Heard it on the River

13 August 2004

By Rudi Schiffer

If you have a $600 ticket for the ROY JONES-GLENN JOHNSON IBF light heavyweight championship fight sponsored by GRAND CASINO you have a great ringside seat and might get your face on HBO on the night of Sept. 25. Those seats are the not on public sale as the scale there is from $40 to $500. The good news is that a lot of fans will get to see the best "pound-for-pound" fighter in the world in Jones, 49-2, as some 12,000 seats are priced at $90 and under. The limos are lining up so call TicketMaster if you want a decent seat for the first sporting event to be held in the new FEDEXFORUM, the "Showcase of the South." This has the makings of a great fight as Jones is angry after losing his last fight and Johnson is very hungry and wants to keep his crown and this is his first defense of it. Should see a knockout here as both guys have the power and record for KO's. The fighters are expected to make appearances at Grand in the week before the battle. There are nine under card matches as well.

We got to visit with BILL BOYD this past weekend at a cigar smoker at SAM'S TOWN. Bill likes his stogies and we got to spend some time with him and a feature article will follow for the next issue of JACKPOT. The CEO of Boyd Gaming has been at this business a lot longer than just about anybody alive but he has not slowed down and under his watch the company is making waves in the industry right now. You might learn something from his comments so watch for the next issue.

DALE CARDEN, Paradise poker room boss at ISLE OF CAPRI in LULA is jubilant over the fact that his room has been approved by DIRECT TV to carry the NFL football package and he says it is the only poker room with this amenity. How come? Since the room is enclosed, semi-private with no public viewing, it qualifies without paying through the nose. College games will also be on tap and Dale is offering a football square promotion giving away $50 per quarter. Carden is putting his rep on the line with his Beat the Boss no limit hold'em $100 buy-in. A series of ten winners come back to play in a free roll final table and the winner takes on Carden for $5,000. Sessions are Monday and Wednesday at 3 p.m. Call 800-789-5825 ext. 7459.

Speaking of poker, I love to watch the WORLD POKER TOUR on the TRAVEL CHANNEL, which has some serious play even with the bikini clad gals and shirtless guys waiting on the players and providing distractions, and of course the WORLD SERIES OF POKER is very heavy on ESPN. But these pretenders cropping up with so-called celebrities, mostly over the hill or unknown actors, is too much bad TV. They can't play, so who cares to watch some wannabes sit around and BS while they make stupid plays. But I shouldn't complain, most of TV fare these days is insipid and accepted. Does anybody read good books anymore?

Get this. WPT Enterprises has announced an initial public offering of 4,000,000 shares of common stock priced at $8 a share. You are better off sitting in a casino poker room game, which you can at least enjoy while you lose. I have some swamp land in Belize if anybody is interested. Great home sites.

By the time you read this it will be old news but it's worth a mention because of the amount of money won. LARRY DAVID HANCOCK from Pinson, Alabama, had a good return on the $250 he dropped into a progressive WHEEL OF FORTUNE slot machine at GOLDSTRIKE recently. He whacked IGT for $4,26l,345.18. He's taking it in 20 annual installments and at 53, he should outlive his payoffs.

The MISSISSIPPI HOTEL & LODGING ASSOCIATION with the support of the TUNICA CASINO OPERATOR'S ASSOCIATION, will hold it 30th annual conference Sept. 14-15 with big name speakers, a spectacular Taste of Tunica, and its biggest expo ever. It will be held in the Tunica County arena on Hwy. 61 so stop by JACKPOT'S booth and give me some tips for this column.

AMY BELK is the new marketing manager at GRAND where she manages casino hosts and will focus on player development. Her new company, CAESARS ENTERTAINMENT, has donated $5,000 to the Memphis Jewish Federation, a service facilitator that helps families with children in need. BRENDA TILLISON, director of finance at BALLY'S. has been elected to the affiliate board of directors for the SUSAN G. KOMEN Breast Cancer Foundation. And Grand is presenting a free outdoor concert featuring the band AMERICA on Sept. 10. While there is no charge, guests who make a $5.00 donation will receive a $5.00 free slot play coupon with proceeds going to the American Red Cross. Bring your lawn chairs and blankets and enjoy a great family night and a tribute to our American servicemen and women.

HANK THOMAS, who has worked in various casinos in different capacities, is now enjoying life at Pickwick Lake and is in the real estate business with Shaw-Rinks. If you are in the market for a weekender or retirement home, Hank is your guy. He will even give you a home tour by boat if you want lakeside. He can be reached at 731-926-1120. If you are in the market for a nice family home in a great location in Germantown, Tn.email me at goodtimesradio@aol.com. I'm on the move, again. The road from this home to Tunica is well worn and easy to follow.

From THE QUOTABLE GAMBLER..The Lyons Press:
"The first of the successful systems players…was a colorful individual known as "Greasy John. Large and obese, he acquired his name from the hqbit of coming to the casino with a very large bag of very greasy friend chicken…since Greasy John's hands were generally dripping with chicken fat, the cards soon become to oily to handle comfortably."
EDWARD O. THORP, Beat The Dealer (1962)

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