You’d think that a used bed would be about the last thing you’d want to buy from a failed casino, but you’d be wrong: Atlantic City’s erstwhile Sands has sold 950 of them. From the Press: Every single bed — about 800 double beds and 150 king-size beds — from the Sands’ 500-room hotel tower […]
Take a casino bed home! Read More »
atlantic cityThe huge news over the past 24 hours (as of 2 p.m.) is Kirk Kerkorian’s apparent big to buy the Bellagio and CityCenter from MGM Mirage. Here’s a NYT take: What is Kirk Kerkorian up to now? That is what industry observers, analysts and DealBook were left wondering after the 89-year-old billionaire financier said that
Kerkorian & MGM: big questions Read More »
life in vegas, news about gamblingAmong Trump properties, it is–it’s about three times the casino as the Marina and Plaza. From the AC Press: Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino or Trump Marina Hotel Casino, or both, probably would be demolished and redeveloped if the proposed sale of Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. is completed, they say. “Most comments heard from other
The host of this clip, Arthur Thomas, emailed it to me, saying that his grandkids had persuaded him to upload it to YouTube so that he could “be a cool dude.” I think he succeeded: YouTube – 1978 BEARDEBEAR Music Cool Slot Machines Secret Video The music starts out very Mitchell-esque, then quiets down a
70s slots with music to match Read More »
gambling & cultureInstant racing’s been around since 2000, but it’s become a hot topic recently. With some states holding the line against slot machines, could these terminals allow tracks to become backdoor racinos? From the
Instant racing or slots in disguise? Read More »
news about gamblingThe long-rumored sale of the New Frontier to the Elad group has apparently gone through. Translation: the Frontier’s days are numbered, so if you want to ride the bull at Gilley’s, start making plans now. From the press release: New York-based Elad Group, owner of the iconic Plaza Hotel, has purchased the last available prime
New Frontier to New Plaza? Read More »
news about gamblingHarrah’s is getting back into the Gulf Coast with a brand new casino: Margaritaville. From the Houston Chronicle: Casino giant Harrah’s Entertainment Inc. said Tuesday it planned to open a Margaritaville Casino & Resort in Biloxi, Miss., with songwriter Jimmy Buffett, which it said would be the largest development in Mississippi since Hurricane Katrina hit
Parrothead Paradise Read More »
news about gamblingFirst off, a mammoth hurrah to the AP’s Wayne Parry. An Eliot reference in the first line of a story about gaming revenue? Classic. Sure, anything in April is a bit obvious for Eliot, but I’ll take what I can get. If you don’t like poetry, you can skip ahead a bit for some juicy
Fear death by decreased revenue Read More »
atlantic cityAnd it’s still absolutely free! You’ve got to nothing to lose, so download it today: Winslow’s 11 Guide: Las Vegas 2007 This is the only guide to Las Vegas to reference both Blue Velvet and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. Does that pique your curiosity?
LV guide STILL out! Read More »
life in vegas, what's new, writingIf you haven’t read enough about Las Vegas, today is your day: I’ve posted my quick but (hopefully) useful travel guide to this site. It’s written under my pen name Will Winslow. Read this clip for the details: In addition to writing fine books and articles on gambling history, opinion, and current issues, Dr. Schwartz
New Vegas guide out NOW! Read More »
life in vegas, writingI was just given a copy of the minutes of a meeting that a researcher found in UNLV’s University Archives. I’ll let you read the funny part: Meeting of the Biology Faculty October 9, 1968 MINUTES Meeting called to order at 10:05 AM. Members present: Murvosh, Deacon, Niles, Yousef, Austin, and Storm. Babero arrived late
Pinnacle Entertainment had its first quarter conference call today, and CEO Daniel Lee had some interesting thoughts on Atlantic City. I don’t usually do this, but here are some excerpts from the transcript by Bloomberg: Well, we’ve been consistently saying we expect to build something on the same order of magnitude as the first phase
Over the weekend, Suni and I made a trek up and down the Las Vegas Strip. Of course, I took a few pictures of new carpets at the MGM Grand, Flamingo, and Harrah’s, as well as Planet Hollywood. See them all here: Die is Cast casino carpet gallery 1 In the meantime, here’s a teaser:
New Strip carpets added Read More »
life in vegas, what's newI’m sure when most people heard that a bomb went off in the Luxor’s parking garage at 4 this morning, they at least considered the possibility that it might have been a terrorist scheme gone awry. But apparently it was “just” a “homicide with an unusual weapon.” From Breitbart: A device left in a casino
Luxor explosion not terrorism, cops say Read More »
life in vegasNevada Representative Shelly Berkley has introduced a bill to study, not ban, online gambling. From the LVRJ: In another effort to roll back an Internet gambling ban, Rep. Shelley Berkley on Thursday introduced a bill calling for a one-year study of online wagering by the National Academy of Sciences. “One of the advantages of this
Berkley to the rescue? Read More »
gambling & cultureIf you don’t mind humiliating yourself for a few bucks and a free trip to Vegas, check out Claiborne’s contest on styledenial.com. To “purge your fashion sins,” you’re supposed to take a photo of yourself in your “worst outfit” and send it to the site. Registration closes on May 14, and voting starts May 16.
Dress badly, win a Vegas vacation Read More »
haphazard world, life in vegasI think this is, indeed, the vaguest book title I’ve seen: Amazon.com: Miscellaneous Studies; a series of essays: Books: Walter Pater Worse yet, there’s no review material–even a blurb from the publisher–to give you an inkling of what the book is about. Maybe I should call my next book “Words Arranged in a Coherent and
Vaguest book title yet, and something coming soon Read More »
writingIt seems apropos. From the AC Press: Actually, hundreds of thousands of items will be up for grabs as the old Sands Casino Hotel clears out its vast contents in an “everything must go” sale beginning 10 a.m. Thursday. The public sale will continue for the next 30 to 45 days until the place is
Sands ends with a garage sale Read More »
atlantic city, news about gamblingIn what might be the opening salvo of a campaign to reverse 46 years of federal anti-cross-border gambling action, Barney Frank has introduced a bill to legalize Internet gaming. From Marketwatch: Attempting to roll back a ban on online gambling, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank introduced on Thursday a bill that would permit
Frank introduces anti-ban bill Read More »
news about gamblingSince my return, I’ve see Roll the Bones in the news twice. First, Chuckmonster at VegasTripping has posted a review of the book. Sure, that sentence doesn’t quite have the cachet of “Edmund Morgan reviewed it in the New York Review of Books,” but it’s good enough for me. Second, I got the last word