The 1980s cliché view of Atlantic City casino resorts has officially been laid to rest. Back then, of course, most of the nation viewed Atlantic City as a town for gambling and not much else. The traditional allure of the city's beach and Boardwalk, which had defined the town for the better part of a century, had been obscured in an onslaught of media images of sparkling casino resorts juxtaposed with urban blight. More recently, Atlantic City has reclaimed its tradition as a beach resort town, not only through the multitude of shopping, entertainment and hotel expansions added by the casinos, but through a new type of attraction inexorably tied to the ocean: the beach bar. Beach bars are becoming the norm along the Boardwalk. With the beach itself expanded to unprecedented dimensions thanks to the recent federally funded engineering project, bars on the sand have proliferated, as relaxing in a cabana with a cold drink approaches the popularity of plunking down money at the city's slots and tables. Last year's openings brought the total number of beach bars to four—in front of the Hilton, Trump Plaza, Caesars and Bally's. Beginning this month, all four of those oceanfront hot-spots will again be in full force. However, this year, the beach-bar scene is set to move into uncharted territory, with two new additions promising to offer visitors experiences like nothing the town has seen. Showboat's House of Blues attraction, with a beach bar of the same name, should appear this summer. But first, visitors to Atlantic City will be treated to a trifecta of beach attractions scheduled to open along the beachfront of Resorts Atlantic City over Memorial Day weekend. The new attractions come courtesy of Jack Penrod, the legendary Florida entrepreneur who practically created the term "spring break" as we know it today. Penrod reprises two of his most popular enterprises at Resorts—Nikki Beach, the world-famous high-end beach club; and Penrod's Elbo Room, the quintessential beach bar. The two attractions will flank a 50,000-square-foot amphitheater for outdoor concerts, and the three collectively will be billed Penrod's Entertainment Complex. With these adjacent attractions, Resorts hopes to duplicate in Atlantic City what Penrod did in Miami's South Beach and in Ft. Lauderdale—that is, to redefine beach leisure. Penrod blazed new territory when he opened Penrod's Beach Club in Ft. Lauderdale in 1983, and more significantly when he reprised it with a second, 35,000-square-foot South Beach location in 1988. Penrod's redefined the previously run-down South Beach as a magnet for the hip, the famous, and the outrageous. Ten years later, he transformed that club into the first Nikki Beach location, a new type of beach attraction—rows of beach beds surrounded by private, curtained "teepees" for private relaxation (and just about anything else). The service—food, fine champagne and hot music—started in broad daylight and extended far into the wee hours with dancing, revelry and debauchery. It became an international phenomenon, drawing jet-setters from all parts of the world and prompting quick expansion—seven years later, there are eight Nikki Beach locations in seven different countries. Resorts will be Number Nine. On the other side of the amphitheater will be Penrod's Elbo Room, the newest incarnation of the Ft. Lauderdale landmark beach bar Penrod took over in the 1980s. The original Elbo Room, established in 1938, became the stuff of legend during the 1950s as the backdrop for Connie Francis film Where The Boys Are and several other beach-party movies. After taking over what was already the prototype beach bar, Penrod used the marketing acumen he had originally developed working for McDonald's Corporation during the 1960s to promote the location as ground-zero of the college spring break revolution that has grown since the 1980s. He took his marketing show on the road to colleges around the country, ultimately transforming Ft. Lauderdale into Spring-Break Central for collegians across the nation. [Triple Threat] With the new concert venue flanked by these two unique beach spots, Resorts will now offer a triple entertainment threat that appeals to a very broad spectrum of the market. "Nikki Beach has a trendy cache to it—very organic, almost a seductive atmosphere," comments Trish Gilbert, Resorts' vice president of marketing. "Penrod's Elbo Room is a traditional beach-bar atmosphere—it's the Ft. Lauderdale spring break in its heyday, with five-for-seven-dollar buckets of beer and people-watching." Partying at the Elbo Room will provide a nice complement to the other beach bars along the Boardwalk, but Nikki Beach provides something totally new to the market, Gilbert says. "Nikki Beach will be a very different atmosphere compared to current Atlantic City beach bars. The drink of choice at Nikki Beach is champagne. They will also do an opulent Sunday brunch on the beach. One thing about the Penrods—they know how to throw a party." That party will appeal to the young and the younger, depending on the acts playing the amphitheater. According to Gilbert, Penrod's organization generally markets Nikki Beach to a mid-30s crowd, but the concert venue will often play host to hip-hop acts and other attractions to draw in mid-20s revelers. All told, the two beach bars—each 20,000 square feet—and the concert venue will create an entertainment complex totaling 90,000 square feet, larger than any of several Atlantic City casinos. "Having this global company come in is a huge coup for Atlantic City, and for Resorts as we re-position our brand," says Gilbert. "It's really going to raise the excitement level of the beach bars in Atlantic City." [The Opening Bash] Resorts is planning an entire weekend of activities to herald the arrival of the trio of attractions, including a beach concert, fashion shows, a VIP party, and several activities totally new to the city. It all starts Friday, May 27, with the "Ultimate Battle on the Beach," a boxing exhibition that ushers in a continuing series of fights hosted by legendary boxer Shannon Briggs. The fights, presented in collaboration with the New Jersey Fighting Association, will be staged every other Friday in a professional ring set up across from the casino, leading to the crowning of a New Jersey State Champion. On Saturday, May 28, the outdoor amphitheater cranks up the first in Penrod's Concert Series with hit rapper Ja Rule playing to a crowd expected to top 12,000. It is the first of what is expected to be a succession of national headline acts to hit the amphitheater's stage this summer. Sunday, May 29, will feature a huge dance party on a 200-by-260-foot covered structure built directly on the sand and featuring cutting-edge light and sound technology. Weather permitting, the roof will be rolled back to allow the party to continue under the stars. The party is being hosted by renowned Malibu leather-and-jewelry designer Bill Wall, and his Bill Wall Leather company. It will be a fitting bash to kick off a summer to remember.

By Frank Legato

Frank Legato is editor of Casino Connection and also editor of Global Gaming Business magazine. He has been writing on gaming topics since 1984, when he launched and served as editor of Casino Gaming magazine. Legato, a nationally recognized expert on slot machines, has served as editor and reporter for a variety of gaming publications, including Public Gaming, IGWB, Casino Journal, Casino Player, Strictly Slots and Atlantic City Insider. He has an B.A. in journalism and an M.A. in communications from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA. He is the author of the recently published book on gaming, How To Win Millions Playing Slot Machines... Or Lose Trying.

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