Apparently the Riviera, Black Hawk Casino in the Colorado (made over) gaming town of Black Hawk is filing for Chapter 11 backruptcy along with it’s older sibling, The Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas Nevada. The parent company is Riviera Holdings.
Here’s a story from Associated Press 07.13.10, 02:58 PM EDT
LAS VEGAS — Las Vegas and Colorado casino owner Riviera Holdings Corp. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization.
Company subsidiaries Riviera Operating Corp. and Riviera Black Hawk Inc. also filed Monday for reorganization in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Las Vegas. They own the 2,075-room Riviera hotel-casino on the Las Vegas Strip and the Riviera Black Hawk in Colorado.
The filings say the planned restructuring is supported by holders of more than two-thirds of nearly $248 million in debt under a June 2007 senior credit facility.
That could let Riviera Las Vegas and Riviera Black Hawk continue to operate during the bankruptcy process.
The company reported to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission late last year that it was trying to restructure debt to avoid filing for bankruptcy.
Yea, probably a Chapter 11 Bankruptsy for the RIV. (YAWN)
Casinos rise and fall, make a lot of money, go bankrupt then miraculously reappear, feeling all better now.
In the meantime the small investors loose all their money, the employees get screwed and the fat cats at the top meet at steak houses and smoke cigars after dinner. Nothing wrong with steak houses or cigars (other than the obligatory PC reasons, like this) it’s just in the way they do it.
The RIV ain’t going anywhere unless it’s just to roll the properties over for new construction, or a fatter cat buys them out.
Charo performs at the Riviera in Las Vegas on July 15, 2009.
Photo: Leila Navidi This post was culled from Robin Leach’s Las Vegas blog, September 11, 2009.
“Rumors abound that the real reason Charo suspended her show at the Riviera yesterday, citing a foot injury, is because of disappointing and sluggish box office ticket sales.”
“Producers were allegedly bleeding red ink due to falling tourism numbers and the barren, darkened stretch of the Strip between the Encore and Sahara.”
“Charo says the ankle injury sustained after a TV cable trip backstage at the Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Association Telethon this past weekend at the South Point made it impossible for the show to go on.”
“I’d have thought that because Charo is such a brilliant Flamenco guitarist and energetic singer, she could have sat on a stool with her foot bandaged up and won the sympathy vote!”
Remember “The Cuchi Cuchi Girl” on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson (45+ appearances.) María Rosario Pilar Martínez Molina Baeza is also known as Charo.
Charo’s August 5th performance at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas was executed in two parts. In the first half you saw the Charo you know: the comedian, the singer, and all-around show-woman. She was brilliant, funny and spectacular. She sparkled in a red-sequined outfit, singing tunes from her CD’s, such as: “I Will Survive,” and cracking jokes about accents as well as other aspects of the human condition.
Without a doubt, the most humorous moment came when she spoke of being so poor in her youth that she didn’t have enough to eat – then after achieving success she couldn’t eat because of diets and weight watching – after saying this, she repeatedly “mouthed” the F bomb.
Accompanied by a troup of Flamenco dancers and a high-power-group of musicians, the first half of the show was fast paced, hard-hitting and well rehearsed. The show’s lighting was an artful display of color and dream imagery. Now I’ll tell you about the positive stuff.
Photo credit [copyright 2009-LasVegasBuffetClub]
The second half of the show was about guitar – Flamenco guitar. Charo displayed the mastery that earned her ‘Guitar magazine”s Readers Poll as Best Flamenco Guitarist two years in a row. Her strokes were robust, true and firm; the *”shotgun-tremelo” was flawless. (My pretention here is due to studying a-bit-of classical guitar.)
Her fingers (both hands) were moving like she was a super-human being. The little-finger, of her left hand, was – relaxed – in the precise, classical position. This is something one can only achieve after years of practice.
The “show stopper” for me was a moving rendition of Ravel’s Bolaro, of which you can hear a few bars on Charo’s website.
According to IMDb, when she was 14, María Rosario Pilar Martínez Molina Baeza won a scholarship to study classical guitar with Andrés Segovia.
Brava Charo!
Keep tuned to this page, there will soon be a link to a video clip of Charo.
*So maybe I’m using a common term…
We made a “Happy Birthday” trip up to the casinos in Black Hawk, Colorado on July 11, 2009. One of us was celebrating a birthday on 7-11. The Riviera Casino sent the birthday reveler a comp for two (free) buffets. So we brought along a 2-4-1 buffet coupon, which we already had, bringing the total to: four dinner buffets for the price of one. (Back to the buffet in a minute.)
Since we hit the casinos around three o’clock in the afternoon we had more than enough time to do a little gaming. The birthday person was good to go since this person was given a nice amount of cash as a birthday gift.
We first stopped in at The Ameristar Casino , checked out the buffet (two in our party had not seen Ameristar’s buffet,) which is something to see: The round, rustic buffet room, beaming with energy, has high, vaulted ceilings finished with high-quality wood paneling/beams. Top craftsmanship is evident. The buffet is loaded with food choices, Las Vegas style.
After checking out the buffet, we fooled around at the slot banks near the buffet. After a while I was expounding on my top criteria for picking a slot/video machine: (1) pick a machine that is in view of a captured audience, like the diners at a buffet/restaurant or people standing in line at a buffet/restaurant. The theory being that “loose” machines are placed in these areas to create excitement, and to evoke a winning vibe. If you ran a casino, would you want customers staring at dead space? Also, sit at machines near money cages, gift shops, slot clubs etc. Stay away from machines that are in out-of-the-way corners of the floor or by restrooms. Someone going to the restroom has something other than gaming on their mind.
*Just as I was explaining my theory (standing by a bank of machines near the buffet) a gentleman hit a loaded video poker hand: a $1 (5X) Royal Flush for $4,040 and change. Visit these pages for more gaming tips.
Riviera Black Hawk
Back to the Riv’s buffet. The large, high-ceilinged room is “blue” with huge, somewhat awkward chandeliers. We were shown a cozy, secluded table in a corner and went immediately to the salad bar, which is decent/average (they might want to identify the salad dressings, since no one knew what was what. ) There were tiny markings on the ladles, but the ladles were all mixed up. Anyway we feasted on shrimp, Snow Crab legs, roast beef, pastas, salads, fruits, veggies and desserts. Other items at the buffet were chicken/fixins, Asian dishes, soups, breads and more.
Although the food is tasty and well prepared, the Riv’s buffet is limited (by Las Vegas standards.)
After our buffet feast (as we left the buffet, theire was a fairly long line waiting to get in – in fact it was the longest line I’ve ever seen at the Riv,) we played a little (at the casino.) The casino floor was lively and busy. I was playing Multi-Strike for pennies and hit the top line (loaded) for about $40.00. Not a bad hit for an under a dollar bet. I was disapointed to find that **Hexbreaker was removed from the casino floor. Thanks anyway Riviera for the birthday gift…
The consensus of opinion was that The Isle of Capri was a definate Fav. Probably because three of us were getting (many) free beers/drinks at the bar, I (self-designated) was the designated driver. Also, the same three got nice comps for signing up for Slot Cards. They will get (in the mail) a voucher for a free room + a slip for $10.00 cash. All they had to do was play $10.00. The birthday guest got two dessert comps – he already had a card.
I didn’t really check out the buffet at The Isle of Capri, but here’s their info:
*The LasVegasBuffetClub is not saying that you will hit a jackpot if you follow these suggestions, only that the chances of succeeding may be increased with this methodology.
**Hexbreaker was also removed from The Isle of Capri.
This is a reprint of (The LA Times) The Movable Buffet’s Richard Abowitz quoting the Review Journal’s Mike Whetherford. Huh!
From The Movable Buffet: ‘Princess’ gives up being regal to seduce
“Most people know the family-entertainment concept in Vegas failed long before I moved here a decade ago. Those who do not know that learn quickly. I don’t know how I missed the news release on this one. But I did. So, I will just quote Mike Weatherford’s column today:”
“The single-named Scarlett does an about-face from a family-friendly afternoon act to a 10 p.m. show with topless dancers at the Riviera starting July 1. She trades her ‘Princess of Magic’ handle for the new billing of ‘Scarlett and her Seductive Ladies of Magic.'”
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