A new bidder for Toronto’s casino
Las Vegas Sands is the latest bidder to officially vie for the right to build a local casino and resort in Toronto, registering five lobbyists and scouting the GTA for a prime location.
The Sands, which owns resorts in Pennsylvania, Macao, Singapore, and, of course, Las Vegas, is looking to build an “integrated resort” in the city, which includes a casino, retail, entertainment, exhibition and convention space. Andy Abboud, a senior vice-president for the company, announced on Monday that he was “intrigued” by Toronto, but does not yet have a specific site or proposal in mind.
Earlier this summer, Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. chair Paul Godfrey announced Marina Bay Sands in Singapore as a possible exemplar for Toronto. The high-end casino is owned by U.S. billionaire and Republican big whig Sheldon Adelson.
MGM Resorts, Caesers Entertainment, Woodbine Entertainment and Onex Corp. have also expressed interest in developing in the city.
The Blue Jays trade Travis Snider and Eric Thames
The Toronto Blue Jays made two trades in exchange for more help in the bullpen on Monday night, picking up Brad Lincoln from Pittsburgh and Steve Delabar from Seattle just before the deadline.
Currently at 51-51, the Blue Jays took outfielder Travis Snider out of Monday’s game in the sixth inning, announcing he would be moving to the Pittsburgh Pirates shortly thereafter. In a similar move, outfielder Eric Thames, who was sent down to Triple A in Las Vegas earlier this summer, was traded for Delabar.
But, will the trades help the Blue Jays contend for the American League wild-card spot? Lincoln, a right-hander, has a 4-2 record, one save and 2.73 ERA in 28 games for Pittsburgh. Meanwhile, Delabar is 2-1, with a 4.17 ERA in 34 games for Seattle.
All teams have until Tuesday, at 4 p.m. ET to make deals and trades without waivers, Moneyball-esque or otherwise.
“The Master” and Snoop Dogg are TIFF-bound
Two very different films have been added to the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival lineup; the highly-anticipated The Master, and the world premiere of Reincarnated, a Snoop Dogg – AKA Snoop Lion – documentary.
The Wrap is reporting that Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master, will have its North American premiere at TIFF, as a special presentation. The movie, starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Joaquin Phoenix and Amy Adams in a religion-centric story, had its limited release date bumped from Oct. to Sept. 14 last week. Produced by The Weinstein Company, the film will have its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival, just before TIFF.
On the other hand, Snoop’s new documentary profiles the rapper-actor’s recording trip to Jamaica. While there, he became “positively impacted” by Rastafarian culture, leading to his subsequent reincarnation as Snoop Lion. According to its YouTube trailer, the film will have its world premiere on Sept. 7.
More TIFF announcements, including the Midnight Madness, documentary, and Canadian film roster, will be announced leading up to the festival, which runs for 11 days, starting on Sept. 6.
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Joanna Adams is the online and social media editor for Toronto Standard. Follow her on Twitter at†@nowstarringTO.
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