Designing Casinos to Dominate the Competition

The Friedman International Standards of Casino DesignTM

Contents

Dedication iii

Acknowledgements v

Forewords
William R. Eadington xix
Shannon Bybee xxiii

All Copyright and Trademark Rights Reserved xxvi

Part I
Research and Findings: The Freidman International Standards
of Casino DesignTM

PREFACE

Conduct of the Research and Organization of the Findings 3

Research Methods - Appendix A 3
Factors that Affect Player Counts - Appendix B 5
Evaluating Competitive Positions among Casinos - Appendix C 6
Unique Natural Light Photographs of Current Casinos - Appendix D 7
Development of the Friedman PrinciplesTM 8

CHAPTER 1

The Friedman Casino Design PrinciplesTM 11

Two Initial Findings and Their Monumental Implications 11
The Definition of Casino Design - More than Décor 12
General Design Principles Versus Specific Interiors 13
A Summary of the Principles' Traits 13
Predictive Power of the Friedman Design Principles TM 14
Predicting a Proposed Casino's Financial Potential for Investors 14
The Thirteen Friedman Design PrinciplesTM 15
Friedman International Standards of Casino DesignTM Rating System 18

CHAPTER 2

Principle 1
A Physically Segmented Casino beats a Completely Open Barn 19
Initial Discovery - The Problems with Barn Designs 19
Small, Early Nevada Casinos - 1930s - 1960s 21
Winning Principle 1 - Segmenting a Casino Diminishes the Barn Effect 21

CHAPTER 3

Losing Principle 1
Nevada's Completely Open Casino Barns 23
The Fate of Nevada's Barn-Style Casinos 23

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 The Six Earliest Large Nevada Casino Barns - Mid-1960s - 1970s 23
The Large Strip Megaresort Barns of the 1990s 25
Three Strip Casinos Expanded into Barns in the 1990s 26
Five Rotunda-Shaped Casinos 26
The Fate of the Seven Little Strip Barns 27
Henderson Competition - The Rainbow and the Eldorado 29
The Five Stateline Casinos 30
Nevada's Earliest Tiny Barns - 1930s - 1940s 31
Harolds Barn Expansion - 1979 31
Atlantic City's Casino Woes 32
Harrah's New Orleans Bankruptcy 32
The Cross-Cultural Impact of Casino Barns 33
The Barn Effect in Small Ancillary Slot Operations 33

CHAPTER 4

Principle 2
Gambling Equipment Immediately Inside Casino Entrances Beats
Vacant Entrance Landings and Empty Lobbies 35
Winning Principle 2 - The Ideal Entry 35
Losing Principle 2 - Raised Landings Deter Potential Play 35
Types of Raised Landings 36
The Las Vegas Hilton and SpaceQuest, Bally's on the Strip, and the Reno Hilton 37
The Riviera on the Strip 38
The Sands on the Strip 38
The Barbary Coast, the Stratosphere, the Hard Rock, and the Santa Fe 39
Six Segmented Casinos With Raised Entrance Landings 40
Six Casinos With Raised Interior Landings 40
Nevada Designers' Penchant for Barns With Raised Landings 41
Solutions for Interior Stair Landings 42
Facilitating Traffic Flow With Stairs and Casino Drivers 43
Solutions for Escalator Landings 44
A Large Hotel Lobby Located in the Casino Entrance - Losing Principle 2 45
A Sunken Area Within a Casino 45

CHAPTER 5

Principle 3
Short Lines of Sight Beat Extensive Visible Depth 46
Winning Principle 3 - Short Sight Lines 46
Losing Principle 3 - Long Sight Lines 46
The Boundless Sea-of-Slots Effect - The Never-Ending Layout 47
The Overcast-Sky Effect - A Low, Flat, Uninterrupted Ceiling 48
Painted Ceilings - Blue Sky and White Clouds 50
Ceiling Level Solutions - Multiple Soffit and Coffer Elevations 51
Solutions With Other Types of Varying Elevations 52
Solutions With Asymmetrical Floor Layout and Ceiling Design Combinations 53
The Negative Effect of Long, Straight, Uninterrupted Passageways and Aisles 53
High-Profile Slot Cabinets As Visual Barriers 54

CHAPTER 6

Principle 4
The Maze Layout Beats Long, Wide, Straight Passageways and Aisles 56
Principle 4 - The Maze Versus Long Pathways 56
Two Maze Styles - Short, Straight Walkways and Frequently Curving Ones 56

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 Nevada's $1 Slot Play from 1970 to the Development of the Maze Slot Layout 57
The First Modern Maze Slot Layout - Reno's Cal-Neva in 1978 58
The Second and Third Maze Layouts - The Castaways and the Silver Slipper on the Strip in 1980 59
Casino Appeal's Immediate Impact on Tourists 60
The Casino Industry's Disregard of the Maze Layout's Tremendous Successes 60
Ineffective Application of the Maze Concept Deters Traffic Flow and Potential Play 61
Properly Integrating Layout Elements 62

CHAPTER 7

The Many Advantages of the Maze Slot Layout 63

Attracting Visitors Throughout the Entire Casino - Advantage 1 63
Focusing Visitor's Attention on the Gambling Equipment - Advantage 2 64
The Illusion of Being Crowded - Advantage 3 64
The Importance of Being Crowded - The Harolds/Cal-Neva Market Research,
the Friedman Critical Headcount Mass Phenomenon, and Shills 64
Enhancing Excitement By Being Crowded - Advantage 4 66
A Multitude of Small, Appealing Gambling Worlds - Advantage 5 66
Intensified Machine Loudness - Advantage 6 67

CHAPTER 8

Principle 5
A Compact and Congested Gambling-Equipment Layout Beats a Vacant and Spacious Floor Layout 69
Winning Principle 5 - A Jam Packed and Cramped Floor Layout 69
Losing Principle 5 - A Spacious Floor Layout 69
The Popularity of Congested and Compact Settings - Maze Layout Advantage 7 70
The Imagery of Spaciousness Versus Player Preference for Snugness 70
Players' Desire for Compactness Can Complement Fire Safety 71

CHAPTER 9

The Four Primary Interior Elements Found in Every Super Successful Nevada Casino 72
Dominate or Be Dominated - The Four Most Relevant Winning Principles 72
The Megaresorts' Weak Player-to-Visitor Ratios 73
Ideal Interiors - Not the Famous and Glamorous, but the Busiest and Most Parasitic 74
The First Outstanding Player-Appealing Interior - Harolds Reno 74
The Four Largest Casinos in the 1960s - 1980s - Harolds Reno, Harrah's Reno
and Tahoe, and Harveys Tahoe 76
Domination of the Strip - The Castaways and the Silver Slipper 76
Two Later Reno Leaders - The Primadonna and the Cal-Neva 77
Early Downtown Las Vegas Leaders - The Boulder, the Pioneer, and the Golden Nugget 77
The Three Oldest Downtown Las Vegas Casinos - the El Cortez, the Horseshoe, and the Golden Gate 78

CHAPTER 10

Principle 6
An Organized Gambling-Equipment Layout With Focal Points of Interest Beats
a Floor Layout That Lacks a Sense of Organization 79
Principle 6 - Organized Versus Disorganized 79
Facilitating Traffic Flow - Maze Layout Advantage 8 80
Directing Traffic Flow on Passageways into Gambling Aisles - Advantage 9 80
Large Department Stores and Disneyland Theme Parks Facilitate Traffic Flow 82
Focal Points Facilitate Visitor Traffic Flow - Advantage 10 82

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 The Disneyland Design Goals 83
Siting Focal Points to Facilitate Traffic Flow and Emphasize Gambling Features 83
Producing More Appealing Gambling Settings By Observing the Unique Qualities of Players 84
Designing Effective and Strategically Located Focal Points 85
Focal Point Architectural Element Variety 85
Focal Point Design Diversity 86

CHAPTER 11

Principle 7
Segregated Sit-Down Facilities 87

CHAPTER 12

Principle 8
Low Ceilings Beat High Ceilings 89
Ceiling Height's Powerful Impact on Potential Play 89
Ceiling Height and Player Count Interrelationships 89
The Correlation Between Ceiling Height and Competitive Ranking 90
Las Vegas Strip Casinos - Ceiling Heights 93
Downtown Las Vegas Casinos - Ceiling Heights 95
Las Vegas Neighborhood Casinos - Ceiling Heights 95
Laughlin Casinos - Ceiling Heights 96
Reno/Sparks Casinos - Ceiling Heights 97
South Shore, Lake Tahoe, Casinos - Ceiling Heights 98

CHAPTER 13

Principle 9
Gambling Equipment As the Décor Beats Impressive and Memorable Decorations 100
Winning Principle 9 - The Gambling Equipment Is the Décor 100
Losing Principle 9 - Décor Is nothing But a Dramatic First Impression 100
Only Players Matter 101
Differentiating Casinos Through The Use of Décor 102
Unforgettable Interiors - But for Whom? 103
The Woolworth merchandising Approach 104
Highlighting the Gambling Equipment 404
Minimal Décor 105
Unnoticed and Unremembered Décor 105

CHAPTER 14

Extreme Examples of Décor - Beauty Versus Plainness 107

The Uniqueness of the Golden Gate 107
The Pioneer Versus the Golden Gate 108
The Similarity of the Reno Nugget and the Golden Gate 108
The Reno Nugget Versus the Flamingo Hilton Reno's Slot Arcade 109
Beauty in Whose Eyes? 110
Beauty Versus Ugly - The Demise of the main Street Station 111
The Main Street Station's Many Design Weaknesses 111
The Friedman Design PrinciplesTM Predict the Main Street Station's Failure 112
The New Main Street Station 113
The MGM Grand's Problems Were Foreshadowed By the Main Street Station's 114
Accurately Predicting Casino Success in the 1990s Using the Friedman Design Principles TM 114

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CHAPTER 15

Designers and Design Decision-Makers - Hung Up on Personal Taste 115

Designers Are Unaware of Their Influence on Player Counts 115
Today's Emphasis on the Losing Principles 116
Rating Interior Designers By Player Counts at Their Previous Projects 116
Design Decision-Makers' Ignorance of Their Gambling Product 117
Players Define Casino Ambiance 117

CHAPTER 16

Principle 10
Standard Décor Beats Interior Casino Themes 119
To Theme or Not to Theme 119
How Nevada's Themed Resort Casinos Have Fared 120
The Performance of Nevada's Quasi-Themed Resort Casinos 122
The Curb Appeal of Four Effective Strip Exteriors 123

CHAPTER 17

Principle 11
Pathways Emphasizing the Gambling Equipment Beat the Yellow Brick Road 125
Accentuating the Equipment Versus the Yellow Brick Road 125
The Mirage's Yellow Brick Road 125
Typical Visitor Traffic Flow Patterns on a Yellow Brick Road 126
The Main Street Station and MGM Grand Yellow Brick Roads 127

CHAPTER 18

Lighting, Signage and Canopies, and Sound 128

Functional or Task Lighting 128
Directional Signage 129
Gambling Promotional Signage 129
Strategic Sign Placement and Design 129
Sign and Canopy Lighting - Motion, Intensity, and Excitement 130
Decorative Lighting As an Attraction 132
highlighting the Gambling Activity 133
Light Dimmers and Security Locks 133
Down Lights 134
Casino Cage Lighting 134
Sound Volume Versus Noise 135
Casinos With Noisy Hard Surfaces 136
Acoustically Reflecting Surfaces and the Sounds of Gambling 137
Entertainment Lounge Acoustics and Lighting 138

CHAPTER 19

Carpet, Chairs, Arm Rests, Temperature, Smoke, and Player Comfort 139
Carpet - Colors and Patterns 139
Carpet - Player Comfort 139
Seating Comfort and Diversity 140
Table Surfaces and Rim Covers 140
Temperature Control 140
The Special Needs of Live Poker Players 141
Cigarette Smoke 142

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CHAPTER 20

Winning Principle 12
Perception Beats Reality 143
Height/Depth Perspective 143
Adding Hoods, Canopies, and Signage to Lower Perceived Height 144
Decorations Below Ceiling Level 145
Structural Posts and Perceived Gambling Ambiance 145

CHAPTER 21

Losing Principle 12
Exterior Casino Design Perception 146
The Relationship Between Perception and Image 146
The Approach to the Property 146
A Fanciful Marquee Versus an Information Billboard 147
Entry into the Property 147
Directional Signage Assists Traffic Flow on the Property 148
Entry to the Parking Area and Ease of Parking 148
The Walk from the Car to the Casino 149
The Casino Entrance/Exit 149
Seeing Everything from the Visitors' Perspective 149
The Fremont Street Experience Versus the Stratosphere Tower 150
The Visitors' View of the Establishment 151
The Sands' Intimidating Pedestrian Entrance 152

CHAPTER 22

Principle 13
Multiple Interior Settings and Gambling Ambiances Beat a Single Atmosphere Throughout 153
The Advantages of Multiple Gambling Worlds 153
Nevada's First Large Casinos Offered Multiple Settings 154
Disney's Theme Parks Offer Multiple Environments 154
Ineffective Multiple Interior Designs Cause Disparate Player Counts 155

CHAPTER 23

Designing a New Casino Interior 157

Goals and Initial Phases 157
Traffic Flow into Dead-Ends 158
Coordinating Food Functions 159
Situating Entrances to Casino Drivers Around the Gambling Areas 159
Any Shaped Gambling Area Will Do 160
Placing the Gambling Equipment 160
The Classic Pit Layout 160
Live Poker in Main Traffic Flows 161
Games That Share the Same Players 162
The Final Two Design Phases 162
Lounges to Entertain Gamblers 162
Location of the Cashier's Cage 164

CHAPTER 24

The Friedman Design PrinciplesTM Also Apply to Restaurants and Bars 165
Segmented Restaurants 165
Restaurant Table Spacing 166

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 Enclosed, Intimate Casino Bars Versus Open Island Bars 166
Soffitry Over Casino Island bars 167
Multitiered Floor Levels 168
Outdoor Décor Lacks Player Appeal 168

Part II
Applying the Principles to the Casinos of Nevada: The Friedman International
Standards of Casino DesignTM

Las Vegas Strip Map 172

CHAPTER 25

The Friedman Design PrinciplesTM Also Apply to Restaurants and Bars 173

CHAPTER 26

Weak Long-Term Performance - The Las Vegas Hilton and Bally's 178
Las Vegas Hilton 178
SpaceQuest Casino 183
Bally's Las Vegas 186

CHAPTER 27

The Desert Inn-Frontier Crosswalk Strip Casinos 191

Desert Inn 192
Frontier 196

CHAPTER 28

The North-End Strip Casinos 200

Riviera 202
Circus Circus Las Vegas 208
Stardust 213
Westward Ho 217
Stratosphere 220

CHAPTER 29

The Small Strip Casinos 228

Slots-A-Fun 229
Silver City 231
Barbary Coast 232
Nickel Town at the Riviera 235
Hard Rock 239

CHAPTER 30

The Middle Strip Casinos 245

Mirage 246
Treasure Island 250
Flamingo Hilton Las Vegas 260

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 Caesars Palace Las Vegas 264
Harrah's Las Vegas 273
Aladdin 275

CHAPTER 31

The South-End Strip Casinos 278

MGM Grand 278
Excalibur 285
Luxor 288
Tropicana Las Vegas 290
Monte Carlo 300
New York-New York 307

CHAPTER 32

The Downtown Las Vegas Casinos 315

Map of Downtown Las Vegas Casinos 316
Horseshoe Las Vegas 318
El Cortez 324
Golden Gate 328
Golden Nugget Las Vegas 332
Four Queens 335
Fremont 339
Fitzgeralds Las Vegas 342
California 347
Lady Luck Las Vegas 351
Main Street Station 355
Union Plaza 361
Las Vegas Club 361

CHAPTER 33

The Boulder Highway Neighborhood Casinos 363

Showboat Las Vegas 365
Sam's Town Las Vegas 371
Boulder Station 376
Sunset Station 381
Reserve 386

CHAPTER 34

The West of the Strip Neighborhood Casinos 388

Palace Station 388
Gold Coast 397
Orleans 401
Rio and Masquerade Village 403
Arizona Charlie's 415

CHAPTER 35

The Rancho Drive Neighborhood Casinos 418

Santa Fe 418
Fiesta 423
Texas Station 424

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CHAPTER 36

The Laughlin Casinos 430

Gold River 432
Ramada Express 433
Harrah's Del Rio 439
Flamingo Hilton Laughlin 443
Colorado Belle 449
Edgewater 452
Riverside 456
Golden Nugget Laughlin 460
Pioneer 462

CHAPTER 37

The South Shore, Lake Tahoe Casinos 467

Horizon 469
Caesars Tahoe 472
Bill's 477
Harrah's Tahoe 480
Harveys Tahoe 486

CHAPTER 38

The Isolated Reno/Sparks Casinos 492

Reno Hilton 495
Sparks Nugget 502
Silver Club 509
Peppermill 512
Hyatt Regency at North Shore, Lake Tahoe 522
Atlantis 531
Boomtown Reno

Map of Reno/Sparks Casinos 534

CHAPTER 39

The Reno Downtown Core Casinos 535

Silver Legacy 538
Eldorado 545
Circus Circus Reno 556
Harrah's Reno 560
Club Cal-Neva 567
Fitzgeralds Reno 578
Flamingo Hilton Reno 583
Reno Nugget 594

Contacting the Author 599

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Part III
Conduct of the Research and Background Information: The Friedman International
Standards of Casino DesignTM

APPENDIX A

Research Methods 603

Twenty Years of Investigative Research 603
Nevada's Casinos - The Quintessential Laboratory 604
Competition Among Nevada's Major Casinos - 1931-1998 604
Objective and Quantitative Research Analysis 605

APPENDIX B

Factors That Affect Player Counts 607

The Influence of Location 607
Significance of Interior Design 607
interior Design Supersedes marketing 608
Comparing Locations - Results of the Stardust and Tropicana 609
Importance of Hotel Rooms 610
Monopolistic Casinos Have Competition Too 611

APPENDIX C

Evaluating Competitive Positions Among Casinos 614

Quantitative Analysis of Casino Competitive Positions 614
A Casino's Potential Popularity Versus Its Actual Popularity 614
Casino Win 614
Slot-Win, Total Slots, Slot-Occupancy Rate, and Average Slot Win 615
Slot-to-Room Ratio and Player-to-Room Ratio 616
The Best Indicator of Profit Potential - The Player-to-Visitor Ratio 616
Player Count Methodology 618
Estimating Competitors' Player Counts 619
Data Sources 619

APPENDIX D

Unique Natural Light Photographs of Current Casinos 620

The Casino Interior Photographs 620
The Photographic Panorama 620
Two-Dimensional Photographs 621
No-Flash Photography 621
Disparate Light Levels 622
Artificial Lighting and Filters 623
Photographing at Slow Times 624
Masking the Photograph Faces 624
The Photographing Time Frame 624

Table A:
Measurements of Interior Physical and Sensory Characteristics 625

Table B:
Conversion of Feet and Inches to Metric System 626

Glossary 627

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