Comments on: Crown Casino: ‘A snarling, digitised mutilation’

By: Leigh Penman

Leigh Penman — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 05:34:44 +0000

Great stuff, Simon and co.!

Another thing that always comes to my mind when considering Crown is the insane, INSANE, security. All the entries are barred by a gaggle of swaggering security drones, aggressively seeking to make eye contact, to examine ID, to dominate visitors physically and mentally. It’s as bad as at an airport, which adds to the ‘voyage’/nation state/otherworldly feeling of being in the Crown “complex”.

Another thing about the carpet is that it is deliberately designed to appear strewn with riches, at least to the subconscious mind: coins, rings, doubloons. A friend of mine says it is difficult to find a coin on the carpet if you’ve dropped one…

By: Simon Sellars

Simon Sellars — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 11:18:59 +0000

Thank you, Johnny!

By: Casino world « Melanie Chilianis

Casino world « Melanie Chilianis — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:08:27 +0000

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By: Simon Sellars

Simon Sellars — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 17:45:54 +0000

To ‘Parky’: I’ve deleted your comments. If you have anything to say to me, do it via the contact link on this site, and without the grubby comments directed at my colleagues.

By: johnny strike

johnny strike — Fri, 29 May 2009 02:47:00 +0000

halfway through this i looked away to make some notes. the soundtrack was playing loud, and for a minute i thought i was missing part of a film.
i spent a weekend in vegas once, stayed at circus-circus and just wandered around making notes, some of it went into a mss i’m still hustling.
but this, sound, image and word combo is a real knockout. well done.

By: Simon Sellars

Simon Sellars — Fri, 29 May 2009 00:25:39 +0000

Thanks all. Credit also to Steven from Melb Psy, who was my collaborator on this piece, and to Mel for sound of course.

Greg, Steven wrote the ‘necessary evacuation’ line. I’m thinking that it is, of course, of the bowels…

Ian, that schizoid split face is actually what popped up on the giant sports screen – I haven’t altered it in any way. And yes, it is very Videodrome…

Iraklis, thanks! I have sent you an email.

Mike H, half a chapter of my thesis was on Kingdom Come. Would love to see what you come up with.

Mike B, ‘inspiring’ is the word! I went there again last night to see if it matched up to my memories of the last visit (which formed the basis for the article, and was quite some time ago), and it was as freaky as ever, because it’s not really a Vegas-style supercasino, but more a brash little town, sealed off at the borders, rubbing rudely against Melbourne.

Brent, yes, you’re right… I forgot about those stories. Also the pigeons that got fried when they turned on the huge gas flares outside at the opening of the place. Re: your daughter’s excursion. What did they teach the kids about it? I’d be interested to know.

By: Brent Deale

Brent Deale — Thu, 28 May 2009 22:16:05 +0000

Simon
You missed the babies left in the carkpark and the rivers of urine beneath the gaming tables that the punters wont leave. My 11 year old informed me last week that she had been to Crown Casino , she went on a school excursion that took in the Immigration Museum and Crown Casino. Time to worry!

regards Brent

By: Mike Bonsall

Mike Bonsall — Thu, 28 May 2009 21:00:09 +0000

Great stuff! Now I’m seriously jealous of Melbourne. The UK super-casinos have been ditched and we have nothing near as frightening and inspiring to visit at night.

By: Mike H

Mike H — Wed, 27 May 2009 19:46:18 +0000

Good to see some HST-style underground reporting from the Ballardosphere, Simon.

Like you, I believe there’s much of interest to take out of “Kingdom Come” … and some day I may even get around to writing something about it!

By: Iraklis

Iraklis — Wed, 27 May 2009 18:58:08 +0000

Such a terrific combination! Was on my head too, but greek casinos are more of a down-to-earth approach (haven’t been to the northern Chalkidiki peninsula one, though…). This is great stuff, Dr Sellars! I am now putting the finishing touches on the greek translation of Miracles of Life and I was wondering if you’d be interested in contributing a one-or-two page foreword on it. If interested, drop me a line… All the best!

By: Ian Parkinson

Ian Parkinson — Wed, 27 May 2009 18:56:30 +0000

Fantastic, Simon.

The green-skinned ‘hep cat’ makes me feel strangely nauseous. He’s like something out of a Lynch film, a sickly clown paying too much attention from some corner of a childhood night…

And those lights look like calcified jellyfish suspended in pink neon blubber…

Is the aim of the casino to reduce you to a twitching wreck on the floor, with just enough energy to reach a fistfull of money up to a table? Every picture makes me feel ill.

The photo of the guy with the microphone reminds me of something i can’t quite place … Videodrome, or American Psycho…..

By: Greg

Greg — Wed, 27 May 2009 08:24:07 +0000

Very creative … I’m appreciatively shaking the bugs from my hair … One of these days you’re going to adopt the simulacrum-suit of a fictioneer and then we’ll all have to watch out … One concern only — the exact nature of the ‘necessary evacuation’?

By: Plastic Futures | Crown Casino: ‘A snarling, digitised mutilation’

Plastic Futures | Crown Casino: ‘A snarling, digitised mutilation’ — Wed, 27 May 2009 05:40:03 +0000

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