Stripped of dignity?

In the category of "press release that yahoo.com picked up," here's this one, that can speak for itself:

We are looking for A FEW GOOD (or bad) GIRLS to be part of this new and exciting Pay-Per-View prime time television series. An open call audition will be held on June 2nd at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel at 11 a.m. All candidates must be at least 18 and under 30 to be considered.
Eight women will be selected for this game of Texas Hold 'Em. Each will be paid $1.000 for the taping of the show. Plus, the winner will receive $5000.00 in cash and a chance TO HOST a twenty-six-week, nationally syndicated, PRIME-TIME poker series. All the selected Ultimate Poker Babes will tour America's Hottest casinos.

Set in an actual courtroom, a real game of STRIP POKER will be played! STRIP POKER ON TRIAL will feature 8 luscious ladies (the Ultimate Poker Babes) vying for a chance at the grand prize. It's the excitement of strip poker, the entertainment of a comedy show ... and the tension of a courtroom drama ...

Texas Hold 'Em is a type of poker involving "community cards," dealt face-up in the center of the table that are used by all players. Instead of dollars, articles of clothing are on the line.

Poker skills are not necessary. Lessons will be provided.

Ultimate Poker Babes is a product of International Poker Championship Series Inc., and its production company.

Check out www.ultimatepokerbabes.com for more information.


Strip Poker on Trial Starring The Ultimate Poker Babes DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES???

Like they said in Adaptation., some of the best movies of all times have mixed genres. I don't know if the same holds for TV. If it did, "Cop Rock" would be in its 10th season by now, right? This "show" seems to mix:
a) poker (World Poker Tour, WSOP, Celebrity Poker, etc)
b) courtroom drama (Law and Order, etc)
c) partially nude women (Victoria's Secret specials, etc)
d) reality tv (all those star search shows)

I wish I could have been at the pitch meeting for this. It's a real shame that they didn't look around for an expert on gambling history to help them get off the ground.

The casting call also says that "babes" may have the opportunity to "tour America’s Greatest Casinos!" It really is in boldface. Now that I think about it, my job is a whole lot mroe exciting than I thought. After all, I get the opportuntiy to tour America's Greatest Casinos every day.

From the website, here is something that all poker players should be interested to learn:

Q: Do I need to know how to play poker?
A: No! Girls selected to be part of the team will be taught all the necessary poker skills. It's really a game of luck ANY ONE CAN WIN!

So all of you poker players who are reading books and planning strategy are really just wasting your time. After all, Ultimate Poker Babes says that poker is a game of luck that "ANY ONE CAN WIN!!!"
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posted by Dave at 2:10 PM

Double Attack!

Blackjack is one of the most popular games on the casino floor, so it makes sense to offer some variations on it. The Trump Taj Mahal is now letting players try "Double Attack Blackjack," a game created by a Taj dealer. From the AC Press:

The crowd may have been gathering Friday afternoon because the table was still holding a $5 minimum bet. It may have been because a reporter and photographer were clogging the aisle. But it is more likely that Trump Taj Mahal's newest table game is attracting a steady stream of players all on its own.

So the smile on Joe Centrone's face as he slipped behind the table to deal a few hands was more than understandable. As the creator of Double Attack Blackjack, he sees that the game has the potential to become a huge success.

"It's already doing very well," said Vincent Mascio, vice president of table games operations for Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts. "People just took to it so quickly."

The game, a variant of blackjack, adds a few twists to the simple game of 21.

After placing an initial bet, players are dealt in and then shown the dealer's first card, at which point they can place an additional bet. Double downs are allowed on both bets and players can surrender half their bet at any point in the game.

But it's the option to bet the dealer is going to bust that gives Double Attack its lure, Centrone said.

"I thought, 'How can I give people an opportunity to have more fun with the game, to see some more excitement,'" the long-time dealer and supervisor said.

His answer was a system of increasing-odds bets that the dealer will break 21 on the third card.

Players who throw a $1 chip in the "Bust it" circle are repaid $3 if the card that puts the dealer over the limit is a face card. If that pivotal card is a six, the lucky player is rewarded on a 15-to-1 scale.

And starting Monday, if the dealer draws three eights of the same suit, the payout is 200-to-1.

Taj bets dealer’s variation of blackjack will be winner

There are a few other blackjack-based games out there, so it will be interesting to see if this catches on. Actually putting a game created by a dealer on the floor is, I think, a tremendous vote of confidence by management, and the Taj deserves credit for taking this step.
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posted by Dave at 1:54 PM

The future of food

Not all food, of course, but if you're hankering for an old fashioned casino buffet on the Strip, you may have to look at little harder. The Mirage is opening "Cravings," a buffet that is one step beyond the typical. From the LVRJ:

Just about every aspect of Cravings is fresh. While "action" food stations have become more common valleywide, Cravings' stations are actually minikitchens arranged in a sort of horseshoe, with seating in the center. It is, Tihany said, "a piazza with a live village happening around you," accessed by a "street of food" paved with terrazzo embedded with onyx. The "village's" 13 kitchens ensure that most of the food -- as much as 80 percent to 90 percent -- is prepared within view of customers, said Bart Mahoney, The Mirage's vice president of food and beverage. It's also prepared and served in smaller portions, so that fresh pans are put out more frequently. And each station has its own characteristic salads and soups.

Customers wait in line near a bank of 18 monitors -- backed by a mural of a forest, which changes with the seasons -- that show a 27-minute video focusing on food. They also get their first impressions of Cravings' food, via the front side of a two-sided pizza oven where made-to-order pizzas are prepared.

Beyond is a rotisserie station, where chickens, quail and beef fillet wrapped with bacon roast on revolving racks. The barbecue station has a smoker and mesquite grill, with finished meats taken directly to the serving counter. The noodle station offers as many variations as the average Chinese restaurant.

Overall, Cravings "is, as much as we can make it, in quality similar to a regular restaurant," Mahoney said. He noted that the food presentation was conceived first, with the design worked around it.

The design is, however, carefully conceived to be both attractive and user-friendly. As they make their way along the "street of food," customers will note no signs announcing station themes; that function is served by icons of each cuisine. Each station also is color-coordinated to make it easy to spot on a return trip. Counters are topped with ancient marble that resembles burled wood.

Mahoney, who cited a "happy competitiveness" among the properties within MGM Mirage, said he thinks many of the Cravings concepts will be adapted both within the company and without. Tihany said he's heard that "all of the casinos are hiring big-name designers for their buffets."

reviewjournal.com: Not Your Father's Buffet

A word of advice: you get what you pay for. Common sense should tell anyone that, if the dinner costs $8, you're not going to be getting the best quality meal. People say that the Bellagio buffet, the most expensive in town, is the best bargain, and I'm inclined to agree.
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Skin City

Speaking of extravagance, I attended a press party/book signing for Jack Sheehan's Skin City at the Golden Nugget yesterday.
The book should be a fascinating look at the connections between sex and Las Vegas, and I'm looking forward to reviewing it.

The book launch was a great success; there were tons of people there, including the World's Happiest Mayor, and a camera crew was shooting footage for the upcoming Skin City documentary.
Here's where my personal angle comes in. As I was preparing to be interviewed, it happened that one of the "adult film stars" in attendance was ready to interview. So the microphone came off me quicker than the prime rib disappearing at a buffet carving station.
So now I can add one more gem to my career accolades. In addition to being the only former Trump security officer to write a book about casino history, I am (as far as I know) the onyl UCLA Ph.D to get bumped from an interview by a porn star.
My personal triumph aside, Sheehan's book promises to be a great one, and I really urge you to read it soon.
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posted by Dave at 10:45 AM

Skill games and remote gambling

I have people ask me about Internet gambling all the time. Here's an interesting article about "skill games" like Solitaire. So now it's a skill game? I thought it was just a way for people to screw around and abuse their work PCs, but you learn something every day:
Las Vegas SUN: Online skill games flourish, skirt ban
The Sun has another story about "remote gambling," which isn't necessarily Internet gambling:

Battle lines are being drawn between opposing sides of issues surrounding intrastate remote gaming -- gambling using high-tech devices that allow gamblers to wager without being on a casino floor.

The most contentious issues so far: whether problem gambling would increase with the introduction of the new devices, and whether operators of large resort properties would lose business to smaller operators with restricted licenses that offer technology allowing players to place bets remotely.

Remote gaming technology encompasses several types of devices. They include cellular telephones and data transmitting devices; kiosks that are stations for taking sports wagers in locations that don't generate much traffic, such as rural properties; and hand-held devices that would enable wagering away from the casinos floor -- a resort bar, swimming pool or hotel room, for example.

They also include personal computers and using the Internet to place wagers -- which is illegal in the United States.

The Nevada Gaming Commission and the state Gaming Control Board met Friday to solicit comments on several aspects of remote gaming.

Battle lines emerge in remote gaming debate

Logically speaking, if people are doing other things remotely, what are the objections to gambling? I've been reading a few stories about Everquest addiction, and it seems to be just as bad as compulsive gambling. Maybe it's even worse, because it destroys people's time instead of just taking their money.
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posted by Dave at 2:32 PM

808 on the Strip

There's going to be a little more of Hawaii in Las Vegas from now on, and it won't just be at the Cal. The Hawaiian Marketplace is opening at Harmon and the Strip. From biz.yahoo, my favorite source for press releases that the print media hasn't picked up yet:

Inspired by the famed International Marketplace in Honolulu, Hawaiian Marketplace brings to Las Vegas the sights and sounds of Polynesia, with island-themed architecture, bright colors and lush plantings, as well as interactive entertainment.
With a meandering sidewalk resembling a Hawaiian boardwalk, Hawaiian Marketplace lures visitors with a state-of-the-art climate controlled atrium. An eclectic market scene is created by stand-alone cart vendors which complement the shopping center's 'inline' retailers. A central focal point is a recreation of century-old Banyan trees native to Waikiki Beach that stretch toward an overhead canopy. Floors in the center's central court have a wave- like, shimmering pattern made of crushed blue glass and mother-of-pearl.

Other native island elements abound. An official statue of King Kamehameha, only the second one outside of Hawaii officially sanctioned by The Royal Order of King Kamehameha, adds an iconic presence. The center includes tropical plants unusual for Las Vegas, including rare palms, bromeliads, hibiscus, as well as various types of bamboo.
The Marketplace offers Tahitian dance as well as both forms of hula, ancient and modern, which visitors are encouraged to try themselves. Setting the scene ablaze are Samoan Fire-knife dancers, dressed as 'warriors,' who rapidly juggle and twirl flaming knives. Adding spectacle is a suspended group of oversized 'animatronic' birds, created by Academy Award-winning Techno Media Solutions of Orlando, whose clients include Universal Orlando. Following a show of thunder and lightning, the birds become animated, singing, dancing and telling Hawaiian folklore tales.

The Marketplace offers both upscale and family dining options, including offshoots of Las Vegas favorites such as Hamada of Japan and Tabla, a family-owned Indian restaurant. Gift, clothing and specialty retailers offer an eclectic variety of souvenirs, crafts and wearable items. Even the requisite Las Vegas wedding chapel can be found at the Marketplace.

Aloha Las Vegas! Hawaiian Marketplace Opens As Strip's First-Ever Themed, Interactive, Retail and Entertainment Venue

Just what Las Vegas needs--another Hamada. Instead, they should have opened up a Zippy's. It wouldn't hurt to have a shave ice place, either. If you want more Hawaiian stuff in Vegas, definitely check out the Cal and the ABC store at the Aladdin.
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posted by Dave at 8:55 AM