Rating: 
Summary: How they tried to make the Luxor a highbrow establishment
Review: The book is divided into two parts. The first part was so-so; the second part was great. Part One is a rehash of the history of Las Vegas, with a special emphasis on the two competing firms, Bennett's Circus Circus (lowbrow) vs. Wynn's Mirage/Golden Nugget (highbrow). It's not bad, but it's old hat to anyone who follows the Vegas scene. It's Part Two of the book that I really enjoyed. We follow an effort to remodel the Luxor hotel and convert it from a lowbrow to a luxury establishment -- not an easy task when the budget keeps getting slashed. Along the way, we see the casino through the eyes of various management employees who do battle with cheaters as well as fight their office-politics battles with each other. The company gave the author free rein to nose around, and they probably regret it, because he's written a candid portrayal of casino mangers at their best as well as at their worst.
Rating:
Summary: Part Reference, Part Fun
Review: The first half of the book deals with the history of the gaming industry in Las Vegas. The description of the early "grind joints" sets the stage for contrasting the "Super Casinos" of the 1990s. I learned a lot about the gaming pioneers such as Jay Sarno, Bill Bennett, Steve Wynn and Kirk Kerkorian.The second half of the book deals with a behind-the-scenes look at the Luxor from the perspective of numerous characters- corporate management, the general manager, a gaming shift supervisor, a security chief, and a cabaret dancer. Having stayed at the Luxor on my last Vegas trip, all of the behind-the-scenes blood, sweat and tears added to my appreciation of this massive resort/casino. Having formerly worked as a securities analyst, the Wall Street angles throughout the book were of interest. Earley does a great job of tracking the industry's access to financing. One also better appreciates the factors which drive gaming stocks as evidenced by the volatile stock price of Circus Circus (now Mandalay Bay Resort Group). Overall I found Earley's book informative and enjoyable, he is a hardened journalist who is extremely thorough and leaves himself out of the plot.
Rating: 
Summary: A swell book
Review: The first half of the book deals with the history of the gaming industry in Las Vegas. The description of the early "grind joints" sets the stage for contrasting the "Super Casinos" of the 1990s. I learned a lot about the gaming pioneers such as Jay Sarno, Bill Bennett, Steve Wynn and Kirk Kerkorian. The second half of the book deals with a behind-the-scenes look at the Luxor from the perspective of numerous characters- corporate management, the general manager, a gaming shift supervisor, a security chief, and a cabaret dancer. Having stayed at the Luxor on my last Vegas trip, all of the behind-the-scenes blood, sweat and tears added to my appreciation of this massive resort/casino. Having formerly worked as a securities analyst, the Wall Street angles throughout the book were of interest. Earley does a great job of tracking the industry's access to financing. One also better appreciates the factors which drive gaming stocks as evidenced by the volatile stock price of Circus Circus (now Mandalay Bay Resort Group). Overall I found Earley's book informative and enjoyable. I however preferred the premise of Martinez's "24/7 - Living it Up and Doubling and Down in the New Las Vegas." Martinez, a gaming lay man, takes his $50,000 book advance and decides to risk it at various casinos. Martinez is more of a "ham". Earley is the hardened journalist who is extremely thorough and leaves himself out of the plot.
Rating:
Summary: Part Reference, Part Fun
Review: The first half of the book deals with the history of the gaming industry in Las Vegas. The description of the early "grind joints" sets the stage for contrasting the "Super Casinos" of the 1990s. I learned a lot about the gaming pioneers such as Jay Sarno, Bill Bennett, Steve Wynn and Kirk Kerkorian. The second half of the book deals with a behind-the-scenes look at the Luxor from the perspective of numerous characters- corporate management, the general manager, a gaming shift supervisor, a security chief, and a cabaret dancer. Having stayed at the Luxor on my last Vegas trip, all of the behind-the-scenes blood, sweat and tears added to my appreciation of this massive resort/casino. Having formerly worked as a securities analyst, the Wall Street angles throughout the book were of interest. Earley does a great job of tracking the industry's access to financing. One also better appreciates the factors which drive gaming stocks as evidenced by the volatile stock price of Circus Circus (now Mandalay Bay Resort Group). Overall I found Earley's book informative and enjoyable, he is a hardened journalist who is extremely thorough and leaves himself out of the plot.
Rating:
Summary: Part Reference, Part Fun
Review: The first half of the book deals with the history of the gaming industry in Las Vegas. The description of the early "grind joints" sets the stage for contrasting the "Super Casinos" of the 1990s. I learned a lot about the gaming pioneers such as Jay Sarno, Bill Bennett, Steve Wynn and Kirk Kerkorian. The second half of the book deals with a behind-the-scenes look at the Luxor from the perspective of numerous characters- corporate management, the general manager, a gaming shift supervisor, a security chief, and a cabaret dancer. Having stayed at the Luxor on my last Vegas trip, all of the behind-the-scenes blood, sweat and tears added to my appreciation of this massive resort/casino. Having formerly worked as a securities analyst, the Wall Street angles throughout the book were of interest. Earley does a great job of tracking the industry's access to financing. One also better appreciates the factors which drive gaming stocks as evidenced by the volatile stock price of Circus Circus (now Mandalay Bay Resort Group). Overall I found Earley's book informative and enjoyable. I however preferred the premise of Martinez's "24/7 - Living it Up and Doubling and Down in the New Las Vegas." Martinez, a gaming lay man, takes his $50,000 book advance and decides to risk it at various casinos. Martinez is more of a "ham". Earley is the hardened journalist who is extremely thorough and leaves himself out of the plot.
Rating: 
Summary: The behind-the-scenes-at-Luxor parts are valuable.
Review: This book does a fair-to-good job of sketching out the history of Las Vegas casinos, though much of it will be familiar to readers of other books about Vegas. It is an easy read--a good airplane or bathroom book--though some of the writing seems sloppily edited. (Foe example, another poster here commented on the weirdly unqalified assertion that Bally's no longer exists, and there are places where elements from different eras of Vegas are made to seem simultaneous.) The most substantial, and most interesting, parts of the book are the details of the history of Circus Circus Enterprises, (which has since changed their name to Mandalay Bay Resorts--they own Circus Circus, Luxor, and other hotel/casinos), which involves some of the less-written-about Vegas tycoons, notably Jay Sarno and Bill Bennett, and, in part two of the book, the day-to-day business operations of the Luxor (to which Earley had unusual access for a time). There are a number of rather sappy "human interest" tales threaded through the book--the turbulent love life of a showgirl, a teenage hooker who becomes a blackjack dealer--that don't provide much insight into Vegas or "Super Casinos." If the Circus Circus/Luxor stuff sounds interesting to you, then you will want to read this book.
Rating:
Summary: The behind-the-scenes-at-Luxor parts are valuable.
Review: This book does a fair-to-good job of sketching out the history of Las Vegas casinos, though much of it will be familiar to readers of other books about Vegas. It is an easy read--a good airplane or bathroom book--though some of the writing seems sloppily edited. (Foe example, another poster here commented on the weirdly unqalified assertion that Bally's no longer exists, and there are places where elements from different eras of Vegas are made to seem simultaneous.) The most substantial, and most interesting, parts of the book are the details of the history of Circus Circus Enterprises, (which has since changed their name to Mandalay Bay Resorts--they own Circus Circus, Luxor, and other hotel/casinos), which involves some of the less-written-about Vegas tycoons, notably Jay Sarno and Bill Bennett, and, in part two of the book, the day-to-day business operations of the Luxor (to which Earley had unusual access for a time). There are a number of rather sappy "human interest" tales threaded through the book--the turbulent love life of a showgirl, a teenage hooker who becomes a blackjack dealer--that don't provide much insight into Vegas or "Super Casinos." If the Circus Circus/Luxor stuff sounds interesting to you, then you will want to read this book.
Rating:
Summary: A GREAT HISTORY AND TASTE OF THE "NEW" LAS VEGAS
Review: This book is fascinating. It really lives up to that old saying about "hard to put down." I especially like the author's concise re-creation of the "early Vegas" and his explanation of how the "new" Strip was born. I'd never heard of Jay Sarno, the mastermind behind Caesars Palace and Circus Circus who apparently spent millions bedding showgirls and gambling on golf games. Nor had I ever read anything before about Bill Bennett and Bill Pennington, who each made some $650 million and really were responsible for making the Strip "kid friendly." I thought the author also really captured Steve Wynn, who developed the Mirage and Bellagio, and is always making headlines. He is more interesting and appaarently more colorful than the old mob guys who used to control Vegas. The second half of the book proved to be even more exciting than the first because it really takes you inside the Luxor casino. Without giving his opinion about gambling, the author shows through the lives of several characters the good, bad, and ugly of Las Vegas. I found the chapters about Shawna Gray who is a teenage prostitute especially touching and I liked how the book described both a gambling addict and also Philip Freidman who is a senior citizen who plays poker every day at the Luxor and considers it his second home. When Freidman's wife gets ill, it is his poker playing crowd who comes to his rescue. What a twist. Usually these books only tell one side. This one tells it all and does it fairly. It is the most balanced, inside account that I've ever read and I would enthusiastically endorse it to anyone who wants to know why Las Vegas is the most popular vacation spot in America.
Rating:
Summary: A GREAT HISTORY AND TASTE OF THE "NEW" LAS VEGAS
Review: This book is fascinating. It really lives up to that old saying about "hard to put down." I especially like the author's concise re-creation of the "early Vegas" and his explanation of how the "new" Strip was born. I'd never heard of Jay Sarno, the mastermind behind Caesars Palace and Circus Circus who apparently spent millions bedding showgirls and gambling on golf games. Nor had I ever read anything before about Bill Bennett and Bill Pennington, who each made some $650 million and really were responsible for making the Strip "kid friendly." I thought the author also really captured Steve Wynn, who developed the Mirage and Bellagio, and is always making headlines. He is more interesting and appaarently more colorful than the old mob guys who used to control Vegas. The second half of the book proved to be even more exciting than the first because it really takes you inside the Luxor casino. Without giving his opinion about gambling, the author shows through the lives of several characters the good, bad, and ugly of Las Vegas. I found the chapters about Shawna Gray who is a teenage prostitute especially touching and I liked how the book described both a gambling addict and also Philip Freidman who is a senior citizen who plays poker every day at the Luxor and considers it his second home. When Freidman's wife gets ill, it is his poker playing crowd who comes to his rescue. What a twist. Usually these books only tell one side. This one tells it all and does it fairly. It is the most balanced, inside account that I've ever read and I would enthusiastically endorse it to anyone who wants to know why Las Vegas is the most popular vacation spot in America.
Rating:
Summary: A Rambling Read
Review: This book leaves a lot to be desired. It really should be called the "History of Circus Circus and Everyone Else". The intro chapter on card counting had me intersted, but the rest of the book was rambling and disorganized. I didn't even bother to finish the book. I dont think its the kind of book where finishing it would have really made a difference. Honestly, and I think anyone who's been to Vegas will agree with me, the only way to understand the "new" Las Vegas is by taking lots of cab rides. Someone should write a book with nothing but insights from Vegas Cabbies.
| 
