April 28, 2000: Having revived the Las Vegas' Strip through Mirage Resorts Inc., gaming mogul Stephen Wynn bought the Strip's remaining eyesore, the Desert Inn, from Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. for $270 million in cash -- which he was flush with thanks to his sale of Mirage to Kirk Kerkorian's MGM Grand Inc. for $6.4 billion only two months earlier.
Although the historic Desert Inn, which when opened in 1950 was one of the first Las Vegas resorts, had fallen on hard times, its owner had failed to keep pace with rivals even after a 1997 renovation. Despite the new buildings, the Palm and St. Andrews towers, and the only remaining golf course on the strip, the Desert Inn suffered $4 million in losses for Starwood's fiscal 1998, and Starwood didn't even include the Desert Inn on its fiscal 1999 financials because of expectations about selling it.
For Starwood, the sale marked an end to its gaming business, as it had already divested itself of Caesar's World gaming operations, selling it to Park Place Entertainment for $3 billion in 1999. However, for Wynn, it was a new beginning.
"All Wynn does is build and create 'Wow!' experiences for people," Joseph Coccigmiglio, an analyst with Prudential Securities Inc., told The Daily Deal at the time. "I would expect him to carry out some redevelopment and do whatever is positive for the market."
Talk about an understatement. Wynn didn't just carry out a redevelopment, he ultimately tore the whole complex down -- though he briefly maintained the 1997 additions for awhile before imploding them to make way for a second tower. In place of the original Desert Inn went up the $2.5 billion gleaming Wynn Las Vegas, which opened in 2005, and the more recent Encore, which opened in 2008. Wynn even hired Tom Fazio to remake the golf course, which now charges $500 a round. - Matthew Wurtzel
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What happened to the rest of the story? It's always great to read about the guy who continues to reinvent Las Vegas, Steve Wynn. His commercials are the best too!