Henrik Lundqvist stopped all 36 shots, and Dan Girardi, Chris Kreider and Ryan Callahan scored third-period goals to lead the New York Rangers to a 3-0 win over the New Jersey Devils in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Saturday.
Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/japanese-woman-73-scales-everest-second-time-130517934--spt.html
BRESCIA, Italy (Reuters) – John Elkann, the media-shy chairman of one of the world’s biggest car companies, got behind the wheel and demonstrated his driving skills on Thursday in Italy’s legendary four-day Mille Miglia rally race.
The 36-year-old head of Fiat, which now control Chrysler and was founded by his great-great grandfather Giovanni Agnelli in 1899, will take turns driving a custom-made 1952 eight-cylinder Fiat 8V with his wife, Lavinia Borromeo, who also has a passion for iconic cars.
“Lavinia and I had been talking for years about doing this, and after the birth of our third child earlier this year, we decided that now was the right time,” Elkann said in an interview. “We practiced for it by driving around the hills in Turin.”
The Mille Miglia was founded in 1927 when motoring was still in its infancy. It is a grinding endurance test that pushed both car and driver to the limits.
Drivers in the 382 classic Jaguars, Bentleys, Alfa Romeos, Porsches and Ferraris are timed during the race.
The iconic cars will roar through 190 towns and villages that are set in some of the world’s most beautiful scenery, starting from Brescia’s historic cobblestoned streets then passing through Verona, Vicenza, Bologna, Florence and Siena on the way to Rome, before looping back up through the vineyard-covered hills of Tuscany.
“Our kids want to see us come in first, but I told them I will be happy if we make it to the end,” Elkann said.
Given Alfa Romeo’s domination of the race, John’s choice of a Fiat rather than an Alfa — which is part of the Fiat stable of brands that include Ferrari, Maserati, and now Jeep, Dodge and Chrysler – may seem odd. Alfa Romeo won the race 11 out of 20 times from 1927 to 1957.
But he chose the Fiat 8V for sentimental reasons.
“We chose this car because when we got married, someone at Fiat gave us a toy version of this car,” he explained. “So when I saw it was available, of course I picked it.”
(Reporting by Jennifer Clark; editing by Patricia Reaney)
Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/fiats-elkann-gets-behind-wheel-mille-miglia-194146075--finance.html
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Peter Berg parlayed successful acting work on TV shows like medical drama “Chicago Hope” to an even greater directing career of movies such as “Friday Night Lights,” which later became a TV series, and the Will Smith action flick “Hancock.”
On Friday, Berg’s latest film, alien-invasion actioner “Battleship,” steams into theaters. It takes its title from the Hasbro board game in which two players engage in a guessing game to see who can sink the other’s naval ships.
The film uses the board game as a jumping off point to tell of two brothers (Taylor Kitsch and Alexander Skarsgard), both Navy officers, whose ships must battle aliens invading Earth.
Berg spoke with Reuters about the film, his own memories playing the board game and why he cast pop star Rihanna in her first acting major movie role as a petty officer.
Q: Were you given any particular instructions from Hasbro when trying to adapt the board game to the big screen?
A: “‘Battleship’ was a great creative exercise. I was under no mandate to do anything but make an entertaining and compelling film. That being said, it was a lot of fun for me and the writers to come up with creative ways of referencing the game. One of my favorite sequences is almost a literal reference to the actual game of ‘Battleship’ where we see some low tech attempts to locate the enemy.”
Q: Another reference is a variation of the famous phrase in TV commercials: ‘You sunk my Battleship!’ Any others?
A: “There was a variation, yes. And if you look closely at the weapons that the aliens fired, they just might resemble those old plastic pegs from the game, only a little more vicious. Also, the idea that the radar is out and we cannot locate the enemy, we cannot see the enemy, we are fighting blind. Those are just a couple of references. If you pay attention, I think you can find a few more.”
Q: Did the Navy have strict rules you needed to abide by if you were going to use its equipment?
A: “I have a very good relationship with the Department of Defense and the Navy in particular. My father was a Naval historian and a Marine. I was brought up going a lot to Navy museums and listening to stories of the great battles of history. The Navy expects you to be reasonable. If you want the privilege and the luxury of filming on a $2 billion destroyer that’s fully loaded with all kinds of missiles, you can’t portray Navy SEALs doing things Navy SEALs can’t do. All they asked is that I be fair to their rules.”
Q: Like what?
A: “We had an actor playing a sailor in a supporting role. He showed up to Hawaii about 30 lbs overweight. The Navy has a very strict body fat rule. They told me this actor was not acceptable and could not represent the Navy. I couldn’t argue over that. I had to tell this actor he lost the job. We had to get another actor.”
Q: You cast many real-life war veterans. Their wars were real, in ‘Battleship,’ it’s aliens. Why mix reality and fantasy?
A: “It was an opportunity for me to pay respect to veterans. That is a group I think we can all pay respect to, whether we serve or we don’t. The alien component was brought in to help soften the reality of the war that we’re all living with today. I wanted this to be a fun summer movie, not a bloody war about America and China killing each other. We have enough problems in that area today. I wanted to make a film that was as escapist as anything else.”
Q: “Battleship” has already made $215 million overseas. Why do you think a film about American soldiers is playing so well internationally?
A: “At the end of the day, the movie is about people. You stop thinking about these sailors as representatives of an army. They’re young people trying to survive. I felt that if we could accomplish that, the jingoistic aspects of the film could be diminished and people would get on the ride and go with it.”
Q: This is singer Rihanna‘s big screen debut. Were you confident she could act?
A: “I had success with (country singer) Tim McGraw in ‘Friday Night Lights‘ and ‘The Kingdom.’ In the case of Rihanna, I always felt she had such tremendous presence and charisma. When I met with her, it was apparent to me that she had everything it took for this role. I felt very confident I could get the performance out of her.”
Q: Do you have any personal memories playing the Battleship board game as a kid?
A: “I remember it was the first time my dad talked to me about cheating. I was maybe five and my dad said, ‘G7′ and it was a hit. I realized I could possibly move my ship so I said, ‘Miss.’ I had a horrible poker face. My dad asked me if I was telling the truth and I said no. The game provided me with that first opportunity to do the right thing, to tell the truth.”
(Reporting By Zorianna Kit; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)
Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/peter-berg-discusses-bringing-battleship-film-203656932.html
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexicans bid farewell to renowned author Carlos Fuentes on Wednesday in an emotional tribute attended by the president and the country’s most prominent intellectuals before a planned burial in France.
Fuentes, who died suddenly on Tuesday at 83 after an internal hemorrhage, was one of Latin America’s best-known novelists and was still active until the very end of his life working on books and participating in events.
His wife Silvia Lemus said the writer’s ashes will be taken to Paris where his two children, who both died young, are buried and where he served as an ambassador.
“We still don’t know (when). It is a very difficult moment to decide,” Lemus told reporters at the elegant Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico’s historical center where President Felipe Calderon, Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard and others remembered the writer’s most moving works.
“Carlos Fuentes will live on through his works, his words, for generations of Mexicans. His thought, his books, his criticism, will never die,” the president said. “Carlos Fuentes only passed away to be loved more.”
Fuentes wrote more than 20 novels and several collections of short stories and was a frequent critic of Mexican governments and U.S. policies toward Latin America.
His most famous novels include “The Death of Artemio Cruz” and “The Old Gringo,” which was made into a 1989 movie starring Gregory Peck and Jane Fonda.
Fuentes, who split his time between Europe and Latin America, was Mexico’s ambassador to France from 1975 to 1977.
France’s new leftist president, Francois Hollande, added to the outpouring of comments after the writer’s death on Tuesday. “I pay tribute to the committed man, resistant to norms and dogmas, who keenly defended a simple and dignified idea of humanity,” Hollande said in a statement.
Lines of admirers waited in the mid-morning sun to file past the coffin draped in the Mexican flag to pay their respects to Fuentes who, along with Colombia’s Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Peru’s Mario Vargas Llosa, brought Latin American literature to a global audience in the second half of the 20th century.
An habitual commentator on contemporary issues, Fuentes had recently criticized the frontrunning candidate for Mexico’s July 1 presidential election, Enrique Pena Nieto.
Pena Nieto aims to bring the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which ruled Mexico for seven decades until being voted out in 2000, back to power but has been criticized as an intellectual lightweight.
Last December, Pena Nieto mistakenly said one of Fuentes’ most famous books was written by a different author after the candidate failed to name three books that had influenced him.
“Fuentes did not mince words and was not afraid to call Pena Nieto out as a small man,” said retiree Jose Luis Gonzalez as the memorial service.
(Writing by Mica Rosenberg; Editing by Anthony Boadle)
Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/mexican-novelist-carlos-fuentes-dies-83-002801480.html
Twirling her leopard-print dress on stage in the ’70s, proudly holding many of her music awards and performing in recent years on “American Idol”, Donna Summer was the ultimate disco queen
Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/second-travolta-accuser-drops-suit-hires-celebrity-attorney-184513083.html
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The masseur whose $2 million sexual battery lawsuit against Hollywood actor John Travolta was dismissed earlier this week hired celebrity attorney Gloria Allred on Wednesday and could file a new claim.
Allred, who numerous high-profile cases over the years have included representing women involved in the Tiger Woods sex scandal, said on Wednesday that she is now the attorney for “John Doe No. 1″ and will be consulting with the masseur on his next steps in the case that has made headlines worldwide.
“Mr. Doe’s lawsuit was dismissed without prejudice which means that he is still legally entitled to file a lawsuit against John Travolta if he chooses,” Allred said in a statement. “We are in the process of conferring with him regarding the next steps, which he may wish to take.”
Travolta faces a similar claim from another masseur. His lawyer, Los Angeles-based Martin Singer, has vehemently denied the sexual battery claims against the “Grease” actor and on Tuesday said his client had been vindicated by the dismissal of the first complaint. His office had no immediate comment about Allred’s hiring on Wednesday.
John Doe No. 1, a Texas resident, initially claimed in court papers filed earlier this month that Travolta groped him during a private massage in Beverly Hills in January.
But on Tuesday, his former attorney, Okorie Okorocha, filed a notice dismissing the lawsuit. Okorocha told Reuters he had “limited his representation” of the plaintiff after the masseur got the date wrong of the alleged incident and contacted media outlets directly.
“I wanted to be the only one talking to the press … His case needed to be redone and it would take a lot of time to redo the whole thing,” Okorocha said.
Okorocha plans to go ahead with the lawsuit against Travolta representing a second male masseur, John Doe No. 2, who claimed Travolta sexually assaulted him during a massage session in an Atlanta hotel in late January.
Two other men have made similar claims to media outlets but no legal filings have yet been made in those cases.
Travolta, 58, has been married to actress Kelly Preston since 1991. He first gained fame on the television show “Welcome Back, Kotter” and later enjoyed hit movies such as “Saturday Night Fever” and “Urban Cowboy” before going on to grittier roles in films such as “Pulp Fiction” and “Get Shorty.”
Allred represented the family of O.J. Simpson’s slain ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, during Simpson’s trial and filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against actor David Boreanaz on behalf of a client who was an extra on Borneanaz’s show “Bones.” She also represented a Chicago woman who alleged that former Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain sexually harassed her.
(Reporting By Piya Sinha-Roy; Editing by Bill Trott)
Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/lawyer-says-john-travolta-vindicated-dropped-sex-lawsuit-003629661.html
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Britney Spears hasn’t even taken her seat as the new judge of “The X Factor,” but the pop icon is already getting a lesson in the media glare of live, talent show television.
Spears had barely wrapped up an appearance in New York confirming she is joining the singing contest before the celebrity knives were out, raising the question of how well the singer, who went through a public meltdown in 2007, can handle all the newfound attention.
Her dress, nails, shoes, legs and figure have all come in for scrutiny – most of it negative – in a taste of what may come when the show returns to TV in September for two nights a week over four months.
The New York Daily News ran photos of the “Toxic” singer’s “bloody picked fingernails”. It also showed a close-up of her thighs, commenting that she “appeared in a short white mini dress that showed off her famous pop star legs – and what looks to be a bit of cellulite.”
Spears, famed for raunchy dance routines and music videos in her heyday, is now 30-years-old and a mother of two. Outside her sell-out global concert tours, she has been largely shielded from the media since a career and personal breakdown in 2007 that resulted in her affairs being handed over to her father.
Mary Fischer at The Stir on website cafemom.com, said the singer was “a hot mess” in the cream dress she wore for her New York appearance on Monday before Fox TV network executives and advertisers.
“She might as well have just thrown on a nightgown or racy piece of lingerie. She would’ve achieved the same effect (showing off the fact that she’s shed a bit of weight and gotten her groove back), but she wouldn’t have looked like she was trying so hard,” Fischer said.
She suggested Spears should take a tip from Prince William’s wife and style icon Kate Middleton who “is the definition of being sexy without revealing too much skin.”
DAZZLING RING, LUMPY LEGS
Celebrity magazine Us Weekly was more excited by Britney’s three carat diamond engagement ring, estimated to be worth about $90,000, that boyfriend Jason Trawick slid on her finger in December.
But some readers weren’t dazzled by the ring and focused on Spears’ fashion. Kathleen Tandy commented on the magazine’s website that although Britney looked good in the second, purple dress she wore for photos on Monday “she looked like straight-up trailer trash” in the cream outfit.
Britain’s Sun newspaper said “Britney looked better than she has in years,” when she stepped out in New York. But elsewhere in the tabloid, reporters said her cream mini-dress “hugged her lumpy legs. A pair of tight ankle-strapped heels cut off her pins even more.”
Elsewhere, Spears’ legs were seen as either toned, bruised, dimpled or fat in hundreds of fevered online debates, where the former pop princess was compared (mostly unfavorably) to the demurely-dressed Demi Lovato, 19, who is also joining “The X Factor.”
But the “Baby…One More Time” singer also had plenty of defenders.
“I don’t care for Britney, but seriously what is with all the fat comments? I’d love to see what some of you guys look like or your spouses…” wrote HuffingtonPost.com user Goldie Treasure..
“The only thing that looks kind of weird is her knee, but whatever on that. Christina (Aguilera) and Britney are not little 17 yr old pop princesses anymore they are women in their 30′s with kids, cut them some slack.”
(Reporting By Jill Serjeant)
Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/britney-back-brickbats-222004261.html
CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (Reuters) – The Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Wednesday named Rafael Reif, an electrical engineer born in Venezuela who has been the university’s provost since 2005, as its 17th president.
Reif, 61, replaces Susan Hockfield, the first female president of MIT, who announced in mid-February that she was stepping down after almost eight years leading one of the most prestigious universities in the United States.
Reif will take up his post at the Cambridge, Massachusetts, university on July 2, the first MIT president not to be a native English speaker.
In his role as provost, the senior academic official at the university, Reif helped create and implement a strategy that allowed MIT to weather the global financial crisis, despite a large decline in its endowment, and drove the growth of the university overseas, from Abu Dhabi to Russia.
He also led the development of MITx, the university’s initiative in online learning, and pushed an effort to increase diversity among the university’s faculty.
He takes over at a time when many college graduates face crippling student debt and an uncertain job market, and when MIT is preparing to launch a major fundraising campaign and expand its online learning programs.
Reif is the youngest of four sons of émigrés who fled Eastern Europe for Latin America in the late 1930s, living first in Ecuador and Colombia before settling in Venezuela. Reif’s father worked as a photographer.
“I grew up in a home wealthy in integrity and principles and values, but poor in everything material,” Reif said at a news conference to announce the appointment.
Reif earned an undergraduate degree in engineering from Venezuela’s Universidad de Carabobo in 1973. He gained a master’s and PhD in electrical engineering from Stanford University in California and joined MIT in 1980.
He was an early champion of the university’s work in micro- and nanotechnology. He holds 15 patents, has won several teaching awards and has supervised 38 doctoral theses.
(Reporting by Ros Krasny; Editing by David Storey and Lisa Shumaker)
Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/venezuelan-born-academic-named-president-mit-041353123.html
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Kazuo Okada, the Japanese billionaire engaged in a fierce legal battle with Las Vegas casino tycoon Steve Wynn, is diversifying his pachinko company with a string of his own restaurants and is negotiating to build a casino resort in South Korea.
On Tuesday, Okada opened a 25,000-square-foot fine dining complex in Hong Kong, the first step in an expansion plan that includes an Okada restaurant in Shanghai scheduled to open in September, and a dining complex in Tokyo due to open in December.
In an interview with Reuters at his new restaurant, Okada said his Universal Entertainment Corp would open five Okada restaurants in Asia next year. After that he plans to expand to major cities around the world, including New York.
“We want to be the No. 1 casino company in the world,” said Okada, dressed in a dark suit and wearing a small pink and purple flower. He is also building a $2 billion casino resort in the fast-growing gambling destination of the Philippines that is due to open in 2014.
The Hong Kong restaurant and Philippines casino have been 80 percent funded by Universal, said Okada, who is chairman of the Tokyo-listed company. For future projects, he said the company is considering the support of the private investors who make up the remaining 20 percent.
Okada, whose net worth was put at $1.8 billion by Forbes this year, has been trying to diversify the group’s core pachinko business – the Japanese arcade game that rakes in about $20 trillion yen (US$250 billion) annually – into entertainment and casino resorts in Asia.
He said opening hotels in jurisdictions where gambling is not yet permitted, such as Taiwan, was also a possibility.
Until February, Okada was the largest shareholder in Steve Wynn’s $12 billion Wynn Resorts Ltd. He had helped bankroll Wynn’s operations for more than a decade.
The two fell out publicly in January when Okada filed a lawsuit against Wynn for blocking access to financial documents relating to a $135 million company donation to the University of Macau.
Okada declined to comment on the case.
Analysts say the fallout will continue to vex the two tycoons’ businesses until the legal battle is resolved. Lawyers say that could take years.
Wynn, who recently received approval to build a new casino in Macau, is also scoping out Asian markets, including the Philippines and South Korea, where he does not yet have a presence. Casino operators are racing to secure sites in Asia to position themselves in the world’s fastest-growing gambling markets, like the Philippines, or those that could bring hefty profits, such as Japan, were they to legalize gambling.
FINE WINING AND DINING
Okada remains focused on building his empire. He’s using the opening of his upscale Japanese, Chinese and Italian restaurants on the waterfront that overlooks Hong Kong’s skyline as a platform to launch his brand.
“We are not worried about the economy. It is always changing,” he said, speaking through a translator. Seated in an opulent VIP karaoke room under a bronze chandelier, Okada shrugged off global growth jitters and concerns that China’s growth was slowing.
“Other countries may get better,” he said, confident that weaker-than-expected growth in China and parts of Asia would not affect his upcoming Philippines casino.
Macau, the world’s largest gambling destination, is highly sensitive to worsening credit conditions in China because of its reliance on Chinese high rollers.
Through subsidiary K.O. Dining Group, established in 2011 to spearhead Universal’s investment in restaurants, Okada has also opened a 10,000-bottle wine cellar in the Hong Kong complex, stocking vintages that include wine auction darlings Domaine de la Romanee-Conti and Chateau Lafite Rothschild.
The wine cellar, decorated with light paneled wood and encased in a large glass room in the center of the complex, is only accessible by passing through electronic security.
Shares in Universal have lost nearly a quarter of their value since January, when Okada made the accusations against Wynn.
Wynn redeemed the former vice chairman’s shareholding in February, alleging that as a board director Okada had violated U.S. anti-corruption laws.
For Okada’s Japanese restaurant in Hong Kong, called Kazuo Okada, he has hired the executive chef from Wynn’s Okada restaurant in Macau. It will specialize in Kaiseki – a traditional multi-course Japanese dinner – and premium sake.
The Shanghai venue will open in the Portman Ritz-Carlton hotel this September. Okada is also looking to expand elsewhere in China.
PACHINKO TO PREMIUM LUXURY
Okada’s push into casinos and luxury dining is a departure for the former engineer whose specialty has been developing and manufacturing pachinko machines.
A YouTube video by Universal subsidiary Tiger Entertainment offering an early look at Okada’s Manila Bay Resorts property shows an exterior similar to Wynn’s sleek bronze landmark in Macau.
The video shows ample natural light and greenery as well as an expansive lake at the center with “dancing” fountains.
Like his former business partner Wynn, Okada is paying close attention to detail as his company expands. Floor-to-ceiling glass walls are a feature in his Hong Kong restaurants, while his family’s traditional crest is incorporated into the walls at his minimalist Japanese restaurant.
On his plans for a casino in Japan, Okada said he is negotiating with the government. “Nothing is concrete for the time being,” he said.
(Reporting by Farah Master; Editing by Prudence Crowther and Douglas Royalty)
Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/okada-bets-win-fine-dining-casinos-214351359.html
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Kazuo Okada, the Japanese billionaire engaged in a fierce legal battle with Las Vegas casino tycoon Steve Wynn, is diversifying his pachinko company with a string of his own restaurants and is negotiating to build a casino resort in South Korea.
On Tuesday, Okada opened a 25,000-square-foot fine dining complex in Hong Kong, the first step in an expansion plan that includes an Okada restaurant in Shanghai scheduled to open in September, and a dining complex in Tokyo due to open in December.
In an interview with Reuters at his new restaurant, Okada said his Universal Entertainment Corp would open five Okada restaurants in Asia next year. After that he plans to expand to major cities around the world, including New York.
“We want to be the No. 1 casino company in the world,” said Okada, dressed in a dark suit and wearing a small pink and purple flower. He is also building a $2 billion casino resort in the fast-growing gambling destination of the Philippines that is due to open in 2014.
The Hong Kong restaurant and Philippines casino have been 80 percent funded by Universal, said Okada, who is chairman of the Tokyo-listed company. For future projects, he said the company is considering the support of the private investors who make up the remaining 20 percent.
Okada, whose net worth was put at $1.8 billion by Forbes this year, has been trying to diversify the group’s core pachinko business – the Japanese arcade game that rakes in about $20 trillion yen (US$250 billion) annually – into entertainment and casino resorts in Asia.
He said opening hotels in jurisdictions where gambling is not yet permitted, such as Taiwan, was also a possibility.
Until February, Okada was the largest shareholder in Steve Wynn’s $12 billion Wynn Resorts Ltd. He had helped bankroll Wynn’s operations for more than a decade.
The two fell out publicly in January when Okada filed a lawsuit against Wynn for blocking access to financial documents relating to a $135 million company donation to the University of Macau.
Okada declined to comment on the case.
Analysts say the fallout will continue to vex the two tycoons’ businesses until the legal battle is resolved. Lawyers say that could take years.
Wynn, who recently received approval to build a new casino in Macau, is also scoping out Asian markets, including the Philippines and South Korea, where he does not yet have a presence. Casino operators are racing to secure sites in Asia to position themselves in the world’s fastest-growing gambling markets, like the Philippines, or those that could bring hefty profits, such as Japan, were they to legalize gambling.
FINE WINING AND DINING
Okada remains focused on building his empire. He’s using the opening of his upscale Japanese, Chinese and Italian restaurants on the waterfront that overlooks Hong Kong’s skyline as a platform to launch his brand.
“We are not worried about the economy. It is always changing,” he said, speaking through a translator. Seated in an opulent VIP karaoke room under a bronze chandelier, Okada shrugged off global growth jitters and concerns that China’s growth was slowing.
“Other countries may get better,” he said, confident that weaker-than-expected growth in China and parts of Asia would not affect his upcoming Philippines casino.
Macau, the world’s largest gambling destination, is highly sensitive to worsening credit conditions in China because of its reliance on Chinese high rollers.
Through subsidiary K.O. Dining Group, established in 2011 to spearhead Universal’s investment in restaurants, Okada has also opened a 10,000-bottle wine cellar in the Hong Kong complex, stocking vintages that include wine auction darlings Domaine de la Romanee-Conti and Chateau Lafite Rothschild.
The wine cellar, decorated with light paneled wood and encased in a large glass room in the center of the complex, is only accessible by passing through electronic security.
Shares in Universal have lost nearly a quarter of their value since January, when Okada made the accusations against Wynn.
Wynn redeemed the former vice chairman’s shareholding in February, alleging that as a board director Okada had violated U.S. anti-corruption laws.
For Okada’s Japanese restaurant in Hong Kong, called Kazuo Okada, he has hired the executive chef from Wynn’s Okada restaurant in Macau. It will specialize in Kaiseki – a traditional multi-course Japanese dinner – and premium sake.
The Shanghai venue will open in the Portman Ritz-Carlton hotel this September. Okada is also looking to expand elsewhere in China.
PACHINKO TO PREMIUM LUXURY
Okada’s push into casinos and luxury dining is a departure for the former engineer whose specialty has been developing and manufacturing pachinko machines.
A YouTube video by Universal subsidiary Tiger Entertainment offering an early look at Okada’s Manila Bay Resorts property shows an exterior similar to Wynn’s sleek bronze landmark in Macau.
The video shows ample natural light and greenery as well as an expansive lake at the center with “dancing” fountains.
Like his former business partner Wynn, Okada is paying close attention to detail as his company expands. Floor-to-ceiling glass walls are a feature in his Hong Kong restaurants, while his family’s traditional crest is incorporated into the walls at his minimalist Japanese restaurant.
On his plans for a casino in Japan, Okada said he is negotiating with the government. “Nothing is concrete for the time being,” he said.
(Reporting by Farah Master; Editing by Prudence Crowther and Douglas Royalty)
Article source: http://news.yahoo.com/okada-bets-win-fine-dining-casinos-214351359.html
