Kenny Rogers to headline casino grand opening

By ANDREW McGINN
a.mcginn@beeherald.com

Even those who don’t regularly gamble know the five basic rules:

1. You’ve got to know when to hold ’em.

2. Know when to fold ’em.

3. Know when to walk away.

4. And know when to run.

5. You never count your money when you’re sittin’ at the table.

There’ll be time enough for countin’ the night of Aug. 7 when the one and only Kenny Rogers christens Jefferson’s new $40 million casino-events center with a concert that undoubtedly will include “The Gambler,” one of his many No. 1 hits from the late ’70s.

Wild Rose Jefferson on Monday ended weeks of speculation by announcing the details of its grand opening weekend Aug. 7-9.

Who better to open a casino than the Gambler himself?

Rogers, who was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013, will get the honor of being the first act to play the casino’s 1,000-seat Greene Room Event Center — not to mention one of the first nationally known acts to ever play Jefferson (pop. 4,345).

Rogers will perform at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 7.

Tickets, priced at $41.50, are on sale now via the Wild Rose website, jefferson.wildroseresorts.com.

“Kenny Rogers is a legendary entertainer, and we wanted a performer of his stature to celebrate what the people of Greene County and the surrounding area have accomplished over the past two years,” Wild Rose Chairman Gary Kirke said Monday in a statement.

Wild Rose Jefferson still plans to open its doors Aug. 1 for gaming, with music, fireworks and more that following weekend.

The three-day grand opening celebration begins at 10 a.m. Aug. 7 with “A Token of Our Appreciation” giveaway. The first 200 people will receive a commemorative, custom-minted, fine silver Wild Rose token.

An official first dice roll is set for 5 p.m. Aug. 7 at the craps table, with a Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting at 6 p.m. at the main entrance.

Up-and-coming country singer Brad Morgan will perform a free show at 9 p.m. Aug. 7 in Coaches Corner. No tickets are necessary. Morgan will perform a second free show at 8 p.m. Aug. 8 in the Greene Room.

A fireworks extravaganza is scheduled for 10 p.m. Aug. 7 in the front parking lot.

And then there’s the unmistakable Kenny Rogers.

Aside from sporting the finest beard to ever grace country music, Rogers, now 76, has nearly two dozen No. 1 hits to his name, including “Lucille,” “Coward of the County” and “Lady,” a now-classic ballad written by Lionel Richie that held the No. 1 spot on the pop charts for six weeks back in 1980.

His 1983 duet with Dolly Parton, “Islands in the Stream,” similarly conquered the country and pop charts.

His 1978 smash, “The Gambler,” spawned a series of TV movies — helping turn Rogers into a cultural icon. And, accordingly, he hosted an episode of “The Muppet Show” in 1979 and took part in the recording of “We Are the World.”

The same year he was enshrined in the Country Hall, Rogers also was honored at the 47th annual CMA Awards with the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award.

A native Texan, Rogers first came to fame as the frontman of the First Edition, a rock band whose hits in the late ’60s included the far-out “Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)” and “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town.”

The concert marks just the first in what will be a long line of concerts in Jefferson by nationally known entertainers — an unthinkable feat before June 2014, when the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission granted Greene County a gaming license.

While tickets aren’t yet on sale, the Oak Ridge Boys will be playing Wild Rose on Nov. 7.