American Airlines is providing a special "yellow ribbon" charter plane for the wounded warriors to Las Vegas, where The Venetian Hotel will provide three nights' hotel stay for the group. While in the "Entertainment Capital of the World," the veterans will be treated to a special Blue Man Group "Tribute to the Troops" performance on November 12, 2009 at 7 p.m. Tickets sold to this performance will benefit ThanksUSA, a charitable effort to mobilize Americans of all ages to "thank" our active-duty troops by providing college scholarships to their spouses and dependents.

"We're honored to be a part of the Tribute to the Troops weekend and are grateful that the Blue Man Group has chosen ThanksUSA as the benefactor of their special Veteran's Day show," said Bob Okun, chairman and CEO of ThanksUSA. "The proceeds from this show will go a long way to support our military family scholarship program this year."

Throughout the weekend, the veterans will attend educational seminars on financial management, job searching and other useful topics. They'll also be treated to a show by Mr. Las Vegas himself, Wayne Newton, at the Tropicana Hotel, be guests of the Terry Fater Show, tour the Las Vegas strip by helicopter, visit the Hoover Dam and travel to Red Rock Canyon to see a jump by retired First Class Sergeant Dana Bowman. Dana was a Special Forces Soldier and member of the U.S. Army's elite parachute team when a parachuting accident took both his legs.

Major corporate underwriters of the Tribute to the Troops weekend include Bank of America and Operation Heroes.

Public service announcements featuring award-winning actor Gary Sinise have been airing on broadcast television to encourage the public to buy tickets to the special "Tribute to the Troops" show. Tickets to this performance can be purchased by calling the Blue Man Group box office at (702) 414-9001 and mentioning code ThanksUSA.

About Blue Man Group Las Vegas

Blue Man Group performs nightly at its custom-built theatre at The Venetian Las Vegas. Their critically acclaimed show has been called "visually stunning," "wildly inventive" and "hysterically funny." Although it is almost impossible to describe, people of all ages agree that Blue Man Group's show at The Venetian Las Vegas is an intensely exciting and wildly outrageous experience that leaves the entire audience in a blissful, euphoric state. Join the celebration and see the show that USA Today calls "an absolutely ecstatic experience" and Time Magazine calls "a sensation." Call 1.800.blueman or visit blueman.com/vegas for ticket and show information. For tickets to the Veteran's benefit show on November 12, mention "ThanksUSA." Keep up with the latest Blue Man Group Las Vegas news, events and photos via Facebook.

About ThanksUSA

Founded in the fall of 2005, ThanksUSA, a non-partisan 501(c)(3) organization, is an effort to thank the men and women of our armed forces and their families for their service to the country with the gift of education. The organization provides need-based, post-secondary education opportunities to the children and spouses of active-duty status military personnel through need-based scholarships. For more information visit www.ThanksUSA.org.

About The Venetian Hotel-Casino

The Venetian Resort-Hotel-Casino, the largest property in the country to receive AAA's Five Diamond Award and Mobil Four-Star, is one of the world's most luxurious resort and convention destinations. Re-creating Venice's legendary landmarks, the resort offers unmatched service and quality for leisure and corporate guests. Located in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip, The Venetian features The Grand Canal Shoppes, an indoor streetscape complete with gondolas and singing gondoliers, the Canyon Ranch SpaClub, world-class gaming, exquisite restaurants and a wide variety of entertainment such as Phantom-The Las Vegas Spectacular, Blue Man Group, David Spade and Wayne Brady on its premises, as well as extensive convention and corporate services. For additional information, visit www.venetian.com.

About American Airlines

American Airlines, American Eagle and AmericanConnection(R) serve 250 cities in 40 countries with, on average, more than 3,400 daily flights. American Airlines is a founding member of the oneworld(R) Alliance, which brings together some of the best and biggest names in the airline business. Together, its members serve nearly 700 destinations in more than 130 countries and territories.

Source: ThanksUSA