But two things about Cyr’s immense ego: It never reaches the point where you’d pay somebody to come along and knock him
down a few pegs; and secondly, he just may indeed be The Man when it comes to Vegas casino hosts, having earned a
reputation as a guy who will employ any tactic necessary to land and retain high-stakes gamblers. That’s undoubtedly the
reason Cyr has come as far as he has as fast as he has–from son of a Howard Johnson’s hotel owner in small-town Kansas to caretaker of some of the richest gamblers in the world. It’s also undoubtedly the reason Hollywood producers, looking to
capitalize on the sizzling combination of Vegas and reality television, came to Cyr, and why the premium cable network
Showtime bought the rights to the show. Says Ben Samek of Brass Ring Entertainment, the production company hired to
film the show, "After meeting him, I knew right away that this was a guy I wanted to follow around and see what happens."
GENERALLY, CASINO HOSTS ARE A private lot. The last thing they’d want to do is expose themselves–and especially their players–to the spotlight, for fear of turning off clients, both current and potential. Steve Cyr’s not like most casino
hosts. He’s been profiled in such national magazines as Details and Cigar Aficionado, as well as on ABC’s 20/20, the
Travel Channel and Discovery Channel. In addition, he’s spent the past four years working on a book about his and his
high-rolling players’ exploits. Written by Deke Castleman, Whale Hunt in the Desert (Huntington Press) is finally
expected to hit bookstores in May.
But right now, Cyr’s sole focus is the reality show. Conceived by veteran Hollywood producer Chris Abrego, the show
was originally to be a cross between American Idol and Donald Trump’s The Apprentice, with Cyr serving the Trump
role: firing an aspiring casino host each week until one was left standing with a $100,000, one-year contract from the
Hard Rock. (A free-lance host, Cyr operates a company called H-Six, and the Hard Rock is one of his six affiliates
and his main Vegas property.)
However, after a meeting in early December with Showtime executives, the idea was reconfigured into a series about
Cyr’s life as The Man among Vegas casino hosts who also juggles family life. (Cyr, who turns 40 this month, shares
custody of his six-year-old daughter, Savanna, and lives in southwest Las Vegas with his fiancee, Tanya Chiodini,
and her two children, Chelcee and Nick.) The agreement calls for an eight-episode series–tentatively titled The Whale
Hunter–with Cyr getting paid five figures for each one that’s filmed. The one caveat: There’s no guarantee Showtime
will ever air a thing. No wonder The Man is anxious.
Sitting on a low wall outside a restaurant at the Palms in early January, Cyr scribbles notes on his legal pad, pre-
paring for the pilot episode, which will be filmed over five days surrounding the Super Bowl, one of his biggest
weekends each year. "We’re going to be all over the place–the airport to pick up my players, getting them situated
at the Hard Rock, taking them out to strip clubs in the party bus, betting $5,000 on the coin toss of the Super Bowl,"
Cyr says in a single breath. "On Friday, we’re going to set up a scene where I go steal a high roller from another
casino. And then I was thinking, we could be doing all this stuff and you call me and I go, ‘Hang on, I gotta do this
interview with Las Vegas Life.’"
Constant motion. That’s Cyr–mind, mouth, body. When he’s especially pumped about something, well, there isn’t
enough Ritalin in the world to slow him down. And by the time the cameras arrive at the Cyr home in three weeks
to begin chronicling his every move, his energy level will be through the roof.
HERE’S THE CLIFFS NOTES on Cyr: Arrived in Las Vegas from Salina, Kansas, in 1983 to attend UNLV’s hotel
college, the idea being to learn the trade and return home to take over the family business. During his senior year,
he interned at the Barbary Coast, where Michael Gaughan took a liking to him, and Cyr immediately got addicted
to casino life. Upon graduating, he turned down an offer to enter a Marriott Hotels training program to go to work
in the Barbary Coast sports book for $50 a shift. "I called my parents," Cyr says, "and told them, ‘I don’t think
I’m coming back.’"
To make ends meet, Cyr accepted a side job as a telemarketer, selling vitamins. A loathsome gig by anyone’s
standards, Cyr embraced it because it helped him hone his sales skills. Soon, he was working at Caesars Palace
as a slot host–a plum job for a 22-year-old, yet not nearly enough of a challenge when you’re The Man. "I kept
telling my bosses, ‘Can I get a list of players who haven’t been here in a year? I bet I can get them in.’ Finally,
[casino executive] Jimmy Newman gave me that list, and I started smoking. I won like $140,000 [for the casino]
in my first month. I won $1.3 million net profit my first year. I won $33 million my last two years [with Park Place
Entertainment], and that record will never be broken."
Cyr’s brought in big-time business–including Larry Flynt–for every property he’s worked for (Caesars, Desert Inn,
Las Vegas Hilton). He’s also been fired from each of them. "My attitude’s hurt me," he admits. But the way he
views it, his former bosses suffered much more than he did. "I know when I walked out of the Hilton, millions
walked out with me–not just of my existing players, but ones that I would’ve gotten."
Ones like Dan the (other) Man.
IT’S AN HOUR BEFORE KICKOFF ON Super Bowl Sunday, and 40 of Cyr’s high rollers, their guests and his
friends have gathered inside The Joint at the Hard Rock for a private party. On the invite list are 1,000 of the
Hard Rock’s biggest customers, but it’s Cyr who procured front-row seats near a few gaming tables and a satellite
sports book.
