Gambling News Stories: Dec. 7, 2000 to Jan 31, 2001
In the MSNBC Sun on Jan. 31, 2001
Super Bowl boon for Net betting
Online sports books say they did record business on game
Jan. 31 — Internet sports-betting sites say they did record business on this year's Super Bowl, bragging of better results than their brick-and-mortar competitors in Nevada. But the increasing competition for the betting dollar in cyberspace also led some bookmakers to shave their odds to attract business — a move that had serious consequences for their bottom line.
In the Detroit Free Press on Jan. 26, 2001 - Column by Andrew N.S. Glazer
High-return slot machines are for real
IF YOU thought Mel Gibson was a bit paranoid in "Conspiracy Theory," you should try talking to slot players. They make Mel's character seem downright trusting by comparison. One of the most common fears of slot players involves casinos moving machines around to "hide the good ones." I could type valid reasons you might not want to play slot machines from now until the next millennium, and I'd never hit on this theory. It isn't true.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Jan. 2, 2001
Nevada casino owner backing Minnesota gambling bill
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - A Nevada casino owner whose last name is synonymous with gambling on the Colorado River is backing a proposal for a state-owned casino in Minnesota. Don Laughlin and some lawmakers critical of Minnesota Indian tribes' monopoly in casino gaming are betting that the Legislature might authorize a state-owned casino, or perhaps schedule a statewide vote in 2002 on a constitutional amendment to authorize one.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Jan. 2, 2001
Central City residents question value of gaming
CENTRAL CITY, Colo. (AP) - After a decade of limited-stakes gaming, some residents now concede that the historic mining town is in no better shape than before the pastime was made legal. "Gaming didn't turn out to be what we expected," said Ann Dodson, whose family owns three casinos on Main Street. "To a certain extent, it turned out to be nothing more than a real estate scam."
In the Las Vegas Sun on Jan. 2, 2001
LV rivals Big Apple
New Year's Eve party keeps growing in popularity
It took New York City's Times Square about a century to evolve into the New Year's Eve celebration capital of the world, but it has taken Las Vegas less than a decade to become a contender for that title.
In the Pioneer Planet on Jan. 2, 2001
State-run casino faces hard odds
Idea could provoke fierce debate in House
Minnesota already has 18 casinos. Does it need another? How about if the new casino were owned by the state and could produce $100 million a year for tax relief, education, affordable housing, new sports stadiums or any other purpose lawmakers chose? A proposal for a state-owned, privately managed casino could be one of the sleeper bills of the legislative session that begins Wednesday -- a controversial, emotionally charged measure that might not be enacted into law but would steal the spotlight from weightier issues such as tax cuts and health care.
In The Desert Sun on Jan. 2, 2001
Tribes hope new casinos sustain economic success
Its owners say the Agua Caliente Casino that is rising from the Southern California desert should invoke images of Las Vegas’ Mirage. But the expectations of success tribes have for that casino and others planned for the Coachella Valley in 2001 are no illusion. Locally, American Indian tribes plan to spend much of the upcoming year building on the economic success of 2000.
In The Desert Sun on Jan. 2, 2001
Vegas-style slot machines provide expansion funds
In 2000, California Indian gaming finally grew up. When the year began, it was illegal for California Indian casinos to offer Las Vegas-style slot machines and house-banked card games. By year’s end, President Clinton had signed legislation making it possible for the Torres-Martinez Band of Desert Cahuilla Indians to purchase off-reservation land so the tribe could build a casino.
In the Fresno Bee on Jan. 2, 2001
Tribes look to cities for new gaming
When Gov. Davis, as one of his first major acts, opened negotiations on casino gambling compacts with California Indian tribes, he insisted that he wanted nothing more than a "modest" expansion of gambling in California. In the months since the agreements were signed with great ceremonial flourish, it has become apparent that they, and a subsequent ballot measure that ratified their provisions, sanctioned much more than a modest increase.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Jan. 1, 2001
California woman wins $6.7 million slot machine jackpot
LAUGHLIN, Nev. (AP) - A California woman won a $6.7 million slot machine jackpot Sunday after acting on the hunch of a childhood friend. Karen Beverly, 50, of Corona, won the Wheel of Fortune MegaJackpot at the Edgewater Casino in Laughlin, Nev. Apparently a friend gave her some money and told her to play the $2 machine, said spokeswoman Connie Fox of International Game Technology, which runs the statewide progressive game. She lost $52 before hitting the jackpot.
In the Rocky Mountain News on Dec. 31, 2000
Casino monkey in on Davis' back
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - When Gov. Gray Davis, as one of first major acts, opened negotiations on casino gambling compacts with California Indian tribes, he insisted that he wanted nothing more than a "modest" expansion of gambling in California. In the months since the agreements were signed with great ceremonial flourish, it's become apparent that they, and a subsequent ballot measure that ratified their provisions, sanctioned much more than a modest increase.
In the Los Angeles Times on Dec. 31, 2000
Draw a Line on Gambling
Gov. Gray Davis' declared opposition to any dramatic increase in Nevada-style gambling on Indian lands in California, particularly in urban areas, faces a severe test. Congress has passed, and President Clinton has signed, an omnibus bill enabling a landless 200-member tribe to open a casino in San Pablo, a suburban San Francisco town alongside Interstate 80. The next step for the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians, whose base is Sonoma County, north of San Francisco Bay, is to negotiate with the state for a gambling compact. The Lyttons are opposed by gambling foes and card room and race track operators who see the casino as a threat to their own business. Despite Davis' concerns, tribal legal experts believe he will have no choice but to grant a compact to the Lyttons similar to those signed with 60 other tribes throughout the state.
In the Bergen Record on Dec. 31, 2000
Internet wagering gets the boot in New Jersey
The weather outside is frightful. What could be a more delightful way for racing fans to spend a snowy day than with simulcasts from warmer and drier locales? The ability to watch and wager on races from the cozy comfort of your couch offers the perfect way to distract the mind from the nasty business of shoveling out the driveway. Until very recently, New Jersey residents like Ed Rust of Park Ridge availed themselves of that luxury via the internet. Rust and other players subscribed to on-line services that brought the racetrack experience right to their computers. Unfortunately, the Grinch, in the guise of the New Jersey Racing Commission, stole all their fun just before the holidays.
In the San Jose Mercury News on Dec. 31, 2000
The Bumbs: a patriarchal saga
Businessman's next generation confronts complex legacy of fortune, strict family rule
...On this August day, hundreds of mourners arrived to pay their respects to George Bumb Sr., a man whose business legacies are hugely popular yet decidedly non-Silicon Valley. He founded the giant San Jose Flea Market, an institution to the working-class people who crowd it on weekends, but an anachronism in the era of eBay. He also helped build Bay 101, a card club attracting high-stakes gamblers to its fast-paced Asian games.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 31, 2000 - COLUMN: GAMING CHIPS: Dave Berns
POKER TIME
Qualifying tournaments for the 2001 World Series of Poker at Binion's Horseshoe are scheduled to begin Sunday at the downtown casino's poker room. The double shoot-out satellite tournaments will run at 2 and 7 p.m., Sundays through Thursdays. Entry to the tournament costs $125. Winners of each one-table, 10-person tournament will advance to a second one-table, 10-person tourney on the following Saturday. The winner of the Saturday tournament wins a $10,000 entry into the 2001 World Series of Poker no limit Texas hold'em championship event, the nine nonwinners each get $100. The 2001 tournaments begin April 20.
In the Press Democrat on Dec. 30, 2000
Card clubs protest Pomo plan for casino
Lytton tribe counters San Pablo operators fear competition
Bay Area card clubs want Gov. Gray Davis to block a Sonoma County Indian tribe's plan for a Nevada-style casino in the East Bay city of San Pablo, saying it will lead to an explosion of Indian gaming in urban areas. But an attorney for the Lytton Pomo tribe said Friday their complaints are groundless because gambling already is allowed at the San Pablo location. "They don't want the competition," said attorney Tony Cohen. An attorney for one of the card clubs said it may challenge a new federal law that helps the Lytton tribe acquire land for a casino in San Pablo.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 30, 2000
Program gives gamblers specialized help
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - West Virginia is using a new software program to help compulsive gamblers get specialized treatment. The program helps those who answer calls to a hot line collect demographic and historical clinical information about gamblers to establish case studies. It also stores professional information about counselors who help gamblers.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 30, 2000
Casinos spare no expense to entertain high-rollers on New Year's Eve
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. - Even the invitations are a production. When high-rollers at Caesars Atlantic City Hotel Casino opened their invitations to this year's New Year's Eve gala, they heard "Thus Spake Zarathustra," the music from "2001: A Space Odyssey," blaring from a computer chip embedded inside. The orange and white invitation, designed to look like a planet, asks guests to "journey into a new orbit" and enjoy a "star gazing feast and nectars fit for the gods" at the party, which will be themed "Roman Odyssey 2001."
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 31, 2000 - by Andrew N.S. Glazer
Good luck finding bad roulette wheel
I HEAR about a lot of smoke-and-mirrors systems for roulette that involve completely worthless mathematical concepts like "wait until red has come up four times in a row and then bet black." But every once in a while someone approaches me with the plausible idea of looking for a roulette wheel that is out of whack and taking advantage of it. I call the idea plausible because, after all, roulette wheels are mechanical devices, built and maintained by people who have good days and bad days.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 27, 2000 - by Columnist Jeff Haney
Irreverent author rates some LV sports books
The only flaw in Jesse May's first novel, the 1998 release Shut Up and Deal, is that it was too true-to-life for the comfort of some poker players. In certain circles, the novel even prompted a Primary Colors-like parlor game of trying to match its cast of characters with real poker pros and hangers-on. Forget playing a "marathon" (26 straight hours in one poker game). May's band of fictional antiheroes come across as Ironman Triathletes of poker excess. Let's just say those who dream of mainstream corporate sponsorship for big poker tournaments probably haven't recommended Shut Up and Deal to potential suitors. In his recently released follow-up effort, The Gambler's Guide to the World, May switches to nonfiction but retains an irreverent edge.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 23, 2000
Murphy's dad tries to get her out of prison
He claims Binion's heroin dealer had role in his death, wants charges brought
The father of Sandy Murphy asked a judge Friday to order prosecutors to pursue criminal charges against Ted Binion's heroin dealer. Peter Sheridan testified in April that he supplied Binion with a dozen balloons of tar heroin the night before the controversial gaming figure was found dead in September 1998.
In the San Francisco Chronicle on Dec. 22, 2000 - Editorial
A Bad Bet for Oakland
COULD IT BE that Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown believes any idea with the potential to make a pot of cash is a good one? It certainly would seem so, given his ill-formed notion to use Las Vegas-style gambling as an economic engine. Brown and city staffers met with members of the Muwekma Ohlone Indians about the possibility of opening a casino on the former Oakland Army base. He imagines, among other things, a plush hotel and gambling palace as a neon lure to Oakland on prime, scenic land at the foot of the Bay Bridge.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 22, 2000 - Editorial
Gamers must step into ring
It's clear that Nevada has a tough road ahead in its fight against the NCAA's campaign to ban betting on college sports. Our congressional delegation believes the NCAA and its influential allies on Capitol Hill will introduce a betting ban bill right out of the starting blocks of the next session of Congress. And since Nevada is the only state in the country that legalizes sports betting, we stand alone in this fight.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 21, 2000
Calif. group eyes casinos
California's drive toward expanded Indian gaming caused a jolt of concern throughout Nevada that's still echoing through the state's gaming industry. Now, a Southern California retiree is pushing for a ballot measure that could be Nevada's worst nightmare -- the expansion of gaming off of reservations and into California's cities.
In Cigar Afficionado on October, 2000
Internet Gambling
Why is Washington out to stop it?
It was football season, and one west Texas gambler named Chris was bored. Other than the trips he made to the Las Vegas sports books once or twice a year, betting on games had become more frustrating than fun for this recreational gambler. His bookie wasn't around when he needed him. Sometimes he wouldn't handle action on games Chris wanted. And Chris, who runs a sports memorabilia business from his home, always wondered what would happen if he hit big, like a five-figure score on a four-team parlay. Would he ever see his winnings? Whom could he complain to if he didn't?
In Cigar Afficionado on June, 2000
Betting By The Book
A gambling theorist turns to sports betting to beat the odds--and the house
On the big screen in front of me, Doug Flutie stands on the sideline wearing his helmet. The newly demoted Bills quarterback is watching erstwhile backup Rob Johnson run the Buffalo offense in the first round of this year's National Football League play-offs. So is most of America. But I'm more interested in the 16 other TV monitors here at the Mandalay Bay Race and Sports Book.
In Information Week on Dec. 11, 2000
Harrah's Bets On IT To Understand Its Customers
Casino's loyalty program helps it personalize promotions.
cross the Strip from a flaming charioteer announcing the Caesars Palace Forum Shops and a long walk down the main Vegas boulevard from the $1.6 billion Bellaggio and its 1,200 fountains in an 8.5-acre lake stands Harrah's Casino. The building bears a modest--by Las Vegas standards, at least--purple neon globe with a flashing gold corporate logo, while over a loudspeaker outside the entrance, a voice repeats, "Sign up for Harrah's Total Gold card today, and we'll cover your slot losses for half an hour--up to $100. Find out more details at the Total Rewards Center."
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 21, 2000
ONLINE GAMBLING PROPOSAL: Interpretation may affect measure's fate
Rendering of 1961 Wire Act may determine future of proposal to legalize online betting
Confusion over the interpretation of a 39-year-old federal ban on wagers through electronic communication is one of the issues that could affect a Nevada legislative proposal to legalize Internet gambling. Nevada gaming regulators believe legalizing Internet casinos would violate the 1961 Wire Act, which banned sports wagers that are made via the telephone or other communication devices. "I don't think the gaming commission would want to adopt something that interferes with the Wire Act," said Steve DuCharme, the outgoing chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board.
In the San Francisco Chronicle on Dec. 20, 2000
Oakland's Jackpot Idea -- An Indian Casino Mayor talking to tribe about old Army base
In a move that has insiders whirling like cherries on a Vegas slot machine, Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown is angling for his own Bellagio by the Bay: an Indian casino at the old Oakland Army base. Just this month, Brown and city staff met quietly with representatives of the once (supposedly) extinct Muwekma Ohlone Indians about the possibility of opening the casino at the foot of the Bay Bridge.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 20, 2000
Casinos to keep stance on Internet gambling
Won't ease insistence on protections in new legislation
The casino industry will again insist on exemptions to protect itself before supporting any future federal legislation banning Internet gambling, the head of the American Gaming Association said.
In the San Francisco Chronicle on Dec. 20, 2000
Judge Lets San Ramon Card Games Resume
Gambling has resumed at a beleaguered San Ramon cardroom after a judge in Sacramento ruled that state gaming officials unfairly issued a cease-and- desist order. Superior Court Judge Lloyd Connelly said last week that the state Department of Justice's Division of Gambling Control had overstepped its authority in shutting down the card tables at the Outpost Casino on San Ramon Valley Boulevard.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 20, 2000
South Lake Tahoe goes upscale
Once a dilapidated area, California side adds resorts, gondola
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. -- After an extortionist's bomb ripped through Harveys Resort & Casino in 1980, the company found opportunity in the tragedy -- it rebuilt Tahoe's first high-rise to match the glitter of its newer neighbors. But no matter how much the gilt was burnished on the Nevada side of the state line, the luster remained tarnished on the California side. Just a block away from the modern hotels, South Lake Tahoe quickly gave way to a succession of souvenir stands, fast-food joints and dilapidated 1950s-era motels. Where it wasn't just tacky, South Lake Tahoe was downright seedy.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 19, 2000
Bill would put Indian gaming in the Bay area
A card room in San Pablo, Calif., with a towering sign visible to motorists on Interstate 80, would take a giant step toward becoming an Indian casino with President Clinton’s signature on a bill approved last week by Congress. It would be the first such casino in northern California within a major city and within one of the biggest feeder markets for Reno-Sparks’ gaming- and visitor-dependent economy. Reno-Sparks got 21 percent of its 5.1 million total visits from the San Francisco Bay area last year, according to the 1999 Visitor Profile.
In the San Jose Mercury on Dec. 18, 2000
LETTER: You take more risks if you gamble online
Q I have been gambling online for about six months, mostly betting on sporting events. In October I won $600 and decided to cash out my winnings. The company said it could credit only as much as I originally took out -- $200 -- and send me a check for the balance of my winnings. My account was eventually credited, but I never got a check for the remaining $240. I have sent numerous e-mails to the site but never received a response. I'm sure this must be happening to others.
In the Daily Herald on Dec. 18, 2000
Gambling's evolution
SPRINGFIELD - At the dawn of the last decade, Illinois lawmakers envisioned a fleet of old-fashioned paddle-wheel riverboats plying the mighty Mississippi River and other waterways. Tourists would come from all over to relive the Mark Twain days. While on board they might do some gambling, but the riverboats were to be about tourism and economic development in decaying river towns. A decade later, the riverboats that have emerged are little more than gambling barges tied to docks. If Rosemont Mayor Donald Stephens has his way, his convention-rich community will be home to the state's first casino floating in a manmade pond.
In the Transitions Online on Dec. 17, 2000
Gambling Legalized in Kyrgyzstan
OSH, Kyrgyzstan--In a move possibly made to stamp out Islamic dissent, the Kyrgyz parliament amended current legislation on 11 December to allow gambling. The decision immediately sparked outcry among those who worry about the impact of the change on younger people. Until now, gambling has been officially prohibited, but illegal games of chance have been functioning in all parts of the country.
In the Wired News on Dec. 15, 2000
The Wonderful Wagerers of Oz
ALICE SPRINGS, Australia -- Peter Bridge seems an unlikely Bugsy Siegel, and central Australia an unlikely Las Vegas. But when online gambling's history is written, Bridge and his Lasseters Online Casino may figure as prominently in their world as Bugsy and his Flamingo Hotel did in theirs. That's because as America dithers over how and whether to ban Internet gaming, Bridge's Outback odds palace has been taking bets since April 1999. It now pulls in more than $10 million in bets per month, with betting growing at more than 30 percent per month, according to Bridge, Lasseters' chief executive officer.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 17, 2000
Is Reno ready for looming California Indian gaming assault?
University of Nevada, Reno, gaming expert Bill Eadington likened the environment surrounding California Indian gaming to a period during World War II after Germany invaded Poland, after which Britain and France declared war on Germany. “For a while, nothing happened and everybody sort of thought life was normal and then all hell broke loose,” Eadington, director of the Institute for the Study of Gambling & Commercial Gaming at UNR, said in drawing parallels to today.
In the Press Democrat on Dec. 17, 2000
LYTTON POMOS PLAN CASINO
Congress OKs gambling proposal in San Pablo; tribe wants community in Windsor
Barring any hitch in the governor's office in Sacramento, the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians of Sonoma County could soon become the owners of Northern California's first full-service casino in an urban area. Legislation approving the Lytton gambling plan in the East Bay city of San Pablo was approved last week by Congress, and President Clinton is expected to sign the bill.
In the Press of Atlantic City on Dec. 16, 2000
Poker tournament champ wins a cool $318,000
ATLANTIC CITY - Richard Tatalovich's play at the United States Poker Championship here admittedly wasn't his best. He said his play was cold. "I felt like I was in a block of ice from the time I got here," Tatalovich said. "I told some friends that the only way I could salvage this was to win the big one." He did just that: The Scottsdale, Ariz., resident won the tournament Friday and walked out of the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort poker room with a check for $318,000.
In the SignOn San Diego on Dec. 15, 2000
County, Indians still at odds over casino
December 15, 2000 RINCON INDIAN RESERVATION -- The Rincon Indian band intends to open a gambling casino without installing a left-turn entrance lane on a busy North County road because of an ongoing delay in getting a county permit. A closed-door meeting this week involving area tribal leaders, two county supervisors and several department heads failed to resolve how or when tribes might obtain county permits for casino-related projects.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 15, 2000
Tabish gets new home in prison system
Rick Tabish has been transferred to the maximum security Ely State Prison to serve time for killing wealthy casino executive Ted Binion. Glen Whorton, a spokesman for the state prison system, said Tabish arrived in Ely on Wednesday and immediately was placed in "administrative segregation" while officials investigate rumors of death threats against him being circulated by the media.
In the Detroit Free Press on Dec. 15, 2000 - Column by Andrew N.S. Glazer
Don't count on casinos for your holiday cash
THE holiday season, perhaps more than any other time of year, seems to lead people toward the dangerous "I'll win because I'm a good person" kind of thinking that encourages people to buy more lottery tickets than they should. At the holiday season, the good person theory gets juiced up because the money the people are trying to win is "for a good cause" -- to buy gifts for others.
In the Pechanga.net on Dec. 14, 2000
It Looks Like Las Vegas And Plays Like Las Vegas
San Diego Group Enters Into Lucrative Mexico Gaming Contract
DATELINE: San Diego . . . December 14, 2000 . . . The prospect of operating casinos in Mexico has long attracted international business interest. Mexico enjoys the most highly visited tourist locations for the global traveler. European, Asian and American tourist dollars continue to flow into beach resort destina-tions such as Acapulco, Los Cabos, Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta and Can Cun. But, what many vacationers have found missing in the hotel and entertainment venue packages, is the opportunity to gamble.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 15, 2000
Wells Fargo bars use of ATM, credit cards for online gambling
Wells Fargo Bank is taking steps to prevent its Visa and MasterCard account holders from using its check cashing and credit cards for Internet gambling. Card holders were notified on their December statements that ATM and credit cards must not be used for "any unlawful purposes." That includes "funding any account that is set up to facilitate online gambling," the statement indicates. Wells Fargo spokewoman Daphne Larkin said the company was following instructions from Visa International requiring its 14,000 member banks to inform card holders that Visa cards could not be used for illegal purposes.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 14, 2000
Gaming industry sees outcome as favorable
Nevada and casino industry leaders are optimistic that gaming will get fair treatment from a George W. Bush administration, even though the president-elect opposes gambling in his home state of Texas.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 14, 2000
Bally's to debut ticket pay system on the LV Strip
At first, it will start with just 100 slot machines, a mere drop in the bucket on the Las Vegas Strip. But if it's a hit, coins may soon start quickly disappearing from slot machines across the gaming industry's biggest market.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 14, 2000
Diversify is name of new game in Reno
“With over 600 coin drop and slot machines here at Cache Creek Indian Bingo and Casino, why would anybody drive over the snowy mountain roads to Nevada . . . unless that’s their idea of gambling,” a man in the casino says before the grinding noise of an automobile crash.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 14, 2000
Experts debate how much money Nevada could lose to tribal gambling
It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when -- and how much. This area’s projected lost revenue to tribal gaming hinges on a number of factors. Among them: How quickly will the California Indian casinos build? How swiftly will existing tribal casinos expand and improve? What will be the quality level of the unbuilt or expanding facilities? How many slot machines ultimately will wind up located next door in California, encouraging Nevada’s neighbors to the West to stay home and gamble? Economic impact estimates range from virtually zero to outright painful.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 14, 2000
PARI-MUTUEL GAMBLING: Battle brewing over racetrack slots
Gambling foes, competing casinos fight installation of machines at tracks
WASHINGTON -- Buoyed by their success in Maine last month, anti-gambling forces are intensifying efforts to prevent the pari-mutuel industry from installing slot machines or video gaming at horse racing tracks throughout the East. But a downturn in the economy could force money-strapped legislatures to open more slots in an attempt to gain easy tax revenue. Florida, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania are expected to consider legislative proposals within the next two years to allow the installation of slots at their racetracks.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 14, 2000
Goal of California regulators are safe and secure games
John Hensley, chairman of the California Gambling Control Commission, wants the same thing as the gaming tribes, the state and everyone else -- a clean and respected gambling industry. His biggest concern: “We do not want organized crime in California gambling,” the former U.S. Customs Service special agent said.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 14, 2000
Reno prepares to compete with Indian gambling
California Indian gaming is like a train steaming toward northern Nevada and local hotel-casino operators seem to realize that they must react together -- and quickly -- to prevent economic derailment. Most agree that existing California casinos already are syphoning off some business from northern Nevada’s economy, skimming off convenience gamblers, bus junkets and other business.
In the San Francisco Chronicle on Dec. 13, 2000
San Jose Mayor Renews Gambling Battle Card-room crime increasing, he says
Citing an increase in crime related to San Jose's two main card clubs, Mayor Ron Gonzales yesterday renewed his push to shut down legalized gambling in the city. Calls summoning police to Bay 101 and Garden City card clubs rose 22 percent in fiscal 1999-2000 over the previous year, according to an annual report released yesterday by the San Jose Police Department. The 139 calls to 911 ran the gamut from traffic violations to prostitution to auto theft.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 13, 2000
Murphy, Tabish financially liable for Binion's death
District Judge Michael Cherry today found Sandy Murphy and Rick Tabish financially liable in Ted Binion's death and subject to punitive damages. Murphy, a 28-year-old one-time topless dancer who lived with Binion for three years, and her lover, Montana contractor Rick Tabish, were convicted May 19 of killing Binion at his Las Vegas home more than two years ago.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 13, 2000
High-tech San Diego casino touted as future of gaming
The casino arguably has the most advanced slot machine floor in the world, according to a July report from Las Vegas Investment Advisors Inc. — and, no, it’s not in Las Vegas. It’s the Barona Casino outside San Diego, a California Indian gaming establishment that some experts say foreshadows the future of slot machine gaming in Nevada and elsewhere.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 13, 2000
INTERNET GAMBLING: Net bet bill under draft
After a year of congressional debate failed to result in a new federal law banning Internet gambling, a Nevada state legislator is drafting a bill that aims to legalize and regulate the operation of gambling Web sites based here. Assemblywoman Merle Berman, R-Las Vegas, said Nevada needs to be in the race with Atlantic City on regulating Internet gambling. The New Jersey Legislature is debating a similar bill. "The person who opens up shop first gets the repeat customer," Berman said Tuesday. "But even more than Atlantic City, our competition is with California Indian gaming. California's got all the techies."
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 13, 2000
INDIAN GAMBLING: Tribe continues to push for casino
Cuyapaipe Indians call bill to block gambling on tribal land flawed
WASHINGTON -- A California tribe is proceeding with plans to build a casino near San Diego despite a vote last month in the House that would outlaw gambling on the tribe's land.
In the Boston Globe on Dec. 13, 2000
Tribes make easy criminal targets
ALLEY CENTER, Calif. - As construction crews clamber over their impoverished reservation here in the citrus groves of Northern San Diego County, Rincon Indian leaders are raising the hopes of 600 tribal members with plans for a Harrah's casino and more than 1,000 new jobs.
In the Boston Globe on Dec. 13, 2000
Trump plays both sides in casino bids
Mention Donald Trump to most people, and you'll get a lot of talk about casinos and cash and cuff links, about a somehow forgivably conceited guy who talks about himself in the third person as he steps off his yacht or out of his limo with a leggy model on his arm.
In the Philadelphia Inquirer on Dec. 11, 2000
The Philadelphia Inquirer Gambling Column
The only place in a casino where the players aren't banging up against the cruel mathematics of a game whose odds are skewed in favor of the house is in the live poker room. Frequently tucked away in some quiet corner of the gambling hall, often near the sports or race books, the poker rooms are where players compete against other players, instead of the casino. To be sure, the house profits from these games, either by taking a small amount of money from each pot or by charging players a fee, say by the hour, to sit at the table (a casino dealer actually deals the cards and conducts the game). But by and large, poker allows players to rise and fall on the merits of their own skill and experience. Of course, getting good cards doesn't hurt either.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 12, 2000 -CASINO GAMES
Expert: LV hard for card counters
Early, continuous shuffling keeps gamblers guessing, blackjack guru says
Card counters take note: Get out of Las Vegas if you want to ply your trade. One of the world's foremost blackjack and card counting experts says the most favorable games for gamblers are in Nevada. But you won't find them in Las Vegas. Las Vegas casinos use two key strategies to combat card counting -- early shuffling and continuous shuffling machines. "For some reason Las Vegas casinos seem overly concerned about card counters, and shuffle much earlier than do casinos in the rest of the state," said blackjack expert Stanford Wong.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 12, 2000
U.S. 50 site spurs controversy
The Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians is an offramp and an overpass away from building a casino on the main road that connects Sacramento to the Stateline hotel-casinos. If completed, these two slabs of roadway will propel the Miwoks into the fast lane of California Indian gaming.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 12, 2000
Tribal casinos loom over Nevada
Oregon and Washington supply nearly 20 percent of Reno-Sparks’ total visitors, and both states are dotted with Nevada-style Indian casinos competing for the same dollars that once made their way here. “You’re losing customers ... because … casinos here are taking them,” said Robert Whelan, a Portland economist with ECONorthwest.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 12, 2000
Tahoe moving to blunt outside threats
Harveys Casino Resorts spokesman Jim Rafferty had just left the Jackson Rancheria Casino, Hotel & Conference Center on Nov. 21 and felt like he had visited a Nevada casino. “It’s scary, frankly,” said Rafferty, who also is the chairman of the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority in South Lake Tahoe. “They’ve got all the right machines, the coins are dropping in the tray, it’s like a regular casino,” he said of the casino in Jackson, Calif., on the highway between Stockton and South Lake Tahoe.
In the Boston Globe on Dec. 12, 2000
Tribes scramble to get into the game
On the fourth floor of the Department of the Interior, 11 scholars make up a strange historical tribunal, poring through enormous stacks of documents to winnow out real Indian tribes from fakers and wannabes. Although many Americans assume that Indian identity is a matter of blood, the seven requirements for federal recognition of a tribe - which transforms a group of people into a potentially powerful sovereign entity - are actually based on murkier cultural attributes.
In the Boston Globe on Dec. 12, 2000
Lineage questions linger as gaming wealth grows
EDYARD, Conn. - Andrew Leon moved East from Montana's frontier country two years ago, but on a dark, rainy night in Connecticut recently, he felt right at home. The scene was an appearance by Jeff Benedict, who became a hero in Ledyard this spring when he published ''Without Reservation,'' which accused the Mashantucket Pequots of faking their lineage. Some 900 townspeople packed the high school auditorium to cheer Benedict during a three-hour meeting in September that crackled with tension.
In the Boston Globe on Dec. 12, 2000
It's a war of genealogies
Recognition is a contentious process
ATERBURY, Conn. - In a small house with ruffled curtains, in the company of a black-and-white kitten, James P. Lynch bends over the historical research that has led some to dub him ''the Indian killer.'' At 54, Lynch is soft-spoken and has the face of a Campbell's Soup kid. As a boy, he was an arrowhead-collector, entranced by the Indian tribes who walked these woods, but in adulthood his interest has taken him in a different direction. Today, he sells heating systems for a living, shuttles his son to soccer practice, and has a sideline debunking tribes.
In the Boston Globe on Dec. 11, 2000
Few tribes share casino windfall
ADDO COUNTY, Okla. -- As the autumn wind whips rain clouds over this endless plain of wheat, cotton, and cattle, Ruth Ahkeabo Gonzales steps from the abandoned minibus she calls home and casts a worried look at the horizon once ruled by her Kiowa ancestors. "Winter's coming and I don't have any heat in this place," she says.
In the Boston Globe on Dec. 11, 2000
Gaming success helps tribe gain community acceptance
IVERSIDE COUNTY, Calif. -- After voters in March approved a state ballot measure legalizing Native American gambling, the Morongo Band of Mission Indians turned to the pumps at Morongo Shell and slashed gas prices to $1 a gallon for 24 hours.
In the Boston Globe on Dec. 11, 2000
California tribes hit the jackpot with gaming vote
OACHELLA, Calif. -- In a rundown mobile home at the edge of this dusty city of Mexican resort workers, a 35-year-old single mother of three is about to be showered with fabulous wealth.
In the Boston Globe on Dec. 10, 2000
A big roll at Mohegan Sun
Casino boom benefits non-Indians
ONTVILLE, Conn. - It rises out of the rolling hills with the promise of grandeur, its massive glass towers designed to loom 440 feet over the reflected countryside, an instant landmark, a beacon to a palace built for gamblers. At a cost of $1.1 billion, this expansion of the Mohegan Sun Casino is one of the country's largest private construction projects, a steel testament to the extravagant profits in the rapidly expanding Indian gaming industry.
In the Boston Globe on Dec. 10, 2000
The $800 million deal for outsiders at Mohegan Sun
THE $1.1 BILLION expansion of Mohegan Sun is one of the largest private construction projects in the nation. (Globe Staff Photo / Evan Richman) Is the Mohegan Sun Casino more ''Mohegan'' or more ''Sun''? The Mohegan tribe owns it, but for Sun International Hotel chairman Sol Kerzner and his partners, the mammoth casino in Montville, Conn., is a money machine, guaranteed to produce a steady stream of cash until 2015.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 12, 2000
Day trading exec sues over dispute at Hard Rock casino
A Hard Rock hotel-casino patron is taking legal action in hopes of reversing a decision by the Nevada Gaming Control Board to deny his request to be paid $17,000 he claims he won at a craps game. Robert Bright, owner of the stock and securities day-trading business Bright Trading, said Hard Rock paid him only $2,000 of $19,000 he allegedly won in June because it claimed there was a $1,000 limit at the craps table.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 11, 2000
Murphy's attorneys ask judge to put Binion estate funds on hold
District Judge Michael Cherry should not award any money to Ted Binion's estate in its wrongful death lawsuit against Sandy Murphy and Rick Tabish unless their appeals are denied. At least, that is what Murphy's attorneys will be arguing to Cherry on Wednesday.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 11, 2000
Casino along I-80 artery may divert Reno’s lifeblood
Put a $100 million casino a few miles outside Sacramento, let one of Las Vegas’ most aggressive gaming companies operate it and see what happens to the traffic from Sacramento and the San Francisco Bay area. Now, throw in a snowstorm or the threat of unsettled weather over Donner Summit, especially on the critical weekends, and see how that affects visitors from Reno-Sparks’ two largest feeder markets.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 11, 2000
Casino operator draws customers by catering to locals
When Station Casinos Inc. opens the doors on its first Indian casino next year, the Sacramento-area facility will likely do well with nearby gamblers who’d rather not make the drive to Reno. But if history is any indicator, the casino will do less business with potential visitors who live farther away.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 11, 2000
Rags-to-riches dreams may inspire more to compete with Nevada
Jessica Tavares walks through the United Auburn Indian Community’s neighborhood and feels the pain of her people. The 51-year-old chairwoman of the Auburn tribe used to live on the Newcastle, Calif., site, where many of the tribe’s 215 members exist in abject poverty.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 10, 2000 - Special Report By John Stearns
Gaming referendum ushers in new beginning for Indian tribes
The passage of a California Indian gaming referendum in March marked a new dawn in the West -- one lighting a promising path of economic prosperity for Indian tribes, but also casting a threatening cloud over northern Nevada's casino industry. California's voter-approved constitutional amendment allowing the state's Indian tribes to conduct Nevada-style gaming lifted the uncertainty that had shaded the legitimacy of some California Indian gaming until then.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 10, 2000 - Special Report By John Stearns
Boxing, slots, food and teens in Oroville casino
The sold-out showroom was hosting a nationally televised championship fight, the casino was packed with gamblers, coins were clanking into slot machine trays and the atmosphere was alive. The scene wasn't in Nevada, but in a small Indian casino in Oroville, Calif., just southeast of Chico. "It's doing great," said Bob Wallen, marketing director for Feather Falls Casino, which is operated by the Concow-Maidu of Mooretown Rancheria. So good, in fact, that the tribe is planning to double the casino's size by January 2002 and increase from 500 slot machines to 1,000.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 10, 2000 - Special Report By John Stearns
Tribe sees benefits to itself, neighbors
Gaming has elevated the quality of life and the spirit of the Concow-Maidu tribal members of Mooretown Rancheria in Oroville, says tribal chairwoman Shirley Prusia. Before her tribe started gaming with video lottery terminals in 1995, followed by the opening of its permanent casino in 1998, "most of (the tribal members) were homeless, they were renting homes, they were on welfare, some of them never worked before," said Prusia.
In the Reno Gazette-Journal on Dec. 10, 2000 - Special Report By John Stearns
The lure of casinos in California
Ginnie Priest lives in northern California and used to visit Reno to gamble, but she no longer needs to make the long drive over the Sierra since an Indian casino opened about 25 miles from her home. "I haven't been there since (Indian gaming) has been here - this is more convenient," Priest said while playing a modern International Game Technology video slot machine at the Feather Falls Casino in Oroville, Calif. She visits the casino about once or twice a month.
In the Associated Press on Dec. 10, 2000
Nearby casinos target different crowds
They are geographically close, but Connecticut's casinos are going after gamblers from different worlds. Officials at Foxwoods Resort Casino say they are trying to nab a high-stakes, international clientele with the new Stargazer Casino, a 25th-floor high-rollers game room with a five-star restaurant one floor below. On the other hand, executives at Mohegan Sun are betting on a billion-dollar Project Sunburst expansion to bring in big crowds. A new casino, retail shops, hotel, conference center and an events arena are planned.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 10, 2000 - COLUMN: Gaming Chips
POKER JACKPOTS
Although Harrah's Las Vegas announced last week that the property's poker room is closing on Wednesday, the Strip resort won't be able to keep the accumulated bad-beat jackpots to which the room's poker players have contributed. Nevada gaming regulations require such jackpots to be awarded when a game is removed by conducting a concluding contest, tournament or promotion.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 10, 2000
Bounty rumors prompt prison to isolate Tabish
Rick Tabish has been moved to a more secure area of High Desert State Prison near Indian Springs following a report Friday that someone may be offering a cash reward for his murder. Tabish, who was convicted in May of killing former casino executive Ted Binion, was moved Friday afternoon to an isolated part of High Desert's intake unit while the Nevada Department of Prisons investigates the rumor of a bounty on Tabish's head.
In the Sun Herald on Dec. 10, 2000 - Inside Gambling column by Dave Palermo
Industry, others grapple with problem gambling
Before the Isle of Capri opened the Coast's first legal casino in 1992, Susan R's only exposure to gambling came during a 1988 cruise to the Bahamas. Two years later the Gulfport woman was a pathological gambler, a fixture at blackjack tables in several Coast casinos, stealing from friends and family and using credit card debt to feed her addiction. She ended up in prison. She nearly lost her 2-year-old daughter.
In TheDay.com on Dec. 10, 2000
For Gambling And Drinking, 'A Serious Connection' Found
Out on the casino floor, waiters and waitresses negotiate their ways – cocktail trays in hand – past people clustered at gaming tables and down row after row of blinking, ringing slot machines. At the area's two casinos, there are nearly 500 of these servers, whose job it is to provide every gambling patron with a free drink should they want one. Like any cocktail server at any establishment, their livelihood is based in large part on tips – the more drinks they serve, the more tips they make.
In the Spokesman-Review on Dec. 10, 2000
For Las Vegas on the cheap, don't miss Matt and Stinky
Remember all those stories that Uncle Ed and Aunt Martha told about Las Vegas after they visited the place for the first time 15 or 20 years ago? They rattled on about how their deluxe hotel room at the Sands cost half of what they had paid on any other vacation; that they gorged themselves on all-you-can-eat buffets for $1.99, and, by golly, they even saw Robert Goulet himself for 20 bucks each and that included a prime rib dinner. Folks, by and large, those days are over in Las Vegas. Gaudy and cheap is out; chic and pricey is in.
In the Spokesman-Review on Dec. 10, 2000
Aladdin Hotel and Casino leads parade of newest attractions
Las Vegas is the mother of reinvention -- this desert city tears down and rebuilds itself every few years, constantly opening new hotels, casinos, restaurants, shops and attractions. Here's a look at some 2000 debuts:
In the Evansville Courier & Press on Dec. 10, 2000
Casino Aztar’s legacy
It’s meant big bucks for area
Twice each day, a white truck backs up to a Casino Aztar loading dock. Workers from the Pearl Laundry and Cleaners truck grab large, yellow hampers to collect dirty linens. They may also drop off clean linens, napkins and table cloths. The process takes a few minutes and goes unnoticed by passing motorists. But for Pearl, it’s “a big deal,” said Jeff Korb, company vice president. “I’m very grateful for their business.”
In the Reuters on Dec. 8, 2000
How Your Body Gets Hooked on Gambling
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Gambling can be just as addictive as drinking or taking drugs, researchers report. German investigators found that gambling for money provokes physical symptoms including increased heart rate and the release of certain hormones that contribute to an overall state of arousal and, perhaps, addiction. ``Physiologic responses to gambling enhance mood and...winning has the ability to produce a 'euphoric' state,'' Gerhard Meyer and colleagues write in the November 1st issue of Biological Psychiatry.
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 8, 2000
Pascua Yaqui Tribe to build largest casino in southern Arizona
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - The Pascua Yaqui Tribe is set to break ground next month on the $65 million Casino Del Sol, the largest casino in southern Arizona. When completed in July 2002, the 242,000-square-foot building will house a new gambling parlor with 500 slot machines, five restaurants, a nightclub, a child-care center for customers, 36 bowling lanes and an amphitheater that seats 4,500.
In the Detroit Free Press on Dec. 8, 2000 - by Andrew N.S. Glazer
Clever amateur cleans out the poker experts
Those of you who read my column regularly know I don't encourage people to dream wild dreams about gambling success. But today I'm going to break with tradition and tell you about a fellow whose dream came true. I recently returned from the Isle of Man, a blustery little tax haven halfway between England and Ireland. The island was the site of the Poker Million, a new poker tournament at which the Ladbroke Casinos people guaranteed 1,000,000 pounds (about $1.5 million at the current exchange rate) for first place.
In the News.com.au on Dec. 8, 2000
Casino refuses to pay out $224,000 win
17:00 (AEDT) A YOUNG woman plans to sue Perth's Burswood Casino for refusing to pay out a $224,000 blackjack win. Peta Pillage, 24, was dealt a jackpot hand - four black aces - during a blackjack game at the casino in June. But after being congratulated and sent to collect her prize, she was told the game was invalid. Ms Pillage said the casino told her that a video of the game showed one of the players had not been dealt a card, rendering the outcome invalid.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 8, 2000
Reid, Ensign will aim to stop college bet ban
Effort will be top priority in next Congress
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Sen.-elect John Ensign, R-Nev., announced Thursday their top priority in next year's Congress will be to stop a bill aimed at banning Nevada casinos from taking bets on college sports. Their opposition to nuclear waste storage at Yucca Mountain will take a back seat to efforts to kill the sports betting ban, even though there is no consensus on the best way to fight the legislation. "It's fair to say that of Nevada state issues this is the top of the ticket right now," Reid said. "It is taking more of our attention than nuclear waste."
In the Las Vegas Sun on Dec. 7, 2000
NCAA is confident it has gaming industry on heels
A top NCAA official predicted today that the casino industry's latest efforts won't derail a congressional push to ban betting on college sports. Bill Saum, NCAA director of agent and gambling activities, told the Sun that Wednesday's high-level gaming summit with Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., is a sign the industry is worried about his organization's campaign.
In the Las Vegas R-J on Dec. 7, 2000
GAMBLING TRENDS: Tracking system aids customer service
Players clubs offer freebies to casino regulars whether they gamble or not
Frequent rewards cards that link gamblers' accounts at different casinos are helping the casino industry return to the days when table games dealers and cocktail waitresses knew loyal gamblers by name. The backbone of the technology is an electronic tracking system that began with a handful of casinos launching slot clubs offering freebies, discounted food and show tickets to loyal slot gamblers. Now the clubs have been expanded to table games and customers who don't gamble. "Calling it a slot club is no longer accurate. It's a player's club," said Jeffrey Compton, a player club analyst for Las Vegas-based Compton Dancer Consulting Inc.
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