Author Archives: David McKee

About David McKee

Bio

Can’t stop the consolidation

Posted on September 9, 2014 by David McKee

Continuing the shrinkage of the manufacturing sector, Global Cash Access is taking another chess piece — Multimedia Games — off the board. GCA will pay $1.1 billion for Multimedia, which specializes in VLTs for racinos and tribal markets.The price represented … Continue reading →

Posted in Arizona, Foxwoods, Hard Rock International, Harrah's, MTR Gaming, Ohio, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Racinos, Regulation, Technology, Tribal | Comments Off on Can’t stop the consolidation

New hope for Showboat, gloom for Atlantic City

Posted on September 8, 2014 by David McKee

While Revel and Trump Plaza go begging — and Trump Taj Mahal reportedly plans to close in November — suitors are lining up to woo Caesars Entertainment for the Showboat Atlantic City. Already Atlantic Properties Group has pitched the idea … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boulder Strip, Donald Trump, Harrah's, history, Japan, MGM Mirage, Revel, Tribal, Trump Entertainment Resorts | Comments Off on New hope for Showboat, gloom for Atlantic City

Dispatches from Iowa and Illinois

Posted on September 8, 2014 by David McKee

August was a good month for Iowa, as casino revenues rose 4%. The big winner was Pinnacle Entertainment‘s Ameristar Council Bluffs, up 7% with a $15 million gross. Caesars Entertainment had mixed results, with Horseshoe Casino ($16 million) down 3% … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Harrah's, Illinois, Iowa, Isle of Capri, MGM Mirage, Neil Bluhm, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Trump Entertainment Resorts, Warner Gaming | Comments Off on Dispatches from Iowa and Illinois

MGM courts Japan; More Strip land hits the market

Posted on September 5, 2014 by David McKee

Taking a veiled stab at Las Vegas Sands and Wynn Resorts, MGM Resorts International President William Hornbuckle said that a MGM megaresort in Japan would be “uniquely Japanese, not a copy of an integrated resort from Las Vegas or Singapore.” It … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Downtown, Entertainment, history, James Packer, Japan, Melco Crown Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Regulation, Riviera, Singapore, Station Casinos, The Strip | Comments Off on MGM courts Japan; More Strip land hits the market

Sold down the river; Wynn makes critical offer

Posted on September 5, 2014 by David McKee

For sale: One casino riverboat, heavily used. Penn National Gaming asked for — and received — dismissal of a bankruptcy petition, opting to sell the Belle of Sioux City on the open market. You might think it would be difficult … Continue reading →

Posted in Derek Stevens, Dining, Downtown, Entertainment, Iowa, Massachusetts, Penn National, Regulation, Steve Wynn, The Strip | Comments Off on Sold down the river; Wynn makes critical offer

Trump card played; NBA embraces sports betting

Posted on September 5, 2014 by David McKee

Can casino-based Internet gambling keep going after the host casino has ceased to be? That’s the existential question faced by New Jersey regulators. Although it is closing Trump Plaza, owner Trump Entertainment Resorts wants to continue the property’s online-gambling platform, … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Golden Gaming, Internet gambling, Sports, Technology, Trump Entertainment Resorts | 1 Comment

Opening tonight

Posted on September 5, 2014 by David McKee

By day I write about casinos and at night I dabble in theater. Here’s a very brief set of snippets from my latest project, David Mamet‘s Boston Marriage. Uncharacteristically for Mamet, it’s a sapphic intrigue that stars Jessica Hird and … Continue reading →

Posted in Entertainment | Comments Off on Opening tonight

Choke Point or strangulation?; Doing or don’t

Posted on September 4, 2014 by David McKee

In what would seem to be a pretty clear-cut case of regulatory overreach, justified as usual by the War on Terror [sic], the Department of Justice and the FDIC are targeting the casino industry. They don’t just want to know … Continue reading →

Posted in Regulation | Comments Off on Choke Point or strangulation?; Doing or don’t

Oh no, not again!

Posted on September 4, 2014 by David McKee

Trump Taj Mahal is heading back to a familiar bookmark: Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The casino is in violation of certain loan covenants and talks with creditors have proven unfruitful. The one creditor who really matters is Carl Icahn and he’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Carl Icahn, Election, Entertainment, Marketing, Massachusetts, Mohegan Sun, Revel, Steve Wynn, Trump Entertainment Resorts, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Playing the God card

Posted on September 4, 2014 by David McKee

Well, this is … different. The American Gaming Association wants you to know that gamblers don’t just pray when they’re shooting dice at the craps table.

Posted in Geoff Freeman, Marketing | Comments Off on Playing the God card

Sheldon goes Korean; More casinos for Maine?

Posted on September 3, 2014 by David McKee

Sheldon Adelson wants in on any expansion of South Korea‘s casino and he’s not above using a little muscle to do it. According to Managing Director of Global Development George Tanasijevich, his company, Las Vegas Sands would create “a truly iconic … Continue reading →

Posted in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Penn National, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Singapore | Comments Off on Sheldon goes Korean; More casinos for Maine?

Revel: A quiet death

Posted on September 3, 2014 by David McKee

“Gaming in Atlantic City isn’t dead, but it has to go on a crash diet to survive.” That’s the coroner’s verdict of the Newark Star-Ledger, in which former Atlantic Club worker Bill Terrigino adds his voice to the chorus that … Continue reading →

Posted in Alex Yemenidjian, Architecture, Atlantic City, Illinois, Marketing, MGM Mirage, Revel, Sam Nazarian, Slot routes, The Strip, Trump Entertainment Resorts | 3 Comments

The fees that ate Las Vegas

Posted on September 3, 2014 by David McKee

 First, the good news. Harrah’s Las Vegas casino floor, one of the most claustrophobic and unpleasant in town is getting a makeover. And, while they’re at it, Caesars Entertainment is converting the space formerly occupied by The Cafe at Harrah’s and … Continue reading →

Posted in Dining, Harrah's, International, Maryland, Ohio, Phil Ruffin, Planet Hollywood, Regulation, Singapore, The Strip | Comments Off on The fees that ate Las Vegas

Narrow race in Massachusetts; Boffo biz in Alabama

Posted on September 2, 2014 by David McKee

No state that has ever approved casino gambling has repealed it in over 80 years. That being said, casinos are polling weakly in Massachusetts — with support hovering at 50% — and the opposition is getting cocky. A perversely worded … Continue reading →

Posted in Alabama, Architecture, Economy, Election, Florida, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Penn National, Regulation, Rhode Island, The Strip, Tribal | 1 Comment

Big Apple, smaller bites; Checkmate on the Strip

Posted on September 2, 2014 by David McKee

“There will never be another Mohegan Sun. That’s the way the market has shifted.” So says Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority CEO Mitchell Grossinger Etess on the smaller, economy-sized casinos he and his fellows will have to build in New York … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Economy, Harrah's, Mohegan Sun, New York, Planet Hollywood, The Strip | Comments Off on Big Apple, smaller bites; Checkmate on the Strip

Archon under fire again

Posted on September 2, 2014 by David McKee

Sue Lowden is back in the news, not for her political activities but as secretary and public face of Archon Gaming, whose 27 acres atop the Strip are a hot property again, following the opening of SLS Las Vegas. Dissident investor … Continue reading →

Posted in Archon Corp., Economy, Laughlin, Ohio, Penn National, Sam Nazarian, The Strip, Wall Street | Comments Off on Archon under fire again

Showboat, 1987-2014; Paris, 1999-????

Posted on September 2, 2014 by David McKee

In the end, the Showboat Atlantic City had a good run of it, lasting almost three decades on the Boardwalk. It succumbed, in part, to wounds inflicted by owner Caesars Entertainment, which cut into its customer base by building Harrah’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Economy, Harrah's, New York, Pennsylvania, Revel, Sam Nazarian, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Tourism, Trump Entertainment Resorts, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Quote of the Day

Posted on August 29, 2014 by David McKee

“As it pertains to Revel, management [of Boyd Gaming] believes that any buyer would have to spend significant time and money to make the asset viable going forward.” — J.P. Morgan analyst Joseph Greff, making it clear who won’t be … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Revel | 1 Comment

Illinois: Adding insult to injury; Sheldon’s nuisance

Posted on August 29, 2014 by David McKee

Casino-based slot machines in Illinois are now outnumbered by ones in convenience stores, bars and truck stops. To make the challenge even worse, the Legislature — which goes out of its way to kneecap the Land of Lincoln’s existing casinos … Continue reading →

Posted in Illinois, Internet gambling, Macau, Sheldon Adelson, Slot routes, West Virginia | Comments Off on Illinois: Adding insult to injury; Sheldon’s nuisance

Strangest story of the year

Posted on August 29, 2014 by David McKee

Steve Wynn‘s Encore is making news in a way its owner would probably prefer it didn’t (and not for the first time this year). Bryanna Warren, Trinity Kennard and Charmella Triggs picked up a couple of guys in an Encore bar … Continue reading →

Posted in Cretins, Steve Wynn, The Strip, Tribal, TV | Comments Off on Strangest story of the year