Laughlin Entertainer: Cover Stories

It was 20 years ago, on August 29, 1988, that Harrah's Del Rio (now Harrah's Laughlin) went into business. The Harrah's name was a well-known one in the gaming industry and when it first lit up on the Colorado River, it was a sign that the “Big Boys” believed in the future of Laughlin. The Flamingo Hilton was under construction and Circus Circus had bought the Edgewater and the Colorado Belle. Steve Wynn was transforming the Nevada Club into the Golden Nugget Laughlin, the people who owned the Tropicana in Las Vegas were establishing their railroad casino the Ramada Express, and the Boyd Group was running a Laughlin version of their Vegas Sam's Town label in Sam's Town Gold River.

It was heady times for the area when the “long-necked-steel-crane” was the official Laughlin bird and Don Laughlin's original vision on the potential of the area was coming to fruition.

The Hilton people, Steve Wynn, Circus Circus, the Boyd Group and the original Ramada Express group have since packed up and left. Though restructured, Harrah's is still here and Harrah's is still believing in Laughlin. (So too, by the way, is Don Laughlin).

A little bit about then...

In 1988, Harrah's Del Rio joined five existing Harrah's brand properties-Harrah's Reno (opened in 1937); Harrah's Tahoe (opened 1955); Harrah's Marina (opened 1980, Atlantic City); Holiday Casino/Holiday Inn (opened 1983 Las Vegas); and Bill's Lake Tahoe Casino (opened 1987).

Harrah's Del Rio underwent three phases of construction over a four-year period. The first phase of construction was completed on August 29, 1988, and featured the first tower, South Tower, offering 464 hotel rooms, 26,000 sq. ft. of casino gaming space, pool and entertainment venue.

The second phase was completed in October 1989 adding the second tower, Central Tower, which housed 492 hotel rooms, three restaurants, casino bar, convenience store and the separate, non-smoking casino gaming area. This phase added an additional 18,000 sq. ft. of gaming and public space.

Prior to the third and final phase of construction, the resort was renamed Harrah's Laughlin.

On August 29, 1992, the final phase of construction at Harrah's Laughlin ended with the addition of the third tower, North Tower, with 701 rooms, a second pool, more than 28,000 sq. ft. of meeting space and a health club. Later, the hotel added more than 3,400 parking spaces.

During these early days, Harrah's jumped all over their “South-of-the-Border” theme with a Rosa's Cantina, flowered arbor over the gaming pit, strolling mariachis and a mascot named Cisco (who smacked a lot like José Carioca, the Disney parrot-pal of Donald Duck). At the time, Cisco was everywhere, from ads to gaming promotions to T-shirts and souvenirs. Heeeeee's Baaaaaaaack. In a bit of retro-fitting, Cisco will return to Harrah's Laughlin this summer with special appearances.

Also making a special appearance as part of the birthday party will be another staple of the early days of Harrah's Del Rio-Earl Turner. This one-man production show was a regular in the Club La Bamba (located at the site of the current high-roller slot area) where he showed off an energy and audience-friendly style of performing that would eventually bring him headliner status in Vegas and New Orleans (and Laughlin; see “entertainment” below).

And a little bit about now...

Over the intervening years, Harrah's has wandered a bit from their original theme and have gone the sleeker and cleaner, more modern Vegas casino look.

Today the resort boasts three hotel towers with 1,505 rooms, including 171 suites; more than 50,000 sq. ft. of casino space including a separate non-smoking gaming area; a poker room; four restaurants; three casino bars; salon and spa; health club; private soft sand beach; two swimming pools (one family and one adults only); boutique; gift shop; two entertainment venues in an indoor showroom and outdoor amphitheater; and an air charter service from more than 100 cities nationwide.

Along the way, Harrah's Laughlin has won numerous awards in local and national “Best Of” polls and is still one of the top recognizable brand names that helps give credibility to Laughlin.

Birthday presents for you...

Harrah's Laughlin will celebrate their 20th birthday all summer long, June through August, with special promotions, events and Fiesta Showroom entertainment. These include:

Promotions

For complete details on the following promotions, see the Total Rewards Center within the casino or for additional information, see page 52 of this publication. Basically, the promotions are:

€$60,000 Royal Flush Promotion-now until August 29.

Total Rewards members may swipe their card at the promotional kiosks for an entry every Monday, Wednesday and Friday between noon and 5 p.m. When they swipe their cards, they will select five playing cards displayed on the kiosk screen and will win cash based upon the value of the hand selected. This could be as high as $5,000 cash for a royal flush. Additional swipes may be earned by casino play and new sign ups for Total Rewards membership will receive one free entry plus a gift card if they earn qualifying points within a 24 hour period.

€$10,000 Anniversary Cash Craze-Saturday, August 23. Beginning at 4 p.m., one name will be drawn every 15 minutes for a chance to win $1,000 with one final name drawn at 6 p.m. for a chance to win $2,000. Participants must be actively playing slot or table games on the casino floor using their Total Rewards card to be eligible to win (excluded are poker room, race and sportsbook, and live keno).

€Baja Blue-get two entrees for $20 in Baja Blue Restaurant every Tuesday, through August 26, when you present the Harrah's ad in this publication (page 37 of this issue).

€Commemorative gaming chip-throughout the summer.

In honor of its 20th anniversary, Harrah's Laughlin has designed a commemorative anniversary gaming chip which will be available in $5, $25 and $100 denominations and available for purchase at the cashier cage. The chip design features a special 20th Anniversary logo and a black and white photo of the property as it opened on August 29, 1988 with its first hotel tower.

Entertainment

The summer-long celebration moves into the Fiesta Showroom with a variety of entertainment options scheduled in the coming months. These include:

* “LAUGHlin Out Loud” featuring stand-up comics from the hit TV reality series, “Last Comic Standing.”

From July 5-9, headliner Alonzo Bodden is paired with comedian David Huntsberger.

Bodden, winner and series regular on “Last Comic Standing,” has also appeared in films and national TV including “Bringing Down the House,” “Comedy Central Presents,” and “The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn.”

Huntsberger, a former substitute teacher turned comedian, was voted 2006 Funniest Person in Austin at the Cap Comedy City Club in Austin, Texas and appeared on Comedy Central's “Premium Blend” series.

From July 12-16, Kivi Rogers opens with comedienne Tess Drake.

Rogers has appeared in several popular television shows such as “Everybody Loves Raymond,” “The West Wing,” “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” and HBO's Def Comedy Jam and has performed at the HBO/Aspen Comedy Arts Festival.

Drake, a finalist in the first season of “Last Comic Standing,” returned to the series as a judge on season two and earned a sixth place finalist position on season three. She also has appeared on the “Jamie Fox Show” and has headlined specials on Comedy Central and the Hallmark Movie Channel.

The final week of “LAUGHlin Out Loud” features comedians Todd Glass and Daniel Kinno performing July 19-23.

Glass is another alumni of “Last Comic Standing 2” and “Last Comic Standing 3” while Kinno has performed on MTV, The Game Show Network and the WB.

Tickets for “LAUGhlin Out Loud” start at $15.95 with performances at 8 p.m. nightly and 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Saturdays.

* “Todd Luxton: The Ultimate Elvis Tribute” takes over the stage of the Fiesta Showroom August 2-14. Luxton has become something of a regular at Harrah's Laughlin, bringing an Elvis tribute that emphasizes the music of The King as much as or more than the moves. Shows are nightly at 8 p.m. (dark Friday, August 8). Tickets start at $18.95 per person.

* Earl Turner performs August 16-28. As stated earlier, Turner is linked with Harrah's Laughlin through history and brings his modern act to a familiar stage. His show combines singing and dancing that takes audiences through a broad range of music styles from classic Motown to a touch of country to contemporary pop and hip-hop hits. A couple of years ago, Turner was recognized for his powerful show by being named Las Vegas' Best Male Vocal Performer by the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Earl Turner performs at 8 p.m. nightly (dark Friday and Sunday). Tickets start at $17.95 per person.

For more information on promotions, entertainment or more, call 702-298-4600. More information about Harrah's is available at their website: www.harrahs.com.