Resorts posts strong gains for 2004

By WILLIAM H. SOKOLIC
Courier-Post Staff
ATLANTIC CITY
What a difference a month makes. Gaming revenues at Resorts Atlantic City fell 2.1 percent in June, compared with same month in 2003, a dip that contributed to the casino winning less money in the first half of the year than in the same span the year before.

But gaming revenues increased 26 percent in July of this year compared with the same month in 2003. The turnaround is attributed to that month's opening of Rendezvous Tower, a 27-story, 399-room structure.

And this month, when the Casino Control Commission released its year-end results, Resorts topped all casinos open the entire year in 2003 in revenue gain. It finished 8.5 percent higher than the prior year.

"We continue to see the positive impact that the opening of the Rendezvous hotel tower has had on our casino," said Audrey Oswell, president of the hotel.

Other factors credited for the increase include the installation of 1,000 new slot machines and new table games such as single-deck blackjack, Oswell said.

The Rendezvous Tower wasn't the only change for Resorts, which opened in 1978.

In September, its parent company, Colony Capital, signed an agreement to buy the Atlantic City Hilton from Caesars Entertainment.

The deal is expected to close later this year.

And this summer, Resorts will launch Nikki Beach, an upscale beachbar-restaurant-entertainment attraction.

There are other Nikki Beach locales in Fort Lauderdale, South Beach and St. Tropez.

Auditions scheduled

For those interested in becoming a TV spokesman or spokeswoman, your opportunity awaits today.

But eager, energetic candidates need not apply, according to Harrah's Entertainment Inc.

The company seeks an emotionally detached man or woman to star in commercials promoting ESPN's coverage of the World Series of Poker.

The first auditions in the national search for a stoic poker face will take place between 10:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. in the Eden Lounge and Sapphire Bar at Harrah's Atlantic City.

The auditions coincide with the concluding days of the first World Series of Poker Circuit event, which finishes Jan. 18.

The new commercial will be the second "poker face" spot to run on ESPN.

The first depicts a man maintaining a perfectly nonplussed expression while an interviewer asks him to react to both fantastic and horrible news.

The new spot will build on the initial concept by showing the ultimate poker face, as well as outtakes from auditions in which people could not maintain stoic expressions under humorous interview conditions.

"The response to the first ad has been tremendous," said Ginny Shanks, Harrah's senior vice president of acquisition marketing. "Hosting auditions for a new spot at each of our World Series of Poker Circuit events will allow us to involve a huge number of poker enthusiasts in the development of the commercial and build interest in it before it ever airs."

Subsequent poker face auditions will be held at Harrah's locations in San Diego, New Orleans, Lake Tahoe and Las Vegas.

At least one person at each audition will be chosen as a finalist to appear in the spot.

More information about Harrah's Entertainment is available at www.harrahs.com .

Films on tap

When The Polar Express closes its run at the IMAX Theatre in the Quarter at Tropicana this week, two new documentaries will take its place.

One is Sharks-3D. The other is Fighter Pilot: Operation Red Flag.

Sharks-3D, presented by Jean-Michel Cousteau, offers audiences an up-close encounter with a multitude of shark species, including the great white, hammerhead and whale shark.

The documentary views sharks not as man-eating creatures but fascinating and endangered species that existed a million years before dinosaurs roamed the Earth.

Fighter Pilot: Operation Red Flag follows John Stratton, an American fighter pilot who flies the F-15 Eagle, one of the most potent fighter planes ever built.

Red Flag, the international training exercise for air forces of allied countries, is the final training for pilots and their crews before being sent into combat.

The film tracks Stratton as he makes his way through this extraordinary event, staged in the Nevada desert.

Both films run from Wednesday through March 10.

Sharks-3D will be shown at 10 a.m.; 11:10 a.m.; 1:20 p.m.; 4:50 p.m. and 8:20 p.m.

Fighter Pilot: Operation Red Flag will be screened at 12:10 p.m.; 3:40 p.m.; 7:20 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.

For more information, call (888) 505-1435 or go to www.tropicana.net .