On Oct. 26, the erstwhile “Gossy Room” at The Palms will host a fundraiser for AFAN. Headlining the event will be Lainie Kazan, who — the press release informs us — is “widely known for her starring role in My Big Fat Greek Wedding.” However, one of the advantages of age is being able to remember back in the day when the pneumatic Ms. Kazan thought there was
When casino revenues weren’t as bad as expected, earlier this summer, one Atlantic City property executive called it a light at the end of the tunnel. Elsewhere, S&G reader American Gaming Guru pithily remarked that the light was an oncoming train called Aqueduct. When the Guru couldn’t foresee was that Atlantic City is now set to absorb a body blow in the form of Hurricane Irene. As of this morning, its track was projected to hit the Boardwalk square in the chops.
Amazingly, casino bosses like Trump Entertainment Resorts CEO Robert Griffin and Caesars Entertainment‘s East Coast viceroy, Don Marrandino (left), were actually toying with the possibility of staying open during the hurricane. Unlike the Dixie riverboats that got ripped to shreds by hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, the ones in Atlantic City are built to absorb heavy punishment. And, yes, the industry is faced not only with a lost weekend of revenue but also an indeterminate amount of property damage. But that’s no excuse for risking customers and employees in order to put a few extra dimes toward the bottom line. Resorts Atlantic City CEO Dennis Gomes gets the Best Practices award for deciding to close outright, even though he knows it’s going to hurt him in the wallet. If Gomes, boss of a struggling casino, can afford to be prudent, why
“Might be worth seeing, even if Anthony Cools is involved.” — early reaction to Swingers, the new dueling pianos/miniature golf nightclub at the Plaza, which opens both Swingers and Waiting for Godot on Sept. 1.
Revenue growth accelerated at Station Casinos in 2Q11, with cash flow up 8.5% (compared to +4% for the year so far). Keeping room rates steady at an average of $71 appears to have boosted occupancy, up from 81% to an impressive 88%. The repurchase of Green Valley Ranch has helped push long-term debt to $3.2 billion but Station’s raking it back in on the casino floor. Slot revenues rose 7% and table winnings were up 18%. So either the hold percentages were hella tight or players are playing very loosely. Liberalized coupon policies and a huge marketing push also worked to the benefit of the F&B department, which raked in 12% more than in 2Q10. Station endured much damage to its image — some of it self-inflicted — but it’s been working hard to reverse perceptions, as last quarter’s results attest.
Speaking of tight slots, I’ll bet you can find some in Kansas City, where riverboat revenues dipped but slightly despite worrisome declines in foot traffic for everyone but
“As a journalist writing about casinos [and] gaming at David McKee’s Stiffs [&] Georges, I’m sure you get a lot of questions from readers about how they can improve their poker games.” — uhhhh, no … I don’t, actually. But if S&G regulars are also poker players, Discovery Channel has a page just for you.
I guess a casino hasn’t truly “arrived” until Carmen Electra graces an event on its premises. This time it’s Palazzo‘s turn, as Carmencita hosts something nightclub thing or other. Which reminds me that Electra performed at Pussycat Dolls Burlesque Saloon in Planet Hollywood when it opened recently. Having neglected to
Gaming’s Mr. Magoo, the disaster-prone CEO of Colony Capital, Tom Barrack has done it again. The Las Vegas Hilton has defaulted on one of its loans (again), a too-familiar revelation where a Colony-owned property is concerned. Although it lost $1 million less last quarter than a year earlier, that’s still $8.9 million in red ink. Players are playing less (casino revenue down 9%), stayers are staying less — or at least paying less for their Hilton rooms. They’re certainly eating less. Now that Caesars Entertainment has snatched the annual Star Trek convention away from the soon-to-be-ex-Hilton, the third-quarter numbers are likely to be pretty ugly, too.
Meanwhile, Barrack goes cap in hand to other hotel brands, looking for a name to replace “Hilton” on the oversized marquee. More ominously still,
Two axes fell upon CityCenter in one day. It’s tough to decide which is more newsworthy. I’ll go with the Beso story because it has a not-so-hidden upside. Golden Nugget CEO Tilman Fertitta is feeling sufficiently bullish to plant his flag on the Strip. Since Tilman will be buying Beso out of bankruptcy, he’ll get it for cheap ($1 million) and he owns so many restaurant brands (with 300-plus manifestations) that he’s got millions of customers to whom he can market Beso … or whatever he’ll call it. The alliance of convenience between two Texas celebrities is already big news in the Lone Star State.
Longoria’s peeps can suppsedly shop Beso around but the likelihood of better offers appears slim and PR Newswire reports it’s a done deal. Since the restaurant’s cashbox is empty, management’s previous declarations of optimism have become “inoperative,” as Ron Ziegler would have put it. Since Fertitta is prepared to advance operational expenses to keep Beso open, manager William Braden would be wise to
My birthday coincides with “Free Ride” day on the Desperado at Primm Valley Resorts. From 12:15 p.m. to 7:45 p.m., on August 16, you can be terrorized to your heart’s content. And terrifying it is: My wife and I tried the Desperado recently and found its whiplash considerably more violent than on our previous visit, in mid-2007. You can write me off as an old fogy if you like but the missus lurves her some roller coasters, the scarier the better. But the rattletrap condition of the Desperado really put the fear of God into her and not in a good way. She’s sworn it off permanently.
Also dampening the spirits of our impromptu Primm visit was that most of the rides and attractions at Buffalo Bill’s were closed for the day … just as they were on our ’07 Memorial Day visit. Of the few that were running,
Remember how the Union Plaza used to be on track for a “grand soft reopening” (love that phrase!) on August 24? Somewhere along the way, that target date fell by the wayside. Solution? Generate a blizzard of stories like this one — and many others — in which the August date has mysteriously vanished and now the reopening date is September 1, period, and somehow “ahead of schedule.” Now one of the banes of the casino industry is Ye Olde Squishy-Soft Opening, of which Sheldon Adelson is the ninja master. If your property’s not ready for the paying public, it shouldn’t open. Why subject customers to a prettified construction site? (It had litigious consequences for Adelson’s Marina Bay Sands.) If Play LV CEO Anthony Santo is going to be really, truly, completely ready on Sept. 1, 2011, then let the games begin! If he starts a trend, better still.
Of course, this may run a cart and horses throug
Bankrupt, 38-year-old Hooters Hotel got a two-month reprieve yesterday, as owners obtained a judge’s permission to keep spending creditors’ monies to keep the place open for an additional two months. That will at least give employees time to update their resumes. Majority creditor Canyon Capital Realty Advisors, however, is not amused by Hooters’ sagging financials, which have been drooping steeply since late 2007. In particular, subsidiary Canpartners takes exception to increases in executive pay at a time when rank-and-file salaries were cut over 25% and nearly 40% of employees were pink-slipped, to the point where Hooters has fewer full-time employees (605) than hotel rooms (696). In one instance, the timing of a $116K salary boost has at least the unbecoming appearance of a smash-and-grab raid to clean out the safe before bankruptcy was filed. Then again, perhaps Hooters’ braintrust believes that a CFO who has helped lead them into Chapter 11 deserves a 38% raise. You make the call.
Canyon’s endgame is clearly to force current leadership out and get Hooters firmly in hand — or at least cough those big salaries back up in the form of reinvestment. Of the three likely scenarios
If you’re coming to Las Vegas and wish to see how it’s experienced by those of us who live here, then check out the photographs of Angela Bellamy. Her “Pano Project” will be on display at the Charleston Heights Arts Center from Aug. 25 through Oct. 27. Most of her panoramas are so wide that they can’t be reduced to an S&G-friendly size. But if you want to see the real McCoy, the exhibit is free, making it worth the cab fare it’ll cost you to get there from your hotel. (Photo courtesy of the City of Las Vegas.)
All things must end. The forced exit of Jerry Lewis from the Muscular Dystrophy Association‘s annual telethon puts the penultimate nail in the coffin of an ancient Las Vegas institution. The telethon format is cumbersome and inefficient compared to emerging technologies (and this particular one has been
As my growing freelance workload continues to limit my S&G time, I’m happy to yield the floor to University of South Carolina journalism professor — and frequent Vegas visitor — Augie Grant, who has another guest contribution to make. I just hope you’ll be able to hear him over the din …
As an occasional visitor to Las Vegas (a few times a year), I appreciate the opportunity to share observations via Stiffs & Georges. During a July visit, a new challenge emerged on the casino floor—noise! Now, I realize that noise in a casino is nothing new. I remember the “old days” when the slot machines paid off in coin that were designed to hit metal pans, making as much noise as possible. The machines made noises, too, but the notes were primarily in the major chords of G, F and C. The noises fit together, giving a unique and exciting sound to the casino floor. (Yes, some casinos were more unique than others—the noise level at the old Sassy Sally’s downtown was the loudest I remember, but I’m sure that a few others could challenge the volume.)
But things have evolved since. The new generation of interactive slot machines still provides the same type of noises during regular game play. But the payoffs and bonus rounds have added a new range of noises that are designed to make the games more exciting. And it works — I’m not normally a slot player, but I was lured by the new Star Trek game that provides a unique progressive round that allows the player to build a fleet that will battle in the bonus round. The video, voices and animation are great, and you even have a volume control so you can hear it (and feel it through
Considering that Sheldon Adelson would try to trademark the rays of the sun, if only he dared, who can blame Oscar Goodman for getting into the franchising game? According to Tamares Group‘s media rep, Amy Maier, the ex-mayor doesn’t own any percentage of the new Union Plaza steakhouse bearing his name. However, he is “licensing his name for the restaurant and will be very involved in the decisions regarding the concepts of the restaurant including design, decor, menus, etc.” In view of Hizzoner’s well-known outspokenness, I have no doubts as to his degree of creative involvement. Between the Goodman announcement and the Insurgo Theater media splash last week, the Plaza is generating a pretty good PR tailwind going into this month’s grand reopening.
Las Vegas is rife with Frank Sinatra impersonators but construction worker Gary Russo is better than any I’ve heard. Sandy Hackett, sign this guy up, stat!
It is difficult to say what looks phoniest about that picture: the cryingly obvious studio background of Venelazzo; the frozen grins on the faces of the agonized-looking models; or maybe it’s the fact that you could go into any Vegas night spot you like and see not one person dressed remotely as well as the people in this shot. Frankly, our reputation as “a place people go to dress badly” is well-earned several times over. I wouldn’t mow the lawn in what some people consider proper gambling and Vegas-evening attire. (Seen recently: casino patron at Caesars Palace in flip-flops, bathing trunks, reversed ball cap and nothing else.) Anyway, the nice people at Rhumbar in The Mirage want you to know that they’re having a weekend-only happy hour — or “day parties,” as we pretentiously call them here — noon to five, with $5 booze. That’s a big step in the right direction, here in the Land of the Eight-Dollar Beer. I’ll drink to that.
Vegas’s fashion sense may suck donkey balls but, hey, give us our due: We’ve surely got more nice
There’s a new dolphin — as yet unnamed — at The Mirage. It’ll probably be a while before the little pup goes on public display. In the meantime, S&G congratulates The Mirage, and hopes mother and child are resting comfortably.
Meanwhile Downtown, after much anticipation, long delay and many leaks, it has been officially disclosed that the Plaza Hotel & Casino will be hosting Insurgo Theater Movement (left) in its third-floor performance space, which is being adapted to host serious (and not-so-serious) “theatuh.” Insurgo will debut at the Plaza on Sept. 1 with Waiting for Godot, which pretty much describes the local economy, when you think of it. (Imagine Jim Murren and Gary Loveman as the two tramps, with Sheldon Adelson as Pozzo and Steve Wynn in the
How do you turn a $100 million savings into a $92 million one? Leave it to Caesars Entertainment CEO Gary Loveman, that’s how. If you’ve noticed that the food quality at The Rio‘s Carnival World Buffet has declined (the “New York Steak” at our last visit was downright rancid) or that the balloon marquee in front of Paris-Las Vegas is almost completely denuded of paint, take comfort in the thought that high-ranking Caesars execs are being richly remunerated for the continued degradation of the company’s assets. That’s to say nothing of strong-arming the workforce by rescinding cash awards for good performance or trying to confiscate dealers’ tips. (Regarding the former, Caesars’ tribunes were miffed that the plebians were spending their extra lucre “on gas and groceries.” The effrontery of the rabble!)
Caesars may be almost $19 billion in debt and lost “only” $147 million in 1Q11, but that didn’t stop Loveman from showering almost $8 million on court favorites like CFO Jonathan Halkyard (right). Nor did Loveman neglect himself, shoving $1 million into his own pocket. That’s considerably more than was received by Halkyard and two divisional presidents combined. Of course, that is the sort of leading-by-example we’ve come to expect from a CEO who wants the public (and rival casinos) to pony up so he can have a vanity arena out back of Imperial Palace. Is it that far-fetched to suggest that Loveman has a boner for a Flamingo Road sports stadium because he’d be able to attend a couple of
CityCenter‘s public art collection (now with 100% fewer explanatory plaques!) and its “pocket park” get the spoof treatment from artist Justin Favela, as shown in this DIY video report by the Wall Street Journal‘s Alexandra Berzon, who dryly narrates.