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>> Binion's Horseshoe
Binion's Horseshoe was a hotel and casino
located in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada on the Fremont Street
Experience. The casino is named for its founder, Benny Binion
and has 366 rooms.
In the 1940s Binion moved to Las Vegas from
Texas because of increased political pressure. He bought the
Eldorado Club in 1951 which later became Binion's Horseshoe.
It was one of the first casinos to have carpeting and comps
for all its players, and was an immediate hit because of the
large limits on bets.
Binion's entire family was involved in the
casino. His sons Jack Binion and Ted Binion would become president
and manager, respectively, and his wife Teddy Jane managed
the casino cage.
History
In 1970 it became the host to the largest
set of poker tournaments in the world, the World Series of
Poker. In 1988 the Horseshoe expanded by acquiring The Mint,
a high-rise hotel adjacent to it. Benny Binion, the founder,
died in 1989.
In 1998, Binion's daughter, Becky Behnen,
took over the presidency after a legal battle. Jack moved
on to other gambling interests, but retained a tiny ownership
interest in Binion's. Behnen implemented cost-cutting measures,
some of which were unpopular. Among the most notable was the
removal of the horseshoe exhibit that had held $1 million
in $10,000 bills, providing 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.
Under Behnen's leadership, the casino became
deeply in debt and was closed during an IRS raid on January
9, 2004 for non-payment of taxes. In March, Harrah's Entertainment
purchased Binion's Horseshoe, which re-opened in April.
After buying the Horseshoe, Harrah's Entertainment
sold the property on March 11, 2004 to MTR Gaming Group, which
operated the hotel. Harrah's continued to operate the casino
under a temporary contract until March of 2005. Harrah's retained
the rights to the Horseshoe name and the World Series of Poker
name.
When the casino was remodeled after the purchase,
the original carpeting was installed. It seems that Benny
Binion had ordered and stored for all these years, enough
carpet to re-carpet the entire casino.
On March 11, 2005, MTR Gaming took over operation
of the casino and it was renamed Binion's Gambling Hall &
Hotel.
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