Packers Provide Postseason Value

Posted on January 4, 2010 by admin

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January 4, 2010

LVASports‘ Fezzik wins the most prestigious handicapping contest in Las Vegas for the second year running.

After a snowstorm in Buffalo and a late touchdown in Seattle, Fezzik emerged from Week 17 as the winner of the 21st annual Las Vegas Hilton SuperContest, the most prestigious NFL handicapping contest. Fezzik has won the SuperContest outright in back-to-back years, a feat never before achieved. He topped a field of 328 contestants in 2009 and 350 in 2008.

“That’s unbelievable, isn’t it? That’s a big-time accomplishment,” Hilton sports book director Jay Kornegay said.

To put it in perspective, when Johnny Chan won the World Series of Poker main event in 1987 and 1988, he beat a field of 152 other players the first year and 167 the following year.

Fezzik (LVAsports.com) said he was “very, very lucky” to win, but there’s definitely some NFL handicapping acumen required to post a record of 53-29-3 against the spread.

To read the complete article, click here.

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New Projects Slated for Las Vegas in 2010

Posted on December 31, 2009 by admin

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Publisher Anthony Curtis’ nationally syndicated weekly column.

December 30, 2009

While many presume that the just-opened CityCenter will be the last big Las Vegas casino project for a while, that isn’t so. In fact, several new developments are expected in 2010. The first is ongoing work at CityCenter itself, where Veer Towers and the Harmon Hotel have still not opened. Next door, the megaresort Cosmopolitan is slated to open near the end of the year, and further south on the Strip, the Tropicana is being completely overhauled. On the north end of the Strip, the gigantic Fontainebleau should be completed—though it’s not known by whom—within the year. East of the Strip, an expansion is ongoing at the Hard Rock and a new casino has been announced for the nearby St. Tropez Hotel. And finally, there’s the possibility of a big downtown City Hall project that could bring a new casino and hasten a reopening of the Lady Luck. All in all, it adds up to a relatively full slate for a city that was expected to be taking a break from building.

Good Sign: For the first time in 21 months, air traffic through Las Vegas has increased, with the November year-over-year comparison notching a miniscule .1% uptick. Air traffic is a leading indicator of Las Vegas’ economic status.

Rockin’ Football: The Rockhouse, located on the Strip in front of the Imperial Palace, will host weekend football parties in January that coincide with the NFL playoffs. Each party will have a theme, e.g., “National Humiliation Day,” when wearing a jersey from the Browns, Lions, Chiefs, etc. qualifies you for drink specials.

Question: Has the Buffalo Bill’s casino outside of Las Vegas closed?

Answer: Buffalo Bill’s in Primm closed for two weeks for maintenance during the slow period before Christmas. It’s now fully operational again. The job would have taken three months if done while the casino remained open.

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A Life Saved from the Shadows

Posted on December 31, 2009 by admin

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 December 22, 2009

Huntington Press author Matt O’Brien’s Beneath the Neon was again featured in the LA Times in a feature story about the ongoing plight of those people living in the storm drains beneath Las Vegas.

But a few years back, journalists Matthew O’Brien and Joshua Ellis had written about the storm-drain society for the local alternative weekly CityLife. O’Brien expanded the stories into a book, “Beneath the Neon: Life and Death in the Tunnels of Las Vegas,” which caught the attention of homeless outreach workers at the nonprofit HELP of Southern Nevada.

To read the complete article, click here

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Las Vegas ARIA Opens

Posted on December 17, 2009 by admin

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Anthony Curtis’ weekly nationally syndicated Vegas column.

December 16, 2009

ARIA, the main attraction of the massive CityCenter complex on the south end of the Strip, opened last Wednesday with a big fireworks display heralding Las Vegas’ newest must-see resort. The 61-story 4,004-room hotel is the only component in CityCenter to have a casino, and it’s a big one at 150,000 square feet, about the size of Bellagio’s. ARIA also boasts 11 restaurants (most of them high end and run by celebrity chefs), an 80,000 square-foot spa, 300,000 square feet of convention space, and an 1,800-seat theater that will house the much-anticipated Viva Elvis show by Cirque du Soleil. Room rates for ARIA have run as low as $149 midweek in December.

Elvis Open: Though the grand opening of Aria’s Viva Elvis isn’t until February (recently moved back a month), the show is already running in “previews.” Previews are considered shake-out runs for new shows and are usually discounted, as this show is (by 25%). The preview prices are $116-$200 after tax.

Venetian Formula: A long-empty space overlooking the Las Vegas Strip at Venetian looks like it finally has a new occupant. Smokin’ Hot Aces, a club that will feature DJs and live bands, is scheduled to open on Dec. 28.

Wild Wild Days: Station Casinos has announced that it will rebrand its Wild Wild West Gambling Hall as a Days Inn. The location was to be the site of a CityCenter-style complex called Viva, until the bad economy shelved those plans.

Iced: The show Ice Direct from Russia has closed at the Riviera, as has the Neil Diamond Tribute Live with Jay White. No word of any replacements as yet. The other shows at the Riv, including Crazy Girls and the Riviera Comedy Club, remain.

Question: What and where is the Lucky Club?

Answer: It’s a casino located on the far north side of Las Vegas. Formerly called Speedway, it caters almost solely to a local crowd.

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Check out low rates for Vegas check-ins

Posted on December 17, 2009 by admin

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December 11, 2009

How low can December Vegas hotel rates go?

Rock-bottom. The Las Vegas Advisor found 43 casino hotels with rooms for less than $40, vs. 38 last December. Among them are Strip properties such as Bally’s, Excalibur and Harrah’s. Best deals are from Sunday to Dec. 24, the Advisor says.

To read the rest of this article, click here.

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Las Vegas Binion’s Closes Hotel

Posted on December 10, 2009 by admin

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December 9, 2009

Anthony Curtis’ weekly nationally syndicated Vegas column.

In another cost-saving move made necessary by the tough economy, the legendary Binion’s hotel will close this week. The casino, its snack bars, and the upstairs steakhouse will remain open; however, the hotel rooms, coffee shop, and keno lounge will shut down. While the small hotel was never an important component of the Binion’s, the coffee shop was one of the best known in all of Las Vegas, famous in years past for its monster ham & eggs breakfast (“The Natural”) and its late-night $2 New York steak dinner.

Big Tree: Las Vegas is once again home to the nation’s tallest Christmas tree. For years the Rio erected the tallest tree on its front lawn, but it stopped the practice nearly a decade ago. This year, M Resort is displaying a 109-foot white fir. The tallest tree is fully decorated and can be seen in the casino’s Outdoor Events Piazza.

Sirens Sleep: The Siren’s of TI pirate show is dark, and will remain so throughout most of December for maintenance. The show is scheduled to resume on Dec. 26.

Marriagethon: The annual Las Vegas Marathon, which was held last weekend and attracted nearly 27,000 racers, featured a run-through wedding ceremony at the foot of the Eiffel Tower. A record 85 couples signed up to either get hitched or renew vows.

Rubbed Out: Rub BBQ has closed at the Rio. It’s the latest in a string of barbecue fatalities this year, including the vaunted Salt Lick restaurants at Santa Fe Station and Red Rock.

Question: I’ve been hearing about some amazing restaurants supposedly opening at CityCenter. Will they have a buffet?
Answer: Yes. The single offering will be “The Buffet” at Aria, with opening prices set at $14.95 for breakfast, $19.95 for lunch, $27.95/$34.95 for dinner, and $23.95/$28.95 for brunch. Aria will open on December 16.

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Anthony Curtis on Terrence Watanabe

Posted on December 8, 2009 by admin

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Publisher Anthony Curtis was interviewed by ABC News’ “This Morning America” show today regarding high-rolling but utterly unskilled gambler Terrance Watanabe, who lost $125 million in a single year at the gaming tables of Las Vegas and faces 16 years in jail for nonpayment of his debts. Watanabe is firing back with a lawsuit, alleging that Caesars Palace and the Rio regularly plied him with drugs and alcohol before turning him loose on the casino floor. Allowing a patron whose known to be intoxicated is a violation of gaming regulations.

Watanabe is currently out on jail, with his trial set for July, 2010.

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Las Vegas Shows Off in December

Posted on December 4, 2009 by admin

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Anthony Curtis’ weekly syndicated Vegas column.

December 3, 2009

During December, many Las Vegas shows go “dark” to allow cast members to take extended holiday vacations. If you’re going to Las Vegas between now and New Year’s and have your heart set on seeing a particular show, make sure to check that there will be performances during your dates. The dark days for the major productions are listed below (dates are for December): Bally’s Jubilee! 31; Bellagio O 6-22; Caesars Palace Bette Midler no shows in Dec. except 30, 31; Excalibur Louie Anderson, 25-31; Flamingo Donny & Marie 20-28, 31; George Wallace 22-31; Vinnie Favorito 24, 25; X Burlesque 31; Golden Nugget Gordie Brown 8-12, 24, 25; Harrah’s Rita Rudner no shows in Dec. except 23, 24, 26, 28, 30; Legends in Concert 27, 31; Mac King 24-25, 27-28; Imperial Palace Diva’s Las Vegas 11-25; Human Nature 4-25, 31; Luxor Carrot Top 22-26; Mandalay Bay Lion King 7-20; MGM Grand Crazy Horse Paris 8-22, 28; Mirage Love 1-16; Terry Fator 22; Monte Carlo Lance Burton 15-19, 22-25, 31; New York-New York Zumanity 1-14; Palazzo Jersey Boys 21, 31; Paris Anthony Cools 16-25, 28, 30-31; Planet Hollywood Peepshow 24, 31; Rio Penn & Teller 10-23, 31; Venetian Phantom 24, 31; Wynn Le Reve 10-16.      

Holidaze: A few casinos are known for making a big deal out of Santa season. Look for displays at Sam’s Town (a decked-out atrium and Mr. Claus), Bellagio (conservatory), Silverton (Bass Pro Shops), and Hard Rock and Palms (cocktail waitresses in Santa outfits), along with the non-casino Fremont Street Experience, Fashion Show Mall, Ethel M Cactus Garden, the drive-through display of lights at Sunset Park ($13-$15 per car), and the Town Square shopping district.

Question: Are rooms still available for New Year’s Eve?

Answer: It’s not too late, but locking one in as soon as possible is recommended. Calls to 93 casinos in November found vacancies at 78 of them. One-night stays (on Dec. 31st) ranged from $40 at Lucky Club to $599 at Bellagio. Two-night packages ran from $181 at Golden Gate to $916 at the Wynn. Three-night packages were available for $300 at California and $540 at the Rio.

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Rolling the Dice

Posted on December 3, 2009 by admin

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December 1, 2009

Las Vegas Advisor publisher Anthony Curtis was interviewed by Brian Williams tonight on the eve of the debut of CityCenter concerning his thoughts for the future of Las Vegas’ new metaresort. MGM Mirage CEO Jim Murren was also featured. Click here to view the show.

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Huntington Press Title Now Hallmark Movie

Posted on November 29, 2009 by admin

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Huntington Press publishing title The National Tree has been made into a Hallmark Channel movie, starring Matthew McCarthy and Evan Williams. It premiered Nov. 28 and was the highest-rated movie on cable television that night (2.3 HH rating; more than 2 million HH and 4 million unduplicated).

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Las Vegas’ new CityCenter, a big gamble, prepares to open

Posted on November 24, 2009 by admin

November 24, 2009

Publisher Anthony Curtis is again quoted in USA Today, this time in the Money section, as Las Vegas gears up for the long-awaited debut of CityCenter:

Hotel discounting is the norm now, leaving luxe Aria and Vdara little choice but to open at official rates under $200 – from $179 on slow days for Aria; $149 for Vdara. That’s at least 20% off what they originally expected, guesses Anthony Curtis, publisher of the Las Vegas Advisor and an expert on local deals. He found a $129 offer at Vdara in December.

To read the complete feature and see the slideshow, click here.

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‘New’ Las Vegas Celebrates 20 Years

Posted on November 19, 2009 by admin

Anthony Curtis’ weekly syndicated Vegas column.

November 18, 2009

 It was 20 years ago today that Las Vegas crossed over from old to new with the opening of its first megaresort, the Mirage. Built on the site of the old Castaways—whose sports book manager famously set a line on “who shot J.R.”—no one had ever seen anything like Steve Wynn’s $650 million, 3,000-room, volcano-erupting, white-tiger-displaying, high-roller resort, which officially inaugurated the casino construction boom that stretched from Las Vegas to riverboats in Iowa and several other U.S. states; gambling halls in historic mining towns in South Dakota and Colorado; and hotel-casino strips in Mississippi; plus two huge Native American casinos in Connecticut, a dozen major tribal operations in California, and hundreds of small ones around the country. The white building with the shimmering gold trim has undergone several upgrades over its two decades and is still one of the city’s top destinations.

Fireworks Elevated: After last year’s dismal ground-level New Year’s Eve fireworks display, which was barely visible to most, it’s been announced that this year’s “America’s Party” pyrotechnics will revert to being fired from seven rooftop locations. The decision to go terrestrial was based largely on concerns stemming from the rooftop fire at the Monte Carlo earlier last year. However, Clark County Fire Department and Building Services and the individual resort properties have put in place new controls that have allayed concerns tied to the roof-top launchings.

Cabo Wabo: The long-awaited branch of the Sammy Hagar-owned Cabo Wabo nightclubs has opened. It’s located at Planet Hollywood in the spot formerly occupied by Trader Vic’s and boasts a spectacular outdoor dining area looking across the Strip at the soon-to-open CityCenter complex.

Question: Do you dare impart details of the Las Vegas Stripper-Mobile?

Answer: The so called Stripper-Mobile—a truck with a Plexiglas covering that housed a live pole dancer—patrolled the streets for a couple weeks, before it was pulled under pressure from city and county authorities. It was an advertising gimmick for a couple of the local strip clubs.

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