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TI sold?
Big news from the LVRJ this morning. Treasure Island is about to be sold: Former New Frontier owner Phil Ruffin is buying the Treasure Island from MGM Mirage for $775 million, sources confirmed Sunday night. The deal is expected to be announced today. Ruffin, a Wichita, Kan., businessman, sold the New Frontier in May 2007
Book Review: When March Went Mad
Seth Davis. When March Went Mad: The Game That Transformed Basketball. New York: Times Books, 2009. 307 pages. Today, college basketball is big business, with massive TV contracts and incredible hype. During the annual NCAA tournament, college basketball mania reaches its apex with “March Madness.” Every red-blooded American fills out a bracket or ten and
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book reviewsDelaware to bet on sports?
Thanks to a legislative loophole, Delaware is one of only four states allowed to license legal sports betting. In a few months, you may be able to get action down legally in the Diamond State–with a few caveats. From the Philly Inquirer: Atlantic City’s hopes of a gaming-industry rebound in 2009 might be about to
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atlantic city, news about gamblingFunniest photo ever?
I would never make light of animal cruelty and believe that no punishment it too harsh for someone who likes to torture kittens, but you’ve got to admit this is pretty droll, what with the winsome look on the kid’s face and all.
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life in vegasVentnor is desolate this time of year
I don’t have any point here–I just thought that this Ventnor reference was funny. From the Examiner: A cold wind blows along the boardwalk today, and no, this isnt a prelude for Springsteens version of Santa Claus is Coming to Town. Its about contrast. While the barren boardwalk in neighboring Ventnor is part of the
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atlantic cityOctober numbers down
This doesn’t look good. From http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSN1032927320081210: Las Vegas Strip casinos won $475 million from gamblers in October, a drop of 26 percent from a year earlier, the state's Gaming Control Board said on Wednesday. Statewide, Nevada casinos' take from gamblers fell 22 percent to $905 million for the month as the U.S. economic recession continued
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news about gamblingLV Marathon thoughts
Now that my quads have pretty much stopped hurting, I can offer a few thoughts about the Las Vegas Marathon 2008 and where it should go from here. These photos of the official race t-shirt and finisher’s medal give you an idea of how minimalistic the race was this year. Just look at that shirt–no
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life in vegasStrip run
I had a pretty good marathon run on Sunday, and now that I’ve had a little time to think about it, here are some thoughts on running down the Strip. The headline is an allusion to the venerable “Strip Walk” feature over at Two Way Hard Three. Even though we ran only about 4 of
Risky business
Are “tough economic times” making us less willing to risk? And is that a bad thing? The LV Sun looks at it: Risk and risk-takers have been celebrated, fetishized, apotheosized in the American economy and culture for two decades. George Gilder, bard of ’80s-era supply side economics, summed it up: “A successful economy depends on
UNLV Gaming podcasts are imminent!
I’m doing a ton of work on the gaming.unlv.edu pages in preparation for even bigger changes early next year, which you can see on the main page. While I don’t have an iTunes channel yet, I’ve uploaded the audio of Cristina Turdean’s Colloquium talk. You can download it here: UNLV Center for Gaming Research: Podcasts.
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what's newDarth Vader is real
That headline will be funny to a very small number of people privy to a private joke of someone else’s making, but trust me, it’s kind of funny. So is the story, from Dvice: Life in Japan really is a sweet little slice of science fiction. Currently, Japanese televisions and giant video billboards are running
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gambling & cultureBook Review: The Travel Book
The Travel Book: A Journey through Every Country in the World. Melbourne: Lonely Planet, 2008. 887 pages. This is a neat book, and an ambitious one. Is it possible to write a travel book that includes entries on every country (and many territories and sub-regions) in the world? Why, yes, it, say the Lonely Planet
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book reviewsBook Review: Legal Tender
Laraine Russo Harper. Legal Tender: True Tales of a Brothel Madam. Las Vegas: Stephens Press, 2008.250 pages. Legal brothel prostitution is a small, enigmatic part of the Nevada experience. “Direct to your room” escorts get all the advertising and notoriety, but prostitution remains illegal in Clark County and therefore Las Vegas. But the legal brothels,
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book reviewsLas Vegas Marathon news
It’s apparently official: Devine Racing will be out of the Las Vegas Marathon after this Sunday’s run. From the LV Sun: Devine will not manage the race after this year. A company that operates successful marathons across the country is taking over. San Diego-based Competitor Group Inc. thinks it can eventually draw as many as
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haphazard world, life in vegasAnother tip for you
If you want to ask a favor of a friend or relative who owns a body shop in Las Vegas, do it tonight. Thanks to a quarter inch of rain or so, the streets are literally strewn with wrecks and fender benders today, including one that, were it not for a fortuitously-placed streetlight, probably would
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life in vegasGaming Talk Next Week
We’re having another event in our Gaming Research Colloquium Series at UNLV. Next Tuesday at 12:15 Christina Turdean, a grad student from the University of Delaware, is speaking about her research. The talk is called “Betting on Computers: Digital Technologies and the Rise of the Gaming Industry in the US, 1960-2000.” If you’re on the
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news about gambling, what's newOf rats and machine players
Can people control their behavior? Or, as the Smashing Pumpkins might say, in spite of all our rage, we’re still just rats in a cage? This piece in the Columbian gives a shot at figuring it out, and even quotes your illustrious blogger: Gambling is an example of variable or intermittent reinforcement. A gambler learns
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gambling & culture, news about gamblingMore G2E
I’ve just wrapped up at G2E and probably have about 2 months worth of Business Press article ideas. I’m going to need some time to process everything I’ve learned, but when I do I’m going to be on a roll. My session this morning went well, even though it was at 8 in the morning.
G2E and the industry’s future
This week my job is to spend too much time at the Las Vegas Convention Center, walking the exhibit halls and stalking the conference rooms of the Global Gaming Expo. Here’s a takeaway from the first day, from KLAS: The economy took center stage at the largest gaming conference in the world that opened in
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news about gambling