Category Archives: Kentucky

Freeman vs. Adelson; Kentucky tries again

In a particularly stunning departure from American Gaming Association tradition, new prexy Geoff Freeman took a jab at Las Vegas Sands CEO Sheldon “Nuke ‘Em” Adelson in the pages of USA Today. Of course, Freeman didn’t mention Adelson explicitly. But … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Columbia Sussex, Harrah's, Internet gambling, Kentucky, Marketing, New York, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Taxes | Comments Off on Freeman vs. Adelson; Kentucky tries again

Scott Walker, optimist; Having it both ways in Kentucky

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) must have an upbeat disposition. He’s going to try and get representatives of all of the state’s gambling-enabled tribes in a room this week. The subject, of course, is the Menominee Tribe‘s Dairyland proposal, which … Continue reading

Posted in Delaware, Economy, Kentucky, Racinos, Sports, Taxes, Tribal, Wisconsin | Comments Off on Scott Walker, optimist; Having it both ways in Kentucky

Quote of the Day

“Santa and the Easter bunny are simply the devil in disguise and cable television and the Internet are his playground. The Boy Scouts are his evil minions.” — Kentucky humorist Angela Thomas, in a controversial column that has the Southern … Continue reading

Posted in Cretins, Current, Internet gambling, Kentucky, Sheldon Adelson | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

Accord in Kentucky; Atlantic City on the move; James Packer’s comeback

But there are still some stirrings of activity on the casino front. For starters, Bwin.Party has agreed to fork over $15 million to Kentucky. According to the company the payment “resolves the only remaining litigation … that stems from our … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, California, Cirque du Soleil, Colony Capital, Current, Entertainment, International, Internet gambling, James Packer, Kentucky, MGM Mirage, Regulation, Station Casinos, Taxes, The Strip, Tribal | Comments Off on Accord in Kentucky; Atlantic City on the move; James Packer’s comeback

Indiana: The good, the bad, the ‘meh’; Vegas: What’s that smell?

January casino revenues from Indiana present a conundrum. Although the state is still the most lucrative casino jurisdiction in the Midwest ($192 million last month), it’s hard to tell whether the half-full glass is filling or emptying. Foot traffic was … Continue reading

Posted in Ameristar, Cordish Co., Current, Don Barden, Economy, Environment, Harrah's, Illinois, Indiana, Internet gambling, Kentucky, Laughlin, Mesquite, Minnesota, Penn National, Politics, Racinos, Tourism, Wall Street | 1 Comment

If you can’t beat ’em … move to Ohio

Faced with an intractable Kentucky Legislature and ineffectual advocacy by Gov. Steve Beshear (D-KY), one parimutuel powerhouse from the Bluegrass State is setting up shop in Ohio. Today, Churchill Downs Inc. (in tandem with Delaware North Cos.) closed on its … Continue reading

Posted in Current, Harrah's, Horseracing, Kentucky, Ohio, Racinos | Comments Off on If you can’t beat ’em … move to Ohio

Wake up with Loveman; More election aftermath

No sooner were Wall Street analysts uttering serious concerns about a slow post-Sandy recovery for Atlantic City than who should pop up on CBS This Morning but Caesars Entertainment CEO Gary Loveman, doing damage control … It’s hard to decide … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Current, Dan Gilbert, Donald Trump, Economy, Environment, Harrah's, Internet gambling, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Politics, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Wynn, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Tourism, Transportation, TV, Wall Street | Comments Off on Wake up with Loveman; More election aftermath

Have you seen this man?; Bluhm comes to Beantown

Anyone remember Gov. Steve Beshear (D)? For the five years, he’s been spinning his wheels, trying to get gambling expanded in Kentucky past horse racing. When Beshear ran for reelection last year, his GOP opponent, then-state Senate President David Williams … Continue reading

Posted in Current, Illinois, Isle of Capri, Kentucky, Macau, Massachusetts, Missouri, Neil Bluhm, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Tribal | Comments Off on Have you seen this man?; Bluhm comes to Beantown

Meet Virginia McDowell, Part II: Tales of Trump

In terms of turning around Isle’s financial performance, do you feel the full 180 degrees have been achieved yet? We’ve had a couple off different priorities over the last few years, as far as our strategic initiatives. One was to … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Donald Trump, Economy, Election, Harrah's, history, Iowa, Isle of Capri, Kentucky, Marketing, Missouri, Tourism, Wall Street | 3 Comments

Belated Christmas presents, Midwest edition

To quote Stephen Sondheim, everything’s coming up roses … or close enough, anyway. Last Friday, strong numbers out of Iowa — of a non-caucus ilk — showed the state’s casinos rebounding to the tune of 16% (on a $121 million) … Continue reading

Posted in Ameristar, Boyd Gaming, Cordish Co., Dan Lee, Don Barden, Donald Trump, Economy, Environment, Harrah's, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Isle of Capri, Kentucky, MGM Mirage, Missouri, Neil Bluhm, Ohio, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Racinos, Taxes, Tropicana Entertainment | 1 Comment

Casinos in Kentucky … soon?; Tenants to Sands: Let my people go!

Per S&G‘s prediction, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear (D) wasted little time after winning reelection before resuming his push for casino legalization. You’d never think that he beat opponent state Senate President David Williams (R) like a drum at the ballot … Continue reading

Posted in Current, Dining, Economy, Election, Entertainment, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Racinos, Sheldon Adelson, Station Casinos, Taxes, The Strip | Comments Off on Casinos in Kentucky … soon?; Tenants to Sands: Let my people go!

Domino effects

“Prior to the official opening, a 60-minute opening ceremony was held outside of the main entrance to the casino, where local and state politicians patted each other on the back for finally getting the casino opened, a mere 10 years … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Colony Capital, Culinary Union, Current, Detroit, Economy, Election, Florida, Harrah's, Horseracing, Isle of Capri, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Politics, Problem gambling, Racinos, Regulation, Singapore, Slot routes, Taxes, Tourism, Tribal | 1 Comment

Gaming is on the march

Add Kentucky to the states that have casino-style gambling, at least temporarily. Owners of Kentucky Downs found a loophole in Bluegrass State law and galloped through it. “Instant Racing” is the sort of VLT game you might find at a … Continue reading

Posted in Cannery Casino Resorts, Current, Economy, Election, Genting, Harrah's, Horseracing, Isle of Capri, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, Penn National, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Taxes, The Strip, Tourism, Transportation, Tribal, Warner Gaming | 6 Comments

John Kasich, casino killer

Aw, isn’t this great? After Gov. John Kasich (R-OH) made the ludicrous claim that Ohio voters didn’t know what they were getting into when they approved a casino initiative in 2008, his legislative allies are trying to up the ante. … Continue reading

Posted in Current, Economy, Election, Harrah's, history, Kentucky, Lyle Berman, MGM Mirage, Ohio, Penn National, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Taxes, The Strip, Tribal, TV, Wall Street | 6 Comments

Seminoles’ big payday; ‘Net-bet stampede: It’s on

After a full year of Class III gambling, the Seminole Tribe has grossed $2 billion. Depending on how considerably that amount ramps up, the State of Florida will enjoy at least a $1 billion “rake” by the end of Gov. … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Atlantic City, Current, Florida, Harrah's, Internet gambling, Isle of Capri, Kentucky, MGM Mirage, Politics, Racinos, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Wynn, Taxes, The Strip, Tribal | 4 Comments

Case Bets: Caliendo, ColSux & Sixty Votes’ latest

After 14 months on the job as Monte Carlo‘s resident headliner, Frank Caliendo is calling it quits, effective some time next spring. The impressionist and Fox Sports regular cited having to spend time away from his family and the rigors … Continue reading

Posted in Columbia Sussex, Current, Economy, Election, Entertainment, history, Kentucky, Lake Tahoe, MGM Mirage, Politics, Sahara, Station Casinos, The Strip, Tribal, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Case Bets: Macao, Maryland, Internet casinos

April was a bonny month for Macao, where overall visitation rose 13% and mainland Chinese tourism rose 17%. Now if only Peking would take its hand off the spigot known as visa quotas, we might have some honest-to-god year/year comparisons … Continue reading

Posted in Alabama, Cordish Co., IGT, Internet gambling, Kentucky, Macau, Maryland, Politics, Regulation, Sports, Taxes, Technology, The Strip, Tourism | 2 Comments

Big payoff for Pennsylvania

Gov. Ed Rendell (D) and other state leaders have got to be feeling the love for the Keystone State‘s budding casino industry, which generated over $1 billion in tax revenue last year. That boffo return was achieved without table games … Continue reading

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Cannery Casino Resorts, Economy, Harrah's, IGT, Indiana, Kentucky, MGM Mirage, Neil Bluhm, Ohio, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Politics, Racinos, Reno, Sheldon Adelson, Taxes, Technology, Tribal, Tropicana Entertainment, TV | 2 Comments

From the mailbag #7

Presumably foiled once again by the Comment-Eating Server, reader kerr_mudgeon writes: From the article about the A.C. contract settlement: "In his praise of the deal, Don Marrandino, the Eastern Division president of Harrah's, appeared to refer indirectly to tortured negotiations … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Downtown, Economy, Harrah's, Horseracing, Kentucky, Labor | Comments Off on From the mailbag #7

ColSux makes peace

After sporadically butting heads, Columbia Sussex CEO William J. Yung III and Kentucky preservationists have reached agreement on the immediate future of the old Bavarian Brewery. Yung had bought it and an assortment of nearby properties on the rash presumption … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Columbia Sussex, Kentucky | Comments Off on ColSux makes peace