MSN reported yesterday that Brightline is officially worried about its continued solvency. Its outside auditor, Ernst and Young, which prepared the company's 2025 financial statements, warned that Brightline "does not currently have the liquid funds necessary to service its debt and meet such other obligations as they become due.” Indeed, Brightline didn't make interest payments of $117 million due early this year and the grace period expires in five weeks. It's trying to secure funding, but said in a statement, "Substantial doubt remains as to the ability of the company to continue as a going concern.” Thus, there's substantial concurrent doubt that the high-speed rail line between southern California and Las Vegas can continue to come to fruition. And thanks to DanOH for sending us the MSN link.
In its first-quarter earnings call, Sphere Entertainment's CEO announced that the Wizard of Oz has sold "almost three million tickets," generating $370 million in ticket sales alone. If you recall, the AI-updated movie opened last August 28, so it's only a little more than eight months into its run, which Sphere said in the earnings call will be "a strong performer through 2026 and beyond." A new film, extreme-sports documentary From the Edge, will enter the arena's movie rotation "later this year."
Our News item yesterday on the closing of all Primm properties, except the busy Lotto Store, was incorrect. The Lotto Store will, in fact, close on July 4, along with Primm Valley Hotel-Casino, the two gas stations, and the apartments that house many of the nearly 350 employees who work in Primm. With the closing of the Lotto Store, the new nearest lottery outlet to Las Vegas will be Last Stop Travel Center on US93 roughly halfway to Kingman, around 40 miles from the Strip -- about the same distance to the Lotto Store in Primm. The other possibility is the Chevron station at Yates Wells, around six miles south of Primm on I-15, 45 or so miles from Vegas.
Southwest Airlines will launch nonstop flights to 11 new destinations and add flights to 15 existing routes to and from Las Vegas over the next 10 months or so. Next week, Southwest begins its service to Anchorage, Alaska, and in a few weeks, the number-one carrier out of Reid International will start its first international flights to Cabo San Lucas and Cancun. Also next month, SW will add flights to Reno, Orlando, Nashville, and five other existing cities. In October, Mexico service expands to Puerta Vallarta and SW will start flying to San Jose, Costa Rica. Also in October, more planes will go to and from L.A., San Francisco, and Oakland and in November to Denver and Phoenix. The last expansion will occur in March, with flights to several new destinations on the East Coast.
The last of the Primm Valley Casino Resorts' operations in Primm are closing. To review, Whiskey Pete’s closed in December 2024 and Buffalo Bill’s closed, except for sporadic events, last July. Buffalo Bill's, Primm Valley Hotel-Casino, Primm Center, and Flying J will shutter after business on July 4; tenants living in the Desert Oasis apartments (employee housing) have to be out by July 6. The Lotto Store just over the state line in California doesn't appear to be affected; it's not owned by Primm Valley Casino Resorts parent corporation, Affinity Gaming. The Prizm Outlet Mall is owned by a mall company and at last count, two stores were still opened, but this development could be the final nail in the coffin for that operation as well. Other than the Lotto Store, as of early summer, Primm will be Nevada's latest ghost town.
Temperatures will rise steadily over the next several days, starting with highs of 86 today, 93 tomorrow, and 98 on Friday, then break the 100-degree mark for the first time this year on Saturday. If Monday sees 103 and Tuesday 104 as predicted, both will set new high-temperature records and could lead to Extreme Heat Watches and/or Warnings, as the highs are 10-20 degrees above normal for this early in May.
If you're coming to our office or driving past the Rio today through Saturday, you'll see tents, carnival rides, and midway games crowding the back parking lots. It's the Southern Nevada State Fair, which takes place at the Rio every year around this time. If you want to attend, admission starts at $10 for any single day, with rides and food sold separately. Children 54 inches and under get in free. Hours are 4-11 p.m. Wed. and Thurs., till midnight Fri., 1 p.m. till midnight Saturday, and 1-9 p.m. Sunday. Parking is free.
Due to ongoing health concerns, Dolly Parton has canceled all six of her planned dates at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in September. Previously, the dates coincided with last year's NFR and were rescheduled for September. Now, they've been canceled entirely. The residency would have been Dolly's first performances in Las Vegas in 32 years. She told People magazine that everything is treatable, but she’s still healing. Tickets will be refunded at the point of purchase.
Master illusionist David Copperfield performed for the last time in his eponymous theater at MGM Grand on Thursday night. Known for his large-scale illusions and unstoppable work ethic (up to 15 shows per week for 25 years at MGM), the 69-year-old Copperfield's career probably isn't ending. It's been rumored that he could reopen in the Sahara's Foundry Room or that he'll take his show on the road.
Michael B. informs us about two changes in resort fees on comped rooms. The Palms, which previously charged the full resort fee on comped rooms, is now collecting 50%. The D and Golden Gate, which used to waive the RF for all stays, is now charging it for Friday and Saturday nights. And Las Vegas Magazine reports that the long-running $45 prix-fixe three-course lunch special at Estiatorio Milos restaurant at the Venetian has taken on an interesting twist. Dubbed the “Quick and Delicious Business Lunch,” the deal is you're out the door in less than 60 minutes or the meal is on Milos. Apparently, the staff is alert to dawdling on purpose, but if you're in a hurry to get back to the convention floor at the Venetian Expo, this is a fine way to do just that -- combined with an excellent Greek lunch.
After knocking off the Utah Mammoth in six games in Round 1, the Vegas Golden Knights will face the Anaheim Ducks in the first game of Round 2 tonight at 6:30 at T-Mobile. The VGK will enjoy home-ice advantage through this round. Since replacing head coach Bruce Cassidy with John Tortorella on March 29, the Knights went 7-0-1 to end the regular season; when the playoffs are included, they're 11-2-1.
The Eagles have added six more shows to the band's neverending residency. This is the 11th time they've extended the residency that began all the way back in September 2024 and will total 64 shows (so far), the longest-running stint by a long shot of any act since Sphere opened. The new dates are Sept. 18 and 19 and November 13, 14, 27, and 28. The general on-sale for the two new dates begins on Friday May 15 at 10 a.m. PT.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are -8.5 favorites over the Toronto Raptors in Game 7 of their first-round NBA playoff series. The total is 209.5.
The Tampa Bay Lightning are -165 favorites over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 7 of their first-round NHL playoff series. The total is 5.
The Detroit Pistons are -8 favorites over the Orlando Magic in Game 7 of their first-round NBA playoff series. The total is 201.5.
In this month's interview, Anthony and Andrew chat with Pauly C., Vegas influencer extraordinaire. He and Anthony have known each other for some time; Pauly approached Huntington Press with a good idea, which they discuss along the way. They also talk about Pauly and gambling, how he got started as an influencer (you'll notice how many words he can stuff into a 30-second span), how he really feels about MGM Grand and Caesars, good deals at Station casinos, will the baseball stadium be completed, and his recommendations for lunch, dinner, and best gambling book. Click the white arrow for an entertaining and informative three-quarters of an hour.
The Boston Celtics are -4.5 favorites over the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 of their first-round NBA playoff series. The total is 204.5.
The current odds for the Kentucky Derby make Renegade the favorite at 5-1, followed by Commandment at 6-1 and Further Ado at 7-1. The long shot is Albus at 55-1.
Low-cost Spirit Airlines shut down all operations early this morning after suffering through two bankruptcies in two years with no bailout in sight. It was the second busiest carrier at Harry Reid International after Southwest, which, along with United, Delta, and JetBlue, is accommodating stranded Spirit passengers with $200 limited-time fares. All 16 Spirit destinations from Las Vegas are served by other airlines.
Hard Rock Las Vegas hosted a topping off ceremony Friday to commemorate the installation of the final beam on its Guitar Hotel tower. We like what an executive from the lead construction company said at the ceremony. "Topping out this project represents far more than a construction milestone. It marks a defining moment in reshaping the Las Vegas skyline and introducing a new city icon.” Construction began in summer 2024 and has employed more than 5,000 workers. The new resort-casino will feature 3,700 rooms, a redesigned casino and pool, a new pool at the Guitar Hotel, an additional pool for the guitar tower, a 175,000-square-foot casino, more than 200,000 square feet of meeting space, new restaurants, bars, lounges, and retail outlets, and employ about 6,000.
The Review-Journal reports this morning that the site of the failed SkyVue project across the Strip from Mandalay Bay has been sold to a local real estate developer for $70 million. At 12 acres, that comes to $5.83 million per. SkyVue was an observation wheel project that got as far as raising two concrete columns before going bankrupt; the columns have been scraping the sky in place since 2014. The developer has big plans for the acreage, including a heart-shaped 874-room hotel-casino, giant heart-shaped LED marquee, Fremont Street Experience-like covered pedestrian plaza, and theater; reportedly, a 265-foot-high "midair restaurant" will incorporate the smokestacks into the property. No financing or timeline details were divulged.
A group from Las Vegas led by local businessman Grant Gustavson submitted a bid earlier this week to Major League Soccer to buy the Vancouver Whitecaps and relocate the team to southern Nevada. Gustavson is the 30-year-old grandson of B. Wayne Hughes, who co-founded Public Storage; he's also the son of Tamara Gustavson, who owns 11% of Public Storage and is ranked #251 on the Forbes 400 with a net worth of $8 billion. A report out of Vancouver this morning puts the offer at $500 million to buy the Whitecaps and the Gustavson group has proposed building a soccer-specific stadium here. No details about the site or the specific terms of the buyout offer were disclosed, except that the stadium would be built completely with private financing -- no public funding needed.
The average price of a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in Las Vegas today is $5.19, up nearly 25 cents since April 1. That's roughly $1 higher than the national average of $4.23 per gallon. Statewide, the average is $5.12 and Reno topped $5.35. Diesel is down from its record of $6.49 set last month, but not by much; today it's $6.18 a gallon. Of course, the Middle East disruptions are to blame, with a barrel of crude oil nearly doubling in price since January 1. The historic high in Las Vegas is $5.61 per gallon, set in June 2022. And there's no relief in sight. According to AAA, the U.S. Energy Information Administration doesn't expect prices to ease until "later in 2026."