David Mckee's Stiffs & Georges - Entertainment

Adieu F-bleau, hello Hollywood?

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:37:00 -0700

Look what just fell into the S&G mailbag:

Beginning January 1, 2010 Penn National Gaming will partner with RPM Advertising to develop and execute a brand identity for Hollywood Casinos. The full service assignment will incorporate research, brand development, media planning/buying, creative execution, production services and direct marketing. Penn National, one of the top five gaming companies in the world, owns and operates seven Hollywood Casinos across the country including facilities in Aurora, IL; Bangor, ME; Baton Rouge, LA; Grantville, PA; Lawrenceburg, IN; Bay St. Louis MS; and Tunica, MS.

Forgive me if I have a coughing spasm after reading Penn National describe itself as "one of the top five gaming companies in the world." I suppose it would depend on your definition of "top" (number of facilities and/or employees, market cap, etc.) but in an industry that contains MGM Mirage, Harrah's Entertainment, Wynn Resorts, Las Vegas Sands, Boyd Gaming, Station Casinos and even woebegone Trump Entertainment Resorts, the best Penn could hope for in terms of name recognition would be eighth place. (Enter RPM, stage right.)

As for the marketing alliance, given the timing of the belated decision to try and unify the brand, it looks like Penn is going to attempt a Harrah's in reverse: acquire a Strip property (Fontainebleau) and then create a company-wide brand-loyalty program to incentivize customers to visit its shiny new megaresort.

Sounds a bit cart-before-horse to me but, after today's bulletin, it's no stretch of the imagination to suggest that F-bleau could soon become Hollywood Las Vegas or some close variant thereof. At least in terms of brand equity, it would represent a step or two up from F'bleau, whose name recognition factor is now entirely negative.

Green shoot? Weekday room rates for early December at Vdara have nudged upward to $145/night (from $129) according to J.P. Morgan analysts.

What's wrong with this picture? The media night for Wayne Newton's new Tropicana show, Once Before I Go (could we have that in writing?) looks more like a Dancing with the Stars tour stop. In addition to former contestants Sabrina Bryan and Jennie Garth, four DWTS regulars -- including Cheryl Burke and Kym "Tina Sparkle" Johnson -- will be on hand.

Except for Ms. Johnson, who's presumably in town to rehearse current partner Donny Osmond, the quartet is available because they've all been eliminated. (For instance, Alec Mazo helped Olympic swimmer Natalie Coughlin dance her way to a premature exit.)

Trouble is, they'll be in the audience and the Wayner will be onstage. Wouldn't you prefer the reverse proposition? And since Newton is strictly a short-term proposition for the Trop (six months and out), would it be too much to hope for a Vegas offshoot of DWTS as his successor?

From the mailbag #9

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:55:00 -0700

One reader asks, regarding senatorial aspirant Sue Lowden's esteemed Pioneer Hotel & Gambling Hall:

I'm confused (as usual, but...) - Isn't the Pioneer NOT a gambling hall now, its shell hosting an ABC convenience store & various other small shops?
I don't remember if I ever patronized the place when it was a casino, but its stores are in a good location for the Downtown tourist crowd; the ABC Store is especially popular with our Hawaiian friends. That's good for sales taxes, right?

As for the Vegas Club, please don't vaporize it yet: We're going to stay there at the end of the month, mainly because it's free for me - and a separate free room for a friend of mine - allowing him to attend the Speedway races for that much less money.

You're thinking of the Pioneer on Fremont Street, while Ms. Lowden's establishment is down in Laughlin. And it very much has gambling. As for dematerialization, S&G did not nominate the Vegas Club for that dubious honor but suggested that, as long as Sen. Harry Reid's people are threatening to "vaporize" Ms. Lowden that they make themselves useful and turn their phasers on her grind joint, which is regarded as a bottom-feeder even by Laughlin standards.

The Vegas Club is very much on people's minds, as another reader asks:

How is it possible that TV series VEGA$ starring Robert Urich came out on DVD on October 20 and I saw nothing in the Las Vegas media celebrating the occasion. I saw an ad in Newsweek. They couldn't get something with Wayne F. Newton at the Tropicana or Phyllis Davis and Judy Landers in front of the Plaza or the Las Vegas Club? Sad, sad, sad.

Ah, a Phyllis Davis shout-out. You're speaking our language. And, yes, that VEGA$ release really snuck by, didn't it? In a classic case of the blind following the blind, local TV stations take their cues from the newspapers. The various Greenspun-owned organs have been slashing staff at a fearsome rate, so it's understandable that they'd miss it.

As for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, suffice it to say that staffers there, up to and including head cheese Thomas Mitchell, had to be told that the Moulin Rouge was burning down because -- even though it was happening across the street -- they work in a penetentiary-like building with no windows to the outside world (architecture as institutional metaphor).

So it's not the least bit surprising that our insular and rapidly declining local media would totally blow this one. As for Mayor Oscar Goodman, he had a previous commitment in London, but still ... no proclamation? No declaration that Oct. 2009 was hereby "VEGA$ Day"? Another missed opportunity for some free ink.

Eight Vegas shows reviewed

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 18:10:00 -0700

As promised, Mike Shackleford's WizardOfVegas.com site has launched. It took a while to get the bugs worked out, hence my review of Scarlett & her Seductive Ladies of Magic didn't appear until after the show had closed. However, to the best of my knowledge, you can not only read about but still see all of the following ...

• Amazed

• Anthony Cools

• Gordie Brown

• Marriage Can Be Murder

• Matsuri

• Sin City Bad Girls

• V - The Ultimate Variety Show

Sample line: "Yes, Marriage can be murder ... and so is the food." Enjoy!

Great O'Day in the morning

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 14:15:00 -0700

Peepshow star/trainwreck-in-progress Aubrey O'Day likes to speak her mind, for whatever it's worth. Evidently the recklessly candid utterances of Ms. O'Day were worth not one, not two but, yes, three dispatches by Richard Abowitz.

The fascination is understandable, given an interview subject who readily owns up to being unhappy and describes her demi-celebrity as "fame-ish-ness." O'Day's costar, Holly Madison may have been dubbed "Queen of Vegas" but when Las Vegas Weekly tried to wrest similar prose mileage out of her, the result was better than Sominex. Strangely, I find myself rooting for the id-on-the-loose that is O'Day to go the distance here in Vegas.

A Bronx Tale. Kudos to Sheldon Adelson for rolling the dice on Chazz Palminteri's virtuosic one-man show, whose run has been extended for another week. Yours truly finds it a rather warm-and-cuddly depiction of Mob life but both Mike Weatherford and Joe Brown express nearly unmitigated enthusiasm. Whichever way you slice it, it's still three thumbs up for Palminteri.

Wynn still happy. If the Chinese government's aim in applying further curbs to Macao is to "tamp ... down" the Cotai Strip™, where Sheldon Adelson™ aims to build "Asia's Las Vegas™" no wonder Steve Wynn is a happy camper. Anything that handcuffs main rivals Las Vegas Sands and Stanley Ho is good news at Wynn HQ, especially with Encore Macau coming on line soon. How boring life would become if Wynn and Adelson ever suspended their running verbal gunfight.

Signs of the Times

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 14:08:00 -0700

In less than an hour, Steve Wynn is going to make an extra-special, triple-secret, top-hush "entertainment announcement" via a Wynn Resorts Web-cast. Don't tell anyone but ... he's going to reveal that Garth Brooks will be playing Encore.

Which we know partly because it's been the worst-kept secret on the Strip and even more so because it was announced today in Nashville at 7 a.m. Vegas time. But we're all s'posed to pretend that we didn't hear anything and it's all going to be a big-ass surprise and whatnot. Yeah, that's the ticket.

This underscores how ill-tuned the casino industry is to the news business -- and furthermore, how it still hasn't made the adjustment to the global village of online media. People like Wynn (or Jenn Michaels over at MGM Mirage) continue to operate as though the daily newspaper were the only game in town and people's primary source of information.

Sorry, but what happens in Nashville no longer stays in Nashville until the next news cycle. It makes it to Vegas in the blink of a Tweet.

Vintage Vegas/Matt Goss. Both are reviewed by Richard Abowitz, who makes a number of thoughtful observations re lounge acts in general. He's a bit lenient on both Zowie Bowie and the Gossmeister, IMO. Vintage Vegas is so bad you'll want to see it so you can talk about it at parties. Goss is just bad and in a very uninteresting way. If a yawn could wear a white suit, it'd be Matt Goss.

Night of the living dead

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 13:06:00 -0700

Will the last person leaving the Riviera please take down the Charo in Concert, Abra-ca-Sexy! and Tom Stevens posters? Everything about last night's visit to the casino suggested a business that's died but doesn't realize it. Not that it helps to be literally in the shadow of the rotting whale carcass that is Fontainebleau. Between it, Echelon and the apparently defunct Plaza project, that neighborhood is one giant buzz-kill.

Still, even on a Wednesday night one does not expect to see such a thinly populated casino floor. There were more players around the electronic table games than the real ones. In the parking-garage elevator, one of the braille "3" panels was missing from the keypad. Management's solution? Scrawl "3" in red ink where the braille pad should be. (ADA non-compliance much?) If the Riviera is blowing off its interest payments in order to use the money on operating costs, it's not going very far, from the looks of things.

The moribund feeling extended to the upstairs showroom, where Charo has given way to Andrew Dice Clay (or, as the Riv bills him, "Andrew DICE Clay"). Even with a 90-minute cocktail party as an inducement, Clay rolled snake eyes in terms of media turnout. It was a small crowd [sic] and even ~~some~~ many of the local bloggers blew it off, so scant was the event's cachet.

Maybe they were at the Tropicana, checking out Wayne Newton, whose new show ...

Features Rich Natole. This confirms well-sourced reports LVA had been receiving that the impressionist would land a new gig at the Trop and it was merely a question of when. Natole, who was subletting a time slot from Anthony Cools, got caught in the crossfire between Cools and Trop CEO Alex Yemenidjian. When Cools, Bobby Slayton and the Penny Lane show were sent packing, Natole found himself briefly at loose ends, too. The Natoles are nice people, so I'm glad this Vegas saga has a happy ending. On a sadder note ...

Lanni ailing. Former MGM Mirage CEO J. Terrence Lanni has an undisclosed form of cancer. The news comes almost a year to the month since he abruptly resigned from the gaming giant. At the time, Lanni denied that health problems were involved but he also said it had nothing to do with a resumé-inflation scandal that threatened to bring him under investigation in New Jersey, Illinois and Nevada. (Another possible motive for Lanni's abrupt departure: MGM stock had just sunk below $10/share.)

S&G sends wishes for a speedy and full recovery to Lanni, and to his family. I've lost a couple of friends to cancer, so I can imagine the ordeal the Lannis are experiencing. And, if it's not inappropriate, a tip of the Panama hat to low-budget broadsheet Gaming Today, which beat all major news outlets to this sad story.

Reality bites. At least if you're trying to maintain your price point at Aria. The megaresort has cut rates to $159 -- and thrown in a $75 amenity credit -- to entice two-night stays, through April 1. Wouldn't it be ironic if, instead of cannibalizing Bellagio, as feared, Aria wound up gravitating toward the mid-market crowd?

Please spare a thought for the Queen of Comps, the beloved Jean Scott, who's in her sixth week of convalescence from the flu. First, a hepatitis scare, now this. Let's hope LVA's most popular blogger catches a break -- and soon.

Signs of the Times

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 14:50:00 -0700

Snapping away last night at the 10th anniversary performance of Fantasy, which introduced new cast member Angelica Bridges: a slew of credentialed photographers, wiedling professional-grade equipment ... and Robin Leach, taking pictures with his cell-phone camera. That's right: a fucking Cell.Phone.Camera.

To this the profession of photojournalism has come? Pathetic.

Quote of the Day

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 14:48:00 -0700

"I'm not Carrot Top, bitch!" -- Wayne Brady, to an audience member who went "commando," accidentally exposing his family jewels.

Why does Steve Wynn hate America?

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 14:31:00 -0700

Or maybe the question should be, What was Steve Wynn smoking before he told CNBC "Money Honey" Maria Bartiromo that Wynn Macau was making more than all other 30 Macao casinos combined? Perhaps he meant his joint is the single-highest-grossing casino in the Chinese protectorate, but his phraseology is misleading:

Wynn's remarks on the importance of staffing and customer service are, as usual, on point. However, he starts sounding like a puppet of Peking ("One thing about the Chinese government, I think they get it right."), praising the steadiness and thoughtfulness of its policies. Here's an example of Peking's steady, thoughtful policymaking in action:

Wynn's comments that infrastructural improvements don't help at tourism-dependent (casino) industry make him sound naive -- doubly so if aforesaid projects put disposable income into consumers' pockets. Still and all, Wynn is far more reasonable on CNBC -- and immeasurably less obnoxious -- than during his obstreperous Fox News Sunday rants.

Although Wynn clearly fancies himself the new political pundit on the block, he's got but one string to his bow: bellowing "Tax policy" over and over. Which translates as "Tax cuts (for me)!" Yup, if Big Guvmint would just stop collecting taxes from Big Bidness, everything would be hunky-dory, economically speaking. We'd have new jobs coming out the ass.

Here's the problem with that line of argument: We're fresh off eight straight years of tax cuts, tax holidays and corporate loopholes big enough to encompass every square foot of CityCenter. How did that work out for us?

More to the point, given a tax-averse administration and Congress, how did Wynn's casino colleagues handle their newfound largesse? Did they invest it responsibly? Hell to the no! That "bundling of the Strip" which Wynn has decried is the poisoned fruit of companies that were awash in capital and easy credit, who then used it to try and eradicate the competition. (Similar phenomena occurred in the regional casino markets and in the slot industry.)

Having cannibalized their main rivals, casino companies then began to devour themselves, in the form of insupportable debt levels and insane LBOs. And if Wynn really believes that government spending has never improved anyone's lot in life (he must have forgotten the New Deal, for starters), then how many standards of living are raised by merger-and-acquisition orgies? For the average worker, it means jobs are "consolidated" out of existence. Heck, not even executives are immune. Just ask some of the Mandalay Resort Group or Park Place Entertainment higher-ups who are now enjoying involuntary retirement.

Should the current administration hand out the kind of tax vacation Wynn is demanding, would the casino industry A) buy new and shiny objects, B) retire debt or C) create jobs? B & C would probably finish a distant second and third to A.

Just look at Harrah's Entertainment: It can't repay its creditors dollar for dollar but thinks nothing of snapping up 16% of Planet Hollywood. If there's degenerate gambling going on in the casinos, the worst of it can be found in the executive suites. If these guys ever took to playing Russian roulette, they'd probably leave at least five bullets in the revolver.

Wynn is probably feeling his oats, given the bullish, odds-defying early performance of his Hong Kong IPO. The real story may be that gains realized in the Hang Seng will be used to prop up Wynn's Las Vegas operations rather than to expand in Macao.

This just in: The two-week run of A Bronx Tale at the Venetian has been extended to a third weekend. A spoken-word play in a Strip theater seemed like a dicey prospect so this is very good news indeed.

Case Bets: Reid, Goodman, Madison (Holly) & a kegger

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:06:00 -0700

As they say on Dancing with the Stars, in no particular order ...

Eight against Harry: For a speedy primer on the myriad challengers to Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), you can't go wrong with Jon Ralston's droll and speedy primer. It even gets props from John Chachas (R-Central Park West), who recently tossed his homburg into the ring. At least one among the posse Ralston calls "Snow White [Archon Corp. Treasurer Sue Lowden] and the Seven Dwarfs" has a sense of humor.

Reason vs. rage: While Steve Wynn was ranting on the boob tube this weekend, Thomas Krugman's column offers an indirect rebuttal to Wynn's Johnny One-Note ("Tax policy!") table-pounding.

Run, Oscar, run! If these poll numbers don't nudge the World's Happiest Mayor into the 2010 gubernatorial race, perhaps nothing will. Oscar Goodman not only has the highest favorables among Nevada politicians included in the survey, he wins one theoretical electoral matchup and ties for first in the other.

Gov. Jim Gibbons' political future looks bleak (read: borderline nonexistent) and there's not much comfort for Hapless Harry, either. Just think how much worse it would be if Reid had an opponent possessing genuine gravitas. Besides, given the rising tide of discontent among Nevada's progressives, there's a good chance that much of Hapless Harry's old base will just stay home on Election Day.

In Oscar's domain, an architect suggests ways to revitalize Downtown by decreasing energy use, increasing sustainability and generally targeting long-term cost savings. The proposal makes a lot of sense -- a virtual guarantee it will be ignored.

Holly Madison tapped an Oktoberfest keg at Siegfried & Roy hangout Hofbrauhaus last Friday. [Your punchline here.]

"Serpent Head" Jr.: If CNN ever has to let James Carville go on vacation, don't worry ...

... SNL's Bill Hader can fill in and nobody will notice a difference.

More Mariah @ The Palms

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:45:00 -0700

Since the last S&G upload of Mariah Carey performance footage from The Palms drew an above-average number of page views, here's a sequel. Carey presides with great charm over an onstage marriage proposal during last Saturday's show. There's also a nice bit of va-va-voom 92 seconds into the clip.

East Coast antics

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 13:55:00 -0700

Wrong again. There I was, thinking the proposed $10 million upfront fee for table games in Pennsylvania was a done deal when the GOP-controlled state Senate upped it to $15 million (and if you don't pay by June 1, it goes to $20 million). Chalk that up as a "loss" for casino owners.

The latter did, more or less, get what they wanted on taxes, where they'll pay an aggregate state/local rate of 14%. Despite publicly requesting a 34% tax rate, Dems in the lower house are muttering that one in the "high teens" might be acceptable. The question is: In return for what?

Casinos also banked a "win" when the state Senate ashcanned an amendment that would have tripled the slot base at "resort" casinos. Since this amounted to preferential treatment for a tiny percentage of the Keystone State casino industry, it's good to see it get the back of Lege's hand.

Power play in New York. In the competition for the racino contract at Aqueduct Race Track, those in the hunt include MGM Mirage, Penn National Gaming, Harrah's Entertainment and Seminole Tribe-owned Hard Rock Entertainment, along with numerous and sundry joint-venture partners.

But none of the seems to have the juice of Larry J. Woolf's Navegante Group. After the New York Lottery Division had deemed Aqueduct Entertainment Group (in which Navegante is a partner) unqualified, Gov. David Patterson's underlings put the word out that the five-member consortium is indeed qualified. Somebody in Aqueduct Entertainment's got pull, that's for sure.

A win for Adelson. While no casino company was remotely near the top of Newsweek's ranking of the 500 greenest companies, Las Vegas Sands can claim a victory of sorts. Sheldon Adelson's firm clocks in at #128, well ahead of MGM Mirage (#164) and Wynn Resorts (#176). Given the extent to which MGM has publicized its green-friendly initiatives, particularly with regard to CityCenter, finishing so far behind LV Sands is tantamount to a smackdown by proxy.

Several years after the publication of Beneath the Neon (now available in e-book format) publications are still shocked -- shocked! -- to learn of Las Vegas' large (and growing) subterranean community. Alas, we no longer have the Hooverville that had sprouted about a half-block north of LVA HQ. Those hobos were a tidy bunch and made our street seem halfway populated.

Marie Osmond pix. I'm just sayin'.

Oh me of little faith

Sat, 10 Oct 2009 16:40:00 -0700

Pardon a smallish digression from the world of games to something truly important ... baseball. With painful memories of the '04 and '05 postseason meltdowns acid-etched into my mind, I've not been able to summon the intestinal fortitude to watch either of the first two Red Sox/Angels games. (And postseason Angels games really take a toll on one's stomach.)

Now, with the Halos up 2-0, I'm wondering if it's safe to peek between my fingers as the series repairs to Fenway Park. My gut-twisting gut-level feeling is that this series goes the full five games, which is my recipe for pure torture. But ... Angels pitchers seemed to have conquered their fear of BoSox hitters and shut them down.

Besides, I've been wrong before about this team -- 1,000% wrong about Bobby Abreu, who's been a tremendous influence for the better. His superb plate discipline has been worlds away from the bizarre flailing of Vladimir Guerrero (which you can only get away with if you're Vlad and can lift a far-outside pitch over the fence in straightaway center). Patient at-bats were the key to the Angels' '02 World Series run, which made up for less-than-dominant starting pitching. If there's an Angels/Yankees ALCS, it'll be a contest to see who can take more pitches: a real tortoise-and-hare match.

At least the Angels and BoSox share a common adversary: the umpires. "Country" Joe West and C.B. Bucknor are showing yet again why they are two of the worst in MLB ... although seemingly every American League playoff game this year (including the Metrodome miniseries that finished the Detroit Tigers) has been plagued by truly craptacular umpiring and amazingly poor calls. If this were the NFL, these clowns would be relegated to working late-season Rams/Raiders games or some purgatorial equivalent.

Speaking of the Yanks, I can't hold out much hope for my old home team, the Minnesota Twins. All the Homer Hankies in the world aren't going to do it for a pitching staff that can't hold a lead against the Bronx Bombers, and it pains me to type that.

Thanks for your indulgence. We now return to our irregularly scheduled blogging. As soon as I find my Rally Monkeys, that is.

P.S.: It's a damnable shame that our server won't load previously unused images into the blogs. 'Cuz I've got a great Philly Phanatic photo that would be perfect should they make it to the Fall Classic.

Mariah Carey @ The Palms

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 13:31:00 -0700

'Cause it's brand-spanking new and somebody just sent it to S&G. Enjoy.

Case Bets: California crisis, M cutbacks, "Guiding Light" in LV, etc.

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 11:50:00 -0700

Ist California kaput? That's the question posed by the The Observer and it makes for troubling reading. If Gov. Jim Gibbons (R-NV) is right that tourism from California is the carotid artery of Nevada's economy, then the Silver State is -- to put it politely -- screwed. A good thing the Lege didn't follow Midnight Jim's advice and shut down Nevada's outreach efforts in China.

Speaking of which ... Amidst a flurry of economic developments and positive indicators in Macao, the casinos of Stanley Ho are backing off the expensive VIP trade and going mass-market. (Translation: "We're coming after you, Sheldon Adelson.") Thanks to reader mike_ch for the link.

Colossal buMMer. Breakfast has just been eliminated from the offerings at the M Resort buffet. Unless one lives nearby (a relatively small clientele), M is a heckuva long detour to make for breakfast, so this economy move is understandable ... but depressing all the same. No casino buffet gets higher marks from LVA readers.

That's a bit weird. Stay with me here, folks. CBS cancels Guiding Light, replacing it with Let's Make a Deal, which is shot at the Tropicana Las Vegas. So what should be coming to Vegas in December (at The Rio) but a Guiding Light farewell tour -- yes, Reva, Josh and the whole kit 'n kaboodle. How much you wanna bet they won't be taking in a LMaD taping at the Trop? The only way to make this scenario more Banquo's Ghost-ly would be for the soap convention to be held at the Trop, too.

P.S.: Better get your tickets now before the 'Otalia' fans scarf them all up.

Company. Performances resume at UNLV tonight and it's a must-see. Mind you, the Review-Journal praises the Stephen Sondheim revival with faint damns, while the Sun's review reverses that formula. But I'd pay to see it again, which I don't say about many shows in this town.

Quote of the Day

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 11:35:00 -0700

"He doesn't belong here." -- unidentified woman at last night's premiere of A Bronx Tale, in reference to Robin Leach.

Case Bets: Corzine, Penn vs. MTR, Pinnacle, Manilow & strippers

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 15:06:00 -0700

Forbidden by New Jersey law from directly contributing to political campaigns, casino companies are making an end run through Virginia. Harrah's Entertainment, Boyd Gaming and IGT are among those funneling campaign cash into a reverse version on the Underground Railroad. No wonder Gov. Jon Corzine (D) is able to carpet-bomb his opponents with advertising, if he so chooses.

Hey, big spender. The New Jersey gubernatorial race may be chump change compared to the cash being expended in the battle over Issue 3, which would permit four Vegas-style casinos in the Buckeye State. This is boiling down to a proxy fight between Penn National Gaming (pro) and racino specialist MTR Gaming (con). You'll recall that the Ohio Supreme Court nixed Gov. Ted Strickland's plan to unilaterally add slots to the state's horse tracks, which might have given MTR a level playing field with Penn.

While I can understand why Penn or Harrah's would be willing to pay 23% in taxes in Iowa or 27% in Kansas, it's mind-boggling that Harrah's would be chomping at the bit in Rhode Island, where the rate is 73%. Oy vey!

A green shoot. The Baton Rouge Business Journal reports that Pinnacle Entertainment is inking contracts to begin driving piles for its Lake Charles project. Called "Sugarcane Bay" and budgeted at $407 million, this is the first positive movement we've seen out of Pinnacle in a while (unless you count its hijinks with the President license up in Missouri). Good on them.

Manilow on the move. The Las Vegas Hilton has confirmed what all suspected: Barry Manilow's contract expires Dec. 30 and will not be renewed. As we reported in Question of the Day, it's nearly a done deal that he will now set up shop at Paris-Las Vegas, whose main showroom has gone long unused.

Good luck trying to get the Vegas constabulary interested if your car is stolen or your home burglarized. They're too busy going undercover to get lap dances. As Richard Abowitz notes, rampant prostitution on the Strip goes unchecked in the meantime. It's an open secret around here, although many of the "working girls" look downright scary, so you have to wonder how they turn tricks, especially in this economy.

Macao's blockbuster month

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:23:00 -0700

A flurry of good news to end the week, starting in Macao:

September, the first month affected by a relaxation of severe visa restrictions imposed on the mainland, saw a 53% jump in Macanese gambling revenues. In terms of market share, Stanley Ho opened a big lead on Sheldon Adelson, 30% to 20%, with Melco Crown Entertainment close behind with 16%. The remainder of the market was divvied between Wynn Resorts (14%), MGM Mirage (10%) and Galaxy Entertainment (8%).

Is Melco's City of Dreams (above) eating into nearby Venetian Macao's business? On the surface, it certainly looks plausible. Given the immensity of the facilities he's building on the Cotai Strip™, Adelson ought to be getting more bang for his pataca.

Vegas hearts gays. Earlier today, I was asked to reflect on my nearly 11 years in Las Vegas. It's been full of surprising twists of fate -- who ever thought Steve Wynn would be forced out of the Mirage brand he'd created, just for starters?

But I sure as heck never imagined I'd open my e-mail box at work and find the following casino promotions, all keyed to National Coming Out Day (Oct. 3):

"Two Queens Beat a Straight" (New York-New York)

... or the slightly more innocuous ...

"COME OUT and Celebrate at Luxor"

(Luxor was smart and didn't offer Criss F. Angel tickets as part of the, uh, package)

In the Vegas of even a few years ago, "Boys' Night Out Package at Excalibur" would have had more of a frat-party connotation. MGM Grand plays it safe with a "His or Her Getaway" which sounds like a generic singles-oriented deal. Even so, we're actually seeing progress from the days when Vegas marketed itself as a synonym for a very debauched and jaundiced vision of male heterosexuality.

There's nothing like a depression to make this a party town of equal-opportunity decadence. After all, LGBT dollars spend just as fast as straight ones.

$545 a night. That's what Mandarin Oriental is asking. If you read the fine print, you'll note that (through March 31), if you buy a room night at that rate, you'll get a comped night, too. Which makes the effective rate $272 and change. By current standards, that's still steep ... but maybe staying in a 392-room hotel instead of a 4,000-room behemoth is an intangible added value. What do you think?

Scarlett saved?!? & other Case Bets

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 16:28:00 -0700

Splendid news, lads (and lasses). Scarlett, Princess of Magic may return to the Riviera in nine months or a year ... that is to say, whenever the economy eventually rebounds. This comes straight from Riv management.

Of course, there's a good chance the Riv itself won't be around in nine months or so. It's miracle it's stayed out of Chapter 11 as long as it has. Then again, President William Westerman has an enviable track record when it comes to beating the odds. People were writing him off 11 years ago and he's still here.

Ah, the good old days. Remember when the Gold Spike was hands-down the scariest casino in Las Vegas? The Siegel Group has done a splendid job of spiffing the place up but a reminder of the Spike's dodgy not-so-distant past came in the form of a guilty verdict in a Nov. 17, 2008 shooting. According to the Pulitzer Prize-winning Las Vegas Sun, the attempted murder was a "grizzly homicide." Does that mean the assailant was firearm-proficient bear?

Now that autumn is here, get out and enjoy Lake Mead while you still can.

Investors may be tiring of endless debt swaps and postponements. A proposed 64-cents-on-the-dollar (at 10% interest) issuance of MGM Mirage debt laid an egg. When it took out $12 billion-plus, due next June, MGM must have been either high as a kite on CityCenter cash-flow projections when it agreed to that deadline or assumed that, when push came to shove, it'd just rejigger its debt load anyway.

A wise colleague of mine once said in re Donald Trump, "All he ever does is restructure his debt because that's all he can do!" That has now become the modus operandi of the casino industry at large -- except for Mr. Cash-and-Carry, Phil Ruffin. So I guess Trump can legitimately claim to have been ahead of his time.

Penn hearts F'bleau. Well, sorta. Penn National Gaming has acknowledged that it's been sniffing around bankrupt Fontainebleau but cites several disincentives to a deal. Penn's CFO even called F'bleau worthless (and few in town would give him an argument at this point). Penn's publicly stated criteria for a Las Vegas acquisition have included that it be affordable and unencumbered. F'bleau is neither. So if Penn can't make liens and litigants go away, perhaps it can trash-talk F'bleau's price down so far that completion-related headaches become grudgingly acceptable.

The casualties mount

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 14:54:00 -0700

Just yesterday I was lamenting the dearth of possible fallback positions for entertainers bounced from this or that casino. Heck, even the formerly volatile V Theater is enjoying its first stable lineup of shows since forever.

Sadly, we can add Scarlett and her Seductive Ladies of Magic (aka Abraca-Sexy) to the casualty list. With Charo literally and figuratively ailing, the Riviera's formerly robust lineup of shows is getting Slim-Fasted in a hurry.

Hopefully, somebody else can find a spot for Scarlett and her red bikini. Or she might take a cue from Bobby Slayton, who's literally getting out of town. So might Barry Manilow. However, we ran this down for a Question of the Day last week and the smart money has him taking up residence at the long-empty Paris-Las Vegas showroom. If Manilow can't break the jinx on that theater, nobody can.

I hope WizardOfVegas.com gets my Vintage Vegas review up before the show becomes history, because this Zowie Bowie extravaganza is an act of the so-bad-it's-good variety. It has the potential to go into posterity as one of the great Strip trainwrecks of all time.

Despite not having seen Vintage Vegas, Steve Friess channels the experience uncannily well: "I missed, for instance, what must have been a pretty disastrous opening night at the Monte Carlo for Zowie Bowie and its Vintage Vegas act ... even our most obsequious of entertainment scribes trashed them ... the idea here is that a major theater on the Strip is now given over to the alleged romance of Old Vegas. When it fails, I wonder, will anyone (else) suggest that maybe it wasn’t the execution that flopped, but the fact that people are bored with the effort to relive a bygone era?"

Having witnessed the completely pointless Rat Pack covers of spicy-as-mayonnaise Matt Goss, I'm inclined to agree. The 'retro' shows that work best -- like Rick Faugno's once-a-month showcase at South Point -- are ones in which the artist takes familiar material and makes his/her own. For Faugno, the songs associated with Frank Sinatra or Fred Astaire are as fresh and vital today as 50 years ago, and it comes through in his performance.

Much the same could be said for the Motown covers of Human Nature, a fantastic act that's literally crimped by management's determination to pack the absolute maximum number of tables into the Imperial Palace showroom. Memo to Rick Mazer: If you take 8-12 tables out, people will actually get up and dance, instead of merely wishing they could.

Speaking of showrooms, is there a smaller, crappier one than that at O'Shea's? You have to feel sorry for the performers who are relegated to this broom closet. Given the general disrepair evident at the Irish-themed casino, my best guess is that Harrah's Entertainment has decided to just let the place to go to hell until such time as they're ready to gut it and make it an anchor of their proposed off-Strip retail/restaurant mall.

Case Bets: P'mousse, Wynn vs. Francis, Natole, etc.

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 13:53:00 -0700

Tucked away around the corner from the Sahara is local institution Pamplemousse. While there wasn't room for describing the massive crudité basket or the alleged "Mob booth," hopefully this chronicle captures some of the preserved-in-amber ambience of P'mousse.

Steve Wynn, house hunter. What could the casino mogul want with a mansion in Bel Air? Well, if it belongs to celeb-stiff Joe Francis, seizing the house could bring Wynn Resorts one large step closer to settling Francis' $2.9 million gambling debts.

Just for the record, casino treasurer Sue Lowden has officially elbowed her way into the crowded field of potential GOP challengers to Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV). S&G is looking for a replay of 1996's bruising clash between then-state Sen. Lowden and the Culinary Union.

In the wake of the Great Trop Show Massacre comes word from multiple sources that impressionist Rich Natole won't be venue-less for long. Could be he doesn't even have to leave the intersection of Tropicana Ave. and the Strip.

Mommie Queerest. At the risk of praising with faint damns, if you like this sort of thing then this is the sort of thing you'll like. Does the general public have even a dim recollection of Joan Crawford anymore?

Trop, Sands purges continue

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 17:36:00 -0700

It's official: "Pit Bull of Comedy" Bobby Slayton has snarled his last at the Tropicana Las Vegas. Thus endeth a brief, inauspicious reign by Anthony Cools over the Trop's upstairs showroom. A well-placed source advises LVA that Beatles tribute show Penny Lane was pulled after EMI hit it with a cease-and-desist letter. In any event, it left as invisibly as it arrived.

Trop CEO Alex Yemenidjian still has three shows he inherited from predecessor Scott Butera but it's pretty clear that he's going to put his own stamp on the property. As for Cools, well, he'll always have O'Shea's.

Movement at Cosmo. Buried in the Review-Journal (six items deep) is the news that the Cosmopolitan has wooed ~~John~~ Marshall Andrew away from Las Vegas Sands to be its CFO and hired Station Casinos refugee Marshall Andrew as chief information officer. Deutsche Bank looks serious about making that September '10 opening date.

Will the economy have improved sufficiently to have absorbed most of the CityCenter rooms and the Planet Hollywood Westgate ones by then (and maybe, but not very likely, Fontainebleau)? Boyd Gaming is betting otherwise. The Echelon cranes have been seen coming down, marking an additional hiatus in the project, which reportedly will not be resumed until 2012.

Las Vegas Sands: Execs overboard!

Andrew is just the latest exec lured -- or chased -- away from Sheldon Adelson's employ. Former Venetian veep Paul Pusateri (who helped launch Paris-Las Vegas back in the day) was just nominated as president at The Palms and ever-helpful Sands spokeswoman Mindy Eras has gone to Preferred Public Relations. Whether these moves are part of Adelson's promised cost reductions or are a winnowing out of perceived William Weidner loyalists, it must be getting lonely at the top.

There's quite a debate going on at the Las Vegas Sun on the rise and fall of themed resorts on the Strip. Surf over, check it out, maybe weigh in, if the spirit moves you.

Adelson's rescuer?

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 14:01:00 -0700

Meet Wilbur Ross. He's an investor of all trades with an appetite for distressed assets. And he's turning his sights to the casino industry. In particular, he's drawn a bead on "companies [who] are also looking at selling assets in the Chinese gambling enclave of Macau to support struggling operations in Las Vegas."

That means either Las Vegas Sands or MGM Mirage, and it's old news that Sheldon Adelson has been peddling a couple of retail malls and the non-casino aspects of Sands Macao (above). MGM is attempting a reboot (successful so far) of MGM Grand Macau but still might come up short on completion money for CityCenter, especially if condo prices have to be reduced. And it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that one Macanese casino beats any number of hotel rooms or retail outlets.

Un-Trumped? Thwarted Trump Marina suitor Richard Fields is making another run at the property, which he's been trying to buy since Homer was a pup. Better still for him, he could get it for as little as $75 million. However, he's got dark-horse competition from a Maryland-based private equity fund that's making a play for all three of the Trump Entertainment Resorts casinos.

Notorious for mainly hanging its corporate shingle in tax-haven Green Valley, would-be casino operator Empire Resorts is not only re-headquartered in New York State, it's got new partners. Some of them bring checkered pasts to the table.

Also, Empire's hopes hinge upon the current administration reversing an especially paternalistic ruling from the George W. Bush years: namely, that casino sites must be within commuting distance of the tribal owners' -- in this case the St. Regis Mohawks -- reservations. If economic self-sufficiency is the endgame of federal/policy, Uncle Sam needs to loosen the apron strings.

Unready for some football. The unceremonious scrapping of Monday Night Football events at The Cannery is explained (second item). Magic word: clearance. Columnist John Katsilometes also notes that the second weekend of Zowie Bowie's Vintage Vegas was better than the first. Which would mean it's graduated from "bad" to "mediocre."

New England moralists are apparently OK with slot machines in Rhode Island, so long as they're covered by the fig leaf of mandatory greyhound racing. At least the slot players have a chance of actually catching the rabbit, metaphorically speaking. Animal cruelty is bad enough but when it's enshrined in state law it's even more objectionable, if such a thing is possible.

Quote of the Day

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 13:20:00 -0700

"Inside the other four [envelopes] are worthless slips of paper: Criss Angel tickets. Just kidding! I wouldn't do that to anyone." -- Mental star Luke Jermay, during last night's performance. If you want to get a laugh in this town, just punctuate your joke with the words "Criss Angel." Works every time.

Case Bets: Wynn in Macao, "Peepshow" strips down

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:30:00 -0700

• Steve Wynn is accelerating his timetable for developing on the Cotai Strip™. If Wynn continues to learn from his early miscalculations (and I see no reason to expect otherwise), a gaming-centric Wynn Resorts property on Cotai is a far better bet than Sheldon Adelson's retail- and hotel-heavy business model.

• While the unpredictable Aubrey O'Day is the ostensible focus of this Peepshow update, she's not the main point of interest. Rather, it's the spate of cheesparing moves made by BASE Entertainment.

The show's band has been thrown overboard and the cast has been reduced, requiring some performers to double in other roles. This explains the disappearance of Katie Webber, a strong vocalist whose big number has now been reassigned to Ms. O'Day. At some point, I'm going to be obliged to revisit Peepshow but I can tell you right now I'm not looking forward to it.

• Despite Sen. Harry Reid's juice job on the Sig Rogich Victorville Flyer (aka Desert Xpress), backers of an alternative maglev project are fighting back. Given that the most difficult part of the SoCal-to-Vegas drive is past once you reach Victorville, why anybody would park their car in the broiling sun and hop aboard Sig's Choo-Choo to Nowhere remains a mystery.

Another gut-punch to Vegas

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:49:00 -0700

As much as I like to tease the CineVegas film festival, it brightens up June like nothing else in town. So it is with a heavy heart that I report it has decided to cancel its 2010 season. (This year it had already been trimmed from a fortnight to six days.)

“Given the current economic climate and the pressures it has created, we made the difficult decision to put CineVegas on hiatus for the coming year. CineVegas has become such a well respected film festival, and rather than allow the economy to affect its level of quality we have opted to put the event on hold,” announced festival impresario Trevor Groth. Actually, the real determinant of CineVegas' quality was the level of films put on display, but I think I appreciate what he means.

If CineVegas is bailing on Sin City, then the depression's end is not so near as we've been led to believe. (Phil Ruffin, in the current CityLife, doesn't foresee recovery until the autumn of 2011, and no new resort construction for three to five years after that.)

Big Trop shakeup

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:16:00 -0700

During his absent-minded interregnum as Tropicana Las Vegas CEO Scott Butera nearly denuded the casino of on-property entertainment. Only the hasty re-signing of Xtreme Magic left the Trop with a show in the house. Over time, Butera's people added a slew of second- and third-tier acts.

"Too much," said some. Those "some" would appear to include new CEO Alex Yemenidjian. Virtually unpublicized Beatles tribute act Penny Lane? Gone. Impressionist Rich Natole? Going soon. Bobby Slayton? Going a little later, perhaps. (Anthony Cools' track record as a producer is looking dire.) Although I've heard good things about the new venue created for Soprano's Last Supper and Hypnosis Unleashed, apparently they will be relocated elsewhere within the Trop.

To no one's surprise, Dirk Arthur will yield the prime-time slot (where he was, in all honesty, a placeholder) to incoming Wayne Newton. The Wayner will keep the Tiffany Theater warm until a Trop-owned show replaces Newton's morbidly titled Once Before I Go.

The Harmon Theater's ill-publicized Tickled Pink has also closed and it sounds as though that place is experiencing cash-flow problems. Normally, I'd be sanguine that departing acts would soon find new homes elsewhere in town. However, in these desperate times, entertainment has been one of the first items on the chopping block, so the evicted performers can probably use all the positive vibes they can get.

Casino explosion in Ohio? Not only will Buckeye State voters get to say "aye" or "nay" to Gov. Ted Strickland's creation of racinos, the state could get as many as 11 gambling venues -- not the seven Strickland envisions. Another ballot measure (pushed by Penn National Gaming) would authorize four casinos in four major Ohio cities. Minimum capital investment will be $250 million and the tax rate would be set at -- Ouch! -- 33%. Somehow, I doubt that will scare anybody away.

And they're off! Congratulations to Ocean Downs, the first racino approved in Maryland. By June, reels should be spinning on the first 200 of an eventual 800 slots, to be fully phased in within 11 months.

O'Day meltdown at "Peepshow"

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:39:00 -0700

Do you think that Peepshow's producers are just maybe beginning to regret hiring loose cannon Aubrey O'Day? The former insta-band member canceled her second-ever performance of Peepshow because somebody (surprise, surprise) snapped a photo of her, topless, and posted on -- where else? -- the Internet. And don't bother Googling it because Ms. O'Day's lawyers have done a very efficacious job of banishing said photo into cyber-Siberia. The lady's apologia pro tantrum sua is a doozy:

O'Day's finger-wagging might carry more authority were it not coming from someone who flaunted her birthday suit in Playboy magazine (where she actually looked much less attractive than in the supposedly sans-makeup video confessional). Also, if you're going to show your "naughty bits" to the public and charge good money for the privilege of seeing them, one's physical appearance becomes fair game. (And, besides, name one intelligent person who cares what Perez Hilton thinks.)

Anyway, Ms. O'Day might want to enjoy Las Vegas while she still can, because in three months (or less) she's going to be Aubrey O'Who?

If you want to see a good show, skip the trainwreck at Planet Hollywood and head on up to CSN, where -- for the next two weekends -- Reefer Madness: The Musical is the best entertainment money can buy.

Go ask Alex

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 18:04:00 -0700

Without further ado, we present S&G's much-hyped interview with Tropicana Las Vegas CEO Alex Yemenidjian, a trim, nattily attired man of impeccable manners and refreshing directness, as you will see. I led off with questions from the readership ...

Nelson asks, “What’s your game plan for motivating the staff into offering quality service to your guests?”

First of all, we have a lot of staff that’s already very motivated. When I took over here, it was a very pleasant surprise to see that there is this reservoir of good will. Many of the employees have been here a long time. They love this place, it’s home for them, they are proud of it and they are happy to be part of the future of it, and they’re very excited because these changes that we are proposing is something that they have been waiting for for a very long time.

In addition to that reservoir of good will, we’re going to be implementing a new training program, a new guest-service-quality program to make sure we elevate the service to a whole new level. So I think the combination of those is going to do the trick.

The last time I walked the property, it was very lightly staffed. I saw two maids to a hotel floor, even on a floor with 44 rooms. Rockymet asks, “Will they staff a full size cleaning crew [and] will they spruce up what is/was one of the best pools in Vegas?”

The answer to the first question is, yes, we’re actually increasing our staff in many areas. We’re reducing in certain areas and increasing in others, as the particular area dictates – particularly in the area of guest-room attendants. One of our objectives is for our new rooms that we are designing to look perfect at all times. It’s a whole new image, it’s a whole new brand that we’re putting forward, so we want to make sure that service matches the new brand.

As far as the pool is concerned, [the question is] very timely. I just finished final touches of the design this morning. We will be getting permits by December 1 so that we can open the new pool area by April 1, which is the beginning of the next summer season. We recognize that the pool area is renowned and we want to make sure that we do it justice, so we’re going to be spending a little more money than we originally thought. [smiles] But it’s going to be wonderful.

Jeff in Oklahoma City wants to know if Onex Corp. “is keeping the property warm for MGM until [MGM’s] debt structure gets better” and if this your way back to MGM Mirage?

I can speak for Onex when I tell you that they are not in the business of keeping things warm for anybody.

Your proposed executive team for the Illinois casino you were seeking included Karen Sock and Joe Billhimer, a couple of heavy hitters in the business. Are they or any other well-known executives going to be joining you at the Trop?

At the moment we have an excellent team here. I am very proud of my team. I actually have a team that I wouldn’t trade for any other team in Las Vegas at the moment. As our company expands – and Onex and my intention is to expand by either acquiring new ones or building new hotels – hopefully we will have more openings and more opportunities to have people like Karen and Joe join the team.

Does that mean Trop President Ron Thacker is staying on?

Ron hasn’t been here. Ron decided to retire. He had actually come out of retirement to take this job as a favor to Tropicana Entertainment.

How serious are the deferred-maintenance issues you’ve had to address?

Well, we were spending a significant amount of money on the deferred maintenance that was left to us, courtesy of the previous owners. We addressing all issues, including roof, elevator, escalator – all items of deferred maintenance that have been ignored for a very long period of time, and we are spending whatever it takes to make sure that the property comes up to a top-notch level.

You’ve said that one of the priorities was redesigning the buffet, but what about the food itself? I’ve eaten there and it was one of the worst buffets in Las Vegas.

I agree with you. Lucky for us, you ate there with the previous chef. We have just hired a new chef. He is in the process of changing the quality of the food. He hasn’t gotten to the buffet yet; he is very busy right now in the new restaurant we just opened, an Italian restaurant called Bacio. Pretty soon he’s going to move from there to significantly improving the quality of food at the buffet.

The last I read, Dirk Arthur was on an interim contract, into the autumn. What’s his status going forward?

I think he had a six-month contract. I’m not quite sure when it expires. We’re really quite happy with Dirk Arthur. But we don’t have any particular plans one way or the other. We’re just happy to have him.

How are you able to incorporate Let’s Make a Deal without significant interruption? What kind of infrastructure is involved with having a TV show where Bodies and Titanic used to be?

That’s the pavilion space. It’s 55,000 square feet. It was really sort of custom-made for this kind of a production. We really don’t have much disruption. We have a really large property – 34 acres and we have plenty of space for the additional traffic that is being created.

We welcome the traffic. A little bit of commotion is fun in a casino. It’s actually funny because [contestants] come in these great costumes, walk in and out. We have some major events planned in the pavilion but it turns out that the taping of the first 50 shows will be complete by the time we need to [switch].

You’ve outlined a very ambitious, multi-phase program of changes. How are you going to execute all of that on $175 million, considering how expensive construction and renovation have become in Las Vegas?

Two things. One is, because of the current economic conditions, we are getting at least 30% discounts on all material and all labor. So we only pay $70 million for something that costs $100 million. If we were building this two years ago, it would have been a very different story.

The second aspect to that is that, as you undoubtedly know, a lot of construction projects here in Las Vegas are done with little regard for budget and sometimes people end up overspending. We can’t afford to do that, so we have to make sure that every dollar that we spend counts as $5.

So we are being very cautious and very smart and very careful about making sure that every dollar that we spend, we have an opportunity to impress the customer. And the combination of that and the fact that we’re getting unbelievable bids for the work means that if we announce a $150 [million]-$175 million project, it’s really equivalent to spending $300 million-plus.

It's war!

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 19:04:00 -0700

If you are on Twitter, you're unlikely to find a feed more entertaining than that of Richard Abowitz. He's been lobbing a series of verbal artillery shells at new Peepshow headliner Aubrey O'Day. For instance, the Fidel Castro-admiring Ms. O'Day had her picture taken -- and published -- next to where the Planet Hollywood backstage entry code is posted. Clearly, she's not the sharpest tool in the shed and Abowitz is having great fun pointing this out ... frequently.

Ask Alex!

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:31:00 -0700

Tomorrow morning, I have scored some precious face time with Tropicana Las Vegas CEO Alex Yemenidjian. The ostensible topic of the media event is "Special Guest," er, Wayne Newton.

But screw that. Let's find out what else is going on at the Trop, particularly in terms of capital improvements, staffing, Let's Make a Deal tapings and all those deferred-maintenance issues Yemenidjian inherited from his predecessors.

So here's the idea: If you've got questions, submit them in the "Comments" section (or by e-mail at dmckee@huntingtonpress.com) and I'll use the best ones in my interview. I already had plenty of queries of my own but changed my mind and decided to try and get you guys (and gals) in on the fun.

So what's on your mind, Trop-wise?

Are you ready for some football? No!

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 17:45:00 -0700

Galaxy Theatres' multiplex at The Cannery has scrapped all its big-screen showings of Monday Night Football, it was announced today, one week into the NFL season. Perhaps the incessant jabbering of Jon Gruden sent patrons screaming out onto the casino floor.

"Historic Announcement" at Trop: New CEO Alex Yemenidjian has booked a press conference on Wednesday morning with a "Special Guest" who represents an "exciting new partnership" in the entertainment sphere. It's the worst-kept secret in Vegas that Mr. Special Guest is better known as blogger Chuck Monster's least-favorite Strip headliner, Wayne F. Newton.

Also, the Sahara is (finally!) pulling the plug on Larry Marshak's ersatz Platters/Coasters/Marvelettes revue. Alas, the last act in this shameful saga of exploitation has yet to play out. The Marshak troupe will actually move up the Strip food chain, to Planet Hollywood. However, its new home is the Wyrick Entertainment Complex, otherwise known as the "Venue of Death." If that doesn't kill the show, nothing will.

Well that's ... weird: The Las Vegas Sun's Brendan Buhler reports that waitresses at Monte Carlo's lounge within the Dragon Noodle Co. restaurant "are dressed as characters from Japanese animé cartoons, a hobby known as cosplay." This strikes Buhler as odd because the U.S. cosplay cosmos is dominated by teens and pre-teens, and is "geeky." (He said it, I didn't.) He likens it to a Miley Cyrus-themed nightclub, before noting that the uniforms resemble "schoolgirl outfits."

Which would explain a lot.

Eight isn't enough. Yet another GOP challenger enters the lists against Sen. "Hapless Harry" Reid (D-NV). Just FYI.

Quote of the Day

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 12:56:00 -0700

"This is the most exciting time in Vegas's history." -- Zowie Bowie frontman Chris Phillips, last night at the Monte Carlo. Yes, but how much more of this excitement can we handle?

Penn hearts F'bleau ... maybe

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 21:24:00 -0700

So the much-bruited suitor for stalled, bankrupt Fontainebleau has been "outed" and it's ... Penn National Gaming. Ace reporter Alexandra Berzon, late of the Las Vegas Sun, broke the story. However, she notes that Penn and F'bleau have been dickering for three months: "Talks could still fall apart at any moment."

Given the criteria that Penn CEO Peter Carlino has been citing for any major casino purchase, F'bleau is an illogical choice. It's expensive, it's unfinished, it's location-challenged, it's a high-end property in a depressed market, it has a problematic condo component (read: units that will never sell) and, most of all, it's a snakepit of litigation. Plus, the cost of completion seems to escalate by the hour and is currently pegged at $1.5 billion.

Remember, Penn balked at paying $1 billion-plus for The Mirage, a turnkey, trouble-free resort. Meanwhile, Harrah's Entertainment is snatching Planet Hollywood right out from under Penn's nose and the company whiffed on a chance to acquire newly ascendant Greektown Casino in Detroit. Go figure.

A Penn spokesman "could not confirm or deny" the Wall Street Journal story. We'll take that as a "yes."

Aubrey has landed. As in "O'Day." Webmistress Jessica has forwarded the following from Holly Madison's Twitter feed: "@hollymadison123 Damn! I can't take one day off work without everything going to hell in a handbasket! Back to spreading the positive energy!" Like I said, word from the wise is that Madison and new Hitler-lovin' co-star Aubrey O'Day are anything other than BFFs.

Worst Trend Yet

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 20:07:00 -0700

This is the sort of bottom-feeding move you'd expect from Columbia Sussex but not from Hyatt. Suffice it to say that if casino-hotels try this cheapjack number in Atlantic City, Detroit or Las Vegas, there will be holy hell to pay, especially the next time the collective-bargaining agreement is up for renewal. As it is, some hotels (*cough*Tropicana Las Vegas*cough*) have tried to operate with skeletal cleaning staffs and one shudders to imagine the consequences.

Do not resuscitate?

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:01:00 -0700

Most of us hew to the standard English-language definition of "fixation" (as in "I have a sudden fixation with actresss Crystal Chappell"). However, in Cirque du Soleil-speak, "fixation" means "damage repair." To wit: Criss F. Angel vehicle Believe has been in need of fixation since before it opened. (Only Crazy Girls and Steve Wyrick get lower ratings from LVA members.)

It's nigh upon 11 months since Believe was foisted upon an eagerly skeptical Las Vegas and apparently, the "fixation" process still drags on within the catacombs of Luxor. Or not. Whatever the case, Cirque du Stuck on Themselves ain't tellin', not even to the Los Angeles Times.

Two thoughts: If the show's problems are so intractable they take nearly a year to "fixate," why not just bag it? Also, if what Cirque is presenting is a work in progress, ought not Believe to charge consumers a "price in progress"? Like, oh maybe $15/person to see Mr. Angel and his Cirque enablers try to figure out what the hell kind of show they want to do?

While I don't share Richard Abowitz's enthusiasm for Zumanity (for me, it's a show about sex that's staged by eunuchs). Ka is awe-inspiring and Mystere is enjoyable if you have a very high tolerance for whimsy. But it is with masterly understatement that Abowitz writes, "Cirque can be pretentious on stage and in the corporate culture."

Guy Laliberté's cosmic dream, our nightmare

Scarily, he reveals that head Cirque jerque Guy Laliberté is planning to spread coulrophobia to the cosmos. Is no place safe from putty-nosed clowns? Can't they accidentally-on-purpose open the airlock when Pennywise is trying to juggle in zero gravity or whatever Laliberté has in mind? (Given the reports of Laliberté's heterosexual athleticism, I have my suspicions as to what he really wants to experiment upon in zero G's.)

On the subject of ass-clownery, this takes the cake. I guess he believes "If you haven't been bookmarked, re-Tweeted and blogged/You might as well not have existed."

Adios, Charo? Moving further up the Strip, Abowitz speculates that an ankle sprain may provide the excuse for the Riviera to draw the curtain on Charo in Concert. (I accidentally typed "Charon." A Freudian slip?) Even reliably everything-is-better-than-ever Robin Leach concurs. Who'd have thought that, back when I reviewed Charo's show for CityLife, in tandem with Ali Spuck's cabaret act, that two months later, the plucky Ms. Spuck would be the one -- pardon the pun -- still standing?

Since the flamenco-guitar portion of Charo's show was a bit light on content (five songs), the Riv could have turned lemons into lemonade by working in more guitar and less coochi-coochi. But evidently not. But don't despair, guys. The Riv's still got Scarlett, Princess of Magic and her red bikini.

In an unrelated rumor, Tony 'n Tina's Wedding is alleged to be halfway out the door at Planet Hollywood. That always seemed a mismatch of show and venue; it will surely pop up somewhere else (LVA members give it our highest rating), should the rumor turn out to be true.

'Phantom' fans hit Vegas

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 14:36:00 -0700

Heaven knows, there are conventions for soap operas, sitcoms and every iteration of science fiction (I've been to more than a few of the latter). But a fan convention for a Broadway show? That's unheard of.

Yesterday, fans of Phantom of the Opera hit town for the first-ever Phantom con, at the Venetian, where they'll score some face time with director Harold Prince and the Venetian's resident Phantom, Anthony Crivello. (You have to give Sheldon Adelson props: If Glenn Schaeffer had been running the Venetian, he'd have turned down Phantom on the grounds it was free publicity for Paris-Las Vegas. But Adelson knew a good thing when he saw it.) The Venetian has even rolled out a package of goodies to keep Phantom fans on-property. Smooth move there, Rob Goldstein.

Having recently passed its third anniversary, the Vegas-ized Phantom looks well on its way to blowing past Mamma Mia!'s six-year milestone. We could easily be celebrating its 10th anniversary come 2016. Yours truly gets name-checked in Steve Friess' interview with Prince. My only quibble with the story -- and it's a very minor one -- is that it doesn't mention Prince's original stagings of Stephen Sondheim's Company and Follies, two of the high-water marks in Broadway history. And if you think Phantom is a "downer," take Follies out for a spin sometime:

As for fan conventions, except for the annual Star Trek hootenanny at the Las Vegas Hilton, Vegas doesn't do such a great job of attracting them. We've got to work on that. And when Stargate SG-1/Stargate Atlantis/Sanctuary star Amanda Tapping graces a Vegas stage, we can say, "Job well done."

Deathtrap. Sometimes there are shows that warrant venturing away from the comfort zone of the Strip. Las Vegas Little Theatre's production of Ira Levin's Broadway hit is not one of them.

Quote of the Day

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 13:35:00 -0700

"Down here on the ground, weekend anecdotes regularly begin with, 'I was so wasted!'' and end with blackouts and driving. We've lost an alarming number of people in recent years to overdoses, car crashes and suicide." -- Las Vegas Weekly nightclub correspondent Xania Woodman, bemoaning the excesses of the scene she covers. Then why glorify it 52 times a year? Incidentally, the Weekly's quartet (!) of nightclub reporters is officially known as "Team Hangover."

Salvation for the Trop? Definitely!

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 17:09:00 -0700

From our Today's News pages: "As part of the fruits of its $125 million property-wide renovation, Tropicana Las Vegas today announced it's to open two new restaurants: Havana Go Go Cafe is a breakfast joint/cafe open daily at 7 a.m. Menu items include Cuban bread pizza, paninis, deli-style sandwiches, soups, salads, bagels, muffins and a range of specialty coffees and will debut shortly in the Island Tower soon. Bacio Pasta & Vino is an Italian bistro that debuted today and will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m."

Talk is cheap but Alex Yemenidjian is quickly establishing that he means what he says. Now if he can get that balky Wayne Newton contract settled, he'll have a proper headliner for the joint. It's cheering to see some of the entrepreneurial spirit that made Las Vegas great but which has lately been smothered by a Wall Street-driven mania for competition-killing mergers and acquisitions.

Quote of the Day

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 19:03:00 -0700

"Kanye West is the biggest piece of shit on earth. Quote me," says Pink on her Twitter feed. So we did.

Postscript

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 14:08:00 -0700

In detailing our blogging woes, I forgot to mention that we can't send e-mail today either. So if I owe you a response, I apologize and will get back to you as soon as we're able.

In the meantime, I'm still trying to recover from the ordeal of trying to hear Matt Goss, in his new Palms show. But if you find Justin Timberlake too edgy, Goss is your man. The ladies love him; the air was rife with cougar-esqe pheromones Saturday night. I'm only surprised no panties were flung onstage. As for his singing, I'm not convinced that ex-CIA director Porter Goss wouldn't be an improvement.

Quote of the Day

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 21:39:00 -0700

“[It might] make for a pretty cool prop for a ‘Couples Seduce Teens’ episode.” -- adult filmmaker Allison Vivas upon receiving -- supposedly by mistake -- the Entrepreneur of the Year Award from a group founded by Newt Gingrich. The award? A replica of the former House Speaker's gavel.

Blast from the Past

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 20:09:00 -0700

Rock A Hoola, the freakish subject of this 1998 promotional film, is to be the topic of a forthcoming Question of the Day, so keep your eyes peeled. In the meantime, enjoy this slide down Memory Lane:

We drove past Lake Dolores last weekend and there sure isn't much to see now, sadly. And it's still in the middle of nowhere. That definitely hasn't changed in the intervening 11 years.

Pod People

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 15:55:00 -0700

Now that our linking capability is back, here is the Strip Podcast episode in which I pinch-hit for an absent co-host. The father of new sensation Elijah Johnson had trouble finding Steve Friess' studio and the show was already on a tight schedule, so we kind of ran through everything else at bullet-train speed. Still, it was fun and I hope you enjoy it.

As a visual aid, here's some raw (very raw) B-roll of Elijah Johnson in performance at the Las Vegas Celebrates the Music of Michael Jackson benefit on Aug. 29 at The Palms. Here's hoping that Master Johnson is able to fulfill his early promise and doesn't evolve into another Earl Turner.

From the mailbag #5: Vegas Club, football, Atlantic CIty

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:07:00 -0700

Reader herbop reports on the latest thrift move by Tamares Group: "While other Downtown hotels are installing in-room safes, and removing complaint-causing daily fees for same, the Vegas Club Hotel has pulled out the installed safes from its rooms. When I inquired, they said it's 'policy.' Guests can still use the casino's safe deposit boxes.

"They left the four bolt-holes in the wall, unpatched. Classy, right?"

Geez, I hope those German G2E attendees opted for the Plaza over the Vegas Club. Nice work, Tamares. Why don't you strip the copper out of the place and sell it on the black market while you're at it? (Whoops, we probably shouldn't give Pojo Z. and his flunkies any ideas.)

Kickoff time. Since NFL season finally draws nigh (after what seems like five months of preseason games), it's probably worth mentioning LVA Sports. It includes a directory of football contests, pigskin parties and team bars in the Vegas area. There are no fewer than 12 watering holes allied to Da Bears but only half that number for Packer Backers.

Tennessee Titans fans will just have to drink their beer at home, because our staff couldn't locate any Titan-affiliated bars. Ditto Tilman Fertitta's Houston Texans. Even the ever-putrid Oakland Raiders have three bars to their credit -- but getting to last year's Super Bowl still only netted one Vegas hangout for Arizona Cardinals fans. Go figure.

Don't pop the champagne for stalled Boardwalk resort Revel just yet. The latter has issued a clarification stating that China Construction Engineering Corp. only has a potential agreement in place to finish Revel, for which the resort must drum up funding later this year. Also, yesterday I misstated the opening date as "July 11" when I meant to type "July 2011." I regret the error.

Quote of the Day

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 17:16:00 -0700

"I don't really care what they do with the entrance. If they keep the rooms up to snuff and keep the atrium, they can build a sodomy lounge, it wouldn't matter to me a bit." -- Two Way Hard Three (www.ratevegas.com/blog) reader "John" on the proposed beach club at Encore.

Twitter, ergo sum

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 15:40:00 -0700

OK, so we still can't upload photos but we can sort of link, thanks to a workaround.

In the meantime, Las Vegas Advisor is plentifully available on Twitter. We have ...

LVA_Tweet (1,791 followers). "This one aggregates [Question of the Day], S&G, [Today's News], Spotlight, and then whatever I throw in there manually," writes Webmistress Jessica, who's also solely responsible for the following three:

SinCityAdvisor (766 followers). Sample entry:

RT @Inkedmag Voting closes today for the Inked Awards. Vote now for tattooer of the year -> http://ow.ly/oPX3 #tattoo #ink #inked

ToplessVegas (567 followers). Sample entry:

Big Booty Urban Nite tonite @ Palomino - only nude club in Vegas with liquor license. Say hi to Foreplay for us ; ) #vegas #stripclub #nude

GreenVegas (251 followers). Sample entry:

RT @HuffPostGreen PETA is at it again: Check out this banned ad with Pamela Anderson (NSFW) http://bit.ly/Qppfj

Personally, I Tweet not. For starters, I lack the manual dexterity of Gov. Jim Gibbons (a prodigy capable of writing hundreds of text messages per day, earning him the sobriquet "Governor Busythumbs"). If the meme of the moment is "I Tweet, therefore I am," I shall have to settle for nonexistence, as per this music video:

Yup, that's Twitter phenom Crystal Chappell delivering the tag line. As for 72-year-old Guiding Light, it will be extinguished on Sept. 18, to be replaced on Oct. 5 with a new incarnation of Let's Make a Deal, starring Venetian headliner Wayne Brady (something for the tired housewife) and being taped at the Tropicana Las Vegas.

(Kinda neat how I brought it back 'round to the the Strip there, huh?)

Considering the lengths people will go to in order to get on a game show (and the near-riot that occurred when The Price is Right staged an anniversary show at The Rio), I'd say a Brady-enhanced Let's Make a Deal is economic stimulus in which Las Vegas can finally believe. Bummer about "La lumiere que guide" (™ Will Ferrell), though.

Any readers who have Twitter accounts and wish to be followed, please post in the "Comments" thread. And if the Comment-Eating Server thwarts you, I'll do a special S&G post on your behalf. Is that a deal?

Optimism in Macao, euphoria at CityCenter

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 17:33:00 -0700

Relaxation of stringent visa restrictions from Guangdong Province came a full four months sooner than expected, starting Sept. 1. Now, residents will be able to visit Macao once a month instead of quarterly. While this has prompted J.P. Morgan to raise its price target on Las Vegas Sands stock, analysts also fret that Sands may overreact and go pedal to the metal on its unfinished Cotai Strip™ hotels.

Those same analysts are bullish on the manufacturing sector, though. They think casinos will be more willing to reinvest in the slot base as 2009 draws to a close. Also, the onward march of casino expansion means more jurisdictions and facilities to whom IGT, Bally and WMS can peddle their products. They're 'meh' on regional casino operators like Penn National, Ameristar Casinos and Pinnacle Entertainment, due to flattish performance. (Penn could catch a break in Kansas, though I still think Cordish Gaming has that sewn up.)

But that's a rave notice compared to the long face Morgan analysts pull when pondering Boyd Gaming's prospects. They cite the slow-to-recover, promo-driven locals-casino market in Las Vegas ("trickle-down" economics of the worst sort); Atlantic City's critical condition -- "the best-case scenario here is that [Borgata] would do less bad" than most of A.C. -- those blah regional metrics and new competition for the Blue Chip riverboat in Indiana, which had been looking like 2009's feel-good story.

Intriguingly, the prospect of a Strip acquistion is floated in lieu of a 'stalking horse' bid for floundering Station Casinos. Boyd's still got enough unused borrowing capacity it could even swing an acquisition of The Mirage (with money to spare), not to mention some of the lower-hanging fruit, which now includes Planet Hollywood. But if the J.P. Morgan guys are gun-shy concerning Boyd ...

They're over the moon about MGM Mirage's CityCenter: "we are increasingly under the belief that City Center will be a new must-see property for both domestic and international gamers/travelers that should drive solid visitation volumes to the Strip in 2010. We were impressed with the massive 18m-square-foot complex ... a new type of high-end product for the Strip that should garner increased trips. It has a very contemporary feel that is different than anything else on the Strip, with lots of natural light and high ceilings, interesting room product and, for a massive property, ease of getting around from one 'neighborhood' to the next."

More good news comes in the form of a press release from Commerce Casino (in Commerce, Calif.), which rolled out the welcome mat for a group of undoubtedly weary firefighters. A strike force of 30 Bay Area-based firemen is being housed in the casino's hotel, with the casino comping all meals and picking up most of the hotel tab. Let's hope that such civic-mindedness spreads through the industry like -- if you'll forgive the analogy -- wildfire.

In case it matters, "super-starlet" (yes, that's the official term) Holly Madison has been given a 12-month contract extension at Peepshow, so she's obviously earning her pay. Also, I've heard through the grapevine that she and incoming Aubrey O'Day do not get along, so the timing of the Madison announcement should make clear who's got the upper implant in this situation.

'Peepshow''s little Hitler problem

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 16:20:00 -0700

Congratulations (not!) to the producers of Peepshow, whose rent-a-headliner stratagem has finally blown up in their faces. They're replacing a Jew (Shoshana Bean) with a fan of the leadership abilities of -- I kid you not -- Adolf Hitler. Oh, and she's a googly-eyed admirer of Fidel Castro, who -- among other offenses against humanity -- ran the casino industry out of Cuba.

Of course, this town has a tycoon or two known for cozying up to the authoritarian regime of Singapore and the downright despotic one in Peking. So perhaps Ms. O'Day's pathetic excuse for a brain will just be a 48-hour story ... but that's what we thought about Sen. John Ensign's escapades, at least until Mike Ensign's role as payola daddy came into play.

(Thanks to Richard Abowitz for the heads-up on this one.)

A reader informs me that the site LasVegasDowntownNews.com appears to be defunct. I couldn't get it to load either and blogger Jeff Burbank's output was sporadic at the best of times. Has this site gone the way of all flesh? If anybody has the skinny on this, please let S&G know.

"Oh shit!" headline of the day: Seen at Huffington Post, "Harry Reid to take the wheel on health care." That's like finding out the one family member who's certifiably incapable of navigating the driveway is going to pilot the family car up Mount Charleston.

From the mailbag #3

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 16:04:00 -0700

Reader Kerr_Mudgeon writes, re the case of a Columbia Sussex executive who was the victim of age discrimination:

She was 67 years old, for gosh sake! She should have taken her token (socialist) Social Security checks and gone on (fascist) Medicare, then waited for the inevitable pounding on her door by a (union) thug from (communist) ACORN who insisted on reading her (nonexistent) rights from the Death Book prior to making an appointment for her to stand before the (mandatory) Death Panel which would have assigned her to the most efficient (statist) queue for her to Take The Pill in order to eliminate Obama's $multi-trillion budget deficit - even though he's intentionally destroying the US economy in order to make himself Dictator of the World because he hates everybody and everything that is good = American (of which he is not one). As a matter of fact, if Jesus's will were in effect in this wicked world, she would not have been able to file her vicious law suit, because Tort Reform would have stopped any shady Trial Lawyers from taking her frivolous case!!!

Reader Jinx asks if I really thought X Burlesque was "awful." No, "awful" would be Anthony Cools' Ooh-la-la, thankfully deceased, although Cools threatens periodically to bring it back somewhere else (read: Tropicana). However, the only specifics I can remember of X were that it was hosted by the late Pudgy on the night I saw it and that the dancers were some of the most "augmented" I've seen on the Strip. At least Crazy Girls has two or three memorable numbers and a comfier showroom.

"Tired and boring," though, is the perfect description of Crazy Horse Paris. It's a depersonalization of the female form, like getting trapped in a Helmut Newton photo album. I don't think the astrology segment is in there anymore or, if it is, it's become thoroughly forgettable.

Thanks to reader Jeff in OKC for his shout-out to one of the truly great ladies of the silver screen, Stella Stevens. They don't make dames like her anymore (Christina Hendricks of Mad Men excepted) and, for your pleasure, here's the opening of Las Vegas Lady -- a festival of vintage Glitter Gulch neon.

"Viva Elvis"

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 01:38:00 -0700

Obssessed? Moi?

Yes, Viva Elvis will be the long-awaited, enshrouded-in-secrecy title of the Cirque du Soleil show scheduled to debut this December at CityCenter.* Wow, they must have had to really burn the midnight oil in Montreal to come up with that one ... Speaking of name changes, Scarlett and her Seductive Ladies of Magic (at the Riviera) is now Abra-Ca-Sexy. Well, it's catchier ... The wheels continue to fall off the Riviera train: An Evening with Dean and Friends has closed, as has the dinner buffet (again) ... Lost in the bankruptcy tumult at the Greek Isles was the opening of a new show. Its cumbersome title is Chinaman: A Rock & Roll Comedy Experience. Moving right along ... By the time you read this, Rockstar: The Tribute should have reopened at the Harmon Theater after a disastrously short stint at the Wyrick Entertainment Complex (aka, "the Venue of Death") in Planet Hollywood. However, the Harmon has given it as much advance publicity as an IRS raid on a Vegas nightclub, so that's not a promising start ... In like manner, Beatles tribute Penny Lane tiptoed into the Tropicana without so much as a 'by your leave' ... Back at Planet Ho, Tony 'n Tina's Wedding evidently isn't performing up to expectations. Ticket prices have been reduced 13%-30%, although they're still steep ($63-$143) ... It looks like Deutsche Bank is going to wait a spell and open the Cosmopolitan in Sept.-Oct. 2010. Which, given that the Strip's been strangling on a glut of high-end rooms, is probably the wisest course of action. Wall Street's former Holy Grail, "another wave of megaresort openings," has become a phrase to be dreaded.

Ready for some good news? The most remarkable dancer of the late, lamented Sin City Kitties, Koree Kurkowski, is now part of the ensemble of Bite. The show is kitsch to the nth degree but it's entertaining in its own so-bad-it's-good fashion. The Stratosphere casino floor was pretty dead for a Friday night last weekend, but Bite was definitely packing them in. It's not as good as Sin City Bad Girls (at the Las Vegas Hilton) but way better than forgettable X Burlesque (at the Flamingo).

* -- the Viva Elvis revelation was let slip during last weekend's Michael Jackson festival at The Palms. I learned of it after being invited -- on 75 minutes' notice -- to co-host an episode of Steve Friess' The Strip Podcast, in which I am teased for being "obsessed" with Carmen Electra. I'll link to the edited version once it's available, so you can hear me date myself with a Barbi Benton shout-out.

This isn't Photoshop but an ad clipped from a Michigan newspaper, I kid you not:

The things you can find at the grocery store these days ...

No more "free" play?; Sahara sleaze; Donny & Tina; Criss F. Angel

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 17:29:00 -0700

In a decision that could have wide-ranging implications, Foxwoods Casino Resort and Mohegan Sun have been ordered to count (and pay taxes on) "free play" coupons as though they were revenue. This isn't a sock-it-to-the-players move like the one the Hawaii Legislature just pulled, taxing any money won at a casino (even if it's lost right back and then some). However, the ramifications for consumers if free-play coupons are targeted for taxation are discouraging. Play 'em while you've got 'em.

That stale "sleeping giant" analogy has been dusted off (and I use that verb advisedly) for some pimpery of the Sahara. On the glass half-full side, classy and romantic dinner spot House of Lords has been revived. It used to be a perfect place to take your Special Someone and hopefully will remain so. It's just off the main casino floor -- the most Moorish-themed part of the Sahara and the best "retro" experience to be had in town. (Almost everything else of newer vintage is bland grind-joint crud that needs to go.)

As for the empty half of the glass, that'd be the news that owner Sam Nazarian continues to go downmarket with a vengeance. Because nothing says "classic Vegas" like a tattoo parlor and a biker convention. Worse still, the tramp-stamp place will be in the otherwise elegant main lobby, with extended weekend tattoo-ing times ... since you never know when you want to do something you'll regret the rest of your life.

This "desert jewel rich with history and nostalgia" will continue that tradition with "a wet wife-beater contest, bikini tricycle races, a bourbon paired beef dinner with leatherwear fashion show, and an all-you-can-eat beer fest BBQ with one lucky rider winning a 2009 Harley Davidson Cross Bones bike." It's probably just a matter of time before Nazarian converts the big rear parking lot to a trailer park, too. That's Sam Nazarian for you: "class" with a capital "K."

"Tina Sparkle," flanked by Donny Osmond (evidently still in his pajamas) and Marie, who's looking damn fine from here.

It's old news that Donny Osmond is going to be on the next season of Dancing with the Stars, but I hadn't known he was going to be paired with Aussie Kym Johnson. The latter is known to my Better Half and I as "Tina Sparkle" (it's a Strictly Ballroom thing), which would make for great DWTS levity next season, except ...

... for the soul-crushing news that the gorgeous and talented Cheryl Burke has been twinned with the repulsive (and potentially prison-bound) Tom DeLay, one of "Casino Jack" Abramoff's band of Beltway scoundrels. (Was scum-tastic sleazemeister Rod Blagojevich not available?) Bad luck for Cheryl, good news for DeLay because Ms. Burke could be matched with a tree stump and get aforesaid stump into the final three. If she could carry a woodpile like Cristian de la Fuente to the finale, DeLay should be easy lifting. It looks like he's got the requisite arboreal quality.

Does Criss Angel have compromising photos of high-ranking MGM Mirage executives? The company's "branding" him now, evidently having convinced itself that Believe is beyond wonderful ... and never mind that 11-year-old O regularly outdistances Believe in ticket sales by several country miles. Having sunk $85 million into this Cirque du Soleil turkey, MGM is evidently going to stick with it until the last dancing rabbit is hung.

Quote of the Day

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:13:00 -0700

"At Privé, coming out of the bathroom, some blonde girl is surrounded by people and can barely stand. We step aside, she comes in ... Paris Hilton. Wasted." -- from the Twitter feed of Peepshow star Shoshana Bean. Stay classy, Privé. As for Hilton, there's no hope there.

Stat of the Day

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:43:00 -0700

Beloved by critics and bloggers, Encore is proving to be something of a millstone around the neck of Wynn Resorts. Average daily rates at 'Wynncore' are down 39% for the year to date, compared to a "mere" -25% at neighboring archival Palazzo-Venetian. Unlike Wynn, however, Las Vegas Sands does not seek to be King of the Price Point.

Wholesale revision of Encore is in the works after only eight months, which if nothing else proves that Steve Wynn is at least tacitly willing to admit that it's time for Plan B. If his nightclub expansion translates into the imminent demise of Switch, tant pis. That gimmick-driven restaurant has been Encore's inarguable flop. Possible loss of the conservatory-like atrium would be a more serious worry: Without it, Encore would become a considerably darker and more claustrophobic casino -- as though it weren't having foot-traffic problems already.

Electra-fying news bulletin

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 22:51:00 -0700

You asked, MGM Mirage listened. No, they're not offering free rooms at CityCenter but something much better: a 20-performance return engagement by Carmen Electra, who will put some spice back into Crazy Horse Paris in October. At $75 a seat, that sounds like a good deal to me. Make your travel plans now.

Don't you wish all news coming out of Vegas was this good?

Marrandino: going but not forgotten

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 19:00:00 -0700

Don Marrandino may be Atlantic City-bound but here's how S&G will always remember the Harrah's Entertainment exec, with the Alizma triplets close at hand. For all our ribbing of Marrandino's high-profile lifestyle, he did preside over a much-praised revamp of the Flamingo, and kept the Imperial Palace alive and busy long after it was supposed to have bit the dust. If you need lemons made into lemonade, he's your guy.

Marrandino also seriously rethought the entertainment offerings at the five casinos within his purview. Just in the last couple of years, he's brought on board Donny & Marie, Human Nature, Matsuri and Nathan Burton. Not every one was a jackpot, but the Osmonds and Human Nature were pure gold, and Matsuri has possibilities. I'd love to have that track record.

Replacement Rick Mazer looks promising, not least because he's a Jack Binion protégé, not one of the "propeller-heads" of which Harrah's CEO Gary Loveman is famously fond. The Strip could use some Binion-like thinking right now and S&G fervently hopes Mazer is bringing some of that Horseshoe luck with him.

Quote of the Day

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 13:03:00 -0700

"The film is informed by the [Joe] Conforte story, as anyone familiar with the area's history would know, but it's not a blow-by-blow account of the Mustang Ranch." -- Nevada Film Office spokesperson Robin Holabird on Taylor Hackford's long-in-production brothel saga, Love Ranch. The film, shot in late 2007, stars Dame Helen Mirren and Joe Pesci.

Fun with math, "Jubilee!" style

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 12:55:00 -0700

Does anybody know the maximum number of bared female bosoms that can be seen at any one point in Donn Arden's Jubilee!? I'm reviewing the show for a new Web site and have most of the mind-boggling statistics at hand. The mammary-count, however, is not among them. I lost track at 50, myself, though I know it's more. Anybody care to take a shot at this?

Bueller? ... Bueller?

Jackson for kids. No jokes, please. A concert tribute to the music of sometime Vegas resident Michael Jackson will raise money for the cash-strapped music programs of the Clark County School District. Besides, who can resist the prospect of what Terry Fator will do with "Ben"? It could be twisted, in a very good way.

Soulless impotence. A belated afterbirth of When We Were Kings arrives in the form of Soul Power, a title as yesterday as polyester jackets with wide lapels. The move is as underwhelming as its moniker. Or, to quote Cleveland from Family Guy, "The noise was good but I thought they phoned in a lot of the funk."

A reader responds: "David, re your blog on the R/J economics and Mr. [Sherman] Frederick's not-so-full flight from Austin [Tex.]: I live in Austin and continue to fly to Vegas three or four times a year. Although I usually fly on Thursday, Friday, or Saturday, I've never seen any flight that had more than a handful or middle seats not occupied. Further, the only airline I know of that flies directly (i.e. not stop or one stop w/o change of planes) is Southwest. They have about 8 flights a day that connect to Vegas from Austin. So, yes, I can see how one flight on a Tuesday might not be full. But Austin is a great market for Vegas. Every year Harrah's gives me a handful of coupons for two free nights that I can hand out to friends and people at work. These coupons disappear by 7:00 a.m. when I send out my email to the folks at 6:30. And this is only one office."

Mena Suvari + douchebag = ...

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:00:00 -0700

... just another day at Palazzo. For all you aspiring members of the douchebagerie, study these men and their fashion statement carefully: This is the look-what-the-cat-dragged-in aesthetic that you seek to emulate.

Chintz thy name is ...

Sat, 22 Aug 2009 00:40:00 -0700

... Harrah's Entertainment. We've just returned from the formal opening of Matsuri. The 8 p.m. show started at 8:16, due in no small part to the fact that the Imperial Palace had one usher working the entire showroom. One showroom. One usher. By the time a reinforcement showed up, the damage had been done. (Oh, and the cocktails there are awful. It's enough to give temperance a good name.)

The new Imperial Palace bartender.

Matsuri itself is very good, that rare show which gives real meaning to the baneful phrase, "high energy." It's like all the fun, acrobatic parts of a Cirque du Soleil spectacle minus the fey pretentiousness. Or, as the saying goes, "All killer! No filler!" (Really.) The only regrettable element is Matsuri's playing in a venue that's badly understaffed.

Harrah's Entertainment: Where the customer almost matters.

Abraca - OMFG!

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 11:53:00 -0700

Scarlett, Princess of Magic has settled into her new revue, Scarlett and her Seductive Ladies of Magic, which finally gives me a reason to encourage people to visit the Riviera. The video below is taken from Scartlett's family-friendly V Theater show (long since closed) but many of the same tricks are reprised, on a bigger scale -- and with far less clothing. Her instance, the one-piece has devolved into a 'barely there' red bikini. Make sure your pacemaker is in working order.

There's some incredibly perfunctory toplessness from two assistants/dancers but it's Scarlett who brings the sexy -- and how! If this doesn't work out, she'd make a formidable contestant on Dancing with the Stars, too. I'm no great judge of magic but Scarlett is definitely the most hot-cha Strip headliner not named Marie Osmond. In a classy gesture, Scarlett's former presenter, David Saxe, was at the Riv last night amidst the well-wishers.

As for the Riv itself, corner-cutting is omnipresent, sometimes amusingly so. The post-Scarlett cocktail party featured but a lone plate of bruschetta and some cheese cubes. When they were (quickly) gone, they were gone. The Riv is just hanging on by its fingernails, even if it's not fallen off the cliff yet.

Amazed. It looks like an open-ended run is assured for this afternoon comedy show, highlighted by guitar-playing impressionist Mark Rayburn. (After you've seen him, you'll never take Gordie Brown seriously again.) Tickets are just a wee bit steep for a 2:30 p.m. show, but this is a winner, much better than certain comedy shows which I've seen and/or reviewed recently. I can't recommend it too highly. My more extended impressions of Amazed and Scartlett are due for publication in the near future.

Buffet bulletin. No word yet on whether MGM Grand, Luxor, Excalibur or Stratosphere are reining in their all-day buffet specials. Ben Bernanke's confidence notwithstanding, optimism in Vegas should be tempered with caution ... and price increases probably should not even be contemplated until those downward-trending visitation numbers start heading up for a change. One needn't be an economist to see that Nevada's recovery, when it happens, will be slow in coming.

The juice behind the juice. Could the speedy restoration of Privé's liquor license, following some cosmetic changes in management, have had another motive? Like maybe a precipitate dropoff in Planet Hollywood foot traffic? Xania Woodman reports, you decide.

Goliath gets a clean bill of health.

Goliath adopted? There's a glimmer of hope that little Goliath may soon find a new home. Why then am I so melancholy?

Illinois does it again; Storm over CityCenter

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 15:07:00 -0700

A new law in Illinois that legalizes video poker statewide may have some unforeseen consequences. Namely, video gambling at truck stops throughout the Land of Lincoln. This represents a much bigger expansion than was originally sold to the public. Whenever you think Illinois' casino industry has finally hit bottom and might begin to recover from previous legislative sabotage, it gets pushed off yet another cliff. New casinos licenses may soon be available in Missouri (1) and Iowa (4-5). Riverboat operators in Illinois should seriously consider hoisting anchor and moving across the river.

CityCenter suit. This one alleges basically that MGM Mirage pumped and dumped its stock, and misrepresented its chances of funding CityCenter. The allegations may prove more entertaining than true but they will certainly make lively reading.

Wait Until Dark. If you prefer an evening at the theater to curling up with a lawsuit, you can't go wrong with CSN's presentation of Frederick Knott's 1966 thriller.

Quote of the Day

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 12:15:00 -0700

"The first cty I've been to that really advertises itself as Sin City and it is so 'sin light.' There's a lot of generic sin here -- like, haha, sequins and [breasts] -- which is great. It's cute and everything; it makes a great show on the Strip. But the scene here is really bad, very close-minded." -- YouTube dominatrix Rowynn Eire, interviewed (and censored) by the Las Vegas Sun.

Economic recovery in sight?

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:24:00 -0700

Vegas casino F&B directors seem to think so. From our trusty LVA research department comes word that The Orleans and Mandalay Bay are ending their one-price-all-day buffet specials. Better/worse still, Palace Station is hiking the price of its buffet -- by four bucks. One doesn't know whether to applaud this apparent harbinger of better times ahead or deplore the swift yanking of the "Welcome" mat out from under customers' feet.

Contract talks with magician Lance Burton, you'll recall, went right down to the wire. One possible sticking point? Burton has lost his 10 p.m. slot, which as of today belongs to Frank Caliendo, who'll be doing a 9:30 p.m. show four nights a week.

Good move. Burton's family-friendly act seems an odd fit with the late-show crowd. Besides, Caliendo is on network TV regularly, which Burton isn't. Between this, recruiting musical act Zowie Bowie and rolling out Hotel32, Monte Carlo is making a spirited attempt to stay in the limelight, even as CityCenter looms larger and larger next door.

Study Hall. Just what Nevada needs, another "study" of the tax structure. What's to study? At least 27% of the tax base comes from gaming revenues, which have been in decline for 18 months. A comparable portion comes from retail sales, which have been down two entire years and counting. The problem is obvious but the will to rethink it is rather less in evidence. Here's a hint: We need a plan which is not simply another variant of "Soak the tourists."

Privé: behind the juice; Chucky vs. Jaws; Wynn pages Scalia

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 12:46:00 -0700

Had the Nevada Gaming Control Board not come down upon Planet Hollywood like a hod of bricks, it's entirely probable that Privé would still be up to its scofflaw antics. That's because Clark County has a long history of looking the other way or, at most, administering the occasional love-tap on the wrist. But when Gaming Control lays down a half-million-buck fine, it's kind of hard for Clark County Manager Virginia Valentine's crew to keep their heads in the sand, pretending to be invisible.

Hence the revocation of Privé's license, quickly restored once the Titanic deck chairs were rearranged and the vessel rechristened the Lusitania. I feel much better now, don't you? (It should be noted that there's a sizeable constituency in Las Vegas that thinks the county and NGCB should turn a blind eye and laissesz les bon temps roulez. Hey, why don't we bring back bribery, too? If those officials are going to be ignoring the laws they're charged with enforcing, shouldn't they be compensated for it?)

Kudos to the ever-clever management of Cannery Casino Resorts. They've struck a deal with ESPN to allow simulcast of Monday Night Football on Galaxy Theaters' giant DMAX screen at the original Cannery. The festivities begin on Sept. 14 with a Bills/Patriots and Chargers/Raiders doubleheader. (OK, the nightcap sounds like a real dog, but MNF doesn't get the pick of the litter since moving to cable.)

A 60-foot-tall Terrell Owens? Scary! More worrisome still: Will egomaniac Jon Gruden hog the mike this season, elbowing aside co-analyst Ron Jaworski? Nobody breaks down a play like "Jaws" but will "Chucky" let him get a word in edgewise?

Steve Wynn must be getting a little apprehensive about how Labor Commissioner Michael Tanchek's long-running hearings on tip confiscation will play out. Wynn's benched the able Gregory Kamer, as well as Wynn Resorts' in-house counsel, in favor of Beltway attorney Eugene Scalia. And, yes, his dad is that Scalia. (Does anybody else think the Bush administration passed over Scalia Sr. for Chief Justice in favor of John Roberts because he -- unlike Roberts -- was too contentious to forge majority rulings? Just me? OK.)

Wait Until Dark (@ CSN) obtains tepid praise from the R-J. I saw it last Friday. What's my verdict? Tune in tomorrow!

There's only one Native American currently serving on the federal bench. Might Nevada make it two? Vito de la Cruz, S&G hopes you receive due consideration.

Economic parable: Once upon a time there were two thrift stores in my neighborhood. One, run by Catholic Charities, sold good merchandise. The other, Goodwill, peddled garbage. Guess which one went out of business? It's like the nonprofit version of the Walmart saga.

Greek Isles sold, few care

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 19:23:00 -0700

Vegas' hardest-luck casino changed hands ... again. Short of another irrational spike in off-Strip land valuations, Canpartners Realty Holding Co. IV LLC is never going to see its $67 million again. The Greek Isles is in a dead zone, a block too far north (being a block away from Encore doesn't do you any good if you're on the wrong side of the block) and two blocks too far east.

Ah well, kinda serves Canpartners right for lending $56 million against a property that was never worth but a fraction of that amount. And until Canpartners gets a gaming license and captures the casino revenue, instead of leasing out the space as a big-ass slot route, it might as well buy a Motel 6 instead.

Had enough? You'd think that after spending six of the last eight years being used as a doormat by the opposition, congressional Democrats would be saying, "It's payback time." Not yet. If anything finally gets their back up, it may (ironically) be a President whose desire for comity too often translates into giving the store away.

There are still a few crumbs left upon the table for those of us who are uninsured, afflicted with pre-existing conditions or laboring under onerous co-pays. But that'll probably be bartered away, too, and we'll be left at the mercy of people like this s,o.b. M.D. who says it's a "privilege" to be healthy. So I'm guessing he's not down with that Hippocratic Oath stuff, either, huh?

Hard Rock overextended. Having doubled down on its costly purchase of the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, manager/minority owner Morgans Hotel Group finds itself playing for time with its lenders. Reinventing The Joint proves to have been a good idea; ditto the new convention space -- both are helping to stave off catastrophe.

But it was sheer pigheadedness of Morgans to push ahead with not one but two new hotel towers amid declining ADRs and slippage in occupancy. When Boyd Gaming called a timeout on Echelon (partly due to partner Morgans' fecklessness), it should been a cue to "wrap" the megaresort-sized expansion of the Hard Rock, at least for the time being.

Juice job at Privé

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 18:45:00 -0700

After three weeks of hand-wringing about the closure of Privé and What It All Means, it's back to business as usual in the Las Vegas nightclub scene. In a remarkably prescient analysis of the Privé scandal, reporter (and former nightclub insider) Xania Woodman laid out how it would go down -- as indeed it did.

Basically, it works out as follows: Designate a couple of fall guys, play musical chairs with the myriad ownership entities, hire a lawyer who's swimming in "juice," make a few concessions and -- voila! -- Opium Group, which bears ultimate responsibility for the scandal, is right back in the drivers' seat.

If there's a silver lining, it's that Planet Hollywood -- whose own request to take over Privé was backhanded by Clark County -- isn't left with a defaulted tenant and unpaid bills. That consolation doesn't come cheap. Planet Ho's already out 500 large for allowing Privé to run amuck and it'll have to pony up another 250 grand if it happens again. I've said it elsewhere and I'll say it here: Until somebody's license gets pulled permanently, few in town are likely to clean up their act.

Hey, Greenspun Media! Since when does the birthday party of one of your own reporters merit being pimped on the front page (down, down toward the bottom) of the Las Vegas Sun's Web site? Maybe the Pulitzer committee should rethink that lovely prize they recently bestowed upon you.

Kitty rescue at Caesars; Stingy Station

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 13:43:00 -0700

As we were driving to LVA HQ this morning, we spotted a disoriented-looking little cat running through the Flamingo Rd./I-15 interchange, across from Caesars Palace. We were in a quandary about what to do until it turned and started ambling down the I-15 "on" ramp, heading straight for certain death. I ran down the ramp after it (the kitty's a fast little bugger), scooped it up in one hand and ...

Well, what to do? I am now the custodian of a small, tuxedo-patterned kitten who may be carrying God knows what infections. It's too docile to be a feral cat but it's definitely going to need a new residence. So if anybody reading this can lend a helping hand to a homeless kitty, contact me at dmckee@huntingtonpress.com. I could just plop the wee bairn out in the LVA parking lot, along with our resident strays, but they're all massive and it would be a very Darwinian situation, I fear.

Cheesparing at Station: The formidable Jean Scott has news of some recent and untoward developments at Station Casinos, as the bankrupt company resorts to new "economy" measures. While the Fertitta clan sinks approximately $90 million into Orange County mansions, they're recouping the cost of their poor business decisions out of their customers' hides.

Random observations: Last night, we celebrated my Better Half's birthday, partly at Cadillac Ranch, which seems to have an identity crisis. Its menu is slightly countrified (in a C&W sense), its walls are covered with photos of Baby Boomer rock stars (think Steven Tyler) and the video feed is heavy on hip-hop. Go figure. The root beer float is very good, though. At 10:30, as though by prearranged signal, an incoming tide of douchebags flooded the joint and we split ...

... the classy southern façade of Mandarin Oriental has now been marred by a building wrap, high up on one corner. It's small by building-wrap standards, managing to both spoil the view and look like a timid half-measure ...

... speaking of building wraps, Criss F. Angel has long since been evicted from the eastern façade of Luxor. A new wrap was placed on the northeast corner of Luxor's ancillary hotel, but it's also smallish and -- due to way the hotel's buttresses jut forward -- hard to see if you're driving into Vegas from the south. Then again, if I were MGM Mirage, I'd probably want to downplay with association with the widely ridiculed Mr. Angel, too.

Comedy Quest

Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:26:00 -0700

Having made the rounds of a few laugh lounges lately, I can report that L.A. Comedy Club is not to be sneezed at, especially in its new digs at the Four Queens. However, Tickled Pink, at Planet Hollywood, is one of the more remarkable value propositions in town. Hower, Sin City Comedy Show (not reviewed), also at Planet Ho, manages to be both overpriced and mediocre, and the layout of the room is terrible.

Quote of the Day

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 14:21:00 -0700

"If you did not have a good time tonight, my name is Criss Angel." -- closing remarks by Anthony Cools, who recently unveiled a revamped version of his hypnosis show.

Stanley Ho, ailing monarch

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 12:02:00 -0700

Not many of us make headlines by waking up in the morning and saying something. But when the future of over 50% of Macao's casino market hinges on A) your health and B) your plan of succession, and C) your name is Stanley Ho ... well, it's a big deal. Macau Daily Times is reporting that the elderly Ho is both conscious and articulate. However, it's also saying that he needs further surgery to extricate blood clots from his brain. My suspicion that the gambling oligarch suffered a stroke (or something very close thereto) and not a simple slip-and-fall -- was first reported -- is hardly dispelled by this latest news.

For reasons I was in the midst of outlining last Friday, just before the Big Computer Freeze destroyed it all, we're far from out of the woods on this. Also, the gathering of family members around the patriarch's sickbed is -- due to various business agendas -- somewhere between courtiers hovering around an ailing monarch and vultures circling potential prey.

Alas, all that must go onto the back burner until I deal with some outstanding business that includes reviewing L.A. Comedy Club at the Four Queens and Tickled Pink at Planet Hollywood. We had some extra time before the latter last night to contemplate CityCenter. Whether one likes it or not, it's going to make several nearby properties -- I'm looking at you Monte Carlo and especially New York-New York -- look very antiquated, bordering on tacky. With a few exceptions, the Wynn-initation themed resorts are proving to have surprisingly short shelf lives.

New flavor of Tropicana; M is infectious; Penn is persistent

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 14:05:00 -0700

Alex Yemenidjian has busted out a new logo for his Strip casino:

Hey, it's a start. Still no word on a new evening show for the Tiffany Theater (and somehow I don't think Dirk Arthur is going to cut it as a long-term proposition). Anything being possible, perhaps trademarking a new logo will circumvent that "Tropicana" lease-back clause that Tropicana Entertainment CEO Scott Butera snuck past Yemenidjian ... but the Tropicana Las Vegas had better set aside $2 million just in case.

Success breeds development. With M Resort a smash right of the box, naysayers to the contrary, it's proving to be the catalyst for at least one more casino development. The shrouded-in-mystery Raymond Shapiro project would sit immediately north of M and would -- especially if M's amenities get fully built -- synergize with the additional retail/amusement development that are in M's plans.

Industry wisdom, validated by experience, maintains that casinos do better when clustered -- and the Anthony Marnell III and proposed Shapiro properties might even get Gary Goett's long-stalled Olympia Gaming project out of its holding pattern. (It would be on the opposite site of Las Vegas Boulevard from the Shapiro parcel, closer to I-15.)

The loser in all of this is Station Casinos' stuck-in-limbo Inspirada casino project. By the time both that and the master-planned community upon which it was predicated are ready to go, Shapiro and Goett could be as firmly entrenched as Marnell. But, in this lending climate, the operative phrase for any casino proposal remains, "Show me the money."

Penn to locals: "Screw you." For execs at Penn National Gaming, fortifying themselves against competition from in nearby counties supersedes the good will of their constituency. In Jefferson County, home to Charles Town Races & Slots, voters rejected a request for table games in a 2007 vote that went 56%/44% against Penn.

Undeterred, Penn is going to get back in voters' grille this November, it appears, by dint of either the Nov. 7 ballot or a special election a month later. According to J.P. Morgan analysts, the Jefferson electorate is pondering zoning restrictions "to slow down the influx of people from the greater Washington, D.C. area and the conversion of farms to subdivisions." If that's indeed the temper of the neighborhood, Penn's persistence in trying to drive more traffic into the area seems perverse ... if understandable from a dollars-and-cents standpoint.

Get 'em while they're young

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 15:04:00 -0700

One of the Atlantic City Hilton's most valued players was a 19-year-old from Brooklyn. This baby whale was sufficiently lucrative to the Colony C(r)apital property that he received a comped stay and qualified as a "rated player."

Better still, A.C. Hilton execs allowed him to keep playing even after they'd been tipped off to his juniority. Nice work! Step right up, Colony, and collect your reward -- a $115K fine from the New Jersey Casino Control Commission. Apparently the Hilton simply took the youngster's word that he was old enough to gamble before handing him the keys to kingdom.

Colony may be able to buy casinos but it sure as shooting can't run 'em. Frank Fertitta III may not have been the best monarch of Station Casinos but, compared to majority owners Colony, it's another case where the one-eyed man is king in the land of the blind.

One sings, the other doesn't (quite): Not only is Ali Spuck's new Liberace Museum show a real value proposition at $15/ticket but, hot damn, she's Spucktastic. As for Charo in Concert: A Musical Sensation, at the Riviera, it's something for everyone but not that much for anyone. Although Charo "goes to 11" on the Camp-o-Meter, gay audiences (and Baby Boomers, too) seem likelier to flock to Spuck.

Bleary blogger: My apologies for the disappointing blogorrhea of late. I've been immersed in a crash course on the crash-and-burn of Russia's casino industry (R.I.P.). Throw in some computer troubles and I'd conservatively estimate I'm three days behind the rest of the gaming world.

Douchebags on parade

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 16:06:00 -0700

With a crowd like this ...

... is it any wonder that The Rio's Sapphire Pool became a PR catastrophe (complete with rogues' gallery)?

Too bad that Bloomberg News doesn't permit its video reports to be embedded. Credit Suisse analyst Gabriel Chan gives an interesting, fact-packed report on Macao. It's a somewhat long interview segment, but stay with it because the good stuff comes near the end. That's where Chan explains why Stanley Ho is able to build a new casino for only $200 million and how come the much-hyped relaxation of visa restrictions is still at least four months away.

Harrah's little oopsie

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 18:23:00 -0700

Looking for the Sapphire Pool at The Rio, perchance? Well, if you're Web surfing, surf's out:

Nicht gefunden? That's right: No blow, pot or meth, no hookers and no stripper poles. Truth be told, what's been alleged to have gone down at Sapphire Pool is as nothing compared to the reputation The Rio had prior to Harrah's Entertainment's 'geriatrification' of the property -- one of then-CEO Phil Satre's worst business decisions. However, if that's as bad a calcutation as Satre made, it shows how poorly his successor has done in comparison.

(Hey, Harrah's ... two meth scandals in a week? You're leaving the competition in the, uh, dust.)

From the mind of Madison ...

How did we ever get by before the advent of Twitter? Without it, we might never have been vouchsafed the following pensées of Peepshow headliner Holly Madison, rendering Western Civilization that much the poorer:

getting McDonald's before tattoo removal . . ouch!11:19 AM Jul 29th from mobile web
i had a hamburger with Big Mac sauce and fries with bbq sauce. now i am at dentist1:26 PM Jul 29th from mobile web

To Charo or not?

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 15:55:00 -0700

Are you wondering whether it's worth forking over 50 or more of your increasingly hard-earned dollars to see Charo in Concert: A Musical Sensation at the Riviera? This video (or "bideo" in Charo's Castillian lisp) is sufficiently representative that it tells you more than could any review:

The show's second half is given over to a five-song set with Charo on guitar. Does she have mad guitar skillz? Is she a Guitar Heroine? The twin "bideo" screens in the showroom maintain a constant closeup of her fingerwork, allowing you to decide for yourself. One might hope that cute little Manolo puts in an appearance, but alas ... no bull.

Case Bets: Hard Rock, Puck, Station, Greek Isles

Wed, 29 Jul 2009 18:55:00 -0700

Morgans Hotel Group has never seemed able to make up its mind about what to do with the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino (one of the stranger acquisitions of recent years). Then-CEO Ed Scheetz came in talking big about classing the place up and raising ADRs. Fast-forward to '09 and the HRH is staking everything on its skanky Rehab parties (does the staff have to don hazmat suits when cleaning up afterwards?) and going for the mid-price market midweek.

One can't fault the latter half of that strategy, especially if you're in an off-Strip location and could use the traffic. However, if Morgans goal was to increase Hard Rock ADRs, perhaps it shouldn't have embarked on a ginormous expansion that practically obliterates Peter Morton's original hotel and dilutes the asking price per room. Also, I don't know whether to praise Morgans for doing the impossible and completing (sort of) its Paradise Tower well ahead of schedule ... or criticize it for being in such a hurry to churn some EBITDA that it's opening it in an unfinished state.

But here's hoping the business model works. The HRH is one of the few places in town that's hiring, not downsizing. At lot of people's jobs are riding on its success.

One less Wolfgang Puck restaurant on the Strip? That's hardly a culinary tragedy, given that he's still got -- what? -- five other places in town and has become the Ronald McDonald of haute cuisine. A laughable poster in McCarran International Airport uses Puck's visage to push the message, "Less celebrity, more chef." Uh, better put that the other way 'round.

The real tragedy here (aside from the loss of jobs) is the temporary demise of Poetry, one of the few venues in town to cater to an upscale African-American clientele. Harrah's Entertainment and the Forum Shops went out of their way to put the dagger in Poetry. Now they congratulate themselves on a job well done. Thanks for nothing, fellas.

Bondholders finally lost patience with Station Casinos, tripping the bankruptcy lever. Interestingly, all Station casinos (small "c") are shielded -- which implies that it's Station's imperial expansion plans which are are shot and that its considerable real estate holdings could be up for grabs. It looks like über-resort Viva, long-suffering Durango Station, Losee Station and umpteen other projects are kaput.

Too bad for Station partner Colony Capital; if the latter goes forward with its Neverland Ranch tourist-trap plans, it may have to disassemble the old Michael Jackson Xanadu and relocate it, lock, stock and menagerie. And what does/did Station have in abundance? Raw land. It was a marriage made in businss heaven but it surely won't reach the altar now.

Speaking of suffering, what's back on the auction block but the Greek Isles, which is $23 million underwater. Even at a revised valuation of $44 million, isn't that far too much to ask for this unremittingly unsuccessful property, the second coming of the Castaways? Perhaps it's time to exorcise this ghost which haunts the dead zone that is Convention Center Drive.

The best show in Vegas

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 13:27:00 -0700

It's Las Vegas Little Theatre's The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. But it only plays one more weekend -- so make haste!

Signs of the Times

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 12:27:00 -0700

Caesars Palace's jumbotron was hawking a poker "tournement [sic]" as of last night. Having an ex-Harvard boffin at the helm evidently doesn't raise a company's I.Q. level. You half-expect that sort of spelling gaffe on the marquee at Terrible's; at Caesars, not so much.

It was wall-to-wall people at the Golden Nugget last night. Which goes to show that a scarifyingly depopulated Riviera on Monday night was not indicative of some citywide malaise. (What it bodes for the Riv is less than reassuring, however.) Nugget owner Tilman Fertitta is really packing them in -- at least in terms of bodies, if not dollars -- particularly the retirees. If Anthony Newley shout-outs are your thing, you'll love headliner Gordie Brown.

Thumbs down, however, to some price-gouging we encountered at The Grille, the Nugget's fast-food joint. Two bucks gets you a soda -- in a thimble. And don't be goin' askin' fer no refills, buckaroo, 'cause they're ain't none. Just skedaddle now afore somebody takes a brandin' iron to yer hide, tenderfoot.

"Link" to Nowhere

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 13:49:00 -0700

On and off, over a four-year period, Harrah's Entertainment teased journalists (and, by extension, the public) with hints of a really big project to be announced really soon ... whenever they got around to it, that is. Well, the Harrah's mountain hath labored and produced ... a mouse.

"Project Link" isn't without virtues, even if they're largely negative ones. It isn't another high-end, multi-billion-dollar megaresort. It's not a budget-buster, period. It's not über-expensive food and retail. And it does entail giving modest facelifts to a couple of Harrah's tattier Strip properties: O'Shea's would lose its faux-Dublin façade and the Imperial Palace's Strip frontage (and pagoda roof) would be supplanted with what appear to be enormous LED screens.

It also acknowledges what's long been one of the problems of Harrah's consolidation of the east side of the Strip into one ginormous province. Namely, that to redevelop it in any significant way would involve taking one or more of a string of multi-story cash registers out of business. True, you could start from the back, maybe knock down the IP first, but at some point push comes to shove and a major cash-flow-producing Strip casino (most likely Harrah's Las Vegas) would have to give way. In a sense, the real estate was already too lucrative to be redeveloped.

Arrival at this plan involved acknowledging certain factors that should have been obvious long before CEO Gary Loveman went on a buying spree. For instance, that MGM Mirage/Wynn Resorts-scale megaresorts are a low-ROI proposition. Or that such a creation might impinge on business at ever-growing Caesars Palace. (It never ceases to amaze me that Harrah's spends hundreds of thousands of dollars to determine what, say, Hunter Hillegas could tell them for free.)

Of course, any new resort built in Lovemanville wouldn't have to be high-end/low-return. That's just the industry group-think of our day; that you "justify" the land's cost by superimposing a hella expensive megaresort atop it, then justify that outlay by charging prices that relatively few can afford.

The notion of luring pedestrians off the Strip and down a multi-dogleg side street is an untested notion. Give Harrah's points for thinking outside the box here. It'll mean getting Vegas visitors to break ingrained habits but it could eventually stimulate further off-Strip development.

For all I know, it could be Gary Loveman's longstanding fantasy to own a 600-foot Ferris wheel with an (at least) 200-foot "HARRAH'S" logo lighting up the night sky. But do I believe this is what he had in mind when he supervised the purchase of vast tracts of Koval Lane real estate at top dollar? Not for a moment. Especially not when you consider he's been sweeping it clean of low-rise housing developments that might otherwise have been of income-producing use.

Now, like Gershwin's Porgy, he's got plenty of nuhtin' and nuthin's plenty for him. His projected Ferris wheel will be sitting (as you can see from the rendering) smack in the middle of a wasteland, a void, a whole lotta nowhere. At least the circus can pitch its tents there the next time it comes to town.

It's harder still to believe that this (mini-)master plan was concocted two years ago and kept under wraps until now ... unless it was a before-the-fact, low-budget, "Well, we've got to do something" concession to the development-crippling effect of the LBO. Even so, secrets just aren't that well kept in this town.

Then again, it often seems if Loveman himself does not know what Loveman has in mind. Take for instance, his recent contention that building a Strip megaresort was too big a risk for Harrah's. Not compared to taking on $24 billion in LBO debt it wasn't. And you could build a megaresort and a half for the $5 billion in company value Loveman recently wrote off.

The biggest threat to Project Link may be Loveman -- or rather his short-attention-span style of leadership. While some cunning master plan may be apparent to his inner circle, the leitmotif of Loveman's tenure as CEO has been to jitterbug spastically from one short-lived initiative to another.

Having gotten right up to the threshhold of having to decide what to do with Lovemanville, his trigger finger grew weak. He pulled a U-turn and flung Harrah's into the arms of Texas Pacific Group and Apollo Management, a move with disastrous consequences. (Especially for the consumer, as TPG/Apollo's plan was to gut the company all along.) At least it had the short-term benefit of sparing beloved local institution Battista's Hole in the Wall from Loveman's bulldozers. As with his jihad against revenue-participation games like Wheel of Fortune, Loveman often seems oblivious or (far more likely) indifferent to what customers like or want.

In the two years or so it will require for Project Link to obtain startup capital, the odds are considerably better than 50-50 that Loveman will have lost interest and moved on to something else. If he doesn't, it would be a very pleasant surprise.

Strike!

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 11:47:00 -0700

Under CEO Gary Loveman's leadership, Harrah's Entertainment keeps tripping over its own feet. In the latest development, management's foot-dragging approach to negotiating with Atlantic City casino dealers and slot technicians has resulted in pro-strike votes at two casinos. Caesars slot technicians, in fact, voted unanimously in favor of striking (at some undetermined future date). The dealer votes were 92% in favor at Bally's Atlantic City and 97% "aye" at Caesars Atlantic City. Legislation currently before the U.S. Senate could turn up the heat under Harrah's considerably.

Closer to Harrah's HQ, this morning's drive-by of The Rio suggests that the corporate motto is, "Maintenance? What's that?" Not only does the paint continue to peel off the older Rio tower, which is starting to look outwardly seedy, but a big sign for Fuego continues to adorn the marquee, even though the club closed weeks ago. Expect giant cobwebs to cover the property any day now.

Jeff Beacher and his crazy critters are making trouble again, this time in Florida. Seems cops had to take down an Oompa Loompa in Beacher's employ.

Quote of the Day

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 11:00:00 -0700

"I’m glad he’s keeping young and fresh somewhere, given what he eats when he’s at the Hard Rock" -- a reader's reaction to the news that Carlos Santana was "keeping young and fresh on his current tour in Europe." When in residence at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Santana favors a diet of chicken-fried steak and eggs.

Trop makes a move

Fri, 17 Jul 2009 18:03:00 -0700

Impressionist Rich Natole has been calling around, letting media people know that his next two performances of Voices of a Generation at the Harmon Theater will be his last. He's set to reopen at the Tropicana Las Vegas on Aug. 1, with a 2 p.m. show. He'll be sharing the space with Trop headliner Bobby Slayton, who holds down the evening slot. It looks like the winds of change are finally blowing in the Trop's favor.

Vegas (isn't the only place that) needs Carmen Electra

Fri, 17 Jul 2009 14:51:00 -0700

Occasionally, S&G readers allow me to share their off-list bon mots with the general public. Such is the case with one Pacific Rim-based gentlewoman who's familiar with the sights and sounds of Macao. Evidently, it's a place where voluptuousness is craved all the more for being in short supply. Hence, the gyrations of a certain Carmen Electra at Crazy Horse Paris prompted this sage observation:

"Macau sure could do with some of this type of sizzle"

No doubt ... but we need Ms. Electra here. (And aren't you gents glad S&G was given a non-gratutious rationale to post yet another photo of Carmen?)

On a serious note, the Electra guest gig stirred up local media "buzz" far out of proportion to its duration. In terms of oomph for the buck, it's given the Holly Madison push at Planet Hollywood a serious run for its money: more evidence that stars are born, not fabricated. Whatever one thinks of Ms. Electra's troubled personal life, she's a "stage creature" and Vegas could use a few more right now.

Supporting the troops. Big ups to the El Cortez for giving $15 dining credits to active-duty servicemen (and women) at its Café Cortez and Flame steakhouse. Our military is grossly underpaid for guarding our liberties (such as appreciating Carmen Electra), so anything the casino industry does by way of a "thank you" deserves S&G's salute.

If you're in the Reno area and are an aficianado of the stellar cable TV service known as Cinemax, I consider it my civic duty to alert you to the following fact: Monique Parent (aka "The Thinking Man's Sex Symbol") will be spokesmodeling -- or something of that ilk -- at a Reno-area Costco next week.

Among the prolific Parent's many titles is the Citizen Kane of erotic films, Play Time ... or so they tell me. <cough> So if you've admired Ms. Parent's fine, wry thesping in Dark Secrets or The Key to Sex, stop by and show your gratitude.

Just a suggestion.

Case Bets: F'bleau, Adelson, Oscar

Fri, 17 Jul 2009 14:03:00 -0700

Whether it's the banks or the subcontractors, somebody's going to take a big screwing at Fontainebleau. That's the nub of a new lawsuit, whereby developer Jeffrey Soffer asserts that Turnberry West Construction (which he also owns) has superior repayment rights to those of the project's backers.

I believe this is called, "One hand washes the other." However, the legal issues involved make fascinating reading. Some new-to-Vegas casino developers have screwed the pooch and eventually come out smelling like roses (Sheldon Adelson, for one). I don't Soffer's going to make into that elite club. And you can forget about Big Bleau opening before July 1, 2010, at the very least.

Speaking of Sheldon ... results at his new Sands Bethlehem continue to disappoint. Adelson's tradition of half-assing his casino openings, dribbling the product onto the market, may finally be catching up with him. Marina Bay Sands should be the acid test of this managerial style. (Personally, I believe it's going to be Adelson's Waterloo, at least to the extent that the casino is expected to drive everything else.)

Sands Macao: Sheldon's best bet

Ironically, it was the comparatively "quick and dirty" Sands Macao, built for considerably less than any other Adelson casino, that has been his biggest hit. The cost-to-date of Sands Bethlehem, by the way, has been revised downward to $675 million (from $743 million), which ought to help the ROI numbers. However, early predictions that Sands Bethelehem was going to siphon business from the Philadelphia area were clearly unrealistic and should have been reported with greater skepticism.

Berzon: caped crusader

Truth, justice and the American way have one less champion in the Las Vegas area now that Pulitzer Prize-winning Alexandra Berzon has been hired by the Wall Street Journal. Good for Berzon, better still for the WSJ. But who will keep a gimlet eye on OSHA enforcement and the CityCenter clusterfuck now? (And she was moving into gaming coverage, too ... the prospect of a Berzon/Liz Benston/Rick Velotta trifecta would have dwarfed all other casino reportage in this burg.) With the loss of Berzon and editor Drex Heikes, the Las Vegas Sun is suddenly in a world of hurt.

Oscar gets whacked. Somebody's fantasy, anyway. (Were there any thumbless graffiti taggers in the house? Homeless advocates? Civil libertarians?) Hizzoner was the celeb-victim at the reopening of Marriage Can Be Murder in its new digs at Fitzgeralds. MCBM recently left the Four Queens and a good move it was, seeing as the 4Q is at risk of being evicted. Movie veteran Goodman (Casino) evidently forgot whatever he learned from The Master (aka Martin Scorcese) and didn't hit his "mark."

As for MCBM, a dinner-theatre show, I can't say it compared favorably with the ones we did at Grinnell Community Theater. I was the "juvenile lead" in several shows there and humbly submit that our gung-ho amateur troupe could have done better. Hey, we "killed" with Ten Nights in a Barroom. That thing could have run for six months, easily.

Case Bets: Midnight Jim, Sands, "Peepshow", Hard Rock, Reid

Thu, 16 Jul 2009 12:50:00 -0700

Chronic ineptitude by Nevada's governor is endless fodder for comedy (like entrusting your re-election campaign to the former marketing director of a ski resort and political novice.)

But it also has perilous consequences. For instance, his thoughtless decision to pack the Nevada Gaming Commission with lawyers now threatens to hamstring the board. Jane Ann Morrison details how new Commissioner Joe Brown had to abstain from 24% of last month's votes. Seems he had conflict-of-interest issues with a couple of miniscule slot houses called Station Casinos and Harrah's Entertainment. Whoops. Brown's is the most egregious problem but it's hardly the only one.

Most of Jim Gibbons' appointments to the NGC and the Nevada Gaming Control Board have been solid but this was a real boner and somebody up in Carson City should have seen it coming.

Midnight Jim discovers Facebook. He also learns the need to think before you "friend." He sure won't be getting Bill Raggio's vote next year.

Rescue may be at hand for the beautiful and historic Boulder Dam Hotel, thanks to a mysterious benefactor. As for recent arrival Shear Madness, not so much. I hear that the "interactive" show may not have been interactive enough to ride the Vegas wave of Marriage Can Be Murder and Tony 'n Tina's Wedding.

In case you missed it ... Apparently eager to stanch the flow of exiting executives, Las Vegas Sands has given Rob Golstein a promotion to senior VP. The new title comes with a $535,000 raise. For those of you keeping score at home, that's $2,758 for each of the 194 workers Sands just pink-slipped.

Bean out, O'Day in: The producers of Peepshow are, more than anything else, great at generating publicity. It's official that Shoshana Bean will be supplanted in late summer by Playboy cover girl Aubrey O'Day. It sounds as though Bean was plugged into the cast on very short notice (with seven days or fewer of rehearsal), lending credence to the reports that Mel B.'s disappearing act came as an unpleasant surprise to the erstwhile Scary Spice. At present, Bean is the best thing Peepshow has going. How unfortunate it was but a brief fling. Shoshana, we barely knew ya.

Rushing in where angels fear to tread, Morgans Hotel Group will open 490 more Hard Rock Hotel rooms on July 27, well ahead of schedule. The timing seems odd but Morgans and financier/hostage DLJ Merchant Partners have to make their rash of expansions at the HRH start turning a buck.

Reid safe at home. The window of opportunity for unseating Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) is closing fast. Thanks to Reid's support of assault weapons, the National Rifle Association has got his back. Avowed challenged Sharron Angle is woefully short of cash, while GOP dream candidate Rep. Dean Heller has even less financial traction. If Reid's unpopularity with the home crowd makes him a low-hanging piñata, the GOP just keeps flailing at empty air.

It's lonely in the bunker; Luxor gets its groove on

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:35:00 -0700

Two resignations made the news today. First, the publicist for Criss F. Angel took a hike. Given the choice between the much-reviled Angel and unlikely rising star (and reportedly much, much nicer person) Holly Madison, Fantasy flack John Flynn left the sinking Angel ship.

With Guy Laliberté literally fleeing to outer space, defenders of Angel and his Believe debacle are growing fewer and fewer. (Hey, Cirque du Soleil, keep the title and redo the show as a Cher tribute. It can only be an improvement.)

"Would the last person to leave my office please turn out the lights?"

In an unrelated but symbolically parallel development, yet another high-ranking staffer has joined the exodus from the office of Gov. Jim Gibbons. Departing exec Mindy Elliott managed to drag Midnight Jim into yet another scandal when she persuaded the Gibber to exert influence on behalf of Boyd Gaming in a dispute with state OSHA. Unfortunately, the state's burgeoning jobless population will now have to deal with Elliott in her new role as head of the Dept. of Employment, Training & Rehabilitation. Is this a case of "failing upward"? "Sideways"?

Luxor? Sexy?!? It seems that the answer is, "Yes," judging by this creative marketing ploy: "Singles in Sin City." People come to Vegas to hook up, however briefly, so why not A) organize a promotion around it and B) class things up a bit? The four packages are, in ascending order of sexytime, "Get a Room," "Get Lucky," "PDA" and "The Player."

Well, it sure beats "First Base," "Second Base," etc., no? (If the funky vocal stylings of Robin Thicke don't make you want to get busy, nothing will.) And with the Strip currently floundering in disgrace -- and deservedly so -- Luxor's promotion is high heavens above, for instance, the cattle call that is Rehab at the Hard Rock Hotel. When they (foolishly, IMO) bought the place, Morgans Hotel Group claimed they were going to go upscale. Instead, by all accounts, they dove headfirst into the deep end of the cesspool.

Quote of the Day

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:25:00 -0700

"As they say at the Goodyear plant, [Carmen] Electra is hot like a new set of radials on August asphalt. I don’t know that they say that, actually, but they should …" -- Las Vegas Sun columnist Jon Katsilometes on Ms. Electra's closing-night star turn in Crazy Horse Paris, at MGM Grand.

To blog or not to blog?

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:52:00 -0700

That is the question for today. It's not the larger, existential question of whether the opinions of one curmudgeonly blogger amount to a hill of beans in this world, especially when even the village idiot has a cyber-soapbox.

No, it's a more practical quandary. My cup runneth over with prospective topics -- and with pending deadlines. To wit, a theatre review and a news story for the July 23 CityLife, reviews to stockpile for Mike Shackleford's forthcoming WizardOfVegas.com Web site, three Question of the Day topics, and a revision of an old article I wrote for Washington National Opera in the wayback.

Say ... one of the QoDs upon which I'm working asks for instances of complaints about Harrah's Entertainment. Care to chip in? You'll be duly credited (or not, if you prefer). Actually, the back pages of S&G have been a marvelous source of information on this topic, due in no small part to your contributions. Actor Ben Browder (Stargate SG-1) says that the most important element of any story is the audience. That goes double for S&G.

Also, in the (I hope) very near future, there will be some original S&G reportage on labor negotiations at Caesars Palace, among other topics. In the meantime, I have a week of GamingFloor.com to catch up with, plus wrapping my brain around LinkedIn and Facebook, when there's a moment to spare. Given the exponentially faster advance of technology (compared to say, 1965), I can but conclude that it's a Star Trek world and we're just living in it ... long and prosperously, one hopes.

In the meantime, if the blogorrhea is less generous than average, I beg your indulgence.

All-Star Game: Not much to say about it, other than its relative brevity was merciful. (Never saw so much first-pitch swinging in my life.) Contrary to expectation, the most interesting aspect was the usually tiresome pre-game extravaganza. Sheryl Crow gave a master class in how the National Anthem should be sung and President Obama threw a rainbow curve the likes of which I haven't seen since the heyday of Sid Fernandez.

And it did bring a lump to my throat to see our nation's first black president shaking hands with Bob Gibson and Lou Brock, venerated figures in the Cardinal-worshiping McKee family and two players whose prime coincided with the apex of the Civil Rights movement in the U.S. I'd love to know how much Brock and Gibson think our country has advanced since then. Oh, and Tim McCarver was actually bearable. Wonders never cease.

Vegas needs Carmen Electra

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 11:10:00 -0700

There's a sentence I never thought I'd live to type. But after seeing Ms. Electra bumping and grinding, and generally giving her all to a pair of solo turns in MGM Grand's otherwise fembot-oriented La Femme aka Crazy Horse Paris ~~Crazy Girls~~, this woman definitely deserves a modest venue where she can bring the raunch to the Strip on a regular basis. True, her routines were not always spot-on and her dirigible-size funbags could use some deflation (although we're not quite in the Holly Madison league of grotesquerie). But she's got animal magnetism that would have been wasted as Mel B.'s sidekick or Hans Klok's beard.

As The Sun chronicled: "Carmen's naked antics make MEL B's appearance in rival Vegas burlesque revue, Peepshow, look tame in comparison."

That they did.

Wynn degraded. Analysts at J.P. Morgan are downplaying their expectations for Wynn Resorts, particularly in Macao. There, Morgan has shaved $11 million off its cash flow projections for 2Q09. Slipping REVPAR (if -28% is a "slip"), low slot handle and "flat table volumes" are blamed.

On the Strip, Morgan only expects minor softness (to the tune of -$4 million) in Wynncore business. Cash flow projections for next year have been trimmed by $9 million in Vegas and $30 million, as the analysts have modest expectations of Encore Macau. The Morgan analysands remain bullish on Las Vegas Sands, though. Somewhere, Sheldon Adelson is having a moment of gless.

Back from Michigan

Mon, 13 Jul 2009 01:25:00 -0700

With the cats fed and their indiscretions cleaned up, I can report that I have just returned from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, land of indescribable scenic beauty and intermittent Internet access. I spent the better part of five days in the bosom of a truly wonderful -- and big -- family, and only one did I hear the dreaded words, "Michael Jackson." And, lemme tell ya, the annual Pioneer Days fireworks display in Negaunee, Mich., put Las Vegas' most recent Fourth of July shoot 'em up to shame.

Along with souvenirs, I also brought home a nasty cold, so I beg your indulgence as a I get back up to speed. While on the subject of bacteria, I see that "Johnny Casino" has dragged his dad, ex-Circus Circus coporate ringmaster Mike Ensign, into his increasingly sordid sex-fund scandal. Oh, and S&G was way ahead of Huffington Post on this angle. As my U.P. pal Sydney Dorow would say, "Score!"

Wynn vs. Dealers: The final (?) round of the tip-confiscation controversy played out last week. The Transport Workers Union is right about one thing for sure: If Wynn Resorts prevails, its policy will spread like wildfire throughout the state.

Peepshow 2.0: The second time's the charm. As for nearby After the Show, how much you like it will probably be in direct proportion to how many drinks you've had.

Blood: The Last Vampire: Internet responsive to this Chinese-Argentinian-French sanguinary spectacle has been universally derisive. So, wouldn't you know, I liked it.

Off to Michigan

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:04:00 -0700

If you notice an attenuation in the S&G blogorrhea, it's because I'm taking a view days to visit terra incognita: the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I'll be spending an extended weekend in the bucolic environs of the greater Marquette area. And, if I start to climb the walls, I might even poke my snout into the nearest tribal casino.

I'll be in a neck of the woods that doesn't have cable TV, which will provide needed respite from the two most tiresome "news" obsessions of the moment: anything and everything related to Michael Jackson, and the hidden meaning in the convoluted locutions of Sarah Palin. Whatever her virtues, the Great Communicator she ain't. (For unimprovable concision, my favorite American president is Calvin Coolidge, he who said, "The business of America is business." A political philosophy in six words. Hard to beat.)

City slicker that I am, I'm sure I'll stick out like a sore thumb in towns like Ishpeming. Sort of like a dog nursing a cocktail ...

So whose leg do I have to hump to get a dry martini up there?

House of wax

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:05:00 -0700

I call your bluff, comrade. As you may have heard, casinos in Russia can stay open by converting to poker rooms. A tip of the fedora goes to reader mike_ch for pointing out this story, which delineates some of the pros and cons. In Vegas, even the strongest poker rooms don't generate nearly the body count that table games and slots do. But Russian casinos are much smaller and at least a few might be able to hang on, depending on the size of the rake.

It's mighty big of the Kremlin, by the way, to concede that poker is a sport, not a game of chance. Now if only Uncle Sam would do the same ...

Rescue the Riv! Random observation from driving down Las Vegas Boulevard last night: The Riviera suddenly looks so much better and more classic when juxtaposed with the incredible bulk that is Fontainebleau. Land values have fallen, RIV stock is worthless and the property itself provides ready access to the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Time, methinks, for Penn National to get off its duff and make an offer ... unless Penn CEO Peter Carlino is waiting for the Riviera to go into bankruptcy, so he can pluck the carcass at auction. Then again, if Carlino really thinks that Planet Hollywood and some or all of Station Casinos are low-hanging fruit, who am I to second-guess him?

Who's the dummy? The purpose of our excursion was to attend an incredibly pointless media event at Madame Tussauds at The Venetian. If there was a point, it was so that the assembled media hordes would serve as extras for yet another episode of Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D List. A waxwork of Ms. Griffin was being unveiled and suffice it to say that Wax!Griffin looks far better than Real!Griffin. (I must be Officially Jaded, for I scarcely gave the comedienne a second glance.) The various and sundry female impersonators on hand -- led by Frank Marino -- had clearly taken greater care of their appearances than Griffin had of hers. There was, in fact, just about every stripe of LGBT humanity on hand last night, so it was almost more Rainbow Coalition than media event.

What excitement there was went on outside, where a smallish crowd surrounded the Michael Jackson statue. Tributes were in evidence but everything was tasteful and no hysteria was to be seen. As for Mme. Tussauds itself, I've been to the original one in London, and I recall its wax figures as being more believable and the setting itself as more atmospheric (especially the tableaux of infamous British homicides and regicides) ... but that was 35 years ago this month.

Give Vegas Tussauds props for having a Joan Rivers dummy who looks more animated than her real-life counterpart, as seen on the NBC sitcom Celebrity Apprentice. All that's missing is to give the waxwork Rivers a voice box that periodically squawks, "A pokuh playah! A pokuh playah!" Still, we easily spent more time checking out the doodads and gizmos in Brookstone than we did in the wax museum.

"Peep" who?

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 11:47:00 -0700

An S&G source says that an L.A.-based PR firm is putting it about that Aubrey O'Day, late of insta-band Danity Kane, will shortly be replacing Holly Madison in Peepshow ... but that the local ABC-TV affiliate reported Ms. O'Day would be supplanting newly arrived Shoshana Bean. All I know of O'Day is what I've seen in Playboy -- and at least her implants are considerably less grotesque than Madison's. Don't sit in the VIP area or they'll put your eye out.

Atlantic City strip tease; Sheldon sacks the help, etc.

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:37:00 -0700

Unfortunately, it does not involve some Cinemax hottie like Kim Dawson but rather Mayor Lorenzo Langford, who's doing a fan dance involving Bader Field. He's had discussions with interested developers -- too interesting to discuss! He'll have "exciting" revelations -- too exciting to reveal! And it will -- brace yourselves -- "have some connection with casino gaming."

Why, you could knock me over with a feather.

Right-sized into oblivion. The workforce at Palazzo-Venetian has fallen below 7,000 with yesterday's purge of 194 employees. "It's an effort to continue to right-size our business," wailed the company. Geez, if they're so intent on trimming the ship, how 'bout asking for a give-back from their $2 Million Man, President Michael A. Leven?

Sands bombs in Bethlehem. Forget those roseate cash-flow projections Sheldon Adelson made when building Pennsylvania's second-most-expensive casino. Revenues at Sands Bethlehem have been in a steady decline since the place opened, reducing it to the #5 casino in the Keystone State.

Primm and proper. Although Sin City Kitties has closed (sniff!), there's still reason aplenty to visit the Herbst Gaming trio of casinos in Primm, Nev., Liz Benston contends. Most of those reasons entail copious freebies ... or at least bargain-basement prices.

The story doesn't mention the single most interesting phenomenon I've observed out there: a higher-than-[Strip]-average number of African-American and Latino players (it's the most integrated casino floor I've set foot upon). But Benston's look-in makes a strong case for those of us who think Herbst CEO Ferenc Szony is the man to turn these places around.

The money quote is from Szony's man in Primm, General Manager Michael Starr, who says, "I have yet to make money on a vacant room in this business." There's but a few CEOs in Vegas who couldn't stand to have that chiseled into their bedroom wall so that it's the first thing they see in the morning and the last thing at night. Those are words of wisdom, Mr. Starr. Long may you flourish.

There's theatre in Vegas. True, you have to poke around behind the dodgy Sportsman's Royal Manor on Boulder Highway to find it sometimes. But the trip to the dark side is definitely worthwhile.

The Trop heist that wasn't

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:49:00 -0700

"An improvident indictment." That's what New Jersey officials are calling a case that was quietly quashed in May. Sacked Borgata veep John Conklin and two other men had been charged with plundering the Tropicana Atlantic City's database when they were in the Trop's employ (and when the Trop was still owned by Aztar Corp.).

Closer examination revealed that nothing had been purloined and the data in question was not particularly sensitive, either. All three indictees have been exonerated ... but where does John Conklin go to get his career back?

Phantom redux: Defying the odds, the Venetian's production of Phantom of the Opera celebrated its third anniversary Wednesday night. I jotted down a few observations for CityLife. (Tina Walsh fans, take note.) Having seen the Broadway production -- albeit many years ago -- I'll be the first to allow that it actually improves on the original in a respect or two. Oh, and my CityBlog entry misspells choreographer Gillian Lynne's last name. My apologies.

Two titans of American popular music "played Vegas" last weekend. Actually, Loretta Lynn was in North Las Vegas and Aretha Franklin all the way out in Primm ... not remotely near the Strip. What's wrong with this picture? Or this one ...

Midnight Jim: taking down Big Oil

It's summer and gas prices are -- like, duh! -- on the increase. Gov. Jim Gibbons doth suspect that dark, foul, untoward schemes are afoot. But Midnight Jim assures us he is on the case. I feel safer already.

Gay cowboys. They're queer, they're here and they're at The Rio specifically. A straight-gay coalition turned out in force last night to celebrate its victory over Midnight Jim's benighted opposition to domestic partnerships. (Because that's not how he rolls, y'see.) Speakers included Harrah's Entertainment Vice President Jan Jones, who led the charge on Carson City.

For all the failings of CEO Gary Loveman's stewardship of Harrah's, on his watch the company has expanded its already-enlightened attitude on social issues. It's not just a question of being gay-friendly; it's good business.

Worth -$23 million?

Isle of Blight. Is the woebegone Greek Isles casino-hotel worth less than nothing? In a sense, yes, since it owes $67 million on a book value of $44 million. Even a resale price at book value seems wishful thinking, considering the Isles' chequered history.

Asserts the Las Vegas Sun, "With its strategic location near the Las Vegas Strip and the Las Vegas Convention Center, the Greek Isles and its associated real estate are seen as having long-term value after the recession ends."

Yeah, but it's had that "strategic location" for as long as it's been in existence and the Isles' progress has been a steady one from Bad to Worse. I wouldn't give a plug nickel for the place -- not with Strip land prices in freefall and vast acreage there lying fallow.

Miracles are possible. Work on Marina Bay Sands is, believe or night, a fortnight ahead of schedule. Next step: Hold the line on that (already swollen) $5.4 billion budget.

The waiting continues in the great state of Kansas. Its lottery commission wants another two months to review applications for the Wichita and Kansas City markets. Considering the recent flurry of dropouts (including Vegas' own Golden Gaming), you'd think this would expedite the process. Instead, the coronation is six months away.

Squeeze play. No time is being wasted as Pennsylvania rushes toward expanding into Class III casinos. Two rival proposals to add table games are presently on the table. Casino lobbyist Steve Rittvo is forwarding a plan that would tax new games at 12%. This is projected to generate $165 million for the Keystone State (assuming that slot play concurrently increases sufficiently to generate a $61 million impost).

House Whip William DeWeese (D) counters with a 21% tax, combined with a one-time $10 million/casino fee, for a potential Year One windfall in excess of $300 million. I wish Rittvo luck but fear that solons will -- as they so often do -- gravitate toward the bigger dollar sign. It's an institutional failing.

Neil Bluhm, Philadelphia's Sugar[House] daddy

On a happier note, Neil Bluhm's revised design for his Sugarhouse Casino, on the Philadelphia waterfront, has received the green light from the City of Brotherly Love. Barring further legal mischief by sore loser Donald Trump, this means the project can finally move ahead, with a temporary, 1,700-slot casino slated for a Spring 2010 opening. Hallelujah!

Re-"Peep"

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:06:00 -0700

A few business-oriented observations about last night's kickoff of Peepshow Mark II.

• Dollar for dollar, Planet Hollywood is making a better investment with new leads Shoshana Bean and Holly Madison. And it's a lead-pipe cinch neither is pulling down anything close to the prohibitive $1 million/month commanded by Mel B. and Kelly Monaco.

• Mel B. has left the building -- but her costumes have not.

• If indeed the operative plan is to use Madison's notoriety to put fannies in the seats and Bean's voice to keep them there, it's not a bad line of thinking.

• I've come to doubt the theory that obstreperous behavior by Mr. Mel B. was behind the non-renewal of her contract. Casinos put up with far worse -- consider the infantile tantrums of Planet Ho favorite "Omar" Siddiqui -- from high rollers on a daily basis. No, I suspect that one of Robert Earl's minions breathed that tidbit into the ear of Norm(!) Clarke to lay the groundwork for a big salary dump. A replacement as talented as Ms. Bean doesn't fall into your lap on two weeks' notice.

The seating disposition for media night was indicative of the local pecking order: gossip-mongers (Clarke, Robin Leach) down front, tourist magazines (ourselves included) off to one side and newspaper people -- including the Las Vegas Sun's John Katsilometes and Pulitzer Prize-winning Alexandra Berzon -- further back still, but more centrally placed. At least, Clarke -- whose circulation greatly outnumbers Leach's -- got the better seat of the two.

The anti-Jacko

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 11:57:00 -0700

Even the local TV stations' news coverage this morning amounted to "MichaelJacksonMichaelJacksonMichaelJacksonMichaelJackson ... and now today's weather, followed by more breaking news about MichaelJacksonMichaelJacksonMichaelJackson."

Pretty good for a guy who never played the Strip. It's way over the top, even compared to the Danny Gans-a-thon. That, in turn, would have obliterated the passing of Sam Butera, were it not mainly for the efforts of Mike Weatherford in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Butera, former sidekick of Louis Prima and Keely Smith, was no mean bandleader in his own right and inarguably a figure of far greater musical significance to Vegas than even the King of Pop. Here he is leading a hot combo in his signature tune:

And that, ladies and gentleman, is Classic Vegas.

Don't do it, Alex!

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 18:29:00 -0700

Noooooooo!

That was my reaction upon reading the Mike Weatherford shocker that the Tropicana Las Vegas may be putting many of its future entertainment eggs in the basket of Anthony Cools. The latter produced an ultra-craptacular topless show, Ooh La La at Paris Las Vegas.

Shoehorned into a large, low-ceilinged banquet room, Ooh La La had terrible sightlines (kind of a problem for a T&A show), pushy ushers and charmless performers. Were it not for Raw Talent Live, it would have been the worst show I've ever seen in Las Vegas. Cools has been threatening to bring it back ... please, Alex Yemenidjian, stop him before he "presents" again.

Our long civic nightmare continues. Five more years! Five more years! Yes, Luxor has extended Carrot Top to 2015. Mr. Top accepted the honor in typical family-friendly style.

While I'm under the knife at the dentist next Tuesday, Lance Burton will be fielding questions at Monte Carlo. The venue alone makes the nature of the announcement self-evident. Three cheers to MGM Mirage for pulling back from the brink and not evicting Burton at a time when he's been getting some of the best reviews of his career. There was nothing like the fumbling Criss F. Angel to make people appreciate just how much better Burton seems to be.

Reading Room axed. You know those three cheers for MGM? Make them three Bronx cheers. "Literature? Pah! We no like! Make way for shiny trinkets!"

Why launder money in Las Vegas or Macao when there's ... the Dominican Republic?

Peepshow 2.0 tonight. The pain of yesterday's dental procedure is likely to be but a gentle zephyr compared to the near-certain ordeal that lies ahead. For reasons too convoluted to explain, my review won't appear in CityLife until July 9. With luck, the show won't have closed by then.