STATESIDE Stateside


Wynn-er Wynn-er


One of the most fascinating and infl uential gaming icons of our time has left the sweltering heat of Las Vegas. Sharon Harris watches Steve Wynn as he heads off into the sunset.


A 8 AUGUST 2023


cross the U.S., millions usually enjoy summer’s slower pace. For more than 100 million living in the American Southwest, including Las Vegas and Arizona, Summer 2023 has been nightmarish as they have suffered for weeks from record


100-plus-degree heat. I expect their tourism and casino attendance, especially for day


trippers and weekend visitors, will refl ect this situation. The brutal weather impacts every decision-when and where to go out and how long to stay. It reminds us there are life situations you can infl uence and those out of your control. One thing U.S. gaming professionals know about controlling their


environments is the enormous impact, both positive and negative, of politics and media. One news item that caught my attention this month is casino icon Steve Wynn’s fi nal exit from gaming. Wynn, 81, has agreed to completely remove himself from any future involvement in Nevada’s gaming industry. He will also pay


a $10 million fi ne to the Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB), the agency that charged him in 2019 with 10 counts of sexual abuse and misconduct against female employees while CEO of Wynn Resorts. Wynn may own a passive interest of up to 5% ownership in a gaming interest. After four years of legally battling the NGCB, Wynn will fi nally


depart the industry he helped to build since 1971 in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Biloxi, Mississippi and Asia. The NGCB’s charges also described former company


executives’ alleged years of failing to “report and/or investigate” numerous accusations. Wynn has always maintained his innocence but did fi nancially settle with one employee. The courts rejected other cases for lack of evidence. When some accusers claimed he “leered” at them, his


attorneys claimed physical disability as a defense. Everyone knows Wynn has suffered from extensive vision loss since the early 1970s and was declared “legally blind” in 2010.


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