http://www.fox.com/thecasino/Reality titan
Mark Burnett will produce THE CASINO, a new unscripted drama for FOX, it was announced today by Mike Darnell, Executive Vice President of Alternative Programming. Production will begin this spring on the 13-episode series to air in the summer of 2004. It will provide an extraordinary 24/7, behind-the-scenes look at the real-life dramas that unfold at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, after its new owners take over the business and attempt to bring back the glory of its “Rat Pack” heyday.
“We are thrilled to be in business with Mark Burnett,” said Darnell. “He has consistently proven himself to be one of the best producers in the business.” He added: “We found the concept for this series riveting. Casinos are exciting, fantastic and mysterious – and incredible human drama unfolds all day, every day. No one has ever had this kind of access, and we think viewers will be amazed by this world.”
“Las Vegas is like a magnet,” said Burnett. “The city attracts people from all over the world with two things on their mind -- getting rich quick and having as much fun as possible in a short period of time. It is the magnetism of Las Vegas that we will try to capture on camera, as we tell the story of two young entrepreneurs who found remarkable success during the Internet boom and are now living out their dreams of owning a Las Vegas casino.
“We researched the Vegas landscape and found Tim and Tom to be very charismatic characters and their journey to be the most personal and dramatic story. They will be walking the casino floor every night like in old Vegas. That doesn’t happen in today’s large, corporate casinos,” said Conrad Riggs.
Riggs will serve as Co-Executive Producer for Mark Burnett Productions along with Jamie Bruce (“The Restaurant”), along with the company’s Kevin Harris (“The Apprentice"), who will serve as Supervising Producer.
On behalf of Poster and Breitling, Trent Othick of Las Vegas-based Insomnia Entertainment and Rob Lieberman will executive produce, and Perry Rogers of Alliance Sports Management will produce and coordinate the production for Poster and Breitling. Mark Burg represents Rob Lieberman and will receive a producer credit on the show.
Implementation of the contract for the series is contingent on the acquisition of the Golden Nugget properties by Poster and Breitling. The acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of other closing conditions.
Applications for potential guests interested in appearing in the series will soon be available by clicking here.
We will watch them take a seat at the table of the world’s most exciting business as they take over one of the most legendary of all Las Vegas casinos, the Golden Nugget.”
At the center of the series will be entrepreneurs Timothy Poster and Thomas Breitling, whose start-up “Travelscape.com” revolutionized the travel industry. The company’s sale to Expedia in 2000 made the pair multimillionaires, and Breitling and Poster will use part of their fortunes to fulfill their life-long dream by purchasing the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino on Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas, as well as its sister property on the Colorado River in Laughlin, NV. They are now betting that they can create the same sort of classic Las Vegas experience that was so prevalent in Vegas' glory days.
“Our goal is to provide customers with the type of service that they cannot find anywhere else in Las Vegas.
We intend to give our patrons the type of service that was so common in years past, but has been slowly disappearing with the growth of the mega-resorts. Vegas casinos used to be a fantasyland for gamblers and this is what we intend to provide. It is all about knowing customers by their names, knowing what kind of whiskey they drink, what kind of cigarettes they smoke, and what type of suites they prefer – and giving it to them. This will be the focus of our business," said Tim Poster.
Conceived by Burnett and production partner Conrad Riggs, THE CASINO will go beyond the challenges facing Breitling and Poster, to explore the personal dramas unfolding among some of the 3,000 employees inside this world -- from cocktail waitresses, to pit bosses, to security, management and entertainers. 24 hours a day, seven days a week, this real-life cast of characters runs an elaborate high-stakes operation that caters to visitors from around the world seeking the thrill of Las Vegas.
Mark Burnett will produce THE CASINO, a new unscripted drama for FOX, it was announced today by Mike Darnell, Executive Vice President of Alternative Programming. Production will begin this spring on the 13-episode series to air in the summer of 2004. It will provide an extraordinary 24/7, behind-the-scenes look at the real-life dramas that unfold at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, after its new owners take over the business and attempt to bring back the glory of its “Rat Pack” heyday.
“We are thrilled to be in business with Mark Burnett,” said Darnell. “He has consistently proven himself to be one of the best producers in the business.” He added: “We found the concept for this series riveting. Casinos are exciting, fantastic and mysterious – and incredible human drama unfolds all day, every day. No one has ever had this kind of access, and we think viewers will be amazed by this world.”
“Las Vegas is like a magnet,” said Burnett. “The city attracts people from all over the world with two things on their mind -- getting rich quick and having as much fun as possible in a short period of time. It is the magnetism of Las Vegas that we will try to capture on camera, as we tell the story of two young entrepreneurs who found remarkable success during the Internet boom and are now living out their dreams of owning a Las Vegas casino.
“We researched the Vegas landscape and found Tim and Tom to be very charismatic characters and their journey to be the most personal and dramatic story. They will be walking the casino floor every night like in old Vegas. That doesn’t happen in today’s large, corporate casinos,” said Conrad Riggs.
Riggs will serve as Co-Executive Producer for Mark Burnett Productions along with Jamie Bruce (“The Restaurant”), along with the company’s Kevin Harris (“The Apprentice"), who will serve as Supervising Producer.
On behalf of Poster and Breitling, Trent Othick of Las Vegas-based Insomnia Entertainment and Rob Lieberman will executive produce, and Perry Rogers of Alliance Sports Management will produce and coordinate the production for Poster and Breitling. Mark Burg represents Rob Lieberman and will receive a producer credit on the show.
Implementation of the contract for the series is contingent on the acquisition of the Golden Nugget properties by Poster and Breitling. The acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of other closing conditions.
Applications for potential guests interested in appearing in the series will soon be available by clicking here.
We will watch them take a seat at the table of the world’s most exciting business as they take over one of the most legendary of all Las Vegas casinos, the Golden Nugget.”
At the center of the series will be entrepreneurs Timothy Poster and Thomas Breitling, whose start-up “Travelscape.com” revolutionized the travel industry. The company’s sale to Expedia in 2000 made the pair multimillionaires, and Breitling and Poster will use part of their fortunes to fulfill their life-long dream by purchasing the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino on Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas, as well as its sister property on the Colorado River in Laughlin, NV. They are now betting that they can create the same sort of classic Las Vegas experience that was so prevalent in Vegas' glory days.
“Our goal is to provide customers with the type of service that they cannot find anywhere else in Las Vegas.
We intend to give our patrons the type of service that was so common in years past, but has been slowly disappearing with the growth of the mega-resorts. Vegas casinos used to be a fantasyland for gamblers and this is what we intend to provide. It is all about knowing customers by their names, knowing what kind of whiskey they drink, what kind of cigarettes they smoke, and what type of suites they prefer – and giving it to them. This will be the focus of our business," said Tim Poster.
Conceived by Burnett and production partner Conrad Riggs, THE CASINO will go beyond the challenges facing Breitling and Poster, to explore the personal dramas unfolding among some of the 3,000 employees inside this world -- from cocktail waitresses, to pit bosses, to security, management and entertainers. 24 hours a day, seven days a week, this real-life cast of characters runs an elaborate high-stakes operation that caters to visitors from around the world seeking the thrill of Las Vegas.
