This week’s Sample Sunday features fiction. The Vegas Kid by Barney Vinson is a kind of slapstick western novel starring Sam Durango and his arch rival Buck Beaumont that culminates at Blackie’s Casino on Halloween night.

Hopefully this is an easy one! I was just driving from San Diego to Las Vegas, and noticed that one of the gas stations in Primm now sells Powerball tickets. I thought Powerball wasn't allowed in Nevada because of the casino gambling?

What is the connection (if any) between Bally's Hotel & Casino, Bally Gaming (manufacturers of slot machines), Bally Total Fitness (a chain of gyms)? I seem to recall Bally making bowling machines, also.

I read in your "News" column that the Dotty’s chain has bought another casino in Laughlin, but what’s going on with the Hacienda? The remodel seems to be taking forever and when I checked the website, there’s no name change or anything. I thought the sale to Dotty’s and the whole rebranding thing was a done deal, but nothing seems to have changed. Do you know anything about what’s going on?

I am in Las Vegas and see the glass is being removed from Harmon Tower, along with other obvious signs of work. Does this mean that the Harmon is finally coming down? As a refresher, what was the original structural problem and how was it discovered?

With the LVH being sold to be made into a timeshare property, what happens to existing reservations?

With The Quad name change to incorporate The LINQ branding, will O'Sheas still be there, and still be called O'Sheas?

This "Sample Sunday" should be a treat for all you history buffs and "Old Vegas" fans out there, as we're excerpting from Las Vegas Review-Journal entertainment columnist Mike Weatherford's Cult Vegas, an illustrated celebration of the colorful characters and acts that established the city as the Entertainment Capital of the World.

What is up with Harrah's Tunica?

A group of creditors sent Caesars a notice of default. In an abundance of caution, this newsletter again advises you not to deposit any funds (no deposits for hotel reservations, no deposits at the cashier’s cage, no delay on redeeming casino chips, etc.), in the following Caesars' hotels, until the situation at Caesars again becomes clearer: Bally’s, Caesars Palace, Flamingo, Harrah’s, Paris Las Vegas, Planet Hollywood, Rio, and The Cromwell. Any additional info from your end?