Proving that you can’t keep a classic brand down, Alex Meruelo is ditching meaningless SLS Las Vegas and bringing back Sahara Hotel & Casino for the 
place locals never stopped thinking of as “the Sahara.” It’s too late to restore the Arabian Nights theming that Sam Nazarian extirpated but changes are already afoot. Scott Roeben reports that Cleo is out, along with 800 Degrees Neapolitan Pizza and Umani Burger. Making a return will be the Casbar Lounge. You’d think Meruelo has his hands full but VitalVegas says he’s got another Las Vegas casino purchase in the works. Considering that Meruelo, unlike Nazarian, has gaming in his blood we can’t wait to see what he does for a second act.
* In a concession to aggressive hedge fund Corvex Management, which had been building up a stock position, MGM Resorts International has ceded a seat on the board to Corvex’s Chief Investment Officer Keith Meister. MGM CEO Jim Murren said Corvex had been in a “constructive dialogue” with his company, which probably translates as “How can we prevent you from taking us over?” Murren further praised Meister for “helping companies maximize value for shareholders as well as [for] his experience in real estate and gaming.”
Mind you, ‘maximizing shareholder value’ has, over the years, morphed into a euphemism for chop-shop corporate practices, so we’ll see how well Murren staves off the hedge-fund barbarians at the gate. The CEO is already having to contend with the incursions of Starboard Value. Meister, for his part, said he could help “drive profitable growth” and gave Murren a vote of confidence. Meister’s track record includes working with Carl Icahn, for whom Corvex is a favorite stalking horse, so we can’t wait to see how that plays out in the lion’s den.
Meister is described as “aggressive, contrarian and confrontational … outspoken and ornery,” hardly the profile of someone who will play well with Murren. While on ADT‘s board, Meister “aggressively pressured and intimidated his co-board members.” Has MGM traded one would-be master (Starboard) for another? As institutional investors flee MGM, Corvex’s position in the company has grown more important. “He’s intense in the best sense of the word,” says one Meister defender. He also has a track record of asset spinoffs, which ill-accords with MGM’s ‘organic growth’ business model, so we’ll see how well Meister and Murren get along as the company looks to new business opportunities.
While we’re on the subject of MGM, it will be teaming up with Subaru for a convention at Mandalay Bay whose goal is to be a “Zero Waste Event” (the Green New Deal evidently has sympathizers in corporate ranks). Proclaimed MGM, “Nearly all materials used during the event will be recycled, composted, or donated to community organizations for reuse. This is the first time that MGM Resorts has hosted a “Zero Waste” event. It’s a very ambitious undertaking!” Let’s hope it is the first of many.
In a more-dubious move, MGM is bringing ‘magician’ Hans Klok to Excalibur for The World’s Fastest Magician. Mind you, Klok’s Planet Hollywood residency was doomed in part by tricks in which the hand was 
slower than the eye. At least MGM is hedging against a stopped Klok by putting the illusionist in a 450-seat show, a tenth of the capacity he was expected to deliver at Planet Ho. This time, instead of being bearded by Pamela Anderson, Klok will have the Divas of Magic Dancers for comely distraction. “One-of-a-kind illusions” are promised and “high-resolution LED walls on the main stage, several performance platforms throughout the showroom, as well as breathtaking special effects, sound and moving light systems.”
Tickets start at $45 and top out at $145, if you have a masochistic relationship with your wallet. Getting ticket prices like those is an even more impressive feat than producing 25 European footballers from a small box, one of Klok’s biggest claims to fame. The show premieres in July. What’s the over/under on Klok surpassing his 200,000-tickets-sold track record at Planet Ho?
* Gaming & Leisure Properties CFO Steve Snyder met with JP Morgan analysts and told them his company expects continued activity in regional gaming vis-a-vis mergers and acquisitions, something in which GLPI anticipates participating as a source of capital. Writes Joseph Greff, “Notably, 
it’s likely very difficult for new entrants (i.e. non-gaming focused REITs) to build a portfolio that could come close to resembling the size and scope of GLPI’s.” While the company expect to be little impacted by Illinois‘ reckless gaming expansion, it does think potential sellers will be given pause. GLPI also likes oligopolic regional casinos more than the Las Vegas Strip, so vulnerable to convention and international business.
However, it did hint at some interest in the Las Vegas locals market: “likely resembles regional gaming more than the LV Strip and should be more resilient in the event of a downturn.” It also suggested that Penn National Gaming might sell its interest in the GLPI-owned casinos in Perryville (pictured) and Baton Rouge, one of which never lived up to expectations and the other pole-axed by a smoking ban.
Awesome