Mirage Resorts’ chief financial officer to leave

Gary Thompson

Tuesday, Sept. 7, 1999 | 11:28 a.m.

Dan Lee has resigned as chief financial officer of Mirage Resorts Inc. of Las Vegas.

Lee is the former Wall Street wunderkind who parlayed an incisive mind for numbers and an acid-tongued demeanor into one of the most coveted jobs in gaming.

Lee met Friday with Mirage Resorts Chairman Steve Wynn, who accepted the resignation and named Bellagio President Bobby Baldwin to take over Lee's financial duties temporarily, a Mirage spokesman said today.

"Dan came in to see Steve and said he was interested in doing some more entrepreneurial things," Mirage Vice President Alan Feldman said. "Steve accepted his decision.

"Bobby will take over Dan's duties temporarily, and Dan will stay on board for the next week or two to help with the transition. We'll issue a complete statement on Dan's severance package when the details are completed."

That package is likely to be a lucrative one, industry insiders said. Lee, a former gaming analyst with First Boston, caught Wynn's eye nearly a decade ago. The Mirage chairman, himself a flamboyant figure, appreciated Lee's willingness to question conventional wisdom and offered an employment contract that provided stock options as well as a six-figure salary.

Wynn and other Mirage board members are also likely to consider a non-compete clause in the severance package, as Lee will leave with valuable trade secrets.

In his more than seven years at Mirage, Lee had distinguished himself among his former analyst colleagues for his forthright approach to the often arcane accounting profession and for his ability to accept Wynn's strategic vision.

The two sometimes clashed, most notably when Lee publicly criticized competing casino operators such as Venetian owner Sheldon Adelson or Lyle Berman, who once controlled the ill-fated Stratosphere Corp. Wynn called Lee on the carpet, warning him against repeating such attacks.

More recently, Lee and Wynn wrestled with the issue of disclosing Mirage Resorts' financial results on a property by property basis. The company's official position was that to do so would provide valuable information on operations to competitors.

But gaming analysts weren't happy with the decision, as it made it difficult to determine how successful the company's new resorts in Las Vegas and Biloxi, Miss., were performing.

Mirage reported disappointing second-quarter financial results, and its stock price has plummeted in the past year.