This story didn’t happen in Las Vegas, but it could have. From the LVRJ: A 6-foot-3, 265-pound man says a restaurant overcharged him for his trips to the buffet line, then banned him and a relative because they’re hearty eaters. A spokesman for the restaurant denies the claim. Ricky Labit, a disabled offshore worker, said […]
Banned at the buffet Read More »
haphazard worldYes, it had a very soft opening last weekend, but in my mind the Palazzo is now really open for business: its carpet is immortalized in the Die is Cast casino carpet gallery. Clearly the color palette is related to the Venetian’s, yet it is different enough to have its own identity. But it still
Palazzo opening official Read More »
life in vegas, news about gamblingI stopped by Palazzo today and thought I’d share my impressions. Here are a few disorganized thoughts, without even the dignity of ellipses…. It’s a VERY soft opening, with incomplete finishes in the casino area and very little open. It’s neat seeing the casino as a work in progress, but if I was a paying
First thoughts on Palazzo Read More »
news about gamblingI haven’t posted in a very long time, but I wrote a draft of this a few days ago. It’s not breaking news now, but it’s still significant. From PC Mag: Antigua and Barbuda won compensation from the United States on Friday in a long-running trade dispute about gambling, but the amount was far lower
Antigua to get $21m from US Read More »
news about gamblingLike many a would-be empire-builder, Columbia Sussex met with a serious reverse on its Eastern Front. Having lost its license in New Jersey, the company now has to sell off 3 casinos, and even then might not be in the clear. From the Philly Inquirer: Add Philadelphia; Baton Rouge, La.; and Las Vegas to the
Trop woes continue Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingIf you’ve ever wondered what “pressing a bet” is, thanks to the magic of YouTube, you can see it for yourself: Link if you can’t view the embed:YouTube – Casino Scam #3 One comment: it looks like the guy demonstrating the move drops a black ($100) on top of a pile of green ($25) chips.
Bet pressing demonstrated Read More »
gambling & cultureIn yesterday’s article on the Tropicana license denial, the Press of Pleasantville (I saw that in one of the comments and couldn’t resist) ran a sidebar on past license bids that fizzled. Here it is: 1979 – The Casino Control Commission orders the chairman and vice chairman of the Caesars World board, Clifford and Stuart
Past AC license denials Read More »
atlantic cityI’m not going to pile on the Tropicana AC story today. They got their license ripped, and I’ve said all I’m going to say about it on this thread at 2 Way Hard 3 and to several journalists who’ve called me just to chat about this today. Instead, I’m going to provide a public service:
Vegas winter travel advisory Read More »
life in vegasYou don’t read too much about casino owner Don Barden in the Las Vegas or gambling media, but he’s got a nice-sized casino company and great prospects for the future, particularly in Pittsburgh. The NY Times has a short piece detailing his rise to wealth and moderate fame: Don H. Barden could have scheduled the
Barden profile in NYT Read More »
news about gamblingI’m not totally sure that this is news, but I’m going with it today anyway–otherwise, I’d have to post my usual thoughts on the lower AC revenue numbers. Caesars Palace has raised its table limits to what it says are the highest in town (but which may not in fact be). From the LVRJ: The
Caesars raises limits Read More »
life in vegas, news about gamblingLike most of you, I spent some time this morning browsing through the Mahabharata looking for material for a class. And I was struck by the courtly fashion in which hospitality-related customer complaints were resolved back in Vedic times: And the king having signified his assent, entertained Utanka duly. And Utanka seeing that the food
Customer complaints, the old-fashioned way Read More »
haphazard worldThere’s always an arms race of sorts going on between slot cheats and casino security. The cheats figure out a way to rip off the machine, the security folks learn how to detect and prevent it, so the cheats come up with a new scam. Ad infinitum. Now, surprise surprise, comes news that ticket-in/ticket-out machines–which
New slot scam, and a whacky estimate of casino theft Read More »
news about gamblingIt’s one thing when your competitors say you’re second-rate. It’s another when your complaining customers agree with them. But when state investigators tell the world that your casino is low-class, you’ve got some serious thinking to do. That’s just happened to the Tropicana. From the AC Press: New Jersey’s casino enforcement agency recommended only a
DGE hits Trashicana Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingOn the heels of the news that
Lead in casino chips Read More »
gambling & cultureThe 2007 Las Vegas Marathon is over, and it was a great run. We had ideal weather–cool, slight cloud cover, with not much wind–and it was a pretty good run. I managed to run get run over by any Elvi, which is harder than you might think. Running with the pace group was great, and
Since my last stint on grave shift a few years back, I’ve always known that working nights is not completely healthy behavior, either physically or mentally. But now the WHO says that it causes cancer. From Reuters: Shift workers and firefighters have a higher risk of cancer than the general population and such work should
Grave shift is a carcinogen? Read More »
haphazard worldUsually, winning a million dollars is an unambiguously good thing. But for ex-con, a winning scratcher might be a ticket back to jail. From the Boston Globe: His odds of winning $1 million on a scratch ticket were 1 in 1,247,400. His odds of being busted if he won? A pretty safe bet. Timothy Elliott
Win the lottery, go to jail Read More »
gambling & culture, haphazard worldFor a long time, I’ve been saying that the best way to make money in a casino is to invent a product or method that decreases labor costs–casino execs will line up to buy it. For some reason, people asking me for “lucky numbers” at keno don’t seem to appreciate that insight so much. But
Inhuman poker dealers Read More »
gambling & cultureJohn McPherson. Beating the Odds: The Complete Dictionary of Gambling and Games of Chance. Docklands, Victoria: Geoff Slattery Publishing, 2007. 708 pp. This is a very handy and very comprehensive dictionary of gambling. It is expansive rather than focused, with entries covering games including all of the traditional casino favorites as well as backgammon, mah
Book review: Beating the Odds Read More »
book reviewsIn January of this year, Columbia Sussex finalized their purchase of Aztar, which owned, among other things, the Tropicanas Las Vegas and Atlantic City. Once they took over, they fired a lot of workers, which got the unions pretty upset. Now, according to the AC Press, the Trop AC is a rundown shadow of its