Category Archives: Current

August: Hot on the Strip

Posted on September 30, 2013 by David McKee

Boy, did the house win big last August. Las Vegas Strip gambling revenues were up 20%, driven by exceptionally lucky baccarat play (win up 55.5%), in a month when 1.5% less was wagered on the game. (A modest increase in … Continue reading →

Posted in Boulder Strip, Current, Downtown, Lake Tahoe, Laughlin, North Las Vegas, Reno, The Strip | Comments Off on August: Hot on the Strip

Opening tonight!

Posted on September 27, 2013 by David McKee

When I’m not pecking out S&G, I’ve usually got some theatrical endeavor going. My latest one debuts tonight: Edward Albee‘s A Delicate Balance, staged in “total theater” fashion at Las Vegas Little Theatre Studio. The action will take place on … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Entertainment | Comments Off on Opening tonight!

Busted!; Crystals off the block; Rumble in Macao

Posted on September 27, 2013 by David McKee

Archie Karas (real name Anargyros Karabourniotis), high roller and reputed casino cheat is cooling his butt in a Las Vegas jail cell right now. The advantage player is facing extradition on charges that he bilked Barona Casino out of eight grand … Continue reading →

Posted in CityCenter, Current, Economy, Foxwoods, Macau, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Sheldon Adelson, Stanley Ho, The Strip, Tribal | Comments Off on Busted!; Crystals off the block; Rumble in Macao

Somebody sent us this

Posted on September 26, 2013 by David McKee

Aria is sending the message loud and clear that it’s all about The Pretty. You and I need not apply. Let’s face it, there are new target demographics and middle-aged Americans aren’t it. My spy at G2E has been checking … Continue reading →

Posted in CityCenter, Current, G2E, Marketing, Technology | Comments Off on Somebody sent us this

Wall Street comes to the Strip, meets the big boys

Posted on September 24, 2013 by David McKee

Investment firms like J.P. Morgan and Deutsche Bank have been sending emissaries to Las Vegas this week, to meet with all the major gaming firms during Global Gaming Expo. Since the latter is being held at Sands Expo Center, perhaps … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Economy, G2E, Isle of Capri, Japan, Macau, Marketing, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Sheldon Adelson, Singapore, Steve Wynn, The Strip, Tourism, Wall Street | Comments Off on Wall Street comes to the Strip, meets the big boys

Slow going in Massachusetts

Posted on September 20, 2013 by David McKee

If you’ve been following developments in the Bay State, you’ll have noticed casino developers coming right down to the wire in negotiating host community agreements. That leaves them precious little time for

Posted in Current, Hard Rock International, Massachusetts, Mohegan Sun, Regulation | Comments Off on Slow going in Massachusetts

Dangerous complacency in New York

Posted on September 16, 2013 by David McKee

Casino advocates and New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) are making a risky wager regarding November’s ballot question that would dramatically expand gambling in upstate New York. They’re playing it cool, keeping most of their chips off the table. … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Current, Election, Foxwoods, Hard Rock International, Harrah's, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Politics, Sheldon Adelson | Comments Off on Dangerous complacency in New York

Better times are here

Posted on September 16, 2013 by David McKee

Las Vegas remains lumbered with journalistic dinosaur Sherman Frederick, a grumbling, blogging old fussbudget who predicts doom and gloom as he tucks into his stewed prunes every morning. I’ve never run across anybody who rooted against their home town so … Continue reading →

Posted in CityCenter, Current, Economy, Entertainment, G2E, Hard Rock Hotel, Harrah's, International, MGM Mirage, Morgans Hotel Group, Phil Ruffin, The Mob, The Strip | 1 Comment

Trouble in another paradise; Sheldon’s sex shoppe

Posted on September 14, 2013 by David McKee

Overruling Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley (D), a Bay State court has issued an injunction allow signature-gatherers to keep collecting voters’ John Hancocks on a petition to repeal 2011’s casino-enabling legislation. Considering the land purchases, to say nothing of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Entertainment, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Politics, Regulation, Rhode Island, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Wynn, The Strip | Comments Off on Trouble in another paradise; Sheldon’s sex shoppe

Trouble in paradise; Eight isn’t enough

Posted on September 14, 2013 by David McKee

That rising clamor you hear along the Strip isn’t just from weekend picketers at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. No, the Culinary Union has significantly ratcheted up the rhetoric against Strip operators MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment, and against … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Current, Harrah's, MGM Mirage, Tribal, Wisconsin | Comments Off on Trouble in paradise; Eight isn’t enough

Quote of the Day

Posted on September 12, 2013 by David McKee

“It’s still a $3 billion market. It’s still a lot. Not as big as it used to be, but sizable.”– Rick Mazer, newly approved to run Harrah’s Marina, where a new convention center is being built. Parent company Caesars Entertainment … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Current, Harrah's | 1 Comment

Massachusetts: One win, one loss, one surrender

Posted on September 11, 2013 by David McKee

In a real shocker, residents of West Springfield rejected Hard Rock International — and $18 million a year. Local media obligingly regurgitated over and over again Hard Rock-sourced poll numbers that showed the casino eking out a narrow win. When … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Hard Rock International, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Mohegan Sun, Neil Bluhm, Penn National, Regulation | Comments Off on Massachusetts: One win, one loss, one surrender

Revel resurgent; MGM, Sands to Japan

Posted on September 10, 2013 by David McKee

For all the flack that it’s taken for its misleading “refund” on losses promotion, Revel Resort continues to woo customers back. Its revenues rose 2% in August, pushing the megaresort ahead of Showboat and into the middle tier of Atlantic … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Current, Donald Trump, Harrah's, International, Melco Crown Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Mohegan Sun, Revel, Sheldon Adelson, Stanley Ho, Tropicana Entertainment | 3 Comments

Upturn in Illinois, blindsided in Indiana

Posted on September 10, 2013 by David McKee

Could we finally be seeing “green shoots” in Illinois, up 5% last month? Maybe, although such recovery as there was consisted of the force that is Rivers Casino, up 36%. Penn National Gaming‘s three casinos posted a feeble $29 million, … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Economy, Harrah's, Illinois, Indiana, MGM Mirage, Neil Bluhm, Ohio, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Racinos, Regulation, Slot routes, Wall Street | Comments Off on Upturn in Illinois, blindsided in Indiana

Boston capitulates, Wynn wins (for now)

Posted on September 6, 2013 by David McKee

It was eyeball-to-eyeball and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino just blinked. Threatened with the termination of Steve Wynn‘s Everett project were Boston to be deemed a host community, Menino’s administration folded like a pup tent. “Based on the new information provided … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Harrah's, Massachusetts, Penn National, Racinos, Regulation, Steve Wynn | Comments Off on Boston capitulates, Wynn wins (for now)

Quote of the Day

Posted on September 6, 2013 by David McKee

“We remain deeply close friends and incredibly proud parents and our children are our priority going forward” — James Packer, managing to make the announcement of his second divorce sound like an earnings call.

Posted in Current, James Packer | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

Adelson’s new BFF; Icahn’s pricey purchase; Fertitta out of A.C.?

Posted on September 4, 2013 by David McKee

Politics making strange bedfellows and all that, S&G woke up to find Sheldon Adelson enjoying connubial bliss with President Barack Obama. Both are pushing for military intervention in Syria, swimming against the tide of American public opinion. And to think … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Carl Icahn, Current, International, Internet gambling, Missouri, Pinnacle Entertainment, Politics, Sheldon Adelson, Singapore, Tilman Fertitta | Comments Off on Adelson’s new BFF; Icahn’s pricey purchase; Fertitta out of A.C.?

Party at Sheldon’s place; Backlash in Ohio

Posted on September 3, 2013 by David McKee

I didn’t know what “cocaine dancers” are but the Las Vegas Review-Journal says Palazzo’s nightclub, The Act, has them. (It seems to involve far more snorting than dancing.) Sheldon Adelson‘s peeps would like the “simulated drug use, bestiality and exotic … Continue reading →

Posted in Cirque du Soleil, Current, Internet gambling, Ohio, Politics, Sheldon Adelson, The Strip | Comments Off on Party at Sheldon’s place; Backlash in Ohio

More turmoil at Sands; Pensions want a bigger slice of Caesars

Posted on September 3, 2013 by David McKee

David Sisk, the COO of Sands China, has resigned — the latest casualty of high executive turnover in Sheldon Adelson‘s fiefdom. You’d think that such instability in the upper ranks would give Wall Street an ulcer. But when Sands is … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Economy, Foxwoods, Harrah's, Macau, Rhode Island, Sheldon Adelson, Wall Street | Comments Off on More turmoil at Sands; Pensions want a bigger slice of Caesars

“Ugly” month on the Strip

Posted on August 30, 2013 by David McKee

That’s the word that normally temperate J.P. Morgan analyst Joseph Greff employedd to describe a July in with Las Vegas Strip winnings fell 14% (as opposed to 8% statewide; others had a different perspective). And since the month began and … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Downtown, Economy, Lake Tahoe, Laughlin, North Las Vegas, Reno, The Strip | 1 Comment