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The Tale of the One-Day Casino (3 of 3)

The sluggish A/C units are no match for the scalding desert sun, but the Queen of Hearts’ owners are content to broil for exactly eight hours. It costs thirty thousand dollars to run the casino for one day at such a capacity, but it’s money well-spent, says foreman Bob Bright.

Bright explained how the casino must also serve liquor at least once a year to maintain its legal status. The casino’s management hires a lone bartender to uncork a single bottle, and the bar is officially open – even if nobody buys a drink. Bright told a Los Angeles Times reporter covering the one-day casino that this year’s beverage of choice was Jim Beam whiskey.

Bright’s job is to monitor the play of the slot machines, which have certainly seen their better days. Many of the slot games are over ten years old, and feature archaic controls and themes. Considering that the world of mainstream Vegas slots is all about the newest, brightest, and most technologically-advanced, this is a departure indeed. The biggest excitement of the day happens when two women on their lunch hour pop in for a few spins. They win a few dollars, but the twenty bucks Bright keeps in his pocket in anticipation of any big jackpot payouts is not in jeopardy. Less than ten gamblers enter the casino, but it’s still a big day for the Queen of Hearts. At precisely two in the afternoon, Bright and his cohorts oversee the loading up of the slot machines back into the truck that will take them back into storage, awaiting the next opening of the one-day casino.

Back to September 2008 Archive.