THE
QUEEN OF VERSAILES follows the family as the economic downturn affects them and
construction of the 90,000-square-foot
palatial home in Orlando, Florida, is halted. What made the Queen of Versailes
so interesting was the enchanting Jackie Siegel.
Another mega-house has since made the news –
Pensmore, Steven T. Huff’s
72,000 square feet of living space that includes 13 bedrooms, 14 bathrooms and
enough amenities to entertain a small city. The secrecy around Pensmore – is it
being prepared as a home base for visiting E.T.? - is currently gathering all the
news.
But
Pensmore doesn’t have a Jackie Siegel.
Behind every
great man there is a woman and in this case there is a majestic woman called Jackie Siegel who is the quiet force
behind David Siegel. As the mother
of eight children, who she says are down to earth, she takes an active role in
their daily lives starting early in the morning getting all of them ready for
school. Jackie is a good person with a good heart and along with David works
with over 100 charities to help people.
David and Jackie Siegel
In 2012 a documentary
was made “The Queen of Versailles”,
which won an award for best director at the Sundance Film Festival. It showed
the building of their new home which will be the biggest house in America, even
bigger than the White House. This 90,000 sq. ft. home will have 30 bathrooms,
15 bedrooms, a skating rink, 30 car garage, three pools and a grand ballroom to
hold huge events.
No typical
day is the same for Jackie and she also is curating the décor of their new
house and is planning a fabulous home office for herself. It will certainly be
the mansion’s show-stopper-she plans on installing a shark tank. The sharks
will have the finest care as a house member with its own caretaker provided by
Sea World. Versailles will be a family friendly home, with some of the staff to
help run the house and take care of 10 dogs. Many of these dogs were brought
home by the children from dog shelters to save their lives. Jackie flies back to Las Vegas every other
week with David and has a great observant eye in the developing changes of the
Westgate Resorts. She is planning to
open up a gift shop in the hotel that will feature the Queens Treasures and
everyone can then enjoy the treasures and feel like a Queen.
We met
Jackie at Westgate at the media event for the Elvis Presley Museum. Jackie
arrived promptly with a gentleman from Los Angeles, who flew to Las Vegas to
meet Jackie. He said he was a producer of reality programs.
Jackie
talked with us for an hour. It is her charm and openness that has not become
jaded by her enormous wealth. In fact, there was never a hint of privilege as
she answered our questions about their current home (it’s on an island), their4
planes and their staff.
Victoria was
especially interested in how Jackie ran the household. She said they have five
live-in staff and a rotating staff numbering 30.
Siegel Family
Victoria
forgot to ask if the Versailles House will have a Mr. Carson and, like Downton
Abbey’s Lord Grantham, does Mr. Siegel have a butler named Mr. Barrow?
Jackie
Siegel, once a media innocent, is now taking control over her image, as the
demand for her has increased since the release of THE QUEEN OF VERSAILES. No
longer will a reality-star neophyte, Jackie will soon appear on Celebrity Wife
Swap. She is contractually forbidden to mention who she spent a week with,
except to say David was happy and so was she! We couldn’t get her to give even
the first initial of her stand-in husband. Up next Jackie-who is young,
beautiful and is not someone easily overlooked, will be judging a Drag Queen
Contest.
Nikki Artale Jackie Siegel
We forgot to
ask what David planned for his office.
Now ensconced as the Chatelaine of Westgate, Jackie flies to
Las Vegas every other week with David and has a great observant eye in
developing changes to the newest jewel in the Westgate portfolio. Jackie is
planning to open up a special boutique shop in the Westgate that will feature a
Queen’s treasures.
Photojournalist
Nikki Artale and movie critic Victoria Alexander come together to interview the
extraordinary people of Las Vegas. They are longtime friends and colleagues as
well as writers for the Las Vegas Informer. Being extraordinary themselves,
they have a mutual interest in the eclectic array of people who call Las Vegas
their home.
Nikki first
called Las Vegas her home in 1995, arriving from New Jersey as a successful
real estate broker. No stranger to the silver screen, on both ends of the
camera, she found Las Vegas and its infamous nightlife and entertainment scene
the perfect outlet for her extroverted personality. Nikki captures her love of
Las Vegas and its performers in her popular column, Vegas Stars.
Victoria has
been reviewing films since 1995. She is a member of both the Broadcast Film
Critics Association and The Las Vegas Film Critics Society. When not at the
movies, Victoria and her husband John travel to exotic locations. She has been
to over 60 countries (and counting.) Having lived in both Santa Fe and New
York, she comes to Las Vegas with an adventurer’s heart and a love for the
extraordinary.
There is
nothing strange and unusual that the team of Artale & Alexander are not
interested in exploring. If your career is unusual and you would like to meet
Nikki and Victoria, please send an email to Nikki Artale at nikkiartale@gmail.com and Victoria Alexander at kwanitaka@aol.com
Chuck
Walker, a Photoshop R artist, re-imaged Nikki and Victoria’s photos as unique
avatars. Chuck, who lives in Port Washington, New York, is accepting
commissions. The cost of a one-of-a-kind stylized avatar is $250. Payment is
accepted through PayPal. Contact Chuck Walker at ufoagent@aol.com
