Players International

Players International was a United States company which built and operated riverboat casinos and a horse racing track.

The company was founded by brothers David and Edward Fishman in 1984. The company was originally known for its "Player's Club," a service which offered discounts on rooms, shows and dining at various casinos in Las Vegas, Atlantic City and outside the country. Club members paid $125 for the first year's membership and a lower fee for annual renewals. The company advertised heavily on late-night television, with actor Telly Savalas as its spokesperson. In a time when casino gambling was only legal in Nevada and Atlantic City, casino ownership was much more fragmented than today and mass marketing was unheard of for casinos, the Player's Club concept proved popular. The company also arranged gaming tournaments for casinos and arranged travel for competing players.

After a brief foray into call-in telephone games based on Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, the brothers decided to get out of the discount travel business and into the casino business itself. Casino legalization was spreading rapidly, especially in the Midwest, and the Fishmans applied for and received a license for a riverboat casino in Metropolis, Illinois. Backed by game show impresario and former talk show host Merv Griffin, the company opened the casino in 1993. With little competition close by, it was an immediate success.

Flush from the success of the Metropolis property, Players developed a second riverboat casino in Lake Charles, Louisiana later in 1993. With its proximity to the Texas state line, the Lake Charles property attracted gamblers from the Houston market, and was extremely profitable. The operation expanded in 1995 with the addition of a second riverboat, purchased from a closed casino operation on Lake Pontchartrain. This allowed guests to board at more convenient times, getting around state regulations which allowed them to board only during a 45-minute window every three hours by staggering the "cruise" schedules.

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