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Cy Ellis Waits
Published Sunday, Aug. 29, 2010 | 3:21 p.m.
Updated Monday, Aug. 30, 2010 | 1:29 p.m.
E! Online is reporting that Cy Waits' Friday-night arrest with girlfriend Paris Hilton on the Strip has cost him his job as one of Steve Wynn's nightclub operators.
"In a span of one week, Cy Waits has gone from hero to zero," the E! Online story artfully reports. The site drew its information from "multiple sources" and quotes one Las Vegas insider as saying, "Wynn has a zero-tolerance policy with their club execs when it comes to brushes with the law," which indeed would be in character for the resort mogul.
A few other celebrity-news Web sites have picked up the E! story. However, the reported dismissal of Waits has not been confirmed by Wynn hotel officials. In a phone call this afternoon, Wynn Las Vegas spokeswoman Jennifer Dunne said the company was not prepared to comment on Waits' position with the company or the stunning arrest of the 34-year-old Waits and the 29-year-old Hilton. Dunne did say she was looking into the matter today and would inform media outlets when the hotel was ready to issue a statement.
Waits and his twin brother, Jesse, have served as managing partners at Tryst at Wynn Las Vegas and XS at adjoining Encore.
The two grew in stature last week as it was announced that Steve Wynn was formally splitting with nightclub operator Victor Drai — who opened all of the above-mentioned clubs and had a long partnership with Wynn — leaving the brothers to run Drai's Vegas nightlife empire.
That all seems to have changed, at least for Cy Waits, on Friday night at 11:30, when Waits was arrested on misdemeanor suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs after a Metro motorcycle officer stopped a Cadillac Escalade being driven by him and with Hilton as passenger. The officer smelled marijuana smoke billowing from the SUV, prompting a quite-public arrest. Hilton was found to be holding a small amount of powder cocaine and was arrested on suspicion of felony cocaine possession. She was held for a time in the Wynn as authorities prepared to transfer her to Clark County Jail.
Earlier in the night, as E! Online also reported, she turned down a limo ride from the hotel to Waits' house in Henderson.
Both were taken into custody and booked into Clark County Jail. Hilton was released before sunrise, about three hours after the incident. Waits was to be released Saturday after posting $2,000 bail. His position at Drai's still is not entirely clear; Harrah's spokeswoman Debbie Munch reiterated today that the company had "no comment" on the Waits-Hilton arrest or issues related to the incident.
Update: KSNV Channel entertainment reporter Alica Jacobs reported on the station's 11 p.m. newscast Sunday night that Cy Waits had been fired by Steve Wynn. Also, earlier reporting of this incident noted the Waits' previous involvement with Drai's at Bill's Gamblin' Hall & Casino, which is owned by Harrah's. As part of the agreed split between Drai and Wynn, the brothers are no longer involved in any of Drai's businesses. The two are not involved in Drai's in Las Vegas.
Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at twitter.com/JohnnyKats.
These people have million dollar homes to party in. What are they doing getting high while cruising the strip?
maybe I'll buy his house as soon as it hits foreclosure
Hey Cy, you might want to prepare by reading that article on homelessness on the front page, lol.
More bad choices for both of them.... Ahh Shucks...
Paris is a nit wit who exists via daddys money and some half azz genes. Anyone who hangs with such a nit wit deserves what they get.
I just don't understand why these Celebrities won't hire a driver so they can party to their hearts and minds content. Paris Hilton (2), Vince Neil (3), Mel Gibson (???), insert celebrity here________!
Don't be too sorry for Cy. He'll land on his feet, like every other Big Ego that gets knocked off their pedestal. Another nightclub or nightlife company in need of a shot in the arm will make him an offer he wouldn't dare refuse. He'll be back to charging $500 a bottle by the end of the week.
Like they say on the playground- Don't hate the player, hate the game.
I am glad to see Mr. Wynn holds his top employees accountable for thier actions, espically since they are associated with him. Mr. Wynn's actions were very honorable in my opinion. Drug users do not need to be in positions of authority. From what I understand, this is not the first time Mr. Wynn has fired a top executive for being arrested. Knowing this, if I worked for him, I would not be doing anything illegal.
Yes, it is commendable for Wynn to have a "no-drug" policy. But did he enforce it on his brother?
Why does this girl need drugs every time she leaves the house? Stay your silly little @$$ at home, turn on some music (not loud) and get high with your man and some friends? What part doncha get? Are your extensions too tight?
lvfacts101: Word has come down that Cy's brother, Jesse, has been let go too.
We stayed a couple of nights at the Wynn and the first night I went to the room early. My husband likes to gamble late but said he was chased off the casino floor by the Asian hookers following him around. Mr. Wynn should clean up the inside of his casino as well as worry about his employees!!
He's too busy stealing tips.
Holy cow justvickie, I didn't know that happened, especially at a place like that.
Every major hotel casino allows prostitutes to hang out as long as they don't get too aggressive.
During the day, or at night too? I thought I had seen evidence of that, but only on the street. I never was in the casinos at night often.
A great position and probably good money with Steve Wynn and this guy screws it up.
That's pretty amazing.
I'm impacted from the economy, know the business, mature, intelligent and long time clean and sober, can I have his job?
Heck, I'll work for half the money he was making to prove myself.
My resume is already in the Wynn system, a couple of times.
I promise it will work out very well.
I worked helping the lifeguard Don Hunnel and his assistant Mike around the Desert Inn pool in the summertime 1950's as a kid.
It would be excellent to come full circle and back again.
You get yourself hooked up with a ho...and you get let go.
Seriously. 2 more people who need a kick in the head. Marijuana emanating from your SUV...on the strip!!
Why don't you just put a bumper sticker on your forehead "I am stupid"??
It's time for random drug testing of management.
Yea, man! He thought he's gonna be a big shot soon and blow it. He needs to work at a fast food joint for a while to come down to realty. He still can be Paris' chauffeur though.
Is that what Wynn's management does: Cruising up and down the Strip with their hoes 'nd skanks drunk 'nd doped up, while the dealers have to figure out how much to hand over after the shift?
In John L. Smith's book on Steve Wynn, Smith references witness after witness who attest to Wynn's cocaine usage in the '70's and '80's. Don't know if Wynn really is going to drop the hammer on this employee, but if it's his only transgression, I say let him have one more chance. All you finger-pointers gloating over a successful guy's fall from grace can go lump it.
Paris has to be more careful, on the other hand. I like her and think she's good for Vegas, to boot. But toting coke around and getting high in public is only going to get her into fixes like this.
This story has so many undertones. Cop pulls him over as soon as he exits the Wynn. Why was the club manager leaving at 11:30 PM on a Friday night? Things don't start kicking for a few more hours. Why does the sh*t hit the fan about the same time as Wynn fires Drai?
Wynn had some serious problems, and this is how it got solved. Not a coincidence.
Don't go to Wynn LV. Go to Wynn Macau. That's the one Stevie likes.
to Skerlahdee: The escalade wasnt leaving the hotel, they were going to the hotel. Cy didnt do much but party there anyway. He didnt even know the majority of the names of the people working there. His uncle Victor got him that job.
Who are these important people that deserve so much attention?
How far and how fast the mighty fall.
I'm kind of interested to see if Cy Waits' twin brother will be let go too.
I'm pretty sure that, even though only charged right now, Paris Hilton's new playground at Wynn/Encore is now gone. I wouldn't be surprised if she becomes persona non grata there.
The ripple effect will continue....
dtj, what the hell are you sniffing
allaround: thanks but are you sure they were leaving? The article says, "Earlier in the night, as E! Online also reported, she turned down a limo ride from the hotel to Waits' house in Henderson." So it seems they may have been leaving.
Anyway, Cy's brother gets fired too. This seems like a brain fart by Stevie. He got upset by something, and started canning people. Why would a Vegas hotel make Paris H. persona non grata? Like her or hate her, she's got moxie that turns a club up a notch.
This was a pretty lame arrest by Metro. The cop smelled the aroma of dope smoke coming from the vehicle? Not likely. This smacks of harrassment. The cop knew that Ms Hilton was in the car and decided to insinuate himself into her life. This will be thrown out very quickly. As far as Cy Waits, he is guilty of associating with known dummies.
I sure hope Las Vegas jail caught this on True TV. HA
Sorry to agree to most of the comments here, folks:
Some people, you know, ...if you hand them a pencil to stick it where the sun never shines, they will still be too dumb to write their names in the sand... sorry to say that, but Mr cannot wait(s) and Ms "The Paris Hilton" belong to that kind of people.
Sounds like Chuck-Snoringus has a rear-end fetish. The cops should be investigating him.
Wonder if they bought the Cocaine within the club?
Cy's arrest put Mr.Wynn in a box and the only corporate response is to sever ties with the mogul.
In business, their is no safe haven as everyone is expendable.
Hahahahahah
Lived like the world were their oyster -- perpetually... For Cy things will change quite a bit.
Tiger Woods got fired from Nike. Cy is no Tiger by a long shot. Practically everyone is expendable, that goes for the gorvernment too
sleazy stuff for sure.
I prefer Pepsi over Coke.
Every dog gets his day, for CY, is today, when you think you are too big for the game, and treat people like garbage, now you realize, you are not above anybody.
...but she said it was not her purse...
Her coke or not, she was in possession of it. I just hope that one day we get to see the headline "Convicted Felon Paris Hilton Sentenced To Prison".
For any company, you don't need people who will give your company a bad name and discredit the company name. I hope Mr. Wynn has a zero tolerance for drugs and involvement with law enforcement.
Interesting story. Wynn runs a stock company and his actions are warranted by the poor publicity in the financial markets for the club scene. Cy seems to be the intelligent shrewd type with an affinity for cocaine. Paris has been out of the limelight and her naughty girl routine is back on track. This is either a publicity stunt or a real stupid decision by the brainless heirs of wealth.
'Hilton was found to be holding a small amount of powder cocaine and was arrested on suspicion of felony cocaine possession'
And let go with no bail. What's wrong with this picture?
Poor Cy, got enamored by fame and screwed his life up.
Sure I hope he lands on his feet, but getting dismissed by Mr. Big, that's not good.
Hey, TopFun105, you're kind of a commenter here, keep commenting your a%% off.
Just what I was about to say: try to write your name in the sand, if you're not too dumb to do it.
Thats great news! Glad Mr. Wynn is "finally" looking out for his guests and employees. I heard he fired the Spa Director at Wynn Spa as well. FANTASTIC!!
Overriding point not of "hollywood happenings" but a DUI driver endangering others plain and simple, las vegas to nationwide a big no-no. WAY to go MR. Wynn, i'll visit your casino next time in town.
Chuck Snoringus, I don't have to write my name in the sand; when I walk down Blacks Beach near San Diego all the chicks come running asking to borrow my pencil.......
I smell the involvement of Victor Drai and his friends here.
Drai is "bought out" of his interest in his old club, plus the two at Wynn/Encore, and then less than 2 days later the new manager of the club is arrested, as if the traffic officer was waiting for Cy Waits vehicle to exit the Wynn.
www.radaronline.com has the arrest report posted. The reports says Officer M. Polion P#9800 was the one who pulled Waits and Hilton over.
It would be interesting to learn who Officer Polion and his friends are connected to.
As for Steve Wynn firing Waits before he is even convicted, I can only call Wynn a sanctimonious old dirt bag. Hoarding around behind his wife's back (which is a sin) is OK for Wynn, but a mundane employees arrest is a firing offense.
A pox on Wynn and Drai.
Maybe this guy can run Dylan's on Boulder Hwy
If both boys are gone so soon after the split with Drai, I believe this is bigger than Cy getting into trouble. It is a good guess that Wynn is cleaning house and this is a good excuse. He's looking to make something new in his clubs and maybe other areas. Wynn has been changing alot of things lately. Expect the other big firms to follow. We're about to have new look but still Vegas. Jobs are about to be shuffeled and changed. This time it won't be easy on us. Before, we'd just go to another casino but now its different. Good Luck to all of us. We'll need it.
I heard his twin brother got the boot from Wynn too.
How the mighty have fallen..........
Was that young lady wearing unders?
That'll send the unemployment rate over the 15% mark.
What happened to the Golden Nugget wonder boys?
They went to work for Steve Wynn and that's the last I have read anything about them in ages.
Do they still work for Wynn Resorts?
Are they in Macau? Las Vegas?
Anyone know?
I did not know those Waits twins were related to Victor Drai?
Very interesting that as soon as he's gone, one or both of them are gone as well.
Steve, I want to work for you!
Hey, TopFun105, here's some good advice from someone who successfully runs two famous martial arts centers at the same time after having cloned/twinned himself: don't make the chicks run after you when running your business. Be fair and play it right.
Btw, has anybody thought about the limo driver yet and how humiliating this must have been for him being stopped/checked out by some motorcycle trooper/officer while he had two coked-up Hollywood dick heads in the back of his car, one from Paris and another one who cannot wait(s) and therefore is called C. Waits
This must have been almost as humiliating as if somebody stuck some fresh banana in Cy's pants and Paris' undies and turned the monkey loose, while the driver still had to drive his limo straight into the heart of the Las Vegas strip.
I'm shocked! Shocked! That drug use is going on at a night club.
Was Hilton set-up? Obviously the club scene is noted for women sharing make-up, personal care products, jewelry, etc.
Also, TMZ had pictures the next day. Who took them? and what did they get for them? It wasn't Metro was it? and what about all the hub-bub about "pictures?" (e.g. Costco shooting) Are the pictures evidence for the police or Hilton?
A number of resort destinations look the other way over recreational drug use. Just another reason Vegas will fade as a tourist mecca. (eek! mecca? a mosque?) One can go to LA, see Hollywood, smoke some medical pot, go to a Card Club or Native American Casino, or Amsterdam, legal hash and legal prostitution.
The fanny-pack demographic is kaput, boomers have nothing in their 401k or their homes to make them feel wealthy. Now the club crowd, is getting targeted by the blue noses in Metro.
Good luck in seeing any Vegas recovery.
If you read the reports there is no mention of finding marijuana in the vehicle or in the posession of either Hilton or Waits.
CY was arrested for "driving while baked" and Paris took the ride for the bindle of blow.
The lack of the burning bush inside the vehicle provides some opportunity to suppress the coke found on Hilton. The Bad Lieutenant says the coke fell from Paris' purse when she took out the lip balm.
The argument for suppression will be based on her "detention" and the absence of ganja.
You can't make a 'waft of marijuana smoke' if you don't have any.
Stay tuned!
This guy was in NO WAY Paris Hilton's boyfriend, as some media outlets have mentioned. She only was with him so he could provide her with drugs. He is a nobody in Paris' real world.
<Btw, has anybody thought about the limo driver yet and how humiliating this must have been for him being stopped/checked out by some motorcycle trooper/officer while he had two coked-up Hollywood dick heads in the back of his car, one from Paris and another one who cannot wait(s) and therefore is called C. Waits>
What limo driver? THere was no limo driver.
She should just OD and get it over with. I predict she will be dead within 5 years.
What happened to Ms. Hilton's good works and public service she said she wanted to do after her jail stint?
All you ever read about is partying and drug possession busts.
Come on Paris, get it together, you have such a opportunity to be a great role model and make a difference in the world and you are blowing it big time.
It's not too late to turn your life around. Make this a turning point. You can do it in a moment, simply because you say so.
Stop being the problem, and be the solution, for goodness sakes.
By the way, Paris, the Las Vegas scene has never been the solution, it's part of the problem.
It always has been and it always will be.
@Det__Munch:
Sorry, Det_Munch, I must have overread this.
Mr. cannot wait(s) is enabled to drive a limo and therefore should be capable to work as a bus driver and drive e.g. a "The Deuce" bus along the strip... imagine C. Waits announcement for the next bus stop:
"Next stop, Wynn/Encore Las Vegas, my former place of work. Pay attention to coked-up limo drivers, please, when stepping out. Thanks for riding The Deuce. Have a nice day."
Please, Steve Wynn just wants total control of all of his outlets; he booted restaurant DB, so he could open up his own version. M tried that approach to control prices and it didn't work. They just got rid of Red Cup Cafe for proof. Also, Drai and his nephews are coming close to gaining control of Bills Gamblin' Hall and turning it into a nightlife hot spot directly in the middle of the Strip. Could you imagine the damage it would do to the Wynn if it ever got as busy as when Drai's first opened? So, Wynn gave them the boot. Of course, he didn't have to pay Cy out, he probably breached his contract when got arrested for having an illegal substance. His brother, is another story though. Anyone know the details?
I think they should hire Ms Hilton as a "chamber maid." She could change beds and clean toilets for a living, she'd fit right in.
'Close to gaining control of Bill's'? Clearly you don't read VegasTripping.com. The place to be known as Drai's already has renderings.