Obama-Bruce Not To Be

DENVER -- OK, the Sleuth did her best to promote a knock-out Bruce Springsteen show at Invesco Field at Mile High, reporting the widespread speculation here that the Boss would make a surprise appearance on stage Thursday for Barack Obama's acceptance speech.

Following up on our colleague Josh Freedom du Lac's reporting that the rumor was untrue, the Sleuth contacted a Democratic National Convention source who confirmed, "No, it's not happening."

But DNC sources spread a different story elsewhere. A source close to Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter, who has a nice suite inside the Pepsi Center overlooking the convention proceedings, told the Sleuth earlier this week that the governor's staff was told by Democratic convention officials Springsteen would, indeed, be performing.

Maybe that's why the Las Vegas Review Journal reported the Springsteen appearance as fact rather than speculation.

Even after du Lac quoted a source close to The Boss saying he is "definitely not performing," some die-hard Bruce fans swarming the Pepsi Center kept hope alive that Springsteen would still magically appear on stage following Obama's speech. (Mainly, because of news reports and the fact that Springsteen has a five-day lull in his concert schedule between Aug. 24 and Aug. 30.)

But our DNC source says, "No, definitely not."

Which makes sense. Why would Obama want to be overshadowed by a real rock star on his big night?