Quote of the Day

Posted on September 19, 2011 by David McKee

Mike Tyson, our local cross to bear. (Caution: Extremely offensive language.) You will understand why I refuse to apologize for Oscar Goodman. Tyson (above) is seen signing autographs at Paris-Las Vegas‘ Chateau nightclub. Caesars Entertainment sure knows how to pick ’em.

Posted in Current, Harrah's, Oscar Goodman, The Strip | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

A Stern glance

Posted on September 19, 2011 by David McKee

Posthumous congratulations to Martin Stern Jr. (1917-2001), father of the vertically integrated casino resort. He will be the recipient of the annual Jay Sarno Award at this year’s Global Gaming Expo. The choice of Stern has been such a closely guarded secret that not even Sarno biographer (and keeper of the Stern archives) Dr. David G. Schwartz knew when I asked him last Thursday. Ironically, the honor comes the same year that Stern’s first Strip project, the high-rise expansion of the Sahara, closed for business. Current owner Sammy “The Naz” Nazarian has turned it into a chop shop, stripping the old gal for parts. Perhaps that’s how he scared up the money to buy back the note on the old gal at a discount. Sahara Sam has now turned his energies to romancing his harshest critic, Chuck Monster, perhaps in hopes of generating more lenient coverage. (I wouldn’t count on it, Sammy. Just ask Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.)

Stern’s first signature property was the (now) Las Vegas Hilton, uniting all the key casino components under one ginormous roof. Kirk Kerkorian liked Stern’s work so much, he hired him to execute the first MGM Grand, now better known as Bally’s Las Vegas. While Nevada projects represented fully half of Stern’s output, he also designed Trump Plaza. In recent years, Prof. Schwartz has helped draw attention to Stern’s unrealized dream: Xanadu. The half-Mayan, half-Jetsons casino would certainly have been aesthetically preferable to the horror that arose on Stern’s intended site: Excalibur. Figuratively, those Tournament of Kings knights trample on Stern’s heart nightly. Anyway, congratulations, Mr. Stern. I’m sorry you can’t make it to the party. It’s an honor well deserved.

Posted in Architecture, Colony Capital, Cosmopolitan, Current, G2E, Harrah's, MGM Mirage, Sahara | Comments Off on A Stern glance

At long last, Octavius; Power plays at Hilton, Beso

Posted on September 14, 2011 by David McKee

Good news for whales and business travelers: The long-in-abeyance Octavius Tower at Caesars Palace has been finished inside and out, and will open for business on Jan. 2, 2012. The ginormous, high-tech hotel rooms are perfect for the customer with money to burn, and completion of Octavius is meant as a signal of Caesars’ confidence in the staying power of the high-end market.

Which is a little odd, coming off the big deal about Project Linq being an attempt to reposition dining and retail on the Strip toward the middle class … but never mind. Finding money to polish off the tower was one of the objectives of Caesars’ busted IPO a year ago. Evidently the company found enough spare change under Gary Loveman‘s sofa cushions to push ahead on Octavius all the same. However, one notes significant “budget creep” on Project Linq. The $550 million that was supposed to cover that and Octavius’ completion and three East Coast joint ventures will now be Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, California, CityCenter, Colony Capital, Current, Dining, Goldman Sachs, Harrah's, Internet gambling, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Tourism | 1 Comment

See you there!

Posted on September 14, 2011 by David McKee

Tomorrow afternoon, at 12:15 p.m. (just in time for the lunch-hour crowd), UNLV‘s Design, Science & Technology program presents an unusual — for it — lecture. It’s entitled Taming Vice: How Machines and Architecture Changed the Culture of Gambling. The speaker will be visiting scholar Kah-Wee Lee, doctoral candidate in architecture at the University of California-Berkeley. Lee holds forth in the Special Collections Reading Room, on the third floor of beautiful Lied Library. For more info, go to gaming.unlv.edu. I’ll be there: Just look for the overweight guy with the straw hat.

P.S.: If I seem more morose than usual, it’s because Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Current, International, The Strip | 1 Comment

Assume the position

Posted on September 13, 2011 by David McKee

Whatever one thinks of The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas‘ business plan, the $4 billion resort seems bound and determined to position itself as a lifestyle-oriented hangout for the upwardly mobile, with casino gambling just one amenity among many others. But perhaps you looked out over the pool deck last weekend and thought, “Wow, that looks like the largest Continue reading →

Posted in Cosmopolitan, Current, Entertainment, Marketing, The Strip, Tourism | 1 Comment

Boardwalk brinkmanship

Posted on September 13, 2011 by David McKee

As the hours tick away toward this week’s expiration of labor agreements at nine Atlantic City casinos, managements are all but daring Culinary Union parent Unite Here to strike. Caesars Entertainment had the brass to declare it was continuing “to negotiate in good faith” … without actually conducting any negotiations. The market having literally been buffeted about during hurricane season and revenues continuing to decline, union prexy Robert McDevitt (below) finds himself in a horrible bargaining position and clearly knows it, having set no strike date. McDevitt says he’s doing it for the good of the city but he’s also dealing from a position of weakness.

On principle, demanding a 25% benefit reduction from your workforce is a crappy thing to do. However, with over half of the city’s 11 casinos running at an operating loss, ownership has a case for pleading poverty. Over at ancient Resorts Atlantic City, CEO Dennis Gomes is conducting a discrete set of labor talks (having already made the truly draconian austerity measures when the former Colony Capital catastrophe property changed hands) and Borgata has a year in which to wait and see how its fellows’ hard-line stance plays out. But Caesars tribune Don Marrandino‘s optimism is well warranted. Since McDevitt has unilaterally disarmed, Marrandino’s colleagues can Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Colony Capital, Culinary Union, Current, Dennis Gomes, Detroit, Economy, Harrah's, International, Internet gambling, Marketing, MGM Mirage, Neil Bluhm, Pennsylvania, Racinos, Regulation | 2 Comments

Rehab in rehab

Posted on September 13, 2011 by David McKee

If it seems that the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino‘s infamous Rehab pool party has been keeping a lower profile this year, that’s no illusion. The expulsion of Morgans Hotel Group and its party-hearty executive team has brought a de-empahsis on Rehab. As new Executive Director of Nightlife Ian Kohoutek made a point of telling the Las Vegas Review-Journal, “We have a clean pool; we operate effectively and by the law.” Henceforth it will also be operating without Angel Management Group, which just got its walking papers. (The announcement was made a half-hour ago.)

Angel not only loses its Rehab gig but also Vanity Nightclub and the Hard Rock Beach Club. As a going-away present, it gets to keep its Tiesto in Concert DJ engagement at The Joint. The press release had the usual CYA verbiage about “upcoming business ventures that will be announced … exciting new projects soon-to-be-unveiled [sic] … making room to concentrate on what will be innovative concepts that will revolutionize the nightlife industry.” Let the record show that Warner, meanwhile, is angling for a casino in Massachusetts and therefore has good reason to try and distance itself from the festering Rehab image problem it inherited from Morgans.

Don’t cry for Angel. It still has a list of Vegas affiliations as long as a post-Rehab hangover. New HRH stewards Warner Gaming may have simply wanted a club operator with fewer potential conflicts of interest. Or maybe one who comes cheaper, since the Hard Rock isn’t exactly swimming in dough these days. However, while Angel’s HRH role may have been severely diminished, rest assured that its legacy remains indelible.

Posted in Current, Entertainment, Environment, Hard Rock Hotel, Massachusetts, The Strip, Warner Gaming | 2 Comments

Quote of the Day

Posted on September 13, 2011 by David McKee

“We accept your apology, Jaws. You’re forgiven, especially because sitting in a booth with Jon Gruden all night could make even the most straitlaced man drop a few curse words.” — Yahoo Sports blogger Chris Chase, on Ron Jaworski‘s S-bomb during last night’s humiliation of the Miami Dolphins at the hands of the New England Patriots.

Posted in Current, Sports, TV | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

Wishful Thinking 101

Posted on September 12, 2011 by David McKee

Do you ever have the feeling that CityCenter isn’t getting its message across? Incidentally, leave your cursor on the Harmon wrap for a moment and you’ll get an amusing — but wholly accidental — bit of snark from Cosmopolitan PR’s department.

(Photo: RETNA/Erik Kabik)

Posted in CityCenter, Cosmopolitan, Entertainment, Marketing, MGM Mirage, The Strip | 3 Comments

Quote of the Day

Posted on September 12, 2011 by David McKee

“And so this political deadlock conceals a religious war at its heart. Why after all should one abandon or compromise sacred truths? And for those whose Christianity can only be sustained by denial of modern complexity, of scientific knowledge, and of what scholarly studies of the Bible’s origins have revealed, this fusion of political and spiritual lives into one seamless sensibility and culture, is irresistible.” — Andrew Sullivan on the evolution (devolution?) of political parties into religious cults.

Posted in Current | 2 Comments

No trouble in River City; Phasing out Trump

Posted on September 12, 2011 by David McKee

Breaking out of its recent abundance of caution, Pinnacle Entertainment has announced $82 million in upgrades for River City. The expansion will incorporate 1,700 new parking spaces, a hotel tower (200 rooms) and 10,000 square feet of meeting space. Shovels are expected to go into the ground by next March, with completion envisioned for the latter half of 2013. The announcement played to a favorable review from J.P. Morgan‘s Joseph Greff, who noted that River City should have had covered parking from the get-go and that adding a hotel could transform into a destination property from a day-tripper spot.

Since its opening, River City has been eating the lunch of all its St. Louis-area competitors — including Pinnacle’s own Lumiere Place. The two properties represent 28% of Pinnacle’s cash flow and River City has driven a 14.5% revenue growth for the company’s St. Louis casinos this year, making the wisdom of Pinnacle’s investment obvious.

Excluding Trump Taj Mahal, the new owners of Trump Entertainment Resorts are dismantling the company one property at a time. Marc Lasry and pinchpenny CEO Robert Griffin (right) are still a long way from recovering the $305 million acquisition price. Donald Trump gives his approval to Lasry’s strategy but, as a compensated spokesblowhard for the company, he hasn’t much choice. Although the mingy revenues generated by Trump Plaza (excellent location notwithstanding) don’t seem to warrant a mega-million renovation, that’s one alternative Lasry is mulling. However, the price tag might include the removal of the worthless Trump moniker, the better to lure a brand-name joint-venture partner. Once the proceeds from unloading Trump Marina, the Steel Pier, a warehouse and an office building are tallied, TER will have raked in slightly over $50 million … $25 million less than it hopes to fetch for Trump Plaza alone. So let’s say Lasry gets $125 Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Current, Donald Trump, Economy, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Pinnacle Entertainment, Regulation, Wall Street | 1 Comment

How to get things done in Macao? Bribery!

Posted on September 12, 2011 by David McKee

OK, so it’s called “paying a premium,” but Steve Wynn finally pried 51 acres of Cotai Strip™ landfill real estate loose from Macao by forking over $193 million ($3.8 million an acre), plus annual lease payments. In return. he’s got to get $2.5 billion, 1,400-room Wynn Cotai up and running by 2016. Since Wynn has to queue up behind everybody else who’s got a project in progress, when it comes to getting a share of Macao’s limited labor pool, he’s somewhat the mercy of how quickly or slowly (*cough*Sands China*cough*) can complete their erections. However, the Macanese administration leapfrogged his project past ones bankrolled by homeboys Melco Crown Entertainment and sluggish Sociedade de Jogos de Macau, so El Steve’s $193 million was well spent.

J.P. Morgan analyst Joseph Greff predicts similar approvals soon for Sands and long-suffering MGM Resorts International. One can’t fault the government’s logic. It knows it has casino developers over a barrel, saw a chance to make a lot of money on the quick and took it.

What Wynn couldn’t do and Sheldon Adelson™ failed to accomplish in Florida may have been achieved by Genting Berhad. So argues state Rep. Erik Fresen (R). He’s planning to introduce Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Election, Florida, Genting, International, Internet gambling, James Packer, Lawrence Ho, Macau, Melco Crown Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Stanley Ho, Steve Wynn, Tribal, Wall Street | Comments Off on How to get things done in Macao? Bribery!

This weekend in Vegas

Posted on September 10, 2011 by David McKee

If you crave an evening’s light entertainment at a fraction of casino-show prices, hail a cab to Chinatown, just a couple of minutes off the Strip, and check out Las Vegas Little Theatre‘s new production of No Sex Please, We’re British! (Mr. & Mrs. S&G saw it last night and we can vouch for the quality of the product, particularly the performances of Sarah Spraker and Michael Blair.) Emmy-winning videographer Mario Mendez has whipped up this little hommage to the antic spirit of Benny Hill, which serves both as a teaser for the play and as a freestanding work of comedic art. Have a good weekend!

Posted in Current, Entertainment, The Strip | Comments Off on This weekend in Vegas

Gaming is on the march

Posted on September 9, 2011 by David McKee

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 Class II tribal casino, enabling track owners to contend that it’s a lottery, not a house game. It’s an argument that’s worked for tribes many times in the past.

If other tracks follow Kentucky Downs’ path, it may not be a moment too soon. Gov. Steve Beshear (D, right) has been pushing for gambling expansion through the Lege since before his first term commenced and accomplished squat to date. If he loses his reelection bid this year, casino opponent and state Sen. David Williams (R) will be able to put the issue on ice for another four years. Time’s a wastin’. To the east, Harrah’s Cherokee wants to deal itself some live table games, among other expansions. The administration of Gov. Bev Purdue (D, below) is amenable — provided that the compact is renegotiated so that there’s something in it for the state, too. But dickering for a larger percentage of existing slot and electronic table game revenues is verboten under IGRA, and that could throw an extra-large wrench into the negotiations. Up north, the competitive threat from Ohio is inching closer from theory to reality. Horseshoe Cleveland has begun hiring and Cincinnati is contemplating some common-sense infrastructure improvements that would facilitate access to Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati. (To do otherwise is tantamount to wishing failure on the place.)

The revenue pinch is also being felt in the great state of New York, where a version of Class III gambling is being sought for the state’s racinos, which currently make do with VLTs. If Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D, right) backs the tracks, he’s literally taking a gamble: Wagering money that’s currently owed to the state by the Seneca Nation against billions in table game dollars that racino owners say they can generate. The latter propose to sweeten their pot a little further by slamming the door to new operators in the state and taking undeveloped casino sites off the table. It would be 2014 at the earliest before 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

Irene, you jezebel!

Posted on September 9, 2011 by David McKee

“You come, you stay, you go/It really doesn’t matter/You’ve done it all before/By now they’ll know the pattern.” — ABBA

OK, so Benny & Bjorn were writing about a gal named Elaine not a hurricane called Irene. Although the storm is estimated to have cost Atlantic City casinos $40 million last month, it didn’t change the underlying narrative. J.P. Morgan‘s analysts have accounted for the Irene Effect and estimate that the Boardwalk would still have been -9% from August 2010, acts of God notwithstanding. That’s on top of an 11% declivity in August ’10 and Morgan’s Joseph Greff expects “results will continue to remain soft.” Last June’s mild 4% drop in business looks more and more like an aberration, not “a light at the end of the tunnel.”

Tropicana Atlantic City, Borgata and Caesars Atlantic City rode out the storm best, while Irene considerably amplified the misery of the city’s lesser casinos, with Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Current, Donald Trump, Economy, Environment, Harrah's, Macau, Neil Bluhm, Pennsylvania, Racinos, Sheldon Adelson, Tourism, Tribal, Tropicana Entertainment, Wall Street | Comments Off on Irene, you jezebel!

Who says irony is dead?

Posted on September 9, 2011 by David McKee

Las Vegas Review-Journal newshound Norm(!) Clarke reports that, in January, the Nevada Ballet Theater‘s annual honoree will be … wait for it … Eva Longoria. What a concept: Fail miserably at business, get an award! S&G looks forward to future NBT recognition of Tom Barrack, James Packer, Jeffrey Soffer, Ian Bruce Eichner, Lyle Berman, Ed Scheetz and sundry other wannabe casino potentates who came to Vegas only to have their clocks cleaned. In what venue will Ms. Longoria be receiving her dubious-achievement award? You guessed it, Aria. Where else?

I have to admit, this is a most ingenious way for Continue reading →

Posted in Charity, CityCenter, Colony Capital, Cosmopolitan, Fontainebleau, James Packer, Lyle Berman, MGM Mirage, Morgans Hotel Group, Sports | Comments Off on Who says irony is dead?

Quote of the Day

Posted on September 9, 2011 by David McKee

“I come from the idea that it was a dumb idea from the start.” — incoming MediaNews Group CEO John Paton, giving the sack to cock-clutching dweeb Steve Gibson‘s online “protection” racket, Righthaven, persecutor of penurious bloggers everywhere.

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

Consolation prize

Posted on September 8, 2011 by David McKee

Congratulations to Caesars Entertainment. Its Canadian flagship, Caesars Windsor, was voted best “Detroit area” casino by readers of Casino Player magazine for the 11th year running, as well as snagging 10 other awards. Now, if only Caesars could monetize that. Given the well-publicized financial struggles of Caesars Windsor, getting a passel of awards from Casino Player is like the sound of one hand clapping.

If they can’t come to Vegas … bring Vegas to Windsor.

CEO Gary Loveman invested an extra 400 million Loonies (and the Caesars name)  into the property in the teeth of what can only be described as active U.S. governmental deterrence of Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Detroit, Economy, Harrah's, International, Regulation | 5 Comments

After the deluge

Posted on September 6, 2011 by David McKee

Although it cost casino owners a couple of days’ business, the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee inflicted scarcely any damage compared to Hurricane Katrina. (Safety measures taken in post-Katrina years helped.) Since the Louisiana casino market has been in an upward trend during recent months, a brief interruption of business — while hardly desirable — will be only a hiccup in what’s been a pretty upbeat narrative of late. Lee’s inopportune timing, however, will put a dent in Biloxi‘s drive-in lucre … albeit probably less than expected, judging by the news from Beau Rivage.

Posted in Current, Economy, Environment, Louisiana, MGM Mirage, Mississippi, Tourism, Transportation | 1 Comment

Plaza & Riviera: Cheap new wine in old bottles

Posted on September 6, 2011 by David McKee

It’s an index of the desperation of local media to have something — anything — new to cover on the casino front that the slightest murmur from the Plaza was guaranteed to generate coverage. Plaza PR peeps did a masterful job of dribbling out bits and pieces of advance info, resulting in a steady stream of eager stories (including five Review-Journal pieces in the last seven days alone). The Sept. 1 opening having come and gone, what’s the local verdict?

After some prevarication, Tamares Group brass decided to proceed with a soft opening. Bad idea. It was the squishiest since the Venetian fiasco of 1999, if not a “Splat!” on so grand a scale. Hunter Hillegas chronicled the failings of execution in a withering series of Tweets. Among other problems (many other problems), it’s clear from Hillegas’ report that $35 million wasn’t enough to adequately remake the Plaza. Deep-pocketed Tamares opted for half-measures, a calculation that threatens to backfire. The ex-Fontainebleau furniture looks spiffy, even if it’s rather oddly juxtaposed with the old-school layout of the hotel rooms — a built-in handicap for which it would unfair to criticize Tamares.

He also found the hotel-casino suffering from an identity crisis that one wouldn’t expect with industry veteran Anthony Santo at the rudder. Ditto the inexperienced staff, 62% of whom are newbies. With unemployment rampant in Las Vegas, it’s inconceivable that Santo couldn’t find higher-caliber personnel. What Hunter encountered was what industry pros call “a break-in joint.” Yeah, Anthony Cools “believes in it” … because Alex Yemenidjian kicked his ass out of the Trop. The Plaza’s not exactly an upward move for Mr. Cools either.

“The Plaza can compete on price and the fact they now have significantly less urine in their carpet but that’s not going to be enough,” Hillegas concludes. However, the overall tenor of his report leaves me bracing for the worst (i.e., Chapter 11). Visitor Ted Newkirk describes opening night as “business as usual.” Uh-oh. Tamares didn’t even spring for an opening-night media event. I had business elsewhere that evening but there are many other columnists, TV shows and bloggers who could — and would — have made hay from just a teensy bit of privileged access.

On the other hand, the frequently severe Chuck Monster (whose wrath has memorably been visited upon The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas) was more good humored. His best line: “Toiletries are the Malibu Barbie version of the Leatherwood Collection.” Both he and Hillegas love the new look and layout on the casino floor, which Mr. Monster finds less antiseptic than that of the Tropicana. Another common thread is that, once you get past the casino floor, more and more sins of omission are discovered. An accumulation of small gripes like these can Continue reading →

Posted in Alex Yemenidjian, Architecture, Cosmopolitan, Current, Dining, Downtown, Entertainment, Fontainebleau, Riviera, Sheldon Adelson, Tamares Group, The Strip, Tourism, Tropicana Entertainment, TV | 7 Comments