November 2, 2016: Why Election-Night Event Hosts Are Taking Precautionary Measures, How Twitter Can Make Periscope a Live Streaming Success, World Series a Ratings Hit for Fox

1. WHY ELECTION-NIGHT EVENT HOSTS ARE TAKING PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES: The polarizing 2016 presidential election has caused many election-night party hosts to take precautions in order to keep events civil after the outcome. The Wall Street Journal: "'We don’t want any fights here,' said Linnea Johansson, a New York City event planner who is hosting an election-night charity singles mixer with the theme 'Leave Your Vote at the Door.' She’s scrapped an early idea to have guests channel their partisan leanings by selecting a red or blue cocktail and tallying which sold the most. After watching how angry viewers got around the presidential debates, Ms. Johansson set about filling her event with distracting activities to head off too much talk of politics. Guests will be whisked into teams for historical trivia, which she said is popular in her native Sweden—'a very friendly country, so hopefully it works,' she said. In San Francisco, Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government alumni and graduates of similar programs are selling tickets to a watch party they have dubbed 'Champagne or Cyanide? It’s Election Night!' The invite concedes that for some the night will end 'by biting down on the cyanide capsule embedded in your molar. Regardless...we’ll enjoy election night together!' Republicans are exhibiting more signs of celebration anxiety as polls show Mr. Trump, the GOP presidential nominee, behind his Democratic rival. Some political event planners said few high-profile GOP election-night shindigs are being planned in Washington and elsewhere on concerns the evening will be depressing for the party, which could lose control of the Senate. Michigan’s Republican Party, for one, is forgoing its usual election-night gathering, previously held at the Westin Book Cadillac Detroit hotel. A spokeswoman cited the absence of a big-ticket race in the state, with neither a governor nor senator on the ballot." http://on.wsj.com/2ejr23O

2. HOW TWITTER CAN MAKE PERISCOPE A LIVE STREAMING SUCCESS: Twitter shut down six-second video app Vine last week, but many marketers say that Periscope—the live streaming app that Twitter owns—won't have the same fate. Adweek: "As of March, Periscope had enabled more than 200 million live broadcasts, and it reportedly had 10 million users more than a year ago. Twitter hasn't released new numbers that show whether Periscope is growing or not. Facebook Live launched in February and seemingly stole much of Periscope's thunder in short order. 'Between Facebook's massive push for their live product and Instagram testing livestreaming capabilities—not to mention whatever Snapchat may have in store in the coming months—Periscope is in danger of becoming a deep afterthought in the minds of livestreamers," said Matt Statman, CEO and creative director at Motive, which is a part of the Project network. 'For Twitter to salvage any hope of playing in the livestreaming world, they should envelop Periscope immediately and come back to the table with a fresh, Twitter-branded livestreaming product that fills all the holes Instagram and Facebook will surely leave," he said. "This would allow them to address the lingering livestreaming issues before Facebook and Instagram could integrate the updates into their platform and reopen a window for the millennial livestreamer to reactivate their Twitter account.' Twitter's recent success in gaining valuable live sports content, including the NFL's Thursday Night Football, would seem to bolster the brand's livestreaming credentials in a general sense, suggested Tom Hyde, content director at Big Spaceship. 'That said,' he added, 'as the core functions of Periscope are increasingly incorporated into Twitter, Periscope as a stand-alone platform is challenging to justify.'" http://bit.ly/2f7mRJz

3. WORLD SERIES A RATINGS HIT FOR FOX: The World Series between the Chicago Cubs and the Cleveland Indians has proven to be a ratings success for Fox. Sunday night’s Game 5 drew 23.6 million viewers, making it the most-watched Game 5 of a series since 1997. Advertising Age: “Through the first five games of the Cubs-Tribe series, Fox is averaging a 5.3 rating in its target demo, which translates to 6.8 million adults 18 to 49. That adds up to a 23% improvement versus the 4.3 demo rating Fox has averaged over the course of its previous 10 World Series. As is to be expected with baseball, older males account for the biggest slice of the World Series' demographic pie. Per Nielsen, the first five games of this year's MLB showcase delivered a 12.9 rating among men age 50 years and up, trailing only the 2009 Phillies-Yankees series (13.0) for dominance in the Cialis demo. That said, Fox is seeing a significant uptick in younger males, averaging a seven-year-high 4.9 rating among men 18 to 34, up 36% compared to last season's Mets-Royals series (3.6). All told, the median age of the audience that tuned in for the first five games of the series is 54.2 years, which marks a slight decline from last year's 54.6 years. Fox hasn't dropped south of the half-century mark since Boston's sweep of Colorado in the 2007 series drew an audience with a median age of 49.9 years. … A competitive ballgame could draw as many as 27 million people to Fox, which is on track to book more than a quarter-billion dollars in World Series ad sales revenue. And if the Baseball Gods are truly benevolent and a seventh game is in the cards, there's no reason to think that the final frame on Wednesday night wouldn't deliver as many as 35 million viewers. (For the sake of comparison, the most-watched Game 7 in the last 20 years was the 2001 Yankees-Diamondbacks clincher, which drew 39.1 million viewers.)” http://bit.ly/2fhf8oJ

* LOCAL NEWS *

CHICAGO:  The Oak Brook Hills Resort will host its annual Thanksgiving Feast on November 24 in the Grand Ballroom and the new B. restaurant. The restaurant's executive chef, Sean Curry, will curate the menu.

DENVER:  The Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show will be held November 12 at the Colorado Convention Center's Hyatt Regency Denver. Peyton Manning will participate as a runway model. Extra host Mario Lopez and KUSA-TV 9News anchor Kim Christiansen will emcee the event, which is a fund-raiser for the Global Down Syndrome Foundation.

DETROIT:  Hilton and Kingsley Hospitality have signed DoubleTree by Hilton Detroit Bloomfield Hills. Formerly the historic Kingsley Inn, the 147-room hotel, which will undergo a $10 million revitalization, has a full-service restaurant, indoor pool, and 11,396 square feet of meeting space. Hotel Investment Services will operate the hotel, which is expected to open in fall 2017.

LOS ANGELES:  Capitol Records will launch a yearlong 75th anniversary celebration on November 15 when it becomes the first record company to receive a star from the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. The spire on top of the Capitol Tower will flash "Capitol 75" for the next year. The record company will also launch numerous music, film, and literary projects including a vinyl reissue campaign.

The inaugural Classic Auto Show, presented by Autogeek.com and powered by Velocity, will take place January 27-29 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

The Mayfair Hotel—a historic 1920s property on West 7th Street downtown—is undergoing a multi-million dollar redesign in collaboration with development firm ICO, designer Gulla Jonsdottir, and artist-in-residence Risk (also known as Kelly Graval). Relaunching in three stages, October marked the completion of phase one, as the Mayfair Hotel unveils its 277 newly remodeled guest rooms, 12 junior suites, and corridors, in addition to an artist-in-residence program. The full project is slated for completion in early 2017.

Denise Figuls has been named director of sales and marketing for the newly constructed Country Inn & Suites by Carlson, which is located in Anaheim and scheduled to open in December. Hospitality Management Corporation manages the property.

For information on upcoming events in Los Angeles, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/losangeles

MIAMI/SOUTH FLORIDA:  The Poke House, a fast-casual restaurant in Fort Lauderdale for Hawaiian-inspired cuisine, has named Jeremy Powell executive chef. He was senior sous chef at Hyde Beach Kitchen & Cocktails.

MILWAUKEE:  Arbor Lodging Partners, through an affiliate, has acquired the Fairfield Inn & Suites Milwaukee Downtown, a 103-room select-service hotel. NVN Hotels will manage the venue, effective immediately, and will make improvements to the hotel, maintaining its affiliation with Marriott's Fairfield Inn & Suites flag. Located in the 1924 Straus Building in Milwaukee's central business district, the property is on the National Register of Historic Places kept by the U.S. Department of the Interior. 

NEW YORK:  The seventh annual hospitality design industry trade fair Boutique Design New York will take place November 13-14 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. The event will feature more than 600 design displays.

Kosherfest 2016, a kosher food show, will take place November 15-16 at the Meadowlands Expo Center in Secaucus, New Jersey. About 6,000 people are expected to attend.

The United Nations Development Programme will host the inaugural Global Goals Gala: A Night for Change on December 5 at Phillips. The host committee includes Prince Haakon of Norway, Connie Britton, and Michelle Yeoh.

For information on upcoming events in New York, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/newyork

OMAHA:  Marcus Hotels & Resorts has named Steve Hilton general manager of the 333-room Omaha Marriott Downtown at the Capitol District hotel, which is scheduled to open in the summer of 2017. Marcus Hotels & Resorts is a minority investor and will manage the 12-story hotel.

ORLANDO/CENTRAL FLORIDA:  Delivery services UberEats, Google Express, and Postmates are now available in Orlando. Orlando Sentinel: http://bit.ly/2fAWgFt

DoveCote will begin serving brunch on Sundays beginning November 6.

PARIS:  Lady Gaga, the Weeknd, and Bruno Mars will perform at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, which will air December 5 on CBS.

PHOENIX/SCOTTSDALE:  HRI Lodging has assumed management of the Scottsdale Inn, formerly known as the Days Inn Scottsdale. The hotel will undergo an extensive $12 million renovation and a rebranding with a new concept and name in 2017. This renovation will be led by Los-Angeles based real-estate and development company ESI Ventures.

SAN DIEGO:  Viejas Casino and Resort in Alpine has named Thomas McCartney president and general manager. He will oversee the construction and marketing of a new hotel tower that will be home to luxury suites, new restaurants, a luxury spa, and an expanded gaming floor.

SAN FRANCISCO:  The Orange County Visitors Association has launched O.M.G.O.C., a new integrated marketing campaign targeting the San Francisco market to promote tourism to Orange County.

SEATTLE:  SLS Seattle, which is expected to open in summer 2017, has named Tawny Paperd as director of sales and marketing, Leah Levar director of human resources, and Gavin Stephenson executive chef and director of food and beverage. The hotel will have 189 guest rooms and suites, nearly 28,000 square feet of conference and event space, Ciel Spa and fitness facilities, and 13,000 square feet of food and beverage offerings.

TORONTO:  Michael Bublé will host the 2017 Juno Awards, which will air live on CTV and CTV Go from the Candian Tire Centre in Ottawa on April 2.

WASHINGTON, D.C.:  The seventh annual National Race to End Women’s Cancer will take place Sunday at Freedom Plaza. Camille Grammer is the chair for the event, which is a fund-raiser for the Foundation for Women’s Cancer.

The Gaithersburg Marriott Washingtonian Center will debut renovations to 6,500 square feet of event space in early 2017. Renovations led by Georgia-based DesignOne studio will include upgrades to the Washingtonian Ballroom, a pre-function space, the Rio Meeting Room, and public areas.

Mandarin Oriental, Washington, D.C., has debuted newly renovated guest rooms by Kent Interior Design. The new decor is accented by shades of celadon and dashes of robin’s egg blue that play off earth tones and the rich dark wood furnishings. 

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With contributions from Jenny Berg in Chicago, Alesandra Dubin and Claire Hoffman in Los Angeles, Mitra Sorrells in Orlando, and Carla Hay, Beth Kormanik, Michele Laufik, Jill Menze, and Ian Zelaya in New York.

BizBash Daily is the must-read digest of event industry news from BizBash.com.

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