It’s happening at Atlantic City Hotels and Casinos

What do art, Mr. Peanut, Miss America and sand art all have in common? They are all part of the exhibit at the Atlantic City Historical Museum, of course! Come and visit the Atlantic City Historical Museum for a look at some fascinating memorabilia.

One of the entertaining exhibits at the Atlantic City Historical Museum is a permanent exhibition that is known as, “Atlantic City, Playground of the Nation.” This exhibit begins with a full-size version of Mr. Peanut at the door. This exhibit is like walking through a mini version of the Boardwalk and the beach. It boasts a large display of original sand art. Approximately 100 years ago Heinz pickle pins were given out to visitors and the custom of doing this continues to remain strong. Walking through this section of the museum will delight you as you gaze upon interesting artifacts, souvenirs, costumes, photos and more. There is also a section with Miss America memorabilia to enjoy. While strolling and browsing through this area; a video plays throughout which focuses on the Miss America Pageant, Thomas Edison, and the history that surrounds the museum.

In the Al Gold Photography Gallery the new exhibit, Shore Deco: Atlantic City Design between the Wars is shown. This exhibit dates from the years 1919 to 1939. Mr. Gold was known as Atlantic City’s first Chief Photographer, which he remained until he passed away in 1964.

The Atlantic City Art Center contains three galleries filled with the astounding work of sculptors, photographers, and painters.

A trip to the Atlantic City Historical Museum gift shop features calendars from 1995 to the present, 2009. These “Good Old Days” calendars are reasonably priced and features elements of the days gone by. Other “must have” souvenirs are an original brick from the high school compete with a certificate of authenticity. Purchase one of these bricks to help support the museum and a reputable organization. A video of the exact duplicate of the one playing in the exhibition, “Atlantic City, Playground of the Nation” is for sale here. This video is available in VHS or DVD and entitled, “Boardwalk Ballyhoo: The Magic of Atlantic City”. A book is also available that discusses the “Atlantic City, Playground of the Nation” exhibit. Filled with old photos and delightful history, “Atlantic City: 125 Years of Ocean Madness” is also a big seller.

Memberships for the Atlantic City Historical Museum are available at a rate of anywhere from $10 to the exclusive $1000, which is a corporate membership. Open at 10 a.m. everyday, this museum is a nice little day trip that is well worth your time. It is conveniently located in Atlantic City, NJ and showcases the preservation of the history of the area surroundings.

Come and experience this amazing museum filled with all types of interesting facts and features. You will like what you see!

Image Courtesy : http://www.acmuseum.org/intro.htm

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Atlantic City residents and visitors are very happy to hear about AirTrans Airways plans to offer nonstop flights to  Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. To celebrate the inaugural flight, AirTran hosted a big event at the airport with entertainment provided by the legendary, six Grammy winning, Earth, Wind and Fire. Their hit “Let’s Groove” was received with great pleasure by the audience.

John Kirby, the senior director of strategic planning for the airliner said they the company was extremely pleased to add the world class destination of Atlanta to their network of routes. He stated that AirTran’s high quality and low priced service will increase tourism and bring folks to the sandy beaches of Atlantic City and to the casinos and resorts. Also he was pleased to be able to offer South Jersey residents entry into the expansive network of routes with flights to over 40 destinations through Atlanta, Georgia while they enjoyed Satellite radio and Gogo internet service on board the airliners.

Atlantic City International Airport’s executive director, Bart Mueller said that it is a great day for the residents of Atlantic City and its visitors to have AirTran Airways come to their airport with its outstanding service and great low fares.

AirTran offers four non-stop flights between Atlanta and Atlantic City daily. Flight 962 departs from Atlanta at 10:30 a.m. and arrives in Atlantic City at 12:18 p.m. The second offering from Atlanta is flight 964 that departs at 4:55 p.m. and arrives in Atlantic City at 6:43 p.m. Flight 963 leaves Atlantic City at 12:53 p.m. and arrives in Atlanta at 2:48 p.m. The last flight between the two cities is flight 965 that departs Atlantic City at 7:22 p.m. and lands in Atlanta at 9:15 p.m.

AirTran will have a special introductory fare of just $69. In order to receive this special offer, travelers must book by the last day of June for travel through July 31st. AirTran offers some of the lowest fares in the United States as is ranked at number one for being the lowest cost carrier in the Airline Quality Rating study for the past two years. AirTran’s low fares are greatly appreciated by today’s regular travelers who are trying to spend as little money as possible in these dire economic times.

The casino and resort owners in Atlantic City are very happy to hear of the new non-stop flights offered to and from Atlanta. The Governor of New Jersey, Jon Corzine said that this new service connects Atlantic City with fifty cities nationwide and he says he is quite confident that the city’s casinos and resorts will benefit. The crippling recession has taken a toll on these establishments as gamblers are much more reluctant to part with their money. There are eleven casinos in Atlantic City that are in bankruptcy.

Image Courtesy Of http://www.lasplash.com/

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Atlantic City has definitely classed up a little bit over the last couple of months. With Ace performers frequenting the city for New Year’s, it feels like the good times are back. But the exodus phenomenon - decrease in population - is interesting, and a little bit of a concern. The city has lost the title of being the most populated municipality to Galloway and Egg Harbor townships, according to the census late this year. The prominent reasons are the recent casino-employee layoffs, which pushed too many people towards the mainland to seek employment. Subprime mortgages are also something to be blamed. 

Atlantic city which is possibly the best located casino hub in the entire world after the Macau, saw a slight increase in its total number of housing units, which happens to exceed the closest township by about 5,000 units. But the exodus has left more vacant housing. Surveys show nearly 23 percent of Atlantic City’s housing units vacant and renters occupy more than 70 percent.

A population of 40,000 residents but 34 million annual visitors makes the ratio subject to speculation. The city’s decline in residents is not likely to rebound soon until there are some major changes in the economic condition. However, going by the facts, Atlantic city hasn’t been much of a growing community. The population peaked once in 1930’s and has been on a decline since then. The lower population density on the other hand is a peculiar trait of the island. The city is happy serving the visitors who never seem to slowdown. They drive in to enjoy the casinos and the boardwalk, exotic wineries and exciting beaches that surround the city. And this doesn’t sound anything like Las Vegas.

Another reason for the decline in population can be attributed to the slowdown in construction related work in the city. Many temporary construction workers who came from adjoining cities and states have now left since construction in many locations has stopped.

Some casinos have reported increasing profits in the last two months of 2008, quite a surprise to many. Official earnings reports have not been released yet, all eyes will be open in anticipation of that, but in the meantime, if the insider reports are to be beleived, that is good news for Atlantic City. Overall, it appears to be a time of confusion at best, and Atlantic City might just be one of the first places in the country to bounce back from recession.

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Come May, the whole town seems to cotton on to the mood with everyone trying to their luck at the casinos. This May was not all that different, with huge crowds, and the casinos raked in more of the usual. Here are some of the specs for the month of May. Gamblers lost a total of $415 million at the casinos, netting an increase of 1.6% over the last year. The casino winnings at the slot machines was $289.6 million while at the tables, it was $125.7 million. It seems that the current season ’s ‘May fever’ had some good tidings for the casinos after all.

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A new law signed on Friday offers protection and prevents the racetracks and the casinos from having to deal with closure even in the face of a budget crisis. One does not have to look that far behind to recall the debacle that followed the closure of the racetracks and the casinos in 2006. Gov. Jon Corzine made it apparent that he was backing the bill to the hilt and that it was important for the casinos not to be threatened by closure like the last time around. Seeing that these casinos are one of the largest cash earners for the state, such statements are to be expected from the political figures. But now they have a new law since last Friday, which expressly forbids the closing of the casinos and the racetracks even in the face of a budgetary crisis. Well, reason seems to have taken on an extended vacation of sorts…

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The Story Of The Slot Machine - Over Hundred Years of Thrill and Entertainment

Did you know that what we call a slot machine in America is a fruit machine in the UK and a poker machine in Australia? In 1895, the first slot machine was created by inventor Charles Fey. Besides being its inventor, Charles Fey also sold and distributed slot machines to businesses as well. In 1907, Charles Fey decided to become partners with the Mills Novelty Company to produce a line of new slot machines. The first was the Mills Liberty Bell. 3 years later, the Mills Company created the very first fruit symbol slot machine called the Operator Bell. The early slot machines were made of cast iron, a heavy material that was hard to lug from casino to casino.

In 1915, with the Mills Company’s involvement came the first wood cabinet slot machine. This lighter material made it easier for them to deliver slot machines to various businesses. The Mills Company used its creative mind to branch out and create more interesting slot machines for players. In the 1930’s, it worked on different designs for different machines, all coming with their own mini-themes. These eye-catching, more colorful machines became a luxury for players. In the 1930’s, there was a slot machine boom throughout the United States especially in all gambling hubs like Atlantic City. Since then, slot machines have known a lot of transformations: the mechanical machines were replaced with electronic ones, and then video slot machines started to gain reputation.

The first electro-mechanical slot machine was developed by Bally Manufacturing in 1964 and was called Money Honey. This was the first machine in over 50 years that started to move on from Feys original invention. Internally the machine replaced springs and levers with electrical components and for the player the outward changes really added to the gaming experience with multiple coin play and higher jackpots. The use of the electricity allowed exciting slots noises and flashing lights. Overnight the slot machine had become a whole lot more exciting and appealing to a lot more people.

Bally Manufacturing continued to lead the way in the development of slot machines and in the mid 1970’s introduced a Dollar Slot Machine which casinos arranged in carousels and bigger jackpots. Until now slots had been consider secondary gambling games for the casinos, with the table games considered primary profit games. This was now changing as the slots become increasingly popular.

In 1980 a new company called Sircoma produced a Video Poker Slot Machine. At first players were untrusting of the video aspect as they could not actually see the reels spinning. There are many different kinds of gambling slot machines in places such as Atlantic City. However they soon become very popular and still are today both in live casinos and online.

In the mid 1990s slot machines started accepting bills so players no longer needed to get change in coins to play, this meant more time at the slot machine and actually playing the slot even easier.

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The resurrection of Atlantic City by the inception of casino gambling twenty years ago was a slow process, and with increasing competition, there is growing uncertainty as to whether the city’s future will be one of continued growth, stagnation, or a return to the decay and decline that made Atlantic City turn to gaming in the first place. Recent casino and urban development has pumped billions of dollars into New Jersey’s economy, generating in new tax revenue and creating more jobs than the city had residents. However, the casino industry has not restored Atlantic City to its former position as playground of the world or the major hospitality center of the United States as was anticipated in the Casino Control Act. Let’s go through some of the reasons and the facts that might help us understand this trend and whether it is a short-term glitch or a long-term phenomenon.

The more typical experience is that of Atlantic City which has not reaped great benefits from its casinos, despite their contributing nearly seventy percent of the tax levy. The Atlantic City casinos collectively employ more than forty thousand people, wages are relatively low; study found that a third of the hotel jobs in the city paid very less.

Atlantic City Hotels and Casinos have provided the needed resources for the redevelopment of the city. They have created thousands of moderate income jobs in a year round environment, catering to millions of tourists per year. Of course, the state of New Jersey has received substantial tax benefits as a result of casino revenues. The revenue from entertainment and gambling related taxes at Atlantic City is second only to Las Vegas in the United States. With such a seemingly positive cashflow, how can the economy not do well?

There are several reasons that we think could be causing this. Political errors and the overall economic slowdown are perhaps the biggest ones. Because of disputes between Atlantic City, Atlantic County, and the state of New Jersey, the failing infrastructure and the social degeneration of the community continued up until five years ago. Under the New Jersey Casino control act, two percent of the gross revenue from casino operations was to be provided to the state of New Jersey for redevelopment projects within Atlantic City. Under the act, these funds were earmarked for urban redevelopment. The state believed that it did not need to use these funds in Atlantic City, assuming that the total investment in Atlantic City by hotels and entertainment facilities would be sufficient to stimulate growth within the community. The infrastructure and the need for city housing would be accelerated by the development of the casino industry itself. This assumption, combined with the overall nation-wide economic slowdown may have been one of the primary reasons for the current slowdown at Atlantic City.

It is interesting that, in sharp contract, other states and local governments have not hesitated to spend millions in efforts to attract new jobs into their economies. The state of New York authorized sic new tribal casinos and slot machine gaming at eight race tracks. This was motivated in no small measure by the need to close the gap against large impending state deficits, relating both to the economic slowdown and to the anticipated economic consequences of the terrorist actions and the subsequent war on terrorism. This sort of further reinforces that casino development can still be a very favorable thing for the State and its economy if done well.

More than 500 casino employees have been laid off in the past three months alone in Atlantic City and other leading gaming jurisdictions. The peripheral businesses for the casinos – hotels, atlantic city shows, Etc. are slowing down the fastest and even gaming revenues are showing signs of decline. Will Atlantic City survive this scare and come out ahead in the long run or is this the beginning of a new troubling era for it? Time will tell.

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