This just in: It was pretty clear that Sheldon Adelson was cool toward his home state of Massachusetts and he officially called it quits today. His excuse? Three casinos and a slot parlor will “dilute the market.” In other words, no monopoly = no Sheldon. That’s a slight variation on the too-much-competition wheeze he used in Florida. Somehow, I expect the Bay State will find a way to live without him. Besides, if four casinos is too dilutive, how does the sandy-haired Las Vegas Sands CEO explain the recent, runaway success of Sands Bethlehem in a far more crowded market? Its revenues just grow and grow (up 27% in 1Q12), Resorts World New York having not made the slightest dent. Inconsistent much, Shel?
(This is default good news for Caesars Entertainment. It could have been knocked out of the Boston-area box by a strong Sands presentation but homeboy Gary Loveman‘s potential competitors continue to obligingly fall on their swords.)
Apple falls, tree nearby. It looks as though the recent Billboard Music Awards, held at MGM Grand, will be remembered less for anything that transpired during the show than for some not-so-legal slot play by Bobbi Kristina Brown (daughter of the late Whitney Houston). Seems that family just can’t stay out of trouble. The financial penalties for Continue reading
What took them so long? That has to be the operative question now that Trump Entertainment Resorts owner Marc Lasry and CEO Robert Griffin have belatedly put Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino on the market, 
“‘Eleven, the Hard Way’ (1961), about a small town that sends a gambler [Walter Matthau] to Reno to try to win it a return to prosperity after the local mine goes bust, seems like a metaphor for all those states that hope a casino economy can replace their lost manufacturing revenue.” — the New York Times’ Neal Genzlinger, 
To celebrate the first anniversary of his cold-blooded, premeditated murder of the Sahara, nightclub owner Sam Nazarian trotted out 
models (no, not of the runway ilk) and even a rendering that one can find on the SLS Las Vegas 
Taking a gander at the model, the most striking aspect of the new Sahara, er, SLS LV is how much it resembles the old Sahara. If you’re fond of the onion-dome porte-cochere or the neon marquee, have
Wow, I totally 
Ever since a highly quixotic and even nonsensical attempt to take over most of Station Casinos, the cards have been played very, very close to the vest at Boyd Gaming. However, like another second-tier major, Ameristar Casinos, it’s showing renewed signs of aggression. Like Caesars Entertainment, it’s extending its presence into new (f0r Boyd) markets. Unlike Caesars, it’s doing so without significant capex expenditures. First came the acquisition of IP Biloxi, which has been performing up to expectations and arguably above them.
Then, in the gloaming of yesterday, Boyd disclosed that it had committed $1.4 billion to obtaining Peninsula Gaming, a riverboat-and-racino outfit concentrated in Midwest and South. So eager is Peninsula to be bought out that it’s actually loaning Boyd $144 million to close the deal. Boyd will draw another $1.2 billion from its line of credit, in addition to paying Peninsula $200 million upfront. In light of Peninsula’s $109 million cash flow last year and boffo early numbers from its Kansas casino (above), Boyd expects the purchase to begin paying for itself straightaway, increasing EBITDA 35%.
Aladdin, plus one baccarat chip, shipping and handling not included. (Some assembly required.) “It was the first European style casio [sic] in Las Vegas,” writes seller Mark, and undoubtedly the last, I might add. It successively broke the backs of London Clubs International and Planet Ho’s casino division, reducing both to minor principalities in the Caesars Entertainment empire. At a mere 13 feet long and 6 feet, 6 inches high, and weighing only 175 pounds, this is clearly 
It’s ironic that Sheldon Adelson is expending so much lungpower and cash to try and block federal legitimization of Internet poker and possibly other games. Washington 
There’s a dark horse in the race for a Toronto megaresort … very dark. It’s Onex Corp., known to you and me as the owner of the Tropicana Las Vegas. Onex subsidiary Casino ABS owns four of the largest casinos in Alberta. So Onex owner Gerald Schwarz has some justification for saying, “We know how to operate a casino,” although on the basis of Onex’s Vegas stumbles, many would challenge that assertion. In its favor, Canadian-owned Onex has “favorite son” status. However, Schwarz’s big talk hasn’t been accompanied by a big wallet at the Trop. A promised $265 million in renovations was whittled down to $145 million, and CEO Alex Yemenidjian‘s tenure has been marred by a series of contractual wrangles and high-profile defections. It’s hard not to feel as though Schwarz is entering a Shetland pony in a thoroughbred race.
A Friday computer glitch that destroyed half an S&G posting also accidentally closed “Comments” for “Lovemania comes to Cleveland.” Thankfully, LVA‘s Webmistress Jessica was able to rectify the situation with a few mouse clicks. Thanks also to the eagle-eyed Caesars Entertainment player who spotted the problem and alerted us. Opine away!
Better stick that rhetoric back in your briefcase, Lloyd. The long odds facing Atlantic City got a bit longer this weekend with the release of a Fairleigh Dickinson University poll that shows 58% opposition to Internet betting, even if run by reputable Boardwalk casinos. With only 31% support, this looks like a dead duck for several election cycles to come. Both state Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D, right) and Gov. Chris Christie (R) would be wasting political capital if they took this issue to the polls. Sports betting is one thing to the Garden State electorate — and inarguably essential to Atlantic City’s survival — but ‘Net bets are a bridge to far for the public to cross.
Revel, the new, $2.4 billion casino on the Boardwalk has been conducting a sort of “stealth opening,” conducting a two-month-plus dry run. Along with the stealth opening come what you might call “stealth revenues”: