World Series hero Cole Hamels made about 100 Phillies Phanatics very happy Friday night at Resorts Atlantic City.

Sure, the high-stakes players and their guests got a thrill from posing for pictures with the awesome lefty with the killer changeup and movie-star looks. But what undoubtedly made their night was Hamels' declaration during a brief Q-and-A session moderated by ESPN 950 afternoon drive-time gabber Mike Missanelli.

When asked by a high-roller whether the Phils' lowballing of Hamels during the 2008 arbitration process has made him eager to leave the team when he achieves free-agent status in a few years, the NLCS and World Series MVP replied: "I'll be here for a really long time. That's something I really want to do." 

While last night's meet-and-greet was an invite-only affair, Hamels will be in a public setting tonight as he is scheduled to hang out at the Taj Mahal's Casbah disco. He'll be joined at the danceteria by teammates, Jayson Werth, Ryan Madson and J.C. Romero.

The party starts at 10:30 p.m. Admission is $20 for guys; women are admitted free (you must be 21).

Contrary to rumors that have swept AyCee the past couple of months, Water Club, the Borgata's 800-room, ultra-luxe hotel is not being closed temporarily--or permanently--because of the deteriorating economic conditions affecting the casino industry there..

"There has been no discussion, and we have no plans to close the Water Club," insisted an emphatic Dave Coskey, Borgata's vice president of marketing.

Coskey expressed puzzlement as to the origin of the rumors, especially in light of what he described as the success of the hotel since its late-June opening. "We've actually been pleasantly surprised with the occupancy rates," he said.

Cam Gigandet, who played the (very) bad guy, James, in the current hit vampire flick, "Twilight," is spending some time today at Resorts Atlantic City.

Don't know if courting Lady Luck is on his agenda. His main reason for being there is to film a scene for "Five Star Day," an independent flick that co-stars Will Yun Lee (”Bionic Woman”) as his best friend. According to www.moviesblog.mtv.com, the movie is "the story of one man who loses everything, and must come to terms with what is most important in life."

Gigandet's scene will be shot in the casino's Boardwalk Lobby. There may also be some shooting in the 25 Hours bar on the casino floor.

Atlantic City's gaming community is no doubt reeling from today's unexpected news that Borgata President and CEO Larry Mullin is headed to Australia.

Mullin, a former Trump exec who joined the Borgata organization before it opened in 2003, is headed Down Under to assume the reins of Tabcorp which, as the owner of four "Oz" gambling dens, is that nation's largest casino operator. His resignation is effective Jan. 5.

As the guiding hand at the Big B since 2004, Mullin is universally admired and respected as the first among equals on the top tier of AyCee's casino industry leaders. He has proven himself as not only a savvy casino head, but as a "lifestyle" trendsetter, especially in the realm of contemporary music. More than  anyone else, it has been Mullin who has made Atlantic City a rock music capital, bringing to town David Bowie, The Who, Prince, Van Halen, The Killers, Kid Rock and The Eagles and many other artists who before Borgata, dismissed A.C. as an "elephant's graveyard" for entertainers.

At a time when leadership has never been more crucial, Mullin's departure will be keenly felt, not just at his property, but throughout the city. After all, Borgata has been the industry pacesetter since its debut.

Interestingly, Bob Boughner, the man who, along with Boyd Gaming Chairman Bill Boyd, was most responsible for Borgata's conception and construction, is returning to run the mega-resort on an interim basis. Boughner had been in Las Vegas the past four years, overseeing Boyd Gaming's $4 billion Echelon Place project on the site of the old Stardust hotel-casino. But the decimation of the credit market has, caused Boyd to shut down construction.

Since Mullin joined Borgata as a Boughner lieutenant, it is doubtful they'll be many noticeable changes in the way the property conducts business.

OVERSHADOWED: Mullin's announcement definitely trumps (you should pardon the expression) the other big news out of Atlantic City during the past 24 hours or so: That the New Jersey Supreme Court has ruled Tropicana Entertainment LLC, the current owner of Tropicana Casino and Resort, cannot keep control of the casino-hotel, and that a state-mandated auction must proceed.

That hopefully will leave the door open for Baltimore-based Cordish Co. to assume ownership some time next year. Cordish, whose holdings include The Walk, the outdoor outlet mall in midtown Atlantic City, Baltimore's Inner Harbor and the planned Philly Live! development on the site of the Wachovia Spectrum, is making a move on the Trop in partnership with Dennis Gomes, who ran the property for Aztar Corp. for a decade, and was the brains behind The Quarter, the casino's successful retail, dining and entertainment complex.

Gomes boasts the kind of vision and out-of-the-box thinking the town desperately needs in these lean times, and his return should, at the very least, return Tropicana to the A.C. casino A-list.

ONE FINAL THOUGHT: Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!! 

If you were in Atlantic City the past couple of days, you might have been tempted to wonder about all the lamentation and bitter weeping among casino industry types.

Thanks to the annual convention of the New Jersey State League of Municipalities--the annual gathering of Garden State politios, bureacrats, lobbyists and others who have a vested interest in the day-to-day business of local government--the town was partying like it was 2006. Monday night--before the annual confab officially began, The Quarter at Tropicana was humming with activity and traffic. According to Paul Sandler, general manager of The Palm outlet there, his pricey restaurant was totally sold-out Tuesday and Wednesday.

And Wednesday night at Borgata, Bobby Flay Steak, whose price points make The Palm look like a diner, was likewise jumping.

This, of course, amounts to little more than a Band-Aid on a tumor. But it still had to bring a little cheer to those in AyCee's gaming community. At the very least, this week's temporary uptick in business proved the town and its attractions are not to blame for the ongoing collapse of gambling revenues.

MOVING AHEAD: While Pinnacle Entertainment has made it known it won't put any shovels in the ground at the former Sands site until the current credit crunch abates, the company isn't standing pat. Demolition of other buildings on Pinnacle-owned property adjacent to the Sands parcel is continuing in preparation of the day when construction on a planned $1.5 billion mega-resort can commence.

Fans of ABC-TV's inexplicably popular "Dancing With the Stars" may want to watch tonight's installment at Borgata's Music Box.

That's because Joey Fatone, who is a former contestant on the dance-competition series, is hosting an exclusive viewing party. Doors open at 7. Several prizes will be raffled, including a Wii game system (complete with "Dancing With the Stars" DVD) and tickets to the "DWTS" performance scheduled for Philly in February. After the broadcast, Fatone will move on over to the mur.mur disco where he'll emcee for DJs Jay-E and Deception.

The bad news is that admission to the event is restricted to My Borgata card holders. The good news is that if you want to attend and don't have a card, you can apply for one at the My Borgata Center, then head on over to the box office to purchase your tickets.

For more info call (609) 317-1000.

It was fitting the skies over Atlantic City wept Thursday. It was bad--make that very bad--day.

Borgata—the gold standard of the town’s gambling and hospitality industry—got things off to a crummy start by announcing a five-percent workforce cut (400 jobs).  Then, just to make a lousy day even worse, Pinnacle Entertainment all but admitted it's plans to build a glittering palace on the site of the old Sands hotel-casino.

For the record, the company’s CEO, Daniel Lee, kept alive the possibility the project--now on "indefinite hold"--could one day come to fruition. He said it could be “years and years and years” before economic conditions are favorable to getting construction on track, and that his organization is willing to wait to ensure a successful endeavor.

But he also said Pinnacle is willing to entertain offers for the parcel of midtown land it purchased a couple of years ago. Which to more cynical ears, sounds like another way of saying, “Goodbye and good luck.”

While the decision appears to be just another result of the nation’s economic meltdown—which has made it almost impossible for casino companies to borrow construction money—Atlantic City’s recent decision to bid out Bader Field certainly had to play a role. Lee has long opposed the concept of allowing casino construction on the 150 Northside acres that for decades housed the town’s pioneering airport, claiming development there would lessen the value of Boardwalk properties, and make such facilities less desirable to visiting gamblers.

And it should be noted the announcement came less than 48 hours after voters in Maryland approved up to 15,000 slot machines for the state.

So, has Atlantic City’s future, which looked so bright as recently as a year or so ago, been snuffed out like a birthday cake candle? It would be easy to think so. But it probably would be premature to write the town’s obituary. Economic conditions are cyclical. The current recession can’t, and won’t, last forever. And Atlantic City has too much to offer people who are looking for more than a few hours at the slot machine. It is a unique, increasingly interesting place that remains a tank of gas away from some 50 million people.

It was raw, wet and windy Thursday down the Shore. But we all know the sun will come out eventually.

Bet on it.

A POSSIBLE BUYER?: On a related note, don’t be surprised if there actually is interest in the Pinnacle site in the days ahead. There is at least one major gaming company—Penn National of Wissinoming, Pa.—that has long made known its desire to be in AyCee. It wouldn’t be too far-fetched to suggest Pinnacle would be happy to sell at a bargain price (e.g. a recoupment of money already invested), and Penn National apparently has the cash-on-hand to build on the site.

Stay tuned…

WITHER REVEL?: Also on the minds of many casino industry observers is the fate of Revel Entertainment's grand project adjacent to the Showboat. Unlike Pinnacle and MGM Grand (which recently canceled its plans for a $4 billion development in the Marina District), Revel actually has pillars in the ground. But it reportedly still needs to money to complete construction. Some insiders are speculating current conditions will soon put at least a temporary hold on things there.