Winner Takes All: How Casino Mogul Steve Wynn Won-and Lost-the High Stakes Gamble to Own Las Vegas

by Christina Binkley

From Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and culture critic Christina Binkley comes an updated edition of her New York Times bestselling account of sex, drugs, and the rise of Las Vegas. With a new prologue on the rise and fall of Steve Wynn.

The Strip. Home to some of the world's grandest, flashiest, and most lucrative casino resorts, Las Vegas, with its multitude of attractions, draws millions of tourists from around the world every year. But Sin City hasn't always been booming: modern Vegas exists largely thanks to the extraordinary vision, and remarkable hubris, of three competing business moguls: Kirk Kerkorian, Dr. Gary Loveman, and Steve Wynn. And in the wake of #MeToo revelations, not all empires survive.

Having had personal access to all three tycoons, Binkley explains how their audacious efforts to reach the top-and to top one another-shaped the city as it stands. She takes us inside their grandest schemes, their riskiest deals, and the personalities that drove them to their greatest successes, and their most painful defeats. In this updated edition, she reveals the inside story of how Steve Wynn, the winner who took all, ultimately lost everything-twice.

Sharp, insightful, and revealing, Winner Takes All is the gripping story of how billions of dollars and the unparalleled drive for power turned dreams into larger-than-life reality.

"It's a great drama on the greatest stage. . . Wynn, Kerkorian, and Loveman represent three opposing business personalities, three styles of achieving success. On the Vegas Strip, they're pitted against one another like gladiators, and we've got front-row seats. Kapow!" - bestselling author Po Bronson

375 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 6, 2018

Reviews

[Maia · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite book. I could read it again and again.

[patrick Lorelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really does not go into all of the backstories of Vegas and the deals, or of Wynn himself. When he first owned Frontier and the Golden Nugget, on Sundays you could go into the Golden Nugget and actually get a champagne brunch for practically nothing. He really did change downtown for a while because people would go down there. This is not talked about. Neither is the time when his daughter was kidnapped and then later found and then the kidnappers found later. What is talked about is his building his hotels, losing them to take over and then coming back with the Encore, which was much bigger. He did do a lot for Vegas when he built the Mirage and put the volcano out front for everyone to stop and see when they came into town. This book was okay I personally was hoping for more. I received this book from Netgalley.com I gave it 4 stars. Follow us at www.1rad-readerreviews.com

[Ivan Kumamoto · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think the general 4-star average rating on this book is pretty accurate. While the story and narrative kept me interested, I feel like it could have all been tied together a bit better. I did like learning about the different personalities from each of the big casino bosses- Wynn, Kerkorian, and Loveman. I think the author did a good job at distinguishing them individually and I almost feel like I have a pretty good idea of what they are all like in person.

I got this book after visiting Las Vegas for the first time, and being pleasantly surprised. I feel like I can appreciate what I saw a bit better now, and I even want to dive deeper into other stories mentioned in the book. My next read might be the Kerkorian book...

[Reed Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book. Read it while on the flight to Vegas, while in Vegas, and on the flight back. Being able to see the opulence of the strip while reading about how it all came to be made both the book, and the trip, more enjoyable. Seeing the Chiluly glass flowers in the Bellagio lobby, as well as the flaming volcano at the Mirage, were especially vivid examples.

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[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredibly insightful look into the blockbuster dealings and power players in the Las Vegas ecosystem, framed by Steve Wynn's rise & fall, and rise, and fall. By no means is it a comprehensive encyclopedia of Las Vegas, but it is an interesting look into the flow of power in Las Vegas.

[Sean Might · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read. Dives into the history of Steve Wynn and his legacy in Vegas, as well as the contemporary effects of major modern Vegas players like Kerkorian, Murren, and Loveman. Definitely recommend highly.

[Steven Durnez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dit blijft een adembenemend mooi boek dat ik om de twee jaar nog eens herlees. Ik heb er drie exemplaren van: de originele hardcover uit 2008, de originele softcover uit 2008 en de herwerkte versie uit 2018. Dit is nu de zesde keer dat ik het herlees en de overname tussen MGM Grand en Mirage Resorts blijft lezen als een venijnige thriller. Dé ster in het boek blijft Steve Wynn. De pagina’s waar de auteur de creatie, het ontwerp, design, constructie en opening van Wynn Las Vegas uit de doeken doet is om van te smullen, Eervolle verleiding voor Bellagio. Nog steeds één van de mooiste resorts ooit ontworpen. Ik kijk al uit naar mijn zevende lezing. Binnen dit en een jaar of twee.