Casino [ptz]

ATLANTIC CITY UPDATE

Well, I'm back in the 609, and it looks like I can update my weblog from here. Excellent. If you are curious, I caught the red eye from Vegas and got to go for a nice run on the Boardwalk this morning after getting in. I got some good reading time in on the flight and ensuing bus ride and also got to work on writing lectures for my Nevada and the Far West (HIS 404) course, which I'm teaching this semester. Western historiography is interesting, but a lot of the intellectuals seem rather self-absorbed. I guess that's the case with all historiography.

In other news, I've got a tour of the Borgata scheduled for later this week, and I will share my impressions. I'm definitely looking forward to it.

A GOOD LINK FOR AC NUMBERS

No, not illegal lottery games--that kind of stuff doesn't go on anymore. This is for revenue information from the AC casinos on a page maintained by the Press of AC.

Happy number crunching! Most of the other news consists of people reporting revenues, which I'm not going to go into now.

Nothing new on the Suburban Xanadu front to report either.

Have a good one.
posted by Dave at 1:50 PM

SITE NOTES

I've got a rather bland photo of the week today (sorry), but I felt like putting up another AC picture because I'm visiting there this week. I'll hopefully get to see the Borgata and a few of the other new attractions. So if you are trying to call me, email instead, because I'll be checking....

CASINO ANGLE ON CA RECALL

There's more to the California gubernatorial recall than lame Terminator cliches. People probably stand to gain or lose a lot of money based on what happens in October. According to the Las Vegas Sun, most California Indian tribes with casinos are backing Davis or remaining officially neutral. Read the story here.

CASINO TATTOO PARLOR

How mainstream has tatooing gone? Pretty mainstream, if this news item means anything. The Palms is going to be opening a tatoo parlor with leather walls and an impressive sound system. There's something strange about having a tatoo parlor in a place with bingo and a buffet. Read the story from the LV Sun.

IF I HAD THIS SITE SET UP FOR AUDIO, YOU'D BE LISTENING TO THE BALLAD OF JED CLAMPETT WHILE READING THIS

The actors who played Jethro Clampett on the Beverly Hillbillies still wants to open a casino. From the LVRJ:

Nearly four years after his dreams for a Jethro's Beverly Hillbillies casino fizzled in Reno, actor Max Baer Jr. outlined plans Friday for a $54 million resort in a former Wal-Mart store a half-hour's drive away in Nevada's capital city. …Among the highlights: a 200-foot-tall, flame-belching oil derrick, a "Granny's shotgun wedding chapel," Uncle Jed's gift shop, Jethro's buffet and "Elly May's buns bakery." Baer also envisions a nine-screen movie theater and a dancehall-show lounge. …"This becomes an attraction," Baer said. "It's not a casino, it's an attraction. It's some place that if you're in Northern Nevada you have to go to -- you can't come up here and not go to."

This speaks for itself. Read the full story here.

HALF EMPTY OR HALF FULL?

Sometimes, it's all in the reporting. Take this article from the Press of Atlantic City:

U.S. gambling losses hit $68.7B. last year
By JOE WEINERT Staff Writer

Gamblers lost $68.7 billion at casinos, tracks, lottery outlets, legal sports books, bingo halls, charity gaming halls and card rooms in the United States last year.

That's an increase of 5.3 percent over the previous year, according to the annual Gross Annual Wager compiled by Christiansen Capital Advisors and published in this month's issue of International Gaming & Wagering Business magazine.

Commercial casinos won $28.1 billion, up 3.1 percent. Indian casinos won $14.2 billion, up 11.5 percent.

Every legal gambling segment except bookmaking (down 7.7 percent) and card rooms (down 2.5 percent) showed a revenue increase.

The gross figure excludes Internet gambling because it's global in nature. Christiansen Capital Advisors estimated the online win at $4 billion, up 33.4 percent.

Sure, gamblers lost the money, but the casinos and lotteries were right there to find it. This is why the gaming industry has an image problem--no matter how much spin they put on it, people still view commercial gaming as a spruced-up carnival game that fleeces the marks.

I guess it is important to remember that casino revenue is just a euphemism for player losses, but it's all the cost of entertainment these days.

That's sure a lot of money, though.

CHIP COLLECTORS IN THE NEWS

The Denver Post has a story about Colorado chip collectors. Apparently the hobby, which I always thought was a pretty harmless way for people to enjoy themselves and explore casino history, has a dark side. A Colorado Division of Gaming has been indicted for embezzlement for selling online a test chip that he rejected. But most of the article is a positive portrayal of "chippers."

I imagine that selling an old $5 chip from the Hacienda for $15,000 would get me interested in collecting, if I had any faith that I could walk in to something that fortuitous. Here's a bit of advice: if you're going to be in Las Vegas soon, grab everything you can from the Aladdin. In a few years, that stuff will probably go through the roof.

Read the story here.

SUBURBAN XANADU UPDATE

No new reviews posted online.

Slight upticks in the amazon.com and bn.com sales ranks, but nothing to brag about.

I'll try to post my thoughts from Atlantic City, but if not have a great week.

posted by Dave at 12:03 PM