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Have you ever entered a building and seen old photographs and paintings on the walls? Did you have a sense of the endless life stories that these silent characters could tell?
There is always an awesome sense of sadness when a building closes or is demolished because it ends the story right there. The triumphs and heartaches, the romance and heartbreak come to a halt at the very moment that the walls come crashing down.
The gaming industry is a perfect example of history cut short. As I’ve mentioned before, it is one business where older is not better, and the fickle finger of flash plays a key role in who gets the customers.
On November 11th, the Sands Casino Hotel in Atlantic City closed forever. Pinnacle Entertainment Inc. bought the Sands for $250 million, planning to demolish the site to make room for a $1.5 billion megaresort. Construction may begin in mid-2008, with a grand opening likely in 2010 or 2011.
The 26-year-old building has always faced challenges since opening. It was the smallest property, and was not part of a major gaming corporate conglomerate. Plus, it had an undesirable off-Boardwalk entry.
For the final month of its operations, the Sands gave it their all by throwing several farewell parties and events. Sands management brought back some of the top entertainment that played there over the past 25 years.
However, it is the stories of the millions who passed through the doors that I find most fascinating. Did anyone’s life change from playing those slots and tables? Were there any giant wins? Were the losses too devastating to recover from easily?
One famous Sands story is the huge lawsuit filed by Leonard Tose, former owner of the Philadelphia Eagles, my hometown football team. The Sands sued him in 1991 for $1.23 million in gambling debts. Tose counter-sued, claiming they got him too drunk while he played, impairing his judgment.
The Sands triumphed in court. Broke and emotionally destroyed, the 88-year-old Tose died in 2003. There are estimates that he lost more than $14 million at the Sands and more than $20 million at nearby Resorts International.
Can you only imagine the mood of the tables during those years when Tose was playing? Those were the years when Frank Sinatra and company entertained in the nightclubs.
Or, what about the 63-acre Stardust, one or the earliest hotel casinos in Las Vegas, which also closed in early November? It will be replaced with Boyd Gaming’s $4 billion Echelon Place hospitality, convention and retail complex.
The Klondike, my favorite local casino in Las Vegas, closed last June. The small, family-owned casino hotel sat at the southern end of town, across the street from the famous “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign and the Mandalay Bay.
The small casino’s red velvet wallpaper was a throwback to earlier, cheesier times in Las Vegas. The three or four blackjack tables were home to some of the most interesting customer types out there. I know… I sat next to many of them while in Las Vegas.
For many of you who have worked with me over the last 13 years - including James, David, John, Norman, etc. - remember the laughs we had from this place. I cannot count the number of nights I sat there, playing $2 blackjack on a $20 bill.
The real entertainment was the crowd. How about the old guy who wheeled his oxygen tank up to the table next to me? Or, how many times did I get a blackjack, write down my information for the jackpot jar and hope to have my name picked at midnight for the “Big Wheel Spin”?
The giant skyscraper casinos can’t match that basic fun, and certainly not for those prices. It is the stories that matter, and now that the Klondike has been sold for tens of millions to another giant conglomerate, another one will bite the dust. The six or eight acres are worth too much to hold on to the land when there is a hot buyer.
As the number of early casino properties comes tumbling down to make way for the future, stop and consider the lives they touched. Look upwards because many of those colorful characters may be playing their best hands in that casino in the sky.
P.S. You may remember my recent column about second chances. I want to report that Gary C. DiBartolomeo, the former $362,000-a-year president of Caesars Atlantic City who lost his license in 2001 for lying about his gambling addiction, rejuvenated his career on October 18. He won a new gaming license, identical to the license that he lost. Terms of his license bar him from any type of gambling. He must also attend Gamblers Anonymous meetings and comply with restrictions on his personal finances.
DiBartolomeo has been appointed vice president of national marketing for the Atlantic City Hilton Casino Resort and sister property Resorts Atlantic City.
Apparently, there is such a thing as a second life.
Will the plans for Russia's 'remote' gaming areas go ahead as the State Duma has described?
- 27 - 29 January, 2009
International Casino Exhibition 2009 - UK
