This just in: The legal appeal by Columbia Sussex of its New Jersey license denial has been ashcanned by an appellate court. In a 44-page ruling, the court sided with the New Jersey Casino Control Commission, writing -- in part -- that "The findings made by the commission that Tropicana lacked the financial integrity and responsibility, as well as business ability, are amply supported by the record." (The full ruling can be found here.)

We may not have heard the last from the famously "contumacious" William J. Yung III, but it appears that all systems are go for a sale of the Trop ... if only the NJCCC and its bungling conservator, Justice Gary Stein, could ever get their act together.

Las Vegas' Pinball Hall of Fame gets some well-deserved love from the Los Angeles Times. As luck would have it, the Significant Other and I blew a roll of quarters (and then some) at the Pinball HoF last Sunday and -- when it comes to value for your dollar -- this is probably the best deal in Vegas. Not to mention that it's about as much sheer fun as you can find anywhere in town. Even though my hand-eye coordination is too f-ed up to make me a viable pinball player, there's no denying the endorphin rush. (The only game I performed well on was -- wouldn't you know it? -- Stargate.)

One bad boy. That'd be the new star of Mandalay Bay's Shark Reef, its seven-foot-long Komodo Dragon. This massive predator is such a badass that he'll bite you, then stalk you for as much as a week, waiting for his deadly saliva to do its work. Mandalay Bay's resident dragon looks like a cool customer and he fixed me with a hypnotic stare that was uncomfortably reminiscent of James Earl Jones as the shape-shifting Thulsa Doom in Conan the Barbarian.

As much as we admired the great predators (especially the water monitor and the crocodile) our greatest awe was reserved for the gentle majesty of the sea turtles, mystic creatures of great serenity. Amidst all its "wow" factor, Shark Reef does a terrific job of inculcating visitors with eco-friendliness and warnings as to the dangers of overexploiting the oceans. (Although there's an irony in the exhibit that decries the harvesting of sharks for the fins, even as some high roller is probably sitting down to a bowl of shark's fin soup somewhere else in the casino.)

Hats off to the former Mandalay Resort Group for making a home for this noble endeavor, and to MGM Mirage for keeping it going. There aren't many things in Las Vegas that ennoble the spirit but Shark Reef is one of them.