Steve Wynn 86’d; Icahn & Fertitta talk turkey

In an obvious attempt to placate the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, after a bruising set of hearings, Wynn Resorts has filed a legal brief in the Bay State, requesting permission to bar Steve Wynn from all Wynn Resorts properties. This is, in our experience, unprecedented and shows the lengths to which the company wants to hang onto $2.6 billion Encore Boston Harbor. It also could spare the company the indignity of having El Steve show up for the Boston opening, as welcome a guest as Banquo’s Ghost.

Even if the ploy succeeds and Wynn Resorts retains its Massachusetts license, its troubles are far from over. It is embroiled in three lawsuits, some of which have been recapitulated here. Current CEO Matt Maddox and former consigliere Kim Sinatra could be called to testify in some of them, on matters deeply unflattering to Wynn Resorts’ cause in Massachusetts. While the MGC has a transition plan in place, should it choose to pull Wynn Resorts’ license, that ‘nuclear option’ is not expected to be used.

This week’s Police State Award goes to testimony given by soon-to-be-former Wynn Resorts security chief James Stern, who made it his job to surveil suspected whistleblowers. When asked “Did you think about the chilling effect of having employees followed?”, Big Brother Stern replied, “I’m only thinking about that now.” Not too quick on the uptake, is he?

About the only positive news Wynn Resorts had this week concerned the Chairman’s Lounge multipurpose space at Wynncore, once the home of Alex restaurant. Come this spring it will be a restaurant—Delilah—once more, thanks to a new partnership with h.wood Group. If the latter sticks to its formula, the Las Vegas version of Delilah will enhance the dining experience with live music. And if it goes well, could a nightclub partnership be far behind?

* With MGM Springfield struggling to make revenue projections ($286 million versus a predicted $418 million), its pitch to Red Sox fans feels more like a Hail Mary pass. Incidentally, we’ve had a Scott “Woody” Butera sighting: He’s manifested himself in MGM’s Internet division, a far cry from his usual specialty of turning around financially troubled companies.

* Although Station Casinos has kept its powder dry lately where Internet gambling is concerned, the Fertitta Brothers may get into by dint of their Fertitta Capital investment vehicle. The duo has put an unspecified sum into The Action Network, a company that makes its bread by directing customers to online sports books, both domestic and offshore. Fertitta Capital is the repository of the proceeds of the Fertitta Bros.’ $4 billion sale of the UFC, so the fellows have a lot of seed money to spread.

The news story referenced above innocently implies a business amity between the Fertitta Bros. and Texas cousin Tilman Fertitta, when nothing could be further from the truth. Speaking of Tilman, he’s got a new book out, sort of his version of The Art of the Deal. The timing is somewhat ironic, given that Tilman is going through a bad patch, related to his generous purchase of the Houston Rockets. The title, Shut Up and Listen!, is congruent with Tilman’s interview manner, which can be diplomatically described as “peppery.” The book, a reader-friendly 180 pages long, will hit book stores in September.

In other Tilman news, could he be the next CEO of Caesars Entertainment? Controlling Caesars shareholder Carl Icahn (who really needs to be introduced to a razor) couldn’t get his dream choice, Anthony Rodio, and now the New York Post is reporting talks between Tilman and Uncle Carl, which would be a different sort of dream team. They’re both strongly ‘alpha’ types, so watching those two try to work together would be must-see TV, as it were. Icahn’s 28.5% holding in the company, the Post argues, would render Fertitta’s lack of equity moot: “any buyer approved by Icahn, including Fertitta, only has to buy 71.5 percent of the company, making the deal far more affordable.”

Supposedly Uncle Carl wants a trail boss who’ll put a jolt into Caesars, to say nothing of its humdrum stock price. The company’s market cap is so low that Caesars is worth a shocking $5.6 billion (in theory). By contrast, Fertitta’s much smaller Golden Nugget portfolio is valued at $4.8 billion. Icahn wants someone who will cull an “insane” amount of bureaucracy—perhaps the legacy of acquisition upon merger upon buyout—which costs the Roman empire $330 million a year. Uncle Carl would also like to see Caesars focus on the business it has (the U.S.) rather than chasing openings in the Pacific Rim. Caesars is nigh upon its deadline for finding a replacement for CEO Mark Frissora, meaning that Icahn will get a fourth seat on the board of directors, come Tax Day. Considering how Icahn turned around the Stratosphere and Tropicana Entertainment, perhaps having him steer Caesars’ fortunes wouldn’t be such a bad thing.