In this week’s Green Felt Journal I look at how technology is changing the convention biz in Vegas: Getting conventions to come back isn’t going to be easy, though both the Las Vegas Visitors and Convention Authority and several casinos are reporting more robust bookings next year. The challenge will be keeping these guests happy […]
Vegas convention tech in Vegas Seven Read More »
life in vegas, news about gambling, writingIt’s Thursday, so it’s time for another Green Felt Journal in Vegas Seven. This week I look at the innovation of bilingual blackjack tables at Buffalo Bill’s in Primm: Richey has found that it’s a market loyal to casinos that offer good values for food and entertainment, something for which the Primm casinos are well
Bilingual blackjack in Vegas Seven Read More »
news about gambling, writingMy latest Green Felt Journal is up in Vegas Seven. This week I talk about a brand new attraction at Circus Circus that’s a little spooky: About this time every year, theme parks around the country get a monthlong reprieve from the off-season as they re-theme themselves for Halloween. No one wants to float down
13th floor fun in Vegas Seven Read More »
life in vegas, writingIt’s another Thursday, which means another Green Felt Journal in Vegas Seven. This one is about a remarkable woman who works at the El Cortez, Liz Butler: If you want a lesson in Las Vegas history, you don’t have to go much farther than Liz Butler, who’s still serving drinks at the El Cortez. With
Liz Butler’s story in Vegas Seven Read More »
life in vegas, writingIt’s Thursday, so my long-awaited piece on Cosmo, 90 days out, is out in Vegas Seven: It hasn’t been easy for the Cosmopolitan. When ground was broken in October 2005, it was one of a crop of planned casinos that were going to re-make Las Vegas. The Palazzo, Encore and Aria opened, but Boyd Gaming
Countdown to the Cosmo in V7 Read More »
news about gambling, writingIs it Thursday already? Then I’ve got something for you to read from Vegas Seven. This week, I talk about people leaving their kids in casino parking lots, which has reached crisis proportions in Pennsylvania: Take, for example, the recent flap in Bensalem, Pa. A whopping seven times this summer, parents or grandparents left minors
Tots in lots in Vegas Seven Read More »
news about gambling, writingThis week’s Green Felt Journal is out–I talk a bit about marketing luxury properties during a recession. From Vegas Seven, as usual: The laws of supply and demand aren’t sentimental, particularly when it comes to hotel rooms. No matter what kind of rate a suite might have gotten in the past, when there are more
Recession luxe in Vegas Seven Read More »
news about gambling, writingAt last I’m able to update my blog–it’s been a very busy day. I wanted to do a win/slot analysis to address the “fewer slot machines, but they have more games so it’s OK” idea, but that’s going to have to wait. Instead, read about my latest Vegas Seven column, which covers casinos breaking into
Casino Facebook games in Vegas Seven Read More »
news about gambling, writingIt’s Thursday, so you’ve got more Vegas Seven goodness to read. This week, my contribution is a look into the El Cortez’s Design-a-Suite-Downtown competition: Most casino executives view renovating hotel rooms as a necessary but disagreeable process. Room remodels are doubly expensive—they pull rooms out of the rental pool and incur labor and materials costs.
Creative El Cortez in Vegas Seven Read More »
news about gambling, writingIt’s Thursday, so the new Green Felt Journal is up at last:my weekend at the Star Trek convention, condensed to about 760 words, for Vegas Seven: Anthony and Deidre Flood Jenkins are about to have the moment of a lifetime. Pavilion Room 4 at the Las Vegas Hilton might seem a funny place for this,
It’s Thursday, so I’ve got another Green Felt Journal in Vegas Seven. This week, I take a look at the surprising success of hobby-related trade shows, with a focus on Creation Entertainment’s upcoming Star Trek Convention: Things haven’t looked good for business travel to Las Vegas for a few years. Since 2006, the city has
Trek to the Rescue in Vegas7 Read More »
life in vegas, news about gambling, writingIf nothing else, this story was much easier to research than the one I wrote earlier this week (but won’t be out for another week or two). Instead of pouncing on players who’d just been eliminated from the main event early in level one, I got to sit down and chat with a guy who
First WSOP bracelets in Vegas Seven Read More »
news about gambling, writingWhen MGM Mirage changed their name to MGM Resorts International, I wasn’t bowled over. “Resorts International” is forever linked in my mind to May 26, 1978, and a big red hotel on the Atlantic City Boardwalk (sure, it’s been painted white for 20 years or so, but in my mind Haddon Hall will always be
MGM name game in Vegas Seven Read More »
news about gambling, writingIt’s Thursday, and if you like my writing for Vegas Seven, it’s a lucky Thursday, since I’ve got my usual Green Felt Journal column and a more in-depth Latest Word. The Latest Word piece takes a philosophical and even theological look at poker, winning, and losing: In other words, poker isn’t always fair. Of course,
Vegas Seven double shot Read More »
gambling & culture, news about gambling, writingThursday means another Green Felt Journal in Vegas Seven. This week I discuss the team behind Harrah’s tweets: Social media websites such as Twitter and Facebook have been invaluable tools for casinos. They can foster a sense of familiarity with guests, but they are anything but casual. Plenty of work goes into manning the new-media
Harrah’s Twitter Team in Vegas 7 Read More »
news about gambling, writingIt’s Thursday, which means a new Green Felt Journal in Vegas Seven. This week I tackle long-range planning, a topic I started thinking about after the euro’s decline two weeks ago: Tourism is a fraught industry. There’s always something that can keep visitors away—from health scares to economic malaise—out of the control of managers trying
Numbers tell the story Read More »
news about gambling, writingIt’s Thursday, which means a new Green Felt Jungle piece in Vegas Seven. This week, I talk about one of the more interesting game inventors I’ve met, Jose Brito: There’s never any shortage of new table games in Nevada. Right now, there are 557 table games approved for the state’s casinos, though you rarely see
My latest Green Felt Journal piece is out, in Vegas Seven. I get to name-drop Heraclitus to sound sophisticated before talking about the redo of the Trop: That’s because the only thing that doesn’t change around this town is change. There are few other places where anyone would even consider spending $150 million to “relaunch”
Trop tale in Vegas Seven Read More »
news about gambling, writingThe latest Vegas Seven is out, and in it I talk a little about Treasure Island, post-MGM Mirage: Treasure Island sits next to The Mirage, the casino that changed the Strip when it opened in 1989, and across the street from the Venetian/Palazzo and Wynn/Encore megaplexes, representing billions of dollars in casino capital. It’s not
TI talk in Vegas Seven Read More »
news about gambling, writingIn honor of Earth Day, I gave this week’s Green Felt Jungle an environmental twist: The casino resorts of the Las Vegas Strip do not spring to mind as environmentally sound institutions. From their blazing marquees to their overflowing buffets, they seem to be studies in excess. With the current mindset conflating any sort of
Green cuisine at Bellagio Read More »
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