While the scenes at the opening of the new Resorts World racino in Queens may seem depressing to some, having people throw away their hard-earned money has one upside: More aid for schools! According to the Post, "New York’s nine 'racinos' generated $667 million in aid for schools last year — an increase of 28 percent." more ›

The recent action out of Albany wasn't all about DNA databanks and pension reform. There was also much wheeling and dealing to bring Governor Andrew Cuomo's dream of non-Indian New York casinos closer to fruition. But even if gambling does get legalized here (and there are still many hoops to get through) don't expect to see a casino open in Times Square. more ›

Billionaire facelift aficionado and casino magnate Steve Wynn is allegedly scaring the monocles off of Upper East Side residents who fear that his presence will draw the wrath of his scorned business partner, Japanese billionaire Kazuo Okada. According to Page 6 Wynn is considering a $36 million penthouse on East 70th Street (Teddy Forstmann's old place), but residents are "unnerved by the situation, and fear there could be reprisals." A source adds, "The problem is…[the dispute] may not be settled in the courtroom." So look for the building's chandeliers to be studded with goat heads, the mysterious disappearance of the doorman every fortnight, and for residents' Picassos to be ripped. more ›

No charges will be filed against any of the parties involved in a bizarre casino brawl involving Republican State Senator Mark Grisanti, his wife Maria, and members of the Seneca Nation. According to The Buffalo News, the Niagara County DA's office and the Niagara Falls Police Department released a joint statement announcing, "This case is closed." more ›

Billionaire casino magnate and Newt Gingrich's human life preserver Sheldon Adelson wants to build casinos in New York should he ever get the chance. “Our integrated resort properties have produced tremendous overall tourism and economic benefit in every location in which we operate, and under the right circumstances, we would be honored to bring our industry-leading, convention-based business model to New York,” a Sands rep tells the Post. Well, it appears the Venetian has bedbugs so Adelson's monstrosities will fit right in. more ›

New details surrounding an altercation at a Niagara Falls casino between Republican state senator Mark Grisanti and several members of the Seneca Nation have cast doubt on the politician's story that he played the part of peacemaker. Video footage shows Grisanti pointing and shouting at a security officer, then later being held in a choke hold by another one of the officers. Businessman and former member of the Seneca's Tribal Council, Ross John, also tells The Buffalo News that Grisanti used a racial epithet against a guard. "I was maybe 15 feet away. I heard it. '[Grisanti] yelled, 'Don't you know who the [expletive] I am, you [expletive]?' " more ›

State senator Mark Grisanti and his wife were both beaten up in an altercation at a black tie affair held at the Seneca Niagara Casino and Hotel Friday night. more ›

An area Giants fan won some money after his beloved "G-men" won the Super Bowl yesterday, and his dignified celebration was captured on video and posted on YouTube. Then BuzzFeed picked it up, and here we are. (Look, we don't make the rules.) To be sure, it is pretty "LOL" to watch this grown man completely "OMG" lose his shit like a tween going "WTF?" outside a Ke$ha concert. But it's even LOLer when his wife appears to warn his kids not to post the video on YouTube. In response, the exultant winner orders his son to post it on "IRS YouTube." more ›

Connecticut police arrested a 38-year-old woman for risk of injury to a minor for leaving her five-year-old son in a casino hotel room so she could gamble. And police found out what happened because her son called 911. more ›

During his State of the State address, Governor Cuomo unveiled a bold plan to build America's biggest convention center out in Jamaica Queens, and tear down the Javits Center, making way for more commercial and residential development by the Hudson River. Cuomo and others believe the Javits Center is too small and too old to remain competitive in a tight convention market, and it would be better to tear it down and lease the land to developers. Too bad taxpayers are shelling out a big chunk of the $463 million currently being spent to renovate and expand the place. more ›

With the success of the Aqueduct "Racino" last year there is a serious political push, headed by Governor Cuomo, to bring real casinos to New York State. And you know who really likes the idea? Brooklyn mascot and third-term Beep Marty Markowitz, who really wants to bring Casino's to the boardwalk. Craps on Coney, anyone? more ›

Governor Andrew Cuomo gave his State of the State today, vowing to make 2012 the year "we must transform our government to once again become the progressive capital of our nation." He proposed a $1 billion economic development package for Buffalo, which has the third-highest poverty rate in the country, abolishing the state's requirements for fingerprinting food stamp recipients, deemed himself the "student's lobbyist," and pitched a slew of environmental and energy improvements. But Cuomo was also mum about transportation, spoke glowingly of legalizing gambling, declined to read his brief remarks on hydraulic fracturing, and announced an ambitious plan to build the world's largest convention center at the Aquaduct Racetrack. more ›

On the heels of NY State being super-duper excited to allow online gambling, now Governor Cuomo has signaled his support for a casino in the Big Apple. In a year-end interview with the Daily News, Cuomo said, "Do I support casino gaming at a New York City location? ... Yes." more ›

See, New York State and Illinois were curious whether they could offer online gaming, and sought clarity on the "Wire Act of 1961, which prohibits wagering over telecommunications systems that cross state or national borders"—specifically, whether the act "prevented those states from using the Internet to sell lottery tickets to adults within their own borders." The Justice Department decision has now "opened the door for states to allow Internet poker and other forms of online betting that do not involve sports. Many states are interested in online gambling as a way to raise tax revenue." more ›

A nun who embezzled $850K from Iona college and threw it all into Atlantic City's slot machines was given a lenient sentence by a Manhattan judge last week. According to the Post, Judge Kimba Wood gave Sister Marie Thornton—known as Sister Susie—2,000 hours of community service and three years probation instead of three years in federal prison. We knew Sister Act was a bad influence on the Church. more ›

The Tropicana Casino and Resort in Atlantic City is facing some serious fines this week after a 14-year-old boy was caught playing the slots, right under the not-so-watchful eye of the casino's security guards. more ›

The opening of the new "Racino" at Aqueduct was such a smashing success that police reinforcements had to be called in to control the opening day crowds, who waited on line over three hours on Friday afternoon to get at those sad hot slots and WIN BIG. So now that gambling lobbyists have successfully brought the Resorts World electronic gaming temple to the Queens Aqueduct Racetrack, they're doubling down to add live table games to the mix. Soon enough happy gamblers will be lining up to "shoot the pasties off the nipples of a ten-foot bull-dyke and win a cotton-candy goat," just like in Vegas! more ›

Could a little bit of Sin City be heading to New York? Or will we hear refrains of "Drill, baby, drill?" more ›

Now that unemployment and poverty rates are sky high, why not open a few casinos? The Post reports that both parties agree: legalized gambling should happen. It'll give people a chance to discover a new rock-bottom get back on their feet, inject some cash into the state's austere budget, and finally allow us to knock Native Americans out of the one position of power that they currently hold. Everybody wins! more ›

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver does not want a full-blown casino opening within the five boroughs, because he thinks New Yorkers are weak, won't be able to resist the lure and may very well do something stupid when money is involved. Silver told The Daily News, "I don't want to see people going out for lunch during work and losing a week's pay or a month's pay." more ›

Under the threat of Hurricane Irene, Atlantic City casinos have shut down for the third time in history, really pissing off that crowded tour bus full of exhausted-looking people and your uncle Lonny, who was due for a big score at the Pai-Gow table. All 11 casinos in town were closed by the governor's order, and hotel guests were only permitted to stay if they had no means of evacuating. more ›

Earlier this year we got nostalgic for the game of bingo and found some spots where we could play across the city. But little did we know that the game had a dark side. Today, the Daily News explores the seamy underbelly of bingo, where "younger, often unemployed" players are gambling away their life savings in order to make ends meet! more ›

While the recession has been over for quite some time now, if there was to be a recession, there's nothing like gambling to give the economy a shot in the arm. Yesterday the Interior Department reversed position on a rule that denied Indian tribes to build casinos "beyond commuting distance from their reservations," which means that the St. Regis Mohawk tribe may get that casino [pdf] 90 miles from New York City at the Monticello Race track after all. Atlantic City was just way too far! more ›

A Philadelphia man is using Atlantic City not as a pleasant vacation destination, what with their pristine beaches and friendly locals, but as a lucrative money making scheme. The Post reports that 49-year-old Don Johnson has netted $15 million from Caesars, The Borgata, and The Tropicana, by playing blackjack. Johnson told the paper "I'll take luck over any other skill." We assume he's referring to the "luck" involved in counting how many cards there are in an auto-shuffle. more ›

If you took any action with your online bookie on the NBA semi-finals, or whether any of the NBA players would use another homophobic slur on national TV, there's a decent chance that it's now in the hands of the law (what was the over-under on getting nabbed?) SI Live reports that the feds arrested 28 people today in Staten Island, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania for their roles in an online gambling ring that was netting $100,000 a week. One of the leaders, Joseph Stentella, claims to have said that "he ran the system so well he should have been in charge of the state's failed OTB." more ›

While we weren't crazy about avoiding eye contact with the grumbling, chain-smoking masses outside the OTB on Delancey street, it looks even SADDER when it's dormant. But there's good news in today's Post for equine enthusiasts who happen to enjoy gambling: a Democratic state assemblyman and a Republican Senator are joining forces to resurrect off-track betting. more ›

A man was shot and killed at a Queens barber shop yesterday early morning, in the same location where he was shot trying to fell a robbery-turned-murder last summer. Gary Bowlin, 35, was shot execution-style in the bathroom of the Rob NG Cutz barber shop on 135th St. in South Richmond Hill. The barber shop turns into a gambling den after hours; another man was shot during the melee, but is in stable condition. more ›

The State Senate failed to pass a measure rescuing the city's Off Track Betting operation, which has struggled for years. The Times Union reports, "The 29 to 21 voted proceeded mostly on party lines, as leaders of the Senate Democratic conference pushed approval the bill, which was drafted by Gov. David Paterson and passed the Assembly late last month. The bill failed because it did not have 32 yes votes, the bare majority needed for passage." more ›

A Queens insurance salesman is suing Random House for defamation because a sleazeball character in one its new publications is named after him. Douglas Heimowitz is angry that his name was appropriated for a professional gambler in Beth Raymer's recent book, Lay the Favorite, A Memoir of Gambling. "Our client is the only individual in the United States bearing the name Douglas Heimowitz," said lawyer Betty Tufariello. more ›