appeared at Bill’s Gamblin’ Hall (now the Cromwell), then Harrah’s, and finally Paris for a year or so between 2015 and 2016, which was, as far as we can tell, the last time he performed in Vegas. We figure him to be into his 70s by now, so we suspect he just retired.

If anyone has any more recent information about Cook E., please let us know.

Ask and ye shall receive. We've heard from several Cook E. fans, including Mark Block, whose "main man" is Cook. Since it's for such a good cause, we thought we'd post it right here in the updates:

"I definitely want to bring everyone up to speed on my main man Cook E. Jarr. He is definitely NOT retired and has in fact NEVER stopped performing since arriving in Las Vegas on June 2, 1982.  Although he will be quick to tell you that he is “partly retired” because he only plays once a week, it is a FANTASTIC night every week.  He plays on Monday nights from 6 pm to 8 pm at the Napolean Lounge at Paris Las Vegas. It’s a great bar with a ton of foot traffic that often finds it’s way into Cook E. Jarr shows. 

His fans currently have a fundraiser in progress to raise the needed $20,000 to pay for a much deserved Star on the Las Vegas walk of the stars. It would be tremendously helpful if there is any way you could help me promote this most deserved cause. The link to his gofundme is:  https://www.gofundme.com/2ag753p8   As of today, we have currently raised about half of the money.

And the information about the Walk of Stars is at:  http://lasvegaswalkofstars.com

Here’s another link about Cook E. Jarr and the drive to get his star:

https://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/entertainment-columns/kats/cook-e-jarr-in-line-for-a-star-it-might-happen

I was really happy to see the article you wrote about this great entertainer. He has made a lot of Las Vegas visitors very happy since his first stop in Vegas in 1969. Anything you could do to help us out would be AWESOME!!