Chicken tic-tac-toe promotion coming to LV

Monday, June 10, 2002 | 10:57 a.m.

Aztar's Corp.'s "Chicken Challenge," a promotion at the Tropicana casino in Atlantic City featuring a chicken that competes with customers at games of tic-tac-toe, is expanding to the company's Tropicana Resort and Casino in Las Vegas and Casino Aztar in Evansville, Ind.

The promotion has been a hit in Atlantic City since it was launched at the Tropicana about nine months ago, prompting the expansion, said Lisa Keim, a spokeswoman for the Tropicana Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. The chicken will be on hand for at least a year, possibly longer if it proves successful, she said.

"We're bringing new things to the casino floor to bring more excitement," she said.

Customers who become slot members at the casino can play one game of tic-tac-toe per day against a chicken named "Ginger." Customers who beat the chicken win $10,000. Only five winners have claimed the prize so far in Atlantic City.

The Las Vegas Tropicana will kick off the promotion Wednesday with celebrity Phyllis Diller facing off with Ginger. The chicken will be flown in by helicopter, carried by chariot onto the casino floor and greeted with showgirls and a polka band.