Binion's Gambling Hall And Hotel
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Binion's Gambling Hall & Hotel, formerly Binion's Horseshoe, is a casino on Fremont Street along the
Fremont Street Experience The Fremont Street Experience (FSE) is a pedestrian mall and attraction in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. The FSE occupies the westernmost five blocks of Fremont Street, including the area known for years as "Glitter Gulch", and portions of som ...
pedestrian mall Pedestrian zones (also known as auto-free zones and car-free zones, as pedestrian precincts in British English, and as pedestrian malls in the United States and Australia) are areas of a city or town restricted to use by people on foot or ...
in
Downtown Las Vegas Downtown Las Vegas (commonly abbreviated as DTLV) is the central business district and historic center of Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It is the original townsite, and the Downtown gaming Las Vegas, Downtown Gaming Area was the primary gambl ...
,
Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...
, United States. It is owned by TLC Casino Enterprises. The casino is named for its founder, Benny Binion, whose family ran it from its founding in 1951 until 2004. The hotel, which had 366 rooms, closed in 2009. TLC reopened 81 of the rooms as a
boutique hotel Boutique hotels are small-capacity Hotel, hotels that provide more personalized service than typical hotels. They typically have fewer than a hundred rooms, and are considered more "trendy" and "intimate", often due to their location in urban ar ...
called Hotel Apache in July 2019.


History


Binion's Horseshoe (1951–2004)

Benny Binion bought the Eldorado Club and Hotel Apache in 1951, re-opening them as Binion's Horseshoe (also called the Horseshoe Casino). The casino's interior had a frontier flavor, like an old-style
riverboat A riverboat is a watercraft designed for inland navigation on lakes, rivers, and artificial waterways. They are generally equipped and outfitted as work boats in one of the carrying trades, for freight or people transport, including luxury ...
, with low ceilings and velvet wallpaper. It was the first casino in downtown Las Vegas (also called Glitter Gulch) to replace sawdust-covered floors with carpeting, and was the first to offer comps to all gamblers, not just those who bet big money. Binion also instituted high table limits. When Binion first opened the Horseshoe, he set the
craps Craps is a dice game in which players gambling, bet on the outcomes of the roll of a pair of dice. Players can wager money against each other (playing "street craps") or against a bank ("casino craps"). Because it requires little equipment, " ...
table limit at $500—ten times higher than any other casino in Las Vegas at the time. Ultimately, Binion's raised the table limit to $10,000 and even eliminated table limits completely at times, which was an immediate hit. Unlike other casinos, the emphasis at Binion's was on gambling, not on big performing acts. The casino was also very egalitarian; there were no private pits for high rollers. Other members of Binion's family were involved in the casino. His sons, Jack and Ted, supervised the games, while his wife, Teddy Jane, kept the books until her death in 1994.Retrospective on Horseshoe's history
from
UNLV The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. ...
Center for Gaming Research
Benny served time in Leavenworth Penitentiary from 1953 to 1957 for tax evasion. He sold a majority share of the casino to fellow gambler and
New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
oilman Joe W. Brown to cover back taxes and legal costs. It was generally understood, however, that Brown was only a caretaker, and Benny regained controlling interest in 1957. He did not regain full control, however, until 1964. While Brown operated the casino, he installed the famous $1 million display on the casino floor. He sold the display in 1959 and it was later recreated using 100 of the $10,000 bills by Benny in 1964. The Binion family sold the $10,000 bills for amounts between $112,500 and $188,000 each. As a convicted felon, Benny was no longer allowed to hold a gaming license, so his sons took over day-to-day control when the family bought out Brown. Jack became president while Ted became casino manager. Benny assumed the title of Director of Public Relations. In 1970, Jack began hosting the
World Series of Poker The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is a series of poker tournaments held annually in Paradise, Nevada, and since 2004, sponsored by Eldorado Resorts, Caesars Entertainment. It dates its origins to 1970, when Benny Binion invited seven of the best ...
(WSOP) at the Horseshoe. Eventually, the WSOP became the largest set of poker tournaments in the world. In 1988, the Horseshoe expanded by acquiring The Mint, a high-rise hotel on the west side of the casino. The expansion of the casino from this purchase provided room for Binion's first poker room. Ted was under constant scrutiny from the
Nevada Gaming Commission The Nevada Gaming Commission is a Nevada state governmental agency involved in the regulation of casinos throughout the state, along with the Nevada Gaming Control Board. In 1959, the Nevada Gaming Commission ("Commission") was created by the ...
from 1986 onward for drug problems and associating with known mob figure "Fat Herbie" Blitzstein. He would ultimately be banned from even entering his family's casino. In 1998, he was stripped of his gaming license for his continued association with Blitzstein. He was forced to sell his 20% interest to his younger sister, Becky. In 1998, Becky Behnen acquired a controlling interest in the casino following a protracted legal battle with her older brother Jack. The battle ended with Jack being bought out while retaining a 1% interest in the casino so that he could retain his Nevada gaming license. Jack moved on to focus on Horseshoe Gaming Holding Corporation, running other casinos under the Horseshoe brand. Behnen became president of the Horseshoe while her husband, Nick, took over as manager. Behnen implemented several cost-cutting measures, most of which were unpopular with the gamblers. Among the most notable was the removal of the Horseshoe exhibit that held $1 million, having been sold to collector Jay Parrino, that had served as a backdrop for free pictures of visitors. She also made changes in the distribution of the money from the entry fees in the World Series of Poker that were unpopular with the casino dealers and closed a popular restaurant in the casino. Benny had used one of the tables in the restaurant as his office. Despite these measures, the Horseshoe became bogged down in debt. Under her father and brothers, the Horseshoe had reportedly been the most profitable casino in Las Vegas (it was privately held, so it never had to report its earnings). Behnen also attracted the attention of the state regulators by failing to keep sufficient funds available to pay winners in the casino cage. Bob Stupak also drew negative publicity to the casino when he tried to redeem $250,000 in $5,000
casino token Casino chips (also known as poker chips, gaming tokens, or checks/cheques) are small discs used as currency in casinos. Larger, rectangular gaming plaques may be used for high-stakes games. Poker chips are also widely used as play money in cas ...
s, some of which were stored in the casino's own
safe deposit box A safe deposit box, sometimes referred to as a safety deposit box, is an individually secured container, usually held within a larger safe or bank vault. Safe deposit boxes are generally located in banks, post offices or other institutions. S ...
es, and Behnen refused to honor them. Behnen's undoing, however, was a dispute with the unions that represented some of the Horseshoe's employees. In November 2002, the Culinary Workers Union and Bartenders Union filed a complaint with the
National Labor Relations Board The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States that enforces United States labor law, U.S. labor law in relation to collect ...
alleging that Behnen hadn't signed a
collective bargaining agreement A collective agreement, collective labour agreement (CLA) or collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is a written contract negotiated through collective bargaining for employees by one or more trade unions with the management of a company (or with an ...
and had fallen behind on medical insurance and pension payments. The parties reached a settlement in March 2003 in which the Horseshoe signed the collective bargaining agreement and agreed to pay the owed money. However, the Horseshoe fell behind on its payments, leading a federal judge to issue two separate judgments ordering the Horseshoe to pay over $1.5 million. The judgments gave the union the right to seize the money if regular payments weren't being met. However, the casino stopped making payments in June. After holding off numerous times, on December 5 the Culinary Union obtained a court order authorizing the seizure of up to $1.9 million from the Horseshoe casino cage. The seizure took place on January 9; ultimately federal marshals and
IRS The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting Taxation in the United States, U.S. federal taxes and administerin ...
agents seized $1 million in order to satisfy debts owed to the Southern Nevada Culinary and Bartenders Pension Trust Fund and to the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union Welfare Fund. The seizure effectively depleted the Horseshoe's bankroll, forcing it to close. A day later, the hotel was shut down as well, and Behnen reached an agreement with the
Nevada Gaming Commission The Nevada Gaming Commission is a Nevada state governmental agency involved in the regulation of casinos throughout the state, along with the Nevada Gaming Control Board. In 1959, the Nevada Gaming Commission ("Commission") was created by the ...
to keep the casino closed until its bankroll was replenished. A few days later, on January 23, Behnen reached a deal to sell the Horseshoe to Harrah's Entertainment.


Post-Binion family (2004–present)

Days after the purchase by Harrah's was finalized, the company sold the physical property and the Binion's brand on March 11, 2004, to MTR Gaming Group. Harrah's retained the Horseshoe and World Series of Poker brands. Binion's reopened in April 2004, with MTR operating the hotel and Harrah's operating the casino, while MTR completed the process of acquiring a gaming license. Harrah's operated the casino under a temporary contract until March 11, 2005, when MTR took over and renamed the property Binion's Gambling Hall and Hotel. MTR remodeled both the casino and hotel after the purchase. A notable feature of the remodeling was to replace the casino's worn carpet with surplus carpeting that Benny Binion had stored since initially carpeting the casino. In July 2005, Binion's hosted the WSOP main event for the last time. The tournament had outgrown the space at Binion's, and Harrah's wanted to host it at one of its properties. In 2005, all events, except the final three tables of the main event, were played at the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino. The casino still retains a large poker area and features displays on the Poker Hall of Fame as well as previous WSOP Champions. On March 7, 2008, MTR sold the hotel-casino to TLC Casino Enterprises, owner of the Four Queens, for $32 million. The $1 million casino floor display, once a free tourist photo attraction, returned in August 2008. With $10,000 bills no longer widely available, the new display contained 2,700 $100 bills, 34,400 $20 bills and 42,000 $1 bills. That display was closed in 2019 due to pandemic health restrictions and returned in 2023. The casino is .


Hotel Apache (2009–present)

On purchasing Binion's, TLC had announced a plan to expand the hotel with a new tower, but on December 14, 2009, they closed the hotel and coffee shop due to the
late-2000s recession The Great Recession was a period of market decline in economies around the world that occurred from late 2007 to mid-2009.
. TLC continues to operate the hotel at the Four Queens casino across the street, which has almost twice as many rooms. Previously, Binion's advertised the hotel as closed for renovations. However, due to the high cost of
asbestos Asbestos ( ) is a group of naturally occurring, Toxicity, toxic, carcinogenic and fibrous silicate minerals. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous Crystal habit, crystals, each fibre (particulate with length su ...
removal in the hotel, renovation plans were shelved. In February 2019, TLC announced plans to reopen 81 of the rooms as a new
boutique hotel Boutique hotels are small-capacity Hotel, hotels that provide more personalized service than typical hotels. They typically have fewer than a hundred rooms, and are considered more "trendy" and "intimate", often due to their location in urban ar ...
called Hotel Apache. The hotel was designed with "vintage-style furnishings reminiscent of the original Hotel Apache that opened in 1932". The hotel opened on July 29, 2019.


In media

The 1971 James Bond movie '' Diamonds Are Forever'' has a chase scene showing the Horseshoe several times. The music video for U2's 1987 song, "
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" is a song by Irish rock band U2. It is the second track from their 1987 album '' The Joshua Tree'' and was released as the album's second single in May 1987. The song was a hit, becoming the band ...
", was filmed on Fremont Street and features several views of Binion's. Binion's makes a brief appearance in the 1997
Chevy Chase Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase (; born October 8, 1943) is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He became the breakout cast member in the first season of ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1976), where his recurring ''Weekend Update'' segment b ...
comedy, '' Vegas Vacation'' In 2005, the outside of the hotel (along with its famous former "Horseshoe" logo) is featured prominently in the music video for
Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...
's 2005 single, " Signs" featuring
Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, record producer, and dancer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Prince of Pop", ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' honored him as the b ...
. The hotel was seen in the 2007 film '' Lucky You''. Its history was also mentioned in "Chum Goes AWOL", a second season episode of the
History Channel History (formerly and commonly known as the History Channel) is an American pay television television broadcaster, network and the flagship channel of A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney General Entertainme ...
reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...
series '' Pawn Stars'', which aired in 2010. A reality series, '' Casino Confidential'' which airs on DTour, gives a behind-the-scenes look at the Binion casino. In the 2013 film '' Last Vegas'', the protagonists attempt to check in to Binion’s in an attempt to recreate a bachelor party from decades earlier, only to learn the hotel is undergoing renovations. Binion's was featured in a 2019 episode of ''
Ghost Adventures ''Ghost Adventures'' is an American paranormal television, paranormal and reality television series that premiered on October 17, 2008, on the Travel Channel before moving to Discovery+ in 2021. An independent film of the same name originally ai ...
''.


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Binion's Gambling Hall And Hotel Casinos in the Las Vegas Valley Skyscraper hotels in Las Vegas Landmarks in Nevada Hotels established in 1951 World Series of Poker 1951 establishments in Nevada Casino hotels in the Las Vegas Valley