Casino news from http://www.thetimesonline.com/
Teresa Anderson and her sister Linda Faye live in Chicago, but they visit Gary when they want casino entertainment.
Even though they have four closer casino choices in the Chicago area, including two properties in Joliet and others in Aurora and Elgin, it's Don Barden's decade-old dual boats in Gary that they prefer.
"It's just an all-around better experience," said Faye, one of the guests at Barden's Majestic Star 10th anniversary weekend bash Sunday. "It's worth crossing state lines because the treatment is always first-class."
The sisters were just two of the thousands of people who visited Buffington Harbor on Sunday to celebrate the addition of casino riverboats in Northwest Indiana 10 years ago.
It was in 1993 that Donald Trump first sunk a $50,000 investment with the Indiana Gaming Commission to secure the first of two issued licenses for gaming boats in Gary. The second Gary license went to Barden, who now owns both of the Buffington Harbor vessels. He purchased Trump's property last year.
By September 1995, Trump had broken ground for his planned gaming complex. Barden followed his lead shortly after. Both boats were open in 1996 and boomed with prosperity, officially becoming a part of business history in the Hoosier state with the launch of legal off-shore gaming.
"It's been a great 10 years," Barden said Sunday, accompanied not only by his wife, Bella, but also 160 family members who were included at the festivities as "special invited VIP guests."
Majestic Star publicist Yvette Gawne said it was easy to watch the guest list grow, considering Barden has 12 siblings.
Some of the celebrity guests Sunday included blues legend Koko Taylor, actor Meschach Taylor from "Designing Women" and actress Telma Hopkins, famous for being one-third of the group Tony Orlando and Dawn.
"Don (Barden) always throws a great party," said Hopkins, who has visited and performed at many casino venues over the years, from Las Vegas and Reno to Lake Tahoe and Atlantic City.
"All this splash and flash is not just because this is a 10th-anniversary celebration," she said. "I think Don likes to roll out the red carpet treatment for guests every day."
Former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka, who serves as the official celebrity spokesman for Majestic Star, attended events Friday, but had to miss Sunday's invitation because of his ESPN broadcast obligations and Sunday's season opening Chicago Bears game.
The final event at the three-day casino celebration was a formal evening charity dinner for the West Side Theatre Guild, which also is celebrating a 10-year anniversary.
|
|
World Casino Directory 
Gambling Forums 
