In an utterly (not) shocking development, the interminably protracted sale of Trump Marina has given up the ghost. This deal was on life support for months, so today's bulletin merely ratifies the inevitable. The would-be reinvention of the Marina as "Margaritaville" has exhausted its last shaker of salt.

While it goes against the grain to give Donald Trump the benefit of the doubt, buyer Richard Fields' accusation of "fraudulent activity" sounds like a big stretch. The supposedly heinous deed was Trump Entertainment Resorts' movement of players from the Marina to Trump Taj Mahal and Trump Plaza.

Big whoop. Not only was this the obvious explanation for Trump Marina's plunge to the bottom of the Atlantic City food chain, it's what casino companies do. You don't sell a casino and leave your hard-earned customer base in place for the next guy's benefit. (Readers with long memories will recall that a deal by Park Place Entertainment to sell the Las Vegas Hilton to Silverton owner Ed Roski fell apart over the exact same issue.)

Had Trump CEO Mark Juliano not moved prime players to his two remaining properties, he'd have been derelict in his duty to the shareholders. Unfortunately, now he may have to build that customer base back up. I don't envy him the task.

It also strikes an odd note that Fields' lawyer accuses Trump of fraud and then Fields' spokesman has the brass to say Coastal Marina still might deign to buy the Marina -- at an additional discount. Juliano had already knocked 15% off the sticker price. Perhaps Fields is feeling emboldened by Carl Icahn's impending $200 million acquisition of the Tropicana Atlantic City and is attempting brinksmanship. Fields is making some big noises about shopping around Atlantic City for a different casino, describing the town as "the perfect market for a Margaritaville project."

Good luck with that, unless he's willing to settle for one of Colony C(r)apital's two near-death properties. Harrah's Entertainment is carrying at least one casino too many on the Boardwalk but there's no way in hell that CEO Gary Loveman parts with Bally's or the Showboat for a measly $270 million or so. Harrah's current reporting method really muddies the waters but the cash-flow numbers still imply an asking price well in excess of what Fields can afford.

Raymond Kot, 1952-2009

The accused killer of Trump Taj shift manager Raymond Kot is one messed-up motherfucker, and that's as gently as I can describe Mark Magee, who appears to have stalked and killed Kot in very cold blood indeed. Taj game-protection veteran Dr. David G. Schwartz offers some expert-witness testimony, if you will. Kot's only crime was to achieve the American Dream ... until his assassin decreed otherwise.

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