John 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 […]
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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
When asked about problem gambling, casino industry spokespeople often say that they have no idea of whether people are gambling to problematic levels. Sure, they drop a lot of money here, the line goes, but how are we supposed to know how much they can afford? Well, there’s a solution to every problem, and a
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UncategorizedDennis N. Griffin. Policing Las Vegas: A History of Law Enforcement in Southern Nevada. Las Vegas: Huntington Press, 2005. 214 pp. This book bills itself as a history of law enforcement in Southern Nevada and is very comprehensive, but ultimately feels more like a collection of anecdotes, facts, and personalities than a cohesive narrative. Griffin
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book reviewsAs I said yesterday, I was lucky enough to volunteer to help facilitate UNLV’s Debate Watch event yesterday. You can read about the debate itself from the LVRJ: Hyped as the single most anticipated night of the long presidential campaign thus far, Thursday marked the first time in history a presidential debate was held in
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life in vegasToday my office is a few hundred yards from the center of a media firestorm, through no fault of my own. The Democratic Presidential debate is happening at the Cox Pavilion right here on campus. From the LVRJ: It’s fight night in Las Vegas. The jabs will fly. The contenders will duck and weave. They
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life in vegasWith the Global Gaming Expo dominating the world of Las Vegas gambling, it’s only appropriate that I post something about it. From the LVRJ: For some casino operators, the Global Gaming Expo serves as a preview to the future. Others want to know what can go on their gaming floors immediately. This year’s industry trade
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gambling & culture, life in vegasA sixty year-old Las Vegas institution came tumbling down last night. Or did it? First, read the story from my buddies at KLAS: The New Frontier casino-hotel was imploded early Tuesday morning after a booming fireworks display, putting an end to the second property to open on the Las Vegas Strip. The 16-story hotel tower
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life in vegasI’ve just finished–for now–what has become an annual rite, my making over this site. This year, with an incredible amount of stuff to do, it’s a relatively small set of changes. That, and the fact that I’m pretty happy with the way the site already looks. If you haven’t done already, hit “refresh” on your
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what's newToo much work means that I can’t finish the book review I was hoping to post today. So instead, here’s some gaming stuff. Revel has gotten approval to proceed with its AC mega-project, but there are some restrictions on the disposition of the Bader Field site. From the AC Press: The Bader Field clause in
Steve Friess. Gay Vegas: A Guide to the Other Side of Sin City. Las Vegas: Huntington Press, 2007. 211 pp. In honor of Steve’s author event at UNLV today, I figured I’d finally post my review of his book Gay Vegas. There are many, many guidebooks to Las Vegas. Some are good; some are insanely
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book reviews, life in vegasThere’s a popular story that every year, when the NFL’s final sole remaining undefeated team goes home a loser, the surviving members of the 1972 Miami Dolphins pop champagne corks and celebrate the fact that their perfect season will remain the only one in NFL history. The story might not, strictly speaking, be true. But
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haphazard worldPhilip K. Dick. The Collected Stories of Philip K. Dick, Volume 1: The Short Happy Life of the Brown Oxford. New York: Kensington Publishing, 1987. 404 pp. Philip K. Dick, in my estimation, was one of the most significant American authors of the 20th century. Though he worked for the most part in “mere” science
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book reviewsMost of us–unless we’re Phillip Pullman–would like to think that God, or Divine Providence, is on our side. It’s comforting to think that, in the words of Pharaoh Sanders, “The Creator Has a Master Plan,” and that you are part of it. But we usually keep our mouths shut about it. Apparently, this year’s WSOP
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gambling & cultureOne of the best parts about teaching is grading papers. Well, if you replace “best” with “worst” or “most tedious,” that’s true. I’m celebrating Nevada Day by finishing grading the midterms from ECON 411, Social and Economic Aspects of Gaming. What, you might wonder, would be on such a test? Here are some examples: TRUE/FLASE:
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what's newThe Tropicana is one of the biggest casinos in Atlantic City, and it’s been the scene of massive layoffs. And Local 54, the local (pardon the pun) branch of the UNITE-HERE union, isn’t too happy about it. From the AC Press: Tropicana Casino and Resort’s wholesale layoffs under its new owner have decimated the casino
It’s not that often that I read something in a major East Coast paper promoting the cause of running in Las Vegas, so I’ve got to link to this Bill Ordine piece in the Inquirer: I have a daily ritual when I’m in Las Vegas that’s probably a little different than that of most visitors.
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life in vegasLast night, the FBI raided David Copperfield’s warehouse. No one’s saying exactly what they were looking for, but it sounds serious. From KLAS: David Copperfield, famed illusionist and Las Vegas regular, appears to be the target of a late night FBI raid. A dozen FBI agents stormed Copperfield’s warehouse near West Russell and Valley View
Watching the Fontainebleau go up lately, I’ve had two thoughts: “wow, that’s a big structure at the back of the property” and “I bet those people in Turnberry Place are pretty mad.” Turns out I’m right on both counts. From the LVRJ: Aventura, Fla.-based Turnberry Associates started building Turnberry Place in 1998, constructing four 38-story
Working with lightning speed and a rare determination, I managed to totally revamp the Neon Survey exhibit in less than 24 hours–with not a minute of overtime, no less. I’ve already started reworking the Xanadu exhibit. In general, I’m making all of the exhibits conform more readily to the UNLV web standard, but I’m also