ANTHONY CURTIS’ LasVegasAdvisor June 2020 • Vol. 37 • Issue 6 $5

VEGAS OPENS! The shutdown ends at 79 days … pg. 1

GOING BACK IN Temperature checks, but masks not required … pg. 2

FREE PARKING! It took a virus to take out parking fees … pg. 2

THE ENTER- TAINMENT LANDSCAPE No shows yet … pg. 10

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COUPONOMY by Anthony Curtis Vegas Opens!

Casinos in Las Vegas and throughout are allowed to reopen at 12:01 a.m. on June 4, ending a shutdown that spanned an incredible 79 days. Per the Nevada governor’s orders, casinos can open if they’ve been approved by the Nevada Gaming Control Board after presenting detailed plans for keeping customers safe. When they do, occupancy levels will be reduced to 50% to enable required social distancing and elaborate safety measures will be in place. As described in News, Nevada is now officially in Phase Two of its recovery plan. While debates go on about the steps taken and the duration of the shut- down, in my opinion, all that is moot. What’s important now is what hap- pens next. We’ve never seen this before, so we won’t have a grasp of how Las Vegas will ultimately be changed until this unprecedented situation unfolds. There’s a lot to consider and we touch on as many considerations as we can throughout this issue. n

Who’s Opening?

Not all of the casinos will reopen on June 4. Companies with multiple properties are staggering their returns. MGM Resorts International will open with Bellagio, MGM Grand, and New York-New York only. Caesars Entertainment will lead with Caesars Palace and the Flamingo. will delay the openings of Texas Station, the two Fiestas, and the Palms, and Boyd will stall Main Street Station, Eastside Cannery, and the Eldorado in Henderson. Westgate Las Vegas says it will open June 18 and we haven’t heard anything from some of the smaller operations, including Jerry’s Nugget, , and Casino Royale. At post time, the signals are mixed from ’s Tropicana and M Resort. Along with the staggered openings, all properties will operate with reduced offer- ings and partial inventories (rooms, restaurants, bars) to start. n

continued on next page Couponomy continued … At the Door

Casino-entry protocols won’t be completely uniform, but they’ll be sim- ilar. As we understand it, body temperatures will be checked at the door (either by thermal camera or other no-touch methods), with 100.4 being the disallowed threshold. For those who test above, there’s a procedure that includes a retest, then some complicated medical check-downs that could go as far as referring the customer to one of 10 non-gaming being set up to quarantine infected guests. Once inside, hand sanitizers and disinfectant wipes will be abundant. Masks will be encouraged and made available at no charge by the casinos, but wearing one won’t be mandatory for customers. n

Free Parking!

It almost had to happen. Anticipating the need to promote hard to bring customers back, MRI was the first to announce that all of its casinos would return to free self-parking. A day later, the Cosmopolitan followed suit and a week later CET made it unanimous. Self-parking is now free at all Strip casinos. However, the door has been left open to reinstate paid parking at some point (MRI’s statement included a line saying free parking was “being implemented for the foreseeable future”). Valet fees, where valets are open, remain. Downtown casinos continue to charge, but they all have easy vali- dation options in place. n

Resort Fees

Free parking is one thing, resort fees are something else. Aside from Presidential Lines

Here are the current lines on this year’s presidential race from CRIS. Don- ald Trump and Joe Biden are close to even to win the presidency, with Trump remaining a slight -111 favorite. Kamala Harris has become a bigger favorite to be Biden’s running mate at +145, followed by Amy Klobuchar at +400 and Elizabeth Warren at +575.

Publisher: Anthony Curtis Web Manager: Tanya Maynard Contributing Writers: Jeffrey Compton, Bob LAS Senior Editor: Deke Castleman Research Assistant: Brenda Stewart Dancer, Stewart Ethier, Bob Fuss, Scot Krause, VEGAS Accounting: John Leitner Customer Service: Nicole Watchus Bradley Peterson, Blair Rodman, Jean Scott ADVISOR Production Manager: Laurie Cabot Shipping/Receiving: Matt Wondolleck LAS VEGAS ADVISOR (ISSN 1064-167X USPS 008602) is published monthly and is available for $50 per year ($60 Canadian; $70 foreign purchasers) and $5 per single issue at 3665 Procyon St., Las Vegas, NV, 89103. Phone: (702) 252-0655 • Fax: (702) 252-0675 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Las Vegas Advisor, 3665 Procyon St., Las Vegas, NV 89103. e-mail: [email protected] • Internet: LasVegasAdvisor.com All information is current at press time. Listed offerings are subject to change at any time. Huntington Press ©2020

2 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • JUNE 2020 some promotions we’ve heard about with conditions attached, no casino has yet to abolish resort fees. Whereas customers never warmed up to paid parking, they got to a place where resort fees were mostly accepted as something that had to be tolerated. Discontinuing the RFs, then bringing them back, would upset that apple cart. I think we’ll see some scattered no-RF promos, but they won’t be universal and they’ll be anything but per- manent. n

Smoking

There are no blanket restrictions on smoking. The number of designated non-smoking areas will probably increase, but a total ban isn’t gonna hap- pen. Jeffrey Compton of CDC Gaming Reports makes the potent argument that smokers who gamble will flee casinos with too many restrictions, even if it means patronizing non-casino video poker bars (particularly the import- ant locals market). This may be the reason non-smokers needed to wear masks. n

Bargains and Promos

Free parking is just the beginning. I expect we’ll see deals everywhere through the end of the year and probably beyond—however long it takes to bring the crowds back. Vegas has always responded to tough times by rolling out the bargain wagon. Room rates will be at rock bottom and casino promotions will be creative and plentiful. For example, when the casino-opening date was announced, Derek Stevens of the D and Golden Gate gave away 2,000 free flights to Las Vegas (the one-way tickets were snapped up in a few hours). And it won’t just be in the casinos. I know a guy who rented a car for a week in June for $57, including all taxes and fees, and the airlines have no choice but to roll out bargain fares. Now’s a good time to be monitoring our blog, “The Travel Game,” at LasVegas Advisor.com to get the scoop on the inevitable travel-related discounting. n

When Should You Come?

I’ve done a ton of media and talked to lots of customers throughout the shutdown and “When should I come?” is the question that’s asked the most. My answer is, it depends on what you want. Personal medical situa- tions aside, how important is the complete Vegas experience to you? If you want that—“the whole megillah,” as they say—you need to wait. Vegas just won’t be as you remember or would like it for a while. On the other hand, if you’re the adaptable type that can dig opportunity out of uncertainty (or continued on next page

JUNE 2020 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • 3 Couponomy continued … maybe you’d like to be here without all the crowds), now might be the best time ever, especially for the value quotient. One important piece of advice. Whenever you decide to come back, be sure to confirm that the things you want to do are doable. Do you always go to a certain restaurant? Want to see a specific show? Just look- ing forward to lying out by the pool? Call ahead and ask if these things are available. Once confirmed, your expectations will be in line with the fast-changing realities. n

Our Cool Customers

One more thing. During this long stretch, I’ve spent a lot of time by myself in the office answering phones, affording me the opportunity to have brief conversations with many of you. The expressions of support and gratitude have been extremely heartening. One member sent $100 to “take the staff out to lunch.” Talk about a morale boost! To say that I’m apprecia- tive of the LVA community for its support in continuing to buy books and memberships is a vast understatement. Sales have taken a beating, but they didn’t dry up completely, and that makes a big difference. We’ll take credit for some of it, as we’ve been offering deals on our books that you wouldn’t be getting outside of a full-out pandemic. We’re gonna continue the sales for a while longer, so take advantage. The important thing is, Vegas is back. We’re excited. Thanks for being so cool. n

NEWS

Shutdown—As expected, the Nevada lockdown was extended through May and entered into Phase One of the recovery plan on May 9 (the period up till then had been termed Phase Zero). Businesses that had been deemed non-essential were allowed to open. This included permitting non-casino restaurants and bars that serve food to accept dine-in customers, but only for table seating (no sitting at the bars). Also allowed to open were retail businesses, salons, auto dealers, and marijuana dispensaries. On May 29, the state moved into Phase Two, which clears the way for the opening of bars, gyms, fitness centers, spas, massage services, tattoo parlors, recre- ation areas, swimming pools, movie theaters, bowling alleys, water parks, museums, art galleries, indoor malls, and youth sports. It also allows church gatherings that don’t exceed 50 people. Casinos are allowed to open on June 4. Excluded with no date for reopening given are nightclubs, day clubs, gentlemen’s clubs, brothels, and live sporting events.

4 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • JUNE 2020 TOP 10 VALUES 1. Steak Dinner • Ellis Island • 24 hours • $7.99 2. Buffet • Palace Station • Daily • $9.99-$16.99 With the casinos opening a 3. Mac King • Harrah’s • Tues.–Sat. • $14.98 week after we go to press, we 4. Hot Dog • South Point • Daily • $1.25 can’t tell yet what will and won’t 5. Beer • Stage Door • 24 hours • $1 be available. We do know that 6. Shrimp Cocktail • Skyline • Daily • $2.25 Palace Station will open without 7. Breakfast • Arizona Charlie’s • Daily • $5.99 its buffet (#2) and Harrah’s won’t 8. $1 Blackjack • OYO • 24 hours • $1.20 open in the first round, so Mac King won’t be performing (#3). 9. Lunch • Planet Hollywood • Daily • $4.99 Still, we’re leaving the Top Ten 10. Photo • Binion’s • Daily • Free as it was before the shutdown until we can monitor the situation and make the necessary changes. We expect most of the deals to be avail- able. You can find detail on these offers in recent editions.

Casinos Opening—Idaho’s native-American owned Coeur D’Alene Casino was the first to open in the U.S. on May 1. Since then, tribal casi- nos have opened in several different states. Commercial casinos have opened in Louisiana, Mississippi, South Dakota, and Montana, and are scheduled to open in several states throughout June. In almost every instance of a casino reopening, big crowds have materialized. According to reports, about half the customers have been wearing masks. Casinos Closing—Fewer casinos than we expected have announced that they won’t reopen due to the business disruption. DiamondJacks in Bossier City, Louisiana, is closing for good. It was also announced that the Colorado Belle in Laughlin will not reopen. It sounds like this is permanent; however, owner Golden Entertainment also owns Edgewater and Aquarius in Laughlin, both of which will reopen, and may be holding the Belle back, same as the big casino companies in Las Vegas have done with some of their properties. In Northern California, the Towers Casino card room was raided and shut down by the state’s Department of Justice when it opened with state restrictions on business operation still in place. Towers operated for one day before the raid was launched. Hard Rock—Hard Rock International has acquired the rights to the name Hard Rock Hotel Casino Las Vegas. The Florida-based company is owned by the Seminole Tribe and the acquisition gives the company the right to open a Hard Rock-branded casino within Clark County, which includes the . They’ve done it before—Hard Rock Interna- tional bought the shuttered Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City in 2019 and turned it into Hard Rock Atlantic City. Japan—Las Vegas Sands Corp. has announced that it’s withdrawing from the competition for a casino license to build one of three proposed integrated resorts in Japan. At one time, CEO Sheldon Adelson claimed continued on next page

JUNE 2020 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • 5 News continued … that he’d spend $10-$12 billion on construction in Japan, but Las Vegas Sands will now concentrate on its Singapore and Macau casinos. Caesars dropped out of the Japan process last year in order to focus on its merger with Eldorado. Statistics—Nevada’s statewide gambling win was down 39.6% in March compared to the same month last year. The Strip win was down 45.7%, and downtown declined 25.9%. Hardest hit of all was the North Lake Tahoe market, where the win total fell 65.2%. The state total was the lowest since 1998. To no one’s surprise, the visitor count for March was abysmal. The tally was down a whopping 58.6%, with a mere 1.5 million people coming to town and a hotel occupancy rate of 39.8%. After starting strong, year- to-date visitation is now down 18.3% and the April results will be much worse. If you want a little look-ahead, Macau’s visitor count was 11,041 in April, down 99.7%. Airline traffic was down 53%. The Southwest passenger count fell 62% and Allegiant was down 54%, while Spirit hung in there to experience just a 37% decline. n

Sports Betting Scorecard

With the major sports still in limbo, there’ve been no significant devel- opments in sports betting legalization. Colorado opened as planned and reportedly will have as many as 17 different operators. Other states appear to be stepping up their efforts to enable mobile wagering after seeing how important it’s been during the shutdown in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. An interesting corollary is found in a report from earlier this year that says many New Jersey bets are being made in the bars and restaurants near the state’s train stations just outside of New York City. Gamblers take the trains and sometimes don’t even leave the stations to bet, then return home. Follow the progress of sports betting legalization across the country and track developments as they occur via our blog and map at LasVegas Advisor.com. n

DINING Dining Status

Non-casino restaurants are allowed to accept dine-in customers and many, but not all, are. Servers wear masks and tables are spread out in

6 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • JUNE 2020 response to the required 50% capacity requirement. You’re supposed to call ahead to make reservations. While we haven’t encountered a restau- rant that’s enforcing this, it’s still a good idea to call and ask for the seating status. Many restaurants are using disposable menus, as well as dispos- able plates and cutlery. We’ve already experienced this and it can diminish your dining-out pleasure significantly. Hence, it’s not likely to be the case at the higher-end places. What’s open now? As we go to press, lots of non-casino restaurants are open. These independents have survived by offering takeout and deliv- ery and have been chomping at the bit to open for dine-in. As such, the list of places that are still closed would probably be longer than the list of those that are open. However, hours are often truncated, so calling ahead again comes into play. Expect an emphasis on outdoor dining. This has already surfaced downtown in the Arts and Fremont East districts, where many restaurants are serving on their patios and along the sidewalks. Taking it a step further, two blocks downtown have been closed to vehicle traffic to create “Dine Out Downtown.” Between 11 am and 9 pm, the blocks are converted to takeout seating with tables, chairs, and pop-up shade shelters as an alter- native to eating inside. The two locations are 6th St. between Fremont and Carson and California Ave. between Main and Casino Center. The seating areas will continue through Phase Two of Nevada’s reopening; city staff is there to clean and disinfect the tables and chairs between uses. Even though casino restaurants will be allowed to operate as of June 4, many still won’t. Some resorts, e.g., Wynn and Encore, have indicated that they’ll open almost all of their eateries, while places like the Tropicana say they’ll offer the bare minimum, meaning sandwiches and snacks. We won’t know who’s offering what until they’re operating, but expect abbreviated hours and menu options to some degree almost everywhere. n

Buffets

We discussed buffets and the inherent negatives working against their return last month. Not much has happened to paint a rosier picture. In fact, the prospects look dimmer. Golden Nugget and TI have confirmed that their buffets have closed for good, while every other casino that has addressed it indicates that their buffets will not reopen immediately. That includes all the Station casinos, which are about as buffet-reliant as any company in town. Further signaling trouble was the demise of Sweet Tomatoes, which has permanently closed its 97 buffet-style restaurants nationwide, including three in Las Vegas. It’s important to keep in mind that there’s a different dynamic at a casino that uses its buffet as a marketing tool and a restau- continued on next page

JUNE 2020 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • 7 Dining continued … rant that relies solely on its covers for revenue. It’s not just buffets. No one knows yet what will become of food halls (e.g., Park MGM’s Eataly and Cosmo’s Block 16) or cafeteria-style dining (such as Panda Express in the food courts). All of these dining formats are under the gun, but even if they’re absent for a while, we believe they’ll be back at some point. It just might be a while before they are, and they’ll probably look different. Possibilities include serving lines with employees dishing out food, or what’s described as “butler service,” where food is brought out to the table. If nothing else, the individual small-plates format will be implemented in more places. As of now, we know of no Las Vegas casinos that will open with an operating buffet, and only one in the U.S.— the Valley View Casino near San Diego—that has. n

Sanuki Sushi

We reviewed Café Sanuki in LVA 5/18. At the time, it had just opened with Japanese udon noodles as its specialty. Soup is a tough takeout, so Sanuki added sushi during the shut- down and intends to continue offering both udon and sushi. What makes this noteworthy is the price-to-quantity ratio. Several choices (both sushi and sashimi) begin at $16 for a 20-piece sushi assortment, which is just 80¢ per piece. The sushi-for-two platter is $32 for 44 pieces (73¢ per). If you’re among the 3% or 4% who can tell the differ- ence in grades of sushi, you might give “Get Twogether” platter Sanuki a pass. For the rest of us, though, this is a potent raw-fish fix at a great price. Sanuki sushi was the meal of choice in the member-sponsored LVA-staff lunch described in Couponomy. n

Popeyes Chicken Sandwich

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchens are present in all but about a dozen states, so this won’t be a Vegas-only experience for most, but we finally got around to sampling the new chicken sandwich that created such a stir when it was introduced last year. Lines formed for this sandwich at the start, but the frenzy has died down and it’s now an easy get. This

8 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • JUNE 2020 one’s pretty simple—fried chicken, pickles, choice of sauce (spicy or regular) on a brioche bun for $3.99. It’s tasty and a good-sized sandwich for the price. If you’re heat sensitive, definitely stay away from the spicy. If you want one when you come to town, nearly three dozen Spicy or regular; the sauces are free Popeyes are scattered throughout the valley, including Strip outlets at the Showcase Mall and the Excalibur food court. n

Dining Notes

Pho Increase—The price of our favorite pho tai from Pho Vietnam in the Chinatown Plaza has been raised $1 to $10. Local Chefs Shine—Three Las Vegas chefs are among the six finalists in their respective categories for the prestigious James Beard Foundation Awards. Dan Krohmer (Other Mama, La Monja, and Hatsumi) and James Trees (Esther’s Kitchen, Ada’s, and 108 Eats) are both nominated for Best Chef in the Southwest (Nevada, Arizona, , Oklahoma). Marc Vetri of Vetri Cucina at the Palms is a finalist for Outstanding Chef. The winners will be announced at the awards ceremony in Chicago on Septem- ber 25. n

Openings/Closings

Johnny C’s Diner has opened at 8175 Arville Street. Owner Johnny Church has worked at some of Las Vegas’ most prestigious restaurants, including Aureole, Alizé, and Eiffel Tower Restaurant, and was recently executive chef for Golden Entertainment. When it opens, the new Ahern Hotel (formerly the Lucky Dragon casino) will feature an as-yet-unnamed Italian restaurant by Marc Sgrizzi, who’s run several well-known eateries in town, including Marc’s World Cuisine, Parma, and recently Marc’s Trattoria. The opening of the Las Vegas Zippy’s, the first location of the restaurant outside of Hawaii, has been pushed back from the end of this year to an undetermined date that we presume will be in 2021. Two restaurants in the Tivoli shopping district, Hamptons and Brio Tus- can Grille, will not reopen. n

JUNE 2020 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • 9 ENTERTAINMENT Entertainment Resuming

While nightclubs, shows, concerts, sporting events, and the like remain closed, lots of entertainment-related options are resuming operations. One of the first to do so was downtown’s Container Park, the collection of restaurants, bars, and stores in the Fremont East District. We checked it out on opening night to get an initial glimpse at an opening attraction. The park wasn’t teeming, but it wasn’t deserted either. Some restaurants and stores were open, though the playgrounds were closed and the mechanical praying mantis was dormant (it usually bobs up and down and breathes fire). It’s a good example of what we’re likely to see in terms of slow and mea- sured openings. The Experi- ence opens June 3 (a 144-hour countdown to opening was dis- played on the Viva Vision can- opy). The High Roller observation wheel will open with the casinos; same for New-York New-York’s roller coaster and the Bellagio conservatory and fountain show. From what we can ascertain, the pools will be open for sunbathing and swimming, though no big dayclub parties. This list figures to grow week by week with the shows eventually com- ing back, but it will take some time, possibly months, for the roster to get back to a healthy level—and how large the audiences will be remains to be seen. Echoing the advice in Couponomy, if you’re someone who comes to Vegas for the shows and concerts, you have to do your homework and call ahead to determine the available options. n

Bars Closing

Last month, we cautioned that some local bars might not be able to reopen. So far, three have indicated that they won’t. No Regrets and Las Vegas’ two locations of Miller’s Ale House are closing permanently. We’ve referenced all three on several occasions—No Regrets for its good video poker promos and Miller’s as one of the best places to view UFC and box- ing pay-per-views. It’s unlikely that these will be the last. n

10 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • JUNE 2020 Entertainment Notes

Raiders Schedule—The schedule for the first season of the Las Vegas Raiders has been announced. In their first home game on September 21, the Raiders will host the New Orleans Saints in a Monday Night Football appearance. The team will also make two appearances on Sunday Night Football—at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on October 25 and the Kansas City Chiefs on November 22—and one on Thursday Night Football against the L.A. Chargers on December 17, also at Allegiant Sta- dium. Four of the Raiders’ eight home games will be nationally televised— if, of course, the NFL’s 2020-2021 season goes forward as planned. LIB Canceled—Even as a general resumption of business has begun, the cancellations of major events continue with word that downtown’s three-day Life Is Beautiful Art & Music Festival is off. Previously scheduled to run Sept. 18-20, LIB will take the year off and return in September 2021. Roy Passes—Roy Horn of Siegfried & Roy fame has died from COVID- 19 complications. Roy was 75 and severely compromised from injuries he suffered when attacked by a tiger onstage in 2003. Siegfried & Roy and Cirque du Soleil are considered to be the two most powerful influences on today’s Las Vegas entertainment scene. n

GAMBLING Back to the Casino

Last month, we made several predictions regarding how gambling on the casino floor will change and what it might look like when you go back to play. In all of the information that’s come out since then, we’ve seen nothing that changes any of those predictions. Here are a few more facts and considerations. Table capacities—Maximum player capacities were put in place the week before the shutdown, but they were arbitrary from casino to casino. Now it’s been established that there can be a maximum of only three play- ers at blackjack tables, four at roulette and poker, and six at craps. The blackjack max will likely also apply to all games played at blackjack-style tables. Machine distancing—Many casinos will simply turn off every second machine, so players aren’t sitting side by side. We’re not sure if this is easily done in bars, but distancing can be manually enforced there. We’ve heard of a new system that will instantly turn off machines to either side of a machine that’s put in play. Cashless gaming—We think this will be a big one. In March, we wrote continued on next page

JUNE 2020 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • 11 Gambling continued … about a new automated cashless gaming system called ACS PlayOn that allows players to buy chips, bypassing the cage and casino ATMs. The handling of cash is considered one of the biggest potential problems in limiting the spread of the virus. Hence, there’s been a lot of talk about the implementation of cashless systems like this. Bingo—We didn’t consider bingo last month, but we would have put it in the same category as poker—some rooms will reopen, but not all. At least one casino, the Plaza, is opening with an operating bingo room. There’s no reason to speculate any further. The casinos will be open this month and we’ll see what is for ourselves. n

Gambling Notes

PT’s Contests—The free PT’s online video poker tournaments that we wrote about last month run through June 7. The prize is a 2-day stay and $300 in comps at The STRAT or one of Golden Gaming’s Laughlin prop- erties and it’s awarded to each of the first five finishers. If you have a True Rewards (or former Golden Rewards) card, you can sign up and play at pteglv.com. Banned in PA—No live poker in Pennsylvania. Gaming-enforcement rules in the state specifically ban offering the game in casinos, but only for virus-containment reasons; it can still be played online. Authorities say the situation will be reexamined as conditions warrant. Horse Race Betting Surges—One gambling sector that’s benefitted from the pandemic is horse racing. According to Equibase, horse racing garnered a daily handle of $7.5 million in April, up 176.5% year over year. And that’s despite the total number of races being down 71.4%, with many tracks out of service. n

MJ Likes BJ Episode 6 of “The Last Dance,” the 10-part docu-series chronicling the career of Michael Jordan, went into detail on the basketball great’s gambling habits. Jordan drew criticism for going to Atlantic City on the eve of an NBA playoff game against the NY Knicks, which led to more disclosures about his gambling. Jordan denied having a gambling problem and termed it more of a “competition problem.” He was portrayed as someone who would gamble on anything, but he said he specifically liked playing casino blackjack and gambling on golf.

12 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • JUNE 2020 Video Poker Lost and Found

The shutdown of the casinos also called for all gaming machines to be turned off. They will be reactivated on June 4 in casinos, bars, and other gaming locations. One interesting development has been the resurrection of an effort to get the jackpot-reporting threshold raised. The American Gaming Asso- ciation (AGA) responded to a federal executive order “to swiftly identify regulatory reform opportunities to help promote job creation and economic growth” with a lobbying campaign to modernize the $1,200 slot-jackpot W-2G trigger, which has been in place since 1977. The AGA argued that, even more important than last year when it “encouraged” the Department of the Treasury to update the threshold to a realistic level in line with infla- tion, such as $5,000, in light of the pandemic, any increase would “also significantly reduce close interactions between gaming employees and patrons to issue tax forms.” Don’t count on it. Bob Dancer’s free video poker classes are expected to resume at South Point, but a date hasn’t been set and it looks like the normal fall semester will be skipped this year. In the interim, be sure to check out Bob’s weekly Tuesday blog and the Thursday “Gambling With an Edge” podcast, with Bob and Richard Munchkin, both at LasVegasAdvisor.com. n

WEATHER KEY dates JUNE JULY Mean 84° Avg. Max. 99° Avg. Min. 68° 25-26 UnidosUS—15,000 Pools: Currently closed by government order 26–30 LV Market—50,000 The first of the hot dry months. Welcome to the desert. Attire: Minimal. AUGUST 2–5 ASD Market—44,000 JULY 6-15 Am. Poolplayers—15,000 Mean 90° Avg. Max. 105° Avg. Min. 73° 15-18 Off-Price Specialist—11,500 Pools: Currently closed by government order 17-19 MAGIC—78,000 Dry, sauna-like heat. Sun worshipers enjoy 85% 26-29 Int’l Wireless Comm.—12,000 sunny days. 27-30 Magic Gathering Grand Prix—10,000 Attire: The skimpier the better. If it’s not mandatory, don’t wear it. SEPTEMBER 1-3 SuperZoo West 2020—20,000 AUGUST 1/-3 Nat’l Hardware Show—37,000 Mean 88° Avg. Max. 102° Avg. Min. 73° 11-12 2020 Mr. Olympia—45,000 Pools: Currently closed by government order 11-13 MotorTrend Int’l Auto Show—17,000 A very hot and wet month. Desert electrical storms 15-17 IMEX America 2020—13,000 are spectacular but can cause dangerous floods on 20-22 Cosmoprof N. America Expo—35,000 and around the Strip. 24-26 Int’l Vision Expo 2020—12,500 Attire: No need for jackets or sweaters. 28-30 National Mining Assoc. Expo—50,000

JUNE 2020 • LAS VEGAS ADVISOR • 13 Cult Vegas • $10 +S&H

Mike Weatherford resurrects the mystique of Vegas’s Golden Age—the ’60s of history and legend—bring- ing the hipster legacy to new Vegasphiles. Meet ’50s and ’60s lounge greats; the comedy legends; and Vegas “babes.” Nearly every offbeat movie ever made about Las Vegas, as well as Elvis and Frank’s impact on the town, is covered. Cult Vegas is packed with showroom esoterica, descriptions of near-forgotten corners of Vegas cult musicology, odd trivia, and unsung heroes of a bygone era. Chronicled are the major moments—the camp, the extreme, the awful—in short, the magic of Las Vegas’ half-century run as an entertainment mecca.

Travel Down Memory Lane with these Huntington Press history books. Las Vegas’ golden age—the 20th century—comes alive between these pages, from the early days through the mob years, with two high-pro- file murders and a National Hockey League miracle. $7 flat-rate Shipping not included

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