NV -- Las Vegas -- Planet Hollywood:
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- Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
- PH_100718_02.JPG: Planet Hollywood
- AAA "Gem": AAA considers this location to be a "must see" point of interest. To see pictures of other areas that AAA considers to be Gems, click here.
- Wikipedia Description: Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, previously known as Aladdin Resort & Casino, is a casino resort on the Las Vegas Strip, in the unincorporated locale of Paradise, Nevada, United States. Hilton Hotels operates the condo portion of the property, known as Elara.
Planet Hollywood is owned by Caesars Entertainment Corp. In April 2010, Total Rewards replaced the "A-List" Player rewards card at Planet Hollywood.
History
The Tally-Ho was originally opened in 1963. In 1964, it was renamed King's Crown and failed after six months, when it was denied a gaming license. In 1966, it was purchased by Milton Prell, and the hotel got a $3 million renovation, including a new 500-seat "Baghdad Theater" showroom. Prell turned the English-themed hotel into an Arabian Nights theme, but kept the original Tudor style room wings. A serrated canopy and a $750,000 15-foot "Aladdin's Lamp" sign were added.
The Aladdin
The Aladdin opened on March 31, 1966, with flower petals pouring from the ceiling and onto guests as they entered the hall. The opening entertainment included comedian Jackie Mason, the "Jet Set Revue", a musical review that showcased The Three Cheers and the Petite Rockette Dancers in the Baghdad Theatre. Prell introduced an innovative main showroom policy by offering three completely different shows twice nightly with no cover or minimum charges.
The Aladdin contained a 9-hole golf course.
A little more than a year after it was opened, the Aladdin was host to Elvis and Priscilla Presley's wedding.
In August 1969, the Aladdin completed a $750,000 makeover including renovations to the Sinbad Lounge, which became enclosed and leveled above the casino floor with Arabic motif.
In 1969, Parvin Dohrmann Corporation took over the Aladdin, and in 1972, using the name Recrion Corporation, sold it to Sam Diamond, St. Louis politicians Peter Webbe and Sorkis Webbe, and St. Louis attorney Richard L. Daly for the price of just $5 million. Under the new owners, a $60 million face lift was conducted, including the addition of a 19-story tower and the new 7,500-seat Performing Arts Center replacing the golf course, which was $4 million over budget.
A $250,000 porte-cochere continued the tower's arabesques. The Aladdin added a new $300,000 140-foot (43 m) blockbuster sign with little neon, huge attraction panels and none of the arabesque of the Aladdin's original sign.
Neil Diamond performing at the Aladdin Theatre for the Performing Arts, July 2, 1976
The Aladdin celebrated the Grand Opening of their new "Aladdin Theatre for the Performing Arts" with singer Neil Diamond being paid $650,000 for four shows; July 2 through July 5, 1976.
In August 1979, several individuals were convicted by a Detroit Federal Jury of conspiring to allow hidden owners to exert control over the resort, and the Nevada Gaming Commission then closed the hotel.
The resort was sold to Wayne Newton and Ed Torres in 1980 for $85 million, snubbing an offer from comedian Johnny Carson. Newton sold his share to Torres 21 months later. Newton sued NBC, who had alleged in broadcasts, that his purchase of the Aladdin was tied to the mafia. He won a $22.8 million judgement, which was overturned on appeal. In February 1984, the Aladdin went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
In 1981, heavy metal band Iron Maiden played at the Aladdin – it was their first ever concert in America.
In 1987, Japanese businessman Ginji Yasuda purchased the Aladdin, but was removed as the casino's operator by state regulators in September 1988, and the resort was placed in Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to financial difficulties.
In 1994, Jack Sommer, a Las Vegas real estate developer, and the Sommer Family Trust purchased the hotel.
The Aladdin closed on November 25, 1997. NCL/National Content Liquidators conducted an on-site liquidation sale beginning March 5, 1998, and continued until the building was "sold out". On April 27, 1998, the entire resort was imploded at 7:27 pm, except for the Aladdin Theatre to make way for the construction of an entirely new casino. Sommer took on London Clubs International as a partner in developing the new casino resort. LCI initially paid $50 million for a 25% interest, but took on additional equity after Sommer was unable to fund his share of cost overruns on the construction.
The New Aladdin
The Aladdin was scheduled to reopen on August 17, 2000, at 6:00 p.m., with fireworks at 10:00 p.m. The opening was delayed while the Clark County building inspector completed its fire safety testing. Another delay was caused by last-minute repairs to the casino surveillance system. This left thousands of Aladdin visitors leaving in disappointment, as well as opening night hotel guests wondering where they'd spend the night. Many high-rollers waited out on the sidewalks in front of the Aladdin for hours. Most were unable to even get to their luggage, since the hotel had been locked down for testing. Aladdin employees tried to arrange alternate accommodations for the guests with Paris and Bellagio.
Meanwhile, the Desert Passage mall was opened with I Dream of Jeannie star Barbara Eden opening the doors to let the large crowd in.
The Aladdin finally opened the next day at 7:45 a.m. 100 members of Culinary Workers Union Local 226, as well as more than 1,000 other workers were marching on Las Vegas Boulevard to protest the Aladdin opening without a union contract. Eden's speech as well as the other festivities were drowned out by the bullhorns and the rest of the protest.
According to Josh Axelrad in his 2010 book, Repeat until Rich, he and other professional gamblers, primarily card counters, took advantage of the Aladdin's inexperienced staff its opening weekend and fleeced the casino for an undetermined but large amount of money. The casino later introduced severe limits on mid-shoe bets in response.
The casino was in financial trouble from the start, and was sold in bankruptcy on June 20, 2003 to a partnership of Planet Hollywood and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide.
Planet Hollywood
Renovations were carried out in stages, allowing the resort to remain open throughout. Planet Hollywood Las Vegas includes an expanded casino, new restaurants, new nightclub and retail space. A redesign of the facade and pedestrian plaza was intended to correct defects that made accessing the property from the sidewalks on The Strip difficult.
The retail space formerly known as "The Desert Passage" was converted into the Hollywood-themed "Miracle Mile Shops".
After the casino was renovated, it was reopened as: "Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino" on April 17, 2007. The official grand opening of was the weekend of November 16, 2007. The Planet Hollywood restaurant, however, remains at The Forum Shops at Caesars.
Under Caesars Entertainment (formerly Harrah's)
Caesars officially acquired the property on February 19, 2010. Caesars began its process of taking over the property in December 2009 by purchasing some of the resort's debt. The casino defaulted on its mortgage and had failed to make scheduled payments in September, 2009.
On January 16, 2010, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide dropped their affiliation so Caesars could take over hotel operations. On February 18, 2010 The Nevada Gaming Commission gave Caesars the approval to take over the property. Caesars' Total Rewards program was phased into Planet Hollywood beginning in April 2010.
Marilyn Winn has stepped in as President of the resort; she is President of Paris Las Vegas and Bally's Las Vegas, both Caesar's Hotels. Robert Earl, former president and founder of the Planet Hollywood brand, will advise Caesars on marketing strategies for Planet Hollywood Hotel and the other nine casinos Caesars owns in the Las Vegas area. Winn is leaving Caesars Entertainment (formerly Harrah's Entertainment) and taking the place of Andrew Pascal at Wynn/Encore Las Vegas as President of Wynn/Encore Las Vegas.
Caesars does not own Prive Nightclub, nor some restaurants in the hotel. It does not own the newly branded Elara (formerly PH Tower by Westgate that opened in December 2009), as Hilton Grand Vacations, part of Hilton Worldwide now operates that tower's hotel operations. Through a licensing agreement, Caesars now has the right to use the Planet Hollywood trademark at other properties worldwide.
Combined with its earlier acquisition of the former Barbary Coast Casino (via a three-way-swap), the acquisition of Planet Hollywood's footprint on the Strip gave Caesars total control of the 126 acres (0.51 km2) on the east side of the Las Vegas Strip from Flamingo to Harmon Roads.
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