Felix Rappaport

By John Katsilometes (contact)

Thursday, Oct. 2, 2008 | 11:56 a.m.

Following are excerpts from the radio show Our Metropolis, a half-hour issues and affairs program that airs Tuesdays at 6 p.m. on KUNV 91.5-FM and is hosted by the Greenspun Media Group’s John Katsilometes. Tune in next week to hear the rest of this interview with Luxor President Felix Rappaport, or listen to the show at lasvegasweekly.com.

On the casino business:"The casino business is relatively simple. You want to be a net importer of people. You can’t just survive, even if it’s a big hotel—and we’re huge, 4,406 rooms and suites—just on that. You have to have a reason for people to come from other properties—your sister properties.”

On the economy: “I’m a positive, optimistic, glass-is-half-full kind of individual. None of us are happy with the economic conditions right now, but it’s broader than just Las Vegas. What is encouraging is that, even in 2007, we had a record-breaking year even while we were heavily under construction.”

On the Luxor’s image:“We haven’t gotten rid of the Egyptian theme entirely. We still have the sphinx, the monumental statues. But we don’t feel like we need to open a buffet and give it a kitschy name, like Pharaoh’s Pheast.”

On Believe, the Criss Angel/Cirque du Soleil show:“I’ve worked with four Cirque shows over the years, and each of them takes time to mature. [Believe] is an extremely technically challenging show … It will be a process, but now we’re confident things are coming together. This show is going to be here forever. ... I’m confident the ultimate product is 1 plus 1 equals 5