LAS VEGAS -- A year ago in Paris, Wall Street Journal reporter Christine Binkley walked into an interview with the chief executive of luxury retailer Louis Vuitton expecting a detailed discussion of the brand's expansion into emerging markets such as Russia and China.Instead, Frenchman Yves Carcelle -- like others who meet Binkley, who spent 10 years covering the gaming and hotel industries -- wanted to talk about Las Vegas.Like an excited tourist, Carcelle grinned as he chattered on about his recent trip to Las Vegas, telling Binkley he was eager to open as many stores there as possible.Binkley's just-published book, "Winner Takes All: Steve Wynn, Kirk Kerkorian, Gary Loveman and the Race to Own Las Vegas," is yet another sign that the gaming business has arrived.The book chronicles three mega deals that consolidated influence among a handful of key executives and made them very rich men.MGM Grand's buyout of Mirage Resorts in 2000, MGM Mirage's takeover of Mandalay Resort Group in 2005 and Harrah's Entertainment's acquisition of Caesars Entertainment a few months later created two corporate giants, MGM Mirage and Harrah's, with control over a uniquely powerful economic engine.These deals and the men behind them grabbed headlines around the world, which is paying closer attention to this relatively small but impressive corner of the globe.Unlike other books published in recent years about the gambling business, this one doesn't focus on the industry's social ills or its shady, rough-and-tumble past.This is a book about wheeling and dealing in Las Vegas' modern corporate era. It's about the exertion of competition, supercharged capitalism, inflated egos and frayed nerves.Binkley is keenly aware that Las Vegas, for all its billions, doesn't get the respect it deserves as a business subject."It's taken the rest of the world a very long time to catch up to where Las Vegas is, business wise," she said.It has pop culture fame in spades and at least one famous icon in Steve Wynn.Yet the old stereotypes about Las Vegas persist.Binkley was "astounded" to field initial questions from her New York publisher about "whether the mob was still skimming money from casinos on the Strip." Many people also are unaware that most of the money made on the Strip comes from non-gambling sources, such as shopping and dining.The final chapter of the book calls Las Vegas "a place that tries so hard yet can't respect itself, like the class slut."Binkley reiterates that many of these casino titans maintain homes in other states and often fly out of town to reconnect with family and friends.But there's an even bigger revelation: Giant, mainstream companies such as Disney have passed on opportunities to buy into the gaming industry's incredible riches, leaving this wealth concentrated in the hands of a few Las Vegas executives.Although the taboo of gambling has dissipated over the years, there lingers an attitude that this is a crass business best left to tanned men in flashy suits and too-white smiles.Binkley now writes a weekly style column for The Wall Street Journal -- a job that came unexpectedly after someone suggested she write a story about driving a Ferrari.Writing about fashion and pop culture was a welcome change for Binkley, who realized she had been at the gaming beat too long after a few boring interviews with industry newcomers who knew less about the business than she did."I'm a journalist, not a casino executive," she said. "I'm supposed to be exploring and learning, so I knew it was time to try something new and different."(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
Post new comment