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Philly guy, loved seeing him at different places over the years. Was a cheesy, good time even as times changed for these lounge acts. His afternoon shows at Harrahs Carnival Court were always a good time.
Not many like him left, Big Elvis Pete is one of the last and he has been out recently with an illness.
https://www.casino.org/vitalvegas/be...k-e-jarr-dies/
Quote:
Originally Posted by The Boz
Philly guy, loved seeing him at different places over the years. Was a cheesy, good time even as times changed for these lounge acts. His afternoon shows at Harrahs Carnival Court were always a good time.
Not many like him left, Big Elvis Pete is one of the last and he has been out recently with an illness.
https://www.casino.org/vitalvegas/be...k-e-jarr-dies/
Oh boy, this one hits home. Thanks for posting, Boz. I am very, very sad to have lost this guy. My compadres and I, who are from the same neck of the woods, brought him TastyCakes as a tribute the last couple times we saw him at Paris in the lounge. He was a fabulous, old-school guy who interrupted his Monday night performances with complaints and/or cheers regarding whatever his Monday Night wagers happened to be.
He was one-of-a-kind, truly. Just a real piece of Las Vegas Americana. I loved this guy and his career.
Real Las Vegas content in the las vegas subforum.
I gotta say that I have never even heard of Cook E. Jarr. My time in Vegas began in late 2009 and while it looks like Cook E Jarr overlapped into that period, lounge singer and acts were just not something I was all that interested in. Probably my loss. That kind of thing is a part of Vegas that has and is disappearing. I can appreciate those of you that have been around and frequented this town longer than I, missing some of your "good old days".
One of the unique things about Vegas is how it re-invents itself every few years. And while that is exciting, it is hard to see some of the things from yesteryear disappear. I have been here long enough that I have started to see some of that.
In case anyone is wondering, that's me on the right.
It's an interesting video wondering when this video happened and thinking about who the people were.
This was from a t-shirt, showing all the places he performed over his 48 years in the business in Vegas:
https://www.casino.org/vitalvegas/wp...1-845x1122.jpg
I didn't realize he had landed back at Paris for 2 years. Surprised the suits at Caesars were willing to give him a shot at age 73. Probably knew someone there.
I had heard of him, but didn't ever go see him. Now I regret it. That happens to me a lot. I hear some performer died, and I think, "Well, crap, I should have made the effort to see him before."
On a side note, how dumb is it that Caesars Palace ruined Cleopatra's Barge, and made it "Caspian's Lounge"? Cleopatra's Barge had been in operation since 1970, and was one of the few iconic old school things left in Caesars Palace. It wasn't there originally (it started as "Nero's Nook" in 1966, before being converted into Cleopatra's in 1970), but it was 53 years old when it shut down in late 2023.
Caspian's Lounge is just a generic, boring, wannabe-upscale lounge. Blah. Sucks seeing the personality sucked out of a lot of these strip hotels.
Let's look at the places he's performed, and what they are now:
1969: Caesars (same)
1982: Sands (wrecked, rebuilt as Venetian)
1983: Sahara (same, but rebranded to SLS for a few years)
1984: Maxim (after losing gaming license, became Westin Las Vegas)
1985: Dunes (wrecked, rebuilt as Bellagio)
1987: Silver Slipper (wrecked, never rebuilt)
1989: El Rancho (wrecked, eventually becoming part of the site of Fontainebleau)
1990: Bourbon Street (wrecked, now a parking lot)
1990: Palace Station (same)
1990: Bally's (rebranded to Horseshoe)
1991: Hacienda (wrecked, now Mandalay Bay)
1993: Tropicana (wrecked, nothing rebuilt yet)
1994: Continental (rebranded to Terrible's, then Silver Sevens)
1995: MGM Grand (same)
1997: Rio (same)
1998: Casino Royale (same)
1999: Harrah's (same)
2011: Bill's Gambling Hall (renovated/rebranded to Cromwell)
2015: Paris (same)
I tried to get one of these shirts via Facebook, but no luck. I'm thinking one of the retro "thrift" stores a block from Esther's Kitchen may have some. Next time I'm in town, I'll check them out. EBay has a bunch of Cook E. Jarr 45s, but I didn't see any shirts like this.
I loved when he would interrupt his act on Mondays to inquire about the score and props (game would be on TVs with no sound). He was betting a couple hundred on this and a couple hundred on that. Enough to be serious, but not exorbitant. Now whether he picked his amounts based on an audience acceptance sweet spot, I don't know, but I actually believed he bet what he said.
He was a true AC/Philly guy.
I love how 11 of the first 13 casinos where he performed (1969-1994) have either been wrecked or rebranded at some point. Only Caesars and Palace Station are unchanged. Sahara rebranded and then returned. Bally's and Maxim rebranded. The other 8 are gone.
Very Vegas.
People forget how much everything has changed, because aside from the construction boom of the early-mid 90s, everything else occurs one by one, and you just kind of accept what's there now as what Vegas is. I didn't think I'd get used to calling the old Bally's "Horseshoe", especially given what Horseshoe used to be, but now in my mind Horseshoe is clearly the old MGM/Bally's, and not Binion's anymore.
The first I heard of/saw Cook E Jarr was at Bally’s AC around 81-82 For those who don’t remember until 1983 you could drink and gamble at 18 in Atlantic City. I was a high school student in the early 80’s and made frequent trips to AC taking friends for cash and gas money. Many late nights and early mornings spent driving back to Central PA as the only sober guy and actually heading to school before the first bell.
Anyways Cook E was much younger, finding his way after his recording career didn’t take off and did a show at a lounge, maybe the later Blue Martini and we sat there and watched him drinking beers between Blackjack sessions. I didn’t really think much of it until the 90’s when I found him in Vegas and thought “This is the guy I saw in high school”. I became a fan and watched his act over the years and travels around Vegas. The crowds got older as I did and in the end, like Big Elvis, it’s a mostly 60+ crowd.
As RED said, his last gig was at Napoleon’s at Paris for a few years. Known mostly for its dueling piano show, they brought Cook E in to do a Monday night 6-8 show. Druff touched on that it may have been a favor to him as he was definitely slowing down by this point and the crowds weren’t exactly big. His voice was going and it was basically a glorified karaoke session but the man still had it as an entertainer, never taking himself too seriously.
I’m glad I got to see him one last time and occasionally wondered how he was doing. He did have a guy running a FB fan page that occasionally posted updates on him but it was vague and more memories than anything.
Here’s another video from Paris for those who are interested.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VCqLgNJ8uEM
Those were the days, just a lot of things weren't cool back then, they were for older generations a little poorer in the end then they all poofed one by one.
I'm wondering...Where the white women at?Quote:
Originally Posted by redietz
Are you hiding the group's pro date...tewlj?
Al, the guy next to me, always did a fine job recruiting female companionship. He's the same guy from this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZ7YiYMSRig
Now that I think about it, Cook. E. Jarr would have been right at home in this video.
I suppose one could argue those nostalgic for such a thing don't go there but it is amazing how these corporate types have no appreciation for nostalgia.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Druff
I like how much you lean in the picture afraid you'll be left out.Quote:
Originally Posted by redietz
"Hey guys I don't want to go back to Mars"
Quote:
Originally Posted by accountinquestionI like how much you lean in the picture afraid you'll be left out.Quote:
Originally Posted by redietz
"Hey guys I don't want to go back to Mars"
Really, what is wrong with you? I realize you are famous for your mind reading and teaching classes in body language, but other than that, what is wrong with you?
Did you think you had some keen insight? I mean, really, what tales you must tell your anonymous self at night, reveling in your observational humor and brilliance. It's no wonder you're so in demand by "women who attended college." LOL.
I was going to take the photo, since I've had many photos published in newspapers, but some bystander volunteered at the last second, so I got myself in the frame.
This is why posting here is a complete, utter waste of time. You try to post something worthwhile, and some anonymous moron takes brain dead shots for no reason in a thread about a man who died.
Lol redietz. If you're going to be such an insufferable pompous douchebag then I'd suggest growing a thicker skin.
I ignore you and preface things with "take this with a grain of salt" but you go out of your way at any little perception of me being wrong or ignorant to be such an over the top blowhard.
So wah wah. Maybe boz can chime in for you after he fucks with Tasha first.
Truth be told that video has under 5k views. I have employees at my company who have music videos with far far more views than that but I'd fall over dead before I considered bragging about it.
I'll stop abusing you though. I am sadistic. Just stay in your lane.
And btw "trying to post something worthwhile" should not include posting a random picture of yourself.
They killed the iconic Buck, Winnie, and Chip statue in Harrah's a few years ago, and replaced it with.... an empty space.Quote:
Originally Posted by accountinquestion
It's not just nostalgia, it's that these items give the casinos personality. Was the Buck/Winnie statue tacky? Yes. Was it also the most memorable thing in Harrah's? Also yes.
I'm not one of those "mob did everything better" guys. It's nice to know I'm not going to get beaten up in the back room or buried in the desert for advantage playing or card counting. It's nice being able to play poker and not be hassled by mobsters "asking" to buy a piece of me (where the answer can never be no), which was commonplace in the '70s and '80s.
But the corporate guys really have no soul.
Yea it sorta makes sense. The lack of a soul leads them to where they are. Then being soulless they really don't understand.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan DruffThey killed the iconic Buck, Winnie, and Chip statue in Harrah's a few years ago, and replaced it with.... an empty space.Quote:
Originally Posted by accountinquestion
It's not just nostalgia, it's that these items give the casinos personality. Was the Buck/Winnie statue tacky? Yes. Was it also the most memorable thing in Harrah's? Also yes.
I'm not one of those "mob did everything better" guys. It's nice to know I'm not going to get beaten up in the back room or buried in the desert for advantage playing or card counting. It's nice being able to play poker and not be hassled by mobsters "asking" to buy a piece of me (where the answer can never be no), which was commonplace in the '70s and '80s.
But the corporate guys really have no soul.
Having little memorable things is a positive. You've been away a couple of years and you come back to see positive memories. That little statue is a prime example of this. Sure one could argue it was tacky but I suspect they kinda forget what casinos really are. They want to elevate the casino to some high society thing as that's what the soulless MBA type wants to see in themselves. In the end it just shows how little they understand.
It becomes a symbol of why you don't care to go back. There was no show to maintain. No machinery. Just a statue that would put a smile on anyone.
Like really who do they think saw a downside to the statue? Christian missionaries?
Like .. I'd love to see the thought process of whomever canned that statue.
I think killing that statue went deeper than this. CET is selling some pre-packaged cool that ostensibly is tied to donating money to a casino and being graded in some serious, detail-oriented, rule-bound fashion regarding your "play."
There's a whole dissertation on this regarding the slow, then snowballing loss of kitsch at Caesars' when CET took it over.
I'm going to take a wild fucking guess that El Dorado's purchase of Caesars in 2020 is more relevant than Harrah's purchase of Caesars in 2005.
I first became familiar with the Sunspots at the Plaza in the early 2000's.
https://youtu.be/tcuV_BkYOpY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JalZ...5zcG90cyBsYXMg
A+ comment, easy to miss.Quote:
Originally Posted by jdaewoo
It really is.Quote:
Originally Posted by jdaewoo
Caesars already had a problem with the accountants having more of a say than the hotel/casino guys, but El Dorado is taking that whole concept to insane new levels.
El Dorado is slowly turning Caesars properties into highly automated, generic, nuts-and-bolts profit centers with few employees and very little customer service.
One example of this is the hotel manager. In prior decades, the hotel manager at a Caesars property was an executive position, and one where the pay was good, the hiring standards stringent, and the power given was substantial. Today the hotel manager at a Caesars property typically has little power, has to operate under very strict preset rules, and is not paid well. The better paid (and more competent) hotel managers of the 2010s have mostly moved on elsewhere, or were laid off. Today's Caesars hotel manager has essentially the same power as the assistant manager at night used to have. And today's assistant night manager? Virtually zero power, only slightly above that of regular front desk emlpoyees.
It's also not uncommon to see very few (sometimes zero) front desk employees working late at night, which is crazy. For example, when the one employee working needs his mandatory 10-minute break, there's simply no service for 10 minutes! I had never seen this before at a Caesars property until 2024, but I've seen it several times since.
The "front desk" cannot be reached from your room. In fact, you can't even reach someone in the US from your room. The vast majority of "front desk" or "guest services" calls will be routed to the Philippines.
I could go on and on.
Then there's other cutbacks regarding onetime separate departments. For example, most Caesars casinos in Vegas no longer have a separate Caesars Rewards desk. It's combined with the cashier, causing longer lines both for cashing your chips and to get your Rewards matters handled. The only small advantage is that you now have 24 hour access to Rewards employees, but in addition to the increased lines, these employees are not specialists in Rewards, and tend to be clueless.
And the Diamond checkin rooms? They once were open very late, but that's a thing of the past. Often they operate only during prime hours of 10am-6pm, and sometimes not even then. If closed, you're forced into a "Diamond Line" in the main checkin area, which often moves slower than the regular line (for example, if there's only one Diamond front desk person, but 3 working for those under Diamond).
The whole thing is a shitshow.
The only improvement I've seen? The dispatch of employees bringing you things is a lot faster nowadays. So if you call and ask for towels, you'll often get them within 15 minutes, whereas before you could be waiting 2 hours and nothing shows up.
I did some MCing at a caears property and came to know some of the goings on. This property lost most of their long time hosts due to having little ability to do things for their clients. When a hosts gotta con people to go to the worst casino in the area you should really give them tools for their toolbox. Later the GM was canned. I'm not even a counter but wanted to play blackchip bj for a short period. Every hand had to have the dealt cards lined up in a nice order after the hand. So if you take a beat - there it is for 10 seconds in front of you. So awful. The whole place seemed dead to me. Then they fucked up the promotion so that you could choose the prize on the kiosk instead of it being random. Now that was sweeeet.
My personal favorite Caesars fail is the bell service at some of their properties.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan DruffIt really is.Quote:
Originally Posted by jdaewoo
Caesars already had a problem with the accountants having more of a say than the hotel/casino guys, but El Dorado is taking that whole concept to insane new levels.
El Dorado is slowly turning Caesars properties into highly automated, generic, nuts-and-bolts profit centers with few employees and very little customer service.
One example of this is the hotel manager. In prior decades, the hotel manager at a Caesars property was an executive position, and one where the pay was good, the hiring standards stringent, and the power given was substantial. Today the hotel manager at a Caesars property typically has little power, has to operate under very strict preset rules, and is not paid well. The better paid (and more competent) hotel managers of the 2010s have mostly moved on elsewhere, or were laid off. Today's Caesars hotel manager has essentially the same power as the assistant manager at night used to have. And today's assistant night manager? Virtually zero power, only slightly above that of regular front desk emlpoyees.
It's also not uncommon to see very few (sometimes zero) front desk employees working late at night, which is crazy. For example, when the one employee working needs his mandatory 10-minute break, there's simply no service for 10 minutes! I had never seen this before at a Caesars property until 2024, but I've seen it several times since.
The "front desk" cannot be reached from your room. In fact, you can't even reach someone in the US from your room. The vast majority of "front desk" or "guest services" calls will be routed to the Philippines.
I could go on and on.
Then there's other cutbacks regarding onetime separate departments. For example, most Caesars casinos in Vegas no longer have a separate Caesars Rewards desk. It's combined with the cashier, causing longer lines both for cashing your chips and to get your Rewards matters handled. The only small advantage is that you now have 24 hour access to Rewards employees, but in addition to the increased lines, these employees are not specialists in Rewards, and tend to be clueless.
And the Diamond checkin rooms? They once were open very late, but that's a thing of the past. Often they operate only during prime hours of 10am-6pm, and sometimes not even then. If closed, you're forced into a "Diamond Line" in the main checkin area, which often moves slower than the regular line (for example, if there's only one Diamond front desk person, but 3 working for those under Diamond).
The whole thing is a shitshow.
The only improvement I've seen? The dispatch of employees bringing you things is a lot faster nowadays. So if you call and ask for towels, you'll often get them within 15 minutes, whereas before you could be waiting 2 hours and nothing shows up.
You check your bags into the bell desk & if they are short staffed when you call down from your room to get them sent up you just get the Philippines & there is nothing they can do about it.
Only solution is to keep trying or walk back down to the bell desk. Because of this depending on the property I’ll just always tell them to bring the bags right up when I check in.
So many of their properties are falling apart & look like they are being held together with duct tape & chewing gum.
In fact, this year I’ve just written these fuckers off. I’m just collecting my offers until they run out. What’s the point? Worst machines on the planet, worst properties & service on the planet, & I don’t play poker anymore.
Duplicate
Pardon my ignorance but what do you mean by "ou call down from your room to get them sent up you just get the Philippines...?'
Your ignorance is pardoned sir.Quote:
Originally Posted by MisterV
Caesars has a call center in the Philippines. At some properties and/or at some times of day When you’re in your room and you dial the extension for the bell desk or front desk etc. the phone routes you to the foreign call center and there is no way around this.
The sent up to your room was if your bags are at the bell desk because when you checked in you wanted to gamble first, or dine first, or the room was not ready etc. so you didn’t take your bags with you.
And then the call center has no way to reach the hotel staff in the hotel your are in. In Spanish I think they call this situation being “El Fucked”
Comprende negro?
I'm trying to play it out in my head if this is really a positive long term strategy. I guess most people don't call during the night and it works for 80% of the issues people have. It really is kinda dystopian. If I was a real gambler and went to shoot off 5k every gambling trip I'd be so fucking annoyed with that shit I'd lose any sense of loyalty.Quote:
Originally Posted by DGenBenYour ignorance is pardoned sir.Quote:
Originally Posted by MisterV
Caesars has a call center in the Philippines. At some properties and/or at some times of day When you’re in your room and you dial the extension for the bell desk or front desk etc. the phone routes you to the foreign call center and there is no way around this.
The sent up to your room was if your bags are at the bell desk because when you checked in you wanted to gamble first, or dine first, or the room was not ready etc. so you didn’t take your bags with you.
And then the call center has no way to reach the hotel staff in the hotel your are in. In Spanish I think they call this situation being “El Fucked”
Comprende negro?
It is a funny thing to think but I'm far more spoiled and have higher expectations than 95% of people who visit those casinos. For the others I guess it works well enough.
It doesn't work well enough, unless you are dumb enough to believe you're reaching an actual front desk at the hotel which happens to be staffed by Filipinos.Quote:
Originally Posted by accountinquestionI'm trying to play it out in my head if this is really a positive long term strategy. I guess most people don't call during the night and it works for 80% of the issues people have. It really is kinda dystopian. If I was a real gambler and went to shoot off 5k every gambling trip I'd be so fucking annoyed with that shit I'd lose any sense of loyalty.Quote:
Originally Posted by DGenBenYour ignorance is pardoned sir.Quote:
Originally Posted by MisterV
Caesars has a call center in the Philippines. At some properties and/or at some times of day When you’re in your room and you dial the extension for the bell desk or front desk etc. the phone routes you to the foreign call center and there is no way around this.
The sent up to your room was if your bags are at the bell desk because when you checked in you wanted to gamble first, or dine first, or the room was not ready etc. so you didn’t take your bags with you.
And then the call center has no way to reach the hotel staff in the hotel your are in. In Spanish I think they call this situation being “El Fucked”
Comprende negro?
It is a funny thing to think but I'm far more spoiled and have higher expectations than 95% of people who visit those casinos. For the others I guess it works well enough.
Knowing that you can't call staff members LOCATED IN THE SAME HOTEL is very tilting for most people. Maybe a bit more tilting for me than the average person, but everyone I know hates it.
But they stopped giving a shit. You're going to accept the long lines, the lack of staff, the Philippines phony "front desk", the bad paytables, the marked up food, and the rest of it... and like it.
And if you don't like it, too bad. There's plenty of people who will replace you, and they deemed it not worth it to spend the money satisfying those who will be pissed enough to otherwise walk away.
Part of the problem is brand value isn't something calculated into performance bonsues of CEOs. And maybe their demographic just doesn't care as much as we'd think.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan DruffIt doesn't work well enough, unless you are dumb enough to believe you're reaching an actual front desk at the hotel which happens to be staffed by Filipinos.Quote:
Originally Posted by accountinquestionI'm trying to play it out in my head if this is really a positive long term strategy. I guess most people don't call during the night and it works for 80% of the issues people have. It really is kinda dystopian. If I was a real gambler and went to shoot off 5k every gambling trip I'd be so fucking annoyed with that shit I'd lose any sense of loyalty.Quote:
Originally Posted by DGenBen
It is a funny thing to think but I'm far more spoiled and have higher expectations than 95% of people who visit those casinos. For the others I guess it works well enough.
Knowing that you can't call staff members LOCATED IN THE SAME HOTEL is very tilting for most people. Maybe a bit more tilting for me than the average person, but everyone I know hates it.
But they stopped giving a shit. You're going to accept the long lines, the lack of staff, the Philippines phony "front desk", the bad paytables, the marked up food, and the rest of it... and like it.
And if you don't like it, too bad. There's plenty of people who will replace you, and they deemed it not worth it to spend the money satisfying those who will be pissed enough to otherwise walk away.
I don't think anything is going be improved anytime soon with labor costs going up after immigrants are booted.