Following in the footsteps of Alex Yemenidjian and Anthony Marnell IIII, the CEO of Isle of Capri Casinos, Virginia McDowell, has agreed to take questions from S&G readers early next month. So here’s your shot: Sharpen those pencils and dream up some top-notch queries for the head of a company that’s achieving one of the unlikelier turnarounds in gaming. You can submit your questions either in the “Comment” thread on by e-mail. I’m counting on you.
On the subject of Isle, members of its previous braintrust are back in the news. Former CFO Allan Solomon, ex-senior VP Les McMackin and former development veep Greg Guida have all rebanded (and re-branded) at Foundation Gaming Group (whose Web site could use some work). Although they were swept out of Isle as part of a larger housecleaning, their experience operating up and down the Mississippi River commended them to the creditors now owning Resorts Casino Tunica and Bally’s Casino Tunica. In the near term, McMackin is promising there won’t be any austerity measures, a bulletin that should endear him to employees and customers alike. The market’s better off with these old riverboat deckhands aboard in place of Colony Capital‘s insane clown posse.
Not “real jobs”?
Casino opponents love to beg the question of whether they’d prefer it if people like these were out on the street. The new employees of Hollywood Casino Toledo look awfully happy to be working — and the people who’d begrudge them their jobs are probably the same sanctimonious louses who view poverty as evidence of moral failure.
Bally’s tunica is a dump but actually does well….of what I have been told. I think Resorts Tunica does alright too. Anyway, agreed, these guys can not do any worse than Colony. On the other hand…Didn’t Isle’s Tunica casino fail miserably (later sold to Boyd as over-flow event space and hotel rooms for Sam’s Town?)?
Best of luck though. It looks like AC now is the only town lucky enough to have the Colony circus!