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■ .... I.,,,.. iiiII....j,,mM JUk BjBjft Jfr flL I 3raandand9 - BETWEEN RACES * *»o* HOLLYWOOD PARK, Inglewood, Calif..* ♦ June 13.— Alfred Jay Luke, attorney and former president of the old California ■ .... I.,,,.. iiiII....j,,mM Thoroughbred Thoroughbred Owners Owners Thoroughbred Thoroughbred Owners Owners and Trainers Association, has authorized me to say that a group headed by himself and Lou Smith of Rockingham Park have submitted a plan to the Federal Court in Nevada which would permit the reorganization of the Las Vegas race track, track, and, and, if if the the court court JUk BjBjft Jfr flL I 3raandand9 - track, track, and, and, if if the the court court approves, the track, now about 75 per cent complete, will be finished and a race meeting staged there .next spring. We understand that Lou Smith, one of the gfreat figures in American raeing, indeed, the father of modern racing in New England, believes along with Luke that properly operated, Las Vegas would be a success, and, under certain conditions, it i might be sensational. Smith is expected in i the Far West early next week, and upon his arrival, an effort will be made to bring i the present negotiations into reality. "We 1 are properly financed with the new capital i needed to complete the track and provide it with an operating bankroll," advises Luke. 1 "Both Mr. Smith and myself are convinced that to be truly successful, Las Vegas would have to present racing on a par with that in California, because we would draw the bulk of our patronage from California. We 1 plan to race spring and fall, opening after | the close of Santa Anita, running until the ; opening of Hollywood Park, then reopen during Del Mar and run until the first of i the year. In all, we would have 100 days ; of racing, four days a week, Thursday j through Sunday, or 25 weeks in all. Las i Vegas would fit into two well-defined cir- j cuits. Santa Anita and Hollywood Park, i and Omaha -Denver. AAA "Joe Smoot originally planned the track I under a corporation known as the Las 1 Vegas Thoroughbred Racing Association," I adds Luke. "The corporation sold ,500,- I 000 worth of stock and ran out of money ] with the track almost 75 per cent com- i pleted. The Securities and Exchange Com- mission investigated the company, and, on 1 January 18, 1951, suspended further sale of i the stock. Later, Smoot and some of the 1 co-promoters were indicted for misappro- I priation of money and these indictments 1 are now pending. On February 22 of this 1 year, a group representing a stockholders i ♦ i i i 1 i 1 1 | ; i ; j i j i I 1 I I ] i 1 i 1 I 1 1 i Luke, Smith Reveal Vegas Venture t Offer Court Reorganization Plan Spring, Fall Meets at Desert Spa Twin Stakes at Hollywood Today committee filed a petition in U. S. District I Court stating that proceedings be had in I reorganization under Chapter 10 of the Act I of Congress relating to bankruptcy. The SEC also filed a similar petition. In March i of this year, the court appointed Thomas J. McLaughlin of Las Vegas as trustee, and he has taken into his possession all of the known assets of the property. Under Chapter 10, a plan of reorganization may be submitted, which, if fair and equitable and * workable, will prevent the Insolvent corpor- ation from being forced into bankruptcy, i Such a plan would have to provide for the payment of creditors, cost of adminstra- 1 tion and make some provision for the pres- ent stockholders, as well as supply suffi- cient money to complete and operate the 1 track. If no such plan is offered, the alternative would be bankruptcy. However, T Lou Smith and myself have submitted such 1 a plan. It is this plan which will be sub- mitted to the court upon the arrival of 1 Lou Smith from New Hampshire. AAA £ "I have often been asked, says Luke, "if £ a we have the cooperation of the Las Vegas business people, and if we will have a casino at the track. As to the first, I can answer * yes. As to the second, I dont know. If i we operate without a casino, both Smith and myself feel that the track will do well. If we have a casino, it well could be fabu- lous. However, we both are in accord in the I belief that to make Las Vegas really attrac- t tive and a drawing power, our racing must i be far removed from the bush classification, t and we will offer, for the first season at i least, minimum purses of ,000, and such 1 stakes and overnight handicaps as might i be warranted. Lou Smiths judgment as to racing properties is well known, and he is of s the firm opinion that properly financed and 1 properly managed, the Las Vegas track 1 would be a credit to racing, casino or no i casino. Of course, if our plan is accepted by c the Federal Court, Lou Smith will be the active head of the racing association. We s know all about Las Vegas being a compara- t tively small town from a racing standpoint, r but we also know that its transient popula- s tion is enormous and we also know that as I gay a town as Las Vegas is, there still is t t I I I i * i 1 1 T 1 1 £ £ a * i I t i t i 1 i s 1 1 i c s t r s I t ♦nothing for a visitor to do in the daytime. A fine race track in Vegas would improve the general economy of the town considerably, and in this belief, jure are in agreement with the towns leading business 1 people. That racing can draw from long distances, | especially in the Far West, has been , proven time after time. Del Mar, for in- ! stance, was condemned at the start as being too far from Los Angeles its 100 miles and Caliente today draws much of its Sunday patronage from Los Angeles, 150 miles away." AAA Another set of twin stakes, in this instance the 0,000 added Debonaire at seven furlongs for three -year-olds, and the 5,-000 I I Vanity for fillies and mares at a mile and one-sixteenth, adorn the Saturday program here. We rather suspect the Vanity will serve to prove what everyone has sus-picioned, to wit, that Calumet has the best of the distaff on the West Coast. The Debonaire I is a brand new stake and its main purpose, other than providing a good race, would seem to be as a stepping stone to the i Westerner, the latter being Hollywood . Parks version of a Derby, and which is i down for decision on Saturday, July 5. The I i [ Westerner is at a mile and a quarter and is , endowed with 0,000 in added money. In- j | sofar as the three-year-olds are concerned, j there is some doubt as to how many will go . mile and a quarter, and while a seven fur- longer is not a conclusive test, the manner i which horses race at this distance often J I serves as an indication as to distance ability. AAA Horses and People: Catalogues for the California breeders sale will be off the j I • presses early next week . . . Coasters regret ; . . the circumstances which made it advisable ! for John DeBlois Wack to curtail his racing , activity for a spell . . Dr. Mark Rabwin, a j j member of the board of directors of Del : j Mar, is en route home after attending thej American Medical Association conclave in j Chicago, where he mixed business and sports by taking in the racing at Lincoln Fields-at-Hawthorne in search of ideas . . I j I Trainer Wally Dunn believes the reason Arroz did not take kindly to the deep tracks of the East is that the horse has big feet, I I wearing a number six shoe . . . Monte Parke [ and Ross Brinson are emerging as leading trainers here, both being excellent horsemen and at long last having some equine stock that is worthwhile. . .The California Horse Racing Board is toying with the , thought of changing some of its rules.
