Will JB ever return to the MGM in Vegas?

[TraderRick]

Been laying low...watching for signs of Jimmy's possible return to the MGM any time soon.
Much could depend on the success of the City Center project that opened last December. Investors are trying (understandably) to put the very best spin on it...
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/ja ... gm-mirage/

But many who have seen the property first-hand have a very different opinion (from the article's discussion section):

... I can see MGM-Mirage's theory in going all out with CityCenter to regain some of the market share stolen from Bellagio by Wynncore and VenPalazzo. But this is their biggest failure yet!
Here are just some of the screw-ups...
A) they went wrong on the concept. Its too modern and not luxurious enough.
B) they made every possible mistake imaginable in engineering the property for actual OPERATION. Yes is is visually stunning, but no one wants to sit on cold metal while waiting 2 1/2 hrs to check-in after waiting 45 min for Valet service, after driving around 5 laps trying to figure out how to get in and bouncing their Mercedes off a couple walls.
C)The casino is too dark.
D)The spa is too basic.
E)The restaurants serve uninspired food.
F)But the worst sin of all? They interviewed over 100,000 applicants and THIS IS WHAT THEY HIRED??!?

With the CityCenter disaster in full bloom MGM-Mirage has stuck inself in a no-mans land of competing against both cheaper properties and more luxurious properties. They might have a chance to pull that off in a better economy OR if they had even reasonably decent service. But they don't, so they won't.

Vegas WILL DO JUST FINE. MGM-Mirage shoulda stuck with 3-star props like NYNY or MGM Grand which is what they do best. They are on life support now, and they are going to get crushed by the competition going forward.

Hopefully Jimmy can find a stable venue in Vegas to call home again...because MGM is looking awfully iffy for now.

Phins up in Vegas...we hope.

[Lightning Bolt]

There's always the pool area at the Hooter's Hotel

I'm sure Dean will get us some good insight on this soon...

[Grams]

What about Mandalay Bay???

[SMLCHNG]

I'm sure Dean will get us some good insight on this soon...

Does Dean still have contacts since he moved to Colorado??

[mydogbuffett]

Mandalay bay would fit his image. Or at least what it used to be.

[Lightning Bolt]

I'm sure Dean will get us some good insight on this soon...

Does Dean still have contacts since he moved to Colorado??

Dohhh!!!

[Joetown Parrothead]

Saw Kenny Chesney at Mandalay bay the last 2 years, This year he moved his shows to the Hard Rock. We are going to see him in May out there. Would love Jimmy to play week before or after to just stay for 10 day and see them both.

[mydogbuffett]

Saw Kenny Chesney at Mandalay bay the last 2 years, This year he moved his shows to the Hard Rock. We are going to see him in May out there. Would love Jimmy to play week before or after to just stay for 10 day and see them both.

[ozzy]

What would be awesome is to see Jimmy at the pool at Mandalay, BUT it's nowhere near big enough. As far as City Center I agree with the what was written, I was extremely disappointed with Aria. After all the hype I was expecting something awesome, the architecture is the best part of the place, but the casino hotel are marginal at best.

[mydogbuffett]

What would be awesome is to see Jimmy at the pool at Mandalay, BUT it's nowhere near big enough. As far as City Center I agree with the what was written, I was extremely disappointed with Aria. After all the hype I was expecting something awesome, the architecture is the best part of the place, but the casino hotel are marginal at best.


I will find out in 33 days. Does anyone know if the Margaritaville in Vegas has the new Rum?

[dean_siu]

What would be awesome is to see Jimmy at the pool at Mandalay, BUT it's nowhere near big enough. As far as City Center I agree with the what was written, I was extremely disappointed with Aria. After all the hype I was expecting something awesome, the architecture is the best part of the place, but the casino hotel are marginal at best.


I will find out in 33 days. Does anyone know if the Margaritaville in Vegas has the new Rum?

I know they had bottles of it for sale in the gift shop during December. I'm assuming it was available in the restaurant as well.

[TraderRick]

What would be awesome is to see Jimmy at the pool at Mandalay, BUT it's nowhere near big enough. As far as City Center I agree with the what was written, I was extremely disappointed with Aria. After all the hype I was expecting something awesome, the architecture is the best part of the place, but the casino hotel are marginal at best.


I will find out in 33 days. Does anyone know if the Margaritaville in Vegas has the new Rum?

I know they had bottles of it for sale in the gift shop during December. I'm assuming it was available in the restaurant as well.

So Deano - what's your thought on CityCenter ...and MGM's future viability in the marketplace? If Jimmy & MGM are on the outs, as it seems, would Mandalay or Hard Rock be possibilities. Maybe multiple smaller shows?

[dean_siu]

What would be awesome is to see Jimmy at the pool at Mandalay, BUT it's nowhere near big enough. As far as City Center I agree with the what was written, I was extremely disappointed with Aria. After all the hype I was expecting something awesome, the architecture is the best part of the place, but the casino hotel are marginal at best.


I will find out in 33 days. Does anyone know if the Margaritaville in Vegas has the new Rum?

I know they had bottles of it for sale in the gift shop during December. I'm assuming it was available in the restaurant as well.

So Deano - what's your thought on CityCenter ...and MGM's future viability in the marketplace? If Jimmy & MGM are on the outs, as it seems, would Mandalay or Hard Rock be possibilities. Maybe multiple smaller shows?

I didn't care that much for City Center. I really think it was a poorly designed property. It has virtually zero accessibility for foot traffic on the strip and the walk from the parking garage is a good workout for anyone. The stores inside (and most the restaurants/clubs) are all super high-end and too extravagant for the average tourist. In addition, for a property that size, it only has one fixed show (the Elvis Cirque show) and no showroom or Arena for touring acts.

That being said....I think the future for MGM Mirage in the marketplace depends more on the recovery of the marketplace than the performance of City Center. I don't think City Center will ever provide a good ROI for the company....but if tourists (and gaming revenue) come back to the levels of 5 years ago, the performance of all their properties will restore the health of the company. The longer it takes for this to happen, the more properties you'll see them have to unload (as they already did with Treasure Island).

If Jimmy and MGM are on the outs, you'd have to imagine that Mandalay Bay would be as well (as they are part of MGM Mirage) and I don't personally think the Hard Rock would be a preferred venue by Jimmy (most smaller venues that he plays have history such as Santa Barbara Bowl or the Fillmore).

I really would not be surprised if there is no Vegas show at all this year (although I hope that's not the case). Although I still think the ultimate arrangement would be for Harrahs to sponsor a concert at either the Thomas and Mack Center or Sam Boyd Stadium. They could package rooms at various properties (including the Flamingo) along with shuttle buses to the venue and I think it would be successful for them. I'm just not sure if the company has the vision or financial resources to make it happen.

The other possibility would potentially be the Theatre for the Performing Arts at Planet Hollywood (formerly the Aladdin). Harrahs is in the process of taking over this property and the venue is spectacular. However, it only holds about 7000 fans and the ownership change likely won't take place til later this year or early 2011.

If Vegas happens this year, I'll be there. However, when summer shows are announced, I'm making plans to go someone as I'm not confident enough to sit back and wait for details on a Vegas date.

[TraderRick]

What would be awesome is to see Jimmy at the pool at Mandalay, BUT it's nowhere near big enough. As far as City Center I agree with the what was written, I was extremely disappointed with Aria. After all the hype I was expecting something awesome, the architecture is the best part of the place, but the casino hotel are marginal at best.


I will find out in 33 days. Does anyone know if the Margaritaville in Vegas has the new Rum?

I know they had bottles of it for sale in the gift shop during December. I'm assuming it was available in the restaurant as well.

So Deano - what's your thought on CityCenter ...and MGM's future viability in the marketplace? If Jimmy & MGM are on the outs, as it seems, would Mandalay or Hard Rock be possibilities. Maybe multiple smaller shows?

I really would not be surprised if there is no Vegas show at all this year (although I hope that's not the case). Although I still think the ultimate arrangement would be for Harrahs to sponsor a concert at either the Thomas and Mack Center or Sam Boyd Stadium. They could package rooms at various properties (including the Flamingo) along with shuttle buses to the venue and I think it would be successful for them. I'm just not sure if the company has the vision or financial resources to make it happen.

Good ideas. Maybe the Streetparty could move in that direction as well? I'm guessing UNLV might have issues, though.
UNLV is pretty far off the Strip- and with no monorail service... logistics would call for a lot of buses. But it could work. If JB management wants to save Vegas, and MGM is out of the picture, this could very well be the direction to go.

[ParrotHeadInThe Making]

This is just my humble opinion, but if the rumors are true that Jimmy will be playing secondary markets this year I would not be at all surprised if the tour is completely different compared to previous years when we expected and counted on him playing the usual venues. However, this year I think we should be ready for the unexpected and not plan on him playing the usual places due to the economy and such.

[dean_siu]

What would be awesome is to see Jimmy at the pool at Mandalay, BUT it's nowhere near big enough. As far as City Center I agree with the what was written, I was extremely disappointed with Aria. After all the hype I was expecting something awesome, the architecture is the best part of the place, but the casino hotel are marginal at best.


I will find out in 33 days. Does anyone know if the Margaritaville in Vegas has the new Rum?

I know they had bottles of it for sale in the gift shop during December. I'm assuming it was available in the restaurant as well.

So Deano - what's your thought on CityCenter ...and MGM's future viability in the marketplace? If Jimmy & MGM are on the outs, as it seems, would Mandalay or Hard Rock be possibilities. Maybe multiple smaller shows?

I really would not be surprised if there is no Vegas show at all this year (although I hope that's not the case). Although I still think the ultimate arrangement would be for Harrahs to sponsor a concert at either the Thomas and Mack Center or Sam Boyd Stadium. They could package rooms at various properties (including the Flamingo) along with shuttle buses to the venue and I think it would be successful for them. I'm just not sure if the company has the vision or financial resources to make it happen.

Good ideas. Maybe the Streetparty could move in that direction as well? I'm guessing UNLV might have issues, though.
UNLV is pretty far off the Strip- and with no monorail service... logistics would call for a lot of buses. But it could work. If JB management wants to save Vegas, and MGM is out of the picture, this could very well be the direction to go.

Actually, UNLV is not that far off the strip. It is walkable to get to the Thomas & Mack Center (although many visitiors pay a few bucks and cab it to the venue).

Sam Boyd Stadium is a different situation though as its not on campus and is quite a distance from the strip. In the past, Dave Mathews has played there a few times and it used to host the Vegoose fesitval (which coincided with Buffett shows in the past). Transportation has always been an issue with these events and cab drivers have racked ticketholders over the coals to get back and forth to the venue.

Again, I don't think UNLV would have an issue with this at all (actually both venues are operated independently of the university and if it brings in money, it happens)....the bigger problem is Harrahs and I'm not sure the company has enough vision to think outside of the box and make this happen.

[TraderRick]

This is just my humble opinion, but if the rumors are true that Jimmy will be playing secondary markets this year I would not be at all surprised if the tour is completely different compared to previous years when we expected and counted on him playing the usual venues. However, this year I think we should be ready for the unexpected and not plan on him playing the usual places due to the economy and such.

I think the "secondary market" tour possibility is a refreshing turn of events. I look forward to seeing what it might look like. That being said...even with the "lost tour" wounds still smarting/healing...Vegas is a huge payday for Jimmy and a sacred cow for the fervent West Coasters. I'd be amazed if they (JB management) don't at least make an effort (ala Deano's ideas) to try to save it.

[ParrotHeadInThe Making]

This is just my humble opinion, but if the rumors are true that Jimmy will be playing secondary markets this year I would not be at all surprised if the tour is completely different compared to previous years when we expected and counted on him playing the usual venues. However, this year I think we should be ready for the unexpected and not plan on him playing the usual places due to the economy and such.

I think the "secondary market" tour possibility is a refreshing turn of events. I look forward to seeing what it might look like. That being said...even with the "lost tour" wounds still smarting/healing...Vegas is a huge payday for Jimmy and a sacred cow for the fervent West Coasters. I'd be amazed if they (JB management) don't at least make an effort (ala Deano's ideas) to try to save it.

I totally agree with you. It certainly will be interesting to see what happens as dates are released.

[goodtime_mo]

Well, as we've seen with the dates released so far, the secondary market tour theary is out the window, unless you consider St Louis and Nashville secondary.
Of course any more dates that are released may qualify.
As for a venue in Vegas, Jimmy has played Thomas & Mack before, but if he's planning on October dates, it probably won't be there. The PBR is in town for the National Finals from the 10th all the way through the 24th.
Mandalay is part of MGM, so if MGM isn't stable or if they've had a falling out with JB, then that's out.
Hard Rock's Joint doesn't appear big enough.
There's always the Orleans Arena.

[TraderRick]

There's always the Orleans Arena.

I wouldn't mind that at all. The only problem is The Orleans has a capacity of 9000 and the MGM Grand holds 17,0000. Jimmy might have to do some double-duty there.