Quote of the Day

Posted on March 16, 2010 by David McKee

“If the love of money is the root of all evil, are we better as a nation now that we’re broke?” — Lily Tomlin, last night at MGM Grand. (Her current run at the Green Monster ends tomorrow … but since MGM Mirage has commissioned billboards and custom poster art, it looks as though Tomlin will be a recurring presence on the Strip.)

Posted in Current, Economy, Entertainment, MGM Mirage, The Strip | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

CityCenter: Guilty by association

Posted on March 15, 2010 by David McKee

This new attack ad, fired today, represents the latest salvo in what might be called The War Over CityCenter. Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), not having been shy to take credit for CityCenter’s completion, is fair game. Where the ad may cross the foul line is in its frontal assault on the corporate practices of MGM Mirage and CEO Jim Murren, who were quick to counterattack. In one this brouhaha’s most surrealistic moment Continue reading →

Posted in CityCenter, Colony Capital, Current, Dubai, Economy, Election, Entertainment, Harrah's, Harry Reid, International, MGM Mirage, Planet Hollywood, Politics, Regulation, Riviera, Station Casinos, Taxes, The Strip | 2 Comments

Elvis: That’s the way it’s gonna be

Posted on March 15, 2010 by David McKee

Herewith my — hopefully — last words on the subject of Cirque du Soleil‘s Viva Elvis, by way of Wizard of Vegas.com. As to the gaping fissure between national and local opinion-makers (myself included), I’ve given it a moderate amount of thought and am stumped for an answer.

My best conjecture is that when seven Cirque shows are simultaneously holding the boards on the Strip (to say nothing of son-of-Cirque creations like Le Reve), someone who is exposed to heavy doses of Cirque might Continue reading →

Posted in Cirque du Soleil, Entertainment, MGM Mirage, The Strip | 4 Comments

Case Bets: Pinnacle’s new CEO; Mr. Bit

Posted on March 15, 2010 by David McKee

sanfilippo-inside-smallS&G congratulates Anthony Sanfilippo, new president and COO of Pinnacle Entertainment. A former regional overseer for Harrah’s Entertainment (prexy of its Central and Western divisions), he’s familiar with the ground on which Pinnacle’s battles will be fought, including Lousiana, Missouri and Indiana. He’s also a former COO of Harrah’s New Orleans and — having been within the Harrah’s brain trust for so many years — presumably “knows the enemy” and the tactics that will need to be deployed against Pinnacle’s primary competitor. In fact, his there tenure includes service in the ranks of Jazz Casino Corp., absorbed into Harrah’s many, many years ago. As a vote of confidence in his new employer, Continue reading →

Posted in Animals, Current, Harrah's, Indiana, Louisiana, Missouri, Pets, Pinnacle Entertainment | 2 Comments

Dare to compare

Posted on March 12, 2010 by David McKee

This compare-and-contrast montage of MGM Grand Macau, Wynn Macau and Sociedade de Jogos de Macau‘s Grand Lisboa provides a mini-education. At first blush, the MGM property looks a mite too fancy for its own good, though it compares favorably to many of the company’s Strip properties. (You have to wonder how it would be performing if MGM and partner Pansy Ho had spent less and gotten their product to market sooner.) If you’ve been to Encore, then Wynn’s Macao property will give you a distinct Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Encore, Macau, MGM Mirage, Pansy Ho, Stanley Ho, Steve Wynn, The Strip | 2 Comments

House of cards

Posted on March 12, 2010 by David McKee

Literally. How Venetian Macao was recreated in playing-card form.

Posted in Macau, Sheldon Adelson, TV | Comments Off on House of cards

Bad PR for gaming

Posted on March 12, 2010 by David McKee

Mike Ensign‘s 96 dimes of hush money to his son’s mistress’ pimp daddy (aka Doug Hampton) and “Casino Jack” Abramoff make cameo appearances in this attack ad (found via @RalstonFlash). Throw in the heavy-handed meddling in casino affairs of Gov. Chet Culver (D-IA) and Gov. David Paterson (D-N.Y.), and it’s been Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Election, Iowa, Marketing, New York, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Reno, Sahara, TV | Comments Off on Bad PR for gaming

Who’s crazier: Adelson or Florida?

Posted on March 12, 2010 by David McKee

AdelsonPay no attention to the over-budget, behind-schedule megaresort in the background.

Six casinos at $2 billion apiece. No joking, that’s what a Sheldon Adelson flunky is proposing in Florida. (I guess the white-out of Atlantic City isn’t the only snow job on the East Coast.) Oh, and a 10% tax rate … far less than what existing operators are paying.

Legislators, dazzled by state-generated projections of as much as $2.3 billion in licensing fees, are apparently eating this all up. Imagine the black laughter Adelson spokesman Andy Abboud would get from the Nevada Legislature if he used the phrase Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Current, Economy, Macau, Pennsylvania, Politics, Sheldon Adelson, Singapore, Taxes, The Strip | 4 Comments

Quote of the Day

Posted on March 12, 2010 by David McKee

gibbons_dennis_hmed_10a.h2“Even I was surprised at the amount of work it requires to be governor.” — Gov. Jim Gibbons (R-NV), upon filing for reelection.

Posted in Current, Election, Midnight Jim Gibbons | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

Today’s Vegas: something for everybody

Posted on March 11, 2010 by David McKee

From Sin City Advisor:

St Patrick’s Day now officially lesbian (Wasted Space) Mexican (Club Fortune) midget-wrestling (Velvet Lion) bikini contest (McFadden’s).

And if you’re a bikini-wearing, midget-wrestling Mexican lesbian, you’ve truly landed in clover. Erin Go Bragh, señoritas!

Posted in Boulder Strip, Entertainment, Harrah's, Morgans Hotel Group, The Strip | 1 Comment

White-out in Atlantic City

Posted on March 11, 2010 by David McKee

trumpmarinaThirty-seven inches of snow in February was a problem Atlantic City could do very well without. While the white stuff takes some of the edge off the sobering realization that the Boardwalk is -34% since February 2006, you know the place is in freefall when casino executives are saying they expected it to be worse. Comparing last January to that of 2008 shows a -17% dropoff just in that two-year timeframe, so regardless of whether it’s Donald Trump or Carl Icahn asserting that Atlantic City’s best years are still ahead, you’ve got to wonder what they’re smoking. The city by the sea hasn’t seen a positive year/year casino revenue comparison since August of 2008 and is highly unlikely to ever do so again.

Even as the dueling billionaires continue to fight over the carcass of Trump Entertainment Resorts, it’s an open question whether the company is worth owning. Two of its three casinos rank in Atlantic City’s bottom four for 2010 to date, with a 9% market share. (Borgata alone does twice that.) At the dismal revenue levels posted by Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Carl Icahn, Colony Capital, Columbia Sussex, Current, Donald Trump, Economy, Harrah's, MGM Mirage, Pennsylvania, Tropicana Entertainment | Comments Off on White-out in Atlantic City

This is getting nasty

Posted on March 11, 2010 by David McKee

Sue Lowden-3-4

Update: S&G sends its condolences to Sen. Reid after his wife and daughter were severely injured in an automobile accident this afternoon.

Back when Archon Corp. Treasurer Sue Lowden (left) threw her hat into the 2010 U.S. Senate race, I predicted (in a different forum) that the opposition would reach for Archon Corp.’s business practices as a source of ready ammunition. I didn’t know the half of it. The minions of Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) have rummaged through Archon’s OSHA file and declared that — as bluntly paraphrased by Las Vegas Gleaner‘s Hugh Jackson Continue reading →

Posted in Archon Corp., CityCenter, Current, Economy, Election, Harry Reid, Labor, Laughlin, Marketing, MGM Mirage, Sheldon Adelson, TV | 1 Comment

Quote of the Day

Posted on March 11, 2010 by David McKee

“Guess putting up $25 million to found a law school doesn’t get you much love these days.” — unnamed Boyd Gaming executive, reacting to Fortune magazine’s low ranking of the company in, among other categories, “Social Responsibility.”

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Charity, Current | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

First, the good news …

Posted on March 11, 2010 by David McKee

Congratulations to MGM Mirage for being named, for the fourth time in five years, to DiversityInc‘s “Top 50 Companies for Diversity.” Like predecessor J. Terrence Lanni, not only does CEO Jim Murren say the right things (“As long as I have breath in my body and as long as the company wants me around, diversity will remain a core priority.”), he backs them up with measurable results. MGM’s progress on this front has been one of the most inspirational casino industry storylines of the past decade.

The bad news is Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Economy, Internet gambling, MGM Mirage, New York, Penn National, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Sahara, Sheldon Adelson, Sports, The Strip, Wall Street | Comments Off on First, the good news …

Harrah’s monster month & other matters

Posted on March 11, 2010 by David McKee

So big it’s practically an island unto itself, Horseshoe Hammond had another blockbuster month, dominating all Indiana casinos with $47 million in revenue — a 7% increase. Excepting a 4% upturn aboard Don Barden‘s beleaguered Majestic Star II, that was the only positive year/year comparison in northern Indiana and only of only four in the Hoosier State last month. Ameristar Casinos took a drubbing (-13%) from Harrah’s Entertainment, while Boyd Gaming‘s revamped Blue Chip (-11%) started to feel the impact of new tribal competition in nearby Michigan.

Down south, heavy snowfalls are blamed for mostly lousy results at the riverboats and racinos. However, even bad weather couldn’t Continue reading →

Posted in Ameristar, Boyd Gaming, Cirque du Soleil, Don Barden, Entertainment, Harrah's, Indiana, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Politics, Regulation, Taxes, Tribal | Comments Off on Harrah’s monster month & other matters

Fortune doesn’t favor the Boyd

Posted on March 10, 2010 by David McKee

Fortune, in the sense of “destiny,” supposedly favors the bold. Fortune, the magazine, holds no great affection for Boyd Gaming. Since the company is one for which I’ve long had high regard, it gives me no pleasure to report this. In its newest ranking of the most- and leased-admired companies in the U.S., Boyd comes out at the absolute bottom of the “Quality of Products & Services” category (with Penn National Gaming deemed the 10th-worst). While Las Vegas Sands and Penn are frequent visitors Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Charity, Current, Harrah's, International, Isle of Capri, Macau, MGM Mirage, Movies, Penn National, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Wynn, Wall Street | 4 Comments

Quote of the Day

Posted on March 10, 2010 by David McKee

bugsie-siegel

“Political pundits cast aspersions on candidates and incumbents by labeling their policies and beliefs ‘communist’ or ‘socialist. I have noticed many of these exchanges recently and wanted to bring them to light in a humorous way by placing them here alongside Hollywood celebrities and musicians. We are all ultimately the same before the flash of the mug shot bulb.”– German-born artist Rachel Schmeidler (whose interpretation of Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel appears above) on the subject matter of Continue reading →

Posted in California, Current, Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Movies, Politics, The Mob, The Strip, TV | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

Wynn on the defensive

Posted on March 10, 2010 by David McKee

Steve Wynn hasn’t done his homework on the tortured history of Foxwoods‘ vagabond casino project and if his aides at Wynn Resorts tried to bring him up to speed, they’ve obviously failed miserably. Still — and quite understandably — chafing from a Philadelphia Inquirer editorial that was dopey and flirted with anti-Semitism, Wynn takes it out

Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Pennsylvania, Politics, Steve Wynn, Tribal, TV | 4 Comments

Going slow in Pennsylvania

Posted on March 10, 2010 by David McKee

Despite having the highest-grossing “slot parlor” (now don’t that sound genteel?) in Pennsylvania, racino Parx Casino is making a gingerly entry into the uncharted waters of table-game play. While state law would allow Parx to put in as many as 250 tables, it’s going to be content with 54 for now. If Parx, which has reason to be bullish, is displaying so much caution, it will be interesting to see to how many tables Sheldon Adelson and Steve Wynn are willing to commit. Harrah’s Chester hasn’t set a number for its table complement but it’s increasing its workforce by 50%, with most of the projected 500 new positions reserved for dealers. If you play the tables at Harrah’s Chester, tip generously: Dealer salaries start at roughly $9K/year.

Posted in Current, Harrah's, Pennsylvania, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Wynn | 2 Comments

Rocky Mountain Low

Posted on March 10, 2010 by David McKee

The Great Recession continues to weed out the sick and the lame of the casino industry. As with Missouri‘s loss-limit repeal, similar measures in Colorado (detailed above) came along too late in the game. There’s only so much state governments can do to prop up the casino industry — and to think that is used to be the other way ’round.

Posted in Colorado, Current, Economy, Missouri, Regulation | Comments Off on Rocky Mountain Low