It probably wasn't coincidence that perennial summer troubadour Jimmy Buffett and Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. figured prominently in two major news stories just three weeks apart.
The first came April 25, when Caesars Atlantic City finally confirmed one of the worst-kept secrets in town. Buffett, who has consistently turned down of offers to play Atlantic City for more than 25 years, would finally be making his Atlantic City debut with a June 30 concert at Boardwalk Hall.
Industry observers wondered how Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. -- the parent company of Caesars -- convinced the music world's most famous one-hit wonder to finally perform here.
The answer may have come three weeks later when Harrah's board chairman Gary Loveman announced his company was partnering with Buffett to build a $704 million Margaritaville casino resort in hurricane-ravaged Biloxi, Miss.
It's the largest single project in the Gulf Coast states in the post-Katrina era. Loveman said Margaritaville will be "the next generation destination resort on the Gulf Coast" when it opens in 2010.
One Harrah's insider insisted the two deals were separate and that one had nothing to do with the other. But another industry expert said the two announcements were "probably related," albeit in an arm's-length way.
"When you have the world's largest casino company agreeing to invest $700 million and attach [Buffett's] name to it, you have to believe there was some kind of a quid pro quo," he said. "I think it's more than just coincidence that all of a sudden, after years of saying no, [Buffett] is playing Atlantic City and working for the same company that he's doing business with in Mississippi."
Buffett, 60, whose philanthropic and humanitarian efforts are well documented, said committing his name and resources to a Gulf Coast project is like a homecoming.
"I have always considered myself a 'Gulf Coast kid,'" he said. "I was born there, grew up there and jumped on a stage for the first time there. ... It's good to be coming back home."
But before he goes back to his roots, there's the little matter of playing to a sell-out crowd Saturday night in the big room on the Boardwalk. Buffett's Parrotheads -- those die-hard fans who eat, drink, sleep, live and breath all things Buffett -- have been waiting for this moment for 30 years.
"If I could follow him to every show, I would," said Steven Sugarman, a "50-something" lawyer from Brooklyn.
Sugarman called a Buffett concert "the ultimate three-hour vacation" where fans can get caught up in the music and the experience and temporarily transport themselves "to Margaritaville."
And where, geographically, is this mythical Margaritaville?
"To a true Parrothead, Margaritaville is right here," Sugarman said, tapping an index finger to his head and then his chest. "Margaritaville is a state of mind."
Currently on a summer tour for the 23rd consecutive year, Buffett's "Bama Breeze" show features the eclectic mix of music that's become a staple of his live shows. He mixes cover songs with his less-than-a-handful of original hits and throws in some of country music that was part of his 2004 surprise hit album License To Chill.
Now comes several unconfirmed reports that Buffett’s 2011 Fin Land tour will stop in Atlantic City in August, although no dates have been mentioned. Buffett’s Web site doesn’t include Atlantic City on the list of announced concerts, although his annual visit to the Camden waterfront is scheduled for June 23.
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