Cross Country
Gambling on Slots in Pennsylvania
One quarter at a time, Pennsylvania began its effort to provide property tax relief by allowing the state's first slot-machine parlor to open near Wilkes-Barre. Business was brisk on the first day at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs, where hundreds of gamblers tried their luck. Gov. Ed Rendell, who was re-elected this month, proposed slot machines as a solution to the state's tax woes. When all 14 parlors approved by the legislature in 2004 are open, they are expected to contribute $1 billion a year to the state through a 34 percent tax on slot machine revenue. Rendell hopes that new money will then allow him to give property owners a bit of a tax break. But not everyone is pleased. Dianne Berlin, the head of CasinoFreePa, said politicians did not heed problems associated with gambling. "It's the ABCs, the addiction, the bankruptcy, and the crime," Berlin says. State regulators also held hearings last week on bids for the remaining casino licenses, some of which will go to sites in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.
Space: the Final Chicken Frontier
KFC's gambit to extend its "finger lickin' good" chicken to space invaders (assuming they have fingers) didn't draw any little green customers, but it did become a man-on-the-moon moment for marketers. Last week, KFC made history by unveiling the world's largest corporate logo near Rachel, Nev., at so-called Area 51, where aliens are rumored to have once landed. The image of Colonel Sanders-87,500 square feet-was visible from space, but aliens were wary. "We have not been contacted yet," KFC spokesman Rick Maynard told U.S. News.
Earthlings, at least, responded. There was global attention from the media, for one thing. Airplane pilots received free snack items for flying within the logo's line of sight, and astronauts on the international space station were promised free original-recipe chicken if they spotted the logo-though they must come to Earth to get it. The marketing ploy was devised to show off an updated image of the colonel, who now sports a red apron. "The logo has only changed four times, so we were thinking this is bigger news than just here on Earth," says Maynard. Assembled as a giant puzzle of 65,000 tiles, the logo was disassembled at week's end.
With Dan Gilgoff, Will Sullivan, Bret Schulte and Associated Press
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