Anthony Curtis and I have been joined at the hip, editorially speaking, for 25 years. In all modesty, one reason that Huntington Press and the Las Vegas Advisor have survived, while most gambling periodicals and every single gambling book publishing company have not, is due to the enduring alliance between two dedicated Las Vegas content producers.
Among the strengths of the editorial partnership is Anthony’s and my differing approaches to our common subject. When the two of us enter a casino, for example, he heads directly for the pit to look at the games, rules, minimums and maximums, etc., while I walk the perimeter to take in the dining, entertainment, retail, sights, and such. Coming from the gambling side, he’s learned a thing or two about travel writing — reviews of attractions, events, shows, restaurants, and the like — from me. Coming from the travel side, I’ve learned this and that about gambling writing — the house edge, advantage play, rigorous math, and the like — from him.
That’s also how we came to meet.
Throughout the 1980s, I was the editor at a travel publishing company and in 1987, I made the switch to the author side, writing guidebooks to Alaska and Nevada. When I arrived to cover Las Vegas for the Nevada guide, I picked up an early incarnation of the Las Vegas Advisor at Gamblers Book Club and saw that Anthony Curtis was doing what I was doing. For his part, he noted my editing and book skills. After a few phone calls and a dinner or two over a couple of years, we joined forces.
I’ve been writing a facsimile of this blog for 15 years. After penning six editions of Nevada Handbook, I was a natural to be LVA’s answer man for Nevada queries to Question of the Day.
To a couple million Las Vegans and 40-odd-million annual visitors, Las Vegas might as well be its own state. Similarly, to the million other state residents, Las Vegas might as well not be in Nevada at all.
My hope is that this blog will bridge that gap, weaving Nevada into the fabric of Las Vegas and extending Las Vegas out to the edges of Nevada. But since the blog site is called Vegas with an Edge, it’s accordingly Vegas-centric. Thus the name of a blog about the whole state: Greater Vegas.
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[…] I introduced Greater Vegas in my first blog, I explained that the idea was to extend Las Vegas out to state lines Nevada shares with […]
Hello Deke,
I’m a long time subscriber, and many years ago, after I submitted my Question to the LVA about Binion’s turkey sandwich, which was published in the LVA, you invited us to meet you. We came in and had a nice chat with you. Years later, we heard, maybe from Anthony himself, that you moved to Costa Rica. So, I assume you are back now. Anyway, glad to see your post here.
Bill
P.S. I’ve always had this idea the the “Miser” who wrote for the LVA was you! I miss his little quotes in the LVA!
Hi Bill — Thanks for the comment. I remember the episode and Binion’s real-turkey sandwich. Those were the days.
Actually, I moved to Ecuador for a few years; the photo of me above was taken there, wearing my Nevada colors. Apropos to this blog, all the Ecuadorians who asked where I was from had heard of Las Vegas, though not too many knew it was in Nevada.
Yes, I came back for various reasons a few years ago. But no, I wasn’t the Las Vegas Miser. I’m frugal (after knowing Jean Scott for decades!), but I’m not stingy!